The present invention describes a bioconjugation strategy and compounds that are useful therein in which a fluorescent signal is produced when two molecular or supramolecular entities are linked by chemoselective combination of one linker having an azido or halide substituent group with another linker having a cyano or an alkyne substituent group. A kit is also provided.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the formation of fluorescent linkages, and more particularly to the formation of chemoselective fluorescent linkages between compounds, including conjugation of biomolecules.
(2) Description of the Related Art
It is often useful to be able to measure the degree of attachment of certain compounds to certain other compounds. This selective binding, or conjugation, is particularly useful in biological assays and diagnostic procedures in which marker compounds selectively bind to target compounds. If the marker compound has properties that can be measured by some sensing method, then its presence can be measured, thereby providing an indirect measurement of the target compound to which it is bound. This technique has been of significant utility in research in the life sciences in methods such as in vivo imaging, drug delivery, biochemical assays, bioengineering, cell-based assay and microarrays, and the like. For general information, see, for example, Saxon, E. et al., Science, 287: 2007-10 (2000), and Breinbauer, R. et al., Chembiochem 4:1147-9 (2003).
Bioconjugation technology affects almost every discipline of the life sciences, such as drug discovery, proteomics and cell biology. Bioconjugation aims at the linking of two or more molecules (or supramolecules) to form a new complex with the combined properties of its individual components. See Hermanson, G. T. et al., Bioconjugate Techniques, Academic Press, San Diego (1996). One important application of bioconjugation is to modify cellular components selectively with signaling probes for proteomics, functional genetics, and cell biology research.
A multistep procedure is commonly employed wherein the cellular entity is first attached with a detectable tag, such as fluorescent dyes or biotin, followed by purification of the ligated product and detection. However, excess prelabled reagents are generally hard to remove from the intracellular environment or from tissues of living organisms, which prohibits the application of a multistep labeling procedure in many situations.
While several bioconjugation techniques are widely used, most of them rely on the reaction between electrophiles and nucleophiles, which can hardly offer truly chemoselective reactions. In addition, the lack of an efficient way to detect and evaluate bioconjugation efficiencies is the big obstacle of many applications. The common way for applying this method of detection is a two-step or three-step procedure. First, the conjugation will introduce the primary labeling reagents, such as biotin and peptide tags. After the purification, the fluorescent secondary reagents will be used to give the detectable signals.
An ideal alternative to present bioconjugation systems would be a chemoselective process that was unaffected by biological components, and which used reagents which, while unbound, did not contribute a significant background signal, but which resulted in a ligated product that provided a strong detectable signal. Very few such systems have been reported.
One system, reported by Gaietta et al., Science, 296:503-507 (2002), utilized the synthesis and application of a biarsenical fluorophore which can bind with a short peptide sequence -Cys-Cys-Xaa-Xaa-Cys-Cys- with high affinity, then become strongly fluorescent. Even though the in vivo test provided good results, the method suffers from the high concentration of biarsenical compounds needed to overcome the non-specific finding from other cysteine residues as well as the high toxicity of the biarsenical reagents.
In other work, Lemieux et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 125:4708-4709 (2003), or Saxon et al., Science, 287:2007-2010 (2000), report the use of a fluorogenic coumarin-phosphine that is activated by the Staudinger reaction with azides. This yielded a coumarin-phosphine product compound that was unstable to oxidation that can give rise to a high level of false background signals. Also, phosphine is not a bio-friendly reagent. Therefore, such a system would appear to have limited applications in real biomedical situations.
Recent advances in the Cu(I)-catalyzed Huisgen 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of azides and alkynes has provided promising reactions that appear to afford regioselectivity and almost quantitative transformation under mild conditions. See, e.g., Rostovtsev et al., Angew. Chem., Int. Ed., 41:2596-2599 (2002), or Tornoe et al., J. Org. Chem., 67:3057-3062 (2002). Several groups have used these compounds as a pair of linkers for chemoselective ligations through a Cu(I)-mediated cycloaddition reaction. See, e.g., Wang et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc, 125:3192-3193 (2003), or Speers et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 125:4684-4687 (2003), or Seo et al., J. Org. Chem., 68:609-612 (2003), or Lee et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 125:9588-9589 (2003), or Link, et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 125:11164-11165 (2003), or Deiters et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 125:11782-11783 (2003), or Brienbauer et al., ChemBioChem, 4:1147-1149 (2003).
However, the need remains for a bioconjugation method that would have a high chemoselectivity, but which did not affect and was unaffected by biological components, and which used reagents which, while unbound, did not contribute a significant background signal, but which resulted in a ligated product that provided a strong detectable signal.

Chemoselective fluorgenic molecular linkers and methods for their preparation and use


A nozzle (10) with lateral slots (16, 17 and 18) for discharging a high pressure liquid for treating a work material (30) is described. The nozzle has a constriction orifice (15) between an enlarged or main orifice (13) and restriction orifice (14) leading to the slots which increases the velocity of the liquid issuing from the slots. The nozzle is particularly adapted for deburring transmission fluid channels in transmission main control valve bodies.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved deburring nozzle particularly adapted for cleaning and deburring an internal opening. In particular, the present invention relates to an elongated nozzle with an internal restricting orifice that is housed inside of the nozzle, spaced from three lateral slots adjacent to the tip of the nozzle. The restricting orifice extends from a main orifice and increases the velocity of a high pressure working liquid pumped through the main orifice, creating a high velocity, high pressure working liquid that is then moved through the lateral discharge slot(s) in the nozzle. Housing the restricting orifice inside the body of the nozzle greatly increases the working life of the nozzle since the restricting orifice does not become chipped, cracked or worn from coming into contact with the working material. Eliminating such contact significantly lengthens the working life of the nozzle because the discharge slot(s) is not the velocity intensifying member in the nozzle. Thus, even if the discharge slot(s) becomes cracked, chipped or worn, the velocity of the jet exiting the nozzle will not be greatly reduced, due to fanning or spreading out of the jet, because the velocity intensifying restricting orifice remains unaffected by any wear to the discharge slot(s) at the tip of the nozzle. The three discharge slots are preferably positioned symmetrically around a longitudinal axis of the nozzle and provide in excess of 360 degrees of coverage of the jet in a hole in a work material into which the nozzle has been probed.
(2) Prior Art
The use of high velocity liquid jets for penetrating a work surface and for cleaning excess material of construction is well known to the prior art. The prior art nozzles are designed to be mounted in a nozzle assembly or holder. The work material passes in front of the nozzle, with the jet penetrating the work material. The velocity intensifying orifice or the restricting orifice of the prior art nozzles is usually positioned at the tip of the nozzle and functions as the jet exit from the nozzle. The prior art nozzles are not typically subjected to a striking or hitting contact with the work material. There is therefore little risk of damage to the restricting orifice which would significantly diminish the velocity of the jet exiting the restricting orifice at the tip of the nozzle. Illustrative of the prior art nozzles are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,497,664 to Verry; 3,851,899 to Franz; 3,756,106 to Chadwick et. al; 3,750,961 to Franz; and 3,705,693 to Franz.
High velocity jets have been adapted for use in cleaning or deburring excess material of construction from transmission fluid channels of a transmission main control valve body or like openings. These high velocity jets are produced by a nozzle having an elongate body which produces a jet pattern that almost completely covers the entire radial area around the axis at the tip of the nozzle. In these prior art nozzles, a slot(s) at the tip of the nozzle serves as the restricting orifices and there is a straight internal passage to the slot(s) in the nozzle. Thus, the velocity increase comes from the slot(s) which has a very small dimension, typically 0.010 cm to 0.125 cm. The problem is that the slot(s) is damaged when it contacts the work material. This damage will enlarge the slot(s) and liquid exiting the slot(s). Also, the slot(s) wears out from the fluid motion.

Method of cleaning an internal access opening by a nozzle with wearing contact


An exercising bicycle includes a supporting base, a movable base slidably and adjustably secured to the supporting base, at least one pivot bar including a first end portion pivotally connected with the supporting base, a mediate portion and a second end portion, a supporting bar including a first end portion pivotally connected with the movable base and a second end portion pivotally connected with the mediate portion of the pivot bar, a seat mounted on the second end portion of the pivot bar, a transmission case mounted on the supporting base, a pedal member movably mounted on the transmission case, and a resistance device mounted in the transmission case for providing resistance to movement of the pedal member.

Sometimes, our exercise activities are restricted to being performed indoors due to the heavy traffic or bad weather, therefore, it is necessary to provide an exerciser which can be employed indoors for exercising purposes. The present invention has arisen to provide an exercising bicycle suitable for users of different stature.


A transistor outline housing is provided that has bonding wires on an upper surface. The bonding wires are reduced in length and have connection leads with an excess length at an end opposite the bonding end.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a transistor outline (TO) housing for high frequency applications, and to a method for producing such a housing.
2. Description of Related Art
TO housings for high frequency applications are known.
In particular document DE 102 21 706 B4 describes a TO housing for high frequency applications.
Such a housing comprises a base which is typically formed as a punched metal part.
The base serves to accommodate a chip with photodiode or a laser diode which is used as a transmitter diode or receiver diode in high frequency applications.
Besides the transmitter diode or receiver diode, other electronic components are typically arranged on the TO housing, in particular an amplifier unit.
The chip is connected via signal leads which are passed through the base.
These signal or connection leads are embedded in a sealing compound, usually of glass, whereby they are insulated from the base and mechanically fixed therein.
Moreover, the glass sealing compound hermetically seals the housing.
With the demand for ever increasing transmission performance, the possible bandwidth of a module comprising such a TO housing has to be increased.
Conventional modules comprising a generic TO housing are presently able to transmit data rates of a maximum of 10 Gbit/s.
In future, however, data rates of more than 20 Gbit/s, in particular data rates from 25 to 28 Gbit/s are desirable.
For achieving this, the impedance of signal carrying elements of such a module is crucial, among other things.
The modules used typically exhibit an electrical impedance, simply referred to as impedance in practice, of about 50 Ω.
It will be understood that the impedance is a function of frequency, and that impedance in the context of the invention refers to the impedance in the high frequency range in which the respective devices are typically operated.
In the high frequency range, a change in impedance involves signal loss due to a reflection. It is therefore desirable that the impedance of the signal path of the transmitter or receiver module is matched with the impedance of the module connected therewith.
In particular it is desired that the transmission and reflection losses are kept as low as possible in a range from 0 to 30 GHz.
Problematic in this context are the bonding wires between the connection leads of the TO housing and the chip on which a transmitter or receiver diode is disposed. A long bonding wire will produce an inductance which reduces the bandwidth of the module comprising the TO housing.
Also problematic are the passages sealed with glass. Due to the comparatively high dielectric constant of glass and the relatively narrow passage, a capacitive characteristic will result which also produces signal loss.

Transistor outline housing and method for producing same


The present invention is related to pyrrolidine oxadiazole and thiadiazole derivatives for use as pharmaceutically active compounds, as well as pharmaceutical formulations containing such pyrrolidine oxadiazole derivatives. Said pyrrolidine derivatives are useful in the treatment and/or prevention of preterm labor, premature birth and dysmenorrhea. In particular, the present invention is related to pyrrolidine derivatives displaying a substantial modulatory, notably an antagonist activity of the oxytocin receptor. More preferably, said compounds are useful in the treatment and/or prevention of disease states mediated by oxytocin, including preterm labor, premature birth and dysmenorrhea. The present invention is furthermore related to novel pyrrolidine derivatives as well as to methods of their preparation. (I) B is a oxadiazole or thiadiazole group

In the field of obstetrics, one of the most important problems is the management of preterm labor and premature birth as they represent a major cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality.
For the treatment of preterm labor the use of magnesium sulfate and ethanol has been suggested. However, magnesium sulfate at plasma concentrations above the therapeutic range of 4 to 8 mg/dL can cause inhibition of cardiac conduction and neuromuscular transmission, respiratory depression and cardiac arrest, thus making this agent unsuitable notably when the renal function is impaired.
Ethanol is effective in preventing premature labor, but it does not produce a corresponding reduction in the incidence of fetal respiratory distress. Also, ethanol is assumed to have a negative impact on the fetus.
Two further therapeutical agents fall into either of the groups of:                a) β2-adrenergic agonists, or        b) oxytocin antagonists.
The β2-adrenergic receptor generally causes an inhibitory action within the cells wherein it is expressed (muscles, heart, uterus etc). β2-adrenergic agonists are used to activate said inhibitory action of the receptor. Hence, β2-adrenergic agonists are sympathomimetics which—among others—inhibit uterine contractility. Known β2-adrenergic agonists for the treatment of preterm labor are Ritodrine, Terbutaline and Albuterol.
Ritodrine (i.e. (R*,S*)-4-Hydroxy-.alpha.-[1-[[2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethyl]amino]ethyl]benzenemethanol; see U.S. Pat. No. 3,410,944 of N. V. Philips) is the leading β2-adrenergic agonist but causes a number of cardiovascular and metabolic side effects in the mother, including tachycardia, increased renin secretion, hyperglycemia (and reactive hypoglycemia in the infant).
Terbutaline (i.e. 5-[2-[(1,1-Dimethylethyl)amino]-1-hydroxyethyl]-1,3-benzenediol, U.S. Pat. No. 3,937,838, Draco) and Albuterol (α1-[[(1,1-Dimethylethyl)amino]methyl]-4-hydroxy-1,3-benzenedimethanol; U.S. Pat. No. 3,644,353, Allen and Hanburys) are further β2-adrenergic agonists and have side effects similar to those of Ritodrine.
A more recent approach of treating preterm labor consists in the use of oxytocin antagonists.
Oxytocin (OT) is a peptide hormone and causes the contraction of the uterus of mammals during labor. The corresponding oxytocin receptor is similar to V1a and V2 vasopressin receptors and acts via a G protein-coupled receptor, coupled to activation of phospholipase C and increases in IP3 that release Ca2+ from intracellular stores. The increases in intracellular calcium that ensue lead to increased contraction of smooth muscle via activation of myosin light chain kinase. Oxytocin (OT) receptors increase dramatically during the course of pregnancy. The concentration of OT receptors has been shown to correlate with spontaneous uterine activity (M. Maggi et al. J. Clin. Endocrinol Metabol; 70; 1142, 1990). In the last few years, evidence has accumulated to strongly suggest that the hormone oxytocin may be a physiological initiator of labor in several mammalian species including humans. Furthermore, oxytocin is believed to exert this effect in two different parts:                by directly contracting the uterine myometrium and        by enhancing the synthesis and release of contractile prostaglandins from the uterine endometrium/decidua. These prostaglandins may, in addition, be important in the cervical ripening process.
By these mechanisms, the process of labor (term and preterm) is initiated by a heightened sensitivity of the uterus to oxytocin, resulting in part as a result of an increase in the number of oxytocin receptors in this tissue.
By blocking oxytocin, the direct (contractile) and indirect (enhanced prostaglandin synthesis) effects of oxytocin on the uterus may be achieved. An oxytocin blocker, or antagonist, is therefore assumed to be more efficacious for treating preterm labor than current regimens.
Atosiban (i.e. oxytocin, 1-(3-mercaptopropanoic acid)-2-(O-ethyl-D-tyrosine)-4-L-threonine-8-L-ornithine) is a cyclic pentapeptide which is the best known OT antagonist (WO 9501368, Ferring A B; J. Reprod. Fertil., 101(2), 345–52 (English) 1994; Am. J. Obstet. Gynecol., 170(2), 474–8 (English) 1994). The principal drawback to the use of peptide antagonists like atosiban is the problem of low oral bioavailability resulting from intestinal degradation. Hence, they must be administered parenterally.
Also, WO 96/22775 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,756,497 (Merck) disclose benzoxazinyl-piperidines or benzoxazinones as OT receptor antagonists. Indanylpiperidines and tolyl-piperazines are reported by Evans et al. in J. Med. Chem., 35, 3919 (1992) as being orally deliverable OT antagonists
It has now been found that compounds of the present invention are antagonists of oxytocin and bind to the oxytocin receptor. When the oxytocin receptor is bound by the compounds of the present invention, oxytocin is antagonized by being blocked from its receptor and thus being unable to exert its biologic or pharmacologic effects. The compounds of the present invention are therefore useful in the treatment and prevention of preterm labor and premature birth. The compounds are also useful for stoppage of labor preparatory to cesarean delivery. In particular the compounds of the present invention are useful in the treatment and prevention of oxytocin-related disorders of animals, preferably mammals and especially humans. It is another purpose of this invention to provide a method of antagonizing the functions of oxytocin in disease states in mammals. It is also a purpose of this invention to develop a method of preventing or treating the oxytocin-related disorders of preterm labor by antagonizing the binding of oxytocin to its receptor.
The compounds of the present invention are also useful in the treatment of dysmenorrhea which may be defined as a cyclic pain associated with menses during ovulatory cycles. The pain is thought to result from uterine contractions and ischemia, probably mediated by the effect of prostaglandins produced in the secretory endometrium. By blocking both the direct and indirect effects of oxytocin on the uterus, an oxytocin antagonist is more efficacious for treating dysmenorrhea than current regimens.

Pyrrolidine oxadiazole- and thiadiazole oxime derivatives being oxytocin receptor antagonists

Applied Research Systems ARS Holding N.V.


Systems and methods for locating and providing public mobile device charging stations are disclosed. One or more charging stations may be configured to charge a battery of a mobile device. A database may be configured to store location information of the one or more charging stations as well as mobile device location information of the one or more respective mobile devices. A server communicatively coupled with the one or more charging stations and the database, may be configured to determine a proximity of the one or more charging stations to a location of the mobile device. This determination may be based on the station location information and the mobile device location information. Based on the determined proximity, provide the station location information of the respective one or more charging stations to the mobile device.

Mobile devices, such as cellular phones, personal digital assistants, tablets, and the like, are now widely used and heavily depended upon for voice and data communications. In order to maintain proper power levels for the operation of the device, the battery of the mobile device needs to be recharged from time to time. Often, at inopportune times, mobile device users may be located at public locations without the ability to recharge the mobile device battery. Even with the existence of public mobile device charging stations, these stations are limited in number and location. Consequently, a mobile device user runs the risk of his mobile device battery being exhausted before locating an available station to recharge the mobile device.
Therefore, it would be advantageous for a user to use a system to be alerted of the locations of nearby publicly available public or private charging stations to charge his mobile device when the battery power level of his mobile device decreases to a low level. It would be particularly advantageous if such a system and method also provided: advertising opportunities for retailers; the ability for retailers to drive traffic to a store or stores; a mobile application, such as a mobile application that would indicate and/or suggest charging station locations, and/or that would monitor a user's use and the correspondent battery charge; and the like.

System and method for providing and locating public or private mobile device charging stations


A power source and a human contacting portion of a portable power tool, with a vibration-proof member and a spacer placed between them, are tightened by fastening and connecting means in the direction approaching each other. The spacer serves to limit compressive power of the vibration proof member which acts between the power source and human contacting portion within effective vibration-proof range of the vibration-proof member by utilizing the fastening and connecting means, This does not cause the vibration absorbing effect of the vibration-proof member to be lost. In addition, there is no need to check the fastening degree achieved by the fastening and connecting means, thus allowing easy attachment of the vibration-proof member thereto. Alternatively, vibration-proof members may be placed between the power source side and the working member side without spacers if the vibration proof members support the power source apart from the working member. To facilitate this construction a universal power transmission, such as a flexible shaft or coupling, is used to transmit rotation power from the power source to the working member in spite of a change in the relative positional relation of the power source to the working member, caused by the vibration-proof member.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a portable power tool such as a power blower, engine cutter, chain saw, power sprayer and the like and more particularly to an improved portable power tool adapted to reduce vibration transmitted from a power source to a human body contacting portion such as a grip.
2. Background
Vibration-proof member such as rubber, springs and the like is generally disposed between the power source and the human body contacting portion in various conventional portable power tools, to reduce such vibration transmitted from the power source such as an internal combustion engine to a human body contacting portion including a grip, etc.
Such conventional methods are not always practical. In some instances, the vibration-proof member is difficult to attach and the vibration prevention effect cannot be satisfactorily obtained.

Portable power tool with vibration-proof member


A method of forming a fiber glass preform includes the steps of: (a) pouring a cladding glass into a mold; (b) pouring a core glass on a flat horizontal upper surface of the cladding glass so as to form a united glass body having the core glass and the cladding glass under a condition that viscosity of the cladding glass and viscosity of the core glass are adjusted to certain predetermined values respectively so that the core glass is separated from and placed on the cladding glass; (c) cooling the united glass body to solidify the same so that the cladding glass is deformed by contraction thereof so as to produce a depression at a top middle portion thereof and that the core glass is deformed so as to form a projected portion thereof to fill the depression therewith; (d) separating the united glass body into an upper portion and a lower portion comprising the projected portion of the core glass; and (e) extruding the lower portion of the united glass body so as to form the fiber glass preform.

This invention relates to a method of forming fluoride glass fiber preforms for optical communication.
The application of fluoride glass fibers is expected in the field of optical communication, for example, the fiber optical amplifier operating at 1.3 .mu.m-band, the optical waveguide and the fiber laser because its light transmittance region is wide and the transmittance of infrared region therethrough is particularly high as compared with oxide glass fibers and plastic fibers. However, there are some drawbacks of fluoride glass in the preparation of optical fiber preforms. That is, fluoride glass tends to react with water in the atmosphere and to be crystallized.
There are some usual methods of forming fluoride glass fiber preforms. For example, JP-A-57-191240 discloses a build-in casting method. In this method, firstly, a fluoride glass melt for the cladding is poured into a mold which comprises a plurality of separable elongate portions. Then, an unsolidified central portion of the fluoride glass melt is allowed to flow out. After that, another fluoride glass melt for the core is poured into the central portion of the mold.
JP-A-58-125630 discloses a rotational casting method. In this method, firstly, a fluoride glass melt for the cladding is poured into a rotating mold. Then, an unsolidified central portion of the fluoride glass melt is allowed to flow out. After that, another fluoride glass melt for the core is poured into the central portion of the rotating mold. However, the above-mentioned two methods have the following drawbacks.
It is needed to repeat casting in a relatively short time. Bubbles and striae tend to be incorporated into the glass because it is necessary to pour a core glass melt into a central opening of a cladding glass tube. Furthermore, the cladding glass is reheated and thus tends to be crystallized by pouring a large amount of the core glass melt into the cladding glass tube which has started to solidify.
JP-A-3-183630 discloses an extrusion method in which a solidified core glass body and a solidified cladding glass body are mated with each other at their ground surfaces and the mated glass body is extruded.
JP-A-63-190739 discloses a rod-in-tube method. In this method, a solidified core glass rod is inserted into a solidified cladding glass tube so as to form a preform. After that, the preform is melted, and then the melted preform is drawn.
The above-mentioned extrusion method and rod-in-tube method have the following drawbacks.
In the methods, at first, the core glass and the cladding glass are separately prepared. Therefore, the incorporation of impurities into the glass tends to be suppressed. However, a high gain can not be obtained due to irregular interface between the core and the cladding. Furthermore, it is difficult to prepare a preform for a single-mode optical fiber and in particular to have a diametral ratio of cladding to core more than about 15:1.
JP-A-63-11535 discloses a suction method in which a cladding glass melt is poured into a mould which is formed at its lower end with a sink for the cladding glass melt, and then a core glass melt is poured on the cladding glass melt. During cooling of the cladding glass melt, a void space is produced at the center of the cladding glass body due to contraction of the cladding glass in the sink. Accordingly, the void space is filled with the core glass melt so that a preform having a core-cladding structure is prepared. However, this method has the following drawbacks.
The core diameter does not become constant because the central void space for the core is produced due to only contraction of the cladding glass in the sink. Furthermore, it is difficult to obtain a long preform.
JP-A-4-31333 discloses a method in which a preform made by the rod-in-tube method or the suction method is drawn so as to obtain a core having a uniform diameter, and then the outer surface of a cladding is ground so as to obtain the cladding having a uniform diameter. However, in this method, crystallization at the interface between the core and the cladding tends to occur, thereby lowering strength of the preform.

Method of forming fluoride glass fiber preform


A system that analyzes neurological signals is described. During operation, the system monitors neurological signals from users at multiple locations, where the neurological signals are associated with different electrode configurations. Then, the system modifies the monitored neurological signals to correct for the different electrode configurations so that a resulting set of modified neurological signals corresponds to a common electrode configuration, thereby facilitating subsequent identification of a subset of the set of modified neurological signals.

The present disclosure relates to techniques for a system for collecting neurological signals using different electrode or sensor configurations from users at multiple locations.
Neurological monitoring and stimulation is increasingly popular. For example, driven by the lower cost and increased availability of electrodes and sensors companies are exploring neuromarketing in which neurological data is collected from users while the users engage in activities, such as in a focus group. However, in order to collect the neurological data, these companies are often forced to bring the users to a common location, where a standard type of electrode or sensor model is used to monitor the users. This approach can be cumbersome and expensive. Consequently, it can restrict the number of users that participate, which may bias the collected neurological data.

Device-independent neurological monitoring system


A wireless network node can include a wireless network antenna, a processor in communication with the wireless network antenna, and a non-transitory computer readable medium containing computer-executable code. The processor can be configured to calculate an initial buffer size. The processor can be configured to adjust the initial buffer size to a current buffer size based on a current network load.

Wireless mesh networks (WMNs) are a type of ad hoc wireless networks that uses multi-hop wireless communications to provide or improve connectivity between mesh routers. The mesh routers may be mobile or stationary. Client devices may connect to their preferred mesh router using wired or wireless technologies. The client traffic is then routed across the mesh from mesh router to mesh router to reach another device within the mesh. Alternatively, the client traffic is routed to an external device accessible via a gateway mesh router that bridges traffic between the WMN and an external network. Client devices may roam between different mesh routers in a network, and as such, their mobility management may be performed as a part of the WMN framework.
The broadcast nature of the shared wireless channel limits the set of wireless nodes that can transmit concurrently. One differentiator between various wireless technologies is the medium access control (MAC) protocol, which controls and coordinates access to the shared wireless spectrum. Distributed wireless nodes often use a carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) MAC protocol. The IEEE 802.11 family of standards is a popular implementation of CSMA/CA. Wi-Fi radios supporting these standards have become a commodity that may be operated globally in license-exempt frequency bands. The IEEE 802.11 standard also supports ad hoc communication capabilities that may be used to set up WMNs. Amendments under the IEEE 802.11s standard introduce mesh capabilities for multi-hop forwarding at layer two in the network.
A buffer is a temporary storage for information bits. Packet-switched networks implement buffers to accommodate transient traffic bursts. Buffers may prevent packet loss. Buffer sizing is an important network configuration parameter: under-buffered networks lead to frequent packet loss and subsequent under-utilization of network resources, and over-buffered networks lead to increased queuing delays.
Transmission control protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP) communications are used by a large number of network applications, such as file transfers. TCP provides reliable, in-order delivery of data. TCP uses acknowledgments (ACKs) with retransmissions to provide reliable packet delivery. A sliding window mechanism is provided in TCP for flow control and congestion control. Network capacity information may be determined by adjusting the size of its sliding window (called congestion window). TCP implements an additive increase, multiplicative decrease (AIMD) mechanism to adjust the size of its congestion window in response to network feedback. Thus, TCP operates as a closed-loop feedback system. The TCP congestion control algorithms depend on tight control loops, meaning that there are no substantial queuing delays in the network.
User datagram protocol (UDP) communications are increasingly being used by applications that value timely delivery of data over reliable delivery. These include delay-sensitive applications such as voice over IP (VoIP), gaming, and real-time video broadcast. Usually the application fills in gaps where data is either delayed, lost, or corrupted during its transmission through the network. Thus, minimizing queuing delays is an important performance metric for UDP traffic as the queuing delay contributes to the perceived quality of service (QoS) at the application layer.
A data flow or a data stream is a sequence of data packets (e.g., TCP segments or UDP packets) between two hosts. A flow in IP networks may be identified by a multi-tuple key. One conventional definition of flow uses a 5-tuple key, including source IP address, destination IP address, protocol (e.g., TCP, UDP, ICMP), source port, and destination port. A flow may traverse multiple links (with possibly heterogeneous link capacities) along the path between the source and destination. The end-to-end rate of this flow is limited by the link with the smallest available capacity along this path. That link becomes the bottleneck for this flow.
With declining memory chip prices, system architects may be inclined to over-provision routing buffers. This, however, does not necessarily lead to improved network performance. IP networks, in general, desire to minimize buffering and queuing delays. While this is apparent for real-time flows, it also holds for scenarios where throughput has precedence over delay (e.g., bulk file transfer with TCP). TCP's AIMD rate control algorithm is designed to fill any buffer and invoke an occasional packet loss so as to provide feedback to the sender. Large network buffers increase the delay before this congestion information can be communicated to the TCP source. This may have a number of ramifications: first, it may affect the stability characteristics of the TCP stream, and second, it may impact the delay characteristics for other flows (both real-time and TCP) sharing the buffer with this stream.
A conventional buffer sizing approach used in wired networks is to size the bottleneck link buffers to be greater than the bandwidth delay product (BDP) of the network, such that B≧C×RTT, where B is the bottleneck link buffer, C is the bottleneck link capacity, and RTT is the effective round-trip propagation delay through the bottleneck. BDP represents the maximum carrying capacity of the path between the source and the destination. Because queues in wired networks only build up at bottleneck links, buffer sizing is of minimal concern at other locations in the wired network.
The wireless domain introduces a number of new challenges in understanding the impact of buffer size on network performance. In a wired network, buffer sizing is usually studied by keeping the bottleneck link fully utilized. Wireless links, however, are just an abstraction for shared spectrum between communicating entities and their neighbors, only one of which can successfully transmit at a time. It is not clear how buffers may be associated with a distributed set of nodes, some of which relay traffic for other nodes in the network. Furthermore, the capacity of this shared spectrum is not a known constant, but varies over time due to sporadic noise and interference from other wireless nodes. Finally, for the popular CSMA/CA networks, the packet inter-service time at each transmission hop varies due to the random scheduling by the MAC. This MAC behavior should be accounted for when designing buffer sizing protocols for wireless networks.

KING ABDULLAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY


To enable HDR video signals of a plurality of signal interfaces to be satisfactorily handled.

Cameras that output high dynamic range (HDR) video signals are known in the related art (e.g., refer to Patent Literature 1). Various signal interfaces have been suggested as signal interfaces for HDR video signals. As a signal interface, for example, Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG), Perceptual Quantizer (PQ), S-Log 3, and the like are known.
When signal interfaces vary, an opto-electrical transfer function (OETF) for performing a grayscale compression process and an electro-optical transfer function (EOTF) for performing a grayscale decompression process differ, and an opto-optical transfer function that is a video correction characteristic during display of a monitor also differs.
With regard to an OETF and an EOTF, basically an OETF of an output side and an EOTF of a reception side cancel out each other. Thus, even if HDR video signal interfaces vary and thus an OETF and an EOTF vary, an actual impact on a video displayed on a monitor is small. However, since an OOTF is a video correction characteristic during display of a monitor, if signal interfaces vary and thus the OOTF varies, a video displayed on the monitor may look different even with the same video signal (camera video).

Signal processing device, signal processing method, camera system, video system, and server

Abstract: [Solution] A processing unit processes a linear high dynamic range video signal and obtains a high dynamic range video signal that has undergone a grayscale compression process. The processing unit is able to perform grayscale compression processes of a plurality of signal interfaces. For example, when a grayscale compression process of another signal interface other than a reference signal interface is performed, the processing unit further performs a process of adding characteristics of system gamma of the reference signal interface and a process of cancelling out characteristics of system gamma of the other signal interface.


A method for manufacturing a device where an improvement of etching accuracy and curtailing of manufacturing costs are realized when a device is manufactured attended with etching, such as RIE, in which a device; i.e., an object of etching, evolves heat.

In association with an increase in communication traffic, construction of a large-capacity optical network using wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) is being pursued. Application of a planer lightwave circuit (PLC) which can be mass-manufactured is promising for miniaturization and cost-reduction of a WDM optical transmission system.
FIGS. 4(a) to 4(e) are views showing processes for manufacturing a quartz-based planer lightwave circuit device 100 which is taken as a conventionally-used PLC-type integrated element. When the planer lightwave device 100 is manufactured through the processes shown in FIGS. 4(a) to 4(e), silicon glass is deposited on a substrate 110 to form a lower cladding layer 120 and a core layer 130 through use of a flame hydrolysis deposition (FHD) technique or a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique [formation of a film on a lower plate; see FIG. 4(a)].
Next, photoresists 151, 152 constituting a lightwave pattern are formed on the deposited core layer 130 as a mask to be used in the next process of reactive ion etching (RIE) [see FIG. 4(b)]. A monolayer mask—which has a thickness of 5 μm and contains, e.g., novolak, as the principal ingredient—can be used for the photoresists.
Specifically, the device having such photoresists patterned thereon is processed by means of dry etching in a CF-based gas through use of the RIE process, whereby unwanted areas other than the masked areas are removed to thus form waveguide cores 131, 132 [processing of cores using the RIE process; see FIG. 4(c)]. Subsequently, the photoresists 151, 152 are removed by means of a technique, such as rinsing with an organic solvent or ashing [see FIG. 4(d)].
Further, silicon glass is deposited on the device in which the waveguide cores 131, 132 are formed through the RIE process and from which the photoresists 151, 152 are removed, thereby forming an upper cladding layer 140 [see FIG. 4(e)]. In order to achieve a thermal insulation effect or a light shielding effect when the dry etching is performed through the RIE process, a portion of the cladding layer 120 and a portion of the core layer 131, 132 are sometimes etched to the surface of the substrate 110 or to any point before reaching the surface of the substrate 110.
In addition to using the photoresists 151, 152 shown in FIG. 4, a conceivable mask to be used for dry etching at the time of formation of the waveguide cores includes a two-layer mask formed from a layer or a photoresist layer, the layer being formed from a high heat-resistant resin or metal, such as chromium, through processes shown in FIGS. 5(a) to 5(c).
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5(a), a layer 160—which is formed from highly heat-resistant resin such as polyimide, or metal such as chromium or copper, and which is to become a lower layer mask—is formed on the overall core layer 130 of the substrate 110 having the lower cladding layer 120 and the core layer 130 formed therein. Next, photoresists 171, 172 constituting the waveguide core pattern are formed on the layer 160 by means of photolithography.
As shown in FIG. 5(b), the substrate is then subjected to etching through the RIE process, thereby forming lower masks 161, 162 constituting the waveguide core pattern. At this time, when the layer is formed from heat-resistant resin, an oxygen gas is used. When the layer 160 is formed from metal, etching is performed through use of a chlorine gas.
When the two-layer masks 151, 152, 161, and 162 are formed from the lower masks 161, 162 and the upper photoresist 170, the substrate is then etched through the RIE process through use of the CF-based gas, thereby forming the waveguide cores 131, 132 [see FIG. 5(c)]. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. HEI 10-142438 describes an embodiment where copper is used as the lower mask shown in FIG. 5(b).
However, in the device manufacturing method shown in FIGS. 4(a) to 4(e), the photoresists used as the mask during the RIE process are thermally deformed by the heat developing in the substrate 110 during dry etching of silicon glass. Hence, there still arises a problem of occurrence of variations in the accuracy of formation of the waveguide core, which is caused as a result of deformation of the pattern serving as the mask.
Put another way, according to the technique shown in FIGS. 4(a) to 4(e), the width of the photoresists becomes reduced by the heat developing in the substrate 110 during the RIE processes, whereby an upper portion of the side surface of the core is sloped, thereby posing difficulty in accurately, stably forming the shape of the waveguide core.
Specifically, prevention of accuracy deterioration due to thermal deformation of the mask and lessening of variations in the width of the core are indispensable for a silicon glass etching process using etching such as the RIE process. Particularly, when an arrayed waveguide grating (AWG) is manufactured through the RIE process, difficulty may sometimes be encountered in providing an accurate difference in optical path lengths required to branch and merge the light beams spaced by a specified wavelength.
Against the backdrop of cost-reduction and high integration of the PLC being required with an aim of high-speed, large-capacity communication, a highly-integrated PLC device can be embodied through use of a structure (a high Δ structure) where a large difference exists between the specific refractive index of the core and the specific refractive index of the PLC device. However, this high Δ structure requires a reduction in the width of the core, and hence variations in processing of the light waveguide such as those mentioned previously must be reduced.
To this end, another conceivable way to improve the accuracy of formation of the waveguide core is use, as the mask for use in the RIE process, the two-layer mask where the photoresists 171, 172 are provided on the layers 161, 162 of high heat-resistant resin, such as polyimide, or metal.
However, this technique also requires another RIE process for patterning the lower layers 161, 162, which poses difficulty in curtailing costs. Moreover, since the number of processes is large, process errors arising the RIE process of the lower mask are accumulated to a greater extent as compared with the case of a monolayer mask, thereby increasing variations in processing.
Specifically, variations in the thickness of the lower masks 161, 162, variations in a rate at which the lower masks 161, 162 are etched, and variations in lateral etching of the mask layers are accumulated by means of RIE of the lower masks 161, 162.
The present invention has been conceived in view of such a problem and provides a device manufacturing method which renders etching accuracy high and curtails manufacturing costs when a device is manufactured in association with etching, such as RIE, where a device which is an object of etching evolves heat.

Abstract: The method includes a coating step of applying over the surface of a device a photosensitive resin containing a phenol-based resin as a main ingredient; a transfer step of transferring a desired pattern on a device surface coated with the photosensitive resin by means of exposing the device surface coated with the photosensitive resin to light with the desired pattern; a development step of subjecting to development treatment the device having the pattern transferred thereon; and an etching step of etching the device surface while the pattern of the photosensitive resin developed through the development treatment is taken as a mask pattern.


A topographical measurement system uses an imaging cartridge formed of a rigid optical element and a clear, elastomeric sensing surface configured to capture high-resolution topographical data from a measurement surface. The imaging cartridge may be configured as a removable cartridge for the system so that the imaging cartridge, including the rigid optical element and elastomeric sensing surface can be removed and replaced as a single, integral component that is robust/stable over multiple uses, and easily user-replaceable as frequently as necessary or desired. The cartridge may also usefully incorporate a number of light shaping and other features to support optimal illumination and image capture.

One type of high-resolution system for measuring surface topography uses a clear elastomer with a reflective coating disposed on a rigid optical substrate. While such systems usefully permit many types of accurate, detailed surface measurements, the elastomer can delaminate and become damaged over the course of multiple uses. At the same time, replacing the elastomer is error prone, and can be challenging for end users of such systems. There remains a need for improved surface topography measurement systems that facilitate rapid and convenient elastomer changes by end users.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A device for cleaning and defogging an endoscope. A sponge is impregnated with a composition of water, a glycol and a water soluble wetting agent. The impregnated sponge is packaged in a container designed to facilitate cleaning and defogging of the endoscope. In one embodiment, the impregnated sponge is provided in an open container, and the endoscope is wiped against the impregnated sponge. In another embodiment, the impregnated sponge is provided in a tubular container, into which the endoscope is inserted. In yet another embodiment, the impregnated sponge is provided in a device designed to be attached onto an endoscopic trocar cannula. In yet another embodiment, the impregnated sponge is attached to the surface of a flapper valve in an endoscopic trocar cannula, such that the sponge in contacted by the endoscope when the endoscope is inserted in the cannula.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for cleaning and defogging medical instruments and, more specifically, to an impregnated sponge for cleaning and defogging an endoscope.
2. Description of the Related Prior Art
Medical instruments such as surgical endoscopes require regular and careful cleaning. The shaft of an endoscope must be cleaned of bodily residues accumulated during use. A soiled endoscope lens must not only be cleaned, but also defogged. The cleaning and defogging techniques employed must be effective, and at the same time preserve the efficacy and safety of the endoscope.
One presently available technique for cleaning and defogging surgical endoscopes involves impregnating a sponge with a defogger from a dropper, and then wiping the endoscope with the impregnated sponge. In order to avoid scratching the endoscope lens and/or contaminating the endoscope, the sponge should be lint-free and free of foreign materials. Moreover, the sponge should have high water absorption to promote faster wicking of the solution within the sponge and to provide effective cleaning and defogging action at the point of contact with the endoscope. This unique combination of features is not present in the sponges which are currently used for cleaning and defogging endoscopes.
Additionally, the sponges currently in use must be periodically saturated with the defogger. Moreover, none of the endoscope defogging systems presently available offer the convenience of cleaning the endoscope shaft simultaneously with cleaning and defogging the endoscope lens. Finally, none of the available products provide a method of cleaning and defogging an endoscope as it is inserted or removed from an endoscopic trocar cannula.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,517,702 to Jackson discloses a sponge for cleaning surgical endoscopes including an axial central bore sized to fit the endoscopic shaft and a slit extending the length of the bore to permit the sponge to fit on the shaft. In Jackson, the endoscope shaft is cleaned by the rubbing action of the sponge against the endoscope. A separate brush attachment is used to clean the lens. However, Jackson, and other products presently available, do not provide an effective, inexpensive apparatus utilizing a sponge with the important features discussed above.
Hence, there is a need for such an effective and safe apparatus for cleaning and defogging surgical endoscopes.

Endoscope cleaning and defogging apparatus


A method and apparatus is provided for exposing the recording material. A light beam is generated by a light source. The light beam passes through an optical isolator, through a light modulator, and then exposes recording material point-by-point and line-by-line. The modulator is activated during exposing of each line in an exposing time span, the modulator being deactivated at least at times within a return time span for each line. The optical isolator is enabled during the exposing time span. To compensate for heating of the optical isolator, the optical isolator is also activated for at least a portion of the return time span. A sum of time extents of the exposing time span and the compensation time span are approximately a constant for each line. Activation of the isolator during the compensation time span compensates for thermal effects which occur in the optical isolator as a result of activation and de-activation thereof. Thus, the optical isolator is thermally stabilized and is held at a constant temperature in the exposure time spans and in the return time spans.

The invention is in the field of electronic reproduction technology and is directed to a method for the point-by-point and line-by-line exposing of recording material with a light beam, and is also directed to an electronic exposing unit, also called an exposer, recorder or image setter.
In a recorder, a light beam modulated by a video signals is conducted point-by-point and line-by-line across a recording material to be exposed. The recording material is thereby fixed on a holder that moves relative to the light beam. Given an inside-the-drum device, the recording material is fixed on a stationary holder shaped like a cylindrical segment or on an exposure trough, and the light beam is conducted across the recording material point-by-point and line-by-line with a rotating light beam deflection means. However, the recorder can also be designed as a drum device or flat bed device.
A laser is often employed as a light source for generating the light beam. The modulation of the light beam dependent on the video signal occurs with a modulator, for example with an acousto-optical modulator. In the traditional technology, the drive of the modulator with the video signal occurs such that the modulator is activated line-by-line within exposure time spans wherein the light beam sweeps the lines to be recorded on the recording material and is deactivated during return time spans wherein the light beam is conducted to the next line to be exposed.
In a traditional recorder, back reflections from the modulator or the light beam deflection unit can disadvantageously occur in the direction toward the light source, and these must be prevented in order to achieve a good recording quality. Beyond this, a high efficiency of the modulator is required so that a light beam with high luminous power is available for exposing the recording medium. Further, the components that are employed must have optimally constant operating properties since, for example due to heating of the components, the optical properties of the light beam can vary, this in turn diminishing the recording quality.

Method and apparatus for exposing recording material having a temperature compensated optical isolator


A new and distinct variety of Verbena plant, substantially as herein illustrated and described, characterized particularly as to novelty by its light lavender flowers, early flowering, double incised leaves and a habit that is extremely spreading.

The present invention comprises a new distinct cultivar of Verbena, botanically known as Verbena×hybrida.
The new cultivar is propagated from cuttings resulting from the cross of 'X845-1' and 'W723-3'. 'X845-1' is a purple flowering Verbena having a semi-erect habit. 'X845-1' is not commercially available and is not known by any synonyms. 'W723-3' is a light pink flowering Verbena having a spreading habit. 'W723-3' is not commercially available and is not known by any synonyms. Neither 'X845-1' nor 'W723-3' have been patented.
As a result of this cross the present cultivar was created in 2002 in Enkhuizen, Netherlands and has been repeatedly asexually reproduced by cuttings in Enkhuizen, Netherlands and Sarrians, France over a three year period. The new variety is stable and reproduces true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.
This new Verbena plant is an annual in most climatical zones in the US, only in zones, 7, 8, 9 and 10 is it a perennial plant.


An articulated robot and a conveying device capable of increasing conveying speed are provided. An articulated robot conveys a workpiece from a first processing part to a second processing part linearly disposed with respect to the first processing part. The articulated robot includes: an extensible arm; and a grip part (3) provided on a lower side of a distal end of the arm and for gripping the workpiece, in which the grip part is advanced from its one end into the first processing part, and also the grip part is advanced from its another end opposite to the one end into the second processing part.

An articulated robot is provided in a conveying part that performs loading/unloading of a workpiece to/from a processing part in a processing apparatus for continuously processing workpieces in a plurality of processing parts which are successively installed. In a semiconductor processing apparatus which is typical for such a processing apparatus, a cluster type processing apparatus in which processing parts as a working part are radially disposed around a conveying part, and an in-line type processing apparatus in which processing parts are linearly disposed are used. A cluster type processing apparatus has a problem in that the number of the processing parts are limited to 5 or 6 at maximum. In contrast to this, an in-line type processing apparatus has an advantage that the number of the processing parts can be increased as needed.
As a conventional articulated robot, there is disclosed a robot arm apparatus including: a first arm which is rotatably mounted to a base via a first transmission mechanism; a second arm which is rotatably mounted to a distal end part of the first arm via a second transmission mechanism; and a fork member which is rotatably linked to a distal end part of the second arm via a third transmission mechanism and for mounting an object to be transferred (for example, Patent Literature 1). The fork member has a distal end part which is bifurcated, and a base end part which is supported by the second arm. In the above described Patent Literature 1, the robot arm apparatus is configured such that the fork member always advances from its distal end part into a processing part.


A vehicle, a tool carriage assembly, and a system are disclosed. The vehicle includes drive wheels and a steering assembly which are responsive to control signal(s) to substantially correct a displacement error of the vehicle relative to an intended travel path. The tool carriage assembly includes a support section operatively mounted to a main body for relative movement. The support section is adapted to have mounted thereto a tool unit comprising a tool head. In response to a displacement error of the tool head relative to the intended travel path, the support section is responsive to one or more control signals to move relative to the main body to substantially correct the displacement error of the tool head. The system includes the vehicle having the tool carriage assembly mounted thereto, and a control system for controlling the correction of the displacement errors of the vehicle and the tool head.

In many operations including farming operations, such as seeding, it is most desirable that a tractor and towed vehicle travel along an intended travel path. In some cases the vehicle is adapted to be towed by another vehicle such as a tractor. In such cases the towed vehicle simply passively follows the tractor as it travels along the travel path. Often, however, maintaining the vehicle on an intended travel path is difficult to achieve because of unwanted displacement of the vehicle from the travel path as, for example, gravitational forces placed on the vehicle as a result of sloping land; differential and imbalanced soil reaction forces on fertilizer ploughs, stubble interference, loose soil and lateral slips when cornering at high speeds.

Guidance and control of vehicle travel path and components


A method is provided for preparing solid or thin-film single-crystals of cubic sesquioxides (space group no. 206, Ia-3) of scandium, yttrium or rare earth elements doped with lanthanide ions with valence +III, using a high-temperature flux growth technique, and to the various uses of the single-crystals obtained according to said method, in particular in the field of optics.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for the preparation of bulk or thin-film single-crystals of cubic sesquioxides (space group No. 206, Ia-3) of scandium, yttrium or rare earth metals doped with lanthanide ions having a valency of +III by a high-temperature flux growth technique and to the various applications of the single-crystals obtained according to this process, in particular in the optical field.
2. Description of Related Art
A laser is a device which emits light (electromagnetic radiation) amplified by stimulated emission. The term laser is an acronym originating from "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation". The laser produces a spatially and temporally coherent light based on the laser effect. By virtue of the stimulated emission process, the photon emitted has the same wave vector, the same polarization and the same phase as the photon moving through the optical cavity. This results in a source of coherent radiation.
Various types of laser exist, among which may in particular be mentioned gas lasers, chemical lasers, organic dye lasers, metal vapor lasers, solid-state lasers and semiconductor lasers.
Solid-state lasers use solid media, such as crystals or glasses, as medium for the emission (spontaneous and stimulated) of photons and amplifier medium. The amplifier medium, or also gain medium, is composed of an optically active material comprising a matrix (glass or crystal) rendered optically active by doping with an ion which absorbs the radiation from an optical pumping source and which is de-excited by emission of photons. The first laser is a ruby laser, the emission of which originates from the Cr3+ ion. Other ions are much used: the majority are rare earth metal ions: Nd3+, Yb3+, Pr3+, Er3+, Tm3+, . . . , or also transition metal ions, such as Ti3+ or Cr3+, inter alia. The emission wavelength of the laser depends essentially on the doping ion for the rare earth metal ions and on the properties of the matrix in all cases, the influence of the latter being much greater in the case of the transition metal ions. Thus, glass doped with neodymium does not emit at the same wavelength (1053 nm) as the crystalline solid known as yttrium-aluminum-garnet (YAG) and composed of Y3Al5O12 doped with neodymium (1064 nm). Solid-state lasers operate in continuous mode or in pulsed mode (pulses from a few microseconds to a few femtoseconds). They are capable of emitting equally well in the visible region, the near infrared region, the middle infrared region and the ultraviolet region.
Above a crystal dimension of acceptable optical quality, these lasers make it possible to obtain powers of the order of approximately ten watts continuously and higher powers in pulsed mode. They are used for both scientific and industrial applications, such as welding, marking and cutting of materials.
In addition to their use in the manufacture of high-power lasers and/or short-pulse lasers, these solid materials, formed of a matrix and of a doping ion, can also be used in the manufacture of eye-safety lasers, of lasers for surgery and/or ophthalmology (diode-pumped lasers, pulsed or continuous, in the red region, the green region and up to the middle infrared region), of scintillators, of waveguides, of bolometers (detectors having heat/light discrimination), for optical cooling, as luminophoric materials or alternatively as materials for the storage and handling of quantum information.
At the current time, the most promising crystalline solids for all of these applications, and in particular for the manufacture of lasers, are cubic (thus isotropic) sesquioxides of formula R2O3 in which R represents one or more elements chosen from metals having a valency of III, such as scandium, yttrium and the rare earth metals (La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Pm, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu), doped with rare earth metal ions. Some of them exhibit in particular a greater thermal conductivity than that of YAG doped with rare earth metal ion, which is nevertheless the most widely used laser material at the current time. These cubic sesquioxides are also advantageous insofar as they can be easily doped with rare earth metal ions and have a high density (of the order of 4 to 9.5 g.cm−3 approximately). Furthermore, yttrium, scandium, gadolinium and lutetium sesquioxides exhibit low phonon energies in comparison with the majority of oxides, in particular YAG.
At the current time, these materials are mainly obtained in the form of transparent ceramics prepared by high pressure and high temperature sintering, preferably under vacuum. However, these ceramics exhibit a polycrystalline microstructure with numerous grain boundaries, diminishing the physical properties at the basis of their applications (diffusion of photons, presence of impurities, low thermal conductivity, and the like).
In point of fact, in order to be able to be used in an optimum way in these various applications (laser, scintillator, and the like), these cubic sesquioxides have to be provided in the form of single-crystals having a size in the millimeter to centimeter range and having a satisfactory optical quality.
As a result of their very high melting point (T>2400° C.) and of their high chemical reactivity in the molten state, conditions for producing these cubic sesquioxides in the form of single-crystals and with a satisfactory optical quality prove to be difficult to implement, expensive and sometimes dangerous and most of the time require postgrowth treatments for several hours at high temperature (annealing).
Various techniques for the synthesis of single-crystals of rare earth metal sesquioxides have been reviewed by Akira Yoshikawa and Andrey Novoselov (book: Shaped Crystals; publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg; Part III, pages 187-202; Copyright 2007). These authors remind the reader that, as a result of their very high chemical reactivity in the molten state, these materials in principle have to be synthesized according to "crucibleless" techniques, such as, for example, the Verneuil method (R. A. Lefever et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum., 1963, 33, 769), the zone melting technique known under the term "Laser-Heated Pedestal Growth" (LHPG), as described by D. B. Gasson et al., J. Mater. Sci., 1970, 5, 100, or alternatively according to the cold-crucible or self-crucible technique, also known under the term "skull-melting" and described in particular by V. V. Osiko, J. Cryst. Growth, 1983, 65, 235. Other crystalline growth techniques, such as that of J. Czochralski (Z. Phys. Chem., 1918, 92, 219), carry out the crystallogenesis in crucibles. It is then essential to carry out the growth of the crystals in special crucibles formed of a material having a higher melting point than the melting point of the material to be grown, that is to say greater, in the present case, than 2400° C., such as crucibles made of rhenium, the melting point of which exceeds 3100° C. (L. Fornasiero et al., Cryst. Res. Technol., 1999, 34, 255). However, these techniques exhibit the disadvantage of resulting in single-crystals which are too small (at most of the order of a few millimeters) and/or which exhibit an optical quality insufficient for the applications envisaged. Akira Yoshikawa and Andrey Novoselov for their part provide for the use of a micro-pulling down (μ-PD) technique for carrying out the synthesis of single-crystals of rare earth metal sesquioxides, the principle and the use of which make it possible to produce single-crystal fibers. It concerns drawing fiber downward from a micrometer-size nozzle placed under a crucible in which the powder mixture is brought to its melting point. However, in the case of the growth of materials of the R2O3 type as defined above, this technique, however, requires a special and expensive device (sometimes not able to be operated industrially) and makes it possible to obtain only crystals in the form of fibers. It thus does not make it possible to access large-sized bulk single-crystals. In contrast, the technique known under the acronym HEM for Heat Exchanger Method, provided by V. Peters et al. (J. Cryst. Growth, 2002, 237-239, 879-883), makes it possible to obtain monocrystals of the R2O3 type having a size of several centimeters by the slow cooling of the bottom of a crucible made of rhenium comprising a molten bath of R2O3 brought to the melting point (T>2400° C.). Nevertheless, this technique is impossible to transfer to the industrial scale as a result of its very high cost (price of rhenium, for example), of its dangerousness and of the high chemical reactivity with one another of the elements present in the furnace. This is because the refractory ceramics and the rhenium crucible, in the presence of hydrogen H2 (explosive gas of the growth atmosphere and consequently highly dangerous at high temperature), exhibit strong signs of chemical attack (darkening of the refractory ceramics, dissolution of the crucible resulting in contamination of the crystals) after growth and then require their replacement virtually systematically after only a few growths.
Provision has also already been made, in particular in patent application US 2009/0151621, to synthesize sesquioxides of R2O3 type, in particular of scandium, in the single-crystal form by the hydrothermal route. This process consists in dissolving an R2O3 powder, where R represents one or more elements chosen from scandium, yttrium and lanthanides, in an aqueous solution comprising hydroxide ions and in then bringing the resulting solution to a temperature of 450° C.; to 750° C. under a pressure which can range from 4 to 40 kpsi (i.e., approximately from 3×107 to 3×109 Pa.). This process results in R2O3 single-crystals, the size of which can vary from the order of a few mm to a centimeter; however, it requires operating at a very high pressure and consequently requires a suitable and necessarily expensive device. This technique exhibits the disadvantage of using solutions which are highly corrosive with their environment, then resulting in chemical attack on the silver crucibles used as container. This then results in the contamination of the crystals by the Ag+ ions, which is additional to that by the OH− ions initially present in the solution. Furthermore, the rate of growth of the crystals by the hydrothermal route is very slow (generally less than 0.5 mm/day), which requires extremely lengthy growth times to hope to achieve a crystal size of the order of a centimeter.

Method for preparing single-crystal cubic sesquioxides and uses thereof

Centre National De La Recherche Scientifique


A method of operating a cooling system for a hardware component is disclosed. The cooling system comprises one or more cooling devices and the method comprising the steps of monitoring commands that result in one or more operations for the hardware component, detecting a command that will result in a processing intensive operation for the hardware component, and operating a cooling device to cool the hardware component, in response to the detected operation. In a preferred embodiment, following the detection of a command that will result in a processing intensive operation for the hardware component, a predefined profile for the specific operation is accessed, and the operation of the cooling device to cool the hardware component, in response to the detected operation, comprises operating the cooling device according to predefined profile. The profile can be created automatically following previous operations.

It is well known that in electronic systems such as computers and data storage devices a large amount of heat can be generated by hardware components. As a result, it is necessary to cool hardware components such as processors and storage disks, in order to prevent the temperature of the hardware component from increasing above a level at which either the hardware components performance will be impacted and/or the hardware component will suffer damage. Such cooling is often accomplished by cooling devices such as fans, or using water cooling systems. The dissipation of accumulated heat is a major technological problem as hardware components become faster and more powerful and it is also the case that the actual power consumption by the cooling systems can be as high as 30% of the overall power usage by the hardware component(s) being cooled.
In current storage systems such as data centres there are lot of disks. These disks become very hot and need to be cooled. This is done by many coolants nozzles, which are attached in the systems. Each coolant nozzle takes lot of energy in all current available systems. When there is a write huge data or read huge data command into a database or there is going to be an intensive operation such as compacting of a database, this causes disk components to spin and become hot. Currently existing system start cooling after a disk or hardware component has reached a particular temperature. The cooling device is operated to cool the hardware component, in response to the rise in the detected temperature of the specific component. Other known systems will use the cooling devices constantly.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,954,684 discloses an intelligent cooling fan. The cooling fan including a fan module, a microcontroller, and a bus interface. The microcontroller is coupled to the fan module and is capable of adjusting a speed of the cooling fan based on a status of a second cooling fan and adjusting the speed of the cooling fan based on a temperature detected. The bus interface is in communication with the microcontroller, the second cooling fan, and the system to receive and output data. The disclosed system provides a fan which speeds up by sensing the temperature.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,912,599 describes a method and apparatus for sensing positions of device enclosures within multi-shelf cabinets. A mass storage cabinet having passive device position sensing and including shelves for racking device enclosures is disclosed. A cabinet bus is linked to the shelves and adapted to provide a unique shelf identifier signal to each of the shelves. The cabinet includes a device providing a cabinet identifier to the shelves. The cabinet bus includes junction boxes having first and second sets of sensing wires and a side connector linked to the shelves for providing the shelf identifier signal from the first and second sets of sensing wires. To provide a different signal at each junction box, the sensing wires in the first set are moved one position and the sensing wires in the second set are moved one position prior to the connection to an adjacent junction box. An additional sensing wire is linked to the side connectors and grounded and ungrounded at each side connector to alter the signal. The disclosed system provides about a system which locates positions of apparatus.

International Business Machines Corporation


A switch circuit of an embodiment includes a high frequency switch, a first charge pump circuit, a boost signal generation circuit, and a second charge pump circuit. The high frequency switch switches transmission and reception of a high frequency signal. The first charge pump circuit generates a first voltage and a second voltage biased to the high frequency switch. When an edge of an input signal is detected, the boost signal generation circuit generates a first boost signal for temporarily increasing drive capacity of the first charge pump circuit. When the first boost signal is input, the second charge pump circuit operates to temporarily increase the drive capacity of the first charge pump circuit.

A high frequency switch (hereinafter referred to as an RF switch) is used for on-off switching (switching between transmission and reception) in radio signal transmission and reception at a cell-phone base station or the like, impedance tuning switching, and frequency band change switching.
Since the RF switch is used at a cell-phone base station or the like, high power handling and reduction of a switching time of the switch have been required, but it has been difficult to achieve both of high power handling and reduction of the switching time of the switch.

TOSHIBA ELECTRONIC DEVICES & STORAGE CORPORATION


A full-color AM OLED includes a transparent substrate, a color filter positioned on an upper surface of the substrate, and a metal oxide thin film transistor backpanel positioned in overlying relationship on the color filter and defining an array of pixels. An array of OLEDs is formed on the backpanel and positioned to emit light downwardly through the backpanel, the color filter, and the substrate in a full-color display. Light emitted by each OLED includes a first emission band with wavelengths extending across the range of two of the primary colors and a second emission band with wavelengths extending across the range of the remaining primary color. The color filter includes for each pixel, two zones separating the first emission band into two separate primary colors and a third zone passing the second emission band.

There is a strong interest in organic light emitting displays (OLED) because of the properties of organic light emitting devices. Generally, these devices are of very low current, low power, and high emission characteristics. Further, organic light emitting devices can be produced to emit virtually any color so that color displays are possible. As is understood by those skilled in the art, a color display requires arrays of full-color pixels each of which includes red, green, and blue sub-pixels. However, it is very difficult to fabricate organic light emitting devices in arrays of color pixels. At present the only practical method is to deposit the various layers of color material required by using a process known as 'fine shadow masking' or the use of a shadow mask to deposit the patterned color emitter layers. The major problem is that this shadow mask is very difficult to make and expensive. Secondly, this shadow mask can only be used for certain deposition cycles due to dimension deformation. Moreover, the shadow mask process has upper size limits that restrict the process to relatively small displays. On the other hand, displays for 3G or 4G multi-medium applications require sufficient pixel counts for each display, the mask alignment accuracy and the corresponding emitting color crosstalk set a limit to the size of red, green, and blue sub-pixels.
High information content color arrays use an active matrix type of pixel control and address system. Generally, because the controlling transistors are built into the array, thin film transistors (TFT) are used. In the prior art, poly-silicon is used for the switching and control transistors in active matrix OLED displays (AMOLED). However, poly-silicon requires relatively high temperatures to process, and, therefore, adjoining circuitry and substrates are severely limited. Also, the characteristics of transistors formed in poly-silicon can vary, even between adjacent devices in an array, because of the variation in crystal size and position. To better understand this problem, in a conduction area under a gate of a few microns length each different transistor can include from one or two poly-silicon crystalline grains to several crystalline grains and the different number of crystals in the conduction area will produce different characteristics. The dimensions and their physical characteristics among different grains are also different. In addition, poly-silicon is light sensitive, i.e. its I-V characteristic is changed by exposure to visible light. Amorphous silicon is also light sensitive so that devices fabricated from either of these materials require a light shield or light shielding, which further complicates the manufacturing process and reduces the aperture ratio (the emitting area over the pitch area). Small aperture ratio, in turn, requires the OLED be driven harder for a targeting display brightness and, thus, sets higher demand to OLED operation lifetime.
Fundamentally, a pixel driver for an active matrix organic light emitting display includes two transistors and a storage capacitor. One transistor serves as a switch and the other transistor serves as a current regulator for the OLED. A storage capacitor is connected between the gate and the drain (or the source) of the current regulator transistor to memorize the voltage on the data line after the switching transistor is turned off. Also, the pixel driver is connected to three bus lines, a scan or select line, a data line, and a power line, which are coupled to peripheral control circuitry. However, in the prior art, or the present state of active matrix organic light emitting displays, the pixel driver described cannot effectively be achieved with sufficient performance and/or at low cost.
Low temperature poly-silicon (LIPS) and amorphous silicon (a-Si) have been used to construct pixel driver circuits for active matrix organic light emitting display backpanels. In this context, the term "backpanel" refers to any array of switching circuits, generally arranged in column and row form, and each pixel or pixel element having a pixel electrode (either transparent or reflective to the emitted light) connected to an organic light emitting diode. At the present time all of the active matrix organic light emitting displays in the commercial market are fabricated with LIPS backpanels. Although LIPS provides sufficient operating lifetime needed for driving OLEDs, the "mura" defect caused by TFT performance inhomogenity is much more serious for LIPS TFTs being used for driving OLEDs than for driving liquid crystal displays (LCDs). As a result, more than 2 transistors are often used in pixel drivers to compensate for the mura inhomogenity. Also, in some applications more than three bus lines (data, selection, and power) are included for compensation circuitry. Further, LIPS backpanels require larger storage capacitors due to relatively higher "OFF" current in the switching transistors. Although higher mobility in LIPS backpanels allows transistors with shorter width/length (W/L) ratio, the higher OFF-current in the switching transistors requires multiple gate design (e.g. a TFT with 2 or 3 gate electrode in comb pattern between source and drain electrodes) and thus larger space between source and drain electrodes. Thus, the effective area needed for each pixel driver is substantial compared to the total pitch area. Thus, the OLED emitter has to be arranged or stacked with the pixel driver for light emission from the top. The small energy gap of LIPS also requires that LIPS TFTs are shielded from the light being emitted as well as from ambient light.
There has been significant effort to fabricate active matrix organic light emitting display backpanels using a-Si TFTs. However, the I-V (current-voltage) performance in a-Si TFTs is not stable under DC operation (Vth shift and mobility decrease due to defect density increase) so that it is hard to use a-Si TFTs for the driver or current regulator transistor in the backpanel. Pixel control circuits with more transistors, capacitors, and buslines have been proposed to stabilize the transistor performance but none of them have demonstrated the stability needed for commercial applications. The low carrier mobility (˜0.1 to 0.7 cm2/Vsec) also requires larger W/L ratio (and thus larger TFT size) for the driver or current regulator transistor. As a result, there is not sufficient room for an OLED emitted pad for a bottom emission so that a top emission configuration has to be used.
In the top emission active matrix organic light emitting display design, a planarization layer is needed to separate the TFT from the bottom electrode of the OLED emitter to eliminate optical and electrical crosstalk between the two portions. Two to three photo processes are needed to make vias through the planarization layer and to pattern the bottom electrode for the OLED. There is often another 1 to 2 photo process steps to construct a bank structure for full-color OLED processing (such as a well used to confine organic emitter ink when inkjet printing is used to pattern full-color emitter layers). Since the bulk conductivity of transparent top electrode (typically made of indium-tin-oxide or aluminum-zinc-oxide) is not sufficient for the common electrode to pass current from pixels to peripheral driver chips, another via is often needed and another metal bus line is thus needed on the backpanel. This design severely limits the aperture ratio of the top emission active matrix organic light emitting display products to ˜50% range. Here "aperture ratio" means a ratio of emission zone over the sub-pixel pitch size. Moreover, depositing transparent metal oxide onto OLED layers is typically done by a sputtering process, retaining OLED performance (both power efficiency and operation lifetime) in top electrode process is one of the remaining challenges.
There is, thus, a strong interest in a bottom emission active matrix organic light emitting display architecture with sufficient aperture ratio for the OLED pad, and with low cost processes at least competitive to other display technologies, such as active matrix liquid crystal displays.
It would be highly advantageous, therefore, to remedy the foregoing and other deficiencies inherent in the prior art.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved full-color, active matrix organic light emitting display.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved full-color, active matrix organic light emitting display which is relatively simple and inexpensive to manufacture and which results in higher fabrication yields.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved full-color, active matrix organic light emitting display utilizing pixel control circuits with relatively uniform characteristics.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved full-color, active matrix organic light emitting display that can be constructed with relatively large areas.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved full-color, active matrix organic light emitting display that can be constructed with high pixel density.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved full-color, active matrix organic light emitting display with bottom emission and relatively high aperture ratio.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved full-color, active matrix organic light emitting display requiring low cost processes at least competitive to other display technologies.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved full-color, active matrix organic light emitting display with higher switch rate and higher frame rate beyond 60 Hz (higher carrier mobility in MO-TFT enables the frame rate to 120 Hz or beyond).
It is another object of the present invention to design a full-color, AMOLED with optimized energy efficiency, color gamut, operation lifetime in addition to the lowest manufacturing cost and highest manufacturing yield, i.e. a full-color AMOLED with the best performance/cost ratio.

Full-color active matrix organic light emitting display with hybrid


A computer implemented method, data processing system, and computer program product for allowing a user to quickly and directly responds to a turn in an instant messaging conversation. One or more instant messaging chat conversations are displayed to a user. User input is received selecting a turn in the one of more instant messaging chat conversations. Responsive to receiving the user input selecting a turn, a user input region is provided to the user, wherein the user input region is used to receive an instant message from the user. Upon the user entering an instant message into the user input region, the message is sent to a set of participants in the instant messaging chat conversation.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an improved data processing system for processing and displaying messages. Still more particularly, the present invention provides a computer implemented method, data processing system, and computer program product for allowing a user to quickly and directly provides a response in an instant messaging conversation.
2. Description of the Related Art
Instant messaging (IM) is an online chat medium, allowing users to communicate with each other and to collaborate in real-time over a network data processing system. Instant messaging is commonly used over the Internet. Instant messaging applications monitor and report the status of users that have established each other as online contacts. This information is typically presented to a user in a window. Instant messaging applications also are often used by users conducting business. By utilizing instant messaging, business users can view each other's availability and initiate a text conversation with colleagues or customers when a desired contact becomes available. Millions of users communicate using instant messaging systems every day. With instant messaging becoming an important part of both personal and business communications, functionality and usability enhancements are important to the continued success of this type of communication tool.
Users of instant messaging clients often maintain multiple instant message conversations simultaneously. It is not unusual for users to have ten or more instant message conversations ongoing at the same time. A user may converse both in individual and group contexts.
Due to the design of current instant messaging clients, tasks such as monitoring a user's conversations, switching among the conversations, and coordinating instant messaging windows with other application windows often becomes problematic. Typically, instant messaging clients employ native operating system windowing and task switching mechanisms. Both of these approaches in current instant messaging clients are problematic for the following reasons:
1. Task Bar or equivalent. Instant messaging clients such as AOL® Instant Messenger™, a product of America Online, Inc., Lotus® Sametime®, a product of International Business Machines Corporation, and MSN Messenger®, a product of Microsoft Corporation, use a windows task bar to enable switching between conversations. Switching between conversations in this manner is an unnecessarily laborious and error-prone process. Consider, for example, a user who has five or more chats grouped in the windows task bar. When a new message is received, the task bar may be highlighted. Users must click on the task bar, identify the chats where new turns have taken place (often with a highlighted icon or user name), and then navigate through the chat windows serially in order to read new messages, to decide whether to respond, and to draft a response. The above steps must be repeated for every chat window that has received a new message. New messages often come in at the same time the user is reading and responding. A user must return to the task bar repeatedly, without an indication of the number of new messages within a chat, who has sent the messages, or the importance or relevance of the incoming message to the user's ongoing work. This process is clearly a disruptive and ineffective means of managing communication. Consider a second example in which a user has five chats open separately on the task bar. The user must click on each of these chats serially to pop up the chat window in order to see the changes. The task bar often must overflow to the next row or expand the task bar. Because of these hidden windows, users often do not know that they have received new messages.
2. Automatic pop-up of chat windows. For many users, this alternative to using the task bar to switch among chat windows tends to be even more disruptive, since the automatic pop-up of chat windows interrupt the user's current work. Messages pop up (e.g., are brought to the forefront of the user's desktop) without regard to the messages' importance and a user must use a pointing device, tabs, or an equivalent to minimize the window. Often the same window will pop up again as soon as it is minimized, because a user on the other end of the conversation has entered a new message in the window. Pop-up windows also tend to capture inadvertent user input, with messages sent to the wrong person. These reasons mentioned are among the many reasons auto pop-ups are not chosen by the vast majority of users. For many, pop-up windows are regarded as an undesirable nuisance.
Thus, it would be advantageous to have an improved mechanism for informing users of incoming messages. It would further be advantageous to allow users to quickly monitor and switch among chat conversations in an unobtrusive fashion, as well as allow users to select the chats the user wants to respond to and the chats to monitor.

Method for providing quick responses in instant messaging conversations