Novel trioxane dimers of structure ##STR1## which possess antiproliferative and antitumor activities.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a novel class of trioxane dimers which demonstrate potent and potentially therapeutically valuable antiproliferative and antitumor activities.
2. Description of the State of Art
Artemisia annua L., also known as qing hao or sweet wormwood, is a pervasive weed that has been used for many centuries in Chinese traditional medicine as a treatment for fever and malaria. Its earliest mention, for use in hemorrhoids, occurs in the Recipes for 52Kinds of Diseases found in the Mawangdui Han dynasty tomb dating from 168 B.C. Nearly, five hundred years later Ge Hong wrote the Zhou Hou Bei Ji Fang (Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergency Treatments) in which he advised that a water extract of qing hao was effective at reducing fevers. In 1596, Li Shizhen, the famous herbalist, wrote that chills and fever of malaria can be combatted by qing hao preparations. Finally, in 1971, Chinese chemists isolated from the leafy portions of the plant the substance responsible for its reputed medicinal action. This crystalline compound, called qinghaosu, also referred to as QHS or artemisinin, is a sesquiterpene lactone with an internal peroxide linkage.
Artemisinin (3, 6, 9-trimethyl-9, 10b-epi-dioxyperhydropyranol [4, 3, 2-jk] benzoxepin-2-one) is a member of the amorphane subgroup of cadinenes and has the following structure (I) ##STR2## Artemisinin or QHS was the subject of a 1979 study conducted by the Qinghaosu Antimalarial Coordinating Research Group involving the treatment of 2099 cases of malaria (Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium falciparum in a ratio of about 3:1) with different dosage forms of QHS, leading to the clinical cure of all patients. See, Qinghaosu Antimalarial Coordinating Research Group, Chin. Med. J., 92:811 (1979). Since that time QHS has been used successfully in several thousand malaria patients throughout the world including those infected with both chloroquine-sensitive and chloroquine-resistant strains of P. falciparum. Assay of QHS against P. falciparum, in vitro, revealed that its potency is comparable to that of chloroquine in two Hanian strains (Z. Ye, et al., J. Trad. Chin. Med., 3:95 (1983)) and of mefloquine in the Camp (cholorquine-susceptible) and Smith (chloroquine-resistant) strains, D. L. Klayman, et al., J. Nat. Prod., 47:715 (1984).
Although QHS is effective at suppressing the parasitemias of P. vivax and P. falciparum, the problems encountered with recrudescence, and the compound's insolubility in water, led scientists to modify QHS chemically, a difficult task because of the chemical reactivity of the peroxide linkage which is an essential moiety for antimalarial activity.
Reduction of QHS in the presence of sodium borohydride results in the production of dihydroartemesinin (II-1) or DHQHS, (illustrated in structure II below), in which the lactone group is converted to a lactol (hemiacetal) function, with properties similar to QHS. QHS in methanol is reduced with sodium borohydride to an equilibrium mixture of .alpha.- and .beta.-isomers of dihydroartemisinin. The yield under controlled conditions is 79% (QHS, 0.85M with NaBH.sub.4 6.multidot.34M. 7.multidot.5 equivalents in methanol, 12 L at 0-5.degree. C. for about 3 hours followed by quenching with acetic acid to neutrality at 0-5.degree. C. and dilution with water to precipitate dihydroartemisinin), A. Brossi, et al., Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 31:645-650 (1988). Using DHQHS as a starting compound a large number of other derivatives, such as, ##STR3## artemether (compound II-2), arteether (II-3), sodium artesunate (II-4), artelinic acid (II-5), sodium artelinate (II-6), DHQHS condensation by-product (II-7) and the olefinic compound, structure III, ##STR4## have been produced.
Artemether (II-2) is produced by reacting .beta.-DHQHS with boron trifluoride (BF.sub.3) etherate or HCl in methanol:benzene (1:2) at room temperature. A mixture of .beta.- and .alpha.-artemether (70:30) is obtained, from which the former is isolated by column chromatography and recrystallized from hexane or methanol, R. Hynes, Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicines and Hygiene, 88(1): S1/23-S1/26 (1994). For arteether (II-3), (Brossi, et al., 1988), the .alpha.-isomer is equilibrated (epimerized) to the .beta.-isomer in ethanol:benzene mixture containing BF.sub.3 etherate. Treatment of DHQHS with an unspecified dehydrating agent yields both the olefinic compound, (III), and the DHQHS condensation by-product (II-7), formed on addition of DHQHS to (III), M. Cao, et al., Chem. Abstr., 100:34720k (1984). Until recently, the secondary hydroxy group in DHQHS (II-1) provided the only site in an active QHS related compound that had been used for derivatization. See B. Venugopalan "Synthesis of a Novel Ring Contracted Artemisinin Derivative," Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 4(5):751-752 (1994).
The potency of various QHS-derivatives in comparison to QHS as a function of the concentration at which the parasitemia is 90 percent suppressed (SD.sub.90) was reported by D. L. Klayman, "Qinghaosu (Artemisinin): An Antimalarial Drug from China, " Science 228:1049-1055 (1985). Dr. Klayman reported that the olefinic compound III, is inactive against P. berghei-infected mice, whereas, the DHQHS condensation by-product (II-7), has an SD.sub.90 of 10 mg/Kg, in P. berghei-infected mice. Thus, the DHQHS ether dimer proved to be less potent than QHS, which has an SD.sub.90 of 6.20 mg/Kg. Following, in order of their overall antimalarial efficacy, are the three types of derivatives of DHQHS (II-1) that have been produced: (QHS)<ethers (II, R=alkyl)<esters [II, R.dbd.C(.dbd.O)-alkyl or -aryl]<carbonates [II, R.dbd.C(.dbd.O)O-alkyl or -aryl].
Other rational designs of structurally simpler analogs of artemisinin has led to snythesis of various trioxanes, some of which possess excellent antinalarial activity. Posner, G. H., et al., reported the chemistry and biology of a series of new structurally simple, easily prepared, racemic 1,2,4-trioxanes (disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,225,437 and incorporated herein by reference) that are tricyclic (lacking the lactone ring present in tetracyclic artemisinin I) and that are derivatives of trioxane alcohol IV ##STR5## having the relative stereochemistry shown above. Especially attractive features of trioxane alcohol IV are the following: (1) its straightforward and easy preparation from cheap and readily available starting materials, (2) its availability on gram scale, and (3) its easy one-step conversion, using standard chemical transformations, into alcohol derivatives such as esters and ethers, without destruction of the crucial trioxane framework. See, Posner, G. H., et al., J. Med. Chem., 35:2459-2467 (1992), incorporated herein by reference.
Over the past twenty years only a few drugs isolated from higher plants have yielded clinical agents, the outstanding examples being vinblastine and vincristine from the Madagascan periwinkle, Catharanthus roseus, etoposide, the semi-synthetic lignan, from May-apple Podophyllum peltatum and the diterpenoid taxol, commonly referred to as paclitaxel, from the Pacific yew, Taxus brevifolia. Of these agents, paclitaxel is the most exciting, recently receiving approval by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of refractory ovarian cancer. Since the isolation of QHS, there has been a concerted effort by investigators to study other therapeutic applications of QHS and its derivatives.
National Institutes of Health reported that QHS is inactive against P388 leukemia. See NCI Report on NSC 369397 (tested on Oct. 25, 1983). Later anticancer studies that have been conducted on cell line panels consisting of 60 lines organized into nine, disease-related subpanels including leukemia, non-small-cell lung cancer, colon, CNS, melanoma, ovarian, renal, prostate and breast cancers, further confirm that QHS displays very little anticancer activity. A series of artemisinin-related endoperoxides were tested for cytoxicity to Ehrlich ascites tumor (EAT) cells using the microculture tetrazolum (MTT) assay, H. J. Woerdenbag, et al. "Cytotoxicity of Artemisinin-Related Endoperoxides to Ehrlich Ascites Tumor Cells," Journal of Natural Products, 56(6):849-856 (1993). The MTT assay, used to test the artemisinin-related endoperoxides for cytoxicity, is based on the metabolic reduction of soluble tetrazolium salts into insoluble colored formazan products by mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity of the tumor cells. As parameters for cytoxicity, the IC.sub.50 and IC80 values, the drug concentrations causing respectively 50% and 80% growth inhibition of the tumor cells, were used. QHS (I), had an IC.sub.50 value of 29.8 .mu.M. Derivatives of DHQHS (II-1) being developed as antimalarial drugs (artemether (II-2), arteether (III-3), sodium artesunate (II-4), artelinic acid (II-5) and sodium artelinate (II-6)), exhibited a somewhat more potent cytoxicity. Their IC.sub.50 values ranged from 12.2 .mu.M to 19.9 .mu.M. The DHQHS condensation by-product (II-7), disclosed previously by M. Cao, et al., 1984, was the most potent cytotoxic agent, its IC.sub.50 being 1.4 .mu.M. At this drug concentration the condensation by-product (II-7), is approximately twenty-two times more cytoxic than QHS and sixty times more cytotoxic than DHQHS (II-1), the parent compound.
There is still a need, therefore, for developing structural analogs of QHS having antiproliferative and antitumor agents that have potency equivalent or greater than known anticancer antiproliferative and antitumor agents.

Trioxane dimer compounds having antiproliferative and antitumor activities


A method for starting up a fixed bed propylene hydration reactor containing shape selective metallosilicate catalyst particles for the production of isopropanol and/or diisopropyl ether is disclosed comprising the following sequential steps: contacting a feedstream comprising propane with catalyst particles in a hydration reactor; then introducing a feedstream comprising isopropanol into the reactor to displace propane. Next, a feedstream comprising propylene is introduced into the reactor under etherification conditions. Finally, a feedstream is introduced in the reactor comprising water under etherification and hydration reaction conditions whereby diisopropyl ether and isopropanol are produced.

Lower molecular weight alcohols and ethers such as isopropanol (IPA) and diisopropyl ether (DIPE) are in the gasoline boiling range and are known to have high blending octane numbers. In addition, by-product propylene from which IPA and DIPE can be made is usually available in a fuels refinery. An important aspect of research in the petroleum industry relates to processes to produce high octane lower aliphatic alkyl ethers as octane boosters and supplementary fuels.
The catalytic hydration of olefins, particularly C.sub.3 and C.sub.4 olefins, to provide alcohols and ethers is a well-established art. Representative olefin hydration processes are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,262,913; 2,477,380; 2,797,247; 3,798,097; 2,805,260; 2,830,090; 2,861,045; 2,891,999; 3,006,970; 3,198,752; 3,810,848; 3,989,762, among others.
Olefin hydration employing medium pore and large pore zeolite catalyst is a known synthesis method. As disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,214,107 (Chang et al.), lower olefins, in particular propylene, are catalytically hydrated over a crystalline aluminosilicate zeolite catalyst having a silica to alumina ratio of at least 12 and a Constraint Index of from 1 to 12, e.g., acidic ZSM-5 type zeolite, to provide the corresponding alcohol, essentially free of ether and hydrocarbon by-product. Acid resin catalysts such as "Amberlyst 15" may also be used for hydration of light olefins.
The production of ether from secondary alcohols such as isopropanol and light olefins is known. As disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,914, DIPE is produced from IPA and propylene in a series of operations employing a strongly acidic cationic exchange resin as catalyst. Recently, processes for the hydration of olefins to provide alcohols and ethers using zeolite catalyst such as ZSM-5 or zeolite Beta have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,214,107 and 4,499,313 to Bell et al.; and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,757,664, 4,857,664 and 4,906,187 to T. Huang. These patents are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference. One of the advantages in using zeolite catalyst for hydration and/or etherification of light olefins is the regenerability of the catalyst. Where resin based catalysts can decompose at the high temperatures required to remove deactivating amounts of carbonaceous deposits, zeolite catalysts remain thermally stable and can be regenerated oxidatively or in contact with hydrogen.
The hydration and etherification of lower olefins such as propylene to produce IPA and DIPE over a fixed bed of shape selective zeolite catalyst is generally carried out in liquid phase employing a feedstream comprising water and propylene at temperatures in excess of 200.degree. F. and high pressure, preferably above 1000 psi. The maximum per pass conversion of propylene to DIPE is about 65 wt %. While attempting to maximize the rate of conversion, process conditions are selected to also reduce the more disadvantageous reactions which can occur during the process that could compromise the process advantages. These adverse reactions include the oligomerization of propylene, the formation of deactivating amounts of coke and carbonaceous deposits on the catalyst and the hydrothermal attack of water on the catalyst. These adverse reactions tend to find favor with increasing temperature and concentration providing a challenge to workers in the field to control reactor temperature, particularly at start-up when components may be present in high concentration.
In view of the foregoing problems relating to adverse reactions in the production of IPA and/or DIPE over fixed bed zeolite catalyst, starting up a hydration/etherification reactor is a particularly difficult problem. The fresh reactants, water and propylene, alone or in a mixture, exhibit high heats of adsorption on zeolite catalyst to the extent that on start up the fresh feed exotherm can cause severe local overheating of the catalyst bed. Hydrothermal attack by water on the catalyst destroys the structural integrity of the catalyst producing an excessive amount of generally ineffective fine particles. These fine particles are not only less catalytically effective but they complicate the subsequent removal of catalyst from the reactor. Propylene, added under typical start up conditions, can also experience local overheating providing conditions that promote unwanted oligomerization of propylene to produce undesirable by-product such as propylene dimer. These reactions of propylene can also lead to the formation of carbonaceous deposits on the catalyst and coke formation.
Starting up olefin hydration and etherification reactors containing fixed beds of zeolite catalyst present unique problems not encountered in commercial zeolite catalyzed conversion processes. Zeolite catalyzed processes such as the conversion of methanol to gasoline (MTG) or the oligomerization of olefins to higher hydrocarbons, the Mobil olefins to gasoline process (MOG), are vapor phase processes carried out at high temperature with feedstreams introduced as gases. Olefin hydration and etherification such as the zeolite catalyzed DIPE process are liquid phase processes that must be carried out at moderate temperatures and relatively high pressures. In the latter case, the likelihood of localized overheating and the consequent development of adverse side reactions during reactor start up are problems of substantial proportions that go beyond known commercial practice and have remained largely unresolved in the art heretofore.
Commercial start-up procedures for MTBE, methyl tertiary butyl ether, production where water is used to wet the catalyst would cause high temperature steaming for the DIPE system and lower activity due to water filled pores.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved process for the hydration of olefins using a fixed bed of zeolite catalyst particles.
It is a particular object of the present invention to provide a method for starting up an olefin hydration reactor containing a fixed bed of zeolite catalyst particles that avoids reactions deleterious to the efficacy of the catalyst.
A further objective of the invention is to provide an improved start up method for the zeolite catalyzed process for the conversion of propylene and water to IPA and/or DIPE.

Process for starting up an olefin hydration reactor


Optimal power switching circuitry for use in a closed system such as a TET system including an internal device separated from an external device by a boundary. The internal and external devices being powered by separate power sources. During telemetric communication from the external device to the internal device an external RF energy source is produced. If the power supplied by the external RF energy source produced during communication from the external device to the internal device exceeds that required for powering of the internal device, then the power switching circuitry cuts off power to the internal power source and instead draws power from the external RF energy source thereby conserving power consumed from the internal power source. The power switching circuitry may be implemented using either passive components (e.g., diodes) or active components (e.g., an analog switch).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a closed system such as a transcutaneous energy transfer (TET) system and, in particular, to a dual power supply switching system for a TET system wherein powering of an implantable medical device and its associated components is switched, during communication from the external device to the implant, between an internal power source of the implantable medical device and an external RF power source produced by the external device.
2. Description of Related Art
In a variety of scientific, industrial, and medically related applications, it may be desirable to transfer energy or power (energy per unit time) across some type of boundary. For example, one or more devices that require power (e.g., electrical, mechanical, optical, and acoustic devices) may be located within the confines of a closed system, or "body," in which it may be difficult and/or undesirable to also include a substantial and/or long term source of power. The closed system or body may be delimited by various types of physical boundaries, and the system internal to the boundary may be living or inanimate, may perform a variety of functions, and may have a variety of operational and physical requirements and/or constraints. In some cases, such requirements and constraints may make the implementation of a substantial and/or long term "internal" power source for internally located devices problematic.
In some closed systems, repeated entry into the system may be undesirable for a variety of reasons. In other closed systems, significant internal power requirements and a limited internal space may prohibit the implementation of a suitably sized internal power source. In yet other systems, contamination and/or security issues may pose particular challenges in implementing an internal power source. For any combination of the foregoing and other reasons, a power source external to the system and some feasible means of transferring power from the external source to one or more internal devices may be preferable in some applications.
One common example of a closed system is the human body. In some medically related and scientific applications, a variety of prosthetic and other medical devices that require power may be surgically implanted within various portions of the body. Some examples of such devices include, but are not limited to, drug infusion pumps, pacemakers, defibrillators, cochlear implants, sensors and stimulators. With respect to the human body, issues such as repeated reentry or surgery, internal space limitations, and contamination (e.g., infection) are factors to consider when selecting a suitable internal power source for some of these implantable medical devices.
Accordingly, in some medical implant applications, "transcutaneous energy transfer" (TET) devices are employed to transfer energy from outside the body to inside the body, to provide power to one or more implanted prostheses or devices from an external power source. One example of a conventional TET device is a transformer that includes a primary winding (or coil) external to the body and a secondary winding internal to the body. Both the primary and secondary windings generally are placed proximate to respective outer and inner layers of a patient's skin; hence, the term "transcutaneous" commonly refers to energy transfer "through the skin." Energy is transferred from the primary winding to the secondary winding in the form of an RF field.
In a system employing an implantable medical device and external control unit each of the implantable medical device and external control unit preferably has its own power source, e.g., a battery, for powering its associated circuitry and its associated components. The implantable medical device battery, regardless of whether primary/non-rechargeable or secondary/rechargeable, has a limited lifespan and a predetermined amount of energy or power before having to be replaced or recharged.
It is therefore desirable to develop and an improved TET system having circuitry for optimally switching from an internal power source to an external RF power source so as to reduce the energy consumed from the internal power source associated with the implant.

Dual power supply switching circuitry for use in a closed system


Architectures and techniques are described to tag annotations of electronic books and to manage the tags. In particular implementations, a client device may tag one or more annotations of an electronic book, where each of the annotations may be associated with a portion of the electronic book. The client device may request and obtain annotations associated with one or more tags and export the annotations to at least one destination, such as an additional client device, a file, an application, or a combination thereof. Additionally, annotation tags may be shared by members of a particular group. Thus, one member of the group can obtain and utilize tags used by other members of the group.

Some computing devices provide users with the opportunity to annotate portions of electronic content, such as electronic books. For example, users may highlight certain portions of an electronic book. Additionally, users may enter text that corresponds to particular portions of the electronic book. In some situations, the users may desire to organize their annotations. For example, students may want to group their annotations that are associated with a particular class. However, computing devices offer few, if any, effective tools to organize annotations.
Further, users may want to access annotations and provide them for use by other applications and/or devices. To illustrate, a user may want to transfer annotations from a computing device used to generate the annotations to another computing device. In another illustration, the user may desire to provide annotations generated by a particular application for use by a different application. In a particular example, a client device user may want to provide annotations to a word processing application or a spreadsheet application in order to manipulate or organize the annotations in a particular manner. Unfortunately, computing devices do not provide user-friendly opportunities to provide annotations to different computing devices or applications.


A magnetic resonance imaging system is provided, which can provide the homogeneous magnetic field to obtain a head anatomic image with a high resolution and high SNR by coaxially disposing a receive-only phased array antenna inside a transmit-only antenna with a predetermined gap, and thereby a detailed and accurate image of a man's head can be obtained. In the present invention, the system comprises: a transmit-only antenna comprising at least two saddle quadrature antennas connected with each other to form a ring shape, one of the connections being a joint and the remaining connections being formed in an overlapping fashion; and a receive-only phased array antenna comprising a plurality of receive-only antennas connected with each other to form a ring shape, one of the connections being a joint and the remaining connections being formed in an overlapping fashion, wherein an inner diameter of the receive-only phased array antenna is shorter than that of the transmit-only antenna, and the receive-only phased array antenna is coaxially disposed inside the transmit-only antenna with a predetermined gap.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a magnetic resonance imaging system comprising 12 channel phased array antennas for providing homogeneous magnetic field to thereby obtain a head anatomic image with a high resolution and high signal to noise ratio (SNR). Particularly, the present invention relates to the magnetic resonance imaging system comprising a transmit-only antenna and a multi channel phased array antenna, which are separated from each other.
2. Description of the Related Art
The magnetic resonance imaging under high magnetic field is known to provide higher SNR and contrast (due to T2 (spin-spin) relaxation) than that using a low magnetic field. For the reason, an extensive research has been conducted into the magnetic resonance imaging system that operates under a high magnetic field. One of the most important issues in such a system is that a radio frequency (RF) antenna having a high SNR, homogeneous magnetic field, and low specific absorption rate must be designed.
As an amplitude of magnetic field for magnetization of hydrogen nuclei increases, the SNR may be improved. However, if the amplitude of magnetic field becomes higher, the frequency used in an RF antenna should inevitably be increased, that is, the wavelength of field generated at the antenna should become shorter. A decrease in the wavelength (that is, an increase in frequency) in turn causes attenuation in a target subject for imaging (e.g., a man's head) due to high permittivity and conductivity of the target subject. Moreover, the problem associated with attenuation due to radiation loss also arises. Such problems are inherent in RF circuits having an operation frequency higher than 100 MHz.
Furthermore, when a radio frequency increases, the magnetic field becomes inhomogeneous, that is, the field in a man's head is distorted by phase shift. Such distortion is caused by an increase of the radio frequency and the high permittivity of a man's head. In the conventional system, which uses the magnetic field of 1 Tesla, the wavelength of the field in a man's head is about 1 m, which is much longer than the width of the head so that the phase shift may be ignored. Thus, the homogeneous magnetic field can be maintained. However, in the system that uses the magnetic field of 7 Tesla, the wavelength of the field in a man's head is about 12.5 m, which is about a half of the width of the head. Accordingly, the phase shift of the field in the head comes near 180 degree. Moreover, in the cylindrical RF antenna, which is used generally, a leg surrounding the antenna (the conductive part having the same direction as that of the main magnetic force) forms field within the antenna, and thereby the above phase shift causes a standing wave in the head so that the field in the antenna becomes convex. This convex shaped field is attributed to dielectric resonance. Due to the dielectric resonance phenomenon, the center of an image becomes bright and its peripheral part becomes dim, thus making it difficult to observe the image. That is, different image signals may possibly be obtained from the same subject, depending on the position where the image of the subject is acquired.
Another problem may also arise, which results from a penetration depth effect. The penetration depth effect means how deeply an electromagnetic wave penetrates into a subject. The penetration depth of the subject depends on the magnetic permeability, permittivity, and conductivity of the subject. When a subject with high conductivity is loaded into an antenna, the penetration depth becomes shorter. This causes a kind of damping that prevents the radio frequency from effectively contributing to form the image. That is, the homogeneous magnetic field cannot be formed.
As described above, in the high magnetic field, such as 7 Tesla, the conventional two-way (receive and transmit) antenna that has been used in the low magnetic field, such as 1 or 1.5 Tesla, cannot render an image with sufficient quality. Accordingly, the magnetic resonance imaging system, by which the above problem can be solved, is needed in the art.

Gachon University of Medicine & Science Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation


A system for installing a blade insert between a root portion and a tip portion of a rotor blade of a wind turbine is disclosed. The system may include a root cradle assembly configured to support the root portion of the rotor blade and a tip cradle assembly configured to support the tip portion of the rotor blade. At least one of the tip cradle assembly or the root cradle assembly may be movable relative to the other of the tip cradle assembly or the root cradle assembly to allow the tip portion to be spaced apart from the root portion after the rotor blade has been divided between the root and tip portions. In addition, the system may include an insert cradle assembly configured to support a blade insert for the rotor blade. The insert cradle assembly may be configured to be positioned between the root cradle assembly and the tip cradle assembly so as to position the blade insert between the root portion and the tip portion.

Wind power is considered one of the cleanest, most environmentally friendly energy sources presently available, and wind turbines have gained increased attention in this regard. Generally, a wind turbine includes a tower, a nacelle mounted on the tower, and a rotor coupled to the nacelle. The rotor typically includes a rotatable hub and a plurality of rotor blades coupled to and extending outwardly from the hub. Each rotor blade may be spaced about the hub so as to facilitate rotating the rotor to enable kinetic energy to be transferred from the wind into usable mechanical energy, and subsequently, electrical energy.
The particular size of the rotor blades is a significant factor contributing to the overall efficiency of a wind turbine. Specifically, increases in the length or span of a rotor blade may generally lead to an overall increase in the energy production of a wind turbine. Accordingly, efforts to increase the size of rotor blades aid in the continuing growth of wind turbine technology and the adoption of wind energy as an alternative energy source.
Previous efforts have been made to extend the length of installed rotor blades in a retrofit procedure, including replacing the original tip of the rotor blade with a tip extension. This method is problematic, however, because the blade root of the rotor blade is typically not strong enough to support a tip extension having suitable dimensions for making the process financially viable. For example, in many cases, the tip extension would need to add an additional annual energy production (AEP) of approximately 20% to make the replacement financially viable. This generally corresponds to an increase in blade length of approximately seven meters. Yet an original blade root can typically only support an increase in tip length of approximately two meters (2 m). Further, such replacement efforts to extend blade length typically involve the use of costly cranes.
Accordingly, a system and method for installing a blade insert between a root portion and a tip portion of a wind turbine rotor blade would be welcomed in the technology.

System and method for installing a blade insert between separate portions of a wind turbine rotor blade


The present invention relates to oligonucleotides useful for determining the presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex organisms in a test sample. The oligonucleotides of the present invention may be incorporated into detection probes, helper probes, capture probes and amplification oligonucleotides, and used in various combinations thereof.

Tuberculosis ("TB") is a bacterial infection caused by members of the TB complex. Transmission occurs when a person with active pulmonary TB coughs, sneezes or spits, releasing a contaminated aerosol into the air. Inhalation of the released bacteria is the most common mode of infection. Highly infectious individuals are capable of transmitting the disease to 10 to 15 persons a year. While approximately one third of the world's population is infected with TB bacteria, the majority are asymptomatic latent TB infections ("LTBI"). Of the LTBI cases, one in ten will progress to active TB infection which, left untreated, have a 50% mortality rate. Persons lacking a competent immune system (i.e., children) or who are immuno-compromised (i.e., substance abuse, immunosuppresive drugs, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, kidney failure, etc.) are most at risk.
The World Health Organization declared TB a global health emergency in 1993. With close to 9 million new cases and 2 million TB-related deaths each year, this emergency is fueled by HIV and the growing threat of multi-drug resistant ("MDR-TB"). There are nearly 300,000 new cases of MDR-TB each year and over 50 million people are latently infected with MDR strains of TB. Persons co-infected with HIV and TB are most susceptible to active TB disease. It is recognized that the key to controlling the spread of TB is rapid and accurate diagnosis. TB diagnostics can be used not only in the diagnosis of symptomatic patients, but also in therapeutic drug monitoring. Thus, a need exists for a sensitive assay that is specific for the TB complex organisms, and which minimizes the potential for forming potentially contaminating aerosols that put technologists at risk.

Method for obtaining and initiating amplification of a target nucleic acid sequence


The present invention relates to a mixture of polyols for use in the preparation of polyurethane foam comprising:. (i) 80-99% by weight of at least one polyether polyol and/or at least one polyester polyol; and PA1 (ii) 1-20% by weight of at least one polyolefin polyol.. The invention further relates to a process for preparing polyurethane foams, using the said mixture of polyols; to polyurethane foams obtainable by such process; and to articles and composites containing the said polyurethane foams.

polyurethane foams are typically produced from a polyol and a polyisocyanate. Polyurethane foams are well known in the art and have numerous applications. Rigid and semi-rigid foams are used in a wide variety of applications, in turn requiring an extensive range of foam properties. A significant number of different polyol grades are required to be able to manufacture the different foams. Yet, it remains difficult to meet all the desired properties and compromises may have to be made.
A variety of polyols have been proposed for use in the manufacture of polyurethane foams, including polyether polyols such as those marketed under the tradename CARADOL and TERATHANE and POLYTHF and polyester polyols such as those marketed under the tradename TONE and FORMREZ.
International PCT publication No. WO 97/00902 discloses the preparation of polyurethane foams, in particular resilient, flexible foams, from an aromatic polyisocyanate having a functionality of from 2.5 to 3.0 isocyanate groups per molecule and a polydiene diol having a number average molecular weight from 1,000 to 20,000 and a functionality of from 1.6 to 2 hydroxyl groups per molecule.
It is known to use mixtures of polyols to prepare polyurethane foams having desired properties. Examples of polyol mixtures for use in the preparation of rigid and semi-rigid polyurethane foams include those marketed under the tradenames CARADOL PP520-03, LP585-01, LP530-03, GB450-01, GB475-01, GB250 and the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,752,626 describes the preparation of a high resilience urethane foam. The foaming system is composed of a thixotropic polyisocyanate component and a thixotropic polyol component. The polyol component comprises a polyol blend of a polyolefinic polyol and a polyoxyalkylene polyol in a weight ratio between 95/5 to 50/50.
It will be appreciated that there is still room for improvement in this field. In particular, there is a need for improving adhesion of rigid and semi-rigid polyurethane foams to polyolefins, including copolymers of olefin monomers, and block copolymers comprising more than 50% by weight of at least one polyolefin block, without, however, a significant impact on other desirable properties of the foam.
Thus far, it has been difficult to adhere polyurethane foams strongly to polyolefins without the use of a separate adhesive layer. In particular, polyurethane foams are known not to adhere strongly to thermoplastic polyolefins without the use of a separate adhesive layer.
Surprisingly, rigid and semi-rigid polyurethane foams have now been found having one or more advantageous properties as compared to prior art foams of this type. In particular, foams have been found which are capable of adhering very strongly to polyolefins and block copolymers comprising more than 50% by weight of at least one polyolefin block, by using a specific polyol mixture.

Use of polyol mixtures in rigid and semi-rigid polyurethane foams


A folding wheelbarrow includes opposed tubular perimeter frame sections each connected to a support wheel and joined to each other at a point along rearward edges thereof by a hinge pin. Integral handlebar sections extend rearwardly from the frame sections and are connected to handgrips which may be selectively positioned for comfort and use by a human operator. A flexible load carrying container is secured to the frame sections. A single wheel embodiment includes perimeter frame members which may be joined by pivot pins supported on a fork structure or by a hinge connection at a single hinge pin also connected to a wheel fork structure.

Wheelbarrows are ubiquitous as devices convenient for transporting cargos of many types. A longstanding problem in the art of wheelbarrows is the provision of a suitable wheelbarrow which may be folded to minimize the space required for storage or transport. Although several types of folding wheelbarrows have been developed, at least in the patent literature, there has been a continuing need to provide a folding wheelbarrow which is truly lightweight, aesthetically pleasing, easy to handle and stable when in use to transport a load. Still further, there has been a need in the art of folding wheelbarrows to provide a wheelbarrow design which is economical to manufacture and market while satisfying the requirements for a wheelbarrow for typical homeowner usage, for example. It is to meet the desiderata for folding wheelbarrows that the present invention has been developed.


A portable anti-theft monitor comprises a case; a detection conductive wire led out of said case, having a loop portion; an engaging member provided in said case so as to freely get it in and out, for engaging by catching the loop portion of said detection conductive wire in a state in which it has been pressed in said case; and a locking member for locking said engaging member in the state in which said engaging member has been pressed into said case, and for being attracted by a magnet to be moved in the unlocking direction.

The present invention relates to a self-sounding type of portable anti-theft monitor for use with a shoplifting preventing device, etc.
In a conventional portable anti-theft monitor of this sort, for example, a self-sounding type portable anti-theft monitor (generally called "buzzer tag") which is attached to an article of merchandise, etc. to be monitored for anti-theft purpose by means of wire, etc. mounted to this portable anti-theft monitor, when the article attached with the monitor as it is passes near a gate in an attempt to illegally smuggle it out, the portable anti-theft monitor receives radio waves emitted from a sending antenna at the gate to sound a buzzer incorporated therein giving the alarm.
Further, on receipt of radio waves from the sending antenna, the portable anti-theft monitor emits radio waves with another frequency, which are received by an receiving antenna at the gate to sound also a buzzer disposed at the gate giving the alarm.
In the conventional portable anti-theft monitor, for a releasing mechanism for removing the portable anti-theft monitor from the article, there is adopted a method for mechanically unlocking by inserting a releasing jig through a hole bored in a case in which the wire is locked.
Therefore, since the releasing method for removing the portable anti-theft monitor from the article can be easily judged from outside, the portable anti-theft monitor is illegally removed from the article, and shoplifting cannot be sufficiently prevented.

Portable wire loop anti theft alarm with magnetic unlocking


A method of forming a polycide thin film. First, a silicon layer is formed. Next, a thin barrier layer is formed on the first silicon layer. A second silicon layer is then formed on the barrier layer. Next, a metal layer is formed on the second silicon layer. The metal layer and the second silicon layer are then reacted together to form a silicide.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of semiconductor thin films; and more particularly to novel polycide thin films and their methods of fabrication.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Polycrystalline silicon (polysilicon) is a thin film which has been widely used in semiconductor manufacturing. Polysilicon lines have been used as gate electrodes, interconnects, and capacitors in integrated circuits. Polysilicon, however, has been somewhat limited by its high bulk resistivity. Polycide films which consist of a low resistance silicide formed on a doped polysilicon film have been used in place of polysilicon in an attempt to decrease the resistance of gate electrodes and interconnects to thereby create faster and lower power consuming integrated circuits.
A current method of fabricating a polycide gate electrode utilizing a self-aligned silicide (salicide) process is illustrated in FIGS. 1a-1c. According to a standard salicide process, a conventional transistor, such as the N-channel metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (NMOSFET) shown in FIG. 1a is provided. NMOS transistor 100 has a polysilicon gate electrode 104 formed on a gate dielectric 102 which in turn is formed on a p-type monocrystalline silicon substrate 101. Spacers 106 are formed adjacent to and run along opposite sidewalls of polysilicon gate electrode 104. N- source/drain tip regions 108 and N+ source/drain contact regions 110 are formed into substrate 101 in alignment with polysilicon gate electrode 104 and sidewall spacers 106, respectively.
In order to reduce the resistance of polysilicon gate electrode 104 and source/drain contact regions 110, a metal layer 112 such as titanium, is blanket deposited over substrate 101, as shown in FIG. 1b. Substrate 101 is then annealed to cause a reaction between titanium layer 112 and exposed silicon on polysilicon gate electrode 104 and source/drain contact regions 110 to form low resistance titanium-silicide (TiSi.sub.x wherein X.apprxeq.2) 114. No silicide reaction occurs on spacers 106 because no silicon is available for reaction with titanium. Next, as shown in FIG. 1c, unreacted titanium is removed from spacers 106 with an etchant which preferentially etches titanium as opposed to titanium-silicide. The result is a low resistance silicide 114 which has been selectively formed on the source/drain contact regions 110 and on the top of polysilicon gate electrode 104.
A problem with the silicide process described above is that it cannot be reliably used to form silicides on narrow polysilicon gate electrodes (i.e. gate lengths less than 0.25 .mu.m). During the annealing of substrate 101, silicon and titanium first react to form what is known as C-49 titanium-silicide. C-49 titanium-silicide has a relatively high resistance and must subsequently be converted into C-54 titanium-silicide which has a substantially lower resistance. C-49 titanium-silicide is converted into C-54 titanium-silicide by initiating the formation of a C-54 nucleation site or island from which the remainder of the C-49 film can convert into C-54 titanium-silicide. As gate lengths decrease, higher C-54 nucleation densities are required in order to ensure the formation of a C-54 nucleation site on the gate electrode so that the remainder of the C-49 titanium-silicide on the gate electrode can convert into C-54 titanium-silicide. Nucleation density is increased by increasing the annealing temperature of the silicide process. Thus, as gate electrode dimensions decrease, anneal temperatures must increase in order to provide a high enough nucleation density to insure that a low resistance silicide can be formed on narrow lines.
Unfortunately, however, at high anneal temperatures, silicides become unstable and begin to agglomerate or "bubble" 116 which causes dislocations and discontinuities 118 in the silicide. FIG. 1d is an illustration of the agglomeration of a silicide viewed along the "width" of a gate electrode. Dislocations and discontinuities 118 in a silicide on a gate electrode can cause a substantial increase in the resistance of the gate electrode which reduces device performance and basically defeats the purpose of forming a silicide in the first place.
As such, the silicide process described above has a thermal window in which a low resistance and uniform polysilicide film can be reliably formed. The silicide process must exceed a minimum temperature in order to provide a high enough nucleation density to ensure the formation of a low resistance silicide on narrow gate electrodes (or polysilicon lines), and must remain below a maximum temperature in order to prevent silicide agglomeration. Thus, as polysilicon gate lengths decrease to fabricate higher density integrated circuits, (i.e. as polysilicon lines become narrower), the thermal window will become so small that uniform, low resistance silicides can no longer be manufacturably fabricated with such a process.
Thus, what is needed is a method of increasing the thermal stability of silicide films.


A ruggedized, high efficiency, diffuse luminaire with a shaped lens diffuser that is composed of a semi-soft, flexible material that helps withstand damaging impacts and protects the internal electrical components. The lens diffuser may enclose one or more internal mirrors or employ an innovative Fresnel-like lens that projects light omni-directionally and that wraps around the inside of the lens for more efficient distribution of illumination and the elimination of up and down loss through re-projecting vertical losses onto the horizontal plane. The lens diffuser may incorporate a UV filtration compound molded directly into the materials composing the lens rather than applied or painted onto the surface or surfaces of the lens. The lens diffuser may incorporate two additional innovations that better enable the reduction of glare through varying the thickness of the lens diffuser, based on its relative proximity to the bulb(s) or lamp(s), and/or applying a patterning of reflective, semi-reflective or non-reflective material to the inside of the lens diffuser relative to the proximity to the illumination source to reflect away a portion of the light and thereby attain an even distribution of light across the surface of the lens without having to ensure that the lens surface is located equidistant or nearly equidistant from the lamp or lamps within the lens.

Lighting systems (hereinafter "luminaires") are in common use in a wide variety of private, commercial, industrial and government applications. A variety of glare reducing approaches have been attempted in various designs, however glare reducing lens diffusers are typically large in size and therefore bulky, difficult to transport, and potentially heavy or, if made lightweight, then fragile.
There are many drawbacks of large lens diffusers which appear unavoidable given the method of glare reduction used in conventional systems. Most low glare luminaires use a lamp or lamps with an arc type lighting source that typically produces a small, high intensity light emission from a single point. First, the desired reduction of glare is achieved by using a diffusing lens that is relatively large. This large surface area allows the surface luminance (luminance per square unit of area) to be relatively low, and thus glare reducing, while keeping the total luminance relatively high. Second, the glare is reduced by ensuring that no part of the lens suffers from significantly higher illumination than the other parts of the lens, i.e., it is desirable to have even light distribution over the entire surface of the lens diffuser. Many glare-reducing luminaires that use lens diffusers, including so-called "balloon lighting", solve this problem by utilizing a spheroid or ellipsoidal shape to maximize surface area per unit of volume to ensure even light distribution over the surface area because the distance from the arc emission point to the diffusing surface of the lens or balloon is approximately equidistant. Glare problems can be further exacerbated when extremely powerful and bright lighting is needed, which means an even larger lens diffuser is required for such applications. Third, the large-size diffusers that result are difficult to transport around, unless they are dismantled. Even when erected, larger lenses present a significant visual impact, blocking sight lines when mounted, such as on a pole or mast, and likewise suffer instability and may be knocked over in high winds.
There continues to be a need in the art for a low glare luminaire that is less prone to breakage, provides enhanced lighting efficiency, effectively filters or eliminates ultra-violet light, reduces energy costs (and carbon footprint) and reduces harmful glare without being overly large in size.

Ruggedized, high efficiency, diffuse luminaire


First through third light reception elements 111–113 receive infrared data D from an operation input transmission section 2, and output the received data to an operation input permission determination section 12a. The operation input permission determination section 12a distinguishes among the first through third infrared light reception elements 111–113, thereby determining in which space an operation input has been performed, and analyzes the description of the operation input, thereby determining whether to accept the operation input. A calculation processing section 13a performs various processes based on the description of the operation input from the operation input permission determination section 12a, a processing result of a position detection section 17, and map data stored in a map data storage section 16. A drawing processing section 14a performs a process of outputting a processing result of the calculation processing section 13a to first and second displays 3 and 4.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an in-car device provided so as to be operated by a plurality of occupants in a car, and also relates to a processing method for use with the in-car device. More particularly, the present invention relates to an in-car device which is operated by a plurality of occupants in a car so as to display a result of, for example, navigation processing, and also relates to a processing method for use with the in-car device.
2. Description of the Background Art
In a conventional car navigation device, map data stored in a storage medium, such as a DVD-ROM or a hard disc, is read as necessary to display a map of an area around the current position on an in-car display or to provide audio and visual guidance along a route to a preset destination. Recent years have seen an increase in the number of car navigation devices with a function of reproducing video information, e.g., DVD video information.
In general, a conventional car navigation device as described above includes one display which is shared among the driver and passengers. An infrared remote control is often used as an operation input means of the car navigation device. The driver and the passengers use the infrared remote control to perform prescribed operation inputs. The conventional car navigation device is designed on the premise that the device is mainly operated by the driver, and does not accept any complex operation input while the car is traveling in order to ensure safety during driving. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 6-103499 discloses an in-car device including a main operation unit for a driver and a sub operation unit for other occupants, and controls operation inputs from the main operation unit, such that only predetermined inputs are allowed during traveling, thereby ensuring safety during driving (hereinafter, this disclosure is referred to as a "first conventional technique").
Further, Japanese National Phase PCT Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-502437 discloses an in-car device including two sets of displays and operation input means for the driver and passengers (hereinafter, this disclosure is referred to as a "second conventional technique"). On one display, an image is displayed for the driver, while on the other display, an image is display for the passengers. A control switch is fixed in the vicinity of each of the displays.
In a conventional car navigation device, however, functions which can be operated during traveling are generally limited in order to ensure safety, resulting in considerable inconvenience. Particularly, in a conventional car navigation device including only one operation input means per display, it is not possible to detect whether the user having performed an operation input is the driver or a passenger. Accordingly, even the passenger, who can operate the operation input means during traveling without any trouble, is not allowed to perform a complex operation of setting a destination, for example, impairing the usability of the conventional car navigation device.
Therefore, in the first conventional technique, the main operation unit for the driver and the sub operation unit for the passengers are provided for controlling operation inputs from the main operation unit, such that only predetermined inputs are allowed during traveling, thereby ensuring safety and convenience during traveling. However, in the first conventional technique, it is necessary to provide a plurality of operation units, resulting in a complicated device structure. Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 6-103499 does not disclose any specific method for achieving an effect similar to that as described above by using only one infrared remote control which is highly convenient for use in the car. In the second conventional technique, since the in-car device includes a plurality of displays, operation inputs are frequently operated by occupants other than the driver. Accordingly, if functions which can be operated during traveling are limited, the user frequently suffers from inconvenience.
In the second conventional technique, the in-car device has a control switch fixed for operating the in-car device, and therefore a passenger in a seat, such as a rear passenger seat, which is located afar from the in-car device, has a difficulty in operating the in-car device. If a plurality of control switches are individually provided for all seat positions, a cost increase is caused by increasing the number of control switches. If the control switches are wired, wiring to the in-car device becomes complicated.
Further, in the case where one display is shared between a plurality of occupants, if the display is directed to one direction, visibility and usability may be impaired. For example, if a passenger in a front passenger seat wishes to perform a destination setting, the display is turned toward the front passenger seat in order to facilitate easy viewing of the display. However, if route guidance is started after a destination setting and a route search are completed, it is necessary to turn the display to a direction such that the driver can easily view the display.

In-car device and processing method for use with the in-car device

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


The invention is concerned with enzymic triglyceride conversions, wherein more than one enzymic conversion zone and preferably the same number of deacidifications units are applied. The fresh triglyceride feed stock and the compound providing fresh fatty acid moiety are introduced into different parts of the system so that fresh triglyceride is contacted with a mixture of the compound providing fatty acid moiety that is reduced in the amount of fatty acid moiety that should be introduced into the triglyceride.

Since the first publication about enzymic interesterification (see e.g. GB 1,577,933) of triglyceride-containing systems in the presence of minimal amounts of water (i.e. amounts of water that are sufficient to activate the enzyme but that are so small that only very limited amounts of hydrolysis products and/or isomerized components derived from these products are formed), many publications have appeared, both in open literature and in patent literature (see e.g. A. R. Macrae, J.A.O.C.S., 60 (2), 1983, pages 291-294; A. R. Macrae, Biocatalysts in Org. Synth., Proc. of Intern. Symp. Noordwijkerhout, Holland, Apr. 1985, pages 195-208; A. J. Russell and A. M. Klibanov, Biochem. Soc. Transactions, Vol. 17 (1989), page 1145; F. X. Malcata c.s., J.A.O.C.S., 67 (12), 1990, pages 890-910; U.S. Pat. No. 4,420,560; JP 62-155048; WO 8802775, including the references cited), which discuss the enzymic modification of edible fats. According to this literature, the interesterification of blends of triglycerides can be carried out, as can the interesterification of blends of oils, with added free fatty acids or esters in order to effect an interchange of the acids originally present in the triglycerides with the added acid. For example, triolein can be enzymically reacted with stearic acid to produce a triglyceride rich in StOSt, which is a major component of cocoa butter. However, in order to produce high conversions of triolein into StOSt, large amounts of expensive stearic acid should be used relative to triolein and the acid by-product produced in the overall process has little volume.
Thus, although the knowledge and understanding of this particular art have greatly improved since the above-mentioned first publication, one main problem still remained, i.e. how to arrive at a process that minimizes the use of expensive acids (or derivatives thereof) and by which high conversion into the desired end products can still be achieved.

Van den Bergh Foods Co., Division of Conopco, Inc.


Disclosed herein is a module cooling system, comprising, a module in operable communication with a circuit board, a stiffener abutting the circuit board, a heatsink abutting the module, a first biasing member biasing the heatsink towards the module, a plurality of non-influencing fasteners positionally fixing the heatsink, and a second biasing member biasing the circuit board and module towards the heatsink. Further disclosed herein is a method of mounting a module cooling system, comprising, connecting electrically a module to a circuit board, abutting a stiffener to the circuit board, abutting a heatsink to the module, biasing with a biasing member the heatsink in a direction towards the module, fixing the heatsink with non-influencing fasteners, and biasing with a second biasing member the circuit board and module towards the heatsink.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to efficiently cooling electronic circuits, and particularly to cooling circuits through the use of heatsinks.
2. Description of Background
Electronic components, such as microprocessors and integrated circuits, must operate within certain specified temperature ranges to perform efficiently. Excessive heat degrades electronic component performance, reliability, life expectancy, and can even cause failure. Heatsinks are widely used for controlling excessive heat. Typically, heatsinks are formed with fins, pins or other similar structures to increase the surface area of the heatsink and thereby enhance heat dissipation as air passes over the heatsink. In addition, it is not uncommon for heatsinks to contain high performance structures, such as vapor chambers and/or heat pipes, to further enhance heat transfer. Heatsinks are typically formed of metals, such as copper or aluminum. More recently, graphite-based materials have been used for heatsinks because such materials offer several advantages, such as improved thermal conductivity and reduced weight.
Electronic components are generally packaged using electronic packages (i.e., modules) that include a module substrate to which the electronic component is electronically connected. In some cases, the module includes a cap (i.e., a capped module), which seals the electronic component within the module. In other cases, the module does not include a cap (i.e., a bare die module).
Bare die modules are generally preferred over capped modules from a thermal performance perspective. In the case of a capped module, a heatsink is typically attached with a thermal interface between a bottom surface of the heatsink and a top surface of the cap, and another thermal interface between a bottom surface of the cap and a top surface of the electronic component. In the case of a bare die module, a heatsink is typically attached with a thermal interface between a bottom surface of the heatsink and a top surface of the electronic component. Bare die modules typically exhibit better thermal performance than capped modules because bare die modules eliminate two sources of thermal resistance present in capped modules, i.e., the thermal resistance of the cap and the thermal resistance of the thermal interface between the cap and the electronic component. Accordingly, bare die modules are typically used to package electronic components that require high total power dissipation.
Heatsinks are attached to modules using a variety of attachment mechanisms, such as clamps, screws, and other hardware. The attachment mechanism typically applies a force that maintains a thermal interface gap, i.e., the thickness of the thermal interface extending between the heatsink and the module. In the case of a capped module, the cap protects the electronic component from physical damage from the applied force. In the case of a bare die module, however, the applied force is transferred directly through the electronic component itself. Consequently, when bare die modules are used, the attachment mechanism typically applies a compliant force to decrease stresses on the electronic component.
Typical methods and designs used to control the thermal interface gap, while not putting excessive mechanical loads onto the module, include many components and are thus complex, expensive and take up valuable real-estate that could be put to better use by packaging more circuit components. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a smaller, less complex and less expensive module-to-heatsink mounting arrangement.

International Business Machines Corporation


A field emission display device is arranged to improve the (luminance and the contrast and have a fluorescent screen for preventing a fluophor from being stripped off a substrate. The field emission display device includes a cathode electrode, the fluophors excited by electrons emitted by the cathode electrode, an anode electrode to which a given anode voltage is to be applied, and a metal film formed on the fluophors. The metal film is formed to have a thickness in the range of 2.times.10.sup.-6 E<t<2.times.10.sup.-5 E+0.02, where t is a thickness of the metal film and E is a voltage to be applied onto the anode electrode.

1. Field of Industrial Application
The present invention relates to a field emission display device which is arranged to emit light by exciting a fluorescent material with electron rays and more particularly to the field emission display device which is driven at a low anode voltage.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a very thin display device, the so-called field emission display device has been proposed wherein a lot of minute cathode electrodes (micro tips) served as an electron emitting source are formed on each pixel area so that fluophors provided on an anode electrode side are made active by exciting the micro tips of the corresponding pixel areas to a given electric signal.
The field emission display device includes as basic components a cathode electrode, an insulating layer formed on the cathode electrode, gate lines formed on the insulating layer and having lots of openings (gates) formed therein, and micro tips serving as minute cold cathodes located in lots of holes passing from the cathode electrode formed in the insulating layer to the gate line, the micro tips corresponding to the gates. That is, the pixels of the field emission display are composed of lots of electron emitting sources each of which has a cathode electrode, an insulating layer, gate lines, and micro tips.
On the anode electrode side of the display device arranged as described above, as shown in FIG. 1, a fluorescent screen 21 is formed facing the cathode electrode on the lower surface of the anode electrode 20 composed of a glass material. On the fluorescent screen 21, a fluorescent agent is coated in a bandlike manner so that the fluorescent agent bands are formed in parallel to the cathode lines.
On the fluorescent screen 21, fluophors 22 excited by electrons for emitting light and black masks 23 are formed on the side facing to the cathode electrode. Hence, on the lower surface of this fluorescent screen 21, the fluophors 22 are formed and excited by electrons so that this surface of the fluorescent screen 21 is served as the fluorescent screen 21 of the display device 1.
The black masks 23 are located to section lots of fluophors 22. The black masks 23 serve to section the fluophors 22 in a manner to correspond to R, G and B.
The display device arranged as described above is driven as below.
At first, a voltage Vc is applied to the cathode electrode. By applying a larger voltage Vg than Vc to the gate, the cold cathodes are excited to emit electrons. The emitted electrons are accelerated by the anode electrode and then reach the fluophors coated on the anode so that the fluophors operate to be luminous.
In the display device, however, the fluophor 22 formed on the anode electrode emit light onto the cathode electrode side when the electrons emitted from the cathode electrode excites the fluophors 22. Hence, the application of light onto the cathode electrode results in inhibiting contribution of part of emission to the emission from the screen.
Further, the fluophors 22 are formed as opposed to the electron emitting source and are formed on the anode electrode side of the substrate 20. Hence, the fluophor 22 is stripped off the substrate 20 and thereby gas is discharged through the stripped portion. This disadvantageously brings about an electric discharge between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode, which leads to lack of reliability of the display device.


Solubilization enhancer compositions are provided which facilitate transdermal administration of basic drugs from transdermal systems composed of nonpolar adhesive materials. Preferred solubilization enhancer compositions are comprised of liquid, isomeric acid mixtures such as oleic acid dimer. The invention also relates to novel transdermal systems, drug reservoirs, formulations, and methods of drug administration, in which the disclosed solubilization enhancer compositions are used.

The delivery of drugs through the skin provides many advantages; primarily, such a means of delivery is a comfortable, convenient and noninvasive way of administering drugs. The variable rates of absorption and metabolism encountered in oral treatment are avoided, and other inherent inconveniences--e.g., gastrointestinal irritation and the like--are eliminated as well. Transdermal drug delivery also makes possible a high degree of control over blood concentrations of any particular drug.
Skin is a structurally complex, relatively thick membrane. Molecules moving from the environment into and through intact skin must first penetrate the stratum corneum and any material on its surface. They must then penetrate the viable epidermis, the papillary dermis, and the capillary walls into the blood stream or lymph channels. To be so absorbed, molecules must overcome a different resistance to penetration in each type of tissue. Transport across the skin membrane is thus a complex phenomenon. However, it is the cells of the stratum corneum which present the primary barrier to absorption of topical compositions or transdermally administered drugs. The stratum corneum is a thin layer of dense, highly keratinized cells approximately 10-15 microns thick over most of the body. It is believed to be the high degree of keratinization within these cells as well as their dense packing which creates in most cases a substantially impermeable barrier to drug penetration.
In order to increase skin permeability, and in particular to increase the permeability of the stratum corneum (i.e., so as to achieve enhanced penetration, through the skin, of the drug to be administered transdermally), the skin may be pretreated with a penetration enhancing agent (or "permeation enhancer", as sometimes referred to herein) prior to application of a drug; alternatively, a drug and a permeation enhancer are concurrently delivered.
The rate at which transdermal drug delivery occurs can be expressed as skin flux, i.e., as a quantity of drug which passes through a unit of skin surface area per unit time. Skin flux is affected by several factors, one of which is skin permeability.
Another factor which affects skin flux is the solubility of the drug in the reservoir in which it is contained. In certain kinds of transdermal systems, where the drug is only poorly soluble in the reservoir, skin flux varies over time; that is, while initially drug flux is well above the minimum value required to obtain pharmaceutically effective levels of the drug, flux subsequently declines to a point below the target value.
This effect is especially problematic in cases where steady state delivery of a drug over an extended time period is desired. A method for overcoming this problem, and obtaining a steady-state flux profile, is to solubilize a higher percentage of the drug in the reservoir. Doing so reduces the initial flux rate, and consequently increases the flux at later times, owing to the higher concentration of dissolved drug remaining in the reservoir; the net result is improved steady state delivery.
The present invention is directed to a novel method and composition for enhancing the solubilization of a drug in the drug reservoir in which it is contained. The invention is premised on the discovery that adding certain acidic agents to the drug reservoir enhances the solubility of the drug in the reservoir and thus improves steady state delivery of the drug.

Transdermal delivery of basic drugs using nonpolar adhesive systems and acidic solubilizing agents


A portable ladder for attachment to truck and trailer beds having stake or post pockets spaced about the outer periphery of the truck or trailer frame, including an attachment plate having a post sized for fitting into one of the stake or post pockets and a ladder section pivotally connected to the attachment plate by a pair of links or hinges, to permit the ladder section to be pivotally moved downwardly over the edge of the truck or trailer bed into a use position for climbing and to be pivotally moved upwardly over the truck or trailer bed into a stowage position.

This invention relates to truck ladders which facilitate the user's access to a truck bed; in particular, the invention relates to a detachable ladder for accessing the bed of a flatbed truck or trailer from the ground. In most cases, the bed of a flatbed truck trailer is about five feet above the ground surface, making it difficult to climb on and off the bed. It is frequently necessary to access the bed of a truck trailer while loading and unloading the trailer, and some trucks have permanently mounted step rails positioned for this purpose. However, a permanently mounted step rail must be mounted so as not to increase the overall width of the trailer in order to comply with highway regulations, and therefore such step rails are usually positioned vertically beneath the outer edge of the truck frame, which makes it difficult to use them for climbing onto the bed.
For safe operation and convenient ease of access, it is desirable that an access ladder be positioned at a reasonable angle relative to vertical, and it is also desirable that the ladder have some form of handrail to assist the user while climbing on the ladder. Furthermore, it is desirable that the ladder be portable so that it can be used at many points around the trailer bed, for frequently the trailer has a partial load which prevents access to the trailer bed where the partial load is located. It is also desirable that the ladder be capable of convenient stowage when not in use, but in a position which maintains a fixed attachment to the trailer so that the ladder cannot be lost while the truck is being moved. When the ladder is stowed it must be secured to prevent it from falling off the trailer, which could cause a dangerous highway hazard.

Portable truck or trailer ladder assembly


A single remote control transmitter can advantageously control three units including a cable tuner/descrambler, a video recorder/player and a television receiver. One of these three units, preferably the video recorder/player, is a master unit. It receives remote control signals from a hand held remote control transmitter. The master unit is initialized using on screen prompts to learn the remote control signals for the other units which are slaves. The prompts ask the user to operate various controls on the remote control transmitter of the proposed slave unit, while receiving and analyzing the remote control transmissions. This permits the master unit to build a translation table for control of the slave units. The master unit may include a read only memory of remote control codes for a number of possible slave units. The master unit can abort the initialization process if it recognizes the requested remote control transmission is according to one of the remote control codes stored in the memory. The system preferably separates control of the plural processes so that each one of the cable tuner/descrambler, the video recorder/player and the television receiver are employed for only certain functions.

Most video recorder/players of the type intended to be used with television receivers include a system for enabling the automatic, unattended recording of programs scheduled for future transmission. In such systems the operator can load a future schedule memory with signals representing the channel, starting time and ending time (or alternatively duration) of one or more future occurring programs that it is desired to record. The system includes a real time clock and when a comparator determines that the present time has reached the starting time of a program to be recorded the tape drive is energized and the channel number stored in the memory is used to control the tuner of the video recorder/player. When the real time reaches the ending time of the program the recording process is terminated.
Often the source of signals for the video recorder/player constitutes either a cable or satellite multi-channel signal including one or more channels which are scrambled to prevent their reception by an unauthorized source. These signals must be descrambled before they can be recorded or displayed on the television receiver. Tuner/descramblers are typically employed for this purpose. Popularly called "cable boxes" these units receive the output of the cable and/or the satellite and may be tuned by the operator, typically employing an infrared remote control device, to a desired channel. The output of the cable box is provided to the video recorder/player and either directly to the T.V. receiver or via the video cassette recorder.
A variety of arrangements may be used to interconnect the tuner/descrambler, the video recorder/player and the T.V. receiver such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,630,133 and 4,771,456. Some of these systems allow one channel to be recorded while a different channel is displayed on the T.V. receiver.
In all of these systems the proper recording of a future scheduled television program occurring on one of the scrambled channels requires that the descrambler be tuned to the desired channel at the time of occurrence of the signal to be recorded. Often the future schedule memory is programmed a long time in advance of the time of occurrence of the program to be recorded. If the system is used for real time viewing or recording between the time of programming and the time of occurrence of the future program to be recorded, the channel selector on the descrambler may have been adjusted to tune some channel other than the one that it is desired to record. The operator must then return the descrambler setting to the proper channel before recording for the system to operate properly. Particular difficulty is encountered when the schedule memory is programmed to record two future programs occurring on different scrambled channels. It is then necessary to adjust the scrambler setting after the occurrence of the first program before the occurrence of the second one.
The value to the user of a remote control for various types of electronic equipment has resulted in a proliferation of remote control units. A system including a cable tuner/descrambler, a video recorder/player and a television receiver may have three different remote control units. This results in confusion because the user needs to select the appropriate remote control unit before entering a remote control command. In addition, there is an apparent overlap in functions because each of these units are capable of channel selection. Because of these problems there is a need for a single remote control unit which can operate all the users equipment.


A method for determining the life cycle of a power station component is provided. The method includes the following steps: definition of a first characteristic for the life cycle of a power station component at a constant output, definition of a second characteristic for the life cycle of the power station component at a variable output, definition of a first equivalence rule as a function from an actual time parameter, definition of a second equivalence rule wherein the pre-defined operation of the power station component at the variable output in accordance with a plurality of second characteristics is depicted, determination of the numbers of first and second characteristics that are generated during the actual operation of the power station, determination of the sum of the numbers of first and second characteristics, and assessment of the life cycle of the power station component using the determined sum.

The life cycle of power station components is at present usually determined by initially selecting the assemblies of the power station component that are subject to the highest stress and then individually determining the exhaustion for these assemblies. Methods of creep and cyclic stress exhaustion in particular are used when determining the exhaustion.
Thus, the use of finite element method for a detailed stress analysis of assemblies of power station components is known. With this method, differential equation systems, which describe the stresses present in the assembly, are solved. Input variables for the differential equations are, for example, the pressure and temperature patterns of a medium around the assembly. The material stresses are then determined in precise detail from the calculated stresses.
A disadvantage with the known methods is that they provide only results regarding the exhaustion of individual assemblies or even only of sections of assemblies, whereas an assembly-overlapping, so-called integral, assessment of the life cycle of the complete component is possible, if at all, only at great expense. A higher-level assessment of this kind normally requires the results for the individual assemblies to be interpreted by experts.
Another possible method of determining the life cycle of power station components is the specification, during the design of the power station component, of a pre-defined number of operating hours and starts or trips (i.e. output changes of the power station component).
A comparatively simple, known method is therefore based on counting the operating hours and load changes on the basis of pre-calculated pressure and temperature stresses in the assemblies of a power station component and then comparing these with experimentally determined values of the creep strength and number of insipient crack load changes. This method is used to determine the life cycle of power station boilers (see DIN EN 12952/4:2001-10 "Water tube boilers and system components, Part 4: In-service calculation of the life cycle expectation, German version EN 12952-4:2000"), with such boilers being a particular type of power station component for which a specific type of life cycle determination is necessary due to the particular operating conditions.
The last-named possibility usually fails due to the fact that how the power station component is run in actual operation usually differs from that visualized during design.

Method for determining the lifecycle of a power station component


An antenna assembly is use in a telecommunication device having a first printed circuit board and a second printed circuit board disposed right below and facing the first printed circuit board. The antenna assembly includes: radiating metal strip having a main strip section for disposing on an upper surface of the first printed circuit board, a feeding strip section extending from the main strip section through a first through hole in the first printed circuit board toward the second printed circuit board, and a grounding strip section extending from the main strip section through a second through hole in the first printed circuit board toward the second printed circuit board. After assembly, the feeding and grounding strip sections tend toward an upper surface of the second printed circuit board.

Due to advance of the telecommunication technology, the local wireless system and the mobile phone are provided with in-built antenna assemblies respectively for transmitting and receiving signals from far and nearby.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional mobile phone 2 is shown to include an upper casing 6, a lower casing 8, an input keypad 12, and a printed circuit board 14. The upper casing 6 has an LCD panel 10, and is formed with a plurality of input keys 602.
The printed circuit board 14 generally includes several complicated circuits, chipsets, and other electronic components for different functions. The printed circuit board 14 is disposed below the keypad 12. The keypad 12 is formed with a plurality of conductive pads 1202 respectively aligned with the input keys 602 of the upper casing 6. Depression of an input key 602 via an actuator (not shown) results in a contact between the respective conductive pad 1202 and the respective circuit, thereby sending a signal to the signal-processing module (not shown).
As a rule, the mobile phone 2 is provided with an antenna assembly according to the requirement for transmitting and receiving signals. For communication with a base station, an antenna assembly 3 is fabricated on the top portion of the printed circuit board 14. For communication with the local wireless system, for example WLAN, another antenna assembly 4 (hence WLAN antenna assembly) is fabricated on the lower portion of the printed circuit board 14. As shown in FIG. 1, the antenna assembly 4 has a F-shaped configuration and includes a radiating metal strip having a main strip section 402 mounted on the printed circuit board 14 adjacent to the periphery thereof, a feeding strip section 404 for coupling to the signal-processing module (not shown) and a grounding strip section 406 for grounding purposes.
Moreover, the upper and lower surface of the printed circuit board 14 defines a naked space 16 for receiving the main strip section 402, the feeding strip section 404 and the grounding strip section 406. Since the naked space is free from circuits and is defined by a portion of the FR 4 standard laminates, which as a whole serves as the major medium for forming the printed circuit board 14 once the circuits are fabricated thereon. Enlargement of the distance between the main strip section 402 and the conductive layer at a lower elevation in the printed circuit board 14 can result in decrease of the Q value, thereby enhancing the storage capacity of the antenna assembly and consequently permitting the latter to possess a wider band of operating frequency.
As a matter of fact, due to the presence of the naked space 16 in the printed circuit board, it makes the manufactures of the electronic device more difficult to design the complicated circuit paths on the remaining space of the printed circuit board. Since the mobile phone (each electronic device) is under the trend toward the compact size, formation of the aforesaid naked space 16 results in waste of precious space in the printed circuit board. In addition, the manufacturers of the antenna assembly aggressively want to widen the distance between the main strip section and the conductive layer disposed at a lower elevation.
Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to provide an antenna assembly for solving the aforesaid problems.

Antenna assembly for use in a telecommunication device


Tension alert device is attached between opposing ends of a securing member attached to a load bed to secure a load thereupon. The device has a strip with a curved portion, which is resiliently movable towards a proximity sensor disposed on a wall in device. When tension in securing member decreases, proximity of curved portion relative wall decreases. When curved portion enters a proximity actuation state relative first wall corresponding to a low tension state where tension is below a tension threshold level, a proximity sensor actuates a signaling device which alerts a user.

Road accidents involving trucks carrying heavy loads are commonplace. Oftentimes, the accidents are caused by loads shifting on the load bed, which can ultimately cause instability of the truck during turning or when traveling at high speed. The loads are typically secured to the truck's load bed by a number of elongate securing members, such as securing straps or the like. The securing members are normally lashed over the load and connected to both sides of the load bed using hooks or some other suitable connecting means. While this type of load securing is satisfactory, it has some significant drawbacks. For example, loads have a tendency to shift during transport and the tension in the securing members can decrease, which results in unstable loads that may dislodge and fall off the load bed causing injury and damage to property. Moreover, the vehicle driver is often unaware of this decrease in strap tension and often has to manually check the integrity of the load, especially on long journeys. This checking increases the delay in delivery of the load and may increase the cost of transporting the load.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,847,290 issued to Tardif on Jan. 25, 2005 teaches a tension alert device for remedying the problems described above. Tension alert device is used with securing member which secures load to vehicle load bed, the securing member having a connector portion and an attachment link. The device includes a connector sleeve, with an axial bore and a sleeve end portion, which is connected to the link. A first contacter connects to an inner end portion of the sleeve and faces into the axial bore. A second contacter slides in the bore along a restricted path of travel and has a second load bed connector. The second contacter faces the first contacter and is urged away from it when the member has a first tension threshold value. The first contacter has an electrical signal generator for producing an electrical signal, which is activated when the second contacter is biased against it when the belt is at a second threshold tension value. The electric signal is used for controlling an alert signal generated and transmitted to the user when tension declines below an acceptable level. Thus, the tension in member is monitored and user is alerted when tension has fallen below the acceptable level. However, this device disadvantageously requires attachment of device between one end, i.e. a connecting end, of the securing member and the load bed, thus necessitating use of the link and connector portions and adaptation of the connecting end of member for attachment to device. Device may also require adaptation of load bed and installation of additional equipment thereon to enable attachment of device thereto. This adaptation of member and load bed can be time consuming and cumbersome, and may also engender additional costs.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved tension alert device that can be more easily attached to securing member and which is not restricted to attachment on an end of securing member.


A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate, a body region, a body contact region and a cancelling region each of the first conductivity type, and a buried layer, an epitaxial layer and a source region each of the second conductivity type. A trench is provided in the epitaxial layer from a surface thereof. A gate insulating film is provided on an inner wall of the trench, and a gate electrode made of polycrystalline silicon is in contact with the gate insulating film and fills the trench. The cancelling region, which is provided below a bottom surface of the trench for cancelling a conductivity type of the buried layer, has a distribution center located below a boundary surface between the buried layer and the epitaxial layer. A trench bottom surface lower region of the first conductivity type is provided from the bottom surface of the trench continuously to the cancelling region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device having a vertical MOS transistor with a trench gate structure and a method of manufacturing the semiconductor device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a wide variety of mobile devices have been distributed. As power sources for those mobile devices, Li-ion batteries have been heavily used, which have high energy density without generating memory effect. Along therewith, a protection IC for detecting overcharge and overdischarge of the Li-ion battery has become essential. For example, a Li-ion battery for mobile phones has a battery voltage of about 3.6 V, but a voltage of 20 V or more may be applied during charging. Accordingly it is required that the IC includes an element having a high breakdown voltage.
In this case, when a CMOS transistor process is used to satisfy the specification of the above-mentioned IC, it is necessary that the process can form a MOS transistor suitable for low voltage use and a MOS transistor suitable for high voltage use. This is because, the final chip size increases when the entire IC is formed of high breakdown voltage elements since the high breakdown voltage element needs to have a certain element size in order to satisfy its specification, with the result that the IC has no cost-competitiveness, and it becomes difficult to satisfy the demand for market price. Consequently the chip size is reduced by using high breakdown voltage elements in circuit areas to which a high voltage is applied, and using low breakdown voltage elements in other circuit areas. Further, when a power MOSFET is used for the protection IC, the demand for the on-resistance of the power MOSFET is as low as about 10 mΩ·mm2. Since the power MOSFET occupies a much part of the entire chip, the performance improvement of the power MOSFET significantly contributes to the reduction in chip size.
When focusing on the power MOSFET, there has been proposed a MOS transistor having a structure in which a trench is used to form a vertical channel as illustrated in FIG. 3. In the conventional vertical MOS transistor, as a drain region, an N-type buried layer 302 and an N-type epi-layer 303 for relaxing an electric field are formed on a P-type semiconductor substrate 301. Further on a surface thereof, a P-type body region 304, an N-type source high concentration region 306 as a source, and a P-type body contact region 307 are formed by ion implantation, thermal diffusion, and the like. Then, from a surface thereof, a trench 308 reaching the N-type epi-layer 303 is formed, and a side wall of the trench 308 is formed as a gate insulating film 310. Further, a gate electrode 311 is filled in the trench 308. Note that, an insulating film is formed on the gate electrode 311 for insulation with respect to the N-type source high concentration region 306, and the N-type source high concentration region 306 and the P-type body contact region 307 are electrically connected to each other by a source electrode formed on the insulating film. In this vertical MOS transistor, a part of the P-type body region 304 in the vicinity of the gate insulating film 310, which is sandwiched between the N-type epi-layer 303 and the N-type source high concentration region 306, becomes a channel. The current path is therefore vertical, and high integration is possible while maintaining the breakdown voltage. Accordingly, as compared to a lateral MOS transistor having a lateral channel, a lower resistance can be obtained when the transistor is turned ON.
Further, as a method of reducing the on-resistance in the vertical MOS transistor, there are such methods of increasing the concentration of the N-type epi-layer 303 of the drain, or locating the gate electrode closer to the N-type buried layer 302 of the drain. However, in any of those cases, the element on-resistance and the gate-drain breakdown voltage have a trade-off relationship, and hence there has been a problem in that a comprehensive performance improvement becomes difficult.
To address this problem, Japanese Published Patent Application 2002-299619 discloses a structure capable of improving the breakdown voltage while suppressing the increase in on-resistance. As illustrated in FIG. 4, a gate insulating film having two different thicknesses is formed so that a gate insulating film 312 at a bottom portion of the trench is thicker than a gate insulating film at a side surface thereof, to thereby improve the breakdown voltage between the drain and the gate. As an example of a method of forming the gate insulating film having two different thicknesses, a thin gate insulating film and a thin nitride film are formed on an inner surface of the trench, and deposition of an insulating film and etching are repeated so that a second trench is further formed in the trench. In this manner, a thick gate insulating film and a thin gate insulating film are formed in the trench.
However crystal defects are easily generated due to strain stress at the boundary between the thick gate oxide film and the thin gate oxide film since a stepped oxide film is formed. As a result, as compared to an oxide film having no thickness boundary, the long-term reliability of the gate oxide film may be degraded.

Semiconductor device and method of manufacturing the same