A system for automatically extracting geospatial features from multi-spectral imagery, suitable for fast and robust extraction of landmarks, is presented. The system comprises a computer system including a processor, a memory coupled with the processor, an input coupled with the processor for receiving imagery and user-provided geospatial features, and an output coupled with the processor for outputting the extracted landmarks. The computer system includes a region-growing system, an appending disjointed regions system, and an automatic reseeding system, which are configured to accurately and efficiently extract all regions within the input image that closely resemble the desired geospatial feature. The region-growing system is based on a level set technique, which allows for the fast and accurate extraction of a region evolved from a single user-provided seed point. By automatically reseeding the system when a growing region stops evolving, the system extracts all the desirable regions with minimum user intervention.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to the fields of image processing and image analysis. More specifically, the present invention pertains to a method and apparatus for automatically extracting geospatial features from multi-spectral imagery based on a level set technique, which is suitable for fast and robust extraction of landmarks evolved from a single seed point.
2. Discussion
With advances in remote sensing technologies, the extraction of roads and other linear features from satellite and aerial imagery has gained substantial interest in recent years. One recent technological trend is the design of accurate automated algorithms for the extraction of buildings, road networks, and other objects from multispectral imagery for purposes of intelligence gathering, urban planning, and geospatial mapping. Ground stations of the future will need to provide a user with "up to the minute" automated analysis of geospatial information. The trend in the industry is to provide semantic layers delineating roads, land use regions, and building structures onto the raw imagery data. The introduction of satellite imagery characterized by high spectral and spatial resolutions has made possible the development of new and viable approaches for the accurate and cost-effective extraction of piece-wise linear features while trying to minimize human intervention. However, in all of these applications, accuracy is a primary issue since objects of interest in the multispectral imagery can be temporarily occluded or partially occluded by other objects, or their spectral characteristics can be varied by changing lighting conditions such as shadows cast by foliage or clouds. Furthermore, there exists a need in the art for a fast and reliable system for extracting land features such as roads, lakes, buildings, rivers, and other geospatial features from images, with little or no human intervention.
In recent years, many algorithms have been proposed to extract road networks from satellite imagery such as those discussed in "An Active Testing Model for Tracking Roads in Satellite Images", IEEE Trans. on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, vol. 18, no. 1, January 1996, pp. 1-14 by D. German and B. Jedynak, and "An Unsupervised Road Extraction Algorithm for Very Low-Resolution Satellite Imagery", Proc. of the 1st Intl. Workshop on Pattern Recognition in Remote Sensing (PRRS), Andorra, Andorra, August 2000, pp. 37-42 by F. Porikli and T. Keaton. These algorithms were developed to extract road networks from panchromatic low-resolution satellite imagery (10 meters to 20 meters per pixel) such as SPOT satellite imagery. In this type of low-resolution satellite images, the width of roads typically ranges from one pixel to five pixels, and therefore the extraction of road networks is equivalent to the detection of lines or detection of strong curvilinear structures such as those described in "Detection of Road and Linear Structures in Low Resolution Aerial Imagery Using a Multisource Knowledge Integration Technique", Computer Graphics and Image Processing, vol. 15, 1981, pp. 201-223 by M. Fischler, et al, "Extraction of Curved Lines from Images", Proc. of the 13th Intl. Conf. on Pattern Recognition (ICPR), Vienna, Austria, August 1996, pp. 113-125 by C. Steger, and "An Unbiased Detector of Curvilinear Structures", IEEE Trans. on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, vol. 20, no. 2, February 1998, pp. 113-125 by C. Steger.
As more and more high resolution satellite images such as IKONOS images (one meter per pixel) become publicly available, future geographic information systems must support the exploitation of high-resolution satellite imagery. In contrast with low-resolution satellite images, where the extraction of road networks is equivalent to detection of lines, with high-resolution images the road-width can vary considerably. In addition, with high-resolution images there could be extra variations present such as lane markings, vehicles, shadows cast by buildings and trees, overpasses, and changes in surface material. These variations make the extraction of road networks a much more difficult problem. Therefore, the extraction of road networks from high-resolution satellite images requires a very different methodology than that used by the prior art to extract roads from low-resolution satellite images.
Recent, more advanced, methods for the extraction of roads from high-resolution panchromatic imagery include an automatic segmentation approach based on watersheds such as the one discussed in "Towards Knowledge-Based Extraction of Roads from 1m-resolution Satellite Images", Proc. of the IEEE Southwest Symposium on Image Analysis and Interpretation, Austin, Tex., April 2000, pp. 171-176 by H. Y. Lee, et al. In the watersheds method, the image is interpreted as a surface with the height proportional to the pixel intensity. The minima of this surface, which correspond to the smallest pixel intensities, are the locations where water would settle if it were poured onto the surface. Watersheds typically form an over-segmentation of the image, by segmenting or grouping together regions with similar height or pixel intensities. Therefore, road candidate regions are selected out from all the different segments by calculating the elongatedness of all the segments and, in turn, using this elongatedness calculation to detect all the rectangular regions. Finally, these rectangular road candidate regions are merged with adjacent regions based on continuing the structural properties of the road. The road continuity is accomplished by appending together road segments with similar orientations. This approach works well while extracting straight roads that do not change direction. However, when a 90 degree intersection between two road segments is encountered, or a significant bend or curve on the road occurs, the watershed algorithm requires that the user provide a new seeding point. The new seeding point is, in turn, used by the system to obtain new directional orientation information, which is then used to connect the two disjointed road segments.
The continuous "directional reseeding by the user" is greatly increased when the watershed method is used to process an image containing lighting effects due to shadows cast by foliage or clouds, or containing occlusions caused by bridges, underpasses, or foliage, since all of these conditions lead the watershed method to over segment the image. Furthermore, this problem is greatly intensified when the watershed method is used to extract rivers from multispectral imagery, due to the fact that rivers, for the most part, lack the directional continuity required by the watershed method to append disjoint river segments. Therefore, the system's response time is considerably slowed down by the constant interaction with the human operator.
Another recent method for the extraction of roads from high-resolution panchromatic imagery includes a semi-automated approach, as the one discussed in "Road Tracing by Profile Matching and Kalman Filtering", Proc. of the Workshop on Automatic Extraction of Man-Made Objects from Aerial and Space Images, Birkhaeuser, 1995, pp. 265-274 by G. Vosselman, and J. Knecht, which involves tracing a road utilizing a Kalman filtering approach. Given an initial point and directional information from an operator, the algorithm first extracts a crossroad profile. Then it takes progressive steps in the provided direction of the road, comparing the cross-road profile with the initial profile and adjusting the location and curvature estimates of the road, which allows for tracing of curved roads. The Kalman filter used in the update of the position estimate enables the algorithm to trace through obstructions by ignoring profile information when it deviates too far from the initial profile by using the existing local orientation and curvature estimates of the road in determining the road location. In other words, this approach continuously updates the local road curvature and orientation information while the algorithm extracts the new road segments. Thus as the road changes direction, the algorithm compares the new road segment direction with the previously updated local road direction, instead of comparing the new road segment direction with the initial road direction at the seeding point. As a result, the algorithm continues to extract the road even if the new road direction deviates too far from the initial road direction at the seeding point as long as the new segment direction is not too far from the most recently updated local road direction.
However, the method for extracting roads utilizing a Kalman filtering still breaks down when a crossroad or a 90 degree intersection between two road segments is encountered, or if a significant bend or U-curve on the road occurs, or when attempting to extract rivers from multispectral imagery. During these situations, in order to obtain new directional orientation information used to connect disjointed segments, the Kalman filtering approach requires that the user provide a new seeding point.
Other prior art techniques used to extract roads operate by finding segments within the image that contain parallel edges. Then the parallel-edged segments are compared against the desired road characteristics extracted from the initial user-provided seed point area, in order to determine which, if any, of the parallel-edged segments are part of the road. However, this method fails to extract real road segments any time the algorithm cannot detect both parallel edges of a road section, such as when an edge of the road has a weak boundary due to snow on the road, dirt on the road, or shadows from trees close to the road, all of which smooth the contrast of the edge of the road with surrounding areas. This method also fails if any of the edges of the road segment are occluded by either a car parked on the road, by a tree, or by foliage.
Most of the state of the art road extraction techniques developed to date cannot continuously grow a road network when they encounter cuts on the road created by underpasses, or change of pavement coloration, or road intersections. Therefore, these road extraction techniques require the user to provide multiple seeding points along with corresponding road directional information every time the system is not able to connect separate road segments. Thus, artisans are faced with the problem of requiring multiple seeding points provided by the user throughout the image in order to extract a complete network of roads. As a result, the system's response time is considerably slowed down by the constant interaction with the human operator. In addition, the state of the art road extraction techniques do not automatically correct any occlusions on the road caused by cars or foliage on the edge of the road, which result on inaccurate road segments being extracted.
Therefore, a system for automatically extracting roads or geospatial features from multi-spectral imagery is needed that uses a single user-provided seed point on the road of interest to grow a complete network of roads from the single user-provided seed point, and which is time efficient and effective in iteratively smoothing, refining, and reseeding the extracted region to accurately estimate the road centerline despite the presence of cars on the road, changes in the curvature of the road, changes in the pavement or surface properties of the road, or obstruction resulting from foliage or shadows cast on the road by neighboring trees. Furthermore, it is desirable that the system exploit the information provided by the high-resolution panchromatic band imagery and the four available low-resolution spectral color bands, in order to accurately extract buildings, road networks, lakes, and other objects from multispectral imagery.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a great need for a system that automatically extracts roads or geospatial features from multi-spectral imagery, suitable for fast and robust extraction of landmarks evolved from a single seed point with minimum human intervention.
The following references are presented for further background information:    [1] D. German and B. Jedynak, "An Active Testing Model for Tracking Roads in Satellite Images", IEEE Trans. on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, vol. 18, no. 1, January 1996, pp. 1-14.    [2] M. Fischler, et al, "Detection of Road and Linear Structures in Low Resolution Aerial Imagery Using a Multisource Knowledge Integration Technique", Computer Graphics and Image Processing, vol. 15, 1981, pp. 201-223.    [3] J. H. Jang and K. S. Hong, "Detection of Curvilinear Structures Using the Euclidean Distance Transform", Proc. of the IAPR Workshop on Machine Vision Applications (MVA), Chiba, Japan, November 1998, pp. 102-105.    [4] H. Y. Lee, et al, "Towards Knowledge-Based Extraction of Roads from 1m-resolution Satellite Images", Proc. of the IEEE Southwest Symposium on Image Analysis and Interpretation, Austin, Tex., April 2000, pp. 171-176.    [5] F. Porikli and T. Keaton, "An Unsupervised Road Extraction Algorithm for Very Low-Resolution Satellite Imagery", Proc. of the 1st Intl. Workshop on Pattern Recognition in Remote Sensing (PRRS), Andorra, Andorra, August 2000, pp. 37-42.    [6] J. A. Richards and X. Jia, "An Introduction to Remote Sensing Digital Image Analysis", 3rd Edition, Springer, Berlin, Germany, 1999.    [7] J. A. Sethian, and R. Malladi, "An O(NlogN) Algorithm for Shape Modeling", Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 93, September 1996, pp. 9389-9892.    [8] J. A. Sethian, "Level Set Methods and Fast Marching Methods", Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom, 1999.    [9] C. Steger, "Extraction of Curved Lines from Images", Proc. of the 13th Intl. Conf. on Pattern Recognition (ICPR), Vienna, Austria, August 1996, pp. 113-125.    [10] C. Steger, "An Unbiased Detector of Curvilinear Structures", IEEE Trans. on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, vol. 20, no. 2, February 1998, pp. 113-125.    [11] B. Tso and P. M. Mather, "Classification Methods for Remotely Sensed Data", Taylor & Francis, New York, N.Y., 2001.    [12] J. D. Whyatt, and P. R. Wade, "The Douglas-Peuker Line Simplification Algorithm", Bulletin of the Society of University Cartographers, vol. 22, no. 1, 1988, pp. 17-27.    [13] G. Vosselman, and J. Knecht, "Road Tracing by Profile Matching and Kalman Filtering", Proc. of the Workshop on Automatic Extraction of Man-Made Objects from Aerial and Space Images, Birkhaeuser, 1995, pp. 265-274.

Method and apparatus for automatically extracting geospatial features from multispectral imagery suitable for fast and robust extraction of landmarks


A tray conveyor with trays driven by a linear synchronous motor. The trays are supported on a pair of guide rails in a conveyor frame. The trays include a permanent-magnet array whose magnetic field interacts with a traveling electromagnetic wave produced by a linear-motor stator extending along the conveyor between the guide rails to propel the tray in a conveying direction.

The invention relates to power-driven conveyors. In particular, it relates to tray conveyors driven by linear synchronous motors.
Transport systems in which carriers driven by linear synchronous motors route individual carriers along various paths are used to convey articles to selected destinations. An example of such a transport system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,967,051, "Transport System Powered by Short Block Linear Synchronous Motors and Switching Mechanism," to Nathanael N. King et al. of Magnemotion, Inc., Devens, Mass., U.S.A., Mar. 3, 2015. These systems work well, but are not easy to dean. The housings of the linear-motor stators present large, flat, closed upper surfaces that collect grease and other food particles in food-processing applications. Unless properly cleaned, the surfaces can become contaminated with bacteria. And hard-to-access undercut surfaces in the transport system can harbor those bacteria.

Monorail tray conveyor with passive guide rails


In a monitoring apparatus, a target-object to be monitored is observed by an observing unit and a countermeasure is applied depending on an observed situation. The knowledge and information on the general feature relating to the target-object, the observing method and the countermeasure method are prepared in the storing unit of the monitoring apparatus. The individual knowledge and information relating to the target-object are registered by the user in the storing unit by utilizing the general monitor-knowledge. In the monitor-plan executing unit, the observing method and the countermeasure method of the target-object are planned in accordance with the situation by utilizing the general monitor-knowledge and the individual monitor-knowledge, and the plan is executed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a monitoring apparatus for monitoring objects to detect abnormality of the object to be monitored and countermeasure the abnormality of the object, particularly, to a monitoring apparatus capable of being widely used for various purposes, in which an appropriate guard method including observing and countermeasure methods is automatically set by the minimum input required for facilitating the introduction of the monitoring apparatus into a general household.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a monitoring apparatus is equipped with a sensor for measuring a physical amount to generate an electrical signal. The monitoring apparatus analyzes the electrical signal generated from the sensor to monitor the state of the target-object to be monitored and discriminates the state of the target-object between at least two classes, i.e., between the normal state and the abnormal state. Also, where the state of the target-object is discriminated as an abnormal state, an output signal relating to the abnormality such as a report or an alarm is generated. More positively, some measures for removing the cause of the abnormality are taken.
The monitoring apparatus of this type includes a monitoring apparatus utilizing a movable guarding robot that can move with sensors mounted thereon. The monitoring apparatus utilizing a robot is advantageous in that the monitoring can be achieved by simply disposing the robot within a facility, in that a wide area can be guarded because the sensors itself is moved, and in that a high degree of automatic guarding can be achieved by mounting a small number of high function sensors. The monitoring apparatus of this type is not limited to the utilizing of a movable guarding robot alone and is capable of performing guarding more effectively by allowing the movable guarding robot to cooperate with a cheap fixed sensor.
The particular movable guarding robot was proposed first as one of guard systems directed to a large facility such as a building. The particular proposal includes, for example, "Guard Method Using Movable Guarding robot" disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 5-159187. It is proposed in this prior art that, where the movable guarding robot automatically detects an abnormality, a calibration method is employed in which the guarding robot preliminarily makes a tour during the normal time and calculates the threshold value of the abnormal detection from the sensor output (normal value) in each location on the tour route so as to discriminate without fail between the normal state and the abnormal state.
The guard method disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 5-159187 referred to above does not require an exclusive guardian so as to lower the operating cost and, thus, the monitoring apparatus can be introduced easily into the general household. To be more specific, the monitoring apparatus permits decreasing the economic burden required for the introduction of the monitoring apparatus so as to make it possible to pave the way to the introduction of the monitoring apparatus into the general household. Particularly, compared with the monitoring apparatus using a large number of fixed guard cameras, the monitoring apparatus utilizing the movable guarding robot is unlikely to produce the feeling of being kept watched and, thus, produces the effect of alleviating the psychological resistance felt by the general user. Also, the monitoring apparatus in which the state of the target-object to be monitored is reported to the user in place of an external guardian matches the feeling of the general user that he does not wish to have the situation within the household overlooked.
An additional problem to be considered and resolved in introducing the monitoring apparatus into a general household is the ease of the initial setting. In general, an exclusive setting staff initially sets the monitoring apparatus. To be more specific, in the guard method using fixed sensors, prescribed sensors are arranged in prescribed locations such as a door and a window through which an intruder intrudes into the household and a kitchen from which a fire is possibly brought about. These sensors are connected to a central apparatus arranged in each household and are further connected from the central apparatus to a remote guard center by using a public network. In a monitoring apparatus of this type, all the operations as to where which sensor is arranged and which sensor is connected to which terminal of the central apparatus are determined and performed by the exclusive staff.
In the guard method utilizing a robot, it is necessary to set in the monitoring apparatus the information including the site to be monitored within the facility and, where a plurality of sites are to be monitored, the route through which the robot makes a tour for monitoring the plural sites and the matter to which attentions must be paid by the touring robot in each guard site.
In general, the guard method, i.e., what and how the monitoring apparatus observes, is determined by the five procedures given below:
(A) Setting of the target-object to be monitored
(B) Expected damage
(C) Guard to be performed
(D) Evidence to be detected
(E) Required preparations and countermeasure
The process of determining the guard method will now be described with reference to FIG. 1.
Where the target-object (A) to be monitored is, for example, a window, the human being knows as a common sense that a thief is capable of intruding (B) into the household through the window, though it is substantially impossible for a fire to take place from the window and it is impossible for the window to be injured or to suffer from a disease because the window is not a living creature, as shown in FIG. 1. Therefore, where the guard (C) to be performed includes options of guarding for crime prevention, guarding for the disaster prevention, and guarding for the surveillance, it suffices to perform guarding with crime prevention kept in mind in respect of the window. In this case, it suffices to examine breakage of the glass, unlocking by the key, opening or closing of the window, and presence or absence of an intruder in respect of the evidence (D) to be detected. If exclusive sensors for detecting the breakage of the glass, etc., noted above are mounted on the window, it suffices to monitor the outputs of the exclusive sensors in respect of the required preparations and countermeasures (E). Also, in order to look into the breakage of the glass, etc., by using, for example, a monitor camera, it is apparent that it suffices to mount the monitor camera such that the camera faces the window and is positioned to facilitate the image analysis of, for example, the glass and the lock and to set, for example, the zoom value. It should be noted, however, that some of the required preparations and countermeasures (E) can be determined appropriately by only experts.
In the conventional monitoring apparatus, users input the various setting on the monitoring apparatus as described in the procedures of (A) to (E) shown in FIG. 1. For example, in respect of the position setting of the movable guarding robot, any of the methods given below is employed for teaching the position and posture that are to be taken by the robot. One of the methods is a method of inputting the touring route of the robot on a map of the facility displayed on a control terminal, and the other method is a method of actually operating the robot to store in the robot the route through which the robot was actually moved (teaching play back). It is also possible to impart similarly to the robot the posture of the camera and the setting of the optical system such as the focus, iris and zoom. In any case, the position and posture of the robot or the posture of the mounted camera and the setting of the optical value are imparted directly as values. Also, as disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 5-159187 referred to previously, the threshold value for the sensor to discriminate abnormality is imparted directly to the guarding robot even in the case where the robot is allowed to learn actually the output of the sensor during the normal state.
Regardless of the situation that the human being (operator) knows what the target-object to be monitored is, the required and detailed values obtained as a result of item (E) given in FIG. 1 are imparted to the monitoring apparatus in place of the information as to what the target-object is. This is because the conventional monitoring apparatus is capable of knowing the target-object only as a series of values determined as a result of item (E) referred to above, and because a sufficient knowledge and system for allowing the monitoring apparatus to determine by itself the procedure of items (A) to (E) are not imparted at all to the monitoring apparatus. Therefore, the conventional monitoring apparatus is configured on the premise that the setting of the values is performed by expert staff, or the monitoring apparatus does not perform at all the particular operation and is capable of performing simple operations alone. Such being the situation, serious problems remain unsolved in the conventional monitoring apparatus as pointed out below.
Specifically, the operation to determine where and how the guarding is done by using a certain monitoring apparatus under differing conditions falls within the domain of the security expert, which is determined in accordance with the monitoring apparatus and the sensor used. Of course, it is difficult for the general domestic user, who is a nonprofessional, to impart by himself the particular information to the monitoring apparatus. In other words, it is difficult for the general user to set up by himself the monitoring apparatus bought from a store so as to operate the monitoring apparatus in a manner to receive a high degree of guarding.
It should be noted that the monitoring apparatus does not have a knowledge and a system for expecting the damage that is to be done to the target-object to be monitored, for detecting the evidence required for preventing the damage, for determining how to deal with the difficulty, and for calculating the value required for overcoming the difficulty. Under the circumstances, it is necessary for the laborious detailed setting operation to be performed by the human being in order to perform guarding.
Where the target-object to be monitored is a window as exemplified above, there is a guard method adapted for the window. Where the target-object is a small kitchen range, there is another guard method adapted for the small kitchen range. Further, where the target-object is a baby, there is still another guard method adapted for the baby. In this fashion, the various target-objects to be monitored can be classified into the "window class", the "small kitchen range class", and the "baby class" in accordance with the pattern of the guard method adapted for each of the various target-objects.
If the knowledge on, for example, the "window class" and the system for utilizing the knowledge are imparted to the monitoring apparatus for allowing the monitoring apparatus to perform by itself the procedure of items (A) to (E) given in FIG. 1, it is possible to allow the monitoring apparatus to plan a high degree of guarding for the "window" and to execute the plan by simply teaching to the monitoring apparatus that the window of a kitchen that is to be monitored is the "window class" known by the monitoring apparatus while eliminating the necessity of determining and inputting the troublesome final values.


In a printer having a stapling function for binding together a plurality of sheets of printing paper that have been printed out, processing for performing stapling at a set position cannot be carried out if the set staple position and the orientation of printing paper actually set in the printer are not in conformity. Accordingly, the invention is such that a printer driver within a host computer acquires information such as the transport direction of printing paper that has been placed in a paper feed unit of the printer and limits, on the basis of this paper information, staple positions that can be set by a user. This makes it possible to execute stapling in reliable fashion.

When printing paper of size A4, for example, is loaded into a copier, generally the paper can be set in either of two feed orientations. By placing the printing paper longitudinally so that the long edge thereof will be vertical and feeding the paper in the direction of the short edge, the direction of the short edge will coincide with the main-scan direction. (The paper size will be denoted "A4" in this case.) Alternatively, by placing the printing paper transversely so that the long edge thereof will be horizontal and feeding the paper in the direction of the long edge, the direction of the long edge will coincide with the main-scan direction. (The paper size will be denoted "A4R" in this case.) If the direction in which the printing paper is set in the former case is taken as being the forward direction, then the direction in which the printing paper is set in the latter case is equivalent to a case where the printing paper in the former case has been rotated by 90°. In the description that follows, printing paper that has been set in the latter direction shall be referred to as "R-type" paper and paper that has been set in the former direction shall be referred to as "non-R-type" paper.
In a copier having a stapling function for binding together a plurality of sheets of printing paper that have been output, the user is capable of freely setting the location at which the recording paper is stapled (this location will be referred to as the "staple position" below).
In ordinary copiers, paper-size information ("A4", "A4R", etc.) indicating the sizes of paper contained in a plurality of paper feed trays (paper feed units) can be acquired. By referring to this information, therefore, the user can specify the desired paper feed unit and output the printing paper of the desired size and in the set orientation.
When the copier having the above-described stapling function according to the prior art is made to implement the stapling function with respect to printing paper that can be set in both of the aforesaid orientations, i.e., R- and non-R-type printing paper, it is possible for the user to set the staple position at will irrespective of the orientation of the printing paper actually placed in the copier proper.
For example, if the staple position is set for A4 paper, then, regardless of the set orientation of the paper, the user can select a position at which stapling of the paper is possible in case of the non-R-type arrangement (A4) and a position at which stapling of the paper is possible in case of the R-type arrangement (A4R). In other words, if stapling is possible for either A4 or A4R, then a staple position can be set.
Accordingly, if paper orientation actually set in the copier proper and the set staple position are not in conformity, then a situation may arise in which stapling cannot be performed at the set position. As a consequence, the user is compelled to carry out test printing in order to check whether the set staple position is appropriate.
In addition, if printing paper having the same size has been placed in two or more paper feed units when output using a desired printing paper is performed in a copier having a plurality of paper feed units, the user may become confused as to which paper feed unit to specify.

Printing control apparatus and method, and printing system


Prion protein binding materials and methods for using the binding materials to detect or remove a prion protein from a sample, such as a biological fluid or an environmental sample. The binding materials are capable of binding to one or more forms of prion protein including cellular prion protein (PrPc), infectious prion protein (PrPsc), recombinant prion protein (PrPr), and proteinase resistant prion protein (PrPres). Prions from various species, including humans and hamsters, are bound by the binding materials.

Native or cellular prion protein "PrPc" is widely distributed throughout the mammalia and has a particularly well-conserved amino acid sequence and protein structure. Infectious prions are thought to be composed of a modified form of the normal cellular (PrPc) prion protein and are called "PrPsc". Prions have some properties in common with other infectious pathogens, but do not appear to contain nucleic acid. Instead, it is proposed that a post-translational conformational change is involved in the conversion of non-infectious PrPc into infectious PrPsc during which α-helices are transformed into β-sheets. PrPc contains three α-helices and has little β-sheet structure; in contrast, PrPsc is rich in β-sheet. The conversion of PrPc to PrPsc is believed to lead to the development of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) during which PrPsc accumulates in the central nervous system and is accompanied by neuropathologic changes and neurological dysfunction. PrPsc, often referred to as the "scrapie" form of the prion protein, is considered necessary, and possibly sufficient, for the transmission and pathogenesis of these transmissible neurodegenerative diseases of animals and humans.
Specific examples of TSEs include scrapie, which affects sheep and goats; bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE); transmissible mink encephalopathy, feline spongiform encephalopathy and chronic wasting disease (CWD). In humans, TSE diseases may present themselves as kuru, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), Gerstmann-Straüssler-Scheinker Syndrome (GSS), fatal insomnia and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD). vCJD recently emerged in humans as a result of the BSE epidemic in Britain and is most probably caused by the consumption of food products derived from cattle infected with BSE or "mad cow disease". An unknown number of people in the UK ingested food potentially contaminated with nervous tissue from BSE-infected cattle during the mid 1980s to early 1990s. Because the incubation period for the orally contracted disease may be more than 20 years in humans, the true incidence of vCJD may not become apparent for many years. To date, over 150 people are known to have contracted the disease, primarily in the UK; however, cases have been reported in Canada, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, and the US. The export of contaminated bovine feed products from the UK worldwide indicates a possible global presence of BSE and hence the probability of vCJD. Consistent with these observations is the detection of BSE in most European countries, Japan, Canada, USA and Israel. Consequently, the ability to detect and remove infectious prion protein from a variety of materials including food products is of profound importance.
A characteristic of all TSEs is the lack of a measurable host immune response to the agent. Consequently, no antibodies specific for TSCs have been currently identified. Moreover, the lack of a known nucleic acid sequence precludes the use of polymerase chain reaction-based diagnostic methods. Thus, no conventional serologic test can be used to identify infected animals. Recently, improved immunological-based techniques have been used to identify PrPsc in brains from slaughtered animals.
In addition to ingestion of infected products of bovine origin, blood transfusion and organ transplantation represent another mode of transmission of vCJD among humans. The risk of transmissibility of vCJD in humans by blood transfusion is currently unknown, but, based on data from experimental animal models including transmission from sheep experimentally infected orally with BSE and sheep naturally infected with scrapie, appears to be a very likely possibility and has already most probably accounted for one human to human transmission of vCJD. Unlike other human TSEs, PrPsc is present in the lymphoreticular system of vCJD patients, thereby increasing the probability of the infectious agent being in blood and its transmission through blood transfusion. Other factors elevating concern about the risk of transmission by transfusion include the unknown, but presumably high, numbers of people exposed to BSE and lack of a preclinical diagnostic test for vCJD. Moreover, the virulence of vCJD appears to be enhanced following species adaptation in primates and mice suggesting that human to human transmission may be more efficient than cow to human. Thus, there is an urgent need for methods to prevent the transmission of vCJD by blood transfusion. Such measures may include early identification of infected donors and their deferral, removal and inactivation of TSE agents in animal derived food and health products intended for animal or human consumption or applications, human and bovine blood-derived products, and organ transplants. Unfortunately, TSE infectivity is remarkably resistant to chemical and physical methods of inactivation, and a selective method of inactivation is elusive.
A number of materials have been identified that bind to prion protein. Combinatorial peptide libraries have been screened for ligands that bind to the octapeptide repeat sequence (PHGGGWGQ) (SEQ ID NO:1) found in all known mammalian prion proteins and a series of ligands were discovered, as described in PCT/US01/11150. Other materials include ligands that interact with amyloid plaque e.g., Congo Red (Ingrosso, L., et al., Congo Red Prolongs the Incubation Period in Scrapie-infected Hamsters. J. Virology 69:506-508 (1995)); 4-iodo, 4-deoxy doxorubicin (Tagliavini, F., et al., Effectiveness of Anthracycline Against Experimental Prion Diseases in Syrian Hamsters. Science 276:1119-1122 (1997)); amphotericin B, porphyrins and phthalocyanines (Priola, S. A., et al., Porphyrin and Phthalocyanine Antiscrapie Compounds, Science 287:1503-1506 (2000)); metals (Stockel et al., Biochemistry, 37, 7185-7193 (1998)); peptides that interact with PrP to form complexes (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,750,361 to Prusiner et al. and Soto, C. et al., Reversion of Prion Protein Conformational Changes in Synthetic β-sheet Breaker Peptides, Lancet, 355:192-197 (2000)); heparin and other polysulphated polyanions (Caughey, B., et al., Binding of the Protease-sensitive Form of Prion Protein PrP to Sulphated Glycosaminoglycan and Congo Red, J. Virology 68:2135-2141(1994)); antibodies (Kascsak, R. J., et al., Immunodiagnosis of Prion Disease, Immunological Invest. 26:259-268 (1997)); and other proteins, e.g. plasminogen (Fischer, M. B. et al., Binding of Disease-associated Prion Protein to Plasminogen., Nature 408:479-483 (2000)). Ion exchange chromatography has been used to purify blood components, such as hemoglobin, from prion contamination (U.S. Pat. No. 5,808,011 to Gawryl et al.). However, the chromatographic material taught by Gawryl et al. binds the hemoglobin, and the purified hemoglobin is subsequently collected by gradient elution. Currently, no material has been fully characterized or found to be able to bind to prion from a wide variety of media.
To date, human TSE diseases are 100% fatal. Unfortunately, even though a number of compounds including amphotericins, sulphated polyanions, Congo Red dye and anthracycline antibiotics have been reported as prospective therapeutic agents, all have demonstrated only modest potential to impede prion propagation, and none have been shown to have any effect on the removal of pre-existing prions from an infected host in a controlled clinical study. Thus, there remains an urgent need for new therapeutic agents.
The assembly and disassembly of normally soluble proteins into conformationally altered and insoluble forms are thought to be a causative process in a variety of other diseases, many of which are neurological diseases. The relationship between the onset of the disease and the transition from the normal to the conformationally altered protein is poorly understood. Examples of such insoluble proteins in addition to prion include: β-amyloid peptide in amyloid plaques of Alzheimer's disease and cerebral amyloid angiopathy; α-synuclein deposits in Lewy bodies of Parkinson's disease, tau in neurofibrillary tangles in frontal temporal dementia and Pick's disease; superoxide dismutase in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; and huntingtin in Huntington's Disease. Often these highly insoluble proteins form aggregates composed of non-branching fibrils with the common characteristic of a β-pleated sheet conformation.
Methodologies that can readily separate or that can distinguish between two or more different conformational forms of a protein, e.g., PrPc and PrPsc, are needed to understand the process of conversion and to find structures that will specifically interact with the disease associated form. Current methodologies for separating or distinguishing between isoforms of proteins include: differential mobility in polyacrylamide gels in the presence of a chaotrope such as urea, i.e., transverse urea gradient (TUG) gels; differential sensitivity to protease treatment, e.g., proteinase K (PK) and the detection of the PK-resistant digest product of PrPsc referred to as PrPres; differential temperature stability; relative solubility in non-ionic detergents; and the ability for fibrillar structures to bind certain chemicals, e.g., Congo Red and isoflavin S. However, there remains an unmet need to identify additional prion binding materials. There also remains a need to identify high affinity binding materials that are specific for the conformationally altered protein and especially forms associated with disease. Such reagents would be useful for developing possible diagnostic kits, separation and purification of the different forms of protein, for removal of infectious forms of the disease from therapeutic agents, biological products, vaccines and foodstuffs, and for therapy.

Prion protein binding materials and methods of use

Pathogen Removal and Diagnostic Technologies, Inc.


A structure for securing a flexible boot to a face of the outer race of a constant velocity joint which includes providing the boot with a generally annular flat flange portion having a uniform thickness and a plurality of apertures formed therethrough. A securing structure includes a generally annular retaining ring having a corresponding plurality of apertures formed therethrough, with an axially extending collar portion formed about each of the apertures. The axial lengths of the collar portions are approximately 80 percent of the thickness of the boot flange. The boot is secured to the face of the outer race by disposing the retaining ring thereabout such that the collar portions extend through the boot flange apertures. Respective threaded fasteners are inserted through the retaining ring and boot flange apertures into axially extending bores formed in the outer race, which fasteners may be the way by which the joint is mounted. When tightened, the bolts cause the retaining ring to compress the boot flange to provide a seal between it and the outer race. However, because the collar portions engage the face of the outer race, the retaining ring can compress the boot flange to only approximately 80 percent of its original thickness, thus preventing the boot flange from being crushed if the threaded fasteners are over-tightened. In a further embodiment, there is provided a shell integral with the retaining ring to prevent ballooning of the boot at high rotational speeds.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to constant velocity joints generally and, more particularly, to a novel boot retainer for such joints which provides excellent sealing and which permits greater operating angles than are achievable with conventional boot retainers.
2. Background Art
Constant velocity joints are well known devices for transmitting rotational motion uniformly from a driving member to a driven member, the two members having axes of rotation in angular relation therebetween. Typically, the driving member as a shaft extending from an engine or a transmission and the driven member is a wheel or a shaft extending to a machine or wheel being driven by the engine.
Such joints are widely used in front wheel drive vehicles. In this application, there is a need to transmit rotary motion from the transmission to the front wheels, both the transmission and front wheels remaining in relatively fixed vertical planes, but being relatively vertically displaceable from one another. Since the distance between the transmission and the front wheels is short, the shaft extending therebetween can assume rather sharp angles upward and downward when the vehicle is moving, compared to a resting position when the vehicle is not moving. To accommodate this relative motion, constant velocity joints are provided at either end of the shaft to accommodate the angular displacement and also to accommodate horizontal (slip) displacement.
Because of the high degree of motion between moving parts within a constant velocity joint, it is necessary that it be well lubricated and that dirt and dust be excluded therefrom. In order to accomplish these objectives, a resilient boot is provided to seal the joint. The boot is almost always secured to a cylindrical shaft member by means of a tightened metal band. In some cases, the boot is secured to the joint also by means of a metal band tightened about a suitable cylindrical surface, which may comprise a metal stamping extending from the housing of the constant velocity joint. In other cases, the boot is secured to the joint by an annular retaining ring having a plurality of apertures formed therethrough, which ring mates with a flat annular flange formed on the end of the boot orthogonal to the major axis thereof. The flange has a corresponding plurality of apertures formed therethrough and a plurality of fasteners extends through the apertures of the retaining ring and the flange into the housing of the constant velocity joint.
Such conventional means of securing constant velocity joint boots have a number of disadvantages, among which is that operating angles are limited at various slip positions. A further disadvantage of some conventional means is that there is resilient material (a portion of the boot) disposed between the clamping member and the member to which the boot is being secured. The latter arrangement can lead to the boot material disposed between the metal surfaces being overcompressed which can shorten the life of the boot. In the case of a clamping surface comprising a metal stamping extending from the constant velocity joint, extreme operating angles may cause the shaft to strike the end of the stamping. Also, the latter arrangement relies on a relatively ineffective metal-to-metal seal to retain lubricant.
Some conventional constant velocity joint boots intended for high speeds are surrounded by cylindrical shells which are provided to prevent the boots from ballooning outward at high speeds. Typically, the boots are bonded, crimped, or otherwise attached to the inside surface of these shells. The latter arrangement is disadvantageous in that such attachment limits the operating axial motion and operating angle of the boot.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide retaining means for securing constant velocity joint boots that permits greater operating angles than can be achieved with conventional retaining means.
A further object of the invention is to provide such retaining means that prevents overcompression of the boot material when the boot is secured to the joint.
An additional object of the invention is to provide such retaining means that includes, as an integral part thereof, a shell to prevent ballooning of the boot, which shell is unattached to the boot to permit greater operating angles and free axial movement of the boot.
Another object of the invention is to provide such retaining means and a boot that can be easily retrofitted to existing constant velocity joints.
Other objects of the present invention, as well as particular features, elements, and advantages thereof, will be elucidated in, or be apparent from, the following description and the accompanying drawing figures.


An solid state image pickup device including a plurality of photoelectric conversion regions (PD1, PD2) for generating carriers by photoelectric conversions to accumulate the generated carriers, an amplifying unit for amplifying the carriers, being commonly provided to at least two photoelectric conversion regions, a first and a second transfer units (Tx-MOS1, Tx-MOS2) for transferring the carriers accumulated in the first and the second photoelectric conversion regions, respectively, a first and a second carrier accumulating units (Cs1, Cs2) for accumulating the carriers flowing out from the first and the second photoelectric conversion regions through a first and a second fixed potential barriers, respectively, and a third and a fourth transfer units (Cs-MOS1, Cs-MOS2) for transferring the carriers accumulated in the first and the second carrier accumulating units to the amplifying unit, respectively.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a solid state image pickup device and a camera, and more particularly to a solid state image pickup device the dynamic range of which is expanded.
2. Description of Related Art
FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram of a solid state image pickup device disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1 (Shigetoshi Sugawa et al. (five persons), "A 100 dB Dynamic Range CMOS Image Sensor Using a Lateral Overflow Integration Capacitor", ISSCC 2005/SESSION 19/IMAGERS/19.4, DIGEST OF TECHNICAL PAPERS, 2005 IEEE International Solid-State Circuit Conference, Feb. 8, 2005, pp. 352-353, 603.) FIG. 8 is a timing chart showing the operation of the solid state image pickup device. Hereinafter, an n-channel MOS field effect transistor is simply referred to as a transistor. FIGS. 9A, 9B, 9C, 9D, 9E and 9F are conceptual diagrams for illustrating the potential in a series of operations of the solid state image pickup device and the flows of carriers.
First, as shown in FIG. 9A, at timing t2, a transistor M3 is turned on, and noises N2 after a reset are accumulated in a floating diffusion FD and an additional capacity CS. Then, the noises N2 are read.
Next, as shown in FIG. 9B, at timing t3, light is radiated onto a photodiode PD, and carriers are accumulated in the photodiode PD. After the accumulated carriers of the photodiode PD have filled the photodiode PD, the carriers overflowed from the photodiode PD flow into the floating diffusion FD and the additional capacity CS.
Next, as shown in FIG. 9C, after the carrier accumulation ends, at timing t4, the transistor M3 is turned off, and the carriers are distributed to the floating diffusion FD and the additional capacity CS at a predetermined rate. A pixel signal S2 and noises N2′ are accumulated in the additional capacity CS. A pixel signal S1 is accumulated in the photodiode PD.
Next, as shown in FIG. 9D, the floating diffusion FD is reset at timing t5. Only noises N1 remain in the floating diffusion FD. After that, the noises N1 are read from the floating diffusion FD.
Next, in FIG. 9E, a transistor M1 is turned on, and the carriers of the pixel signal S1 in the photodiode PD are transferred to the floating diffusion FD. In the floating diffusion FD, the noises N1 and the pixel signal S1 are accumulated.
Next, in FIG. 9F, the transistor M3 is turned on. The carriers of the pixel signals S1 and S2, and the noises N1 and N2′ are accumulated in the floating diffusion FD and the additional capacity CS, and the carriers are read.
Moreover, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-186414 (corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 6,307,195) and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-335802 disclose solid state image pickup devices for expanding dynamic ranges.
The circuit shown in FIG. 7 is a circuit for one pixel, and it is difficult to use the transistors M2, M4 and M5 commonly to a plurality of pixels in order to decrease the number of the transistors. In the circuit of FIG. 7, the carriers overflowed from the photodiode PD flow into the additional capacity CS through the floating diffusion FD. Consequently, if it is tried to share the transistors M2, M4 and M5, the floating diffusion FD of a plurality of pixels is mutually connected, and the pixel signal of the plurality of pixels is mixed with each other. Hence, it becomes impossible to read the signal of each pixel. Consequently, it is impossible to share the transistors M2, M4 and M5 to decrease the number of the transistors.
Moreover, because the carriers overflowed from the photodiode PD flow into the additional capacity CS through the floating diffusion FD, noises are easily generated due to the influence of the defects (damages) of the floating diffusion FD. The floating diffusion FD has many defects as compared with the photodiode PD. Consequently, in the floating diffusion FD, the accumulated carriers disappear owing to the defects, and great fixed pattern noises occur.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a solid state image pickup device and a camera that can decrease the number of circuit elements and generate pixel signals with fewer noises.

Solid state image pickup device with first and second photoelectric conversion regions and carrier accumulating units connected in parallel to each input portion of plural amplifying units


A computer method of analyzing an integrated circuit (“IC”) masked design data, comprising grouping into a cluster areas of layers preceding a target metal layer that are suitable for milling, deleting portions of the target metal layer that do not meet minimum tool spacing requirements to produce a modified metal layer, deleting portions of the modified metal layer that do not meet minimum design rule width requirements to produce a final metal layer, and comparing the final metal layer and the cluster to identify common areas.

Integrated circuits ("IC") generally are mass-produced by various design/manufacturing companies and then sold to client companies. Often, client companies may have a need to edit (i.e., adjust circuitry by physically altering the circuitry) certain ICs (e.g., flip-chip circuits) using focused ion beam ("FIB") milling technology to better suit a particular application or function the client is trying to implement. To edit an IC, engineers at the client company may mark suggested IC "edits" on an electronic masked design data of the IC and submit the masked design data to the design/manufacturing company.
Engineers at the design/manufacturing company then may manually evaluate the masked design data with the suggested changes incorporated therein by conducting a feasibility study. In a feasibility study, the engineers determine whether the suggested edits are possible, aggressive, conservative, and/or on a boundary between locations suitable and not suitable for editing. Specifically, the engineers must determine whether the suggested edits are at all feasible, whether the edits are aggressive in nature and carry a substantial risk of failure, whether the edits are conservative in nature and have a substantial probability of success, and whether the edits are located on a boundary between suitable and non-suitable editing locations. Such evaluations generally are manually performed, wherein engineers use their own knowledge of IC design rules and milling (i.e., etching) procedures to determine whether the suggested edits are feasible.
However, there exist numerous disadvantages to manually determining whether a particular IC edit is feasible. For example, engineers usually are unable to thoroughly and efficiently analyze an IC to determine whether a suggested edit is truly feasible, since engineers rely on personal experience and IC editing knowledge, which may be limited or incomplete. Further, if an edit is determined to be unfeasible, engineers may find it difficult to suggest an effective alternative to the suggested edit, even though such a viable alternative may exist. Further still, engineers typically are not able to incorporate the physics of milling machinery into editing considerations, since such considerations would become prohibitively intensive and difficult. For similar reasons, engineers generally do not rely on explicit IC design rules. Often, visually-inspected edit suggestions are rejected based solely on an engineer's impression of the difficulty level of the proposed edit, even though such an edit may have a reasonable chance for success. For these and various other reasons, engineers often cannot accurately, efficiently and effectively determine the probability of a successful IC edit, nor can engineers consistently provide viable alternatives to unsuitable, proposed IC edits.


A system and method for determining the early life reliability of an electronic component, including classifying the electronic component based on an initial determination of a number of fatal defects, and estimating a probability of latent defects present in the electronic component based on that classification with the aim of optimizing test costs and product quality.

Electronic components such as integrated circuits, including memory chips, often fail due to flaws resulting from the manufacturing process. Indeed, even as manufacturing processes are improved to reduce defect rates, increasingly complex chip designs require finer and finer circuitry, pushing the limits of the improved manufacturing processes and increasing the potential for defects. Electronic components are commonly subjected to an initial wafer probe test after production of the wafer from which the components are separated, in order to detect catastrophic or "killer" defects in their circuitry. Wafer probe testing, however, typically will not detect less severe or "latent" defects in the circuitry that may nevertheless result in early-life failure or "infant mortality" of a component.
Although the percentage of electronic components such as memory chips and integrated circuits that are manufactured with latent defects may be relatively small (for example on the order of 1-4%), many modern electronic devices incorporate up to fifty or more such components. Early-life failure of any one of these components may destroy or significantly degrade the performance of the overall device. As a result, even a small percentage of latent defects in the components can produce an undesirably high rate of failure in the assembled device.
In order to reduce the incidence of infant mortality and thereby increase reliability, many manufacturers subject their components to accelerated life-cycle testing, referred to as stress testing or "burn-in". During burn-in, some or all of the components produced are stress-tested by subjecting them to elevated temperature, voltage, and/or other non-optimal condition(s) in order to precipitate component failure resulting from latent defects that were not identified by the initial wafer probe testing. Due to their very fine circuitry, however, many modern electronic components cannot withstand severe burn-in conditions without incurring damage, even to components that initially had no latent defects. As a result, stress tests must now typically be performed more gently, for example using lower temperature and/or voltage conditions, thereby requiring longer duration burn-in periods to identify latent defects. In addition, the stress testing conditions often must be very carefully and precisely controlled. For example, because different chips within even a single production run may generate differing amounts of heat during operation, burn-in of some types of chips requires the provision of separate and individually temperature-controlled burn-in chambers for each chip being tested. Due to the increased complexity and duration, the stress test or burn-in process represents a significant portion of the expense of many modern electronic components.
In order to reduce the time and expense of component burn-in, a "binning" system and method have been developed. In many instances, both killer and latent defects result from like or related causes. For example, a dust particle may interrupt a conductive path entirely, resulting in a killer defect; or it may interrupt a conductive path only partially, resulting in a latent defect that passes the initial wafer probe test but produces an early life failure. Because many causes of killer and latent defects are localized, both types of defects are often found to cluster in regions on a wafer. As a result, it has been discovered that a component is more likely to have a defect if its neighboring components on the wafer also have defects. For example, a component that passes wafer-probe testing is more likely to have a latent defect if one or more of its neighboring components on the wafer are found to have killer defects than if all of its neighboring components on the wafer also pass wafer-probe testing. And it has been discovered that the likelihood of a component that passes wafer-probe testing having a latent defect increases with the number of neighboring components that fail wafer-probe testing. By "binning" those components that pass wafer-probe testing into separate groups depending on how many of its neighbors failed wafer-probe testing, the components are separated into groups expected to have greater or lesser degrees of early life reliability. For example, as seen with reference to FIG. 1, a wafer 10 contains a plurality of components or die. Some of the die on wafer 10 contain killer defects, indicated with an "X", which will fail the wafer-probe test. The remaining die do not contain killer defects, but may contain latent defects. Die without killer defects may be categorized depending on the number of neighboring die that have killer defects. For example, die A has five immediately adjacent neighbors found to have killer defects, die B has one immediately adjacent neighbor found to have a killer defect, and die C has no immediately adjacent neighbors found to have killer defects. Die categorized in this manner may then be binned according to the number of immediately adjacent neighbors found to have killer defects. For example, if the eight immediately adjacent neighboring die on the wafer 10 are considered, each die will have between zero and eight neighbors with killer defects. As shown in FIG. 2, die such as C, with no neighbors having killer defects, will be placed in bin 0; die such as B, with one neighbor having a killer defect, will be placed in bin 1; die with two neighbors with killer defects will be placed in bin 3; and so on.
Since defects (killer and latent) tend to cluster in regions on the wafer, die in bin 0 will be statistically the least likely to have latent defects, whereas die in bin 8 will be statistically the most likely to have latent defects. Die in the successive intermediate bins 2-7 will have progressively greater statistical likelihood of having latent defects. By burn-in testing a representative sample of dies from each of the bins 1-8 ("sample burn-in"), the statistical likelihood of latent defects for all die within each respective bin can be estimated. The remaining die in those bins having a statistically-estimated likelihood of latent defect that is lower than the specified failure-in-time ("FIT") rate (the maximum rate of burn-in failure deemed acceptable) need not be individually burned in, since on average they will meet or exceed the desired reliability. The remaining die in those bins having a statistically-estimated likelihood of latent defect that is higher than the specified FIT rate may be subjected to individual burn-in testing. Although binning and sample burn-in can reduce the cost of burn-in testing by eliminating the need to individually test some of the die (namely those die remaining in bins having a statistically-estimated likelihood of latent defect that is lower than the specified FIT rate after sampling), burn-in costs can still be significant since a statistically significant sample of die from each bin must be tested. These costs can add considerably to the cost of component manufacture. Thus, it can be seen that needs exist for improved systems and methods for determining the reliability of electronic components and other devices including integrated circuits and memory chips. It is to the provision of improved systems and methods for determining the reliability of electronic components and other devices meeting these and other needs that the present invention is primarily directed.

System and method for estimating reliability of components for testing and quality optimization


A weight lifting device includes a handle having two end segments, a number of weight members each having a slot to receive either of the end segments of the handle, and an anchor plate rotatably attached to each of the weight members and having an opening selectively aligned with the slot of the weight member, to selectively receive either of the end segments of the handle. The anchor plate is rotatable relative to the weight member to offset the opening of the anchor plate from the slot of the weight member, and to selectively anchor the weight member to the handle. The desired number of weight members may thus be selectively attached to the handle.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a weight lifting device, and more particularly to a weight lifting device having a selector device to randomly or selectively secure or anchor various numbers of weight members to the handle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various kinds of typical weight lifting devices or dumbbells have been developed and comprise a number of weight members to be adjustably secured or attached onto a handle, to allow the users to lift their own desired weights.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,997 to Roth et al. discloses one of the typical weight lifting devices or dumbbells comprising a rotatable shaft to select a desired number of weight members to the handle, without interrupting their exercise routine.
However, the closer or the inner weight members should first be selected and secured or attached onto the handle before the distal or the outer weight members are selectively secured or attached onto the handle, such that the weight members may not be randomly secured or attached onto the handle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,656,093 to Chen discloses another typical weight lifting device or dumbbell comprising a slidable latch to select a desired number of weight members to the handle. However, similarly, the closer or the inner weight members should first be selected and secured or attached onto the handle before the distal or the outer weight members are selectively secured or attached onto the handle, such that the weight members also may not be randomly secured or attached onto the handle.
U.S. Patent Publication No. 2002/0055426 A1 discloses a further typical weight lifting device or exercise resistance device comprising selector rods selectively moved into engagement with the desired number of weight members on each side of the base member. However, similarly, the closer or the inner weight members should first be selected and secured or attached onto the handle before the distal or the outer weight members are selectively secured or attached onto the handle, such that the weight members also may not be randomly secured or attached onto the handle.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional weight lifting devices.

Weight lifting device having selector device


The objects of the present invention are: elucidation of an enzyme that phosphorylates in vivo a compound such as (2R)-2-amino-2-methyl-4-[5-(5-phenylpentanoyl)thiophen-2-yl]butan-1-ol and provision of a method of phosphorylating the aforementioned compound; provision of a method of screening for a substance phosphorylated by the aforementioned enzyme; provision of a method of determining the ability of a subject to phosphorylate a test compound.

Some pharmaceuticals at the stage of being administered to patients have a structure different from that of a compound having actual drug efficacy. After such pharmaceuticals have been administered to a patient, they are metabolized in the living body. As a result, their structure is changed, and they exhibit their drug efficacy at that time. Such a compound before being metabolized in the living body is called a prodrug. Various types of enzymes that metabolize a prodrug to a compound having drug efficacy have been known.
Some amino alcohol derivatives are phosphorylated in vivo and, as a result, exhibit immunosuppressive activity. For example, FTY720 (2-Amino-2-[2-(4-octylphenyl)ethyl]propane-1,3-diol hydrochloride) is phosphorylated in vivo by sphingosine kinase 1 and 2, so that it can be converted to FTY720-phosphate [i.e., (:)2-amino-2 phosphoryloxymethyl-4-(4-octylphenyl)butanol] exhibiting immunosuppressive action (The Journal of Biological Chemistry, (2003), 278, p. 47408-47415).
On the other hand, it is also considered that a compound represented by general formula (I) (wherein each of R1 and R2 represents a hydrogen atom; R3 represents a C1-C6 alkyl group or a hydroxymethyl group; R4 represents a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom or a C1-C6 alkyl group; R5 represents a phenyl group, which is substituted with 1 to 3 substituents selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a cyano group, a C1-C6 alkyl group, a C1-C6 alkoxy group, a C3-C6 cycloalkyl group, a halogeno C1-C6 alkyl group, a phenyl group and a benzyloxy group, a halogen atom or a hydrogen atom; X represents a vinylene group (CH═CH group), an oxygen atom, a sulfur atom or a methylamino group; Y represents a single bond, an oxygen atom, a sulfur atom or a carbonyl group; Z represents a single bond or a C1-C8 alkylene group; and n is 2 or 3) is phosphorylated in vivo, so that it can be converted to an active form exhibiting immunosuppressive activity (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-46141). However, the mechanism of this phosphorylation in vivo is unknown.
Elucidation of the mechanism of phosphorylation of such compounds has been considered effective for the search for compounds that are activated by being phosphorylated in vivo, for clarification of the mechanism for expression of activity, for selection of a patient who is sensitive to a drug, etc.

It has been reported that a human fructosamine-3-kinase-related protein (which is hereinafter also referred to as "human FN3KRP") has activity of phosphorylating position 3 of ketosamines such as ribulosamine or psicosamine (Diabetes, (2003), 52, p. 2888-2895). However, the role of such human fructosamine-3-kinase-related protein in vivo is unknown.
As a result of intensive studies directed towards elucidating the phosphorylation mechanism thereof in vivo, the present inventor has found that the protein known as human FN3KRP or human fructosamine-3-kinase (which is hereinafter also referred to as "human FN3K") is associated with phosphorylation of the compound represented by the aforementioned general formula (I), thereby completing the present invention.
It is an object of the present invention to elucidate an enzyme that phosphorylates in vivo the compound represented by the aforementioned general formula (I), such as (2R)-2-amino-2-methyl-4-[5-(5-phenylpentanoyl)thiophen-2-yl]butan-1-ol. In addition, it is another object of the present invention to provide a method of phosphorylating the aforementioned compound using an enzyme that phosphorylates it. Moreover, it is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of screening for a compound phosphorylated by the aforementioned enzyme. Furthermore, it is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of determining the ability of a subject to phosphorylate a test compound.

Abstract: Provision of a method of phosphorylating the aforementioned compound using a human fructosamine-3-kinase-related protein and/or fructosamine-3-kinase, and a method of determining the ability of a subject to phosphorylate a test compound.


The present invention provides isolated polypeptides having an amino acid sequence having at least 70% identity to SEQ ID NO:20, wherein the polypeptide has ER-α36 activity. The invention further provides methods for identifying agents that bind to such polypeptides, methods for detecting such polypeptides, and methods for altering the activity of such polypeptides. Also provided are antibodies that specifically bind to an amino acid sequence depicted at SEQ ID NO:1, or an immunogenic fragment thereof, and methods for making and using such antibodies.

Estrogen is a generic term for steroid compounds that are formed in the ovary, the testis, and possibly the adrenal cortex. Examples of estrogens and compounds having estrogen activity include diethylstilbestrol, fosfestrol, hexestrol, polyestradiol phosphate, broparoestrol, chlorotrianisene, dienestrol, diethylstilbestrol, methestrol, colpormon, equilenin, equilin, estradiol, estriol, estrone, ethinyl estradiol, mestranol, mexestrol, quinestradiol and quinestrol. Estrogens regulate diverse physiological processes in reproductive tissues and in mammary, cardiovascular, bone, liver, and brain tissues. Estrogens are also used in oral contraceptives. Other uses for estrogens include the relief of the discomforts of menopause, inhibition of lactation, and treatment of osteoporosis, threatened abortion, and various functional ovarian disorders. Anti-estrogens are used to treat metastatic breast carcinoma and advanced prostate cancer.
The effects of estrogens are mediated via estrogen receptors. The first estrogen receptor (ER) was cloned in 1986 (Green et. al., Nature, 320:134 (1986) and Greene et. al., Science, 231:1150 (1986)). Until 1995, it was assumed that there was only one estrogen receptor responsible for all of the physiological and pharmacological effects of natural and synthetic estrogens and antiestrogens. However, in 1995, a second estrogen receptor was cloned (Kuiper et. al., PNAS, 93:5925 (1996)). The first estrogen receptor discovered is now called estrogen receptor-alpha (ER-α) and the second estrogen receptor is called estrogen receptor-beta (ER-β).
ER-α and ER-β share a common structural architecture (Zhang et. al., FEBS Letters, 546:17 (2003) and Kong et. al., Biochem. Soc. Trans., 31:56 (2003)). Both are composed of three independent but interacting functional domains: the N-terminal A/B domain, the C or DNA-binding domain, and the D/E/F or ligand-binding domain (FIG. 1). The N-terminal domain of ER-α encodes a ligand-independent activation function (AF-1), a region involved in interaction with co-activators, and transcriptional activation of target genes. The DNA-binding domain or C domain contains a two zinc-finger structure, which plays an important role in receptor dimerization and binding to specific DNA sequences. The C-terminal D/E/F domain is a ligand-binding domain that mediates ligand binding, receptor dimerization, nuclear translocation, and a ligand-dependent transactivation function (AF-2). The relative contributions that both AF-1 and AF-2 exert on transcriptional control vary in a cell-specific and DNA promoter-specific manner (Berry et. al., EMBO J., 9:2811 (1990) and Tzukerman et. al., Mol. Endocrin., 8:21 (1994)).
A 46-kDa ER-α isoform lacking the first 173 amino acids of the full-length gene product of the ER-α gene (A/B or AF-1 domain) was shown to be derived from alternative splicing of the ER-α gene by skipping exon 1 (Flouriot et. al., EMBO J., 19:4688 (2000)). This alternative splicing event generates an mRNA that has an AUG in a favorable Kozak sequence for translation initiation in frame with the remainder of the original open reading frame. Therefore, this new isoform of ER-α was named as ER-α46 and the original one was named ER-α66 (Flouriot et. al., EMBO J., 19:4688 (2000)). ER-α46 forms homodimers and binds to an estrogen response element (ERE), and it can also form heterodimers with ER-α66 (Flouriot et. al., EMBO J., 19:4688 (2000)). ER-α46 homodimers show a higher affinity for an ERE than ER-α66 homodimers. Furthermore, the ER-α46/66 heterodimers form preferentially over the ER-α66 homodimers and ER-α46 acts competitively to inhibit transactivation mediated by the AF-1 domain of liganded-ER-α66, but does not effect AF-2-dependent transactivation (Flouriot et. al., EMBO J., 19:4688 (2000)). Therefore, it is thought that ER-α46 is a naturally occurring isoform of ER-α that regulates estrogen signaling mediated by the AF-1 domain of ER-α66.
ER-α is expressed in approximately 15-30% of luminal epithelial cells and not at all in any of the other cell types in the normal human breast. Dual label immunofluorescent techniques revealed that ER-α-expressing cells are separate from those labeled with proliferation markers in both normal human and rodent mammary glands (Clarke et. al., Cancer Res., 57:4987 (1997)). ER-α expression is increased at the very earliest stages of ductal hyperplasia and increases even more with increasing atypia, such that most cells in atypical ductal hyperplasias and in ductal cancer in situ of low and intermediate nuclear grade contain the ER-α (Khan et. al., Cancer Res., 54:993 (1994) and Lawson et. al., Lancet, 351:1787 (1994)). As ER-α expression increases, the inverse relationship between receptor expression and cell proliferation become dysregulated (Shoker et. al., Amer. Jour. Path., 155:1811 (1999)). Approximately 70% of invasive breast carcinomas express the ER-α and most of these tumors contain ER-α-positive proliferating cells (Clarke et. al., Cancer Res., 57:4987 (1997)).
Estrogen receptors are members of the nuclear receptor superfamily of ligand-activated transcription factors that control numerous physiological processes. This control often occurs through the regulation of gene transcription (Katzenellenbogen and Katzenellenbogen, Breast Cancer Res., 2:335 (2000); Hull et al., J. Biol. Chem., 276:36869 (2001); McDonnell and Norris, Science, 296:1642 (2002)). The estrogen receptor utilizes multiple mechanisms to either activate or repress transcription of its target genes. These mechanisms include: (a) direct interaction of the ligand-occupied receptor with DNA at estrogen response elements followed by recruitment of transcriptional coregulator or mediator complexes, (b) interaction of the ligand-occupied ER with other transcription factors such as AP-1 (Kushner at al., J. Steroid Biochem. Mol. Biol., 74:311 (2000)), Sp1 (Safe, Vitam. Horm., 62:231 (2001)) or NF-κB (McKay and Cidlowski, Endocr. Rev., 20:435 (1999)), or (c) indirect modulation of gene transcription via sequestration of general/common transcriptional components (Harnish et al., Endocrinology, 141:3403 (2000) and Speir et al., Circ. Res., 87:1006 (2000)). In addition, the ability of an estrogen receptor to regulate transcription through these various mechanisms appears to be cell-type specific, perhaps due to differences in the complement of transcriptional coregulatory factors available in each cell type (Cerillo et al., J. Steroid Biochem. Mol. Biol., 67:79 (1998); Evans et al., Circ. Res., 89:823 (2001); Maret et al., Endocrinology, 140:2876 (1999)). Also, transcriptional regulation is dependent upon the nature of the ligand, with various natural and synthetic selective estrogen receptor modulators acting as either estrogen receptor agonists or antagonists through each of these various mechanisms (Shang and Brown, Science, 295:2465 (2002); Katzenellenbogen and Katzenellenbogen, Science, 295:2380 (2002); Margeat et al., J. Mol. Biol., 326:77 (2003); Dang et al., J. Biol. Chem., 278:962 (2003)).
Another signaling pathway mediated by estrogens, also known as a 'non-classic', 'non-genomic' or 'membrane signaling' pathway, exists that involves cytoplasmic proteins, growth factors and other membrane-initiated signaling pathways (Segars et. al., Trends Endocrin. Met., 13:349 (2002)). Several intracellular signaling pathways have been shown to cross-talk with rapid estrogen-initiated effects: the adenylate cyclase pathway (Aronica et. al., PNAS, 91:8517 (1994)), the phospholipase C pathway (Le Mellay et. al., J. Cell. Biochem., 75:138 (1999)), the G-protein-coupled receptor-activated pathways (Razandi et. al., Mol. Endocrin., 13:307 (1999)) and the mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway (Watters et. al., Endocrinology, 138:4030 (1997)). However, all membrane forms described to date are related to ER-α but not ER-β (Segars et. al., Trends Endocrin. Met., 13:349 (2002)).
Estrogen signaling has been associated pathologically with an increased risk for breast and endometrial cancer (Summer and Fuqua, Semin. Cancer Biol., 11:339 (2001); Turner et al., Endocr. Rev., 15:275 (1994); Farhat et al., FASEB J., 10:615 (1996); Beato et al., Cell, 83:851 (1995); Dobrzycka et al., Endo. Rel. Cancer, 10:517 (2003)). Consequently, estrogen receptors have been found to be essential in the initiation and development of most of these cancers. Current endocrine therapies for estrogen receptor-positive breast cancers are primarily designed to target estrogen levels, estrogen receptor levels, or the activity of estrogen and estrogen receptors. Use of a partial antiestrogen, tamoxifen, in the management of early-stage breast cancer has clearly demonstrated an increase in both disease-free and overall survival. In addition, recent studies demonstrate that tamoxifen can be used as a chemopreventive agent for hormone-dependent breast cancer. The major concerns of long-term therapy with tamoxifen are its uterotropic effects, which result in an increase risk for endometrial cancer, and the acquired clinical resistance to tamoxifen. This has led to the active pursuit of better selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERM) that display the optimal agonistic or antagonistic activities in various estrogen responsive target tissues.
Accordingly, what are needed are additional methods and materials that can be used to screen for agents that modulate estrogen signaling, as well as methods and materials that can be used to modulate estrogen signaling.


A hair and scalp formulation based on a peroxidase enzyme and synergistic yeast extract therefore. It entails a chemically-inert carrier material, a germicidal/preservative agent, and a metal chelating agent. A skin protective formulation based on peroxidase enzyme and yeast extract. It entails a polymer carrier, a fatty acid emollient, a co-emulsifier of an amino acid complex essential to a fatty acid; an emulsifying agent; a skin healing agent, and a germicidal surfactant. An aqueous formulation adapted for topical hair rinsing consisting of a peroxidase enzyme, a yeast extract adapted to enhance the activity of the enzyme and a cationic hair conditioning agent selected from water-soluble thickening resins.

A cosmetic and skin protective composition containing a peroxide-destroying compound, an enzyme protection and augmenting compound, and a metal chelating compound. This composition being useful to protect the skin and hair from oxidative damage and topical irritation and methods for making and using such protective compositions. A method to improve the coloring process for hair involving inclusion of a peroxide destroying compound in the dyeing process itself.
In the hair treatment art, often involving use of hydrogen peroxide as a commonly used reagent, in the fine art of bleaching, and in dyeing and curling human hair (so-called permanent waving), the concurrent deleterious effects of this important, but needed, reagent have long been recognized as entailing chemical irritation of human skin.
In the known methods of coloring hair, the peroxide serves to develop color in oxidative dyes, in situ, and to neutralize sulfhydryl anions in the reduction of keratinic materials, like human hair. In both reactions, the reaction of peroxide is not readily controlled, as it can act to both increase or decrease the intensity of the staining reaction, should excess peroxide remain in the hair. The usual practice, with somewhat uneven results, is to rinse the hair in an effort to remove the residual peroxide. Catalase is a naturally occurring enzyme in biological systems, being a peroxidase enzyme that converts a peroxide to water and oxygen.
The same peroxide and catalase enzyme are used in waving of hair. After the peroxide neutralizes the reducing agent, as noted, a water rinse is used to remove the residual peroxide. However, any residual peroxide remaining acts as both an oxidizing agent and a reducing agent. As a reducing agent, it can break keratinic disulfide bonds and damage the waving process. As an oxidizing agent, it produces reactive oxygen radicals, such as hydroxyls, which can destroy hair fibers.
It is known that the skin-adverse effects can be ameliorated by employing an enzyme that could arrest the oxidase reaction, before it contacts the hands, of the beautician, and/or the scalp skin of the client. G. Kalopissis et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,129,644 (1978) taught protecting the skin with cosmetic compositions containing a super oxide dismutase (SOD) enzyme. Certain SOD enzymes are extracted from marine bacterial strains. Disclosed were foam dye compositions and hair dyes in cream formulations. No other adjuvants for such active ingredient were taught. The benefit was in applying to the hair, an SOD enzyme in an effective amount, to maintain the keratinic structure of the hair, but not of the scalp-skin. Park et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,145,644 (1992) also relates to peroxide destroying compositions, such as catalase, but involves using a barrier coating to delay release of the catalase, for a time period after the formulation is contacted with the peroxide containing aqueous medium.
The enzyme formulations are in core tableted forms and the coating is of a water-soluble, barrier material, which is conveniently a polymeric material like cellulose derivative. The disclosed utility is for the disinfection of contact lenses. There is no useful material suggested by Park, et al, to enhance the peroxide-reducing power of the catalase enzyme; nor would such solid, unit dosage forms of such an enzyme have any application in the hair treating and scalp protection process.
It is known that catalase can be deactivated by certain toxic heavy metals and organic compounds known to interfere with biological electron transport.
In the prior art, use of an alcoholic extract of Baker""s yeast (Sacharomyces Cerevisiae) is reported to stimulate respiration of skin, in liver and in live yeast cells. Later Kreke et al reported (1945) that activity of horseradish-derived peroxidase could be increased by addition of such a yeast extract. One interesting incidental finding was the protective effect that the yeast extract had on the action of known enzyme inhibitors in the respiratory chain, such as azides, and cyanides. The action of such inhibitors may also have some effect on the addition of catalase and other peroxidase inhibitors.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a skin protective ointment, or hand cream, containing catalase enzyme now in a form useful against the peroxide compound side effects on human skin.
It is a still further object to provide a skin protective ointment which enhances the peroxide-reducing activity of catalase in the presence of toxic metals and organics that inhibit electron transport.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a catalase containing ointment that will protect the skin with a water resistant barrier, while decomposing the excess (residual) active peroxide not already used up in the hair bleaching process.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a method for more uniformly dyeing hair in a limited time by admixing of an augmented natural catalase compound activity into an oxidative hair dye, for hair dyeing with the peroxide ingredient.
A still further object of this invention is to provide a composition that may be sprayed or rinsed in the hair which will neutralize and destroy residual peroxides, following the coloring or other chemical treatments of hair that employ hydrogen peroxides, or other peroxides, in the hair treatment process.
New compositions, methods for making of such protective compositions, and methods for selectively destroying residual hydrogen peroxide in the hair dyeing and hair waving arts, have been discovered. A selected polymer (typically a polysaccharide) acts as carrier for the catalase enzyme and adjuvant, but still allows it to react with the peroxide in the dyeing composition. We have found that addition of a selected yeast extract increases catalase activity on a milligram for milligram basis. It is possible to gain the same amount of free oxygen generation from peroxide degradation via catalase, while decreasing the catalase concentration, by adding a small amount of the selected yeast extract. The present invention also teaches a method of destroying residual peroxide on the skin- scalp, before it has time to react with the skin/scalp tissues. We also add skin respiratory factor (SRF) to catalase in aqueous solution, in the presence of H2O2 and toxic metals, to determine if there was a beneficial effect, as measured by increased O2 production.
The active ingredient catalase may be derived from both plant and animal sources, or from bacterial cultures, as in the mentioned Kalopissis ""644 U.S. patent. It may also be genetically engineered from bacterial sources. The scalp protective material may include polyvinylpyrrolidone, guar gums and other natural gums, hydroxycellulose derivatives and acrylate derivative. This provides a layer of protection on the scalp that will impede the hydrogen peroxide from reaching the scalp and for neutralizing any peroxide that may break through the barrier.
This protective material is preferably a cross-linked polysaccharide, serving as a barrier to skin harmful ingredients, like peroxides. The multipolymer composition spontaneously forms multiple layers. A third layer is formulated of silicone carrier, with a saturated fatty alcohol, like behenol alcohol, and the catalase which are laid down as the outermost layer. This multi-layer formulation is desirably water resistant, but not water proof. This advantageous feature allows the skin treating residual peroxide to penetrate same to a depth that the outer layered catalase can readily interact with the excess peroxide.
In one embodiment, a hand cream will protect the operator with a water-resistant barrier, predicated on the use of silicone-based materials and acrylate containing the catalase. This hand-treating formulation comprises a silicone emollient, water resistant base, either water-in-oil, or oil-in-water type of emulsion. It contains the enzyme in 500 units per gram of formulation up to 10,000 or more units per gram.
In another embodiment, a peroxide destroying compound, an aqueous rinse will protect the hair from further oxidation/reduction, when the hair is treated with a reducing agent like a thioglycolate; and then is neutralized with peroxide. It is noted that the addition of a Baker""s yeast extract will augment the peroxidase activity, and it may further preclude toxic substances, like azide ions, from inhibiting the oxidation effect of the catalase.
The inventive composition is a cosmetic product useful to protect the skin against the irritant effects of hydrogen peroxide, residual or either on the hands of the operator, or on the forehead and/or scalp of the client. In the described rinse formulation, the product can serve to neutralize and/or destroy the oxidative nature of peroxides residual on the hair remaining after coloring or after permanent waving.
A significant incidental findings was the protective effect of the yeast extract on counteracting adverse action of potential environmental toxins, such as azides, or cyanides, which are known to inhibit enzymes of the respiratory chain. The yeast extract not only helps to protect the enzyme, but also augments the enzyme action of catalase by increasing the rate of the reaction without increasing the amount of catalase. A second observation was the effect on transition metals, such as iron and copper. The addition of an iron chelator such as sodium phytate, protects the catalase, while at the same time helps to prevent the conversion of peroxide to hydroxyl radical (ion) via the Fenton reaction.
Peroxidase enzymes decompose peroxides to water and free oxygen. Available enzymes include catalase and horseradish peroxidase, while examples of treatable peroxides are hydrogen peroxide and lipid-bound peroxides.
The synergetic yeast extracts are the biologically active components of yeast cells, and are provided to inhibit the deleterious activities of toxic organic compounds, like pesticides and herbicides that would impede peroxidase activity.
A number of polymers can act as carriers for the catalase, these include polyvinylpyrrolidone-based polymers, guar gums, and other natural gums, water soluble, hydrocelluose derivatives and methacrylate based polymer derivatives.
Emulsifiers serve to dispersed aqueous mixtures in oils (or lipids in aqueous media) and make for a stable formulation. For example, glycerol monostearate is the primary emulsifier in the presently disclosed formulations, while PEG 2000 DPS (a polyethylene glycol) condensation polymer is a co-emulsifier.
Among suitable emollients and scalp moisturizers are Permethyl 101A, an alkane stearic acid, octyl palmitate; organosiloxane polymers, like Silicone 200; silicone oils, like Dimethicone DC 556; and ethoxylated derivatives of lanolin and lanolin components (Solulan PB 20). Silicone oils also serve as waterproofing agents, such as Silicone 200 and Dimethicone DC 556.
Allantoin (5-ureido hydantoin) is a natural urea derivative having anti-inflammatory properties and a healing action. Panthenol is the water-soluble alcohol corresponding to pantothenic acid, the latter a member of the Vitamin B complex, also with healing properties.
Demacryl 79 is an acrylic acid derivative that acts as a skin barrier to protect skin by forming a film; Carbomer 940, a hydroxycellulose, is a thickening (jelling) agent, which is neutralizable with triethanolamine (TEA); and the amino lipid complex, (for example, HEPES linoleate) is a co-emulsifier and novel anti-inflammatory agent. The oat protein is obtainable from natural oat grains, which contain biological antioxidants and healing agents.
Preparation of a Catalase

Cosmetic and skin protective compositions