Esterified polyoxyalkylene block copolymers are useful as reduced calorie fat substitutes in food compositions due to their resistance to enzymatic hydrolysis and absorption upon ingestion. The fat mimetics contain hydrophilic polyoxyalkylene inner blocks which tend to promote thickening or gelling of the composition when mixed with a minor amount of water, thereby lessening problems with anal leakage and short bowel transit times.

The accumulation of medical evidence in recent years regarding the adverse health implications of high fat diets, principally heart attacks, arteriosclerosis and obesity, has caused consumers to become extremely concerned about their diets. It is estimated that between 70-80% of U.S. adult females follow a weight reducing diet at least once a year. Men are also concerned about their weight and cholesterol levels.
Common obesity is currently one of the most prevalent metabolic problems in the general population. Fats and oils are necessary for balanced nutrition. However, the average consumer simply consumes more than is needed for proper nutrition. It is estimated that lipids constitute about 40% of the total calories in the typical western diet. Fats are consumed directly in meats, spreads, salad oils, and in natural produce such as nuts and avocados. Fats and oils are also consumed as a result of absorption or incorporation in foods during baking and frying. The sharp increase in consumption of fast foods is a major contributor to the increase in the amount of dietary fat since fast foods rely extensively on frying processes employing fats and oils. In addition, the snack food industry uses large amounts of fats and oils in the production of potato chips, corn chips and other snack items.
It is clear that there is an enormous potential market for a fat substitute or fat mimetic that is substantially non-digestible or has reduced caloric value. Replacement of fats in the diet with non-caloric substitutes is a more efficient way of reducing caloric intake than replacing sugar or carbohydrates because, gram for gram, the substitution of non-caloric fat substitutes is more than twice as effective as reducing carbohydrate content with substances such as saccharine or aspartame.
One of the difficulties in eliminating fat from the diet is the fact that fats and oils are all-pervasive in food products. In part, this is because they play an important role in the organoleptic acceptability of food products. Generally speaking, a fat substitute providing fewer calories than a conventional triglyceride must be non-digestible, that is, not hydrolyzed in the digestive tract. In addition, it should not be directly absorbed through the intestinal wall. While some types of fat substitutes may be non-digestible, they are not of sufficiently high molecular weight to prevent them from being absorbed through the intestinal wall. The threshold molecular weight of non-absorbability for lipophilic molecules appears to be about 600.
In addition, the fat substitute must itself be non-toxic at high levels of ingestion. It must contain no toxic residues or impurities. To the extent that a fat substitute may be partially hydrolyzed in the digestive tract, any hydrolysis products must be non-toxic and/or metabolizable. If metabolizable, they should have very low caloric value. In general, fat substitutes must be without any serious physiological side effects.
The fat substitutes must also have good organoleptic qualities of mouth feel and must not unacceptably alter the taste of a food composition. In addition, fat substitutes must have appropriate physical properties for use in food compositions. For example, they should be liquids or solids depending on whether they are to be used as oil or shortening substitutes and, where used for cooking, must be thermally stable.
A prominent disadvantage of certain of the non-digestible or non-absorbable fat substitutes which have been developed to date is the tendency for such substances to promote an undesired laxative effect when ingested at relatively high levels in the diet. Since these fat substitutes are not altered by or removed from the gastrointestinal tract, they remain in an oil-like physical state and thus tend to promote anal leakage or short bowel transit times due to their lubricant properties and general immiscibility with the aqueous components of the diet. This problem has been addressed in the past by using "anti-anal leakage agents" in combination with the fat substitute. Such anti-anal leakage agents (e.g., silica, cellulose fiber) may undesirably alter the mouth feel and organoleptic properties of the food composition, however.
It is apparent, therefore, that there is a need for an improved low calorie edible oil substitute that has the properties of a triglyceride oil when formulated into food compositions but which is altered upon ingestion to a less "oil-like" physical state and which does not need to be used in conjunction with an anti-anal leakage agent. A fat substitute having these characteristics would likely enjoy greater consumer acceptance than many of the currently known mimetics.

Esterified polyoxyalkylene block copolymers as reduced calorie fat substitutes


A disk drive includes a drive circuitry, a storage disk and a slider having a slider body. The storage disk has a data surface, and the slider magnetically interacts with the storage disk to transmit a signal between the storage disk and the drive circuitry. The slider includes a leading surface, an opposed trailing surface, a data transducer positioned near the trailing surface, and a piezoelectric element. The piezoelectric element receives a driving voltage from the drive circuitry to adjust a distance between the data transducer and the data surface. The slider includes a piezoelectric element supporter having a modulus of elasticity of less than that of the slider body and/or the piezoelectric element. In one embodiment, the piezoelectric element supporter is positioned between the slider body and the piezoelectric element and/or the data transducer. Further, in this embodiment, the piezoelectric element may or may not have one or more exposed surfaces.

Disk drives are widely used in computers, consumer electronics and data processing systems for storing information in digital form. The disk drive typically includes one or more storage disks and one or more head gimbal assemblies. Each head gimbal assembly includes a slider having an air bearing surface, and a data transducer that transfers information to and from the storage disk. The rotation of the storage disk causes the slider to ride on an air bearing so that the data transducer is at a distance from the storage disk that is referred to as a "head-to-disk spacing".
Because today's disk drives utilize storage disks having increasingly high densities of data tracks, decreasing the head-to-disk spacing has become of great importance. However, this desire for a very small head-to-disk spacing must be balanced with tribological concerns in order to avoid damage to the data transducer and/or the storage disk, as well as loss of data. Thus, the range between head-to-disk contact and a desirable head-to-disk spacing has become extremely small, requiring an increasingly more accurate control system.
During in-situ usage of the disk drive, the temperature of the slider typically varies. For example, during a write operation, the electrical resistance of the write element generates heat in and around the data transducer, resulting in thermal expansion of the write pole tips toward the storage disk. The situation is commonly referred to a write pole tip protrusion ("WPTP"). If the WPTP is too extensive, the slider can unintentionally contact the storage disk (head-to-disk contact), causing off-track writing, damage to the slider or damage to the storage disk. Conversely, during read operations, the temperature of the slider can be somewhat lower, resulting in less thermal expansion and a greater head-to-disk spacing. Under this circumstance, reading errors can occur due to the increased head-to-disk spacing.

Slider that dynamically adjusts the head-to-disk spacing in a disk drive


A process for producing an olefin polymer with high polymerization activity without using an expensive co-catalyst or using a limited amount of the co-catalyst, more particularly a process for producing a high molecular weight (co)polymer with high polymerization activity even at a high polymerization temperature which is more practical.

Metallocene Catalyst and Process for Producing Olefin Polymer
Since Kaminski, Sinn, et al. discovered that a polymerization catalyst comprising a metallocene compound having a ligand having two cyclopentadienyl ring structures and a methylalumoxane synthesized from trimethylaluminum and water, is capable of polymerizing ethylene with high activity (Angew, Chem., Int. Ed. Engl., 19, 390 (1980)), olefin polymerization by means of a so-called single-site polymerization catalyst has been actively researched and practically used.
Particularly, olefin polymerization catalysts constituted by transition metal compounds activated by a cocatalyst comprising a methylalumoxane or a boron compound, have been widely used as catalysts for producing polyolefins. Among them, polymerization catalysts containing a metallocene compound having a structure in which two ligands are crosslinked by carbon or silicon, are known particularly as catalysts for producing LLDPE, or isotactic or syndiotactic polypropylenes.
However, they have a problem that the methylalumoxane or the boron compound to be used as a cocatalyst, is expensive.
JP-A-3-197513 discloses a polymerization catalyst constituted by an alkyl aluminum and a certain specific transition metal compound (a metallocene compound) without using the methyl alumoxane or the boron compound as a cocatalyst. However, with the transition metal compound employed, the activity is low, and the molecular weight of the obtainable polymer is low, whereby it is still poor in practical applicability. Even if it is attempted to improve the activity at a higher polymerization temperature, it is considered that at a polymerization temperature condition higher than the polymerization temperature of 50° C. specifically disclosed, the molecular weight tends to decrease, such being poor in practical applicability.
Further, JP-A-7-62012 discloses a method for polymerization under such a condition that the aluminum/transition metal ratio of a transition metal compound and an alkyl aluminum compound is from 1 to 500 by molar ratio calculated as atoms. However, by such a ratio and with such a transition metal compound employed, it is considered that the activity is low, and such is poor in practical applicability. Further, with the transition metal compound employed, even if it is attempted to improve the activity at a higher polymerization temperature, it is considered that at a polymerization temperature condition higher than the polymerization temperature specifically disclosed, the molecular weight tends to be low, such being poor in practical applicability.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a process for producing an olefin polymer with higher polymerization activity without using an expensive co-catalyst or using such a cocatalyst within a limited range, more particularly a process for producing a high molecular weight (co)polymer with high polymerization activity even at a high polymerization temperature which is more practical.

Abstract: At least one olefin is polymerized by means of a polymerization catalyst comprising at least one transition metal compound selected from transition metal compounds which have a substituted indenyl group, represented by a certain specific chemical formula, and an organoaluminum compound represented by the formula Al(R)3.


An intake system has an intake pipe, a passage member which is inserted into a peripheral wall of the intake pipe in a radial direction to form an intake passage passing across a front end and a rear end thereof in a direction of insertion along with the intake pipe, a seal member which is arranged at a seam between the peripheral wall of the intake pipe and the passage member and seals the seam, and an elastic member which is made of the same material as that of the seal member and is interposed between the peripheral wall of the intake pipe and the front end of the passage member so as to be capable of giving the front end of the passage member an elastic reaction force in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the direction of insertion.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an intake system of an internal combustion engine, hereinafter referred to as an engine.
2. Description of the Related Art
In conventionally known intake systems, a passage member for forming the intake passage along with an intake pipe is inserted into a peripheral wall of the intake pipe in the radial direction for assembly. Among examples of the passage member is a throttle body which supports a throttle valve for opening and closing the intake passage.
In an intake system disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 10-103089 (1998), the passage member or throttle body is inserted through an insertion opening formed in the peripheral wall of the intake pipe, and the rear end of the throttle body in the direction of insertion is undetachably fixed to a part of the peripheral wall near the insertion opening. Furthermore, the front end of the throttle body in the direction of insertion is fastened to the peripheral wall by screws. The throttle body might vibrate in directions perpendicular to the axis of the direction of insertion due to collision of the intake air flowing through the intake passage, whereas the unstable front end of the throttle body is securely screwed to suppress the vibrations. The suppression of the vibrations of the throttle body prevents a seal member arranged at the seam between the peripheral wall of the intake pipe and the throttle body from wearing.
When the front end of the throttle body in the direction of insertion is fastened to the peripheral wall of the intake pipe by the screws, however, the screwing of the screw members causes a plastic deformation of the throttle body with a drop in the dimensional accuracy of the bore and the like. In addition, the screw fastening increases the parts count and complicates the assembling operation with an inevitable increase in cost.


A system for use in an interactive gaming console system wherein the gaming console system uses a sensor monitor to detect player actions, wherein either the sensor monitor's motion and proximity sensors or dedicated motion and proximity sensors detect whenever an object enters an exclusion zone, which is the area wherein the object is too close to the sensor monitor. If an object is detected within the exclusion zone, then the game being played by the gaming system is paused at the point of played and resumed after a set or settable time delay or after a manual resume command is issued by user in the usual way. A warning zone can also be defined just beyond the exclusion zone so that a warning signal of appropriate type can be issued to warn a player that the player is approaching the exclusion zone allowing the player to back away from the exclusion zone.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a software system modification, or a sensor monitor modification to an interactive gaming console, whereby the game console pauses its play of a game whenever an object is detected within an exclusion zone.
2. Background of the Prior Art
Modern gaming consoles that are connected to a television or other video output device rely on sensor monitors, which include sensor bars coupled with wireless handheld controllers or video cameras, for operation, have become extremely popular in the last few years. These gaming consoles, which include the Wii and the Wii U, made by Nintendo of Minami-ku Kyoto, Japan, the PlayStation 3 Move (and soon to be released PlayStation 4) made by Sony Corporation of Minato Tokyo, Japan, and the XBOX Kinect (and soon to be released XBOX One) made by Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash., allow players to play various games, including fight games, tennis, golf, baseball, race car driving, aerobics, to name a few, without being physically connected to either the game console or the video output device. While each system, and other game consoles vary dramatically in the underlying technologies employed, the basic principle under which these modern gaming consoles operate is the same.
A sensor monitor is positioned on or near the video output device, usually centered along the screen of the video output device, with the sensor monitor capturing the actions of the player or players using the gaming console. The sensor monitor captures the movements each player as well as distance of each player with respect to the sensor monitor. These and other data captures are transmitted by the sensor monitor to the gaming controller which is running the software routine of the game being play, with the data being integrated by the software into the game.
Each gaming system uses a different sensor monitor technology. For example, the Wii systems rely on a bank of infrared LEDs that issue infrared beams, which beams are picked up by the Wii remotes, which are held by the users of the gaming console. The infrared information then sent via Bluetooth to the gaming console, which then processes the information received to determine the position of the Wii remotes in relation to the beams being transmitted from the sensor. The PlayStation 3 Move sensor uses a digital camera and microphone array. The camera uses computer vision and gesture recognition that are used in conjunction with information captured by inertia detectors on the remotes held by the gaming console users to detect position and motion of the players. The XBOX connect uses a camera, depth sensor and voice detector to determine player position and movement.
Each of these sophisticated systems allows play of very dynamic game play across a wide range of game genres. Each sensor operates in a range of distances between the players and the sensor. For example, the Wii is essentially effective in a range between about 3 feet and about 8 feet between the remote and the sensor. A controller being used beyond this range is less effective until the sensor monitor can no longer "see" the remote, which is also true for a sensor that operates too close to the sensor. When the remotes are not within the proper working range away from the sensor monitor, the onscreen actions tend to become jerky or erratic and cause much frustration for the players, especially to players who are unaware that that they are outside the proper operating range or even that there is an operating range, especially when the players stray too close to the sensor monitor. Dissatisfaction with the gaming console tends to result from this jerky and erratic game play. The other gaming systems also have proper operating ranges similar in order of magnitude to the Wii systems.
One of the problems experienced by many users of modern gaming consoles is the proximity creep that many players unwittingly undertake during game play. As the players become increasingly involved with the game being played, especially a multiplayer competitive game, the players tend to move ever closer to the video screen upon which the game is being displayed, as well as toward each other. This inward creep causes problems. If a player is unaware of his or her ever closer proximity to the sensor monitor, and thus the video output device, the player may inadvertently strike the video screen, either directly or with the remote, if the gaming system uses handheld remotes. This can cause injury to the player as well as damage to the remote, to the video display, to the entertainment center upon which the video display rests, and other possible collateral damage (i.e., a 60 inch television toppled off of an entertainment center has much potential to damage surrounding items, such as another player, the wall, flooring, vases, the cat, etc.). If the player does not hit the video display or structure upon which the video display rests during inward creep, the player may instead hit another player, possibly resulting in jury to one or both players.
A similar problem during game play is that by Murphy's Law, whenever a player is deeply immersed in his or her game and is just about to face a pivotal foe, time a maneuver just right, or make the money shot, someone walks in front of the video display device, blocks the player's view, and ruins the opportunity for victory. Not only does this cause frustration to the player having missed his or her golden opportunity, but can lead to arguments and possibly off screen "game" play (i.e., fights).
The gaming console manufacturers advise in their instruction manuals about the proper range of operation between the players and the sensor monitor and warn, both in the instruction manual and with an onscreen message before each game about the dangers of getting too close to the video output device and to other players, but in the heat of the game, many players simply fail to heed this important advice.
Accordingly, what is needed is a system whereby players are prevented from creeping too close to the gaming console's sensor monitor, and thus the video output device upon which the game is being played, in order to avoid the pitfalls and dangers associated with such proximity creep. Such a system must be able to quickly detect the fact that one or more players are too close to the sensor monitor and immediately take action to cease the inward proximity creep, all without ruining the game being played.

System to pause a game console whenever an object enters an exclusion zone


A method for making continuous encapsulated linear lighting is disclosed. In this method, a PCB is placed within a channel, and the channel is dammed by one or more stoppers. The dammed segment is filled and then caused or allowed to cure. The stoppers are then removed from their initial positions and moved along the channel. If one runs out of channel before the desired length of linear lighting is achieved, a second piece of channel is abutted to the previous segment of channel, the PCB is laid into it, and a segment is dammed, filled, and cured. The process continues iteratively until the desired length is achieved or more channel is required. The PCB may initially be cut to the full desired length and applied to the channel piecewise as needed.

Linear lighting is a broad class of solid-state lighting in which an elongate, narrow printed circuit board (PCB) is populated with light-emitting elements. Usually, those light-emitting elements are light-emitting diode (LED) light engines spaced at a regular pitch along the PCB. However, organic LED (OLED) light-emitting elements and other types of light-emitting elements may be used. The PCB may be either flexible or rigid. When flexible PCB is used and an adhesive is added to its reverse, the product is referred to in the industry as tape light.
Combined with an appropriate power supply, a strip of linear lighting may serve as a finished luminaire in its own right, or it may be used as a raw material in the construction of more complex luminaires. In more complex luminaires, metal channels, reflectors, lenses, and any number of other elements may be added to control or direct the light emitted by the linear lighting.
One reason why a strip of linear lighting is often placed in a channel or provided with other structure is that strips of linear lighting can be easily damaged. In essence, a strip of linear lighting is a collection of microelectronic circuits on a PCB. Thus, it is susceptible to any number of issues, ranging from electrostatic discharge to fouling by foreign material. A common solution to these sorts of susceptibilities is to encapsulate the linear lighting in a polymeric covering.
There are several ways to encapsulate a strip of linear lighting. One such way is to extrude a polymeric jacket around a strip of linear lighting, and then use endcaps or other such structures with a sealant to seal the ends. Another way to produce an encapsulation is to pour a polymer resin over the strip of linear lighting and then allow the resin to cure. In some cases, this can be done by exposing the uncured polymer to energy, like ultraviolet light, that causes the polymer to cure, while in other cases, two-part polymer systems that include a base polymer and a catalyst are used. This second process, involving poured liquid resins, most often produces a solid encapsulation and is sometimes referred to as potting. Silicone and polyurethane resins are popular for both kinds of encapsulation.
Some manufacturers have begun to produce encapsulation machines specifically for encapsulating LED linear lighting. One example is the CV SMART line of machines from Demak Group (Torino, Italy). This line of encapsulation machines is adapted to dispense two-part polyurethanes and keeps the resin components under vacuum during storage and dispensing in order to eliminate the need to de-gas mixed resin. Some machines in this line are computer-controlled, with a movable dispensing head capable of, e.g., 2.5-degree-of-freedom programmed movement to dispense resin in metered quantities.
Because this kind of encapsulation process involves pouring resin onto or around a strip of linear lighting, rather than extruding a coating from a die, a typical encapsulation machine can only encapsulate a length of linear lighting equal to the size of its working bed. This means that encapsulation machines can be long. For example, a machine of this type may have a working bed with a length of 5 or 10 meters (16.4 or 32.8 ft). In some cases, the working bed may be shuttled into a curing oven of the same length, and more than one curing oven may be provided in order to increase throughput. The combination of a long working bed with one or more long curing ovens means that these machines can be of enormous length—in some cases, 15 meters (49 ft) or more.
However long an encapsulation machine may be, there will always be some cases in which it is desirable or necessary to make an encapsulated strip of linear lighting that is longer than the working bed of the machine. Unfortunately, there is no good process for making a continuous strip of linear lighting that is longer than the working bed or table of the machine.

Continuous encapsulated linear lighting produced in segments


The present invention relates to a case for a photomask to prevent generation of dust which might attach to and stain a photomask or the photomask pellicle. In a case for a photomask comprising a case main unit with an upper opening for accommodating the photomask and a lid for the opening of the case main unit, cushion materials are provided on the inner bottom of the case main unit and on the inner ceiling of the lid. The photomask is elastically squeezed between the cushion materials when accommodated. Thus, shaking and rattling during transportation are prevented to minimize the generation of dust. As the cushion material, a rubber material having a smooth surface on one side and a coarse surface on the other side is used.

The present invention relates to a case for accommodating and transporting a photomask or a substrate for a photomask (hereinafter simply referred to as "photomask") to be used in the photolithography process for the manufacture of semiconductor devices such as LSI, ultra LSI, etc.
In the past, a photomask was accommodated directly in a case or accommodated and transported in a case using a buffer material of a polyvinyl chloride bag inflated by gas or a polyvinyl chloride bag containing sponge. Further, the photomask accommodated in a case was pressed down by providing a cushion material such as sponge within the upper lid of the case. As such cushion material, a material containing a moisture-resistant substance such as silica gel has been used due to differences in rinsing method of photomask or in sealing property of the case.
However, when the photomask is accommodated directly in a case, there is a free space between the case and the photomask which permits shaking or rattling during movement, and accordingly dust is generated during transportation. As a result, the photomask or a pellicle membrane covering the photomask (hereinafter referred to as "photomask pellicle") is contaminated. When the photomask is accommodated in a case using a polyvinyl chloride bag inflated by gas or a polyvinyl chloride bag as a buffer material containing a material such as sponge, the bag may be broken by impact during transport or foreign objects may spread in the bag. Further, when the case is opened, the polyvinyl chloride bag may not be held integrally with the upper lid of the case and may fall onto the photomask which is exposed at the upper portion of the case. As a result, a flaw or stain may be caused on the surface of the photomask or the photomask pellicle because of an inadequate seal between the upper lid and the polyvinyl chloride bag.
Also, when a cushion material such as sponge is provided, shaking of the photomask during transportation cannot be perfectly prevented because the cushion material is provided only in the upper lid of the case and it is in contact only with one side of the photomask, and similar problems occur due to dusting from the portions between the case bottom or case side and the photomask. Again, problems result when the cushion material falls out of the lid when the upper lid is opened or closed.


Described herein is a nitrogn strengthened stainless steel fastener insert and nut assembly which is resistant to galling when used in a fastener assembly. In addition to reduced galling, the fastener insert exhibits good corrosion resistance and a yield strength which is almost twice that of fasteners formed from 304 type stainless steel.

The present invention relates to fastener inserts and, more particularly, to anti-galling inserts formed from a hardened stainless steel metal alloy which are useful in both substrates and nut assemblies.
Fastener assemblies come in a variety of shapes, sizes, designs and materials. Many fastening assemblies include not only a fastener such as a bolt, pin or screw, but also will include a fastener insert to be positioned within a tapped hole. One specific type of fastener insert useful in association with a threaded fastener is the helically coiled wire insert as described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,672,070 entitled xe2x80x9cWire Coil Screw Thread Insert for Molded Materialxe2x80x9d, for example.
Generally speaking, tapped threads are strengthened due to the inherent flexibility of such helically coiled wire inserts since the insert provides a more balanced distribution of dynamic and static loads throughout the length of thread engagement. This flexibility also compensates for variation in lead and angle error.
Additionally, since the helically coiled insert does not exhibit staking, locking or swaging and does not require keying in place, helically coiled wire inserts greatly reduce stress which would otherwise be transferred to the receiving substrate. While such helically coiled wire inserts are generally useful as anchoring mechanisms for threaded fasteners in order to be used in high strength applications, such inserts must be formed from high strength materials. Heretofore, 302/304 stainless steels have been used to manufacture fastener inserts.
Due to the intimate connection between the threads of the fastener and the insert, shearing forces are exerted on the fastener insert upon attachment of the fastener. As a result of the shearing forces, fastener inserts formed from 302/304 type stainless steels have exhibited a propensity to galling despite such stainless steels being considered among the hardest in the industry.
Although galling and wear may occur under similar conditions, the types of deterioration involved are not similar. Galling occurs as a result of movements occurring along a metal-to-metal contact in a localized area which results in grooving and self-welding of the metals at the localized areas. This, in turn, leads to seizure of the metal parts.
On the other hand, wear is synonymous with abrasion and can result from metal-to-metal contact or metal-to-nonmetal contact. Such wear is characterized by relatively uniform loss of metal from the surface, as contrasted to localized grooving with consequent metal build-up, as a result of rubbing a much harder metallic surface against a softer metallic surface.
An article by Harry Tanczyn, entitled xe2x80x9cStainless Steel Galling Characteristics Checkedxe2x80x9d in STEEL, Apr. 20, 1954 points out that stainless steel sections at a relatively high hardness level or with a substantial difference in hardness, exhibit better resistance to galling than the combination of two soft members. This may be explained by the theory that the hardened sections deform elastically near the contact points under loading, while the softer pieces yield plastically for a significant distance beneath the contact points. During movement, the hardened surfaces apparently recover elastically with decrease in pressure, and this motion tends to sever any metallic welding.
Among the numerous prior art steels currently available, the austenitic Type 304 is suited to a variety of uses involving welding and fabrication, but the galling and wear resistance of this steel are poor and the metal is likely to fail when subjected to such conditions.
In view of the perceived problems with galling, the art has recently turned to cobalt bearing and high nickel alloys which are known to fight wear and galling.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide stainless steel fastener inserts which tend to limit, if not eliminate, galling in fastener assemblies.
To accomplish this objective, among others, the present invention relates to an anti-galling fastener insert comprising a body formed from a nitrogen strengthened stainless steel alloy. The stainless steel alloy preferably will include a positive amount up to a total of about 0.8% nitrogen. More particularly, the present invention relates to a nitrogen strengthened stainless steel insert formed from an alloy comprising: a) from about 0.05 to 0.15% carbon; b) from about 5.0 to 12.0% manganese; c) from about 2.0 to 6.0% silicon; d) from about 12.0 to 20.0% chromium; e) from about 6.0 to 12.0% nickel; f) from about 0.02 to 0.8% nitrogen; with the remainder being iron.
Still more preferably, the fastener insert is formed from a nitrogen strengthened stainless steel alloy comprising a) from about 0.07 to 0.12% carbon; b) from about 7.0 to 10.0% manganese; c) from about 3.0 to 5.0% silicon; d) from about 14.0 to 18.0% chromium; e) from about 7.0 to 10.0% nickel; f) from about 0.06 to 0.3% nitrogen; with the remainder being iron.
According to a highly preferred embodiment, the fastener insert will be formed from a nitrogen strengthened austenitic stainless steel alloy comprising: a) from about 0.08 to 0.1% carbon; b) from about 7.0 to 9.0% manganese; c) from about 3.5 to 4.5% silicon; d) from about 16.0 to 18.0% chromium; e) from about 8.0 to 9.0% nickel; f) from about 0.08 to 0.18% nitrogen; with the remainder being iron.
After forming the alloy into a round wire and allowing the wire to cool to room temperature, the wire is shaped to a diamond cross section and subsequently formed into insert. The resulting fastener inserts should have excellent anti-galling characteristics at both ambient and elevated temperatures. Further, the fastener inserts should have good corrosion resistance and a room temperature yield strength which surprisingly is almost twice that of fastener inserts formed from 304 type stainless steel. The nitrogen strengthened stainless steel fastener inserts of the present invention also provide excellent oxidation resistance and excellent impact strength, particularly at sub-zero temperatures.
The present invention also relates to an anti-galling free running nut assembly. The nut assembly includes a nut having an internal screw thread barrel and a helically coiled fastener insert formed from an alloy comprising: a) from about 0.05 to 0.15% carbon; b) from about 5.0 to 12.0% manganese; c) from about 2.0 to 6.0% silicon; d) from about 12.0 to 20.0% chromium; e) from about 6.0 to 12.0% nickel; f) from about 0.02 to 0.8% nitrogen; with the remainder being iron.


An optical detection apparatus and method thereof is provided, which is applicable for detecting the image signals of a labeled sample. First, a laser module provides excitation light, and the excitation light is continuously reflected by a scan module for providing linear scanning light by changing a reflection angle. The carrier moves the light module in a direction nonparallel to the linear direction so as to provide a two-dimensional testing zone. The labeled sample placed in the testing zone is excited by the linear scanning light and generates emission light to be received by the light receiver. Therefore, the light receiver forms the image signals of the labeled sample corresponding to the emission light.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an apparatus and method for detecting optical signals, and particularly to an apparatus and method for detecting two-dimension optical image signals.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 shows a systematic view of a general apparatus for fluorescence signals detection. A sampling light beam L1′ passes an excitation filter or a monochromator 110. The filter or monochromator 110 lets the excitation laser L1 pass through and irradiate the labeled sample 120 in the testing zone. The labeled sample 120 is excitated to radiate fluorescence. The emission light L2 passes a second filter or a monochromator 112 where unneeded noise light is removed. Then, a monochromical emission is detected by a photodetector 130.
There are two technical manners for detecting fluorescence signals. The first manner is to apply laser as an excitation light and apply a photomultiplier tube (PMT) to detect the received signal and form a two-dimensional image. The second manner is to apply white light of mercury lamp or xenon lamp and to use a high-resolution camera, such as a CCD (charge-coupled device) camera, to take the fluorescence picture for further image analysis through an image analyzer.
The laser and photomultiplier tube detection system mainly follows the structure of an optical microscope. As shown in FIG. 2, a laser source 202 provides a laser beam to be separated by a dichroic mirror 210 and focused in the testing zone. The labeled sample 220 in the testing zone is excited to radiate fluorescence. The dichroic mirror 210 separates the excitation laser and the emission light into different paths. The light source is focused by lens into a spot. The size of the spot determines the resolution of the detection system. However, the size of the spot is restricted by the optical limitation of diffraction and the wavelength of the incident light. Furthermore, since the detection signal is processed with pixel of the focused spot, a precise moving device with displacement resolution higher than the optical resolution is required for obtaining a two-dimensional scanning. The precise device increases the hardware cost. The single point scanning also increases the imaging time and slows the operation.
There have been many prior devices for detecting fluorescence signals. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,719,391 discloses a fluorescence imaging system including an objective entrance pupil and a two-dimensional moving system. U.S. Pat. No. 5,780,857 discloses a scanning system with both laser and white light beams. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,355,934, 6,471,916, 6,603,537, 6,628,385, 6,646,271 and 6,664,537 also disclose other derivative devices. Most of them are laser and photomultiplier tube systems using dichroic mirrors to separate the incidence excitation laser and the emission light. When omitting the dichroic mirror, the optical design may sacrifice the wholeness of entrance aperture of the received emission light.
The other detection devices with CCD cameras mainly use white light sources. However, the white light source occupies much space and generates a lot of heat that cause trouble and difficulty of system design. The system also requires two filters, in which one removes the excessive wavelength light in the incidence beam; the other removes the noise in the emission light. A dichroic mirror is also required to separate the incidence light and the emission light.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,630,063 discloses a fluorescence signal detection system applying capillary electrophoresis. The system also uses a laser beam refracted by lens and formed into scanning beams through a galvanometer. However, instead of two-dimensional scanning, it is only applicable to one-dimensional scanning.

Optical detection apparatus and method thereof


The present disclosure provides a system and method accurately maintaining times and scoring for a sports activity.

The present invention relates generally to a new and improved method and system to control multiple types of scoreboards and, more particularly, to a method and system for accurately maintaining times and scoring for a sports activity.
Currently, at least three types of controllers are used to operate scoreboards in college and professional sports. In particular, two controllers are commonly used in professional basketball arenas. Daktronic controllers are installed in at least 13 arenas, while Whiteway controllers are also installed in 13 arenas.
Therefore, what is needed, is a system and method that provides an improved method and system to control multiple types of scoreboards.

Method and system to control multiple types of scoreboards


An apparatus generally having an interface and a circuit is disclosed. The interface may be connectable to a network to monitor a media program streaming across the network to a media client. The circuit may be configured to (i) generate first information by modeling a buffer of the media client, the first information being representative of a plurality of events related to the buffer during a playback of the media program and (ii) generate a signal representative of a quality of experience of the media program in response to the first information.

Streaming media sent over various computer networks is increasingly popular. Maintaining such streaming is becoming a problem for the organizations providing and maintaining such networks. Streaming media has become an integral element of the "internet" experience through the significant availability of content from sites like YouTube, Netflix and many others. Streaming media content poses a significant load for the organizations that provide the networks for such content to be delivered. Moreover, these organizations have an interest in monitoring the quality of experience (QoE) provided through their network. In addition to the companies that provide the networks, the content producers and distributors are also interested in knowing how satisfied the end user is.
It would be desirable to estimate the impact of the delivery network on QoE of media sessions by implementing a model of human satisfaction used in the estimate.

Delivery quality of experience (QoE) in a computer network


Improved elastomeric valve seal members for use in a water distribution system between a water source and, for example, a baitwell or a livewell in a boat. The elastomeric seal members are made from material resistant to deterioration from engine exhaust gases, increasing overall reliability and longevity of the water distribution system.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,589,441, 4,708,084, and 5,236,175 are hereby incorporated by reference into this disclosure.
The present invention relates to systems and valves for controlling the flow of water between a reservoir, such as a livewell on a fishing boat, and a water source, such as a lake or river. More specifically, the invention relates to an improvement in the material of which such valves are made.
The water distribution and valve systems disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,589,441, 4,708,084, and 5,236,175 represent typical prior art apparatus for controlling the flow of water into and out of fishing boat baitwells and livewells. Water is drawn through a flow control valve by a pump which then directs water flow to the livewell inlet. These patents disclose various valve arrangements and functions which provide enhanced operator control during livewell filling, recirculation and draining. The disclosure of U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,589,441, 4,708,084 and 5,236,175 are incorporated herein by reference.
Systems and valves made in accordance with these patents are widely used by many manufacturers of sport fishing boats. For example, most bass fishing boats built today incorporate a livewell system manufactured under one or more of these patents. While these systems and valves have performed well, the eventual deterioration of the valve seal material used in the control valve has been a recurring problem.
A thermoplastic elastomer used for the valve seal has provided a desirable combination of properties which has met the known operating conditions and performance requirements of the system and valves. The chemical resistance of the thermoplastic elastomer material was, according to known specifications, suitable for the application. While most systems have performed reliably for many years, as the number of boats using this type of system have increased, so have the number of valve seal material failures. The eventual failure of elastomeric seals is generally expected and tolerated by boat owners as a maintenance item. The repair of the valves, however, is difficult due to the generally inaccessible location of the valve in the boat bilge. Thus eliminating this problem has become important to both boat manufacturers and dealers.
The failure of the valve seals was studied in an effort to determine the cause of the problem. Many possible chemical contaminants were evaluated. Mold release agents used in the manufacture of fiberglass and plastic livewell tanks, and antifreeze used to flush out the livewell to winterize the boat were considered but were not found to be the problem. Herbicides and insecticides used in treating lakes and waterways and livewell additives such as tranquilizers used to calm fish were also not found to be a factor. Samples of the failed valve seals were examined and the characteristics of the failures (hardening and shrinking) were typical of heat aging failures. But while temperatures in the bilge of the boat can exceed over 100.degree. F. for extended periods, the valve seal failures occurred in cooler northern climates as well as in hotter southern locales.
Only after examination of the potential causes for the valve seal failures over several years was the cause finally identified. One model valve, using the same valve seal material as the other valves, had no failure. This valve, however, was used only to drain the livewell. No outside water was drawn through it. Thus, something in the outside water was thought to cause the failures. Initial speculation was that engine exhaust gases or gasoline fumes, concentrated in the low pressure area behind the boat, were being drawn into the livewell system along with the water.
Tests conducted upon the valve seal material that was conventionally used with these valve systems (a thermoplastic elastomer) showed that the material was undergoing a slight swelling followed by a substantial shrinkage and hardening of the material. This swelling/shrinkage phenomenon mimicked the actual failures of the valve seals in the field. Further testing revealed that gasoline was leaching out the plasticizer in the elastomer, causing dramatic failure. In other words, a relatively low concentration of gasoline fumes, over time, was in fact causing the seal to gradually deteriorate.
Materials resistant to exposure to gasoline were considered as replacements for the seal material. However, the material also needed to possess desired attributes of flexibility and ease of manufacture. O-rings are commonly made from nitrile and used in marine valves, as it is typically stocked by suppliers for this application. However, thermoplastic elastomers have conventionally been employed as the valve seal or "flapper" material because they permit lower cost tooling and provide easier design configuration changes, while also being processed cheaper than thermoset materials such as nitrile.
Thermoset synthetic rubbers were then identified as the most desirable materials for fabricating the valve seals/flappers. These include nitrile and flouropolymer thermosetting resins, with nitrile being the preferred choice as it can be readily and economically molded. The use of nitrile as the valve seal material has eliminated the field failures previously encountered. With no material failures, the reliability, longevity, and customer satisfaction of the livewell/baitwell systems employing these valves has been enhanced.

Flow control valve for use with boat water distribution apparatus


The present invention relates to a head-up display system which includes an element thereof. The element is attached to, for example, an automobile windshield so as to project light rays carrying images of display information onto the element from a luminous source in a car. The element includes first and second reflection layers. The first layer is directly attached to the windshield and has a relatively uniform reflectance throughout visible light spectrum. The second layer is directly formed on the first layer and has a selective reflection against incident visible light of wavelengths in the range from about 500 nm to about 600 nm. Thus, the light rays from the luminous source are displayed on the first and second layers in different colors.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to a head-up display system which includes a reflection film onto which light rays carrying images of display information are to be projected from a luminous image source, and more particularly relates to a so-called multicolor head-up display system which includes the reflection film on which a plurality of colors are displayed.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Head-up display systems are already in practical use in aircraft cockpits. Recently efforts have been directed to the development of head-up display systems for automobiles. The systems allow the driver of a car to view a vehicular information of an instrument panel, while looking out a front windshield of the car, by projecting an image of the instrument panel in the direction of the front windshield. For example, JP-B (Patent) 53-38852 discloses a head-up display system in which vehicular speed is displayed by an image of transverse line of which length is a function of the speed.
However, there is a recent demand to display other vehicular informations in addition to vehicular speed in different colors. For this purpose, for example, JP-A (Patent) 60-154226 discloses a so-called multicolor head-up display system which includes a transparent reflection film. A plurality of images of vehicular information are displayed in different colors on the reflection film. The images are projected by projectors onto the reflection film with specific different incident angles, such that each reflected light from the reflection film has a certain specific spectrum and a certain specific color. However, it is difficult or troublesome to finely set the incident lights at certain desired angles so as to obtain desired colors.

Head-up display system including a uniformly reflecting layer and a selectively reflecting layer


When FLASH cells are made in association with STI (as opposed to LOCOS) it is often the case that stringers of silicon nitride are left behind after the spacers have been formed. This problem has been eliminated by requiring that the oxide in the STI trenches remain in place at the time that the silicon nitride spacers are formed. After that, the oxide is removed in the usual manner, following which a SALICIDE process is used to form a self aligned source line. When this sequence is followed no stringers are left behind on the walls of the trench, guaranteeing the absence of any open circuits or high resistance regions in the source line.

FLASH cells, such as the one shown in plan in FIG. 1, (comprise twin gates 1 and 2, each with its own drain line, 11 and 12 respectively, and a shared source line 5 that is located between them. In order to minimize cell size while at the same time avoiding short circuiting the source line to the edges of the gates, a self-alignment procedure has been routinely used for source line formation. This procedure is a version of the SALICIDE (self-aligned silicide) process). Spacers were grown on the vertical side walls of the gate pedestals, following which metal was deposited over the entire structure. This metal was selected for its ability to readily form a silicide with any silicon with which it was in contact while at the same time not reacting with the material of the spacers (typically silicon oxide or silicon nitride). Then, when all unreacted metal was selectively etched away, the metal silicide was left in place, separated from the gate pedestal by the spacers. For the metals in question (typically titanium, cobalt, and nickel) the suicides are sufficiently good conductors that they may then be contacted with metal at some point removed from the gates without introducing significant series resistance (see for example drain contacts 3 and 4 in the figure).
When FLASH cells were first introduced, dielectric isolation between devices was accomplished using the LOCOS (Local Oxidation of Silicon) process. As its name implies, LOCOS involves oxidizing the silicon surface (in the presence of masks) which results in an oxide-silicon interface that slopes inwards away from the surface giving it a shape commonly referred to as `bird's beak`. In this situation, it was reasonable to etch the control gates before forming the self-aligned source line. As a result, oxide in the LOCOS regions between the gates was removed before the silicon nitride spacers were laid down causing the spacers to extend into them. This did not cause a problem because the LOCOS shape is not as sharp as an STI edge.
Because of its improved utilization of real estate on the chip surface, shallow trench isolation (STI) has been gradually replacing LOCOS. Seeing no reason to change other parts of the manufacturing process, workers in the field have continued to form the self-aligned source contacts according to the process described above. This is best illustrated by referring to FIGS. 2A, B, and C which are cross-sections taken through A--A, B--B, and C--C respectively in FIG. 1.
In FIG. 2A each gate is seen to be a compound structure of a control gate 1 or 2 (as seen in FIG. 1) and a floating gate 21 or 22. A conventional layer of gate oxide 23 is present between the floating gates and the surface of integrated circuit 25, while layer 29 of ONO (oxide, nitride, oxide) separates the floating gate from the control gate. The ONO acts as an isolation layer to separate the control gate from the floating gate.
In FIG. 2B, we see a cross-section made at a location somewhat removed from the main gate structure, showing that the control gate (or, more precisely, its extension in the form of the polysilicon word lines 6 and 7) rests on silicon oxide 24 which fills the STI trenches except for trench 26 from which the oxide has been removed in order to allow the still-to-be-formed source line to make contact with the silicon 25.
FIG. 2C is a cross-section taken through the space between the gates showing oxide free region 26 (as seen in FIG. 2B) as well as its counterpart 27 located on the other side of the inter-gate space.
FIGS. 3A-C show the structure after silicon nitride spacers 33 have been formed. While the spacers have their normal appearance in FIG. 3A, it can be seen that in FIGS. 3B and 3C the spacers extend beyond the control gates 6 and 7 down into the trenches. In the older LOCOS process, spacer material would be removed from the trench side-walls as part of the spacer formation process itself, this removal occurring because the sidewalls were not vertical, but, in STI, the sidewalls are very nearly vertical so that the process can no longer distinguish between material on the sidewalls of the gates and material on the sidewalls of the trenches. The consequences of this are that when the next step in the process is executed (namely self-alignment through SALICIDE) the residual stringers of silicon nitride on the trench sidewalls interfere with formation of conductive silicide, leading to open circuiting in, or high resistance of, the source line (5 in FIG. 1). Another disadvantage of this process is that additional etching of the spacers in order to reduce their thickness (thereby increasing the width of the source line) is not desirable because an additional mask would be needed to protect other silicon nitride parts contained within the structure.
The present invention shows how the above problems may be avoided. We have performed a routine search of the prior art but did not find any patents that teach a solution similar to that of the present invention. Several references of interest were, however, encountered. For an example of forming self aligned contacts when LOCOS is used, see Liang et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,665,623). Hong (U.S. Pat. No. 5,703,387) uses shallow trench isolation but implements the self alignment portion of his process with oxide, spacers. Hsu et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,552,331) are concerned with a process involving several different device types and deal with this by using two different sets of spacers, formed to slightly different dimensions. Chen et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,751,040) best represent the STI based prior art that has been discussed above--they allow the spacers to form on the side walls of the trenches.

Process for forming self-aligned source in flash cell using SiN spacer as hard mask

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.


A process for a preparing stable lycopene concentrate in an essentially non-dissolving liquid and uses thereof is described.

Lycopene has been recently recognized as an industrially important natural food coloring agent, because of its high staining power in the red region, and because of its safety and potentially beneficial effect. Lycopene occurs naturally and abunds in a number of fruits, primarily in tomatoes and watermelon, from which it can be extracted by different extraction processes. Lycopene can also be synthesized by a variety of synthetic routes, both chemically and biosynthetically. While reference will be made hereinafter to tomatoes as the source of lycopene, for the sake of brevity, it is understood that the same applies, mutatis mutandis, to watermelon or to any other lycopene source, including synthetic lycopene.
The art recognizes the use of vegetable extracts as colorants and additives to the food industry. Spice and herbs oleoresins, for instance, are commonly employed in the food industry. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,285,981 refers to the use of oleoresins as food colorants or flavoring. U.S. Pat. No. 5,019,405 teaches the use of natural colorants for the dyeing of fruit.
A number of processes have been proposed and are currently used for the extraction of oleoresins, such as paprika oleoresin, e.g., by using hexane as the extraction solvent. According to a process described in copending Israeli Patent Application No. 107999, filed Dec. 23, 1993 by the same applicants herein, the pulp obtained after the separation of waste materials and of tomato serum is fed to an extraction stage, where it is extracted to provide tomato oleoresin. Such oleoresin contains about 2-10% of lycopene, depending on the original concentration of lycopene in the tomato. Tomato oleoresin containing about 40%-100% lycopene is obtained in the form of a free-flowing powder.
The use of lycopene presents some technological and practical problems. First of all, pure crystalline lycopene is unstable on storage at room temperature, due to oxidation, and lycopene may undergo degradation with time, unless appropriate measures are taken, e.g. antioxidants are added. While food-compatible antioxidants are known and used in industry, e.g., BHT, BHA or propyl gallate, they are not a desirable addition, and they are dispensed with whenever possible. In addition, lycopene-containing formulations should be protected against microbial spoilage. Lycopene which naturally occurs in oleoresins apparently enjoys the protection of the oil and of natural antioxidants (tocopherols), originating from the tomato, but when it is dispersed in an environment. such as water, which can support microbial growth, the formulation will spoil unless it is protected by suitable means, such as by heat sterilization or the addition of preservatives. Illustrative examples of such preservatives are benzoic acid and sorbic acid.
Although lycopene exists in different forms, having different colors and intensities, the term "lycopene" is used in all cases to indicate the chemical entity. It should be noted however, that crystalline lycopene has an intense red color, and differs from dissolved or dispersed or solubilized lycopene, which has a yellow-orange color. Furthermore, lycopene naturally occurring in fruit is found in chromoplasts in crystalline form, and therefore is capable of retaining its red color, as in the tomato. Therefore, throughout this specification it is important to note to what form of lycopene reference is being made at the various stages of the process described herein.
As stated, the intense red color of lycopene is due to its crystalline form, and is influenced by its particle size distribution. Lycopene loses its staining power in the red range when the crystals dissolve, which occurs readily in a variety of organic solvents, e.g., oils, including oil found in the tomato seeds and extracted during the processing of the tomato in the course of lycopene oleoresin production. When lycopene oleoresin is solubilized in aqueous solutions, it assumes a yellowish to orange color, depending on concentration, and cannot be used to impart red color to food products.
Additionally, lycopene crystals recovered from oleoresin extraction, as described above, vary greatly in size, and contains relatively large crystals, of the order of tens of microns. Given that optimal staining power in the red color range is obtained in the 1 .mu.m to 3 .mu.m particle diameter range, in terms of light refracted from the crystals much staining power is lost if the oleoresin is used as such, as is customarily done in the art. Furthermore, one cannot effectively use the oleoresin as such, to obtain red color, since part of the lycopene is dissolved in the tomato lipids and the resulting hue will be orange.
It is therefore clear that it would be highly desirable to provide a lycopene concentrate that overcomes the aforesaid drawbacks while maintaining a high staining power.

Stable lycopene concentrates and process for their preparation


There is provided a method for protecting a rice crop from injury caused by a sulfamoyl urea herbicide which comprises applying to the crop a non-phytotoxic antidotal amount of a compound selected from 1-(.alpha.,.alpha.,-dimethylbenzyl)-3-p-tolylurea and S-(1-methyl-1-phenylethyl)-1-piperidinecarbothioate.

Sulfamoyl urea compounds and their use for the control of noxious plant species are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,622,065 and 5,009,699, among others. This well-known class of herbicides, however, may cause injury to certain important agronomic crops.
The use of chemical antidotes to protect crops from injury due to sulfonyl urea herbicides is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,343,649 and 4,584,010 and in Japanese Patents 61-112003, 62-263104 and 62-56406. However, there is no method described in the art to protect crop plants against injury due to the application of a sulfamoyl urea herbicide.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a method to safen rice, one of the world's most important economic crops, against the phytotoxic effects of the sulfamoyl urea class of herbicides.

Method for safening rice against the phytotoxic effects of a sulfamoyl urea herbicide


The invention relates to a device for needling a nonwoven web having on the base thereof at least one needle bar comprising a needle board having a plurality of needles. The needle bar is held by a bar carrier on which a vertical drive engages for oscillating motion of the bar carrier for an up and down movement. A superimposed horizontal drive is also associated with the bar carrier, by which a back-and-forth movement is induced. The horizontal drive has two eccentric drives coupled to a horizontal guide. The eccentric drives are each formed by a connecting rod and a crankshaft coupled to a connecting head of the connecting rod. According to the invention, the connecting rods are coupled to the horizontal guide with the connecting rod ends thereof in a diagonal orientation, the center axes of the connecting rods forming an angle.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns a device for needling of a nonwoven web.
2. Description of Related Art
The known device is used for consolidation and structuring of nonwovens. For this purpose, a nonwoven web is punctured by a number of needles, which are guided in an oscillating up and down movement. During the process, the needles are guided with an oscillating vertical movement, in order to consolidate the fiber material in the nonwoven web. The nonwoven web during this process is continuously moved forward with an advance, preferably executed by rolls. Since the needles are not smooth, but are provided with counter-hooks opened in the puncturing direction, filaments of the nonwoven are grasped during puncturing and reoriented in the nonwoven. Because of this, the desired felting and consolidation effect occurs in the nonwoven. In order not to obtain undesired deformations, which lead, for example, to warping or elongated hole formation in the needled material, during puncturing of the needles in the nonwoven web, because of advance of the nonwoven web, the needles are guided with a superimposed horizontal movement. In this case, the movement of the needles is aligned in the advance direction of the nonwoven web. To carry out a vertical movement and a superimposed horizontal movement of the needles, essentially two different drive variants are known in the prior art.
A generic device for needling of a nonwoven web is known from DE 197 30 532 A1, in which a needle bar is connected to a vertical drive to execute an up and down movement and to a horizontal drive to execute a back and forth movement. The horizontal drive is formed by two oppositely driven eccentric drives, which are formed from two parallel connecting rods and crankshafts connected to the connecting rods. The phase positions of the crankshafts are adjustable relative to each other, so that the horizontal stroke transferred by the connecting rods to a coupling element is adjustable in size. The horizontal movement is transferred from the coupling element directly to a bar support or through an intermediate coupling mechanism. The separate horizontal drive of the known device, however, requires complicated mechanisms, which results in insufficient stability and insufficient guiding of the needle bar, especially at higher passage speeds. Consequently, machine dynamic problems are to be expected when larger stroke frequencies are implemented with simultaneous stroke adjustment capability in the known device.
In a second variant of the drive technique for such devices, which is known, for example, from DE 103 55 590 A1, the vertical and horizontal movement is executed by a common drive. Here, two phase-adjustable crankshafts are used in conjunction with two connecting rods positioned obliquely relative to each other, whose connecting rod top ends meet at a point. Depending on the phase rotation of the crankshafts, a movement similar to an ellipse is obtained with variable horizontal and vertical stroke. Such concepts, however, have deficient speed stability and parallel guiding of the needle bar relative to the nonwoven web is also not possible.
In practice, however, there is an increasing desire to needle the nonwoven web with high speed and, if possible, variable horizontal stroke.
In order to generate the movement of a needle bar with separate vertical drive and horizontal drive, additional devices are known in the prior art, as disclosed, for example, in DE 196 15 697. Here, the horizontal drive is formed by an eccentric drive, which has a connecting rod cooperating with a crankshaft. The connecting rod acts with its connecting rod top end directly on a bar carrier, on whose bottom a needle bar is held. Such devices do permit higher passage speeds of the nonwoven web, but have the major drawback that the horizontal stroke is not variably adjustable.
Another device for needling of a nonwoven web is known from DE 100 43 534 A1, in which the bar carrier is formed by a pushrod guided in a pivot tube. The pivot tube is pivoted back and forth relative to a pivot axis. To this extent, the bar carrier is pivoted via a pivot drive relative to the pivot axis. The device as well as the pivot drive are therefore not appropriate for guiding the needle board or boards parallel to the nonwoven web.
It is now the task of the invention to modify a device for needling of a nonwoven web of the generic type, so that nonwovens can be needled in high quality at high passage speeds with variable stroke adjustment and high stroke frequencies.


A method of regenerating collagen-containing human tissues, especially bone, connective tissue, cartilage, facia, ligaments, tendons and other collagen-containing tissues of type I, II or III that have collagen as its organic constituent, and also epithelium, comprising topically administering to the damaged tissues a composition having an effective amount of misoprostol. Preferably, about 1 .mu.g to about 1 mg misoprostol per gram of the composition is utilized in gel form.

The present invention demonstrates methods of regenerating new collagen-containing tissue, e.g., bone, connective tissue, cartilage, facia, ligaments, tendons and other collagen tissue of type I, II, or III that have collagen as an organic constituent, and also epithelium. More specifically, this invention relates to a treatment comprising the use of misoprostol, an analog of prostaglandin E.sub.1 for regenerating new collagen-containing tissues.
Loss of collagen can occur as a result of several mechanisms, e.g. genetic, enzyme degradation, or cell injury due to thermal, mechanical, chemical, and radiation (including UV light) traumas. This loss of collagen thins the skin, increases likelihood of injury and causes a delay in the healing response. At the present time no specific therapies exist to regenerate collagen after its breakdown, especially that associated with aging. In skin the attritional loss of collagen from breakdown and decreased synthesis of new collagen results in a thinning and the loss of structural integrity. The consequence of these changes is a looseness and wrinkling of the skin.
Recently, the discovery of natural products labeled as growth factors to promote growth and healing of connective and support tissues have been reported. These substances are usually proteins and appear to be ideal for inducing support and connective tissue repair, but in reality such factors are not practical as pharmaceutical agents. These proteins, like other proteins are not stable and break down upon storage. They also are not suitable for oral administration since they are digested and destroyed before entering the blood stream. Their administration as topical pharmaceutical agents is not possible. There then is only one route and that is parenteral but because they are proteins, they are recognized by the body as foreign. Thus, there is the constant danger of eliciting an immune response. This route does not necessarily target the right tissue and is more likely to affect many different cells throughout the body. The current invention uses topical application to areas of the body that require connective tissue repair and regeneration without oral or parenteral routes.
The present invention demonstrates new methods to regenerate connective and support tissues in humans and animals. These methods provide new treatment modalities useful in the treatment of connective tissue disorders which have occurred as the result of a deficiency in which the regenerative tissues of the skin and organs lack the ability to produce collagen in sufficient quantities to eradicate the existing disease state. Regeneration is the growth and differentiation of new cells and intercellular substances to form new tissues or parts. It consists of fibroplasia, endothelial proliferation, the deposition of interstitial ground substance and collagen, epithelial hyperplasia and the maturation of connective tissue. Bone and cementum are not replaced by existing bone or cementum, but from connective tissue, which is the precursor of both. Undifferentiated connective tissue cells develop into osteoblasts and cementoblasts which form bone and cementum. In periodontal tissues, regeneration is a microscopic activity which differs in degrees from clinically radiographically detectable restoration of destroyed periodontal tissues. Regeneration in most instances restores the continuity of diseased marginal gingiva and reestablishes a normal gingival sulcus at the same level on the root as the base of the pre-existing periodontal pocket. Reattachment is the re-embedding of new periodontal ligament fibers into new cementum and the attachment of gingival epithelium to tooth surface previously denuded by disease.
The present invention provides the use of misoprostal to produce new epithelium, bone, connective tissue, cartilage, fascia, ligaments, tendons and collagen tissues of type I, II, and III. The use of topical preparations of misoprostol cause an increase in fibroblastic activity in skin and mucous membranes. This results in the production of collagen type I. This can be measured quantitatively. The increased response to healing as a result of this treatment will result in thickening to the skin, lessening of the prominence of facial rhytids, improved skin turgor and elastic properties, accelerated healing of wounds and/or scars resulting from thermal, chemical, or mechanical etiologies, free graft (split or full thickness) survival enhancement, and increased healing of mucous membrane injuries with a decrease in pain associated with all of these conditions as a result of decreased inflammation, coupled with accelerated healing.
In summary, the method of the present invention provides a new treatment that accelerates healing for the patient, reduces trauma from surgeries that no longer need to be performed, and reduces cost to the patient. Also, in necessary surgeries such as gingival grafting, it accelerates healing of both the donor site and graft site. Using misoprostol with a local anesthetic such as dyclonine makes the surgical procedures almost painless. Also, a reduction of dry sockets after extractions is being found with the present procedure, thus almost eliminating them as a problem in the dental office. The advantage for the periodontal patient is that it eliminates much of the surgery if this process is used on early periodontal cases along with good oral hygiene and maintenance care.
The therapy disclosed herein using misoprostol as a topical application has shown dramatic results within as little as 3 to 5 days. Re-epithelialization occurs rapidly with the use of misoprostol when secondary infection is controlled. The usual course of treatment if signs of secondary infection occur is to dose with antibiotic and/or antifungals, in addition to misoprostol topically applied directly to the area.
The effect of chemotherapy and radiotherapy are similar. It is based on the ability to non-specifically destroy or retard the division of rapidly proliferating malignant cells with specific drugs or radiation. Normal cells with rapid turnover, such as oral mucosa or the alimentary canal, are also affected and may result in toxicity and complications. Approximately 20% of patients with cancer are treated with chemotherapy at some time during the course of their disease; also there are approximately 250,000 episodes of oral complications each year. These incidences are likely to increase with the use of more potent drugs and multimodality therapy combining radiation and new chemotherapy.
Control of secondary infections using antibiotics and/or antifungal agents in combination with the present misoprostol routine creates re-epithelialization and inflammation reduction within 3 to 5 days. The application is directly to the injured tissue by gels, ointments, creams or lotions with misoprostol as the active ingredient, preferably 4 to 5 times daily.
Misoprostol is an analog of prostaglandin E.sub.1 and is broken down by most tissues of the body to misoprostol acid, the active metabolyte. Misoprostol has been used in the past on a prescription basis as a gastric mucosa protectant and antiulcer agent. Its primary use is the prevention of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug-induced gastric ulcers, and short term treatment of duodenal ulcers. In contrast, the present method demonstrates regeneration or a re-epithelialization of damaged tissues and reduced healing times.
Misoprostol may be administered alone or in combination with other pharmaceutically acceptable agents. Dosages of from not less than about 1 .mu.g per day to no more than about 5 mg per day of the individual compounds per se, or in combinations, are generally effective. In this regard, misoprostol is present in a composition in an amount from about 1 .mu.g to about 1 mg per gram of the composition. Various formulations for the compositions are provided herein. Such formulations may include gels, creams, lotions, ointments, and the like. The compositions and/or formulations may also include additional active ingredients if desired, such as local anesthetics.
The method disclosed herein provides a novel method for the regeneration of collagen-containing tissues. For example, epithelium, bone, connective tissue, cartilage, fascia, ligaments, tendons and other collagen tissues of type I, II or III that have collagen as an organic constituent may all be treated with misoprostol. It will be evident that the method will find ready application for the prevention or treatment of damaged tissues other than those named, for example dermatological tissues, in which faster wound healing is desired. For example, the treatment in the present invention may also find ready application in severe burn and skin regeneration, skin grafts, pressure sores, diabetic ulcers, fissures, post surgery scar reduction, dry socket, ulcerative colitis, rectal and anal fissures. This treatment also improves healing from dermatological surgery, and any surgery involving epithelial tissue.
The present method has the distinct unexpected advantage that it will provide a highly effective treatment for regenerating, not merely preserving or protecting, collagen-containing tissues, and all epithelial tissues, and at the same time this compound advantageously will not produce unwanted systemic or local side effects even if the compound is administered continuously on a daily basis, as long as the appropriate compound dosages are used. It, of course, must be understood that the dosage levels will be adjusted dependent on the response of the subject and the degree of damage to the tissues as monitored by methods known to those skilled in the art.

Method of regenerating collagen-containing tissues with misoprostol


A method for making a semiconductor device is disclosed. A substrate comprising semiconductor device elements is provided. A top conductive pad and an anti-reflective coating are patterned over the substrate. The anti-reflective coating is disposed on the top conductive pad. At least one passivation film is formed over the substrate and the anti-reflective coating. The at least one passivation film and the anti-reflective coating are etched to form a trench therein so as to expose a portion of the top conductive pad.

As complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) devices are scaled to smaller sizes, new materials and concepts are being considered to meet advanced performance targets. CMOS technology includes N-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) and P-type metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS). For example, a metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) is a transistor used for amplifying or switching electronic signals. One aspect of high performance in NMOS and PMOS MOSFETS, and various other devices, is device switching frequency. Contacts are coupled to the gate electrodes, and to both the source and drain regions, of the transistors. A semiconductor device may have multilayer structures having multilayer wirings for increasing a density of each chip and increasing an operation speed.

Method of forming a semiconductor device comprising top conductive pads

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd.


A method for carrying out a cyclical manufacturing process produces parts within a predefined quality tolerance. After at least one process adjustment variable is changed, a quality feature of the parts produced with a changed process adjustment variable is checked against the range of the quality tolerance of the produced parts. A process characteristic variable zone is formed in an automated manner using at least one determined process characteristic variable variant that is process-stable and for which the process adjustment variable produces acceptable parts.

A cyclic production process is characterized by operations in industrial production that are repeated in time. A production cycle is complete when all operations were carried out. Examples of a cyclic production process are forming methods such as casting, injection molding, sintering, etc. Thus, on a production facility products can be produced in a manner repeated in time whereby production costs are kept low. On the same production line the same articles having the same properties and often also different articles having similar properties can be produced, however, in the latter case the production facility must be modified to be specific for each product. In the following, the invention will be described using an injection molding process as an example which, however, does not exclude that the invention may be used in other forming methods.
To produce articles with consistent quality the document U.S. Pat. No. 9,566,735, which is hereby incorporated herein by this reference for all purposes, describes a procedure for performing an injection molding process in which sensor data of an injection molding machine are recorded by sensors and evaluated. Sensor data are cavity pressures, temperature values, etc. The articles produced on the injection molding machine are injection molded parts. If online control is performed, an automatic and timely control in the ongoing production process is carried out as to whether a quality characteristic of the injection molded parts produced lies within a quality tolerance range for the injection molded parts produced, i.e. whether it is an acceptable part or not. Quality characteristic and quality tolerance range are predefined. A working point of the injection molding machine is set via process control variables. Process control variables are an injection speed, a holding pressure level, etc. A stability of the injection molding process is monitored by a plurality of process parameters. Process parameters are values derived from the development of measured sensor data with time, such as a maximum value of sensor data in a period of time, a time-specific increase of sensor data, a time period of sensor data, such as a holding time, etc. It can be seen from the process parameters determined in this way if the injection molding process drifts off from stability. To keep the quality of the injection molded parts produced within the quality tolerance ranges for the injection molded parts produced, the working point of the injection molding machine is varied via the process control variables. For this purpose, different process control variables are varied in a hierarchical order so that time-critical process control variables from the response time of the injection molding machine are not changed or are changed only very slowly, if possible.
It is an object of the present invention to further improve a method for performing a cyclic production process.

Method for performing a cyclic production process


A heat dissipation device assembly includes a heat sink (20) placed on an electronic component (52) which is mounted on a printed circuit board (PCB) (50) and including a pair of shoulders (23) on opposite sides thereof, a pressing part (30) including a pair of pressing portions (36) supported on the shoulders and a pair of locking portions (34) spaced from the shoulders, a sliding part (40) slidably attached to the pressing part and including a pair of locking portions (41) spaced from the shoulder, and a back plate (60) mounted below the PCB and including four posts (61) extending through the PCB and the heat sink to resilently engage with the locking portions. Each locking portion defines a locking opening (33, 43) including an entrance (33a, 43a) and a locking slot (33b, 43b), the post being capable of extending through the entrance to engage in the locking slot.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a heat dissipation device assembly, and particularly to a heat dissipation device assembly incorporating a retention member which can readily and conveniently mount a heat sink to an electronic component.
2. Prior Art
As computer technology continues to advance, electronic components such as central processing units (CPUs) of computers are being made to provide faster operational speeds and greater functional capabilities. When a CPU operates at high speed in a computer enclosure, its temperature can increase greatly. It is desirable to dissipate the generated heat quickly, for example by using a heat sink attached to the CPU in the enclosure. This allows the CPU and other electronic components in the enclosure to function within their normal operating temperature ranges, thereby assuring the quality of data management, storage and transfer. Oftentimes, a clip is required for mounting the heat sink to the CPU.
A wide variety of heat dissipation devices and clips are available in the prior art. FIG. 4 shows a conventional clip 3 mounting a heat sink 1 to a socket 6 on which a CPU is mounted. The heat sink 1 defines a channel 2 for extension of the clip 3 therethrough. The clip 3 is M-shaped and comprises a pair of legs 4. Each leg 4 defines a locking opening 5 engaging with a corresponding protrusion 7 of the socket 6. In disassembly, a tool 8 is required to disengage the locking openings 5 of the clip 3 from the protrusions 7 of the socket 6. However, since space in a computer is limited operation of the tool 8 is adversely limited by other electronic elements. Furthermore, when over force is applied on the tool 8 the tool 8 is easy to slide away from the clip 3. It is prone to damage the CPU and other electronic elements in the computer. It is inconvenient to use the tool 8.

Heat dissipation device assembly incorporating retention member

Fu Zhun Precision Industrial (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd.


An agitator assembly for use in conventional food and beverage processing vats. The agitator assembly generally includes a shaft and a retractable blade assembly secured to a second end of the shaft. A first end of the shaft is securable to the agitator drive. The retractable blade assembly includes a lifting collar and an agitator shaft which cooperate such that the blades of the retractable blade assembly are retractable and extendable With the blades of the retractable blade assembly in a retracted position, the assembly can pass through the opening in the top of a conventional mixing vat cover. Moreover, the shaft is separable via a quick release split coupling such that once the first end of the shaft is secured to the agitator shaft it does not have to be disconnected to remove the remaining portion of the agitator assembly from the vat.

In the field of food and beverage processing, ingredients are mixed in large vats via an agitator assembly which is driven by an agitator drive. Conventionally, the agitator assembly defines a shaft, a first end of which is received through a small opening defined by the top cover of the vat. The opening is sized to closely receive the shaft and prevent impurities from entering the vat. The second end of the shaft extends to a lower portion of the vat and defines blades for mixing when the shaft is rotated via the agitator drive. The agitator assembly is secured to the agitator drive in a manner such that the agitator assembly is not easily disconnected from the drive. Moreover, removal of the agitator assembly from the vat requires removal of the top of the vat because the blades prevent the agitator assembly from being passable through the opening at the top of the vat.
The bottom of a conventional vat defines a truncated conical configuration. The blades of a conventional agitator assembly extend to be proximate the side of the vat at an upper end thereof such that the agitator assembly can not be lowered to within inches of the bottom of the tank. With this configuration contents at the bottom of the tank are not sufficiently agitated which results in improper mixing of the contents in the vat.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an agitator assembly wherein the blades are retractable such that the assembly is receivable through the opening in the top cover of a conventional mixing vat.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an agitator assembly which includes a means for quickly connecting and disconnecting the shaft of the agitator assembly such that the upper end of the agitator assembly does not have to be disconnected from the agitator drive.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an agitator assembly wherein the blades are retractable and extend from the shaft under centrifugal forces.
Further, it is an object of the present invention to provide an agitator assembly wherein the blades are positionable proximate the bottom of the vat to ensure thorough mixing of the contents in the vat.

Agitator assembly with a retractable blade assembly


A method of manufacturing a phase shifting mask includes the steps of forming a phase shifting layer on a transparent substrate; forming an anti-deposition layer on the phase shifting layer; patterning the phase shifting layer and the anti-deposition layer; wet-etching the anti-deposition layer to expose a portion of the phase shifting layer; selectively forming a light shielding layer on the exposed portion of the phase shifting layer; and removing the anti-deposition layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a phase shifting mask and a method of manufacturing the same, and more particularly, to a phase shifting mask and a method of manufacturing the same to be used in a photolithography process for forming fine patterns in a semiconductor device.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
As the integration and density of a semiconductor device increase, sizes of its unit elements decrease. This results in the decrease of the line-width of a conducting wire and other similar elements of the semiconductor device. Therefore, when forming a fine pattern, a photolithography process utilizing exposure methods, such as a contact printing method, a proximity printing method, and a projection printing method, has limitations. Accordingly, in order to form a fine pattern, the exposure methods need to be improved by using an electron beam or an ion beam, or a phase shifting mask needs to be utilized when the exposure is carried out.
Phase shifting mask generally includes a phase shifting region and a transmitting region. The phase of light that passes the phase shifting region is shifted by 180.degree., thereby causing an offset interference with light that passes the transmitting region. As a result, the resolution and the depth of the focus are improved, making it possible to obtain a good quality miniature pattern.
Phase shifting masks can be classified into alternated type, rim type, attenuated type, and outrigger type, etc. For example, a conventional alternated type phase shifting mask is disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent No. 6-35169 (laid-open date: Feb. 10, 1994), entitled "A method of manufacturing a phase shifting mask".
FIGS. 1A to 1D are cross-sectional views illustrating a method of manufacturing a phase shifting mask, according to the conventional method.
Referring to FIG. 1A, an indium tin oxide (ITO) layer is deposited on a transparent substrate 11 according to a sputtering method, thereby forming a transparent conductive layer 13. A phase shifting layer 15 such as a silicon oxide layer or spin on glass (SOG) layer is formed on the transparent conductive layer 13. On the phase shifting layer 15, chrome is deposited by a sputtering method to form a light shielding layer 17. A photoresist film 18 is then coated on the light shielding layer 17.
Referring to FIG. 1B, the photoresist film 18 is exposed and developed, thereby exposing a predetermined part of the light shielding layer 17. Using the photoresist film 18 as a mask, the exposed part of the light shielding layer 17 is dry etched to expose the phase shifting layer 15. Here, the remaining light shielding layer 17 becomes a shading region.
Referring to FIG. 1C, the photoresist film 18 is removed. Then, a photoresist film 19 is coated again on the phase shifting layer 15 and the light shielding layer 17. The photoresist film 19 is exposed and developed, thereby exposing a predetermined part of the phase shifting layer 15.
Referring to FIG. 1D, using the photoresist film 19 as a mask, the exposed part of the phase shifting layer 15 is dry etched. Then, the photoresist film 19 is removed. At this time, a region where the light shielding layer 17 and the phase shifting layer 15 are removed becomes a transmitting region 14. A region where the light shielding layer 17 is removed and the phase shifting layer 15 is not removed becomes a phase shifting region 12.
However, in the conventional method of manufacturing a phase shift mask, when the phase shifting layer is etched to define the transmitting region, it is difficult to align the photoresist pattern with the transmitting region. Further, the transmitting region is defined by a photolithography method, thereby complicating the process.

Phase shifting mask and method of manufacturing the same