Plural information display stations, such as audio video devices, are commonly connected to an information transmission path which transmits data frames among the display stations to provide data communication therebetween. Display information from the plural display stations is readily displayed on a common display monitor of one of the display stations. The display station containing the monitor transmits an inquiry on the information path for the purpose of determining which of the other display stations contains display information. The addresses of the other stations which transmit an affirmative reply in response to the inquiry are stored. Also, the display station containing the display monitor transmits another inquiry to determine the type of contents of the display information of the other display stations. The type of contents transmitted in response to this inquiry are also stored. Additionally, the control right of the display on the display monitor may be transferred among the plural display stations.

The present invention generally relates to an audio video system having audio video devices such as televisions, VTR, and audio equipment connected at a plurality of stations to a common information transmission path, and more particularly, to a picture display method for displaying the functional displays of the respective stations on a monitor display screen to allow users to input operational commands in accordance with the monitor displays.
Conventionally, when the functional displays of all the stations connected in the system, and the displays of a menu are effected, the central computer retains all the functional displays and the picture data of all the stations to effect integrated control and processing of the displays as demanded by a user.
However, such conventional techniques have the following problems.
(1) Since the central computer controls the picture display data of all the stations connected to the system, the data amount to be controlled is enormous.
(2) Since the central computer controls the picture display data of all the stations connected to the system, it is difficult to cope with the picture displays of a new station when the new station is connected to the system, or even when the types or displays are replaced by new ones in a existing station.
As a method of solving the above described problems, the technique of Japanese domestic patent publication No. 2-146558 has been proposed.
This patent technique is characterized in that in a communication system in which a controller composed of a control portion, a display portion, an input portion and a communication control portion is connected via a common communication path to a plurality of terminals provided with a communication portion. A means is adapted to control the corresponding terminal by the selection of the control item and the control content displayed on the display portion of the controller so as to control the terminals from the controller. A plurality of types of basic picture displays to be displayed on the display portion are built in within the controller. A plurality of terminals connected with the common communication path respectively retain the picture information necessary for their own control. The picture information which is an object with respect to the data reception from the controller is transmitted to the controller so as to display on the display portion the picture necessary for the control effected on the side of the controller.
However, in the method of the above described patent, the following problems remain unsettled.
(1) The controller is required to previously contain the basic pictures of the terminals thus requiring that the terminals which may be connected with the audio video system be known in advance.
(2) Although the respective terminals contain the data to be displayed, the controller always has a control right of the picture display as to which terminal picture is displayed in which order, so that a terminal cannot on its own display a desired display in accordance with a demand of the user.

Multistation display system for controlling a display monitor associated with plural audio video devices

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


Some embodiments provide a distributed optimization framework and technology for the control of aggregated propulsion system components that iteratively operates until a commanded propulsion-related profile is produced by aggregated components of the propulsion system. Some embodiments use a distributed iterative solution in which each component solves a local optimization problem with local constraints and states, while using global variables that are based upon information from each other component. The global variables may be determined via a distributed transaction system using component-specific information obtained from each component at each iteration. The global variables may be broadcast to the components for each new iteration.

Distributed coordination among multiple agents have previously been the subject of much research, particularly from a controls system perspective. It has applications in the areas of UAV coordination, power systems, flocking of robots, etc. In applications with a large number of agents, centralized coordination among agents is traditionally intractable due to heavy communication and central computation demands.
As the number of distributed electrical sub-systems in aircraft and other systems increases, there exists a need for an efficient decentralized distributed control structure that operates optimally.

Distributed optimal control of an aircraft propulsion system


A gas turbine engine comprising a combustion chamber section, a turbine section, and a compressor section. The turbine section surrounds the combustion chamber and the compressor section surrounds the turbine section.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to gas turbine engines and, more particularly, to a small gas turbine engine.
2. Previous Developments
At large power levels (thousands of horsepower), turbine engines are the most compact and lightest power systems available, and have completely taken over the market for large aircraft. However, scaled-down versions of these conventional gas turbine engines offer relatively poor power/weight ratio and high specific fuel consumption. FIG. 2A illustrates that for small engines power/weight ratios versus rated power is low. FIG. 2B illustrates that for small engines specific fuel consumption versus rated power is high. There are a variety of reasons why small gas turbine engines do not perform as well as the larger engines. These include
1. REYNOLDS NUMBER EFFECTS: Due to smaller characteristic dimensions, small compressor and turbine blades suffer from larger friction coefficients and greater aerodynamic losses.
2. THICKNESS/CHORD RATIOS: Due to physical difficulties in manufacturing very thin blades with adequate strength, airfoils used in small engines typically have larger thickness/chord ratios and relatively blunt leading edges. This causes larger aerodynamic losses due to profile drag and wave drag.3. LARGE RELATIVE TIP CLEARANCES: Due to differences in relative centrifugal and thermal growths of rotors and shrouds, and the effects of scaling, small compressors and turbines suffer from larger relative tip clearances (ratios of absolute tip clearance to blade span). This in turn causes large tip leakage losses and lower component performance and efficiency.4. LOWER CYCLE PRESSURE RATIOS: Small turbine engines with high cycle pressures need extremely small blade heights. These are difficult to manufacture, have large tip clearance losses, and suffer from boundary layers occupying a large fraction of passage heights. Consequently, small engines are limited to low pressure ratios, resulting in lower specific power (per unit mass flow), and low cycle efficiency.5. LOWER PEAK CYCLE TEMPERATURES: Large gas turbine engines can have intricate cooling passages in their large nozzle vanes and turbine blades. These convection, film and transpiration cooling schemes allow gas temperatures significantly higher than the structural capability of conventional turbine materials (metals), for high specific power and cycle efficiency. Similar cooling schemes are too complex and expensive for the small blade sizes of small gas turbines, causing them to be limited to lower temperatures and lower performance levels.
The present invention addresses these problems, and mitigates at least some of them, for improved power density and efficiency as will be described in greater detail below. Accordingly, amongst the objects of the present invention is to provide a lightweight/high-power density engine, having the ability to use military-standard high-energy fuels, such as JP8 or JP5. The engine has low observables including noise, smoke and infra-red signatures, and adequate life, to enable its use for reusable air vehicles, and affordable cost, to enable its use for expendable/attritable air vehicles. The engine can also be scaled up, as well as down, offering higher power/weight compared to current gas turbine engines of conventional design.


A compressible retention element of a diameter slightly greater than that of a cooperating cavity, having a low ratio of insertion to withdrawal forces. The retention element further provides insertion and withdrawal forces reduced from that found in the prior art. One embodiment of the retention element includes a cylindrical body, manufactured of a pliant material such as plastic or the like, having a wedge-shaped groove disposed axially along its length on one side and a planar region disposed axially along its length on an opposite side.

Retention elements such as posts are often used to mount a device onto a mounting surface. As an example, electronic component sockets may have one or more mounting posts depending from the socket body, these posts being cooperative with associated cavities in a mounting surface such as a circuit board to retain the socket on the board.
Tight dimensional tolerances are required of cylindrical retention elements engageable with cooperating cavities to ensure adequate retention force acting on the retention element without causing damage to the element on insertion. Extreme variance from desired dimensions can prevent insertion or eliminate the retention capability.
In order to ease tolerance restrictions, a retention element having a wedge-shaped groove disposed axially along the length of the element has been used. Typically, the groove has an angular width of about 30.degree., and a depth greater than the radius of the retention element. It has been established that such a geometry enables insertion of a retention element of diameter slightly larger than or equal to that of a cooperating cavity. In prior art retention elements having a groove as described, a deformation of the retention element cross-section is caused by limited flexing of the element sides inwardly during insertion of the element into a cavity. Rather than retaining a roughly circular cross-section, the width necessarily decreases as the sides compress. Further, the length of the cross-section as measured from the opening of the groove to the side of the element opposite the groove vertex increases. It is this deformation from a circular to an oblong cross-section which causes increased insertion forces and skiving when the prior art element is inserted into a cavity.
Several problems are prevalent with this prior art configuration. First, a minimum amount of retention element material must remain in order to resist shear and withdrawal forces. This in turn limits the maximum size of the wedge-shaped groove, and thus the amount by which the element can compress. As a result, it has been found that a retention element slightly larger than a corresponding cavity can suffer skiving wherein material is shaved off the element as it is forced into the cavity. The skiving of material and resultant decrease in retention element diameter necessarily reduces retention forces developed between the prior art retention element and the cavity during successive insertion and withdrawal cycles.
A second problem with the prior art configuration involves a disparity between an amount of force required to insert the retention element into its cavity and a force required to extract it, or equivalently, a retention force existing between the retention element and the cavity. It would be desirable to have a smaller ratio of withdrawal force to insertion force as compared to that of the prior art. With such a smaller ratio, a relatively small insertion force would be required to achieve a significant retention force between retention element and cavity.


A method of treating tumor tissue of an individual is provided. The method is effected by applying to cells of the tumor tissue electrical field pulses having a strength, a repetition frequency and a pulse width selected capable of inducing endocytosis mediated cell death thereby treating the tumor tissue.

The present invention relates to methods of using low-strength electric fields to treat tumors. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods and an apparatus which utilize low strength pulsed electric fields on the order of 20-70 V/cm, with or without adjunct chemotherapy to treat or cure various tumor and cancerous tissue.
Cancer is second only to heart disease as a cause of death, accounting for 22% of all deaths (Fraumeni J F, Devesa S S, Hoover R N, Kinlien L J. Epidemiology of cancer. In: Cancer—principles and practice of oncology, DeVita V T, Hellman S, Rozenberg S A, (eds.) pp. 150, Lippincott J. R. Co., Philadelphia, 1993. Colon cancer, melanoma and breast cancer are three particularly problematic types of cancer.
Melanomas are aggressive, frequently metastatic tumors derived from either melanocytes or melanocyte related nevus cells ("Cellular and Molecular Immunology" (1991) (eds) Abbas A. K., Lechtman, A. H., Pober, J. S.; W.B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia: pages 340-341) which make up approximately 3% of all skin cancers. Of particular concern is the current worldwide increase in melanoma which is unsurpassed by any other neoplasm with the exception of lung cancer in women ("Cellular and Molecular Immunology" (1991) (eds) Abbas, A. K., Lechtiman, A. H., Pober, J. S.; W.B. Saunders Company Philadelphia pages: 340-342; Kirkwood and Agarwala (1993) Principles and Practice of Oncology 7:1-16). The aggressiveness of melanoma is such that even when melanoma is apparently localized to the skin, up to 30% of the patients will develop systemic metastasis and the majority will die.
Breast cancer is a significant health problem for women in the United States and throughout the world. Although advances have been made in detection and treatment of the disease breast cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women, affecting more than 180,000 women in the United States each year. For women in North America, the life-time odds of getting breast cancer are now one in eight.
Colon cancer is the second most frequently diagnosed malignancy in the United States as well as the second most common cause of cancer death. About 100,000 new cases of colon cancer are diagnosed yearly, with about 50,000 deaths. The five-year survival rate for patients with colorectal cancer detected in an early localized stage is 92%; unfortunately, only 37% of colorectal cancer is diagnosed at this stage. The survival rate drops to 64% if the cancer is allowed to spread to adjacent organs or lymph nodes, and to 7% in patients with distant metastases. Recurrence following surgery (the most common form of therapy) is a major problem and is often the ultimate cause of death. In spite of considerable research into therapies for the disease, colon cancer remains difficult to diagnose and treat.
The leading cause of cancer death in general is due to growth of metastases since, in the majority of cases, by the time a malignancy has been diagnosed, metastases have already spread to other sites (for review see Fidler and Balch, 1987. Curr. Prob. Surg. 24:137). Whereas metastatic primary tumors can in many cases be surgically removed, greatly contributing to satisfactory therapeutic outcomes, metastases, such as disseminated micrometastases, can be difficult or impossible to locate and/or reach and thus surgical removal such metastases is usually not an option. Thus, metastases pose the most serious challenge to cancer therapy and are the main cause of failure of treatment of this disease. Therefore, prevention of metastasis is necessary to improve the prognosis of cancer patients.
In order to treat cancer effectively efficient removal of the primary tumor mass and prevention of secondary tumor growth, and eradication of metastatic cells must be achieved. Furthermore, significant prevention of recurrence of cancer growth can be achieved by generation of anti-cancer immune responses.
Surgical excision of tumors is the most widely employed therapeutic modality for the treatment of cancer, in which the primary goal is the complete eradication of local and regional tumor. This involves removal of adequate margins of normal tissue surrounding the tumor, and radical wide excision in order to prevent local recurrence. However, despite major advances in the surgical pre- and postoperative care of patients, surgical treatment of malignant neoplasms remains highly limited (Eilber F R. Principles of cancer surgery. In: Cancer Treatment, Haskell C M, (ed.) 5th ed., pp. 47, W.B. Saunders Co. Philadelphia, 2001). Surgical techniques are effective only in the area of the primary tumor or regional lymphatics and do not affect neoplasms located outside the operative field. Furthermore, due to anatomic location, many tumors cannot be treated by surgical resection because removal of an adequate margin of normal tissue cannot be achieved. Also, surgical treatment is often not an option for tumors intimately involving major blood vessels or essential organs. As well, many patient present problematic medical histories, such as cerebrovascular or cardiovascular accidents, or uncontrolled diabetes, rendering them poor surgical candidates because of their high postoperative mortality rate. Also, in many cases, tumor excision can not performed without causing unacceptable levels of impairment of physiologic functions or cosmetic damage.
Chemotherapy alone or in combination with surgery is commonly the most efficient anti-cancer remedy (Haskell C M. Principles of cancer chemotherapy. In: Cancer Treatment, Haskell C M, (ed.) 5th ed. pp. 62-86, W.B. Saunders Co. Philadelphia, 2001). However, chemotherapeutic agents often cause severe and unacceptable side-effects, such as bone marrow and lymphoid organ damage resulting in immunosuppression, thereby rendering subjects highly vulnerable to lethal opportunistic infections, as well as various other types of organ toxicities. Thus, the use of cytotoxic drugs is limited only to tolerated doses. One way to reduce minimal therapeutic doses of chemotherapeutic agents would be to enhance the efficiency of uptake of chemotherapeutic drugs into cancer cells.
During the last two decades, various techniques based on biological, chemical and physical processes have been developed for facilitating incorporation of macromolecules into cells. Methods for intracellular delivery of exogenous substances based on biological phenomena have employed molecules controlling the activity of specific membrane channels in various cell types (Heppel and Weisman, 1985. J Membr Biol. 86:189), pore-forming toxins (Ahnert-Higler et al., 1989. Methods Cell Biology 31:63) and liposome-endocytosis mediated delivery of compounds (Friend et al., 1996. Biophys Acta 1278:41). Some permeabilization methods are based on chemical modification of cell membranes by various substances, most commonly via the use of detergents as permeabilizing agents. Other methods based on chemically induced permeabilization include protease digestion or stimulation of DNA binding to the cell surface by formation of neutral complexes of DNA with various molecules. Physical methods of introducing molecules into cells include application of hypotonic stress (Poulin et al., 1993. J Biol Chem. 268:4690), cell bombardment by coated molecules (Salford et al., 1993a), microinjection (Soreg and Seidman, 1992. Methods Enzymol. 207:225), electroporation (Potter, 1993. Methods Enzymol. 217:461), and exposure to pulsed low electric fields (LEFs) (Rosenberg and Korenstein, 1997. Bioelectrochemistry and Bioenergetics 42:275).
Electroporation involves formation of a reversible, high permeability plasma membrane state in cells or bacteria exposed to 50-200 μs pulses of high-strength electric fields in the range of 500-5000 V/cm. At a threshold value of about 1 V across the cell membrane, a sudden increase in membrane permeability is observed which is thought to be mediated by stabilization of transient membrane defects and to their expansion to large metastable hydrophilic pores. Both transient and stable pores can be the sites of extrinsic material entry into the cell (Hapala, 1997. Crit Rev Biotechnol. 17:105; Rols and Teissie, 1990. Biophys J. 58:1089; Rols and Teissie, 1998. Biophys J. 75:1415). Electroporation also appears to involve stimulation of biological endocytosis in areas of destabilized membrane structure (Rols et al., 1995. Biochem Biophys Acta 1111:45). While electroporation, also termed electropermeabilization or electroinjection, has been generally used as a method of transfecting cells with nucleic acids, this method has also been used to load cells with a variety of other molecules, including proteins (Lambert et al., 1990. Biochem Cell Biol. 68:729), such as phalloidin (Hashimoto et al., 1989. J Biochem Biophys Methods 19:143) or antibodies (Chakrabarti et al., 1989. J Biol Chem. 264:15494).
In contrast to electroporation, incorporation of macromolecules into cells via exposure to LEFs, a methodology developed by the present inventors, utilizes low voltage electric fields. Exposure of cells and vesicles to LEFs leads to efficient intracellular incorporation of various molecules, including carbohydrates, such as polysaccharides, and proteins, such as β-galactosidase (Rosenberg and Korenstein, 1997. Bioelectrochemistry and Bioenergetics 42:275) via an underlying mechanism involving endocytosis-like processes. Exposure of membrane vesicles and cells to such LEFs leads to electrophoretic lateral mobility of charged proteins and lipids in the plane of the cell membrane (Poo, 1981. Bioeng. 10:245; Brumfield et al., 1989 Biophys J. 56:607), and generation of transmembrane potential differences (Farkas et al., 1984. Biophys J. 45:363). It has been shown by the present inventors that exposure of cells in suspension or monolayer to trains of pulsed unipolar electric fields in the range of about 1-100 V/cm (Rosenberg and Korenstein, 1997. Bioelectrochemistry and Bioenergetics 42:275), or to AC fields with peak-to-peak amplitudes of about 1-60 V/cm leads to efficient uptake of macromolecules having molecular weights ranging from about 1 to 2000 kDa, an exceptionally broad range. Unlike following electroporation, cells exposed to LEFs in vitro maintain high viability due to the magnitudes of the applied electric fields being too low to induce changes in membrane permeability via physical disruption of its integrity (Rosenberg and Korenstein, 1990. Biophys J. 58:823). LEFs have been shown to induce endocytosis, a process which includes a complex sequence of membrane-linked processes resulting in uptake of extrinsic substances involving binding of such substances to the cell surface, formation of endocytotic vesicles and maturation of endocytotic vesicles to lysosomes (Mellman, 1996. Ann Rev Cell Dev Biol. 12:575).
Several prior art approaches employing electric fields have been employed to treat tumors.
One approach has employed electroporation in conjunction with netropsin, bleomycin, or melphalan to attempt to increase of the cytotoxicity of these drugs against cultured DC-3F cells (Orlowski S. et al., 1988. Biochem Pharmacol. 37:4727).
Yet an additional approach has utilized electroporation in conjunction with daunorubicin, doxorubicin, etoposide, paclitaxel, carboplatin or cisplatin in order to attempt to potentiate their cytotoxic effect against cultured cells (Gehl J. et al., 1998. Anticancer Drugs 9:319).
Still another approach has employed very high strength electric field electroporation (1,300 V/cm) in conjunction with administration of cis-diamminedichloroplatinum (II) in order to attempt to treat SA-1, EAT, or B16 melanoma tumors in mice (Sersa G. et al., 1995. Cancer Res. 55:3450)
An additional approach has used electroporation in conjunction with administration of bleomycin in order to attempt to treat tumors of the female genital squamous cell carcinoma cell line CaSki in nude mice (Yabushita H. et al., 1997. Gynecol Oncol. 65:297).
Another approach has used very high strength electric field electroporation (1,300 V/cm) in conjunction with administration of bleomycin to attempt to treat head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (Belehradek J J. et al., 1993. Cancer 72:3694).
Yet another approach has utilized very high strength electric field electroporation (1,000-1,300 V/cm) in conjunction with administration of bleomycin to attempt to treat head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, and salivary and breast adenocarcinomas (Domenge C. et al., 1996. Cancer 77:956) However, all of the aforementioned prior art approaches suffer from significant disadvantages.
For example, all of these prior art approaches have employed electroporation, and hence high-strength electrical fields which, as described hereinabove, are significantly cytotoxic and which, by their extreme nature, are inherently hazardous. Electroporation suffers from the drawbacks of being inefficient in its potentiation of drug uptake, and in being restricted with respect to the range of molecular weights of the molecules whose uptake it is capable of potentiating. Prior art approaches have demonstrated potentiation of the in vivo anti-tumor effect of a restricted number of chemotherapeutic drugs (bleomycin, cisplatin, adriamycin and 5-fluorouracil). Moreover, none of these prior art methods has been shown to be effective in curing cancer at a metastatic stage. Critically, none of these prior art approaches has been shown to be effective against tumor cells in the absence of chemotherapeutic agents. Also none of these prior art approaches has demonstrated the capacity to upregulate anti-tumor immune responses as demonstrated by resistance to challenge.
Thus, all prior art approaches have failed to provide an adequate solution for treating tumors using electrical fields.
There is thus a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a method and apparatus devoid of the above limitation.

Method and apparatus for treating tumors using low strength electric fields


A wrapping machine having a pre-stretching device including a first pre-stretching roller and a second pre-stretching roller, which are tractively coupled via power transmission gears. A first deflecting pinch roller has been fitted to be pressed against the first pre-stretching roller to form a first nip for the film web passed between the first deflecting pinch roller and the first pre-stretching roller. A second deflecting pinch roller has been fined to be pressed against the second pre-stretching roller to form a second nip for the film web passed between the second deflecting pinch roller and the second pre-stretching roller. A lever mechanism moves the first pre-stretching roller between an engagement position and a disengagement position, so that the lever mechanism also moves the first deflecting pinch roller apart from the first pre-stretching roller and simultaneously the second deflecting pinch roller apart from the second pre-stretching roller to allow easier thread-in of the film web end.

In prior art, a wrapping machine as defined in the preamble is known from specification U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,616.
Specification U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,616 discloses a wrapping machine for winding a wrapping film web around an object to be packaged. The wrapping machine comprises a film dispenser, which comprises a frame. The frame is provided with supporting elements for rotatably supporting a film web roll on the frame.
The film dispenser comprises a pre-stretching device connected to the frame for pre-stretching the film web drawn from the film web roll before its being wrapped around the object. The pre-stretching device comprises a first pre-stretching roller, with the outer surface of whose rim the first side of the film web drawn from the roller can be brought into a tractive frictional contact. The pre-stretching device further comprises a second pre-stretching roller mounted with bearings on the frame so as to be rotatable at a distance from the first pre-stretching roller to form a first gap between them. The second side of the film web drawn from the roller can be brought into a tractive frictional contact with the outer surface of the rim of the second pre-stretching roller. The pre-stretching device further comprises a first transmission gear, which is mounted on the shaft of the first pre-stretching roller, and a second transmission gear, which is mounted on the shaft of the second pre-stretching roller and fitted to be in tractive contact with the first transmission gear to produce a transmission ratio so as to differentiate the circumferential velocities of the first and second pre-stretching rollers.
The film dispenser further comprises a first deflecting pinch roller, which is fitted to be pressed against the first pre-stretching roller to form a first nip for the film web passed between the first deflecting pinch roller and the first pre-stretching roller. In addition, the film dispenser comprises a second deflecting pinch roller, which is fitted to be pressed against the second pre-stretching roller to form a second nip for the film web passed between the second deflecting pinch roller and the second pre-stretching roller.
The frame of the film dispenser according to specification U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,616 is divided into two sections, a fixed section and an openable and closeable gate section pivotally connected to it and forming a sort of lever mechanism, the first pre-stretching roller and one of the deflecting pinch rollers being mounted with bearings on the gate section. The second pre-stretching roller and the second deflecting pinch roller are rotatably mounted with bearings on the fixed frame. The section part can be moved between an engagement position and a disengagement position. In the engagement position, the power transmission wheels of the pre-stretching rollers are in driving engagement with each other. In the disengagement position, when the gate section is open, the power transmission wheels are disengaged from each other. In the disengagement position with the gate section open, the first gap between the pre-stretching rollers is naturally larger than the corresponding first gap in the engagement position. Due to the openable gate section, the feed-in of the end of the film web from the film web roll through such a pre-stretching device can be easily implemented.
A problem with this prior-art solution is, however, that the film dispenser provided with an openable gate section is fairly big and heavy. In addition, the structure is expensive and relatively complicated.
To solve the problem relating to the feed-in of the film end, other solutions have also been developed, e.g. as disclosed in specification EP 1019288 B1. The ends of the pre-stretching rollers are provided with tapered extensions allowing the film web end crinkled into the form of a narrow strip to slide over the extensions, which guide the strip onto the pre-stretching rollers.
A problem with the structure according to this EP patent is that the extensions of the rollers increase the size of the film dispenser in the vertical direction.


An arrangement for achieving reliable communication of perceived attitude information from the test subject in an environmentally controlled spatial disorientation study. The communications system includes a talking with the hand protocol wherein the orientation of the test subject's opened hand is sensed upon command from test monitoring persons. Orientation of the test subject's hand is remotely sensed by way of a three-axis of rotational freedom transducer apparatus in which the test subject's hand is suspended in a manner providing minimal orientation feedback to the test subject. Use of the described system includes a selection of additional physiological influencing environmental inputs for the test subject including visual and audible stimulus information.

This invention relates to the field of living test subject signal interfacing and to the collection of vertebrate test subject originating stress-influenced data signals.
Spatial disorientation, which is also known as attitude perception error, is known to present a significant threat to an aircraft pilot or other flight vehicle crewmember. Indeed, many of the aircraft fatalities, injuries, and property loss incidents occurring since the Wright brothers era have been attributed to erroneous perceptions of aircraft attitude and the resulting pilot action. In the early days of flying, before the array of flight instruments now routinely used was available, it was indeed necessary for a pilot to fly an aircraft with considerable attention to the forces incurred by his body--i.e., to fly literally by the "seat of his pants" in order to maintain a coordinated pattern of flight.
These early flying procedures relied heavily and sometimes perilously on what is now termed "vestibular perception", a term which describes perception based on the central cavity of the bony labyrinth of the ear and parts of the membranous labyrinth that it contains. A related concept known as "Proprioceptive perception" was also used instinctively by these early flyers and continues to be important even in the present invention. Proprioceptive perception refers to other body sensing capabilities such as pressure on the torso or portions of the peripheral limbs.
It is now well understood that spatial disorientation results from an error between a test subject's perceived orientation and his/her actual orientation. A discussion of this concept is to be found in the technical article "Erroneous Perception of Vertical Motion by Humans Seated in the Upright Position", by Jones Malcolm, (Acta Oto-Laryngologica, May 1977). It is also well understood that a test subject may be unaware that he/she is a victim of spatial disorientation, especially for transient periods that are incompatible with the duties imposed on a modern aircraft pilot.
A classic example of spatial disorientation and its danger is known to naval aviation pilots from the carrier-launched aircraft sequence. During aircraft rest or taxi maneuvers on a carrier flight deck, the pilot of such an aircraft perceives the gravity vector to be in its correct and straight down location. This perception is drastically influenced, however, by the forces of engine thrust and catapult launch acceleration. During a full throttle, catapult-assisted takeoff, such a pilot experiences a sharp backward rotation of the apparent direction of the gravity vector--as a result of the summation of the true gravity vector with the horizontally directed force vectors from engine thrust and catapult force. Because of this backward rotation, an inexperienced person tends to apply attitude correction to the aircraft in order to rotate the force summation vector back to the normal position of gravity. This correction is accomplished by rotating the nose of the aircraft downward just after take-off. In this instance, an erroneous perception and its first blush nose-down correction has obvious life-threatening potential for a pilot who has just left the deck of an aircraft carrier and is already in a marginal altitude and speed condition of flight.
Ambient vision is the primary and usually reliable mechanism by which an aircraft crewmember can overcome an incident of spatial disorientation and achieve correct orientation of an aircraft. Pilots are, however, often deprived of this ambient vision input while in flight--deprived by such conditions as clouds, weather, darkness, pilot distractions, and even formation flying; such effects are described in the published article "Pilot Disorientation and Use of a Peripheral Vision Display", by Richard Malcolm (Aviation, Space and Environmental Medicine, March 1984).
During periods of deprived ambient vision, a pilot notwithstanding the availability of usually reliable flight instruments, can be strongly influenced by vestibular or middle ear perceptions of his or her orientation. As is well known in the aviation art, however, these vestibular system perceptions are, as in the case of the Navy aircraft carrier pilot, subject to acceleration illusions. Moreover these accelerations are not limited to one axis or direction of action, but may have multiple axis components.
In view of the demands placed upon the pilot of a modern aircraft, particularly by a tactical aircraft, demands including the tolerance of large and relatively long-term g-forces from a range of differing directions, there is an immediate need in the aerospace community to understand the effects of multi-axis maneuvering on vestibular perception in the absence of ambient vision. This need has been recognized in the technical community, as is evidenced by such news publications as "F-117 Crash Reports Cite Pilot Fatigue, Disorientation" by William B. Scott (Aviation Week & Space Technology, May 1989), and "Spatial Disorientation and Loss of Attitude Awareness: Impact on the USAF" by Britton L. Marlowe, (58th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Aerospace Medical Association, May 1987).
The information obtained from an improved understanding of multi-axis maneuvering effects on vestibular perception can be used to improve the design of aircraft and their instrumentation systems, and to improve the instruction of aircraft pilots, especially by way of acquainting experienced instructor pilots with newly-acquired factual information. Studies in this field may be made in aircraft, but are, however, more cost effectively and conveniently accomplished in ground-based dynamic effect simulators, g-force simulators or centrifuges, in which a test subject can be exposed to a controlled variety of conditions such as off-axis positioning, darkness, presence of clutter information, a regimen of distracting duties, and variations of ambient conditions--all under the greatest possible degree of monitoring, safety, and repeatability.
Several arrangements have, in fact, been used to identify the perceived attitude of a test subject while exposed to such conditions. Most of these arrangements have been based on a single pivot point transducer arrangement that is operated by the test subject. Included in these previously used devices is the horizontal bar which is rotated to indicate perceived roll angle as is described by M.J. Correia et al in the publication "On Predictive Equations for Subjective Judgments of Vertical and Horizon in a Force Field" (Acta Octo-Laryngologica, 1968). In addition, Gillingham et al in the paper "Quantification of the Somato Gravic Illusion in the Vertifuge", (58th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Aerospace Medical Association, May 1987), have worked with a "down pointer" which is pivoted at the top of a cockpit or test chamber and is used by the test subject to indicate his/her perception of the down direction.
These previous attitude communicating arrangements have, however, overlooked a useful and inherent tendency of people, especially aircraft pilots, to talk with their hands. This well-known tendency usually includes use of the palm of the hand to indicate the downward direction or lower surface of an aircraft. These previously employed attitude communicating transducers have also been limited in effectiveness by the tendency of the down pointer to act as a pendulum and to thereby provide a reference frame or biasing information to a test subject
The down pointer is also limited by a more subtle and human experience related concept in that people are accustomed to orienting themselves with respect to a horizon rather than a vertical object. Since pilots are also accustomed to a horizontal attitude indication, a down pointer arrangement may well introduce error into any obtained measurement simply because people are poorer judges of "down" than of "level". The herein-described perceived attitude transducer provides an improvement over previous communication arrangements and also provides a tool for testing the significance of possible perceived attitude biasing factors. The presently described perceived attitude transducer also makes use of the natural inclination of pilots to talk with their hands and to describe their orientation in space by movement of a prone hand into a selected orientation with respect to their torso.
The patent art reveals a number of inventions that are concerned with the straight and level condition for a variety of objects. Included in this art is the U.S. Pat. No. 3,478,569 of H.H. Aichinger, which is concerned with an apparatus usable in the rigging of airplane control surfaces, that is, the alignment of control surfaces to the neutral or straight and level flight condition at initial manufacture and assembly of the aircraft.
This patent art also includes the U.S. Pat. No. 3,561,123, of C.G. Bowman et al, which is concerned with a hand level apparatus having a vertically disposed and horizontally elongated closed liquid reservoir. Also included in this patent art is the U.S. Pat. No. 4,189,726 of Frank Rosa et al, which provides a level orientation indication for a portable power hand tool such as an electric drill.
Additionally included in this patent art is the U.S. Pat. No. 4,484,191 of G.S. Vavra, in which tactile or feeling-sensed signals indicating the execution of an uncoordinated turn condition by an aircraft are provided. Also included in this patent art is the U.S. Pat. No. 4,713,651 of Myer Morag in which tactile or feeling senses are used to display information in an information saturated environment such as a modern aircraft cockpit.
While each of these prior patents bears some distal relationship with the present invention, none of these patents nor their combination provide a g-force disregarding reliable communication path from a human or other test subject to, for example, a data processing system.

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Air Force


The method and system of the present invention can be utilized to model aggregate multimedia traffic within a shared transmission medium, such as an ATM network, so that customer expectations can be met and the network can be constructed and utilized efficiently. A total number of different traffic services, as well as a maximum number of sources of each service are specified by a network operator. Next, a quality of service characterization for each service is determined, based upon available standards. Average sojourn time for each service is determined by modeling each Constant Bit Rate (CBR) service as a Renewal Process, each Variable Bit Rate (VBR) real-time service as a multistate Modulated Discrete Process and each Variable Bit Rate (VBR) non-real-time service as an On-Off Process. Sojourn mean times can thereafter be obtained from measurements or published standards. Average usage rates are then determined from the average sojourn time and that average sojourn time is then calculated for each system state. The steady state probability that a particular number of calls are in progress for each service type can then be statistically calculated utilizing the foregoing parameters. By utilizing the determined sojourn times, average usage rates and steady state probability that a particular number of calls are in progress for each service type and accurate multimedia traffic model can be provided for network design.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to improvements in network design and in particular to improvements in methods and systems for modeling aggregate multimedia traffic within a network. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a method and system for determining sojourn times, average usage rates and a steady state probability that a particular number of calls are in progress for each type of service so that network usage may be accurately modeled for design purposes.
2. Description of the Related Art
No where has the explosion of modern technology been more evident than in the field of communication. The number and type of communication services has been rapidly expanding, including so-called "multimedia" services such as video teleconferencing, video/movies on demand and the like.
The intermixing of these multimedia services with traditional data and voice communications within a shared transmission medium has presented various design problems. Early attempts at accommodating multimedia within a shared transmission medium involved an educated guess as to the percentage of the bandwidth to be allotted to multimedia traffic and that percentage of the bandwidth was fixed thereafter, resulting in an under or over utilization of the transmission medium, if the initial assumptions were not precise or if the nature and quantity of the multimedia traffic varied.
More recently, attempts have been made at statistically modeling aggregate traffic which originates from homogeneous services with similar traffic types and similar characteristics. For example, the Poisson Process is widely utilized to model aggregate traffic from voice sources. Similarly, the Discrete Auto Regressive Process has been utilized to model aggregate traffic from video teleconferencing sources. The Markov Modulated Poisson Process is often utilized to model aggregate traffic from data sources. While these techniques are useful design aides in networks having multiple homogeneous sources of similar traffic types and characteristics, none of these techniques can be utilized to accurately model a network having aggregate traffic from heterogeneous multimedia sources.
Those skilled in the art will thus appreciate if a method and system can be provided which can accurately model aggregate traffic from heterogenous multimedia sources within a shared transmission medium, bandwidth utilization within the transmission medium can be efficiently utilized and customer satisfaction and network effectiveness can be enhanced.

Method and system for modeling aggregate multimedia traffic within a shared transmission medium


A pull-on disposable diaper includes in a waist covering region thereof a tape tab extending in a waist-circumferential direction. The tape tab includes a fixed tape section secured to an outer sheet of the diaper and a movable tape section contiguous to the fixed tape section. The movable tape section has a distal end portion and a proximal end portion. The distal end portion is formed with a finger grip zone and an attaching element located short of this finger grip zone. The proximal end portion is contiguous to one end portion of the fixed tape section. The attaching element is releasably attached to a zone of the fixed tape section in which the fixed tape section is curved to bulge in a direction spaced apart outwardly from an outer surface of the waist covering region.

The present invention relates to a pull-on disposable diaper.
Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 1994-77719 A (Reference No. 1).
This Publication discloses a disposable diaper provided with tape fasteners used to retain a used diaper in a rolled up or folded state for disposal thereof. Use of such tape fasteners to retain the used diaper in rolling up or folding state for disposal is sanitarily as well as seemingly preferable since any contaminated regions of the diaper are prevented from being exposed.
The tape fastener in the disposable diaper disclosed by the above-cited Publication is folded in its longitudinal direction in a Z-shape or a reversed Z-shape. To unfold this tape fastener in the longitudinal direction, a troublesome handling is required. Specifically, the tape fastener must be pulled with a finger grip zone held by fingers, first in a direction opposite to a direction in which the finger grip zone points and then in the direction in which the finger grip zone points in order to peel off layers of the folded tape fastener from one another. In this manner, this well-known tape fastener can not be utilized merely by pulling it with the finger grip held between fingers in one and same direction. Correspondingly, the user of the diaper may experience more or less inconvenience for use.
Reference No. 1: Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 1994-77719 A


A system and method for determining base station location from neighbor lists of client devices is disclosed. When base station attempts and fails to acquire a satellite-based location fix, it can identify client devices operating within its service range, and query them for their respective neighbor lists. Upon receiving neighbor lists from one or more of the queried client devices, the base station can merge the lists into a composite list. The base station can then determine the locations of the base stations in the composite list, and compute a centroid from the locations. The base station can then adopt the centroid location as its own location.

In a typical cellular radio communication system (wireless communication system), an area is divided geographically into a number of cell sites, each defined by a radio frequency (RF) radiation pattern from a respective antenna or antenna system. The antennas in the cells are in turn coupled to one or another form of controller, which is then coupled to a telecommunications switch or gateway, such as a mobile switching center (MSC) and/or a packet data serving node (PDSN) for instance. These (and possibly other) elements function collectively to form a Radio Access Network (RAN) of the wireless communication system. The switch or gateway may then be coupled with a transport network, such as the PSTN or a packet-switched network (e.g., the Internet).
Depending on the specific underlying technologies and architecture of a given wireless communication system, the RAN elements may take different forms. In a code division multiple access (CDMA) system configured to operate according IS-2000 and IS-856 standards, for example, the antenna system is referred to as a base transceiver system (BTS), and is usually under the control of a base station controller (BSC). In a universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) configured to operate according to ITU IMT-2000 standards, the antenna system is usually referred to as a NodeB, and is usually under the control of a radio network controller (RNC). Other architectures and operational configurations of a RAN are possible as well.
A subscriber (or user) in a service provider's wireless communication system accesses the system for communication services via a Wireless Communication Device ("WCD"), such as a cellular telephone, "smart" phone, pager, or appropriately equipped portable computer, for instance. In a CDMA system a WCD is referred to as an access terminal ("AT"); in a UMTS system a WCD is referred to as User Equipment ("UE"). For purposes of the discussion herein, the term WCD will generally be used to refer to either an AT or UE or the like. When a WCD is positioned in a cell, it communicates via an RF air interface with the BTS or NodeB antenna of the cell. Consequently, a communication path or "channel" is established between the WCD and the transport network, via the air interface, the BTS or NodeB, the BSC or RNC, and the switch or gateway.
As the demand for wireless communications has grown, the volume of call traffic in most cell sites has correspondingly increased. To help manage the call traffic, most cells in a wireless network are usually further divided geographically into a number of sectors, each defined respectively by radiation patterns from directional antenna components of the respective BTS or NodeB, or by respective antennas. These sectors can be referred to as "physical sectors," since they are physical areas of a cell site. Therefore, at any given instant, a WCD in a wireless network will typically be positioned in a given physical sector and will be able to communicate with the transport network via the BTS or NodeB serving that physical sector.
The functional combination of a BTS of a cell or sector with a BSC, or of a NodeB and an RNC, is commonly referred to as a "base station." The actual physical of a configuration of a base station can range from an integrated BTS-BSC or NodeB-RNC unit to a distributed deployment of multiple BTSs under a single BSC, or multiple NodeBs under a single RNC. Regardless of whether it is configured to support one cell, multiple cells, or multiple sectors, a base station is typically deployed to provide coverage over a geographical area on a scale of a few to several square miles and for tens to hundreds to several thousands (or more) of subscribers at any one time. On this scale, coverage is referred to as "macro-network coverage" and the base station is referred to as a "macro-type base station."
More recently, a type of base-station functional unit aimed at coverage over a much smaller physical area and at concurrent support of many fewer subscribers has been introduced. Referred to generically herein as a "micro-type base station," this device can be used to fill in local coverage gaps in macro-network coverage (e.g., in buildings), or to provide localize, small-area coverage where no macro-network coverage exists. When deployed as an integral component of a RAN, a micro-type base station is also referred to as a "picocell."
Service providers have also begun offering even smaller micro-type base stations as consumer devices, under the technical moniker of "femtocells." Comparable in size to desktop phone, femtocells can similarly fill in gaps in macro-network coverage (e.g., in buildings), while providing limited and exclusive coverage to individual subscribers within residential (or other small-scale) spaces. Instead of connecting as an integral component of the RAN to an MSC, PDSN, or other network switch, a femtocell communicates with the service provider's network via one or another form of broadband connection associated with or available to the consumer-owner (or renter) of the femtocell, for example from an internet service provider (ISP).
A subscriber may move between neighboring coverage areas of macro-type base stations and micro-type base stations, and even between neighboring coverage areas of different micro-type base stations, in the same way the subscriber moves between neighboring macro coverage areas. More specifically, as a subscriber at a WCD moves between wireless coverage areas of a wireless communication system, such as between cells or sectors, or when network conditions change or for other reasons, the WCD may "hand off" from operating in one coverage area to operating in another coverage area. In a usual case, this handoff process is triggered by the WCD monitoring the signal strength of various nearby available coverage areas, and the BSC or RNC (or other controlling network entity) determining when one or more threshold criteria are met. For instance, a WCD may continuously monitor signal strength from various available sectors and notify a BSC when a given sector has a signal strength that is sufficiently higher than the sector in which the WCD is currently operating. The BSC may then direct the WCD to hand off to that other sector. By convention, a WCD is said to handoff from a "source" cell or sector (or base station) to a "target" cell or sector (or base station).
In some wireless communication systems or markets, a wireless service provider may implement more than one type of air interface protocol. For example, a carrier may support one or another version of CDMA, such as EIA/TIA/IS-2000 Rel. 0, A, and CDMA 2000 Spread Spectrum Systems Revision E (collectively referred to generally herein as "IS-2000") for both circuit-cellular voice and data traffic, as well as a more exclusively packet-data-oriented protocol such as EIA/TIA/IS-856 Rel. 0, A, or other version thereof (hereafter "IS-856"). Under IS-2000, packet-data communications may be referred to as 1X Radio Transmission Technology ("1X-RTT") communications, also abbreviated as just "lx." However, since IS-2000 supports both circuit voice and packet data communications, the term 1X (or 1X-RTT) is sometimes used to more generally refer the IS-2000 air interface, without regard to the particular type of communication carried. Packet-data communications under IS-856 are conventionally referred to as Evolution-Data Optimized ("EVDO") communications, also abbreviated as just "DO." A carrier could also implement an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) based system according to protocols specified by third generation partnership project (3GPP) Long Term Evolution ("LTE") Advanced, for example. WCDs may be capable of communication under any or all such protocols, and may further be capable of handing off between them, in addition to being able to hand off between various configurations of coverage areas.

Determination of base station location based on other serving locations available to client devices


A circuit includes a first data line, a second data line, a reference node, and a memory cell. The reference node is configured to have a reference voltage level corresponding to a first logical value. The memory cell includes a data node, a first transistor and a second transistor connected in series between the first data line and the reference node, and a third transistor between the data node and the second data line. A gate of the first transistor is coupled to the data node, and the first transistor is configured to be turned off when the gate of the first transistor has a voltage level corresponding to the first logical value. The third transistor is configured to be turned off when a gate of the third transistor has a voltage level corresponding to a second logical value different from the first logical value.

A two port memory cell includes a write port and a read port. The read port includes a read data line that is configured to carry the data read from the memory cell. The write port includes a write data line that is configured to carry the data to be written to the memory cell. In some configurations, the write data line is precharged and/or kept at a predetermined voltage level when the write data line is not used for writing the memory cell. When a write word line is activated to access another memory cell of the same row, the write data line is also coupled to the memory cell responsive to the activated write word line. As a result, the predetermined voltage level at the write data line interferes with a voltage level at a data node of the memory cell. Meanwhile, if a read word line is activated to access the memory cell, the interference of the voltage level at the data node would also interfere with setting a voltage level at the read data line that reflects the logical value stored in the memory cell. In some applications, the interference at the read data line of one memory cell caused by the write operation of another memory cell is sometimes referred to as a "read disturbance" or a "read disturb."

TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING COMPANY, LTD.


An air valve assembly for use with a premixer for a gas turbine engine module. The air valve assembly includes a valve disk and a support plate having a valve aperture in which the valve disk is disposed for rotation, the support plate having aligned first and second shaft apertures through opposing support plate ends that define an axis of rotation of the valve disk. The assembly also has a first shaft having one end section rotatably supported in the first aperture and having another end section connected to the valve disk; a second shaft having one end section rotatably supported in and extending through the second shaft aperture and with a bearing end terminating outside the support plate, and also having another end section connected to the valve disk. The assembly further includes an actuator shaft having an engagement end in axial abutting contact with the second shaft bearing end; and a coupling interconnecting the second shaft and the actuator shaft for transmitting precise rotary motion therebetween, the coupling having high torsional rigidity and low axial rigidity. The assembly still further has a coupling housing surrounding the coupling, the second shaft bearing end, and the actuator shaft engagement end, and having an actuator shaft aperture through which the actuator shaft extends, and a seal disposed between the actuator shaft engagement end and the housing for preventing air flow past the actuator shaft through the actuator shaft aperture.

This invention relates to air valve assemblies usable in gas turbine engines. Specifically, this invention relates to air valve assemblies utilized in premixers of the type having a rotatable-type air valve actuated by a shaft penetrating a pressure housing.
It is known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,377,483, for example, to utilize fuel/air premixers to provide a closely controlled fuel/air mixture in single stage combustors for gas turbine engines. The close control afforded by such combustor premixer systems results in controlled combustion temperatures and low levels of NOx, CO, and unburnt hydrocarbon emissions, as well as low losses due to the overall control of the compressed air inventory.
It is also known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,377,483 that the close control of the fuel/air ratio can be advantageously achieved through the use of an air valve. Preferably, the air valve should be located in the relatively "cool" part of the combustor system outside of the combustion chamber liner. This location for the premixer and the resident air valve can minimize or mitigate problems associated with differential thermal expansion and temperature-related stress and fatigue problems traditionally associated with a valve-type apparatus mounted directly on or within the combustion chamber liner.
However, the temperatures at the "cool" location of such premixers can still be elevated as a consequence of an adiabatic temperature rise of the compressed air being controlled, which can range to upwards of 600.degree. C. Problems can still exist, therefore, in terms of the construction and operation of movable valve elements such as butterfly-type valve plates and their associated actuating shafts. Moreover, if the actuating shaft requires penetration of the main pressure vessel housing for the engine, adequate sealing must be provided to prevent the leakage of hot compressed air through the penetration past the shaft, both from a thermal efficiency standpoint and also for safety purposes. Still further, the actuator shaft arrangement must be capable of delivering precise angular control to the valve plate in order to achieve the desired close control of the fuel/air ratio of the mixture.

Air valve assembly including split-shaft and seal arrangement


A system for providing accurate, quantifiable and reproducible assessments of an organization's performance based on predetermined criteria. The system includes a telecommunications infrastructure administered by a survey administrator. Employees or non-employees of a company or other organization to be evaluated log on to the system and answer a plurality of questions relating to various aspects of the business entity's operations. The information may be obtained through Internet communications or through touch-tone telephone systems. The data is stored in a database and subsequently analyzed by the survey administrator for evaluation and forecasting of the business entity's performance.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a survey system and apparatus for evaluating the results. More particularly, it relates to a remotely accessible system for the collection of employee or non-employee survey responses to quantify various criteria relating to the operation of an organization.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In an increasingly competitive marketplace, business entities strive to improve leadership, quality, customer satisfaction and other criteria that directly or indirectly relate to the ultimate profitability of the enterprise. Empirical evidence has established that business operations that excel in distinct and measurable attributes are far more likely to be profitable in commerce. As an example, the "Baldrige Index" is made up of publicly traded U.S. companies that have received the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award during the years 1988 to 1996. The Secretary of Commerce and the National Institute of Standards and Technology ("NIST") were given the responsibility, under Public Law 100-107, to develop and administer the Award with cooperation and financial support from the private sector. NIST "invested" a hypothetical $1,000 in each of the six whole company winners of the Baldrige Award. The investments were tracked from the first business day of the month following the announcement of award recipients (or the date they began public trading) to Dec. 1, 1997. Adjustments were made for stock splits. Another $1,000 was hypothetically invested in the Standard and Poor's Index 500 ("S&P") at the same time. NIST found that the group of six outperformed the S&P 500 by more than 2.7 to 1, achieving a 394.5 percent return on investment compared to a 146.9 percent return for the S&P 500. Therefore, it is desirable for an organization to administer periodic assessments of its operations.
The detailed assessment of a business operation is often a difficult, expensive, and time-consuming task. Typically, upper level management may knowingly or inadvertently affect the accurate measure of information gathered for the assessment. Outside consultants are often employed to interview and observe the operation of the enterprise on-site. However, management may wish to influence the data for a number of reasons. Upper level management may be greatly affected by the results of the evaluation and may attempt to direct the outside consultant only to well performing operations, shielding problem areas from discovery. In addition, the outside consultant may interview subordinate employees in the presence of their supervisor. This creates a poor environment for gaining candor from the subordinate employee on potential areas of improvement that are the responsibility of the supervisor.
An evaluation by an outside consultant may require the consultant to travel to different geographical locations to assess a large operation with continuity. The consultant may also require the employee to stop productive work to allow time for the assessment interview. It is time-consuming for an independent consultant to conduct individual employee interviews, record the data, and assemble the information into a useful form. Furthermore, should a business wish to conduct periodic evaluations, there is no guarantee that the same consultant will be available. Therefore, the company cannot be assured that the next independent assessment performed will have the same consistency. Nor is there any assurance that secondary evaluations will produce meaningful results comparable to previous exercises.
Should the company attempt to apply known economic principles to an "in-house" self-assessment, there is the potential that more harm than good may come from the endeavor. Many organizations begin the process of self-assessment with a shallow understanding of the performance criteria sought or the optimal method in which to gather the information. This self-assessment suffers from an inseparable relationship between the company's own evaluator and the upper management that may exert influence, not only on the examinees, but also on the examiner.
Previous attempts have been made to provide business-related surveys such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,551,880 to Bonnstetter et al. (the '880 patent) which is incorporated herein by reference. The '880 patent describes a system for predicting the potential success of an individual for a particular job or task. A survey is conducted wherein the employee or potential employee submits information on behavioral and value preferences. The information is then analyzed and compared against standards for behavior and values previously resolved for specific employment. In a preferred embodiment of the '880 patent, the behavior and value questions are administered through software and evaluated via a predetermined algorithm. However, the system analyzes the individual employee and not the business entity as a whole. Nor does the '880 patent describe an independent party to administer the survey to ensure confidentially, honesty, and a full disclosure of the employee's perceptions of the business entity.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for a method and apparatus to provide a reliable self-assessment survey process that can be easily administered and scored with the accuracy and completeness of a well developed written narrative self-assessment.
There is a further need in the art to integrate existing telecommunication technologies to avoid the time and labor intensive ordeal of the paper and pencil process or other traditional means of survey administration. This would allow the database of both individual responses and cumulative data to be completely external to the organization being assessed.
There is a further need in the art to provide confidentiality to organizations and their employees participating in the survey. This provides a distinct opportunity to benchmark the data to industry peers and to provide the objective assurance that all data is accurate and verifiable by a reliable survey administrator organization.
However, in view of the prior art in at the time the present invention was made, it was not obvious to those of ordinary skill in the pertinent art how the identified needs could be fulfilled.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Anonymous respondent method for evaluating business performance


A system and method is provided for determining a probability that a member of a health plan has a disease or condition within one or more disease categories, by using data from the member's pharmacy claims. Logistic regression models are generated for each condition category using therapeutic drug categories, provider information, and/or other variables including member demographic information.

For the past few decades, the predominant model of healthcare management used by most health care plans in the managed care industry has been one that focuses primarily on approving or denying coverage for medical procedures based upon specially developed criteria. This system has been subject to some criticism from doctors who feel that their treatment decisions should not be questioned, and from patients who feel that their health care plan places undue emphasis on financial consequences at the expense of sound medical care. Further, the current model employed by health care plans fails to place the appropriate amount of emphasis on providing proactive care for plan members.
Studies have shown that an emphasis on proactive care can improve a health care plan member's overall health and well-being. Proactive care can also reduce the overall expense to a health care plan by replacing expensive medical procedures and treatments with less expensive proactive care activities. One technique for identifying plan members having a need for proactive care services is through the use of a predictive model for health care utilization. An exemplary system for predicting health care utilization is disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/635,911, entitled "System and Method for Modeling of Health Care Utilization," by Gerald L. Lutgen et al., filed Aug. 10, 2000, now issued U.S. Pat. No. 7,44,291 on Oct. 28, 2008, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Another example of such a system uses a predictive model in combination with an identification of a factor influencing a plan member's amenability to proactive care intervention. Such a system is disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/733,215, entitled "Method for High-Risk Member Identification," by Badri N. Prasad et al., filed Dec. 8, 2000, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,640,175 on Dec. 29, 2009, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Furthermore, the techniques described above, for predicting utilization of health care resources and identifying plan members in need of proactive care services, can also be used by a health care plan or by a plan administrator to manage costs by adjusting premiums and predicting future needs of the member population.
When a member of a health care plan receives care from health care providers, information regarding the care received is provided to plan administrators in documents commonly referred to as claims. Predominantly, this information is provided in the following three types of claims: physician claims, facility claims, and pharmacy claims. These claims are the documents that are submitted to the health care plan by physicians, hospitals, and pharmacies to receive reimbursement for care provided to the plan member. These documents generally contain coded data that provides information regarding the care received by the plan member. These claims are processed by the health care plan, and where appropriate, payment is transmitted to the health care provider.
Analysis and identification of plan members amenable to proactive care intervention are performed using data from these claims. Typically data from all three claims is used in the analysis. Occasionally, a plan data administrator has access to only the pharmacy claims for the plan members. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a method of performing modeling and analysis of plan members using only the data from pharmacy claims.
For purposes of this specification, the phrase "physician claim" is used to refer to any professional service claim submitted to a health plan (typically recorded on an HCFA-1500 form or its equivalent), and the phrase "facility claim" is used to refer to any facility claim (typically recorded on a UB92 form). The phrase "medical claim" is used to refer to both physician claims and facility claims. Finally, the phrase "pharmacy claim" is used to refer to any claim submitted by a pharmacy or durable medical goods provider. Medical claims generally include codes for diagnoses and procedures relating to the plan member. The reason for the visit is typically represented by an International Classification of Diseases ("ICD") code, currently in its ninth revision and thus commonly referred to as "ICD-9." The description of the service provided in a medical claim typically takes one of three formats, an ICD-9 procedure code, a Common Procedural Terminology ("CPT") code (promulgated by the American Medical Association), or a Health Care Procedural Code ("HCPC") (promulgated by the Health Care Financing Administration).
The following materials serve as background for the present application and provide further information on some of the classification systems discussed: Physician's Current Procedural Terminology, CPT 2003, specified by the American Medical Association; HCPCS 2003 Medicare's National Level II Codes, specified by CMS; Med-Index ICD9-CM Ninth Revision, specified by the World Health Organization ("WHO"), each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

System for determining a disease category probability for a healthcare plan member


The present invention is directed to a novel process for the preparation of compounds having inhibitory activity against sodium-dependent glucose transporter (SGLT) being present in the intestine or kidney.

Diet therapy and exercise therapy are essential in the treatment of diabetes mellitus. When these therapies do not sufficiently control the conditions of patients, insulin or an oral antidiabetic agent is additionally used for the treatment of diabetes. At the present, there have been used as an antidiabetic agent biguanide compounds, sulfonylurea compounds, insulin resistance improving agents and α-glucosidase inhibitors. However, these antidiabetic agents have various side effects. For example, biguanide compounds cause lactic acidosis, sulfonylurea compounds cause significant hypoglycemia, insulin resistance improving agents cause edema and heart failure, and α-glucosidase inhibitors cause abdominal bloating and diarrhea. Under such circumstances, it has been desired to develop novel drugs for treatment of diabetes mellitus having no such side effects.
Recently, it has been reported that hyperglycemia participates in the onset and progressive impairment of diabetes mellitus, i.e., glucose toxicity theory. Namely, chronic hyperglycemia leads to decrease of insulin secretion and further to decrease of insulin sensitivity, and as a result, the blood glucose concentration is increased so that diabetes mellitus is self-exacerbated (Unger, R. H., et al., "Hyperglycemia as an Inducer as well as a Consequence of Impaired Islet Cell Function and Insulin Resistance: Implications for the Management of Diabetes", Diabetologia, vol. 28, issue 3, pp. 119-121 (1985); Rossetti, L. et al., "Glucose Toxicity", Diabetes Care, vol. 13, issue 6, pp. 610-630 (1990)). Therefore, by treating hyperglycemia, the aforementioned self-exacerbating cycle is interrupted so that the prophylaxis or treatment of diabetes mellitus is made possible.
As one of the methods for treating hyperglycemia, it is considered to excrete an excess amount of glucose directly into urine so that the blood glucose concentration is normalized. For example, by inhibiting sodium-dependent glucose transporter being present at the proximal convoluted tubule of kidney, the re-absorption of glucose at the kidney is inhibited, by which the excretion of glucose into urine is promoted so that the blood glucose level is decreased. In fact, it is confirmed that by continuous subcutaneous administration of phlorizin having SGLT inhibitory activity to diabetic animal models, hyperglycemia is normalized and the blood glucose level thereof can be kept normal for a long time so that the insulin secretion and insulin resistance are improved (Rossetti, L., et al., "Correction of Hyperglycemia with Phlorizin Normalizes Tissue sensitivity to Insulin in Diabetic Rats", Journal of Clinical Investigation, (1987), vol. 79, issue 5, pp. 1510-1515; Rossetti, L., et al., "Effect of Chronic Hyperglycemia on in vivo Insulin Secretion in Partially Pancreatectomized Rats", Journal of Clinical Investigation, (1987), vol. 80, issue 4, pp. 1037-1044; Kahn, B. B., et al., "Normalization of blood glucose in diabetic rats with phlorizin treatment reverses insulin-resistant glucose transport in adipose cells without restoring glucose transporter gene expression", J. Clin. Invest., 1991, vol. 87, pp 561-570).
In addition, by treating diabetic animal models with SGLT inhibitory agents for a long time, insulin secretion response and insulin sensitivity of the animals are improved without incurring any adverse affects on the kidney or imbalance in blood levels of electrolytes, and as a result, the onset and progress of diabetic nephropathy and diabetic neuropathy are prevented (Kenji T., et al., "Na+-Glucose Co-transporter (SGLT) Inhibitors as Antidiabetic Agents. 4. Synthesis and Pharmacological Properties of 4′-Dehydroxyphlorizin Derivatives Substituted on the B Ring", J. Med. Chem., (1999), Vol. 42, pp. 5311-5324); Kenji A., et al., "Improved diabetic syndrome in C57BL/KsJ-db/db mice by oral administration of the Na+-glucose cotransporter inhibitor T-1095", British Journal of Pharmacology, (2001), vol. 132, issue 2, pp. 578-586; Ueta, K., et al., "Long Term Treatment with the Na+ Glucose Co-transporter Inhibitor T-1095 causes Sustained Improvement in Hyperglycemia and Prevents Diabetic Neuropathy in Goto-Kakizaki Rats", Life Sci., (2005), vol. 76, issue 23, pp. 2655-2668)
From the above, SGLT inhibitors may be expected to improve insulin secretion and insulin resistance by decreasing the blood glucose level in diabetic patients and further prevent the onset and progress of diabetes mellitus and diabetic complications.

Process for the preparation of compounds useful as inhibitors of SGLT2


A piezoelectric thin-film resonator includes a substrate, a lower electrode arranged on the substrate, a piezoelectric film arranged on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode arranged on the piezoelectric film. A region in which the upper electrode overlaps with the lower electrode through the piezoelectric film has an elliptical shape, and a condition such that 1<a/b<1.9 is satisfied where a is a main axis of the elliptical shape, and b is a sub axis thereof.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to piezoelectric thin-film resonator and a filter using the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Wireless devices as represented by mobile telephones have spread rapidly, and there has been an increasing demand for a downsized and lightweight resonator and a filter equipped with the same. A dielectric substance and a surface acoustic wave have been used extensively so far; however, the piezoelectric thin-film resonator and the filter equipped with the same have excellent high frequency characteristics, can be downsized, and can be incorporated into a monolithic circuit. Therefore, the piezoelectric thin-film resonator and the filter using the same are attracting attention.
The piezoelectric thin-film resonator may be categorized into FBAR (Film Bulk Acoustic Resonator) type and SMR (Solidly Mounted Resonator) type. The FBAR type includes main components on a substrate from the top, namely, an upper electrode, a piezoelectric film, and a lower electrode. There is a cavity below the lower electrode that is overlapped with the upper electrode through the piezoelectric film. The cavity is defined by wet etching a sacrifice layer on the surface of the silicon substrate, wet or dry etching from the backside of the silicon substrate, or the like. In the present description, a membrane is defined as a film-laminated structure that is located above the cavity and a main component composed of the lower electrode, the piezoelectric film and the upper electrode. The SMR type employs an acoustic reflector instead of the cavity, the acoustic reflector being composed of films having high and low acoustic impedances alternately laminated with a film thickness of λ/4 where λ is a wavelength of an elastic wave. When a high-frequency electric signal is applied across the upper electrode and the lower electrode, an elastic wave is excited inside the piezoelectric film sandwiched between the upper electrode and the lower electrode, due to the inverse piezoelectric effect. Meanwhile, a distortion generated by the elastic wave is converted into an electric signal due to piezoelectric effect. The elastic wave is totally reflected by the surfaces of the upper and lower electrodes that respectively interface with air, and it is thus converted into a thickness-extensional wave having a main displacement in the thickness direction. In the above-mentioned structure, a resonance occurs at frequencies at which the total thickness H of the membrane is equal to integer multiples (n times) of half the wavelength of the elastic wave. When the propagation velocity, which depends on materials, is denoted as V, the resonance frequency F is described as F=nV/2H. The resonator and the filter having desired frequency characteristics can be produced by utilizing the resonance and controlling the resonance frequency with the film thickness.
Materials for the electrodes may, for example, be aluminum (Al), copper (Cu), molybdic (Mo), tungsten (W), tantalum (Ta), platinum (Pt), rhodium (Ru), or iridium (Ir). Materials for piezoelectric films may, for example, be aluminum nitride (AlN), zinc oxide (ZnO), lead zirconate titanate (PZT), or lead titanate (PbTiO3). The substrate may be made of silicon, glass, or the like.
However, in addition to the thickness-extensional wave, the above-mentioned piezoelectric thin-film resonator has undesired waves of the lateral mode that are propagated in parallel with the electrode surface, and are reflected by the interfaces or an edge of the cavity. This adversely generates an unnecessary spurious component in the impedance characteristics of the resonator, or a ripple in the passband of the filter. This causes a problem in an application. In order to suppress such adverse affects caused by the lateral mode wave, U.S. Pat. No. 6,150,703 (hereinafter referred to as Document 1) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,215,375 (hereinafter referred to as Document 2) disclose piezoelectric thin-film resonators having electrodes including non-square and irregular polygons in which any two sides are not parallel. In the proposed piezoelectric thin-film resonators, the lateral mode waves reflected by any points are reflected and travel in different directions from the previous directions. Thus, the lateral mode waves do not resonate, so that the above-mentioned problem can be solved effectively. In addition, in order to solve a similar problem, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-133892 (hereinafter referred to as Document 3) discloses a piezoelectric thin-film resonator having an upper electrode of elliptical shape. The upper electrode satisfies 1.9<a/b<5.0, where a is the main axis of the elliptical shape, and b is the sub axis thereof.
The structures and configurations of Documents 1, 2 and 3 are certainly effective in solving the above-mentioned problems. However, the proposed structures and configurations degrade the strength of the membrane or the productivity of the cavity to the contrary. This will be described below. The thickness of the membrane, which depends on the sound speed of the material, is as very thin as approximately 0.5 to 3 μm in a wireless system having a frequency range of 900 MHz to 5 GHz. An unexpected external force easily damages the membrane, and it is thus important to consider the technique to improve the strength.
One solution is to reduce the damage of the membrane caused by internal stress by reducing the internal stress of each film at the time of forming the film. However, the inventors' study shows that piezoelectricity is improved when compression stress is exerted on the piezoelectric film, and a resonance characteristic having a large electromechanical coupling coefficient (K2) is obtainable. From this viewpoint, the membrane having compression stress is very effective if a technique to achieve a desired strength of the membrane is available. One of the effective methods is to design the membrane so that stress is evenly applied to the membrane or the membrane is not damaged easily by the same internal stress. Unfortunately, any one of Documents 1, 2, and 3 has a structurally unbalanced symmetry, and the force applied to the membrane is not equal. Thus, the membrane is easily distorted and damaged. This results in a serious problem that resonance characteristics and filter characteristics show large irregularity.
Preferably, the cavity has the same shape as that of the region in which the upper electrode overlaps with the lower electrode, and has a similar size to that of the region. If the size of the cavity is much bigger than that of the overlapping region, the membrane will be easily damaged. Thus, it is not recommended. In addition, the productivity of the cavities disclosed in Documents 1 through 3 is not good. The cavities described in Documents 1 and 2 have corners. The cavity described in Document 3 has an elliptical shape with a ratio a/b as large as 1.9<a/b<5.0 where the length of the main axis is denoted as a and that of the sub axis is denoted as b. That is, the desired shape of the cavity is not obtainable because the etching velocity is low at the corners of the cavity. The lower electrode disclosed in Document 3 has a considerably large size, as compared to that of the upper electrode. This results in stray capacitance between the overlapping extensions of the upper electrode and the lower electrode, and degrades the electromechanical coupling coefficient (K2).

Piezoelectric thin-film resonator and filter using the same


A device for stabilizing an elongated steel sheet when continuously transporting the steel sheet in a transport direction along a predetermined transport path. The device includes at least a first pair, a second pair and a third pair of electromagnets with at least one electromagnet on each side of the steel sheet. The electromagnets are adapted to stabilize the steel sheet with respect to the predetermined transport path. The first and second electromagnets are elongated in a direction essentially perpendicular to the transport direction. The first and second electromagnets are substantially arranged on each side of a longitudinal center line for the steel sheet. The center line is essentially parallel to the transport direction. The third electromagnet is arranged adjacent to the center line.

During continuous galvanization of a metal sheet, for example a steel sheet, the steel sheet continuously passes through a bath that contains molten metal, usually zinc. In the bath, the sheet usually passes below an immersed roller and then moves upwards through stabilizing and correcting rollers. The sheet leaves the bath and is conveyed through a set of gas-knives, which blow away superfluous zinc from the sheet and back to the bath to control the thickness of the coating. The gas that is blown out with the knives is usually air or nitrogen, but also steam or inert gas may be used. The sheet is then conveyed without support until the coating has been cooled down and solidified. The coated steel sheet is then led or directed via an upper roller for continued treatment of the steel sheet such as, for example, cutting of the sheet into separate sheet elements or for winding the sheet onto a roller. Normally, the sheet moves in a vertical direction away from the roller immersed into the bath through the correcting and stabilizing rollers and the gas-knives to the upper roller.
When steel sheet is galvanized, an even and thin thickness of the coating is aimed at. One common method is to measure the mass of the coating after the sheet has passed through the upper roller. This reading is utilized for controlling the gas-knives and hence controlling the thickness of the coating. The gas-knives are usually arranged suspended from a beam that is movably arranged in the vertical direction and in a direction towards the sheet. The gas-knives may also be angled such that the angle at which the gas hits the coating on the sheet may be changed. Due to the geometry of the steel sheet, the length the sheet has to run without support, its speed and the blowing effect of the gas-knives, however, the steel sheet will move or vibrate in a direction that is essentially perpendicular to its direction of transport. Certain measures, such as the use of correcting and stabilizing rollers, a precise control of the gas flow from the gas-knives, and an adjustment of the speed of the steel sheet and/or an adjustment of the distance over which the sheet has to run without support, may be taken for the purpose of reducing these transversal movements. If they are not reduced, these transversal movements will considerably disturb the exact wiping of the gas-knives, which results in an uneven thickness of the coating.
In the Japanese publication with publication number JP 09-202955, it is shown how the vibrations in a metallic sheet are reduced with the aid of rolls that stabilize and tension the sheet after having passed through the gas-knives. The position of the sheet in relation to its direction of transport in a plane is measured with a sensor, from where information is passed on to a computer that carries out a vibration analysis based on the values obtained and, together with information about the speed of the sheet, calculates the optimum tensioning of the sheet to control the vibrations in the sheet.
It is also known from, inter alia, U.S. Pat. No. 6,471,153 and JP 8010847 A to arrange, in a device for galvanizing a steel sheet, a plurality of electromagnets along the width of the sheet, which generate magnetic forces acting perpendicular to the sheet in order to damp vibrations in the sheet. A sensor measures the distance between the steel sheet and the electromagnet and a control device controls the flow of a current through the electromagnet from the distance measured by the sensor. In case of narrow widths of the sheet, the electromagnets which end up outside the edges of the sheet are shut off as the value measured by the sensors becomes incorrect since, when the electromagnets end up outside the edges of the sheet, there is no sheet between the magnets. This further means that the control Systems for this type of solution will be unnecessarily expensive and complicated. Using many magnets, as described in the above-mentioned documents, also entails increased costs, increased system complexity and a risk of introducing new unwanted oscillations.
There is a need of a cost-effective device and method for stabilizing a steel sheet, wherein the device may be used for several different widths of steel sheet without having to control certain electromagnets when the sheet width is changed.

Device and a method for stabilizing a steel sheet


A system for the treatment of a foot includes a waterproof boot capable of receiving an insert with a plurality of nozzles and a dispensing ring. The insert can receive a human foot to be treated therein. The plurality of nozzles and dispensing ring are each in fluid communication with a pump, when energized, delivers a continuous flow of a fluid therethrough. In a preferred embodiment, the fluid is a medicinal, toxin extracting fluid.

Many people have found that relaxation is greatly enhanced by a personal massage. While these massages can be virtually applied anywhere on the human body, an area that is often massaged is the foot area. It seems that direct and firm massage here is most likely to reduce muscle aches and pains and possible even reduce stress and strain. If nothing else, it just feels good.
While many people massage their feet immediately after removing their shoes, it is usually only for a limited time, and thus the beneficial results are short-lived. While large-scale massaging devices to exist, they are not specifically designed for the foot area, and cannot be used while performing other activities. Accordingly, there exists a need for a means by which one's feet can be massaged in a soothing and relaxing manner, while not encumbering the user from performing other activities. The development of the Acupressure Footwear fulfills this need.