The specification describes a method for the manufacture of fluoride glass optical fibers which are covered with a protective coating of phosphate glass. The coating is produced by dipping the fluoride glass preform in a phosphate glass melt prior to drawing the optical fiber. The fluoride glass is ZBLAN. The phosphate glass has a glass transition temperature below 200.degree. C., which allows the dipping step to be carried out at a relatively low temperature where the preform temperature is maintained well below the crystallization temperature of the fluoride glass, and also where the viscosity of the fluoride glass preform is substantially higher than the viscosity of the phosphate glass coating material.

The potential of fluoride glass fibers for ultra low loss applications, particularly in long wavelength, i.e. infra-red systems, has been recognized for some time. Potential applications include low loss optical communication systems in which repeaters can be essentially eliminated for many long distance links. The theoretical loss of these materials due to intrinsic Rayleigh scattering and the multiphonon absorption edge loss is 0.001 dB/km at 2.5 .mu.m and should allow a repeaterless communications link of several thousand kilometers. Other photonic device applications include optical fiber amplifiers, filters, upconversion devices, multiplexers, etc. Other industrial applications include diagnostic and surgical tools in medicine, power transmission, high temperature sensing equipment, high power lasers, all of which may require low loss, long wavelength light transmission for which these fibers are especially suited.
The commercial potential of fluoride fibers has not been realized to date due to their poor chemical durability and low mechanical strength. Defects on drawn fiber surfaces can occur from chemical imperfections and impurities. Moreover, fluoride glasses are inherently soft, and slight mechanical imperfections from drawing and coating are largely unavoidable. While small surface defects in silica glass fibers occur routinely, these are essentially benign when coated with conventional polymer materials. By contrast, small surface defects in fluoride glass fibers grow in spite of conventional polymer coatings under most ambient conditions, especially under humid conditions. Moreover, the heavy metal fluoride glasses, i.e. zirconium fluoride glasses, have poor chemical stability especially in the presence of water, forming zirconium hydroxide crystallites on exposed surfaces. These crystallite formations on the surface produce crack initiation sites on the glass surface and drastically reduce fiber strength, typically from 250 ksi to a few tens of ksi.
The extreme moisture sensitivity of these fibers has been addressed by many workers using a variety of hermetic coating materials which so far have proved relatively ineffective in producing high strength fibers.
Coatings applied to the as drawn fiber present difficult materials and process engineering problems, although a wide variety of such techniques have been attempted. See e.g., G. A. Al-Jumaily et al, Mater. Sci. Forum Vol. 6, p. 721, (1985); P. C. Schultz et al , Mater. Sci. Forum Vols. 19-20, pp. 419-430, (1987).
More promising, are bulk glass coatings applied to the fluoride glass preform prior to drawing. This allows the use of more or less conventional fiber manufacture techniques and equipment. These techniques have been moderately successful, producing losses of the order of 0.5 dB/km, which makes many short length fiber device applications feasible. In particular, these glasses are now recognized as ideal host materials for many near-IR active fiber device applications because of their long-wavelength multiphonon absorption edges.
In most cases the heavy metal fluoride glasses are so-called ZBLAN glass or modifications thereof. ZBLAN is an acronym for a mixed glass of fluorides of zirconium, barium, lanthanum, aluminum and sodium and has been the material of choice in many of the investigations in the development of fluoride optical fibers. ZHBLAN is an acronym for a mixed glass of fluorides that has hafnium in addiction to the components of the ZBLAN glasses.
Schultz et al used ZBLAN glasses and experimented with various inorganic oxide, nitride, and carbide protective coatings using RF-sputter coating. They identified MgO as a good candidate for an effective moisture barrier, but reported no results on actual fibers. See P. C. Schultz, L. J. B. Vacha, C. T. Moynihan, B. B. Harbison, K. Cadien, R. Mossadegh, "Hermetic coatings for bulk fluoride glasses and fibers", Materials Science Forum, Vol. 19-20 19-20, pp. 343-352 (1987). Buhler et al have reported good bulk glass protection on ZBLA glass (ZBLAN glass without sodium fluoride) using e-beam evaporated SiO.sub.2 and Ta.sub.2 O.sub.5 films. See M. Buhler, J. Edinger, H. K. Pulker, M. Reinhold, B. Bendow, O. El-Bayoumi, "Optical and protective coatings for heavy-metal fluoride glasses prepared by reactive ion plating", Materials Science Forum, Vols. 19-20, pp. 353-362 (1987). However, a large thermal expansion coefficient differences exists between these coating materials and ZBLAN, which prohibits their use as bulk coating materials on optical fiber preforms. Vacha et al have developed a phosphate glass overcladding for preforms that has a glass transition temperature of 247.degree. C. and a thermal expansion coefficient of 17.4.times..sup.-6 /.degree. C. They used the rotational casting method to make phosphate tubes, and sequentially poured the molten glasses for the clad and core into a rotating cylindrical mold to produce the multimode optical fiber preform. The use of this overclad enhanced the fracture strength significantly. See L. J. B. Vacha, P. C. Schultz, C. T. Moynihan, S. N. Crichton, "Flox fibers: fluoride glasses with oxide overclad, Materials Science Forum, Vols. 19-20, pp. 419-430 (1987). Orcel et al have studied various metal oxides in phosphate glasses and developed a chemically durable phosphate glass suitable for fluoride glass protection. See G. Orcel, D. Biswas, M. R. Shahriari, T. Iqbal, G. H. Sigel, "Development of a new glass for fluoride fiber overclad", Materials Science Forum, Vol. 67, pp. 569-574 (1991). Phosphate glasses in general have been studied in great detail. See e.g. N. H. Ray, C. J. Lewis, J. N. C. Laycock, W. D. Robinson, "Oxide glasses of very low softening point. Part 1,2 Preparation and properties of some lead phosphate glasses", Glass Technology, Vol. 14, pp. 50-59 (1973); B. C. Sales, L. A. Boatner, "Optical, structural, and chemical characteristics of lead-indium phosphate and lead-scandium phosphate glasses", J. Amer. Ceram. Soc., Vol. 70, pp. 615-621 (1987); Y. B. Peng, D. E. Day, "High thermal expansion phosphate glasses", Glass Technology, Vol. 32, p. 166 (1991). These glasses have low softening and melting temperatures, good temperature durability, and good mechanical properties. They also have a large coefficient of thermal expansion, and were originally developed for sealing metal leads. The temperature dependence of their viscosity is similar to silicate glasses and not nearly as steep as the fluorozirconate glasses. Glass materials in this category have base compositions of 50-70 mol % P.sub.2 O.sub.5, 10-30 mol % PbO, and 10-20 mol % of oxides of Li,K, and Na. Alkaline earth oxides, MgO, BaO and CaO, and metal oxides like CdO and V.sub.2 O.sub.5 are added to improve durability and decrease the water solubility.
In a recent study, Hartmann et al have used a phosphate glass with a 227.degree. C. glass transition to overclad ZBLAN optical fiber preforms. See M. Hartmann, G. H. Frischat, K. Hogerl, G. F. West, "Resistant oxide coatings for heavy metal fluoride glasses", Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids, Vol. 184, pp. 209-212 (1995). They coated the preforms using a dip coating process using a melt at 500.degree. C. and observed crystallization at the fluoride glass-phosphate glass interface. On decreasing the melt temperature to 350.degree.-370.degree. C. they obtained a good transparent coating. The phosphate glasses they used have high melting temperatures and therefore do not allow lower temperatures for dip-coating. The work of Hartmann et al focuses on the temperature regime above the crossover point in the viscosity vs. temperature plot of the fluoride and phosphate glasses (see FIG. 3 of Hartmann et al). At the dip-coating temperatures used by Hartmann et al the viscosity of the fluoride glass being coated is very low and significant crystallization results.

Manufacture of fluoride glass fibers with phosphate coatings


Systems and methods for rescheduling passengers are provided. One example aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a method for rescheduling passengers. The method includes receiving an indication that an event has disrupted a plurality of flights. The method includes identifying a plurality of itineraries. The method includes determining a plurality of sets for the itineraries. The method includes determining a plurality of operations plan alternatives based on the plurality of sets. The method includes determining one or more constraints from the plurality of sets of itineraries. The method includes applying the one or more constraints to the plurality of operations plan alternatives to determine an impact of the one or more constraints to the plurality of operations plan alternatives on the sets of itineraries. The method includes determining an operations plan comprising a schedule for the plurality of flights.

An airline can help move a plurality of passengers from a plurality of departure locations to a plurality of destination locations. The airline can experience a disruption, such as harsh weather. The disruption can cause at least one flight delay and/or flight cancellation. A flight delay can cause a plurality of passengers with connecting flights to miss their connecting flights. A flight cancellation can prevent a plurality of passengers from arriving at their destination locations.

Systems and methods for rescheduling airline passengers


Architecture for efficient processing of the evolving OTN transmission technology, standardized under ITU-T G.709, in conjunction with existing and emerging SONET/SDH protocol signals, standardized under ANSI T1.105/ITU-T G.707. The new architecture allows processing the SONET/SDH signals, and/or OTN signals, and/or SONET/SDH mapped into OTN signals more efficiently. The architecture further allows processing and multiplexing of lower order signals into a higher order signal such as quad OC-192 into OC-768 or quad OC-192 into OPU3 and OTU3. This architecture uses an embedded processor to process some of the signals' overhead in software, contributing to an additional level of flexibility in the processing. This architecture enables customization and allowing for future standard updates and upgrades. The architecture can be upgraded to SONET OC-3072, SDH STM-1024 and OTU4, which currently are not standardized. The architecture can also be used for the implementation of SONET OC-192 with OTN OTU2.

SONET is a standard for optical transport formulated by the Exchange Carriers Standards Association (ECSA) for the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), which sets industry standards in the U.S. for telecommunications and other industries. The standard has also been incorporated into the Synchronous Digital Hierarchy recommendations of the Consultative Committee on International Telegraph and Telephone (CCITT) (now called the International Telecommunications Union [ITU]), which sets standards for international telecommunications. Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) and Synchronous Digital hierarchy (SDH) (hereinafter referred to as "SONET/SDH) are now mature digital transport technologies, established in virtually every country in the world. When SONET/SDH was first conceived in the early 1980s, telecommunications traffic was predominantly voice. During the last years there has been a burst in the demand for bandwidth driven mainly by Internet access, e-commerce and mobile telephony. This increase in demand has, so far, been primarily satisfied through a combination of time division multiplexing (TDM), which enables transmission of multiple signals simultaneously over a single transmission path, and dense wave division multiplexing (DWDM), wherein multiple wavelengths are transmitted through a single fiber. However, as the network evolves to higher line rates, the physical limitations of the transport medium (optical fiber) become critical. Furthermore, there remains an overriding requirement to control the cost of providing and improving the level of service to the users.
Optical transport network (OTN) was conceived in 2001, under the auspices of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) (http://www.itu.int/ITU-T/), to overcome the drawbacks of SONET/SDH. The OTN capabilities and facilities are published as a new standard, known as ITU-G.709 "Network node interface for the optical transport network (OTN)", which is fully incorporated herein by reference, as if fully set forth herein. The OTN standard is based on the G.975 standard, however, some key elements have been added to improve performance and reduce cost. These include management of optical channels in the optical domain, forward error correction (FEC), to improve error performance and enable longer optical spans, and a standardized method for managing optical wavelengths (channels) end to end without the need for processing of the payload signal.
Reference is now made to FIG. 1A where an illustration of a typical SONET/SDH frame is shown. A SONET frame as defined, for example in the ANSI T1.105, and G.707 for SDH standards, may be thought of as a two-dimensional array of bytes, or a data block, having a length and a width. The length and width are referred to as rows and columns. Each frame includes nine rows and ninety columns (9×90). The first three columns are used for overhead management of the SONET/SDH frame. The other columns provide a synchronous payload envelope (SPE). SPE carries the information that must traverse the entry and exit points through the SONET/SDH network. This information includes both the payload traffic and the path overhead. The path overhead coordinates the activities between the SONET terminals (or add/drop multiplexors) that are responsible for the entry and exit points through the network. The SONET frame is a synchronized frame, the beginning of which may be indicated by a frame signal. This frame format is used for all SONET/SDH transmissions. As the data rates increase, more copies of the frames are transmitted for each transmission period. Typically, SONET/SDH frames are wrapped with a digital wrapper used for error detection and correction. Error correction is performed, as defined in the G.975 standard, with a wide range of applications in digital communications, by means of the well known in the art Reed-Solomon algorithm (see http://www.itu.int/ITU-T/). SONET/SDH protocols are capable of handling two different types of flows: a) time division multiplexing (TDM); and, b) flows that contain data packets, such as IP, ATM, GFP, 1GBE and 10GBE. TDM is typically used for telecom applications. The frame shown in FIG. 1A typically refers to STS-1, which is the basic frame for the SONET, or to STM-0, which is the equivalent of SDH.
Reference is now made to FIG. 1B where an illustration of an OTN frame is shown. An OTN frame consists of three distinct parts, two of which that are broadly similar to the SONET/SDH frame, namely an overhead area and a payload area. In addition, the OTN frame includes a forward error control (FEC) area. The FEC scheme used in the OTN is a Reed-Solomon RS (255,239) code. This means that for every 239 bytes of data, an additional 16 bytes of data (code words) are added for the purpose of error correction. These additional bytes, when used for error correction in data flows, can enable correction of 8 symbol errors in the FEC code word (FEC section in the OTN frame). When used for error detection, these additional bytes can enable detection of 16 symbol errors. The size of the OTN frame is four rows of 4080 bytes. Data is transmitted serially beginning at the top left, first row followed by the second row and so on and so forth. There are three line rates currently defined in OTN: 1) 2.5 Gbit/s—optical channel transport unit 1 (OTU1); 2) 10 Gbit/s—optical channel transport unit 2 (OTU2); and, 3) 40 Gbit/s—optical channel transport unit 3 (OTU3). The actual rates of OTU1, OTU2 and OTU3 are 2.66 Gbps, 10.7 Gbps and 43 Gbps respectively. From this point we will refer to the basic rates (i.e. 2.5 Gbps, 10 Gbps and 40 Gbps).
The overhead area includes two sections shown in FIG. 1C. The overhead sections include the optical transport unit (OTU) together with the optical data unit (ODU), i.e., OTU/ODU, and the optical payload unit (OPU). The OTU overhead, located in row 1 columns 8–14, provides supervisory functions such as section monitoring (SM), and general communication channel (GCCO). The ODU overhead is placed in columns 1–14 of rows 2, 3 and 4 of the OTN frame. The ODU information structure provides tandem connection monitoring (TCM), end-to-end path supervision, and client signal adaptation via the optical channel payload unit (OPU). The OPU overhead is added to the OPU payload and contains information to support the adaptation of client signals. The OPU overhead is located in rows 1–4 of columns 15 and 16 and is terminated where the OPU is assembled and disassembled. The frame alignment signal is located at row 1 columns 1–6. A detailed description of the OTN frame is provided in "ITU-T G.709 Interface for optical transport network (OTN)" (http://www.itu.int/ITU-T/), which is fully incorporated herein by reference, as if fully set forth herein.
Reference is now made to FIG. 2 where an exemplary network 200, that includes OTN sub-network with standard interface IrDI and OTN sub-network with proprietary interface IaDI. Network 200 includes inter-domain interfaces (IrDIs) 210, and intradomain interfaces (IaDIs) 220. IrDIs 210 are the boundaries between OTNs of different administrative domains. The administrative domains may be that of multiple network operators and/or equipment vendors. IrDIs 210 may be used as interfaces between different networks or between different IaDIs 220 within the same network operator. IaDIs 220 may be any interface within a single vendor sub-network, which may or may not extend to include the entire carriers. IaDIs 220 are not part of the OTN standardization except for properties necessary for network management. Hence, IaDIs may not necessarily be compliant with the OTN standard. This non-compliance may result in significant limitations when incorporating Intra-corporate networks (which are SONET based optic networks) into Optical data networks that are OTN based. Currently such hybrid networks therefore require significant investment in complex interface design in order to run such a network effectively. Network 200 is an example of such a network.
Due to the complexity of the interfaces described hereinabove, there is a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a solution that provides an efficient data flow in networks comprised of a variety of sub-networks and interfaces, including both inter and intra domain interfaces, that are compliant with different standards, for example, networks that combine SONET/SDH and OTN standards.


An exposure apparatus has an exposure laser light source, a detection laser light source, a converging lens assembly, detector and a controller. The exposure laser light source emits an exposure laser beam. The detection laser light source emits a detection laser beam. The converging lens assembly receives the exposure laser beam and the detection laser beam, and is disposed in a near-field region of the exposure surface of a negative. The detector detects a linearly polarized component of a detection laser beam reflected off the distal end surface of the converging lens assembly. The controller controls the distance between the distal end surface of the converging lens assembly and the exposure surface on the basis of a detection signal from the detector.

This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application Number JP2002-054837 filed Feb. 28, 2002, which is incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus and an exposure method for exposing a negative by making use of near-field light, and a recording and/or reproducing apparatus and a recording and/or reproducing method primarily for recording information signals in an optical recording medium by making use of near-field light.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, in response to the demand for a higher density of an optical disk, a solid immersion lens (SIL), which is shaped like a spherical lens partly cut off and exhibits a high refractive index, is disposed between an object lens and a negative or an optical disk thereby to achieve a further smaller spot diameter. Thus, a larger numerical aperture (e.g., larger than 1) NA than the numerical aperture NA of the object lens itself is achieved. The SIL is disposed such that its spherical surface faces the object lens, while the opposite surface, namely, its cut surface, faces the negative or the like. The larger numerical aperture can be achieved also by using a solid immersion mirror (SIM).
To perform exposure of a negative or to record or reproduce information signal by using the SIL, the laser beams that have passed through an object lens are condensed at the SIL and the distance between a distal end surface, i.e., the lowermost edge surface, of the SIL (the surface of the STL that opposes the negative or the like) and the surface of the negative or the like to be irradiated is shortened to be close to a near-field region where near-field light is generated. Furthermore, gap control has to be carried out to maintain a constant distance or gap length between the distal end surface of the SIL and the surface of the negative or the like to be irradiated.
Carrying out the gap control requires the detection of the gap length. One of the available methods for such detection is a total reflection detection method. The total reflection detection method utilizes the fact that, if the distal end surface of the SIL is considerably spaced away from the surface of the negative to be irradiated, then the high NA components (NA≧1.0) of the light incident upon a converging lens assembly formed of the SIL and an object lens are totally reflected by the distal end surface of the SIL, while the optical power of return light reduces as the distal end surface of the SIL approaches a near-field region with respect to the surface of the negative to be irradiated.
In other words, servo control is conducted to control the position of the converging lens assembly so as to maintain the gap length at which the reduced optical power of the light returning from the distal end surface of the SIL reaches a predetermined value. This is the gap control whereby the distance between the distal end surface of the SIL and the surface of the negative to be irradiated is maintained at a constant value.
However, when the light reflection used for negative exposure or for recording or reproducing information signals in order to carry out the gap control based on the total reflection detection method, the quantity of light incident upon the SIL, which should provide a reference, varies according to exposure or recording conditions or the like. This means that the gap length varies accordingly unless, for example, the servo retracting target value is readjusted each time exposure power or the like is changed.
Furthermore, if the irradiation power required for negative exposure or recording or reproducing information signals is small, then the signals may be overpowered by noises even when the total reflection detection described above is performed, providing no adequate servo detection signals.
In addition, if an exposure beam is modulated on the basis of a recording signal, then the modulated signal will be undesirably superimposed on a detection signal used for the servo control. Especially if a servo zone and a modulated signal zone are significantly away from each other, it is difficult to completely remove modulated signal components by using a frequency filter, although it is possible to reduce the modulated signal components. This results in noises.
As a solution to the problem described above, there has been proposed to use light dedicated to gap control that is not involved in negative exposure or the recording or reproduction of information signals. The dedicated light is separate from the light for exposure or the like, and has a constant quantity of light of adequate optical power.
However, using the gap control light independently from the exposure light or the like inevitably causes chromatic aberration of a converging lens assembly formed of an object lens and the SIL because of the difference in wavelength between the gap control light and the exposure light or the like. Hence, it is necessary to correct the chromatic aberration. As the wavelength difference between the gap control light and the exposure light increases, it becomes more difficult to correct the chromatic aberration. It is desired, therefore, to carry out the gap control under a condition where the chromatic aberration is minimized.

Exposure apparatus, exposure method, recording and/or reproducing apparatus, and recording and/or reproducing method


The present invention relates to surgical instruments and methods for enhancing properties of tissue repaired or joined by surgical staples and, more particularly to surgical instruments and methods designed to enhance the properties of repaired or adjoined tissue at a target surgical site. The present invention further relates to hypothermic linear stapling instruments configured to pre-cool the tissues being joined by staples.

The medical field has utilized various techniques to join or bond body tissue together. Historically, suturing was the accepted technique for rejoining severed tissues and closing wounds. Suturing is achieved with a surgical needle and a suturing thread, with the intended function of sutures to hold the edges of a wound or tissue against one another during the healing process. Staples have been used in certain situations to replace suturing thread when joining or anastomosing various body structures, such as, for example, the bowel. The surgical stapling devices employed to apply staples are generally designed to simultaneously cut and seal an extended segment of tissue in a patient.
Linear or annular/circular surgical stapling devices are employed by surgeons to sequentially or simultaneously apply one or more rows of surgical fasteners, e.g., staples, to body tissue to join segments of body tissue together and/or for the creation of an anastomosis. Linear surgical stapling devices generally include a pair of jaws or finger-like structures between which body tissue to be joined is placed. When the surgical stapling device is actuated, firing bars move longitudinally and contact staple drive members in one of the jaws, and surgical staples are pushed through the body tissue and into and against an anvil in the opposite jaw thereby crimping the staples closed. A knife blade may be provided to cut between the rows/lines of staples.
Many surgical staplers for use in open and endoscopic procedures are known. Some such staplers are operable to clamp down on layers of tissue, cut through the clamped layers of tissue, and drive staples through the layers of tissue to substantially seal the severed layers of tissue together near the severed ends of the tissue layers. Merely exemplary surgical staplers are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,823, entitled "Pocket Configuration for Internal Organ Staplers," issued Feb. 21, 1989; U.S. Pat. No. 5,415,334, entitled "Surgical Stapler and Staple Cartridge," issued May 16, 1995; U.S. Pat. No. 5,465,895, entitled "Surgical Stapler Instrument," issued Nov. 14, 1995; U.S. Pat. No. 5,597,107, entitled "Surgical Stapler Instrument," issued Jan. 28, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,432, entitled "Surgical Instrument," issued May 27, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,840, entitled "Surgical Instrument," issued Oct. 7, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,704,534, entitled "Articulation Assembly for Surgical Instruments," issued Jan. 6, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,814,055, entitled "Surgical Clamping Mechanism," issued Sep. 29, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 6,978,921, entitled "Surgical Stapling Instrument Incorporating an E-Beam Firing Mechanism," issued Dec. 27, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 7,000,818, entitled "Surgical Stapling Instrument Having Separate Distinct Closing and Firing Systems," issued Feb. 21, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,143,923, entitled "Surgical Stapling Instrument Having a Firing Lockout for an Unclosed Anvil," issued Dec. 5, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,303,108, entitled "Surgical Stapling Instrument Incorporating a Multi-Stroke Firing Mechanism with a Flexible Rack," issued Dec. 4, 2007; U.S. Pat. No. 7,367,485, entitled "Surgical Stapling Instrument Incorporating a Multistroke Firing Mechanism Having a Rotary Transmission," issued May 6, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,380,695, entitled "Surgical Stapling Instrument Having a Single Lockout Mechanism for Prevention of Firing," issued Jun. 3, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,380,696, entitled "Articulating Surgical Stapling Instrument Incorporating a Two-Piece E-Beam Firing Mechanism," issued Jun. 3, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,404,508, entitled "Surgical Stapling and Cutting Device," issued Jul. 29, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,434,715, entitled "Surgical Stapling Instrument Having Multistroke Firing with Opening Lockout," issued Oct. 14, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,721,930, entitled "Disposable Cartridge with Adhesive for Use with a Stapling Device," issued May 25, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 8,408,439, entitled "Surgical Stapling Instrument with An Articulatable End Effector," issued Apr. 2, 2013; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,453,914, entitled "Motor-Driven Surgical Cutting Instrument with Electric Actuator Directional Control Assembly," issued Jun. 4, 2013. The disclosure of each of the above-cited U.S. patents is incorporated by reference herein.
While many of the surgical staplers referred to above are used in endoscopic procedures, such surgical staplers may also be used in open procedures and/or other non-endoscopic procedures. By way of example only, a surgical stapler may be inserted through a thoracotomy, and thereby between a patient's ribs, to reach one or more organs in a thoracic surgical procedure that does not use a trocar as a conduit for the stapler. Such procedures may include the use of the stapler to cut and close a vessel leading to a lung. For instance, the vessels leading to an organ may be severed and closed by a stapler before removal of the organ from the thoracic cavity. Surgical staplers may be used in various other settings and procedures. Examples of surgical staplers that may be particularly suited or use through a thoracotomy are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,186,142, entitled "Surgical Instrument End Effector Articulation Drive with Pinion and Opposing Racks", the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
Annular or circular surgical stapling devices generally include an annular staple cartridge assembly including a plurality of annular rows of staples (typically two or three), an anvil assembly operatively associated with the annular cartridge assembly, and an annular blade disposed internal of the rows of staples. In general, an end-to-end anastomosis stapler typically places an array or group of staples into the approximated sections of a patient's bowels or other tubular organs. The resulting anastomosis contains an inverted section of bowel which contains numerous "B" shaped staples to maintain a secure connection between the approximated sections of bowel.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,173,133 "METHOD FOR ANNEALING STAPLER ANVILS" discloses a method for annealing a delimited portion of an anvil member for use in a surgical stapler, said method comprising: a) providing a means for heating; b) placing said anvil member in cradle means, said cradle means comprising a member fabricated from a thermally conductive material and possessing means configured and dimensioned to receive said anvil such that a first part of the exterior surface of the anvil is in thermally conductive contact with the interior surface of the receiving means and a second part of the exterior surface of the anvil is exposed; c) positioning said cradle in proximity to said heating means such that the delimited portion of the second part of the exterior surface of the anvil member is within the heating range of said heating means; and d) operating said heating means such that the delimited exposed portion of the anvil member is heated to an annealing temperature.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,005,199 "Heat management configurations for controlling heat dissipation from electrosurgical instruments" discloses a surgical instrument, comprising: an end effector comprising: a first jaw comprising an electrode having a distal end; a second jaw, wherein the first jaw and the second jaw are operably coupled together; and a cutting member configured to translate between a retracted position and a fully advanced position with respect to the first jaw, wherein the cutting member comprises a cutting surface and a body, wherein the body defines a cavity and at least one opening communicating with the cavity, and wherein the at least one cutting member opening is proximal to the distal end of the electrode when the cutting member is in the fully advanced position.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,679,114 "Incorporating rapid cooling in tissue fusion heating processes" discloses an electrode sealing assembly designed for use with an electrosurgical instrument for sealing tissue, comprising: first and second jaw members movable from a first position in spaced relation relative to one another to at least one second position for grasping tissue therebetween, the jaw members including: electrically conductive sealing plates disposed in opposing relation to one another, at least one jaw member including: a thermoelectric cooling plate having a first surface in direct contact with an outer surface of the sealing plate, the thermoelectric cooling plate including first and second electrical connections disposed on opposite sides of the thermoelectric cooling plate, the first connection configured to selectively transmit a first electrical potential and the second connection configured to selectively transmit a second electrical potential such that heat generated by the sealing plates is transferred away from the tissue via the thermoelectric cooling plate, wherein the electrically conductive seal plates each include inward lateral side edges, the inward lateral side edges and the first surface of the thermoelectric cooling plate configured to form a knife slot therebetween dimensioned to receive a knife blade therein, the knife blade disposed substantially adjacent and in proximity to the thermoelectric cooling plate to enable heat transfer from the knife blade to the thermoelectric cooling plate, and wherein the at least one jaw member further includes a first heat sink disposed in contact with a second surface of the thermoelectric cooling plate, the first heat sink made from a thermally conductive, electrically insulative cool polymer.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,815,641 "Surgical instrument and method for use thereof" discloses a surgical instrument for treating a tissue, comprising: a hand piece; and a tissue engaging portion arranged to be received by the hand piece, the tissue engaging portion comprising first and second opposed jaw members having an open position and a closed position for engaging the tissue therebetween, the first and second jaw members arranged to receive surgical energy from a surgical generator, and at least one cooling member spaced from at least one of the first and second jaw members, the at least one cooling member separately movable with respect to the jaw members and having an open position and a closed position for engaging the tissue, wherein positioning the jaw members in their closed position and applying surgical energy to the tissue allows for treatment of the tissue, and positioning the at least one cooling member in its closed position provides at least one of a pressure gradient or a thermal gradient between the jaw members and the at least one cooling member.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0180281 "ELECTRIC STAPLER DEVICE" discloses an end effector assembly of a forceps, comprising: first and second jaw members, at least one of the jaw members moveable relative to the other between a spaced-apart position and an approximated position for grasping tissue therebetween, each jaw member including: a plurality of spaced apart seal plates, wherein each seal plate corresponds to a seal plate on the opposite jaw member to form a pair of seal plates, each pair of seal plates is individually activatable; and a cutting element, wherein when the first and second jaw members are in the approximated position, the pairs of seal plates closer to the cutting element define a gap therebetween that is smaller than the gap between pairs of seal plates further from the cutting element.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,281,785 "Stapling apparatus and method and thermoplastic staples used therewith" discloses a stapling apparatus for stapling an assembly of components, said apparatus having a stapling head for carrying and serially dispensing a plurality of staples made entirely of thermoplastic material, each of said staples comprising a bight and a pair of legs extending in substantially parallel relation from opposite ends of said bight, staple driving means in said head for driving each of said staples through said assembly once each staple is dispensed into a driving position, and a clinching anvil for clinching outer portions of said legs of each staple, the improvement wherein said anvil has a heated portion comprising an integral heater for heat shaping said outer portions of said legs in clinched relation after disposal of said legs through said assembly and a cooled portion comprising an integral cooling device for cooling said outer portions of said legs after shaping thereof, and said apparatus comprising a single support for said anvil and its heated and cooled portions, said support being mounted for pivoting movements about a single pivot to enable movement of said heated portion into position to provide said heat shaping of said outer portions and then movement of said cooled portion into position to provide said cooling of said outer portions.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,169,146 "Electrosurgical probe and method of use" discloses an electrosurgical instrument for delivering energy to tissue, comprising: a working end for engaging the tissue; a surface layer at an exterior portion of the working end, the surface layer comprising a matrix of polymeric PTC composition adapted to deliver electrical current to the tissue; and a cooling structure at an interior portion of the working end; wherein the cooling structure cools the PTC matrix to lower the temperature of one or more portions of the PTC matrix.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,794,039 "APPARATUS FOR CRYOSURGERY" discloses an apparatus for cryosurgery having a central unit containing a supply of liquid cryogenic coolant, control and regulating means, and sub atmospheric suction means connected to a probe for freezing tissue, the improvement comprising: a. a cryogenic probe including a grip member having a hollow cryogenic coolant feed line supported by said grip member, said line being open at the tip thereof and connected at one end to said cryogenic coolant supply for transmitting liquid coolant to impinge directly upon tissue to be frozen; b. a hollow cryogenic coolant return line open at a transparent end thereof concentrically disposed around said feed line to form a space therebetween; and c. means communicating said space to said sub atmospheric suction means for returning vaporized coolant from said feed line, the open end of said feed line being recessed with respect to the corresponding open end of said return line.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,656,177 "Electrosurgical systems and techniques for sealing tissue" discloses a jaw assembly of a surgical instrument, comprising: an instrument working end carrying first and second jaws actuatable between a first open position and a second closed position, the jaws in the closed position defining a longitudinal axis and wherein the jaws further define exterior faces and interior jaw faces having a longitudinal length; an axially extending member that is actuatable from a first retracted position to a second extended position in an axial channel extending the length of the exterior and interior jaw faces; and wherein said axially extending member defines first cam surface portions that engage cooperating second cam surface portion that extend the entire length of the interior jaw faces to actuate the jaws toward the closed position and prevent flexing apart of said jaws.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,694,984 "Liver surgery" discloses a method of reducing blood loss during liver surgery, wherein diseased or damaged tissue is removed from the liver by delivery of thermal energy to the tissue by a probe, wherein the method is carried out to define liver resection with an at least 2 cm wide coagulative necrosis zone in surgery the improvement comprising: a multiprobe application followed by a scalpel division of the parenchyma and suture of blood vessels bigger than about 2.5 mm.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0371735 "ELECTROSURGICAL INSTRUMENT END EFFECTOR WITH PREHEATING ELEMENT" discloses an apparatus for operating on tissue, wherein the apparatus comprises an end effector, the end effector comprising: (a) a first jaw; (b) a second jaw, wherein the first jaw is selectively pivotable toward and away from the second jaw to capture tissue; (c) at least one preheating element, wherein the at least one preheating element is disposed within one or both of the first jaw or the second jaw, wherein the at least one preheating element is operable to heat up and thereby transfer heat to tissue captured between the first jaw and the second jaw through; and (d) at least one electrode, wherein the at least one electrode is operable to apply RF energy to tissue captured between the first jaw and the second jaw.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0120601 "ELECTROSURGICAL INSTRUMENT WITH SENSOR" discloses an apparatus for operating on tissue, the apparatus comprising: (a) a body; (b) a shaft extending distally from the body; (c) an end effector configured to receive energy from an energy source, wherein the end effector comprises: (i) a first jaw, and (ii) a second jaw, wherein the second jaw is pivotable relative to the first jaw to transition the end effector from an open configuration to a closed configuration, wherein the first jaw and second jaw define a closure gap between each other when the end effector is in the closed configuration; and (d) a sensor, wherein the sensor is operable to detect when the end effector is in the closed configuration, wherein the sensor is in communication with the energy source, wherein the sensor is operable to communicate a signal to the energy source when the sensor detects the end effector in the closed configuration.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,762,445 "Electrosurgical stapling apparatus" discloses a surgical stapler, comprising: an anvil member having a plurality of staple-forming recesses defined therein for deforming a corresponding plurality of surgical staples, the anvil includes an electrically insulative material disposed on a tissue contacting surface thereof, wherein at least one of the plurality of staple-forming recesses is coated with the electrically insulative material, wherein the electrically insulative material is selectively removable, and wherein the electrically insulative material is selectively removed from the tissue contacting surface of the anvil member during a firing of the surgical stapler; a cartridge assembly including a staple cartridge defining a tissue contact surface and configured to retain a plurality of electrically conductive surgical staples; an electrical conduit adapted for connection to a surgical generator; and an actuator operatively connected to the cartridge assembly for deploying the plurality of surgical staples from the staple cartridge against the anvil member, the actuator being movable within the cartridge assembly and coupled to the electrical conduit, the actuator including an electrically conductive actuation sled and an electrically conductive knife blade, wherein the electrical conduit is configured for transmitting a thermogenic energy to the knife blade and to the staples through the actuation sled.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,807,393 "Surgical tissue treating device with locking mechanism" discloses a surgical instrument comprising: a tissue treating portion including: a therapeutic energy delivering device arranged to deliver therapeutic energy to tissue, and a tissue manipulation device; a shaft coupled to said tissue treating portion, said shaft including a therapeutic energy communication device operatively coupled to said therapeutic energy delivering device said energy delivering device and said energy communication device adapted to be actuated to deliver therapeutic energy to tissue; a tissue manipulation actuating device having a locked position and an unlocked position, said tissue manipulation actuating device extending through said shaft and operatively coupled to said tissue manipulation device; a locking mechanism coupled to said tissue manipulation actuating device for moving said tissue manipulation actuating device from said locked position to said unlocked position after said therapeutic energy delivering device and said therapeutic energy communication device are actuated to deliver therapeutic energy to tissue; a tissue parameter measurement and instrument control device adapted to provide a feedback signal representative of a tissue treatment status of tissue being treated by said therapeutic energy delivering device, said parameter measurement and instrument control device coupled to said tissue treating portion of said instrument; and a status indicator coupled to said parameter measurement and instrument control device, said status indicator arranged to provide a user perceptible signal indicating a tissue treatment status.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,715,277 "Control of jaw compression in surgical instrument having end effector with opposing jaw members" discloses a surgical instrument comprising: an end effector comprising a distal end and a proximate end, wherein the end effector comprises: a first jaw member comprising a distal end and a proximate end, wherein the proximate end of the first jaw member comprises a pin; a second jaw member opposing the first jaw member, wherein the second jaw comprises a distal end and a proximate end, wherein the proximate end of the second jaw member comprises a multi-lobed cam slot with at least three lobes, wherein the pin of the first jaw member is disposed and moveable within the multi-lobed cam slot between the three lobes, wherein the first jaw member is moveable relative to the second jaw member such that the first and second jaw members are transitionable between an open position and a closed position, such that the first and second jaw members are in the open position when the pin of the first jaw member is in a first lobe of the multi-lobed cam slot and the first and second jaw members are in the closed position when the pin of the first jaw member is in a second lobe of the multi-lobed cam slot, and wherein the pin of the first jaw member moves into a third lobe of the multi-lobed cam slot when the pin transitions from the first lobe to the second lobe; and a latch at a distal end of the end effector for latching the distal end of the first jaw member to the distal end of the second jaw member when the first and second jaw members are in the closed position.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,259,265 "Surgical instruments for tensioning tissue" discloses an end-effector configured to be attached to a surgical instrument comprising a closure beam, the end-effector comprising: a first jaw comprising an electrode; a second jaw, wherein at least one of the first jaw and the second jaw is movable relative to the other jaw between an open position and a closed position, and wherein, in the closed position, a first region of tissue is configured to be positioned intermediate the first jaw and the second jaw and is configured to be compressed; the first jaw comprising: a first slider member movably attached to the first jaw and movable relative to the electrode and to the closure beam, wherein the first slider member comprises a first tissue-contacting surface configured to engage a second region of tissue; and the second jaw comprising: a second slider member movably attached to the second jaw and movable relative to the electrode and to the closure beam, wherein the second slider member comprises a second tissue-contacting surface configured to engage the second region of tissue; a longitudinal slot; and a cutting member slidable within the longitudinal slot; wherein the first slider member and the second slider member are configured to change the width of the end effector and apply a tensile stretching force to tissue positioned intermediate the first region of tissue and the second region of tissue when the first slider member and the second slider member are moved laterally relative to the electrode and to the longitudinal slot.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,911,486 "Implantable devices for thermal therapy and related methods" discloses a method of applying thermal therapy to tissue, comprising: forming a tissue opening in a patient to access a target site within the patient; passing a thermal device through the tissue opening; placing the thermal device at the target site; closing the tissue opening with the thermal device at the target site; after closing the tissue opening, applying or continuing to apply thermal therapy to the target site through the thermal device; and after closing the tissue opening, pulling a tether attached to the thermal device to remove the thermal device from the patient without reopening the tissue opening; wherein the thermal device comprises a malleable pad.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,295,514 "Surgical devices with close quarter articulation features" discloses an apparatus, comprising: a shaft section extending longitudinally along a first plane; an end effector comprising a first jaw and a second jaw configured to pivotally open and close in a second plane relative to the first plane about a pivot point, wherein the first plane is orthogonal to the second plane; an articulation section disposed between the shaft section and the end effector, the articulation section configured to articulate in the second plane relative to the first plane in response to a rotatable articulation control mechanism, the articulation section comprising a molded member that defines at least one slot and at least one recess; the at least one slot comprising a first slot extending longitudinally along the length of the molded member, the first slot comprising an opening at one side of the molded member and terminating within the molded member on another side; a longitudinally slidable blade comprising an upper flange and a lower flange; a flexible firing element comprising upper and lower flexible bands slidably positioned within the at least one slot, the upper flexible band connected to the upper flange of the blade and the lower flexible band connected to the lower flange of the blade; wherein at least one of the first and second jaws comprises an electrode.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,211,646 "Cryogenic scalpel" discloses a cryogenic scalpel for conducting surgical operations on parenchymatous biological tissues, comprising: a hollow housing having an interior space; a working portion connected to said hollow housing and having a body extending in a lengthwise direction; heat-exchanger means for establishing a zone for cooling biological tissues during surgery by supplying cooling fluid to said interior space; a blade having two ends and a cutting lip, said ends of said blade being secured to said heat-exchanger means; a coolant free to circulate through said heat-exchanger means; a piping accommodated in said interior space of said hollow housing and communicating with said heat-exchanger means; a source of electromechanical oscillations accommodated in said hollow housing to establish reciprocating motion to said working portion with a frequency of electromechanical oscillation with the result that heating of said blade is precluded and parenchymatous biological tissues are separated by simultaneously cooling in said cooling zone created by said heat-exchanger means; and means for imparting electromechanical oscillations to said working portion so as to transmit reciprocating motion to said blade; said means for imparting being connected between said source of electromagnetic oscillations and said blade.
There is a need to improve the viability of the tissues being joined by staples and the viability of the resulting joint, to improve healing and prevent tissue necrosis and leaks.

Hypothermic linear surgical staplers and methods of use


An integrated circuit (1) includes a voltage-sensing circuit (2) and a current mirror (3) for sensing both a voltage (Vi) and a current (Ii) at one input terminal (T) of the integrated circuit. The voltage-sensing circuit (2) has an input which is connected to the input terminal (T) and an output which supplies a voltage level indication (Vu). The current mirror (3) has an input which is also connected to the input terminal (T), a reference terminal which is connected to a reference potential, and an output which supplies an output current (Iu). The input of the current mirror has a high impedance as long as the voltage level (Vi) is below a threshold voltage (Vth) of the current mirror (3). Within a voltage range determined by this threshold voltage (Vth), the voltage level indication (Vu) is a measure of the voltage level (Vi). The current mirror (3) becomes active and the output current (Iu) is a mirrored input current (Ii) if the voltage level (Vi) exceeds the threshold voltage (Vth). The threshold voltage may be determined by an input transistor (T1) of the current mirror (3). This input transistor (T1), which is arranged as a diode, starts conducting when the voltage level (Vi) reaches the threshold voltage (Vth) of this diode.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a circuit for sensing both a current and a voltage.
It is known to sense a voltage and a current by using different circuits. One of the circuits receives the voltage, the other circuit receives the current. An integrated circuit which comprises both circuits needs two terminals to be able to sense the voltage and a current separately. As the cost of the integrated circuit depends on the amount of terminals needed, it is a drawback of the known integrated circuit that two terminals have to be used.
2. Description of The Related Art
It is an object of the invention to perform both an accurate current and voltage sensing at the same terminal of an integrated circuit.
A first aspect of the invention provides a circuit for sensing both a current and a voltage level at one input terminal of an integrated circuit.
A second aspect of the invention provides a power supply comprising such a circuit for sensing both a current and a voltage at one input terminal of an integrated circuit.
A current mirror input and a voltage-sensing circuit are both coupled to the same input terminal. The input of the current mirror has a threshold voltage which, in the case of a conventional two-transistor current mirror, is caused by the input transistor. The threshold voltage is the base-emitter voltage of a bipolar input transistor, or the gate source-threshold voltage of a field effect input transistor. The threshold voltage may be increased by using more than one input transistor arranged in series, or by supplying a reference voltage to the emitter or source of the input transistor. The threshold voltage may be defined with respect to a ground terminal (in the case of a npn input transistor) or with respect to another supply terminal (in the case of a pnp input transistor).
The current mirror will be inactive if the voltage at the input terminal does not exceed the threshold voltage of the input of the current mirror. In this situation, the current mirror has a very high input impedance and the voltage at the input terminal is free to vary. The voltage-sensing circuit supplies a voltage level indication which has a value corresponding to the voltage at the input terminal.
The current mirror will be active if the voltage at the input terminal exceeds the threshold voltage. Now, the voltage at the input of the current mirror will be substantially constant and, consequently, the voltage-sensing circuit cannot sense any voltage variations. The active current mirror mirrors the input current supplied to the input terminal to obtain an output current which has a fixed relation with the input current.
EP-A-0585789 discloses a three-terminal switched-mode power supply integrated circuit with one terminal which accepts a combination of a feedback signal and a supply voltage to operate the chip. Inside the chip, a feedback extraction circuit separates the feedback signal from the power supply voltage by sensing the excess current flowing through a shunt regulator. The IC comprises an error amplifier which compares a tapped voltage on the terminal with a band-gap reference voltage. The output of the error amplifier drives a shunt transistor. As long as a sufficient supply current is fed to the terminal, the voltage on the terminal will be stabilized and any excess current will be shunted to ground. This excess current is mirrored and converted into an extracted feedback voltage. The error amplifier of the prior art senses the voltage at the terminal to stabilize this voltage at a desired value, such that it can be used as a supply voltage for the IC. The value of the stabilized voltage has to be chosen above the threshold of the input of the current mirror to be able to measure an excess current at this stabilized voltage. The error amplifier thus senses the voltage at the terminal in a voltage range in which the current mirror draws current. Thus, in this voltage range, the current mirror does not have a high input impedance. Consequently, the prior art circuit does not sense the voltage at the terminal within a certain range in which the current mirror is inactive (and the current mirror has a high input impedance) to supply a voltage level indication dependent on the sensed voltage in this range.
To further elaborate on the difference between the prior art and the invention, a practical application in a power supply will be described below. The prior art uses the same terminal of the IC to receive both the power supply voltage of the IC and feedback information for regulating the power supply. The invention uses the same terminal to receive an input voltage from a winding of the power supply transformer via an impedance. As long as the input voltage at the input terminal is below the threshold voltage of the current mirror, the circuit according to the invention can detect whether the input voltage crosses a predetermined voltage level. This detection can be used to generate a demagnetization protection signal. Above the threshold value of the current mirror, the current mirror is active and supplies the output current which is a mirrored input current. The input current represents the feedback information.
These and other aspects of the invention are apparent from and will be elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.


Disclosed is a hybridoma cell line which produces human antibodies capable of binding to the hepatitis C virus (HCV) E2 glycoprotein and capable of neutralizing HCV infection in vivo in an animal model, as well as antibodies produced by the cell line. Also disclosed are various uses of said antibodies in the prevention and treatment of HCV infection. Peripheral blood lymphocytes obtained from human donors having a high titer of anti HCV E2 antibodies are transformed in vitro by Epstein-Barr virus and then fused with heteromyeloma cells to generate hybridomas secreting human antibodies having a high affinity and specificity to HCV E2 glycoprotein.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major worldwide health problem. Approximately 170 million individuals worldwide are infected by HCV and chronically infected patients carry a high risk of developing cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (Cohen 1999 Science 285:26–30).
Interferon-α either alone or in combination with ribavirin is used for therapy of HCV showing efficacy in between 20% and 40% of patients respectively.
HCV is an enveloped virus the genetic information for which is encoded in a 9.5 kilo bases positive strand RNA genome. A highly conserved noncoding region of 341 base pairs is localized at the 5′-end of this viral genome, which is followed by a long open-reading frame coding for a polyprotein of approximately 3,010 amino acids. Two putative envelope glycoproteins, E1 (gp35) and E2 (gp72) have been identified with 5 or 6 and 11 N-linked glycosylation sites, respectively. A high level of genetic variability is associated with the envelope genes. This is highly accentuates at the 5′-end of the E2 gene, where two hypervariable regions termed HVR1 and HVR2, have been described (Kato et al., 1992 Bioch. Biophys. Res. Commun. 189:119–127).
Studies using HCV E1–E2 proteins expressed in mammalian cells showed that infected individuals have an antibody response to HCV E2 (Harada, et al., 1994 J. Gen. Virol. 76:1223–1231). Recent work proposes the existence of neutralizing antibodies in serum from HCV infected patients (Rosa et al., 1996 PNAS (USA) 93:1759–1763; Zibert et al., 1995 Virology 208:653–661; Zibert et al., 1997 J. Virol. 71: 4123–4127).
Investigators employed surrogate assays to provide insights into virus neutralization since the virus cannot be grown in vitro (Houghton. Hepatitis C viruses. In Fields B N, Knipe D M, Howley P M (eds) Virology. Lippincott-Raven, Philadelphia, pp1035–1053). One surrogate assay, the neutralization of binding (NOB) assay, evaluates the ability of a given antibody or serum to prevent the association of HCV E2 protein with a human T-cell line (Rosa et al., 1996 PNAS (USA) 93:1759–1763).
Habersetzer et al., 1998 Virology 249:3241 describes human monoclonal antibodies capable of inhibiting the interaction of HCV E2 with human cells in vitro. Burioni et al., 1998 Hepatology 28:810–814 report human recombinant Fabs for the HCV E2 protein similarly capable of inhibiting the interaction of HCV with human cells in vitro.
PCT patent application WO 200005266 discloses antibodies comprising at least one complementarity determining region (CDR) of the variable domain of a human antibody that specifically recognize a conformation-dependent epitope of HCV E2 and are capable of precipitating E1/E2 complexes.
PCT patent application WO 9740176 discloses a recombinant human antibody Fab portion capable of binding to HCV E2 obtained using a combinatorial antibody library. The relevance of such antibodies for therapy of HCV infection still needs to be demonstrated.
It is therefore of substantial interest to identify human monoclonal antibodies (Mabs) directed against the E2 glycoprotein that are capable of neutralizing HCV infection in vivo. Such antibodies may constitute a new alternative for the treatment of HCV infections.
Cardoso et al., J. Med. Virol. 55, 28–34 (1998) describes the isolation of human monoclonal antibodies capable of binding to hepatitis C virus envelope glycoproteins. One of the described antibodies (4F7) was further characterized and sequenced and is the subject matter of the present invention.

Human monoclonal antibody against hepatitis C virus E2 glycoprotein


An apparatus and method for floating point exception prediction and recovery. In one embodiment, a processor may include instruction fetch logic configured to issue a first instruction from one of a plurality of threads and to successively issue a second instruction from another one of the plurality of threads. The processor may also include floating-point arithmetic logic configured to execute a floating-point instruction issued by the instruction fetch logic from a given one of the plurality of threads, and further configured to determine whether the floating-point instruction generates an exception, and may further include exception prediction logic configured to predict whether the floating-point instruction will generate the exception, where the prediction occurs before the floating-point arithmetic logic determines whether the floating-point instruction generates the exception.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to processors and, more particularly, to predicting floating-point exceptions within processors.
2. Description of the Related Art
In some pipelined processor embodiments implementing a given instruction set architecture (ISA), different instructions may be configured to execute with different latencies. For example, certain integer instructions may be configured to execute in an integer pipeline of a particular depth (i.e., a particular number of pipeline stages), while certain floating-point instructions may be configured to execute in a floating-point pipeline that is deeper than the integer pipeline. In some such embodiments, an exception condition for a longer-latency instruction may not be detected until late in the pipeline. This may create an exception hazard, in that a shorter-latency instruction issued after the longer-latency instruction may be able to complete execution and to modify architectural state before the exception caused by the longer-latency instruction is detected. Such an exception hazard may not be consistent with a precise exception model.
In some embodiments, this exception hazard may be avoided by preventing the issue of shorter-latency instructions for a number of execution cycles following the issue of a longer-latency instruction, where the number of cycles of delay is sufficient to ensure that the shorter-latency instruction will not modify architectural state until the exception condition for the longer-latency instruction has been detected. However, this solution penalizes every shorter-latency instruction regardless of whether an exception is actually generated for a given longer-latency instruction, and may unacceptably degrade processor performance.
Alternatively, the exception hazard may be avoided in some embodiments by equalizing the depth of the shorter-latency and longer-latency execution pipelines. However, this solution may substantially increase the design complexity of the processor. For example, to avoid stalling instruction issue due to dependencies on previously-issued instructions, result bypassing from each relevant pipeline stage prior to the result writeback stage may be employed. As the number of pipeline stages prior to writeback increases, the number of bypass sources also increases, which in turn requires additional die area to route and multiplex the bypass sources.

Apparatus and method for floating-point exception prediction and recovery


A port switching method performed by a processor included in an analysis device coupled to a first port and a second port which are included in at least one of a plurality of switches, the port switching method includes receiving a first copy packet from the first port; determining whether the first copy packet succeeded a second copy packet based on sequence information of the first copy packet, and based on sequence information of a second copy packet received before the receiving; specifying a target port outputted the first copy packet to the first port, the target port being included in a target switch among the plurality of switches when it is determined that the first copy packet did not succeed the second copy packet; and causing the target switch to transmit, from the target port, a third copy packet generated at the target switch to the second port.

In related art, a system analyzing device analyzes the state of packet communication in a system including a plurality of servers for packet communication and a switch for transferring a packet between the plurality of servers. For example, as depicted in FIG. 24A, a system analyzing device 100 analyzes packet communication between a server A 114A and a server B 114B via a switch 120SW.
Here, the switch 120SW has three ports 116P1 to 116P3. The server A 114A is connected to the port 116P1 of the switch 120SW. The server B 114B is connected to the port 116P2 of the switch 120SW. Packet communication between the server A 114A and the server B 114B is performed via the ports 116P1 and 116P2 of the switch 120SW.
The system analyzing device 100 sets the following mirroring to the switch 120SW in order to analyze packet communication between the server A 114A and the server B 114B. That is, the port 116P2, which is one of the ports 116P1 and 116P2 of the switch 120SW where packet communication is performed between the server A 114A and the server B 114B, is first set as a target port. The port 116P3, which is other than ports 116P1 and 116P2 and connected to the analyzing device 100, is set as an output port. A packet passing through the target port 116P2 is copied, and the generated packet is transmitted to the system analyzing device 100 via the output port 116P3.
Here, when packet communication is performed between the server A 114A and the server B 114B, a packet in this communication is copied when passing through the target port 116P2, and the packet generated by copying is outputted to the analyzing device 100 via the output port 116P3.
In the above example, communication between two servers A 114A and B 114B is described. In practice, however, communication is performed between more servers via a plurality of switches. FIG. 24B depicts an example in which communication is performed among three servers A 114A and C 114C via two switches 120SW1 and 120SW2. In this example, in mirroring of communication between the server B 114B and the server C 114C, a port 116P13 is set as a target port. In mirroring of communication between the server A 114A and the server B 114B, a port 116P11 is set as a target port. When a packet passing through these ports 116P11 and 116P13 is copied, and the packet generated by copying is transmitted to the system analyzing device 100 via an output port 116P14.
As related art, for example, Japanese National Publication of International Patent Application No. 2003-525000 and Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2013-30944 are disclosed.
However, when a packet is transferred, a port temporarily stores the received packet, and then transfers the stored packet. The port has a defined limit regarding a temporarily-storable packet data amount. Therefore, if copies of packets passing through the port 116P11 and the port 116P13 temporarily concentrate on the output port 116P14, any of the packets exceeding the limit is not stored in the output port 116P14 but discarded. The discarded packet is not outputted to the system analyzing device. If this situation continues, the system analyzing device may not be able to accurately analyze the state of packet communication on a packet-discarded side.

Port switching method, analysis device, and recording medium


Methods and apparatus for enabling a fine stage to be moved using pneumatics such that disturbances associated with a pneumatic transfer system are not transmitted to the fine stage are disclosed. According to one aspect of the present invention, a stage apparatus includes a first stage, a second stage, and a pneumatic transfer system. The pneumatic transfer system includes at least one transfer mechanism and a transfer block. The transfer mechanism is substantially directly coupled be coupled between the first stage and the transfer block, and the first stage provides a flow through the transfer mechanism to the transfer block. The transfer block is arranged to be positioned over a surface of the second stage to provide the flow to the second stage substantially without contacting the second stage.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to semiconductor processing equipment. More particularly, the present invention relates to a pneumatic transfer system which enables air and/or vacuum to be transferred between a coarse stage and a fine stage substantially without introducing disturbance forces related to the pneumatic transfer system.
2. Description of the Related Art
For precision instruments such as photolithography machines which are used in semiconductor processing, factors which affect the performance, e.g., accuracy, of the precision instrument generally must be dealt with and, insofar as possible, eliminated. When the performance of a precision instrument is adversely affected, as for example by pitching moments, products formed using the precision instrument may be improperly formed and, hence, function improperly. For instance, a photolithography machine that is subjected to pitching moments may cause an image projected by the photolithography machine to move, and, as a result, be aligned incorrectly on a projection surface such as a semiconductor wafer surface.
Scanning stages such as wafer scanning stages and reticle scanning stages are often used in semiconductor fabrication processes, and may be included in various photolithography and exposure apparatuses. Wafer scanning stages are generally used to position a semiconductor wafer such that portions of the wafer may be exposed as appropriate for masking or etching. Reticle scanning stages are generally used to accurately position a reticle or reticles for exposure over the semiconductor wafer. Patterns are generally resident on a reticle, which effectively serves as a mask or a negative for a wafer. When a reticle is positioned over a wafer as desired, a beam of light or a relatively broad beam of electrons may be collimated through a reduction lens, and provided to the reticle on which a thin metal pattern is placed. Portions of a light beam, for example, may be absorbed by the reticle while other portions pass through the reticle and are focused onto the wafer.
Many scanning stage devices include a coarse stage and a fine stage which cooperate to position an object such as a reticle or a wafer. Specifically, many high precision machines used in semiconductor fabrication use a coarse stage for relatively large motion and a fine stage for smaller, or more precise, motion. A coarse stage is used to coarsely position a reticle or a wafer near a desired position, while a fine stage is used to finely tune the position of the reticle or the wafer once the reticle or the wafer is positioned near its desired position by the coarse stage.
Some stage devices which include a coarse stage and a fine stage use motors to enable the fine stage to move. The use of mechanical bearings often introduces friction into the stage devices. Hence, in lieu of using mechanical bearings, many stage devices use pneumatic bearings. As shown in FIG. 1a, a coarse stage 104 may be directly coupled to a fine stage 108 through a pneumatic coupling 112. Pneumatic coupling 112 typically includes transfer hoses 114, as shown in FIG. 1b, which enables pneumatics, e.g., pressurized air or a vacuum, to be directly transferred from coarse stage 104 to fine stage 108 for a pneumatic bearing.
Pneumatic coupling 112 provides air and vacuum, as appropriate, to an air bearing (not shown) of fine stage 108 which allows fine stage 108 to move, e.g., scan, on an air bearing surface 120 associated with fine stage 108 and surface 124, although pneumatic coupling 112 may also provide air and vacuum transfer to fine stage 108 for other purposes. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, pressurized air may be provided to an air bearing to cause fine stage 108 to be substantially lifted over surface 124, while a vacuum may be provided to the air bearing to effectively preload fine stage 108.
Pneumatic coupling 112 is generally effective in providing air and/or vacuum to fine stage 108 to allow fine stage 108 to make precise motions. However, since pneumatic coupling 112 is directly coupled between coarse stage 104 and fine stage 108, pneumatic coupling 112 often vibrates when fine stage 108 undergoes a positive acceleration or a negative acceleration, i.e., deceleration. The vibrations in pneumatic coupling 112, e.g., the vibrations of transfer tubes 114, are typically due to the mass of transfer tubes 114 and the stiffness of transfer tubes 114. By way of example, a transfer tube 114 generally has a mass that may create a force during acceleration. Such a force may be transmitted to fine stage 108 as a disturbance or, more specifically, a tube disturbance force. As a result, vibrations which are created in pneumatic coupling 112 may cause transmitted disturbances that compromise the operation of fine stage 108 and the accuracy with which fine stage 108 may be positioned, as such disturbances may cause undesirable vibrations in fine stage 108.
Typically, stiffer transfer tubes 114 create higher tube disturbance forces. It should be understood that even in the event that transfer tubes which directly couple coarse stage 104 to fine stage 108 do not create disturbances, the presence of the transfer tubes applies a constant force to fine stage 108, which may also compromise the operation of fine stage 108.
Substantially eliminating tube disturbance forces which are transmitted to a fine stage or, more generally, substantially eliminating unwanted forces which are experienced by a fine stage, during acceleration of the fine stage, as well as acceleration of a coarse stage, may improve the performance of an overall stage system. Therefore, what is needed is a method and an apparatus for reducing the amount of unwanted forces applied on a fine stage by a pneumatic transfer system. In particular, what is desired is a method and an apparatus for allowing pneumatic transfer to occur between a coarse stage and a fine stage substantially without causing forces such as disturbance forces to be transmitted from a pneumatic transfer system to the fine stage.

Non-contact pneumatic transfer for stages with small motion


Described embodiments provide a magnetic field sensor has a circular vertical Hall (CVH) sensing element with a plurality of vertical Hall elements disposed over a common implant region in a substrate. The magnetic field sensor generates output signals responsive to a magnetic field generated by a multi-pole magnet having a plurality of north poles and also a plurality of south poles. An angle sensor generates an angle signal representative of an angle of a direction component of the magnetic field. A pole pair counter generates a count signal representative of a count of a number of the pole pairs of the multi-pole magnet that move past the CVH sensing element. An angle interpolation module generates a reconstructed angle signal representative of an angular position of the multi-pole magnet relative to the CVH sensing element based upon the count signal and the angle signal. Corresponding methods are also described.

Planar Hall elements and vertical Hall elements are known types of magnetic field sensing elements that can be used in magnetic field sensors. A planar Hall element tends to be responsive to magnetic field perpendicular to a surface of a substrate on which the planar Hall element is formed. A vertical Hall element tends to be responsive to magnetic field parallel to a surface of a substrate on which the vertical Hall element is formed.
Other types of magnetic field sensing elements are known. For example, a so-called "circular vertical Hall" (CVH) sensing element, which includes a plurality of vertical magnetic field sensing elements, is known and described in PCT Patent Application No. PCT/EP2008/056517, entitled "Magnetic Field Sensor for Measuring Direction of a Magnetic Field in a Plane," filed May 28, 2008, and published in the English language as PCT Publication No. WO 2008/145662, which application and publication thereof are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety. The CVH sensing element is a circular arrangement of vertical Hall elements arranged over a common circular implant region in a substrate. The CVH element can be used to sense a direction (and optionally a strength) of a magnetic field in a plans of the substrate.
Conventionally, all of the output signals from the plurality of vertical Hall elements within the CVH sensing element are needed in order to determine a direction of a magnetic field. Also conventionally, output signals from the vertical Hall elements of a CVH sensing element are generated sequentially, resulting in a substantial amount of time necessary to generate all of the output signals from the CVH sensing element. Thus, determination of the direction of the magnetic field can take a substantial amount of time.
Various parameters characterize the performance of magnetic field sensing elements. These parameters include sensitivity, which is a change in an output signal of a magnetic field sensing element in response to a change of magnetic field experienced by the magnetic sensing element, and linearity, which is a degree to which the output signal of the magnetic field sensing element varies in direct proportion to the magnetic field. These parameters also include an offset, which is characterized by an output signal from the magnetic field sensing element not representative of a zero magnetic field when the magnetic field sensing element experiences a zero magnetic field.
Another parameter that can characterize the performance of a CVH sensing element is the speed with which output signals from vertical Hall elements within the CVH sensing element can be sampled, and thus, the speed with which a direction of a magnetic field can be identified. Yet another parameter that can characterize the performance of a CVH sensing element is the resolution (e.g., angular step size) of the direction of the magnetic field that can be reported by the CVH sensing element.
As described above, the CVH sensing element is operable, with associated circuits, to provide an output signal representative of an angle of a direction of a magnetic field. Therefore, as described below, if a magnet is disposed upon or otherwise coupled is a so-called "target object," for example, a camshaft in an engine, the CVH sensing element can be used to provide as output signal representative of angle of rotation, and/or a rotation speed, of the target object.
For reasons described above, a magnetic field sensor that uses a CVH sensing element may have a limit as to how rapidly the magnetic field sensor can identify the direction of a magnetic field, i.e., a rotation angle or rotation speed of a target object. Furthermore, the magnetic field sensor may provide an angular resolution that is too low (too large an angle step size). In general, it may be possible to provide a higher resolution but at the expense of more time.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide a magnetic field sensor that uses a CVH sensing element (or, more generally, a plurality of magnetic field sensing elements) and that can provide an improved output signal with a higher angular (or positional) resolution while taking no additional time to provide the improved signal.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Circuits and methods for processing signals generated by a circular vertical hall (CVH) sensing element in the presence of a multi-pole magnet


A contact includes a first contact pin (21) of a blade shape, a second contact pin (22) and a spring (23). The second contact pin includes a connecting portion (223) and a receiving portion (222) opposite to the connecting portion. The receiving portion defines a receiving space (224) to accommodate the first contact pin. The spring locates in the receiving space and allow the first contact pin to shift downwards and upwards therein.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a contact for electronic devices, and more particularly to a contact for electronic devices which electrically connects a plurality of leads of an integrated circuit (IC) provided in a test socket to corresponding pads of a printed circuit board (PCB).
2. Description of Related Art
Conventional contacts of two types are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,025,602, which is issued to Dong Weon Hwang on Apr. 11, 2006. The first type as shown in FIG. 4 of U.S. Pat. No. 7,025,602, includes a pipe body, an upper and lower contact pins and a spring. The upper and lower contact pins are received in the pipe body with their one ends respectively, and the opposite ends project out the pipe body respectively. The spring locates between said one ends and allow the upper contact pin to shift upwards and downwards. The upper and lower contact pins are of cylindrical shape, which is not easy in manufacture.
The second type of the convention contacts includes a blade-shaped upper and lower contact pins and a spring connecting said two contact pins, which all are received a hole defined in a test socket where the contact are arranged. The spring allows the upper contact pin to shift upward and downward relative to the lower contact pin. However, since the two contact pins are crossedly assembled, the two contact pin must be fabricated accurately, which is not easily obtained in manufacture.
Therefore, an improved contact is desired to overcome the disadvantages of the prior arts.


A composition for forming a densified ceramic dielectric body, the composition consisting essentially of (a) about 96.0-98.0 wt. % barium titanate having an average particle size of 0.5-1.25 microns; (b) 0.3-1.2 wt. % niobium oxide or precursor thereof; (c) 0.4-1.2 wt. % zinc oxide or precursor thereof; (d) 0.1-1.2 wt. % neodymium oxide or precursor thereof; (e) 0.15-0.75 wt. % boron oxide or precursor thereof; and (f)0-0.1 wt. % manganese oxide or precursor thereof. This composition can be used to form the dielectric layers in multilayer electrical devices such as circuits and capacitors.

There is much prior art, such as Electrocomponent Science and Tech. 1976, Vol. 2, pp. 241-247 and EP 205 137A, which describes the addition of donor dopants such as niobium oxide and/or rare-earth oxides, in combination with acceptor dopants such as cobalt oxide, zinc oxide and/or manganese oxide, to improve the temperature stability of barium titanate. Also, there is much prior art, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,540,676, U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,905 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,845,062, which describes the use of fluxes, including zinc borate fluxes, to reduce the firing temperature of titanate dielectrics below 1150.degree. C. In addition, it is well known that lower sintering temperatures and/or higher dielectric constants can be obtained by using a high purity barium titanate with particle size close to 1 micron, several sources of which are now available commercially. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,905, DE 3915339-A1 and WO 88/08830. It is also well known that modifiers added to the barium titanate should be uniformly distributed for optimum properties and that the use of coarse particles can lead to segregation of the modifier with the potential for poor reliability when the dielectric is used in MLC's with layer thickness less than 25 microns. See WO 88/08830. However, in spite of this information, it has been difficult for those skilled in the art to achieve dielectric constants >2500 with stable (i.e., X7R) temperature characteristics for dielectrics sintered below 1150.degree. C.


A solid state angular rate sensor is fabricated by preparation of a disc-shaped base structure (10) having first and second outer layers of a piezo-electric ceramic material, built up from a number of layers of a ceramic sheet or film that is capable of being tape-cast. The layers are then sintered and an inner layer of metallic material is provided between the outer layers, to complete a piezo-electric base structure having an inner electrode (15) between the sintered outer layers. Arrays of electrode structures are provided on the outer layers of the base structure (10), the electrodes radiating from the central region 14 of the base structure (10) and being equi-spaced around the outer edge of the disc (19).

This invention relates to solid-state angular rate sensors and manufacturing methods therefor.
A conventional form of angular rate sensor employs a gyroscope to detect the rate of angular movement to which the sensor is subjected, utilising the precession effect of a rapidly spinning flywheel. Such angular rate sensors have been provided on vehicles of all kinds, and so including aircraft and boats, to assist with the guidance of the vehicle or to enhance the safety or performance of the vehicle. For example, the sensors may be used to control active suspension systems in automobiles or other passenger-carrying vehicles, the navigational control of aircraft and ships, in global positioning systems (GPS) to maintain tracking in the event that contact with satellites is lost, roll safety protection in vehicles and, increasingly, in model aircraft to assist with the remote control thereof.
Angular rate sensors provide an output from which the angular rate of motion of the sensor can be derived, or the angular displacement of the sensor, by integrating the output. A mechanical gyroscopic angular rate sensor has limited accuracy because of a number of defects inherent in the fundamental design thereof. In particular, a gyroscope is relatively large and heavy and power must continuously be supplied to cause rotation of the flywheel in view of the friction in the flywheel bearings and air resistance. Also, the gimbal assembly used to support the flywheel and permit the flywheel to turn in all directions introduces friction which reduces the accuracy of the sensor and if displacement is required, these errors accumulate over time. Further, a gyroscopic sensor is prone to drift, so reducing accuracy.
Over the last thirty years or so, there have been many proposals for solid-state devices able to detect angular rates of movement. These devices employ a resonating structure and the Coriolis forces generated by an applied angular rate affect the resonant mode of the structure. This can be detected and used to indicate the angular rate of movement of the sensor, and so to the displacement by integrating the rate signal.
In EP-0153189-A, there are described angular rate sensors in the form of both a three-dimensional cylinder and a two-dimensional disc, fabricated from a piezo-electric material, and which largely resolve the difficulties associated with the previously known solid-state devices. With both designs, the sensor is excited into the n=2 mode of vibration by a suitable drive signal applied to electrodes provided on the piezo-electric material and detecting the rate of turn by other appropriately positioned electrodes.
Angular rate sensors as described in said EP-0153189A can be made relatively small and lightweight as compared to gyroscopic devices, and need only a low drive current. Unfortunately though, these devices are expensive to manufacture and in particular must largely be trimmed by hand, in the final stages of assembly. Consequently, consistent performance is difficult to achieve.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,655,081-A there is described a disc-shaped gyroscopic device, also fabricated from a piezoelectric material and having on one face an electrode pattern and on the other face a continuous earth electrode. The disc is significantly less stiff in the z direction as compared to the x and y (in-plane) directions and the absence of rigidity in the z direction leads to an overwhelming out-of-plane signal, which will swamp the in-plane n=2 mode.
EP-0823616-A describes a gyroscope formed from two pieces of ceramic material with an intermediate central electrode, with a patterned electrode structure on one outer surface of the device and a plane earth electrode on the other outer surface. This device is designed to operate solely in the flexural mode and is in effect a beam which bends in one plane when subjected to acceleration.

Method of fabricating a solid-state angular rate sensor

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