A system and method are provided for displaying an enhanced longitudinal scale providing user interface and awareness for executing the Next Gen Flight Deck Interval Management (FIM) and the Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (CDTI) application Enhanced Visual Separation on Approach (VSA) to provide a required spacing between aircraft based on distance and time. An own-ship and a reference aircraft are displayed in relation to a desired flight path. A symbol indicates the desired separation of the own-ship from the aircraft.

It is important for pilots to know the position of other aircraft in their airspace that may present a hazard to safe flight. Typical displays that illustrate other aircraft show text to provide important information such as altitude and speed. This text occupies much of the screen when there are several aircraft being displayed, thereby increasing the chance for confusion. Furthermore, the pilot must interpret the information provided in the text occupying his thought processes when he may have many other decisions to make.
With increased availability of Automated Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADSB) installations, Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (CDTI) displays can show surrounding traffic with increased accuracy and provide improved situation awareness. In the ADSB system, aircraft transponders receive GPS signals and determine the aircraft's precise position, which is combined with other data and broadcast out to other aircraft and air traffic controllers. This display of surrounding traffic increases the pilot's awareness of traffic over and above that provided by Air Traffic Control. One known application allows approach in-trail procedures and enhanced visual separation and stationery keeping. With the CDTI display, flight crews can find the in-trail target on the display and then follow the target. However, when the number of ADSB targets becomes numerous, particularly in the vicinity of an airport, identifying a specific target efficiently on a CDTI display can be time consuming. For in-trail targets, pilots are typically given a tail number by ATC, which must often be typed into the CDTI display by the pilot. This procedure allows for errors by the pilot potentially typing in the incorrect number and is time consuming.
Two upcoming applications that empower the pilot to maintain separation independently during cruise and approach are the Next Gen Flight Deck Interval Management (FIM) application and the CDTI application Enhanced Visual Separation on Approach (VSA). Both applications pair the own-ship with another 'target' or 'reference' aircraft and the flight crew is responsible for maintaining separation. The FIM relies on maintaining separation based on time. The CDTI VSA application relies on maintaining separation based on distance rather than time. These pilot controlled/delegated applications help in reducing the separation needed and thereby increase the capacity at an airport. Current cockpit displays do not have symbology that provides awareness of separation with another aircraft. There is no industry standard for a longitudinal scale.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a symbology that can display the aircraft separation and that can also be intuitive such that pilot can use it regardless of whether the desired separation is displayed based on time or distance. The symbology would also provide enough awareness/indications of the target aircraft deviations from flight plan and the target aircraft's next intended maneuver. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the exemplary embodiments will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.

System and method for maintaining aircraft separation based on distance or time


The invention relates to a method (100) for controlling a film production in which at least one film is produced depending on at least one specific recipe information (R), where the following steps are performed:                providing different fingerprints (F), the fingerprints (F) characterizing different method executions (210) for producing a film,        providing in each case at least one result information (E) for the respective fingerprint (F), the result information (E) being specific for at least one product property (D) of the produced film,        storing the fingerprints (F) and result information (E) as data in a data system (200) so that the data is provided as a basis for evaluation for controlling at least one subsequent method execution (210).

The present invention relates to a method for controlling a film production in which at least one film is produced depending on at least one specific recipe information. Furthermore, the invention refers to a control system and a computer program product.
It is known from the state of the art that films are manufactured depending on production information, the so-called recipe. This recipe is used to at least partially automatically parameterize the film production by defining various individual parameters, such as a material mixture or various method parameters for the film production machine. The film is produced, for example, by blowing, and the film production machine is, for example, an extrusion machine or the like.
It is also known that such film production machines monitor production parameters, i.e. the production is checked on the basis of the monitoring information determined. For example, temperature monitoring or film thickness monitoring is provided. In particular, an operator of the film production machine manually influences the production on the basis of the monitoring information.
A disadvantage of the well-known solutions for controlling film production is that monitoring and quality assurance during production often turns out to be complex. In particular, the technical implementation of monitoring and quality assurance is difficult and costly. For example, it is common for the film to be inspected only after film production or after further processing, e.g. by laboratory tests, in order to check the quality of the film. If the film does not meet the quality requirements, the film must be replaced. This leads to additional time and costs in film production and use.


System and method for infectious disease prevention includes transmitting, via a server, a facility credential associated with a facility configured to identify a user operating on an application deployed by server from a mobile computing device. The server receives a user identification test code (UITC) associated with a status of an infectious disease of the user. The server then generates a two-dimensional code associated with the facility credential based on the UITC. The server determines if the two-dimensional code is valid for permitting access to the facility based on the status of the infectious disease. Thereafter, the server activates the two-dimensional code on the mobile computing device for a predetermined period of time. A gatekeeper device responds to the two-dimensional code from the mobile computing device and then permits the user access to the facility within the predetermined period of time based on the facility credential and the two-dimensional code.

An instance where an illness and/or disease is widespread over multiple countries and continents is commonly referred to as a pandemic. Pandemics not only cause significant economic, social, and political disruption, but also require drastic modifications to the everyday lives of individuals. For example, SARS-CoV-2 (also know as Covid-19 or Coronavirus) has demanded a significant adjustment to traditional activities that include managing large congregations of people due to not only its inherent contagiousness but also the high mortality rate. For examples, activities such as sporting events, concerts, cruises, and other applicable activities that ordinarily draw large congregations of people have been drastically impacted and/or halted altogether due to the inability to simultaneously practice social distancing and prevent dissemination of the deadly disease. As a result, crucial components of the economy have been impacted dramatically such as the employment rate, venue availability, product demand, and many other aspects of the economy.
Precautionary measures such as social distancing, quarantining, and isolation are common attempts to mitigate the dissemination of the disease; however, a major drawback of these attempts is that they are counterintuitive to the concept of mass congregations. A recent adaptive approach is to virtualize the presence of spectators and audiences during live-streamed events by digitally imposing viewers streaming the events into designated "virtual fan" spots and integrating crowd sound-effects in an attempt to mimic the traditional venue environment. However, this approach not only fails to directly equate to the authentic packed venue environment, but more importantly it fails to address the aforementioned economic factors caused by the disease. Moreover, certain industries, such as concerts and other live performances, are solely dependent on the ability to assemble rendering it difficult to manage disease dissemination within enclosed environments.
Furthermore, preventative disease dissemination strategies such as contact tracing have been integrated into practice in an attempt to trace disease cases back to a carrier. However, these approaches lack the mechanisms necessary to efficiently collect large quantities of data associated with monitoring individuals' whereabouts and actions in addition to determining if an individual has tested positive for the disease within a reasonable timeframe. For example, an individual may be tested for the disease requiring at least 48 hours to receive the results of the test due to testing center logistics only for the individual to come into contact with numerous other individuals during this period of uncertainty.
Therefore, a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above. In particular, what is needed is a system and method to not only accurately test and monitor individuals, but also control access permissions of said individuals into venues and workspaces based on the result of their test.

Systems and methods for managing infectious disease dissemination


Recording signals can be reproduced without needing a deviation of a recording magnetic pole and a magneto-resistive element in a track width direction and without causing an off-track in a whole region from the inner side to the outer side. A sense current supplying circuit which supplies a predetermined sense current to the magneto-resistive element and can switch the direction of the sense current is provided. By control means such as an MPU or the like, the direction of the sense current by the sense current supplying circuit is switched in accordance with a cylinder position of a combination head, thereby magnetically changing the center position of a reproducing sensitivity of the magneto-resistive element in a track width direction. The combination head has a structure such that a geometrical center position of the magneto-resistive element in a read head and a geometrical center position of a recording magnetic pole in a write head are made to coincide in the track direction.

The invention relates to a magnetic disk apparatus using a magneto-resistive element as a read head and to a reproducing method of the magnetic disk apparatus. More particularly, the invention relates to a magnetic disk apparatus using a combination head integratedly comprising a read head using a magneto-resistive element and a write head using an inductive head and to a reproducing method of the magnetic disk apparatus.
In recent years, in association with a large capacity of a magnetic disk apparatus as an external memory apparatus of a computer, a magnetic head of a high performance is required. As an apparatus which satisfies such a requirement, attention is paid to a magnetic disk apparatus having what is called an MR (magneto-resistive) head using a magneto-resistive element which does not depend on a peripheral velocity of a recording medium and which can obtain a high reproduction output.
Hitherto, in a magnetic disk apparatus having a swing type positioning mechanism to which an MR head is attached, as shown in FIG. 1, by rotating a rotary positioner 22 by a voice coil motor, an arm 74 is swung and a magnetic head 14 is positioned. FIG. 2 is a diagram enlargedly showing a conventional magnetic head. The magnetic head 14 is provided at an edge surface of a slider 88 which is supported at a tip of the arm. As shown in FIG. 3, the magnetic head 14 is constructed by an inductive head and an MR head. The inductive head is constructed by an upper magnetic pole 76, a coil 78, and a lower magnetic pole 80 and performs a magnetic recording of a recording track 75 having a width of the lower edge surface of the upper magnetic pole 76. An MR element 25 serving as an MR head is arranged behind the inductive head. A pair of leads 84 (not shown) and 85 are pulled out from the MR element 25. A reproduction output is derived on the basis of a resistance change of the MR element 25 due to a recording magnetism of the recording track 75. As a reproduction output by the MR element 25, a high reproduction output is obtained at any cylinder positions without depending on a change in peripheral velocity at the cylinder position depending on a radius of the recording medium.
In a combination type magnetic head in which the recording magnetic poles 76 and 80 and the MR element 25 are separately constructed and are away from each other by a few pm, a relative position between an inner recording track 112 and an outer recording track 114 by the recording magnetic pole 76 changes due to the positioning by the rotary positioner 22 in FIG. 1 as shown in FIG. 4A. Therefore, in order to on-track the MR element 25 to both of the inner recording track 112 and outer recording track 114, a center 118 in the track width direction of the recording magnetic pole 76 and a center 120 in the track width direction of the MR element 25 are purposely deviated by only a micro distance .alpha., thereby constructing a magnetic head so that the MR element 25 is on-tracked onto a recording track in a whole region from the inner position to the outer position.
However, in such a conventional magnetic disk apparatus in which the combination head integratedly comprising the MR head and the inductive head is positioned by the rotary positioner, the head is arranged for each of both recording surfaces of the recording medium. For example, when the heads are vertically arranged, it is necessary to deviate the recording magnetic pole 76 and MR element 25 in the reverse direction for the head on the up-side and the head on the down-side. Namely, FIGS. 4A and 4B show an up-head 14-1 and FIGS. 5A and 5B show a down-head 14-2. As shown in FIGS. 4A and 5A, when both heads 14-1 and 14-2 are seen as plan views, the center 120 of the MR element 25 is deviated from the center 118 of the recording magnetic pole 76 toward the outer side by the predetermined amount .alpha.. However, since the down-head 14-2 corresponds to the head which is obtained by turning over the up-head 14-1 in FIG. 4B and oppositely arranging as shown in FIG. 5B, it is necessary to oppositely deviate the recording magnetic pole 76 and MR element 25. Therefore, it is necessary to prepare different masks in the head manufacturing step and, further, it is necessary to individually assemble the up-head and down-head to the arm in the head assembling step. There are problems such that the manufacturing step is complicated and the costs rise.

Magnetic disk apparatus and method that reverses sense current in magnetoresistive head


Techniques and systems to provide automatic positioning of a tripping apparatus. A system may include a sensor configured to detect a physical characteristic of a tubular string moving past the sensor and generate a signal indicative of the physical characteristic. The system may also include a processing device configured to process the signal indicative of the physical characteristic, determine whether the processed signal is indicative of a deviation of the tubular string, and generate output data utilized to automatically position a tripping apparatus at a location of the deviation on the tubular string.

This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Advances in the petroleum industry have allowed access to oil and gas drilling locations and reservoirs that were previously inaccessible due to technological limitations. For example, technological advances have allowed drilling of offshore wells at increasing water depths and in increasingly harsh environments, permitting oil and gas resource owners to successfully drill for otherwise inaccessible energy resources. Likewise, drilling advances have allowed for increased access to land based reservoirs.
Much of the time spent in drilling to reach these reservoirs is wasted "non-productive time" (NPT) that is spent in doing activities which do not increase well depth, yet may account for a significant portion of costs. For example, when drill pipe is pulled out of or lowered into a previously drilled section of well it is generally referred to as "tripping." Accordingly, tripping-in may include lowering drill pipe into a well (e.g., running in the hole or RIH) while tripping-out may include pulling a drill pipe out of the well (pulling out of the hole or POOH). Tripping operations may be performed to, for example, installing new casing, changing a drill bit as it wears out, cleaning and/or treating the drill pipe and/or the wellbore to allow more efficient drilling, running in various tools that perform specific jobs required at certain times in the oil well construction plan, etc. Additionally, tripping operations may require a large number of threaded pipe joints to be disconnected (broken-out) or connected (made-up). Currently, this process involves visual inspection by a human operator to locate a seam (e.g., a break point between pipe segments) and may further include human fine tuning of the position of the seam into an appropriate location so that the tripping operation may be undertaken.


Provided are: a polishing pad which is capable of alleviating a scratch problem that occurs when a conventional hard (dry) polishing pad is used, and which is excellent in polishing rate and polishing uniformity and is usable not only for primary polishing but also for finish polishing; and a method for producing the polishing pad. The polishing pad is for polishing a semiconductor device and includes a polishing layer having a polyurethane-polyurea resin molded body containing cells of a substantially spherical shape. The polyurethane-polyurea resin molded body has a ratio of closed cells of 60 to 98%. The polyurethane-polyurea resin molded body has a ratio tan δ of a loss modulus E″ to a storage modulus E′ (loss modulus/storage modulus) of 0.15 to 0.30. The storage modulus E′ is 1 to 100 MPa. The polyurethane-polyurea resin molded body has a density D of 0.4 to 0.8 g/cm3.

Surfaces of materials of silicon, hard disks, mother glasses for liquid-crystal displays, semiconductor devices, and so forth need to be flat, and accordingly are polished by a loose abrasive process using a polishing pad. The loose abrasive process is a method for polishing a work surface of a workpiece, while supplying a slurry (polishing liquid) containing abrasive grains between the polishing pad and the non-polished object.
As for a polishing pad for semiconductor devices, the surface of the polishing pad is required to have: opened pores for retaining abrasive grains; a hardness for keeping the flatness of the surfaces of the semiconductor devices; and an elasticity for preventing a scratch on the surfaces of the semiconductor devices. As polishing pads that meet these requirements, there have been utilized polishing pads which have a polishing layer produced from a urethane resin foam.
The urethane resin foam is generally molded by curing a prepolymer containing a polyurethane bond-containing isocyanate compound through a reaction with a curing agent (dry method). Then, the foam is sliced into a sheet shape, and thus a polishing pad is formed. In the case of a polishing pad having a hard polishing layer molded by the dry method as described above (hereinafter, sometimes abbreviated as a hard (dry) polishing pad), relatively small cells of a substantially spherical shape are formed inside the foam during the curing and molding of the urethane resin. Hence, on the polishing surface of the polishing pad formed by the slicing, opened pores (openings) are formed, which can retain a slurry during polishing.
Conventional mainstream urethane resin foams serving as a material of polishing pads for semiconductor devices have a cell diameter of 100 μm or less, and mostly have around 30 μm (Patent Literature 1). Moreover, the mainstream urethane resin foams have an A hardness of 70 degrees or more, a D hardness of 45 degrees or more (Patent Literatures 2 and 3), and a density is 0.5 g/cm3 or more (Patent Literature 1). As to the elasticity, the storage modulus is mainly several hundreds of MPa or more (Patent Literature 4). The modulus of longitudinal elasticity (Young's modulus) is mainly 500 MPa or more (Patent Literature 5).
Moreover, other than the above mainstream urethane resin foams, urethane resin foams have been improved in physical properties from the viewpoints of bulk density, A hardness, and hard segment content (HSC) (%) in order to optimize the degree of wearing and to stabilize the polishing performance (Patent Literature 6). Further, there are also reports on polishing pads, which are adjusted to have a storage modulus within a predetermined range in order to reduce occurrence of a scratch (Patent Literatures 7, 8).
In addition, there is a report on a polishing pad, which is improved in the A hardness and the modulus of compression elasticity by having a phase-separated structure made clear by: obtaining component amounts of a crystalline phase (L), an interface phase (M), and an amorphous phase (S) and the spin-spin relaxation times (T2) thereof from free induction decay signals (FID) in pulsed NMR; and then optimizing the T2 and the component amount of M (Patent Literature 9). Further, there is a report that, by adjusting a ratio of a hard segment present in a foamed polyurethane in pulsed NMR measurement to 55 to 70%, a polishing pad is made to exhibit properties such as being hard as well as being easily broken under tension with little elongation and has an enhanced dressing property while maintaining the high hardness (Patent Literature 10).

Polishing pad and method for producing same


A pet collar which incorporates into a collar strap a buckle with its usual length adjustability features, and a quick release incorporated into the collar strap in intimate and operative association with the buckle. Once the length of the collar strap is initially adjusted, using the buckle, to the neck size of the pet for which the collar is intended, subsequent removal and reapplication of the collar to the pet is effected by the quick release aspect of the invention without disturbing the length adjustment established by the buckle.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to pet collars.
2. Description of the Related Art
Pet collars, especially collars for dogs, are designed for restraining the pet, hence collars for larger or stronger pets frequently are relatively stiff and made of a strong material such as leather or strong plastic. Most commonly, the collar is secured about a pet's neck by means of a buckle only. Such collars may be difficult to manipulate when attaching or removing the collar from the pet and adjusting the collar to fit properly about the pet's neck, especially when dealing with a hyperactive or otherwise uncooperative pet.
Commonly relatively large buckles are employed for releaseably fastening the collar about the neck of the pet. Buckles have, over time, become a desired distinguishing feature of a pet collar and therefore their elimination is not desired in view of their usefulness in adjusting a collar to fit a given pet. In certain pet collars, the buckle also served as the attachment location for a leash for the pet.
However, irrespective of the desire to retain the usefulness of buckles known in the art for pet collars, there remains the problem of threading a loose end of the collar through the buckle and inserting the retention prong of the buckle through a throughbore defined through the thickness of the collar each and every time the collar is either adjusted about the pet's neck or when removing and later reattaching the collar about the pet's neck. This activity can become frustrating to both the pet and the owner by reason of the relative stiffness of the collar and its resistance to being bent as is required to engage the loose end of the collar within the buckle. Still further, each time a buckle-type collar is applied about the pet's neck, the owner must deal with the adjustment of the collar about the pet's neck. Still further, removing a buckle type collar from a pet in an emergency situation is of concern.
Similarly, other collars employ quick release clips that simplify the process of attaching and removing the collar from around a pet's neck. Unfortunately, quick release clips generally increase the complexity of length adjustment by requiring the collar to be threaded through a retention port several times. The length of the collar is subject to unintended adjustment if slippage occurs, especially when improperly threaded.


An endoluminal prosthetic assembly includes a trunk body including first and second elongated branches. The trunk body and elongated branches include a bifurcated body lumen formed therein. The assembly further includes an extension cuff including a cuff branch and an access port. The extension cuff, cuff branch, and access port include a bifurcated cuff lumen formed therein. A portion of the extension cuff is retainably positioned within the trunk body. A portion of the cuff branch is retainably positioned within one of the elongated branches. The cuff lumen is in communication with the body lumen. A method of extending an endoluminal prosthetic assembly deployed in a bifurcated vessel is also provided. The assembly includes a trunk body including first and second elongated branches. A portion of a compressed extension cuff is positioned within the trunk body and the first elongated branch. The compressed extension cuff is expanded into operable engagement with the trunk body and the first elongated branch.

Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) represent one of the most common types of aneurysms and result in about 15,000 deaths annually in the United States. An aneurysm is produced when a thinning or weak spot in a vessel wall dilates eventually posing a health risk from its potential to rupture, clot, or dissect. An aneurysm frequently occurs in arteries, but may also form in veins. The etiology of aneurysm formation is not entirely understood, but is thought to be related to congenital thinning of the artery, atherosclerotic vessel degeneration, vessel trauma, infection, smoking, high blood pressure, and other causes leading to vessel degeneration. Left untreated, AAA may lead to gradual vessel expansion, thrombus formation leading to stroke or other vessel blockage, vessel rupture, shock, and eventual death.
AAA are generally localized on long abdominal aortic sections below the renal arteries and oftentimes extend into one or both of the iliac arteries. The aneurysm may begin with a small vessel distension that progressively enlarges at a variable and unpredictable rate. An AAA may enlarge at an average rate of about 0.3–0.5 cm per year. The AAA may continue to enlarge in a silent fashion until a catastrophic event, such as a rupture, occurs. The best predictor of rupture risk is size, wherein rupture is relatively uncommon in AAA less than 5 cm. Once reaching about 8 cm, however, there is about a 75 percent chance of rupture within a year. Besides rupture, another risk of AAA is thrombus dissection. As the vessel enlarges, a thrombus may develop in the aneurysm due to perturbations in blood flow dynamics. Pieces of the clot may eventually loosen and carry away, eventually forming blockages in the legs, lungs, or brain.
AAA are most commonly treated in open surgical procedures, where the diseased vessel segment is bypassed and repaired with an artificial vascular graft. While considered to be an effective surgical technique, particularly considering the alternative of the usually fatal ruptured AAA, conventional vascular graft surgery suffers from a number of disadvantages. The surgical procedure is complex and requires experienced surgeons and well equipped surgical facilities. Even with the best surgeons and equipment, patients suffering from such aneurysms are often elderly and weakened from cardiovascular and other diseases. This factor reduces the number of patients eligible for surgery. Even for eligible patients prior to rupture, conventional aneurysm repair has a relatively high mortality rate, usually from 2 to 10%. Morbidity related to the conventional surgery includes myocardial infarction, renal failure, impotence, paralysis, and other conditions. Even with successful surgery, recovery takes several weeks and often requires a lengthy hospital stay.
To overcome some of the drawbacks associated with open surgery, a variety of endovascular prosthesis placement techniques have been proposed. Without the need for open abdominal surgery, patient complications and recovery time may be significantly reduced. One endovascular AAA repair technique involves a tubular prosthesis deployed by remote insertion through a femoral artery. The prosthesis may include a synthetic graft sheath body supported by an expandable structure such as a stent. The stent may be self-expanding or balloon-expanding and typically includes means for anchoring the prosthesis to the vessel wall. The stent-graft acts as a shunt to carry blood flow from a healthy portion of the aorta, through the aneurysm, and into one or both of the iliac artery branches. The prosthesis excludes any thrombus present in the aneurysm while providing mechanical reinforcement of the weakened vessel reducing the risk of dissection and rupture, respectively.
A number of endovascular AAA stent-graft prosthesis designs are known. For aneurysms proximal to the iliac arteries, many of the designs utilize bifurcated structures. Bifurcated stent-graft prostheses generally have a trunk portion with a relatively large lumen deployed in the aorta, and first and second branch portions with smaller branch lumens deployed within each of the iliac arteries. The deployed trunk and branch portions preferably seal to each other and to the healthy vascular walls beyond the aneurysm to isolate the aneurysm from the bloodstream. Advantageously, the aortic blood flow enters the trunk prosthetic lumen, is separated into the two branch prosthetic lumens, and then flows into each of the iliac arteries in a path that approximates that of a normal, healthy vascular system.
In certain situations, it is desirable to extend the length of the deployed prosthesis trunk portion and provide a seal further up the aorta, into healthy vascular tissue. Failing to do so may result in leakage into the aneurysm. Trunk extension may be warranted after prosthesis migration resulting from morphological changes in the aneurysm, or during prosthesis deployment in a tortuous vessel. The trunk extension may be performed after the AAA repair procedure, as with prosthesis migration, or during the initial procedure, as with a tortuous vessel. Extension may be accomplished by deploying a tubular shaped extension cuff partially within the trunk body. The deployed extension cuff may extend the effective length of the prosthesis and provide a seal to healthy vascular tissue. Multiple extension cuffs may be used in series to further extend the prosthesis length or to negotiate particularly tortuous vessel paths.
An extension cuff is generally a stent-graft device that allows adjustment of the length of the implanted bifurcated prosthesis. The extension cuff may expand to a diameter slightly larger than the prosthesis trunk portion thereby providing sealed attachment between the trunk and cuff. Frictional forces between the overlapping surfaces usually prevent the cuff from detaching from the primary stent-graft module. At its other end, the extension cuff may seal against healthy vascular tissue minimizing blood flow into the aneurysm. Such deployment of the second branch can be very straightforward and in situ deployment of a bifurcated prostheses and extension cuff appears to hold significant promise for many AAA patients.
One shortcoming associated with the extended prosthetic stent-graft relates to extension cuff separation. The AAA may vary widely in location, size, and the distended shape of the aneurysm itself. Particularly after treatment, the aneurysm and associated vessels may drastically change morphology thereby exerting stress forces on the deployed prosthesis. A significant amount of stress may be exerted on the joint between the trunk portion and the extension cuff. Multiple extension cuffs used in series may be particularly vulnerable to such stresses due to the presence of multiple joints. With sufficient change in aneurysm morphology and subsequent stress placed on the joint(s), the extension cuff may separate from the prosthesis. The patient may have to undergo another treatment given the problem is detected early. Undetected module separation may lead to continued leakage, aneurysm regrowth, and even the more serious problems associated with AAA. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to prevent separation of the extension cuff from the endoluminal prosthesis.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a bifurcated endoluminal prosthetic assembly and a method of extending an endoluminal prosthetic assembly that overcomes the aforementioned and other disadvantages.

Endoluminal prosthetic assembly and extension method


An improved light-readable information recording disc is provided in which the optical data storage structure consists of either lands and pits or lands and bumps, in which the depth of the pits or the height of the bumps, respectively, is controlled to approximate one-half of the wavelength of the light striking the optical data storage structure. Unexpected and surprising improvements over conventional optical recording discs is achieved through increased light intensity differences detected at the changeover between pits/bumps and lands.

This invention relates to information recording media in the form of light-readable discs, and, more particularly, to an improved design for such media which, among other benefits, will tolerate greater error in the manufacturing process and permit the use of less expensive optical reading equipment.
Such light-readable information recording media in the form of discs are well known, as shown, for example, in Kramer U.S. Pat. No. 5,068,846.
Commercially available audio compact discs ("CDs") and compact disc read-only memories ("CD-ROMs") are examples of recording media of this general type. Recent interest has also been shown in using media of this type for recording other kinds of information, such as movies or other similar real-time audio/visual programming.
Storage of such information in digital form requires enormous capacity. In addition to the storage of data itself, the recording medium must also provide for error correction, synchronization and modulation of the stored data.
For example, in general commercial use, standard disc-shaped audio recording media are designed to be approximately 120 millimeters in diameter. A center hole approximately 15 millimeters in diameter is provided to accommodate the shaft of the player spindle around which the disc rotates. As a result, the area immediately adjacent the center hole must be utilized as a clamping area, and can hold no data. Space for data is therefore limited.
Because such a large amount of data must be stored in such a small area, the details of the optical storage structure must be extremely small. This leads not only to extremely tight manufacturing tolerances but also requires sensitive optical reading devices.
In cross-section, the disc-shaped, light-readable recording medium in general commercial use is approximately 1.2 millimeters thick. Although any transparent material may be used to form the predominant portion of the medium, polycarbonate plastic with a refractive index of 1.55 is typically used. Data are contained in a pit and land structure impressed along the top surface of this transparent material. This structure is covered by a very thin, adherent, metal reflective layer which is conductive in nature, typically aluminum, of approximately 70 nanometers thickness. Atop this is placed a protective layer of approximately 10 to 30 micrometers, typically lacquer, which fills the pit indentations in the reflective layer and provides a smooth, substantially planar upper surface for the medium upon which labelling or other information may be placed.
The optical structure of the medium is read by a laser beam which is configured below the medium, in typical use operating at a wavelength of 780 nanometers in air and focussed at the reflective layer. The laser beam passes through the bottom of the transparent material and through the optical structure of pits and lands (which is seen by the laser from below as a series of bumps and lands), and is reflected off the reflective layer, through the transparent material and out of the medium to an optical reading structure.
It is generally accepted that the means by which the data are read (and, hence, the means by which the difference between bumps and lands is seen by the optical reader) is through utilization of destructive interference caused by diffraction effects. This has led to the standardization of pit depth/bump height (depending upon the plane of reference) in commercial light-readable information recording media at just less than approximately one-quarter of the wavelength of the laser light within the transparent material. Light from a laser operating at 780 nanometers would have a wavelength within the polycarbonate material of the media (R.I.=1.55) of approximately 503 nanometers. For tracking reasons well known to those skilled in the art, pit depth/bump height has been standardized at just less than a perfect one-quarter wavelength, or 126 nanometers. This is reflected in the recommendation of Philips, the assignee of the Kramer patent, that the compact disc pit depth/bump height be maintained at approximately 0.12 microns.
The reasoning behind a standard of approximately one-quarter wavelength is set forth in K. Pohlmann, The Compact Disc Handbook, 2d ed. (1992), an accepted reference on CD design. At pages 55-56, Prof. Pohlmann describes the generally accepted view of the operation of the light-readable information recording system in which the pit depth/bump height is preferably maintained near one-quarter of the wavelength of the light:
"Light striking land thus travels at a distance one-half the wavelength (one-quarter plus one-quarter) further than light striking a bump. This creates a phase difference of one-half wavelength between the part of the beam reflected from the bump and the part reflected from the surrounding land . . . . The phase difference causes the two parts of the beam to destructively interfere with and cancel each other, forming a diffractive pattern. In short, a bump disperses light, reducing the intensity of the reflected light."
This reduced intensity stands in sharp contrast to the reflection of virtually all of the light from the land, enabling the optical reader beneath the medium to detect the point of changeover from bump to land. Indeed, the greater the intensity difference, the easier it becomes for the optical reader to detect the changeover. Thus, Philips recommends a pit depth equal to one-quarter wavelength to achieve maximum diffraction efficiency.
In light of this accepted view of the method of operation of a light-readable information recording system, it stands to reason that a light-readable disc utilizing a pit depth/bump height of one-half the wavelength of the laser light being used would be inoperable. Viewed again from the perspective of an optical reader beneath the medium, light striking land would travel one full wavelength (one-half plus one-half) farther than light striking a bump. This would place the part of the beam reflected from the bump and the part reflected from the surrounding land in perfect phase, yielding no destructive interference and, consequently, no difference in light intensity. In such event, an optical reader would be completely unable to differentiate between bumps and lands and thereby incapable of retrieving any data.
Unexpectedly and completely contrary to the conventional view, it has been determined that, by designing the pit depth/bump height to be approximately one-half of the wavelength of the laser light source, an improved light-readable recording disc can be achieved. Not only has such a disc been found to be operable, but it has been determined that the intensity difference between the bump and land areas detected by an optical reader is actually greater than for the one-quarter wavelength pit previously thought to be optimal.
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of this invention to provide a light-readable information recording disc that is easier to read, which can thereby reduce the cost and complication of optical reading devices.
It is another object of this invention to provide an improved light-readable information recording disc which, by virtue of the stronger signal intensity difference that it generates, will provide for greater tolerance in the manufacturing of such discs.

Light-readable recording disc utilizing half-wavelength pits or bumps and system for reading such discs


A method for shortening the shear recovery time of cationic, zwitterionic, and amphoteric viscoelastic surfactant fluid systems by adding an effective amount of a rheology enhancer selected from partially hydrolyzed polyvinyl ester and partially hydrolyzed polyacrylates. The rheology enhancer also increases fluid viscosity and very low rheology enhancer concentration is needed. Preferred surfactants are betaines and quaternary amines. The fluids are useful in oilfield treatments, for example fracturing and gravel packing.

The invention relates to rheology enhancers for viscoelastic surfactant fluid systems (VES's). More particularly it relates to selection and optimization of rheology enhancers for fluid systems to be used over broad ranges of salinity and temperature. Most particularly it relates to rheology enhancers to shorten shear recovery times and increase the viscosity of VES's for use in oilfield treatment fluids.
Certain surfactants, when in aqueous solution, form viscoelastic fluids. Such surfactants are termed "viscoelastic surfactants", or "VES's". Other components, such as additional VES's, co-surfactants, buffers, acids, solvents, and salts, are optional or necessary and perform such functions as increasing the stability (especially thermal stability) or increasing the viscosity of the systems by modifying and/or stabilizing the micelles; all the components together are called a viscoelastic surfactant system. Not to be limited by theory, but many viscoelastic surfactant systems form long rod-like or worm-like micelles in aqueous solution. Entanglement of these micelle structures gives viscosity and elasticity to the fluid. For a fluid to have good viscosity and elasticity under given conditions, proper micelles must be formed and proper entanglement is needed. This requires the surfactant's structure to satisfy certain geometric requirements and the micelles to have sufficient length or interconnections for adequate entanglements.
Many chemical additives are known to improve the rheological behavior (greater viscosity and/or greater stability and/or greater brine tolerance and/or lower shear sensitivity and/or faster rehealing if micelles are disrupted, for example by shear). Such materials are typically called co-surfactants, rheology modifiers, or rheology enhancers, etc., and typically are alcohols, organic acids such as carboxylic acids and sufonic acids, sulfonates, and others. We shall use the term rheology enhancers here. Such materials often have different effects, depending upon their exact composition and concentration, relative to the exact surfactant composition (for example hydrocarbon chain lengths of groups in the surfactant and co-surfactant) and concentration. For example, such materials may be beneficial at some concentrations and harmful (lower viscosity, reduced stability, greater shear sensitivity, longer rehealing times) at others.
In particular, many VES fluid systems exhibit long viscosity recovery times after experiencing prolonged high shear. Slow recovery negatively impacts drag reduction and proppant transport capability, which consequently lead to undesirably high treating pressures and risks of near wellbore screen-outs. Although additives are known that can shorten VES shear recovery times and increase viscosities, there is a need for additional simple, inexpensive rheology enhancers.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Viscoelastic surfactant rheology modification


A compact bass speaker cabinet uses a long, narrow, tapered waveguide that acts as does a small radial portion of the air outside a large pulsating sphere, and has the same bass response as the large pulsating sphere. The smaller end is closed and the longer end is open. In one embodiment the inside of the waveguide is a rectangle about an inch thick and substantially as wide as the speaker or speakers that are mounted on the wider surface close to or slightly overlapping the closed end; and the inside surfaces are tapered so that they meet at a point which lies beyond the closed end by a distance equal to the radian wavelength of the longest sound wave that is to be produced.

A source of sound and/or non-sound air motion (such as a loudspeaker) has been coupled to various hollow devices usually called horns or waveguides. These have been used to direct sound and also in attempts to generate low-frequency sound.
One type of waveguide associated with generation of low-frequency sound is the "exponential" horn or waveguide. The name refers to the cross-sectional area (the area of a plane taken across the length of the horn), which increases exponentially with distance from the small end. In such horns the speaker is mounted, usually coaxially, at the smaller end. An exponential horn has no zero or convergence point at which the diameter reaches zero (corresponding to the apex of a cone), and therefore the placement of the speaker cannot constitute any choice of distance from a zero point in an exponential horn.
Another known type of acoustic waveguide has a conical interior space, and this is an example of a waveguide or horn in which the cross-sectional area does not increase exponentially with distance from the small end, but instead increases as the square of the distance from the small end. Unlike an exponential horn, it has a point at which the area is zero, which is referred to as a zero point (for example, the sides of a cone meet at one point, the apex).
A conical horn represents a sector of a sphere. Other sectors of a sphere have the same area development: any closed curve on the surface of a sphere (for example, a rectangle) can define a tapering shape of a waveguide or horn by connecting all the points of the closed curve to the center point of the sphere by respective straight lines. A waveguide or horn in which the cross-sectional area increases as the square of the distance from a zero point will be referred to herein as a "radial" waveguide or horn. However, as discussed in the provisional application, such a radial waveguide or horn is not limited to shapes with straight lines between the zero point and the open end, as long as the cross-sectional area develops substantially as the square of the distance from the zero point (center or convergence point when the waveguide is a projection of straight lines from one point).
Conical waveguides have been used with loudspeakers and other diaphragms. Some early mechanical record players used a mechanically-driven diaphragm (driver) coupled to a conical horn, with the axes of the horn and the driver aligned. Often a flared bell was placed at the end of the horn. The same basic design is still used in some modern public-address equipment, although exponential horns are more common.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,979,149 to Carlsson discloses a conical waveguide with "loudspeaker mechanisms" 5-9 (which may or may not be loudspeakers; they are drawn to resemble wire mesh) mounted at the smaller end and also on a plate 24 that "closes" the larger end of the cone. The loudspeaker mechanism 3′ that is mounted in the plate 24 "is mainly used for low frequencies" while the higher frequencies are produced by a smaller loudspeaker mechanism 5 located at the smaller end (col. 3, lines 54-61). Carlsson teaches generating bass sound with a loudspeaker located at the larger end of a conical waveguide, which is contrary to the invention set out below.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,628,528 shows in FIG. 2 a loudspeaker mounted at one end of a "hard tube 33" (col. 3, line 45) with the axes of the loudspeaker and the tube aligned. This arrangement is said to function as "an acoustic transmission line of length l." The patent discusses this arrangement according to the conventional theory of organ pipes and the like, which is based on the idea that sound waves reflect from the open end and create a resonance. This theory, which the applicants think is incorrect (because the speed of sound is essentially the same inside and outside of a tube, and therefore there is not actually any impedance mismatch at the open end), fails to take note of the non-resonant effects of a tube on a speaker. FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 6,278,789 shows a loudspeaker mounted coaxially in a tube, with damping material 14 "near" the driver 11; this patent teaches that damping material at the open end reduces bass output (col. 1, line 60). FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 3,978,941, likewise, shows a loudspeaker coaxially mounted in a tube, but here the damping material lines the sides of the tube.
A conical waveguide coupled with a coaxial driver is used in the Peavey Quadratic-Throat Waveguide. A white paper on the Peavey Quadratic-Throat Waveguide (http://aa.peavey.com) states, "The weakness of conical horns lies in their acoustical loading characteristics for the transducer, which is insufficient at the low-frequency end." (Contrary to this teaching, the inventors have demonstrated that a conical horn can exhibit high acoustical loading at bass frequencies.) The Quadratic-Throat Waveguide places the apex of the cone at the surface of the driver (loudspeaker element), which inhibits bass response for reasons discussed below.
The Yorkville company's Unity speaker cabinets use a wide-angle conical horn with speakers mounted on the side of the cone adjacent to the cone's apex. Yorkville describes it as "Summation Aperture Horn Technology, which was invented by loudspeaker designer Tom Danley" (quoting http://www.yorkville.com/products.asp?type=29&cat=38 which cites U.S. Pat. No. 6,411,718 B1). The design uses an axial high frequency compression driver and three midrange drivers all mounted on the side of a single 60°×60° conical horn. The company claims frequencies from 300 Hz to 20 kHz for the horn, and provides a 15-inch subwoofer in the same cabinet as the horn, which demonstrates that the horn does not produce adequate bass.
The Yorkville websites quotes "patent holder Tom Danley" as stating, "with a conical horn, . . . the expansion rate acts as a high pass filter, the low frequency energy does not couple to the mouth. Move a few inches toward the mouth and one finds the expansion rate is much slower and suitable for low midrange, if only that was where the driver was. All one has to do is obtain a mid driver, suitable for efficient horn loading in that frequency band and find the point in the flare where the expansion rate is suitable for that frequency range and couple the sound in at that point. Because the compression driver and each mid driver are less than ¼ wavelength apart, their output combines fully and coherently, something which cannot happen if the driver were further than about ⅓ wavelength apart."
Thus, the prior art recognizes that mounting a speaker farther from the apex of a cone increases the bass response. However, the prior artisans have not utilized this observation to produce bass, because of what is believed to be a misguided theory. According to the website, "The Unity™ technology takes advantage of the variable flare rate nature of a conical horn. By sectioning the horn according to the expansion rate, the horn can be divided into frequency bands and be loaded with suitable drivers mounted outside the acoustic path." The applicants base their own design on a completely different theory, and have achieved much better results in producing sound waves that are long in comparison to the size of a horn.
Yorkville's placement of the larger drivers close to the apex, and the failure to truncate the cone immediately below the larger drivers, are inefficient in generating bass, for the reasons set out below. Like the Peavey design, the Yorkville design apparently includes space in the apex of the cone beyond the midrange speakers, which increases the length of the waveguide and also decreases the bass radiating efficiency.
The problem with existing combinations of radial horns and drivers is that their designs do not mimic the action of a large spherical or plane radiator, which are the known models for efficient radiation of bass sound, and therefore cannot generate bass sound efficiently. There has been a need for more efficient production of bass sound.


A plasma addressed liquid crystal display device having a flat panel structure where a liquid crystal cell is superposed on a plasma cell. The liquid crystal cell includes a front substrate with data electrodes arranged in columns, an intermediate substrate bonded to the front substrate via a predetermined gap, and a liquid crystal filled in the gap. The plasma cell includes a rear substrate joined to the intermediate substrate via a predetermined space, and discharge channels formed in the space and arranged in rows. The intermediate substrate is dimensionally so set as to include an overlapping planar region of the front substrate and the rear substrate which are different in shape from each other. Further a plurality of barrier ribs for prescribing the space dimension in the plasma cell are existent between the intermediate and rear substrates over the planar region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a plasma addressed liquid crystal display device having a flat panel structure where a liquid crystal cell is superposed on a plasma cell, and more particularly to the shape of an intermediate substrate (microsheet) disposed between a liquid crystal cell and a plasma cell for separating them from each other. Further the invention relates also to a processing technique adopted in assembling a liquid crystal cell on a plasma cell.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is known a plasma addressed display device where a plasma cell is utilized for addressing a liquid crystal cell, as disclosed for example in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 4-265931 which corresponds to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/837,961 for an Electro Optical Device, filed by Shigeki Miyazaki on Feb. 20, 1992. As shown in FIG. 4, the above plasma addressed display device has a flat panel structure comprising a liquid crystal cell 101, a plasma cell 102 and a common intermediate substrate 103 interposed therebetween. The intermediate substrate 103 is composed of an extremely thin glass sheet or the like and is termed a microsheet. The plasma cell 102 consists of a rear substrate 104 joined to the intermediate substrate 103, and an ionizable gas is contained hermetically in a space defined therebetween. Striped discharge electrodes 105 are formed on an inner surface of the rear substrate 104. Since the discharge electrodes 105 can be produced through print baking on the flat rear substrate 104 by a screen printing process or the like, it is possible to attain superior productivity and workability with another advantage of adequacy for miniaturization. Barrier ribs 106 are formed on the discharge electrodes 105 to divide the space where the ionizable gas is hermetically contained, thereby constituting discharge channels 107. The barrier ribs 106 can also be baked by a screen printing process, and the respective tops thereof abut on one surface of the intermediate substrate 103. The striped discharge electrodes 105 function as anodes A and cathodes K alternately to generate plasma discharge therebetween. The intermediate substrate 103 and the rear substrate 104 are joined to each other by the use of glass frit 108 or the like.
Meanwhile the liquid crystal cell 101 is composed of a transparent front substrate 109. The front substrate 109 is bonded to the other surface of the intermediate substrate 103 with a predetermined gap retained therebetween by the use of a sealant 110 or the like, and the gap is filled with a liquid crystal 111. Data electrodes 112 are formed on the inner surface of the front substrate 109 in a manner to be orthogonal to the striped discharge electrodes 105. And matrix pixels are prescribed at the intersections of the data electrodes 112 and the discharge channels 107.
In the plasma addressed display device of the structure mentioned above, display driving is performed by line-sequentially switching and scanning the row discharge channels 107 where plasma discharges are generated and simultaneously applying, in synchronism with the scanning, picture signals to the column data electrodes 112 on the side of the liquid crystal cell 101. Upon generation of plasma discharges in the discharge channels 107, the inside is turned to the anode potential substantially uniformly, and the pixels are selected per row. That is, each discharge channel functions as a sampling switch. When a picture signal is applied to each pixel in a conducting state of the plasma sampling switch, the sampled pixel can be turn on or off under control. And even after the plasma sampling switch is turned to its non-conducting state, the picture signal is still held in the related pixel.
The intermediate substrate 103, which physically separates the liquid crystal cell 101 and the plasma cell 102 from each other, has an extremely small thickness of 50 .mu.m or so for electrically coupling the two cells. Therefore the intermediate substrate 103 is termed a microsheet. The front substrate 109 is bonded onto such microsheet through the sealant 110 with a gap retained therebetween, and the gap is filled with the liquid crystal 111 and hermetically sealed to constitute the liquid crystal cell 101. This gap has a further smaller dimension of 5 .mu.m or so. And for the purpose of ensuring a stable superior picture quality on the display, it is requisite to achieve uniform dimensional control of the gap over the entire display area. However, it has been difficult heretofore to realize satisfactory uniform control of the gap dimension.

Plasma addressed liquid crystal display device


A method includes forming a resistance-switching layer and a second electrode over a first electrode. The method includes applying a forming voltage to the resistance-switching layer such that the resistance of the resistance-switching layer is decreased. The method includes applying an initial reset voltage to the first electrode or the second electrode such that the resistance of the resistance-switching layer is increased. The method includes applying a first set voltage to the first electrode or the second electrode such that the resistance of the resistance-switching layer is decreased. The method includes applying a second reset voltage to first electrode or the second electrode such that the resistance of the resistance-switching layer is increased. The method includes applying a second set voltage to first electrode or the second electrode such that the resistance of the resistance-switching layer is decreased. The second set voltage is lower than the first set voltage.

1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates to structures and formation methods of memory devices, and in particular to structures and formation methods of resistive random-access memory (RRAM) devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a variety of consumer electronic products have become popular, increasing the demand for non-volatile memory devices. Flash memory is one of the mainstream non-volatile memory devices. However, since the size of the devices continues to shrink, flash memory devices have encountered issues such as high operation voltages, slow operation speeds, and bad data retention ability. As a result, future development of the flash memory device is limited.
Therefore, many materials and apparatuses of new type non-volatile memory devices are under development. New type non-volatile memory devices include, for example, magnetic random access memory (MRAM) devices, phase change memory (PCM) devices, and resistive random access memory (RRAM) devices. Among the non-volatile memory devices, RRAM devices have many advantages such as low power consumption, low operation voltages, short write and erase times, high reliability, long memory time, non-destructive read-out, multi-state memory, process simplicity, and only a small area is required.
However, the yield and the efficiency of RRAM devices still need further improvement.


In a method and MRI apparatus for the minimization of streak artifacts in modular k-space scanning in magnetic resonance imaging, an odd integer k-space scanning module number Nφ=2n+1 is defined that defines the number of incrementally rotated repeated modules of the k-space scanning process, a slice selection gradient selects any slice in the range of the object to be examined, and data for all Nφ angle-oriented k-space scanning modules in the selected slice acquired such that each k-space scanning module has an azmuthal distance of

1. Field of the Invention
The present patent generally relates to magnetic resonance tomography (or magnetic resonance imaging—MRI), which is used in the medical field for examining patients. The present invention particularly relates to a magnetic resonance imaging device and to a method to operate such device, in which star-shaped streak artifacts, which arise due to radial and/or spiral-type undersampling of k-space, are minimized without simultaneously increasing other factors that contribute to the degradation of the image.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Magnetic resonance imaging is based on the physical phenomena of nuclear spin resonance and has been successfully used in medicine and biophysics for over 15 years. This examination method subjects the object of examination to a strong, constant magnetic field. This exposure aligns the previously randomly oriented nuclear spins in the object. Radio-frequency energy can excite these "ordered" nuclear spins to a certain oscillation. This oscillation produces in the magnetic resonance imaging system the actual signal to be measured, which is received by suitable receiver coils, Using inhomogeneous magnetic fields, generated by gradient coils, the object can be spatially coded in all three directions in space. This method allows one to freely select the layer to be imaged, which means that sectional images of the human body can be recorded in all directions. Magnetic resonance imaging, as a sectional imaging method used in medical diagnostics, is primarily regarded as a non-invasive examination method with versatile contrast capabilities. Due to its outstanding capability to display soft tissue, magnetic resonance imaging has developed into an imaging procedure that is far superior to X-ray computed tomography (CT). Currently, magnetic resonance imaging focuses on the use of spin echo and gradient echo sequences that achieve an excellent image quality with measurement times in the magnitude of minutes.
The continuing technical development of the components of magnetic resonance imaging and the introduction of fast imaging sequences have opened more new fields in medicine to the beneficial use of magnetic resonance imaging. Examples of these applications include real-time imaging to support minimally invasive surgical interventions, functional imaging in neurology, and perfusion measurement in cardiology.
Despite these positive characteristics, magnetic resonance imaging must be characterized as a relatively insensitive imaging technique, because—in spite of the many nuclei in, for example, a human body—the signal-producing nuclear magnetic moment is still very small, Therefore, in practical application it is necessary to find an acceptable compromise between the duration of the measurement and the image quality (resolution and contrast). Particularly in the case of objects to be examined that are moving (e.g., in real-time imaging or in applications for cardiology), a balance must be found between the temporal resolution (motion sharpness) and the image quality. Therefore, in many cases, only a portion of the data that are required for an artifact-free image are recorded, which is generally called "undersampling," and, ultimately, this results in images with artifacts. The kind of artifact in the resulting image depends on the selected k-space trajectory.
In magnetic resonance imaging, the k-space trajectory defines the data recording, i.e., the sequence of the data acquisition in k-space (frequency domain). The MRI image in the image domain is linked with the MRI data in the k-space by means of the Fourier transformation. The spatial encoding of the object, which spans k-space, occurs by means of gradients that extend in all three directions in space. These directions represent the slice selection (defines a slice in the object to be scanned, usually along the z axis), frequency encoding (defines a direction in the slice, usually along the x axis), and phase encoding (defines the second dimension within the slice, usually along the y axis). Depending on the combination, i.e., switching of the three gradients in the imaging sequence, the scanning of k-space can occur in Cartesian coordinate system (also called linear scanning) or in the cylindrical coordinate system, i.e., spiral scanning.
In order to acquire data for a slice of the object to be examined in the Cartesian system, an imaging sequence for different values of the phase encoding gradient, e.g., Gy, is repeated N times, wherein for each repetition, the frequency of the nuclear resonance signal is scanned, digitized, and stored by a Δt-clocked ADC (analog digital converter) N times in equidistant time steps Δt in the presence of the readout gradient Gx. In this way, a numerical matrix is created line by line (matrix in k-space, also called the k-matrix) with N×N data points (a symmetrical matrix with N×N points is only an example; asymmetrical matrices also can be produced). Using Fourier transformation, an MR image of the scanned slice is reconstructed with a resolution of N×N pixels.
It is also possible to fill (make entries in) k-space by a projection reconstruction procedure, i.e., to fill k-matrix by means of radial scanning, A radial scanning trajectory in k-space includes of sections of the projection (straight) lines through the point of origin of k-space, which form an angle Δφ with each other. Each projection line corresponds to one Fourier-transformed (parallel) projection of the object to be imaged. No phase encoding occurs when the scanning is done using projection lines.
The projection itself exists only in the image domain and is composed of the entirety of all line integrals through the object to be imaged along the defined projection direction. This projection in the image space is reflected by a straight line in k-space—the aforementioned projection line—which intersects its center and is orthogonal to the projection direction. The projection line is first unidirectional, because—from a mathematical point of view—it possesses no preferred direction. The function values on this line—just like in Cartesian scanning—are obtained by Fourier transformation of the projection values. In order to be able to determine, in an MRI procedure, the k-space values pertaining to a projection, the undirectional projection line must be passed and scanned in time, which is achieved by suitable control of the MRI device. Thus, using the measurement process, the projection line acquires a direction. This newly directed line is called the directed projection line.
The directed projection line can once again be divided into an incoming spoke and an outgoing spoke.
Thus, the same projection can be measured with two directed projection lines by reversing the direction of passing, i.e., the incoming and the outgoing spokes are mutually exchanged. Due to physical interference effects—which will be explained in more detail below—the measured function values on the line, i.e., the spoke, depend on the direction of passing. The present invention deals with the minimization of such interference effects with a simultaneous minimal measurement cost, in relation to the entire scanning of the object to be examined with a multitude of projection lines.
During the readout, the data of a projection line, i.e., of a single k-space line, is frequency-encoded by means of a gradient. In the acquisition process for projection reconstruction, a gradient is used that does not scan line-by-line as in the Cartesian system, but rather rotates around the sample. In this manner, in each measurement step the corresponding projection from a certain direction through the entire sample is obtained and thus a typical data set for the projection reconstruction in k-space, as is shown in FIG. 4. Each projection in k-space forms, with each neighbor, an angle Δφ, which is produced by rotating the readout gradient.
Since the image acquisition time increases with the number of the measured k-space lines and in many cases is proportional, most procedures shorten the image acquisition time by the reduction of the number of the measured k-space lines, which is the previously referenced "undersampling". Such procedures inevitably result in image artifacts. In Cartesian scanning, it is the phase encoding that is reduced; in radial scanning, the number of projection is reduced.
The so-called "aliasing" artifacts predominate in Cartesian scanning, whereas in radial and spiral-type undersampling it is star-like streak artifacts around the objects included in the image that typically occur.
In order to correctly image an object to be examined, it is necessary to acquire data along several projection lines, which usually in combination enclose a constant azimuth angle Δφ, and overall, include an angle range of at least 180°. In the case of (the necessary, because it is time-saving) undersampling (i.e., Δφ>Δφmax, where Δφmax is the angular spacing that must be adhered to if a complete scanning is to be obtained), the above-mentioned streak artifacts occur outside a circular area around the point object defined by a radius (artifact radius) R. This artifact radius R and the amplitude of the streak artifacts represent the essential image quality parameters. They determine the size of the objects that can be imaged (streak-) artifact-free, and—if larger objects must be imaged—how strong the occurring artifacts will be. According to the article "Reduced Circular Field-of-View Imaging, Schefflin et al, J. of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine 40 (1998) 474-480", equation (5), R is proportional to 1/Δφ, (where, as described above, Δφ represents the azimuthal angular spacing of adjacent projection lines), and thus, by analogy, is proportional to the total number (Nφ) of the scanned projection lines.
Other basic image quality factors, which also produce image artifacts, are "signal decay" and "eddy currents". For physical reasons (transverse and longitudinal relaxation), signal decay occurs during every scanning; they can manifest themselves differently depending on the type of tissue, the type of scanning of the k-space that is used, and the design of the excitation. With radial scanning of k-space, signal decay can either occur during the scanning of a projection line and manipulate the data of this projection line, or it can manifest itself as a different weighting between the different (adjacent) projection lines and then distort their consistency. Eddy currents are induced in conductive surfaces of the MRI device during the scanning due to the switching of the gradient fields. Such eddy currents decay with different time constants and, during this process, generate different magnetic interference fields, which then cause image interference in the image volume.
The state of the art essentially provides three methods to reduce the above-mentioned streak artifacts:
Scheffler et al (see above) use an angular range of 180° to obtain as large an artifact-free radius (R) as possible with a fixed but low number of projections Nφ, because, in this manner, the azimuthal angular spacing Δφ is minimized. FIG. 2A shows such a 180° k-space scanning. An arrow indicates the direction of scanning of each projection line. In this example, the number of projections is Nφ=10; the angular spacing Δφ is, generally expressed, 180°/Nφ, and thus, in this example, it is Δφ=18°. In this example, the method of scanning k-space is independent of whether the number of projections is even or odd. Nevertheless, with regard to the two other aforementioned image quality factors, such a scanning of k-space results in the following problems: Firstly, the "angular increment" causes the steady state of the eddy currents between the acquisition of the last projection line of the preceding measurement and the first projection line of the subsequent measurement to be interrupted, i.e., stronger eddy-current artifacts occur. Secondly, the signal decays are not compensated for during the scanning process, which results in a strong interference with the acquisition and thus of the image quality.
A second solution is to scan an angular range of 360° with an even number of azimuthally equidistant projections. FIG. 2B illustrates such a scanning system in a simplified manner. Scanning of k-space is performed using an even number of projections Nφ=10 and a 360° scanning range. Similarly as in FIG. 2A, an arrow indicates the scanning of each projection line. The arrow's direction corresponds with the readout direction. Using a simple calculation, the angular increment Δφ is determined to be:
      Δ                          φ    =                    360                °                    N                                                  φ              =          36            °
First, a scanning of this type (an even number of projections) guarantees that the angular increments Δφ between all projection lines are identical. This symmetry results in a steady state with regard to eddy currents, i.e., all projection lines are uniformly influenced by eddy currents, and the eddy current-induced artifacts are very small. Second, due to the even number of projections to each projection line, there exists another projection line that has been acquired in exactly the opposite direction. This circumstance largely compensates for artifacts induced by a signal decay occurring during the acquisition. However, a serious disadvantage of this procedure is that, due to the double measurement (redundancy, see FIG. 2B) of each projection line, the artifacts-free radius R reaches only half of its possible value, so that those parts of the objects that are located farther from each other than R will strongly interfere with each other. In order to correctly represent the object, the number of projections would have to be substantially increased, which would proportionally (and therefore significantly) increase the measurement time.
A third solution is the radially curved procedure described in Barger et al. Time-Resolved Contrast-Enhanced Imaging with Isotropic Resolution and Broad Coverage Using an Undersampled 3D Projection Trajectory, 48, pages 297-305, 2002. As already explained, during a radial scanning procedure, data are recorded on axial straight-line sections. The measurement usually starts outside on the incoming spoke, reaches the center of k-space and continues along the outgoing spoke in the radially curved procedure, after reaching the center the direction is slightly changed. Thus, a measurement (scanning) line arises that is formed by two non-parallel spokes: an incoming spoke and an outgoing spoke. The direction is conveniently changed in such a manner that the outgoing spoke fits in the middle of two incoming spokes. In this way, the radially curved procedure circumvents the described effects (eddy currents and signal decay) by modifying the individual projections: at the point of origin of k-space, the projection lines are curved so that the second halves of the projection lines (outgoing spoke) with angles <180° fall between the first halves of the projection lines (incoming spokes) with angles >180°. However, this procedure has the great disadvantage that, upon reaching the point of origin of k-space, the gradients must be switched, discontinuously and exactly, between two digitization points in order to produce the change in orientation. A clean switchover is especially important, because it is the central, and thus contrast-determining, points of k-space that are particularly involved in this process. The difficulty of an exact switchover increases with an increasing bandwidth per pixel (measurement point in k-space) and with an increasing size of the angular increment. The latter is again proportional to the total number of projections, which means that this solution is difficult to implement in low-resolution real-time applications.

Magnetic resonance imaging apparatus and method wherein streak artifacts are minimized in modular k-space scanning

Abstract: Δ                                      φ        2    =            360            °              2                                              N        φ            from both adjacent projections, with the direction of the scanning of the adjacent k-space scanning modules alternating.


Provided is a method for producing fine metal particles, wherein metal oxide powders can be used as a source of fine metal particles, and a method for producing fine metal particles can be provided avoiding the contamination of the molten salt electrolyte bath and the produced fine metal particles. A method for producing fine metal particles (112) is provided which comprises generating cathodic discharge outside and over the surface of an electrolyte bath (100) comprising metal oxide powders (110) suspended therein, whereby the metal oxide powders (110) are electrochemically reduced into the fine metal particles (112).

Plasma-induced discharge electrolysis using cathodic discharge is one practically available method for producing fine metal particles. In this method, metallic ions are dissolved in molten salt electrolyte to be reduced by the discharge electrons emitted from the cathode, to produce metal particles in the molten salt electrolyte.
This method uses molten salt electrolyte containing metallic ions. For example, a production method of fine metal particles using plasma-induced cathodic discharge electrolysis is described in WO 2005/111272 (Patent Document 1), for which the desired metallic ions are supplied by dissolving such metal nanoparticle sources as the metal oxide of the corresponding element for the desired metal nanoparticle in the molten salt electrolyte. It also describes to place an anode in molten salt electrolyte, which consists of the corresponding element for the desired metal nanoparticle, to provide with metallic ions for the molten salt by electrochemical anodic dissolution of the anode in the molten salt electrolyte.
H. Kawamura, K. Moritani, and Y. Ito, Plasmas & Ions, 1, 29-36 (1998) (Non-Patent Document 1) describes the production method of fine silver particles using plasma-induced cathodic discharge electrolysis. For supplying silver ions in the molten salt electrolyte, silver chloride as the halide containing the silver element was added and chemically dissolved in the electrolyte.
On the other hand, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-16293 (Patent Document 2) describes how the metal is deposited on the cathode by electrochemical reduction of the metal oxide powders that contact the surface of the cathode immersed in molten salt electrolyte in which metal oxide powders are suspended.

Production method for silicon nanoparticles


An installation method for an expansion anchor is carried out by repeatedly exerting rotary-percussive strikes onto the shank (2) of the expansion anchor (1) by an impact screwdriver. The repeat rate (Ntarget) of the rotary-percussive strikes is selected as a function of the tightening torque prescribed for expanding the expansion sleeve (3) of the expansion anchor (1). The impact screwdriver stops generating rotary-percussive strikes when the detected mean rotational speed (d) of the shank falls below a threshold value (D).

Expansion anchors are inserted into a pre-drilled hole and then their shanks are normally tightened using a torque wrench. It has proven necessary to employ a torque wrench because the user cannot see whether the expansion anchor inserted into the hole has expanded, that is to say, whether it has been installed properly. During this process, problems occur if the expansion is insufficient, meaning that the anchor does not have adequate holding force in the substrate, and also if the expansion is excessive, since this might cause fatigue of the expansion anchor. Accordingly, manufacturers of expansion anchors indicate the appropriate tightening torque at which the torque wrench should be set for the installation procedure.

Installation method for an expansion anchor and impact screwdriver for installing an expansion anchor


In an example, a printer ink dryer unit comprises at least one ultraviolet light source to dry a printer ink layer by causing evaporation of a solvent fluid therefrom.

In print operations, liquid printing substances such as inks, fixers, primers and coatings may be applied to a substrate. A substrate bearing such a substance may be dried, for example using hot air convection, infrared dryers, near infrared dryers, acoustic dryers, gas burners, Radio Frequency dryers, microwave dryers or the like.


The present invention provides systems and methods for dynamically linking modules into a running operating system kernel. Systems and methods described herein have the following advantages: (1) they permit an application programmer to write, compile, execute, and terminate application code that is to be loaded into a kernel as if the application code was an ordinary application program, (2) they allow a standard programming environment to be used to encapsulate application software in a familiar environment, and (3) they permit automatic cleanup of errors and freeing of program resources when the application terminates.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, generally, to systems and methods for dynamically linking application software into a running operating system kernel and, more specifically, to systems, software, hardware, products, and processes for use by programmers in creating such application software, and dynamically loading it into and unloading it from a running operating system kernel.
2. Discussion of the Background
There are many software applications in which it is desirable to link the software or one or more modules of the software into a running operating system kernel. For example, it is generally desirable to link device driver software into the operating system kernel because it enables the device driver software to access kernel data space.
Many operating systems offer utilities for dynamically linking application software (a.k.a, "application code" or "application modules") into a running operating system kernel. Typically, these methods involve copying the application module code and data into kernel memory and then resolving symbol table references. Conventionally, application modules that are to be linked into an operating system kernel include the following sections of code: (1) a section of operating system "kernel" code, (2) a section of code to handle initialization of the module, and (3) a section of code to handle module cleanup when the module is in the process of being removed.
These application modules are considered, essentially, to be dynamically loadable parts of the operating system kernel. But operating system kernels provide a very complex and low level interface to these application software modules, complicating the process of developing such application software and requiring the programmer to directly address and write operating system kernel code, code to handle initialization/loading of the application software, and code to handle unloading/cleanup after termination. Furthermore, there is generally no defined and stable application programming interface within an operating system, and required data structures and interfaces change especially rapidly in operating systems, such as, for example, BSD and Linux, further complicating the programmer's development and implementation of the application software. Creating and loading/unloading the modules is often complex, time consuming, and requires constant monitoring and updating of the code to ensure reliable, error-free implementation.
What is desired, therefore, are systems and methods to overcome the above described and other disadvantages of the conventional system and methods for dynamically linking modules into a running operating system kernel.

Systems and methods for dynamically linking application software into a running operating system kernel


The present application is directed towards systems and methods for providing monitoring in a cluster system. The systems and methods distribute the monitors for a service and the ownership of a service across a cluster system comprising a plurality of nodes. The nodes in the cluster can be configured to have different sets of virtual servers (sometimes referred to as “vservers”) and services. The ownership and monitoring of the services can be distributed among all the nodes in the cluster. The system can identify a service in a cluster system and identify a master node that has ownership of the service. The master node can transmit a service status update to other nodes in the cluster system.

Monitoring in a distributed environment may include a number of nodes monitoring services and virtual servers that they control. If each node in the cluster monitors each service independently, that can increase the number of probes and the load on the servers. As networks expand in size and capacity, the number of nodes monitoring is expected to increase substantially. The significant increase in processing requirements may overburden a server.

Systems and methods for providing monitoring in a cluster system


In respect of a cable having a plastics electrically insulating layer (16) covered by a metal tape layer (17) which is encased by a plastics jacket layer (19), a method of reinstatement of the metal tape and plastics jacket layers on an exposed region of the electrically insulating layer (16). Two plastics tubes (30) with associated metal collars (34) are introduced around the exposed region and an end of each is inserted under the end of the metal tape (17) at each end, the tape having previously been flared out to accommodate the tube end. The flared tape ends are welded to the collars (34), and more tape (40) is formed around the exposed region and also welded to the collars (34) to complete reinstatement of the metal layer. The plastics jacket reinstatement is effected using a length of heat-shrunk tubing (50, 53) with a lining (54) of melt-flowable plastics material.

This invention relates to the repair of cables with an electrically insulating dielectric layer whose integrity needs to be maintained. Such a dielectric layer typically surrounds a high voltage electrical conductor, which itself may surround a packaged optical fibre. Located between the packaged fibre and the high voltage conductor, there may be a strength member constituted for instance by one or more layers of stranded steel. Particularly the invention relates to the repair of such cables in which the dielectric layer is covered by a metal tape layer, a function of which is to provide a measure of protection against localised damage of the surface of the dielectric layer which could otherwise give rise to impaired dielectric strength, for instance as the result of the initiation of a crack in the dielectric. In its turn the metal tape layer is protected by a plastics jacket layer. For some applications such cables are required in long lengths, for instance in lengths of 25 Km. During the manufacture of such lengths, imperfections in the metal tape layer or in its covering plastics jacket layer can occur which leave the underlying dielectric layer intact. In these circumstances, rather than to strip the jacket and tape layers from the whole length of cable before recommencing a complete replacement of these two layers, or scrap the entire cable, it would be preferred to effect a localised repair in which only the defective portion or portions of these layers are removed and then replaced with reinstatement material.


Membership in a group is defined, either manually or by rule. Items are distributed to the members of the group as the items are associated with the group. When a container hierarchy changes (by adding, removing, or changing the properties of an object), the object is checked to see if the change affects the group. If so, then items are re-distributed and/or recalled from the affected members of the group.

The concept of groups predates the rise of computers. Circulation lists allowed groups of people to review a single object (typically a document), each in turn. Similarly, group calendars existed that could be marked up, letting everyone involved in the group be aware of things that were happening.
When computers entered the picture, delivery of information could be electronic rather than manual. Instead of each person looking over a physical copy of the object, an electronic copy could be circulated to every member at once. This saved time, as each member could look over the object simultaneously, instead of waiting for the previous person to finish with the object.
But the ability to circulate objects electronically is dependent on the group containing the correct members. As membership in the list fluctuates, the group has to be updated to reflect the changes in membership. And even with manual updating of the group, there is no provision for new members to be informed about past objects. And exiting members are left with the problem of manually correcting their personal databases to reflect changes.
For example, consider the situation in FIG. 1. Group 102 originally consists of three people: Aaron 105, Beth, 110, and Charlie 115. At some point, a meeting notice is sent to group 102, as shown by box 120. The meeting is scheduled in the members' timelines, as shown as meetings 125-1, 125-2, and 125-3.
Eventually, before the meeting occurs, Charlie 115 leaves group 102, as shown by box 130. And at some point, David 135 joins the group, as shown by box 140. Two problems arise because of these changes in group 102. First, the timeline for Charlie 115 still shows Charlie 115 as attending the meeting, even though Charlie is no longer part of the group (and so should not attend the meeting). Charlie 115 has to manually remove the meeting notice from his timeline, since he no longer needs to attend the meeting. Second, the timeline for David 135 does not show David 135 as needing to attend the meeting, even though he needs to attend. David 135 has to manually insert meeting 150 into his calendar.
A need remains for a way to provide access to group resources that addresses these and other problems associated with the prior art.

Method for dynamically distributing items for changes based on group membership


Systems and methods of grain drying using radio frequency waves while maintaining low temperature are disclosed herein. The method and systems described herein use radio frequency waves to dry harvest crops at low temperatures. Specifically, the system and method includes minimizing temperature increases caused by dielectric radio frequency heating while increasing intermolecular hydrogen bond disruption.

Agricultural harvest crops, such as corn and grain, require drying after harvest to prevent molding and other bacteria growth, spontaneous internal combustion, and other spoilage. The simplest method of drying is spread-type air drying where the harvested crop is spread out over a large area and air dried. Spread-type air drying uses the small amount of energy but impractical for even most harvest due to space and time constraints. An improved method of drying harvest crops is heat assisted air drying. Heat assisted air drying is prevalent in much of today's commercial and smaller scale agricultural harvest crop production.
In conventional heat assisted air drying, the harvest crops are loaded into drying bins that force heated air through the harvest crop until the harvest crop is at a required moisture level. To perform conventional heat assisted air drying, heat must be provided by either hydrocarbon fuel sources or electrical heating sources. Heat assisted drying of harvest crops has numerous drawbacks, however. Two of the most prevalent drawbacks are high energy costs and heat damage to the harvest crops.
Among the drawbacks of heat assisted drying is that it consumes large amounts of energy. The energy consumption of heat assisted drying in commercial agriculture, and even small scale agriculture, creates significant costs on a micro-scale and especially on a macro-scale.
To address the issue of high energy consumption in heat assisted drying, the industry has looked at various types of heating methods that may lower energy consumption. One low-energy solution is to utilize radio frequency electromagnetic waves to heat the harvest crops. Radio frequency heating lowers the amount of energy consumed during heating because radio frequency electromagnetic waves induce water molecule friction within the grain or kernel of the harvest crop itself. Water molecule friction within the grain or kernel creates heat and, therefore, water evaporation. The frequencies generally used in heating can range between 3 kHz and 300 GHz. Because the heat is created from within the grain or kernel as opposed to externally applied heat that must travel from the exterior of the grain or kernel to within the kernel, there is minimal heat losses to ambient air and the drying bin apparatus. Minimizing heat losses creates higher energy efficiency within the drying process.
There is yet an additional drawback to conventional heat assisted drying and that is heat damage. Heat damage is a significant issue within the agricultural harvest crops because of its high occurrence and impact on yield. Heat damages harvest crops by breaking/cracking, discoloring, and shrinking grains or kernels of the harvest crop. While radio-frequency type heat assisted drying improves energy efficiency, heat damage is still an issue. Because conventional radio frequency type heat assisted drying utilizes the heat created by water molecule friction to evaporate the water molecules, heat damage is still an issue.
In other industries, such as aggregate excavating, a large amount of aggregate material is removed from a mine or other source and requires drying. Conventionally, aggregate is dried using hydrocarbon based heaters. This method consumes large amounts of energy at a high cost. The cost of drying aggregate using hydrocarbon-based heating is even higher when the aggregate is being mined in a remote location and drying must occur before transportation because hydrocarbon fuel costs can increase dramatically in remote areas. Because aggregate drying typically does not have low heat restrictions, as does biomass drying, hydrocarbon based heating has been heavily used in the industry with minimal development in alternative methods of drying.

Systems and methods of drying biomass using radio frequency energy