A method of providing an image on a media having a image-receiving layer and a protective overlayer, comprising the steps of providing an image on the image-receiving and providing machine-readable indicia on said protective overlayer by varying the temperature of a thermal head used to apply the protective overlayer.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,942 (Koichi et al.) includes a thermal dye donor element composed of a yellow, magenta and cyan dye patch plus a protective overlayer which is applied to the receiver layer containing the printed image by means of a thermal print head. The protective layer is applied by using an image plane as a mask as opposed to a uniform application of energy down the page. The protective layer image is designed to have low and high energy areas arranged in a pattern to produce corresponding regions of density in the transferred protective layer. The final pattern in the transferred protective overlayer represents indicia that can be interpreted by detecting the variations in the thickness of the protective layer either mechanically or optically.
Traditional bar codes formed using a combination of the cyan, magenta and yellow dyes in a thermal printer produce a relatively poor machine-readable code because of the lack of carbon black in these dyes. Carbon black, and similar absorbing materials, enhance the absorption of the near-infrared and red wavelengths used by many handheld and point-of-sale scanners to read bar codes. Typically, for a bar code to be read reliably, it is preferred that the dyes used in the printing of the bar code symbol absorb light in the near infrared and red wavelengths.
Today, more and more information is required on a product label. More information requires a larger area onto which to print the information, which translates into bigger labels. Bigger labels may not be acceptable for many products, particularly small items such as beauty and pharmaceutical products. Thus, there is a need to provide Economy of label by providing more information often on smaller labels that are human and/or machine-readable.
The present invention provides a thermal dye transfer print bearing a protective overlayer wherein the overlayer is selectively applied in such a manner so as to represent indicia. The present invention also provides a thermal dye transfer print wherein at least a portion of the indicia provided in the protective overlayer is identical in content and location to indicia provided in the image layer so as to enhance the readability of the indicia. The present invention also provides a thermal dye transfer print wherein at least a portion of the indicia provided in the protective overlayer is different to indicia provided in the image layer. The invention also provides a process for making such prints as well as a method of reading the indicia.
The present invention also allows the providing of more information on a label than traditionally printing human readable indicia on an image layer. In particular, this is accomplished by thermally printing machine-readable indicia in a protective overlayer. The machine-readable indicia located in the protective overlayer can be located in the same area of the label as human-readable indicia. For instance, product information, information that the consumer is interested in, is printed on the image layer. Bar code information or other product tracking information, information that the consumer is not interested in, is printed in the protective overlayer. Therefore, a more aesthetically pleasing or attractive label can be manufactured comprising a print with a thermally transferred protective overlayer containing machine-readable indicia.
In addition, a method of enhancing the machine readability of a bar code printed with cyan, magenta and yellow dye is disclosed.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of providing a machine-readable indicia on a media having a protective overlayer comprising the steps of:
a) providing a 1st machine-readable indicia in an image layer on the media;
b) providing a 2nd machine-readable indicia in a protective overlayer that is identical in content to, and in register with the 1st machine-readable indicia in the image layer.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of providing indicia on a media having a protective overlayer comprising the steps of:
a) providing a 1st machine-readable indicia in an image layer on the media;
b) providing a 2nd machine-readable indicia in a protective overlayer that is identical in content to, and in register with the 1st machine-readable indicia in the image layer.
These and other aspects, objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood and appreciated from a review of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and appended claims and by reference to the accompanying drawings.


A capacitive keypad position sensor includes a keypad touch panel having a first defined key area disposed in a plane having first and second orthogonal axes. First and second electrodes respectively occupy first and second areas below the first defined key area. Each electrode includes a plurality of parallel rows extending along the first axis and spaced apart from one another along the second axis. Each of the plurality of rows has a length along the first axis that is substantially equal to a width of the first defined key area along the first axis measured at a position along the second axis corresponding to the respective one of the plurality of rows. At least some of the first and second pluralities of rows are interleaved with one another.

The present invention is directed to capacitive touch sensors and, more particularly, to a capacitive keypad position sensor with multiplexed electrodes that reduces or eliminates interference among inaccurate touch inputs.
Touch panels have become prevalent in recent years, particularly in the field of mobile devices, such as cell phones, tablets, and the like. Touch panels may utilize capacitive detection to determine an input. That is, the touch panel includes an insulative material, such as glass, that is coated on one surface with one or more electrodes. A user's finger pressed upon the uncoated surface of the insulator forms a capacitor with an adjacent electrode, causing a disturbance in the electric field applied to the electrode that is detected and registered as the position on the panel touched by the user.
Often, such touch panels will include one or more defined key areas, which can represent alphanumeric or other data input. If there is a one-to-one correspondence between electrodes and defined key areas, as the number of defined key areas increases, the number of electrodes, and hence the number of inputs to a microcontroller or like processor also increases. This can increase complexity and cost for manufacturing the device.
One solution that has been developed is touch key multiplexing, which allows the number of electrodes to be less than the number of defined key areas on the touch panel. In the multiplexing configuration, each defined key area is assigned a unique combination of two electrodes such that the touch by a user of a defined key area alters the electric field of two electrodes simultaneously. The microcontroller determines the proper input based on the combination. Thus, electrodes can be used for multiple defined key areas and the number of electrodes required may be reduced.
FIG. 1 shows an array 100 of defined key areas 101-112 that represent a sequence of twelve numbers key1-key12 selectable by a user. The array 100 further includes ten electrodes E1-E10. A unique combination of two of the electrodes is assigned to each of the defined key areas 101-112, with each electrode E1-E10 occupying about half of an area below the respective defined key area 101-112.
Unfortunately, this design has a drawback in that the user must touch near the center of the desired defined key area 101-112 in order to actuate the proper combination of electrodes E1-E10. If the user's finger lands too far to one side of the center of the desired defined key area 101-112, the microcontroller may not properly register the input. Worse, as shown in FIG. 1 by the errant touches 82, 84, a different defined key area 101-112 may be registered by the microcontroller than the desired input. This phenomenon is called cross-interference between keys.
For example, if the user's finger 82 lands between key4 104 and key7 107, the electrodes E5 and E6 would be actuated, and the microcontroller, based on the received input combination of electrodes E5 and E6 will register that key12 112 (having the combination of electrodes E5 and E6) was selected. Similarly, if the user's finger 84 lands between key2 102 and key3 103, the electrodes E1 and E4 are actuated, which the microcontroller will understand as selection of key8 108.
It is therefore desirable to provide a touch panel that reduces or eliminates the potential for cross-interference between adjacent keys when the user's touch is not precisely centered on the desired defined key area.

Capacitive keypad position sensor with low cross-interference


The invention provides a thermoformable sheet comprising a resinous polymer of propylene and an effective amount of a beta-spherulite nucleating agent, a process for making the sheet and articles thermoformed from the sheet.

Conventional thermoformable thermoplastic resin sheets typically are made from resins such as polyvinyl chloride, polystyrene-based resins and the like. Among these thermoplastic resins, however, polyvinyl chlorides have disadvantages in respect to hygiene, heat resistance, moisture proofness and other properties. Moreover, incineration of these materials causes emission of chlorine-containing gases. Polystyrene-based resins also show deficiencies in respect to heat resistance, impact strength, moisture-proofness and other properties. Notwithstanding these disadvantages and deficiencies, sheets of these thermoplastic resins are widely used as thermoformed packaging material in many fields.
Conventional thermoforming processes generally involve heating a thermoplastic sheet above its softening point, forming the softened sheet and allowing the formed sheet to cool and harden. Polypropylene, being a highly crystalline polymer, must be heated up to its melting temperature (Tm) of about 160.degree. C. in order to be thermoformed by conventional thermoforming processes. The flexural modulus of polypropylene can decrease by more than two orders of magnitude at it nears its melting temperature which can thereby cause sheet made of polypropylene to undergo excessive sag during thermoforming. Also, polypropylene does not exhibit the rubbery plateau that is characteristic of glassy polymers when such polymers are heated above their glass transition temperature (Tg). Nevertheless, resinous polymers of propylene have been used increasingly in recent years in place of polyvinyl chloride and polystyrene-based resins by virtue of their excellent strength, rigidity, heat resistance, moisture proofness and other desirable properties.
The market for thermoformed plastic products has undergone rapid growth in recent years, and polypropylene-based resins have the potential to become a premium material for this market. That such resins are difficult to thermoform, as described above, has limited their use in this high-growth area. Various methods have been attempted to lessen these thermoforming difficulties.
One such method has been developed by Shell Development Co. wherein a solid phase pressure forming process, known an SPPF, is utilized. Although the SPPF process allows a hot, but not molten, sheet to be thermoformed just below its crystalline melting point, other limiting conditions are introduced such as the need for specialized, expensive thermoforming equipment, restricted depth of draw, limited draw ratio, and high levels of built-in stress.
Still other methods of attempting to overcome the thermoforming difficulties have taken the approach of tailoring the molecular weight of the polypropylene resin, thereby making it possible to process extruded sheets on conventional thermoforming equipment. In order to reduce the degree of sagging of the heated sheet as it nears its crystallization temperature, the melt flow rate of the polypropylene resin has had to be lowered to fractional values, typically less than 0.25 dg/min. The resulting high melt viscosity creates another problem; namely, that of producing sheet at economical extrusion production rates. Attempts have been made to overcome this problem by broadening the molecular weight distribution of the polypropylene to improve extrudability.
Thermoformed articles made by the processes described above depending on the products contained in them and conditions under which the articles are microwaved, can undergo change in dimensional integrity.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,680,157 discloses a method for preparing a sheet of polypropylene having excellent transparency and surface properties as well as thermoformability including a slight stretching of the sheet and optionally alpha-spherulite nucleating agents with articles vacuum thermoformed from sheet heated at 153.degree. to 158.degree. C.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,567,089 discloses a propylene polymer laminated sheet for surface gloss, appearance and impact resistance with a surface layer comprising crystalline polypropylene and up to 5 wt % of an inorganic or organic alpha-spherulite nucleating agent and a second layer comprising polypropylene, an ethylene polymer and an inorganic filler.
Beta-spherulite nucleating agents useful in compositions for forming unstretched films up to 0.4 mm in thickness which can be made porous by extraction of beta-spherulites, stretching the film or a combination of extraction and stretching are disclosed for the production of porous films and processes for making such films in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,386,129 and 4,975,469, U.S. patent application (abandoned) Ser. No. 07/633,087, filed Dec. 21, 1990, in the name of P. Jacoby, et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,953 in the name of P. Jacoby, et al., all commonly assigned to the present assignee.
In spite of the showing of the use of beta-spherulite nucleating agents in the formation of microporous films and the various techniques for thermoforming sheets of polypropylene-based resins including the use of alpha-spherulite nucleating agents, there remains a need for resinous polymers of propylene which can be formed into sheet under facile conditions and competitive production rates which can be used for thermoforming articles. Such sheet would desirably also be thermoformable on conventional thermoforming equipment at increased production rates with the resultant thermoformed articles having desirable improved end-use properties such as microwaveability and low-temperature impact resistance.
Applicants have unexpectedly found that polymeric compositions comprising a resinous polymer of propylene and an effective amount of a beta-spherulite nucleating agent are useful for preparing a thermoformable sheet, particularly polypropylene-based compositions having sufficient melt flow rate for the facile and efficient production of sheet, and the thermoforming of articles from such sheet on conventional thermoforming equipment.
It is an object of this invention to provide an improved thermoformable sheet.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved thermoformable sheet comprising a resinous polymer of propylene and an effective amount of beta-spherulites.
A further object of this invention is to provide a method for thermoforming a sheet comprising a resinous polymer of propylene and an effective amount of beta-spherulites.
A still further object of this invention is to provide articles thermoformed from such improved thermoformable beta-spherulite nucleated resinous polymers of propylene.
Advantageously, the thermoformable sheet of this invention comprises one or more layers of a crystalline resinous polymer of propylene having beta-spherulites present at a K-value of about 0.3 to 0.95 which can be thermoformed at significantly higher production rates and the sheet produces thermoformed articles which exhibit improved sidewall strength, reduced warp, and improved microwaveability compared to articles produced from conventional alpha-spherulite nucleated or non-nucleated polypropylene-based resins. Additional advantages are found in embodiments of the invention comprising multilayer sheets which include interior layers of beta-spherulite nucleated resinous polymer of propylene and exterior layers of polypropylene-based resins such as ethylene-propylene impact copolymer for improved low-temperature impact resistance.


A gas charged fluid flow line of a dry pipe sprinkler system is continuously monitored to detect rate of loss of pressure (dp/dt). The rate of pressure loss is used to detect whether there is an open sprinkler head in a sprinkler grid of the system. Detection of an open sprinkler head and opening of a dry valve may occur in a matter of a few seconds, allowing for a quick response to a fire condition and accurate discrimination of a pressurized gas leak condition. The system may operate at charge pressures in the range of about 7 psig to about 15 psig.

The present invention relates generally to a dry pipe sprinkler system and, more particularly, to such a system which operates using low pressure gas charged fluid flow lines and which includes circuitry for rapidly detecting an open sprinkler head condition and for discriminating such a condition from a pressurized gas leak in the charged dry pipe.
Dry pipe sprinkler systems are well-known in the prior art. A dry pipe sprinkler system includes a dry pipe sprinkler grid containing a plurality of normally closed sprinkler heads. The dry pipe sprinkler grid is connected via fluid flow lines to a dry pipe valve or primary water supply valve which has a dry output side facing the fluid flow lines and a wet input side facing a pressurized source of service water. In operation, the fluid flow lines and sprinkler grid fluid flow lines are filled or charged with a pressurized gas, such as air. Current industrial dry pipe systems generally charge the fluid flow lines to about 35 to 40 psig. The sprinkler heads typically include normally closed temperature-responsive valves. If heated sufficiently, the normally closed valve of the sprinkler head opens, thereby allowing the pressurized air to escape from the fluid flow lines. When the air pressure in the fluid flow lines drops below a predetermined value, a mechanism causes the primary water supply valve to open, thereby allowing the service water to flow into the fluid flow lines of the dry pipe sprinkler grid (displacing the air therein), and through the open sprinkler head to extinguish the fire or smoke source, or to minimize any damage therefrom. Water flows through the system and out the open sprinkler head (and any other sprinkler heads that subsequently open), until the sprinkler head closes itself, if automatically resetting, or until the water supply is turned off.
A dry pipe sprinkler system is distinguished from a wet pipe sprinkler system. In a wet pipe sprinkler system, the fluid flow lines are prefilled with water, and water is retained in the sprinkler grid by the valves in the sprinkler heads. As soon as a sprinkler head opens, the water in the sprinkler grid immediately flows out of the sprinkler head. In a wet pipe sprinkler system, the primary water valve is the main shut-off valve, which is in the normally open state.
There are a large number of different mechanisms and techniques for causing a dry pipe sprinkler system to go "wet" (i.e., to cause the primary water supply valve to open and allow the water to fill the fluid flow supply lines). In one known technique, after a sprinkler head opens, the pressure difference between the air pressure in the fluid flow lines and the water supply pressure on the wet side of the primary water supply valve must reach a specific hydraulic unbalance before the primary water supply can open. It may take up to 30 seconds to reach this state, depending upon the volume of the entire system. If the system is large and/or if the system is charged to a typical pressure such as 40 psig, a considerable volume of air must escape or be expelled from the open sprinkler head before the specific hydraulic unbalance is reached to open the primary water valve and then to force water through the grid through the remaining pressurized gas, to finally discharge through the open sprinkler.
Dry pipe sprinkler systems suffer from other problems. They are susceptible to false alarms from ambient temperature-induced expansion and contraction of the pressurized air in the fluid flow lines and from gas leaks in the fluid flow lines. For example, the pressurized gas may contract to a degree that triggers opening of the primary water valve. The system must then be drained and recharged.
There is significant interest in installing sprinkler systems in residential units for protection of residents and property. Wet pipe systems are not well-suited to residential use. Builders desire to hide the fluid flow lines and may pass them through unheated or poorly heated areas where they are susceptible to freezing and bursting in cold weather. Furthermore, there is a reluctance to install dry pipe sprinkler systems in residential environments because of the deficiencies discussed above, namely the relatively slow response time of the systems, and the problems associated with false alarms. Also, existing dry pipe systems are expensive to install and maintain due, in part, to the necessity to maintain a high pressure gas charged system.
Accordingly, there is a need for a dry pipe sprinkler system which has a quick response time, which is capable of accurately discriminating between false alarm conditions, an open sprinkler condition and a pressurized gas leak condition, and which can be operated at a reduced fluid flow line pressure level. The present invention fulfills such needs.

Quick response dry pipe sprinkler system


Aromatic amines are produced from aromatic hydrocarbons by                a) reacting the aromatic hydrocarbon(s) with a mixture of nitric acid and sulfuric acid to generate a two-phase reaction mixture,        b) separating the reaction mixture into an aqueous acid phase and an organic phase containing the nitroaromatic compounds        c) washing the organic phase to purify the nitroaromatic compound(s),        d) hydrogenating the nitroaromatic compound(s) in the presence of a catalyst to produce the aromatic amine(s) and water of reaction, and        e) separating the water of reaction formed in step d) from the aromatic amine(s),in which the water of reaction separated in step e) is used to wash the organic phase containing the nitroaromatic compounds in step c).

The present invention relates to a process for preparing aromatic amines from aromatic hydrocarbons in which the water of reaction generated during hydrogenation of the nitroaromatic compounds is used to wash the nitrated aromatic compounds obtained by nitrating the corresponding aromatic hydrocarbons.
Aromatic monoamines and diamines, which are used in large amounts as chemical intermediates, for example to produce dyes or plastics, are prepared on an industrial scale by nitrating aromatic hydrocarbons to form nitroaromatic compounds and then hydrogenating the nitroaromatic compounds. In this case, one mole of water per mole of nitro group produced is generated during nitration with nitric acid and two moles of water per mole of amine group are generated during hydrogenation. This water ultimately leaves the process as waste water. Other waste water streams are also produced, particularly during working up of the nitroaromatic compounds which is conventionally performed by separating the acid phase and then washing the nitroaromatic compounds with water and alkaline solutions, generally stepwise and sometimes alternately. This waste water has to be purified in a suitable manner in order to be able to discharge it into the receiving waters in accordance with the pertinent regulations. Thus, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,506,948 describes a purification process for waste water which is produced during the preparation of dinitrotoluene.
EP-A-236 839 describes a distillation process for working up aqueous amine solutions such as those generated during the hydrogenation of nitroaromatic compounds. According to EP-A-236 839, the water being produced during distillation can be re-used in chemical processes. However, the concentration of organic impurities (in particular amines) in this water being produced during distillation is in the range from 10–500 ppm. Therefore, the use of this water in chemical processes frequently presents problems because these impurities can lead to difficulties in the processes in which they are present in the re-used water. For example, such re-used water may result in unwanted secondary reactions.
Diaminotoluene, in particular, reacts with dinitrotoluene to give unwanted secondary products, which is expressed, inter alia, in decreasing thermal stability of the dinitrotoluene.


An embolic protection device for use in a blood vessel when an interventional procedure is being performed in a stenosed or occluded region to capture any embolic material which may be created and released into the bloodstream during the procedure. The device includes a filtering assembly having a self-expanding strut assembly and a filter element attached thereto. In one embodiment, the filtering assembly is attached to the distal end of a guide wire and is deployed within the patient's vasculature as the guide wire is manipulated into the area of treatment. A restraining sheath placed over the filtering assembly in a coaxial arrangement maintains the filtering assembly in its collapsed position until it is ready to be deployed by the physician. Thereafter, the sheath can be retracted to expose the filtering assembly which will then self-expand within the patient's vasculature. Interventional devices can be delivered over the guide wire and any embolic debris created during the interventional procedure and released into the blood stream will enter the filtering assembly and be captured therein. Other embodiments include filtering assemblies attached to an outer tubular member and inner shaft member which apply axial force to the distal ends of the assembly to either expand or contract the struts as needed.

The present invention relates generally to filtering devices and systems which can be used when an interventional procedure is being performed in a stenosed or occluded region of a blood vessel to capture embolic material that may be created and released into the bloodstream during the procedure. The embolic filtering devices and systems of the present invention are particularly useful when performing balloon angioplasty, stenting procedures, laser angioplasty or atherectomy in critical vessels, particularly in vessels such as the carotid arteries, where the release of embolic debris into the bloodstream can occlude the flow of oxygenated blood to the brain or other vital organs, which can cause devastating consequences to the patient. While the embolic protection devices and systems of the present invention are particularly useful in carotid procedures, the inventions can be used in conjunction with any vascular interventional procedure in which there is an embolic risk.
A variety of non-surgical interventional procedures have been developed over the years for opening stenosed or occluded blood vessels in a patient caused by the build up of plaque or other substances on the wall of the blood vessel. Such procedures usually involve the percutaneous introduction of the interventional device into the lumen of the artery, usually through a catheter. In typical carotid PTA procedures, a guiding catheter or sheath is percutaneously introduced into the cardiovascular system of a patient through the femoral artery and advanced through the vasculature until the distal end of the guiding catheter is in the common carotid artery. A guide wire and a dilatation catheter having a balloon on the distal end are introduced through the guiding catheter with the guide wire sliding within the dilatation catheter. The guide wire is first advanced out of the guiding catheter into the patient's carotid vasculature and is directed across the arterial lesion. The dilatation catheter is subsequently advanced over the previously advanced guide wire until the dilatation balloon is properly positioned across the arterial lesion. Once in position across the lesion, the expandable balloon is inflated to a predetermined size with a radiopaque liquid at relatively high pressures to radially compress the atherosclerotic plaque of the lesion against the inside of the artery wall and thereby dilate the lumen of the artery. The balloon is then deflated to a small profile so that the dilatation catheter can be withdrawn from the patient's vasculature and the blood flow resumed through the dilated artery. As should be appreciated by those skilled in the art, while the above-described procedure is typical, it is not the only method used in angioplasty.
Another procedure is laser angioplasty which utilizes a laser to ablate the stenosis by super heating and vaporizing the deposited plaque. Atherectomy is yet another method of treating a stenosed blood vessel in which cutting blades are rotated to shave the deposited plaque from the arterial wall. A vacuum catheter is usually used to capture the shaved plaque or thrombus from the blood stream during this procedure.
In the procedures of the kind referenced above, abrupt reclosure may occur or restenosis of the artery may develop over time, which may require another angioplasty procedure, a surgical bypass operation, or some other method of repairing or strengthening the area. To reduce the likelihood of the occurrence of abrupt reclosure and to strengthen the area, a physician can implant an intravascular prosthesis for maintaining vascular patency, commonly known as a stent, inside the artery across the lesion. The stent is crimped tightly onto the balloon portion of the catheter and transported in its delivery diameter through the patient's vasculature. At the deployment site, the stent is expanded to a larger diameter, often by inflating the balloon portion of the catheter.
Prior art stents typically fall into two general categories of construction. The first type of stent is expandable upon application of a controlled force, as described above, through the inflation of the balloon portion of a dilatation catheter which, upon inflation of the balloon or other expansion means, expands the compressed stent to a larger diameter to be left in place within the artery at the target site. The second type of stent is a self-expanding stent formed from, for example, shape memory metals or super-elastic nickel-titanum (NiTi) alloys, which will automatically expand from a collapsed state when the stent is advanced out of the distal end of the delivery catheter into the body lumen. Such stents manufactured from expandable heat sensitive materials allow for phase transformations of the material to occur, resulting in the expansion and contraction of the stent.
The above non-surgical interventional procedures, when successful, avoid the necessity of major surgical operations. However, there is one common problem which can become associated with all of these non-surgical procedures, namely, the potential release of embolic debris into the bloodstream that can occlude distal vasculature and cause significant health problems to the patient. For example, during deployment of a stent, it is possible that the metal struts of the stent can cut into the stenosis and shear off pieces of plaque which become embolic debris that can travel downstream and lodge somewhere in the patient's vascular system. Pieces of plaque material can sometimes dislodge from the stenosis during a balloon angioplasty procedure and become released into the bloodstream. Additionally, while complete vaporization of plaque is the intended goal during a laser angioplasty procedure, quite often particles are not fully vaporized and thus enter the bloodstream. Likewise, not all of the emboli created during an atherectomy procedure may be drawn into the vacuum catheter and, as a result, enter the bloodstream as well.
When any of the above-described procedures are performed in the carotid or arteries, the release of emboli into the circulatory system can be extremely dangerous and sometimes fatal to the patient. Debris that is carried by the bloodstream to distal vessels of the brain can cause these cerebral vessels to occlude, resulting in a stroke, and in some cases, death. Therefore, although cerebral percutaneous transluminal angioplasty has been performed in the past, the number of procedures performed has been limited due to the justifiable fear of causing an embolic stroke should embolic debris enter the bloodstream and block vital downstream blood passages.
Medical devices have been developed to attempt to deal with the problem created when debris or fragments enter the circulatory system following vessel treatment utilizing any one of the above-identified procedures. One approach which has been attempted is the cutting of any debris into minute sizes which pose little chance of becoming occluded in major vessels within the patient's vasculature. However, it is often difficult to control the size of the fragments which are formed, and the potential risk of vessel occlusion still exists, making such a procedure in the carotid arteries a high-risk proposition.
Other techniques which have been developed to address the problem of removing embolic debris include the use of catheters with a vacuum source which provides temporary suction to remove embolic debris from the bloodstream. However, as mentioned above, there have been complications with such systems since the vacuum catheter may not always remove all of the embolic material from the bloodstream, and a powerful suction could cause problems to the patient's vasculature. Other techniques which have had some limited success include the placement of a filter or trap downstream from the treatment site to capture embolic debris before it reaches the smaller blood vessels downstream. However, there have been problems associated with filtering systems, particularly during the expansion and collapsing of the filter within the body vessel. If the filtering device does not have a suitable mechanism for closing the filter, there is a possibility that trapped embolic debris can backflow through the inlet opening of the filter and enter the blood-stream as the filtering system is being collapsed and removed from the patient. In such a case, the act of collapsing the filter device may actually squeeze trapped embolic material through the opening of the filter and into the bloodstream.
Many of the prior art filters which can be expanded within a blood vessel are attached to the distal end of a guide wire or guide wire-like tubing which allows the filtering device to be placed in the patient's vasculature when the guide wire is manipulated in place. Once the guide wire is in proper position in the vasculature, the embolic filter can be deployed within the vessel to capture embolic debris. The guide wire can then be used by the physician to deliver interventional devices, such as a balloon angioplasty dilatation catheter or a stent, into the area of treatment. When a combination of embolic filter and guide wire is utilized, the proximal end of a guide wire can be rotated by the physician, usually unintentionally, when the interventional device is being delivered over the guide wire in an over-the-wire fashion. If the embolic filter is rigidly affixed to the distal end of the guide wire, and the proximal end of the guide wire is twisted or rotated, that rotation will be translated along the length of the guide wire to the embolic filter, which can cause the filter to rotate or move within the vessel and possibly cause trauma to the vessel wall. Additionally, it is possible for the physician to accidentally collapse or displace the deployed filter should the guide wire twist when the interventional device is being delivered over the guide wire. Moreover, a shockwave (vibratory motion) caused by the exchange of the delivery catheter or interventional devices along the guide wire can ajar the deployed filtering device and can possibly result in trauma to the blood vessel. These types of occurrences during the interventional procedure are undesirable since they can cause trauma to the vessel which is detrimental to the patient's health and/or cause the deployed filter to be displaced within the vessel which may result in some embolic debris flowing past the filter into the downstream vessels.
What has been needed is a reliable filtering device and system for use when treating stenosis in blood vessels which helps prevent the risk associated when embolic debris that can cause blockage in vessels at downstream locations is released into the bloodstream. The device should be capable of filtering any embolic debris which may be released into the bloodstream during the treatment and safely contain the debris until the filtering device is to be collapsed and removed from the patient's vasculature. The device should be relatively easy for a physician to use and should provide a failsafe filtering device which captures and removes any embolic debris from the bloodstream. Moreover, such a device should be relatively easy to deploy and remove from the patient's vasculature. The inventions disclosed herein satisfy these and other needs.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


The present invention provides a retractable wheel system for snowmobile skis. The retractable wheel system of the present invention may be installed on a snowmobile ski without affecting its structural integrity by installing the system on the reinforced portion of the snowmobile ski. When a user circulates in a path with little or no snow, the retractable wheel system is positioned in the extended configuration by the user and the system will automatically return to the retracted configuration when the user returns in a snowy zone. This is realized by using a pre-tensioned spring that will reposition the wheel in the retracted configuration. The spring transmits a rotational movement to the member on which the wheel is fixed.

Snowmobiles are vehicles adapted to circulate on snowy or icy surfaces. However, users often have to circulate on surface having little or no snow. These non-snow surfaces are often made from asphalt, concrete, stony ground, for example, which are highly abrasive for the undersurface of the snowmobile ski. Prior art shows some systems in which the user has to install wheels on the skis to circulate on abrasive surface to prevent the undersurface of the ski to contact the abrasive surface.
Disadvantage of such system is that the manipulation to install the wheel is complex and difficult. Indeed, in many of systems provided in prior art, the user has to stop the snowmobile, get down from it and install manually the wheels, pass through the zone with little or no snow, stop again the snowmobile and remove the wheels. These manipulations have for consequence that the users will not install the wheel and pass through the zone with little or no snow on the ski, causing a premature wear of the ski.
Also, in snowy condition, the wheel systems may be jam with snow or ice, increasing the difficulty of the manipulation.
Finally, it is important to consider where the systems are installed on skis. Since the weight of the snowmobile is directly transmitted to the ski, the latter are under high mechanical stresses. In some systems of prior art, fixation holes are practiced in the ski, weakening the ski and causing eventually the breaking of the ski. Since the skis are reinforced where they are attached to the snowmobile, it would be advantageous to install the wheel in this section. Indeed, if the wheels are installed in a non-reinforced zone, the ski will bend, diminishing the contact surface between the snow and the ski. This configuration diminishes the performance of the ski on snow. It also causes an inadequate distribution of the weight of the snowmobile on the ski and a premature wear.
A deformation of the skis may occur if the wheel system is installed on a part of the ski that is not reinforced, causing the ski to bend under the weight of the snowmobile. Furthermore, the wear bar usually install on the undersurface of a ski will be highly affected by such a stress and curvature. It is known that the wear bar is made from carbide having high hardness and thus being highly fragile. As a consequence, the wear bar will become cracked and chipped.

Shaft and actuator for retractable snowmobile ski wheel system and method of using the same


A noise suppressor for use with a crib includes a frame that is configured for being detachably coupled to a frame of the crib. The frame of the noise suppressor is configured to extend across an open top of the crib. The noise suppressor includes a noise suppressor structure that is coupled to the frame of the noise suppressor. The noise suppressor structure is configured to at least substantially extend across the open top of the crib and is formed of a noise suppressing material. The noise suppressor further includes electronics disposed along one of the frame of the noise suppressor and the noise suppressor structure. The electronics include a speaker, a timer, and a first sensor for sensing sound within the crib above a predetermined threshold. In one variation, the electronics is configured to play a recording when either a predetermined amount of time has lapsed or the sound above the predetermined threshold is observed.

One of the many challenges that face new parents is getting sufficient sleep and in particular, improving the parents' quality of sleep by helping the baby sleep through the night by developing healthy sleep habits. Newborns have fragmented sleep patterns in part base on their neurological development at this early age and therefore, newborns do not sleep for long periods of time. Infants also require two or three nighttime feedings since their tiny stomachs cannot hold enough food to keep them full for long periods.
There are a vast number of different techniques that have been publicized for training the baby to fall to sleep fast and at an early age. One of the most popular techniques is the Ferber method (named for its creator, Richard Ferber, M.D. This method is based on the notion that babies make associations with falling asleep, whether at bedtime or after waking in the middle of the night. Thus, if a parent routinely rocks the baby to sleep or allows the baby to fall asleep while having a bottle, the baby will come to rely on these things in order to go to sleep and will want them repeated when the baby awakes in the middle of the night. The baby thus has to be taught to learn to fall asleep by himself/herself in the crib. The Ferber method is designed to provide such instruction.
The Ferber method works in the following manner. The baby is placed in his/her baby in the crib, say good night, and leave the room. If the baby starts to cry, let the baby cry for a first period of time, say 5 minutes. Then go into the room, comfort the baby briefly without picking the baby up and then leave. If the baby cries, wait a second longer period of time, say 10 minutes before going in, then a third period of time (say 15 minutes), until the baby falls asleep. The point of going into the baby's room is reassure the baby that the parent still exists and to reassure the parent than the baby is okay. This ritual is then repeated with the same timed intervals used at the baby's bedtime each time the baby wakes up during the night.
Each subsequent night, an additional 5 minutes is added to the first interval. For example, the second night, start by waiting 10 minutes before going in and then on the third night wait for 15 minutes, etc. Many parents find that if the Ferber method is strictly adhered to that over the course of three to seven days, the baby learns to associate being in the crib with falling asleep. Also of importance is that the baby also learns that crying will not get his or her parents to pick him or her up.
There are a number of drawbacks that make this method difficult for parents and in particular, the Ferber method is not for the fainthearted since the parent has to be able to hear the baby's crying for an extended period of time.
Given the popularity of the Ferber method, it would therefore be desirable to provide an accessory that can be used with the Ferber method and increases the likelihood that the parent will adhere to the Ferber method until success is achieved.


A capacitor includes a base having a hollow or open portion in an upper surface for containing a battery element or an electric double layer capacitor element and an electrolytic solution in an inside thereof, a metallized layer formed to a periphery of the base defining the hollow or open portion in the upper surface and a frame member made of metal brazed to the metallized layer so as to surround the hollow or open portion. An inner lateral surface of the frame member is inclined outward, and a corrosion resistant layer is deposited so as to continuously cover the inclined surface and a portion of the surface of the metallized layer situated inward thereof.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a container for use in a rechargeable battery and an electric double layer capacitor, as well as a battery and an electric double layer capacitor using the container and, more specifically, the present invention relates to a thin battery used for small-sized electronic equipments such as mobile phones and an electric double layer capacitor used for back-up power sources for semiconductor memories and secondary power supply systems for small-sized electronic equipments, as well as a container used for them.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, along with remarkable development of portable equipments typically represented by mobile phones, portable computers, compact video cameras, etc., reduction in the size and the weight has been demanded further. Then, along with increasing demand for batteries as the power supply for such portable equipments, studies for reducing the size and the weight have been conducted vigorously by increasing the energy density of the battery. Particularly, since lithium battery uses lithium of small atomic weight and having high ionization energy, the lithium battery can be a battery capable of obtaining high energy density, being reduced in the size and the weight and, further, capable of recharging, and the lithium battery has been studied vigorously and become used at present for extensive application use including power supplies for portable equipments.
The battery is generally classified into a cylindrical type and a square type and has a structure in which a positive electrode material and a negative electrode material are contained via a separator in a container such as a cell casing made of metal and an electrolytic solution is injected and sealed therein.
Further, in the electric double layer capacitor, positive and negative charges are opposed at an extremely short distance along an interface where two different phases (for example, a solid electrode and an electrolytic solution) are in contact with each other. The electric double layer capacitor is an electric element capable of charging or discharging electric energy by utilizing electrostatic adsorption/desorption of ions at the ion adsorption layer in the electrolytic solution formed on the surface of a carbon material such as graphite, boronated graphite, activated carbon or coke used for positive electrode and negative electrode materials, that is, the electric double layer formed at the surface of the carbon material such as graphite used for the positive and negative electrode materials.
Then, thin rechargeable battery or electric double layer capacitor in which a battery element or an electric double layer capacitor element comprising the positive electrode, the negative electrode and the separator, and an electrolytic solution are contained in a ceramic base as shown in FIG. 10 has been proposed (refer, for example, to Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 2001-216952).
A rechargeable battery or electric double layer capacitor according to the related art comprises a container, a positive electrode material A-1, a negative electrode material A-2, a separator A-3 and an electrolytic solution A-4. The container basically includes a ceramic base 11 such as formed of sintered alumina having a metallized layer 11d also serving as a positive electrode plate at a bottom and a lid body 14 made or metal such as an iron(Fe)-nickel(Ni)-cobalt(Co) alloy also serving as a negative electrode plate. The rechargeable battery or the electric double layer capacitor according to the related art is of a hermetically sealed structure having the container in which the separator A-3 containing the electrolytic solution A-4 sandwiched between the positive electrode material A-1 and the negative electrode material A-2 is disposed between the metallized layer 11d and the lid body 14. Charge and discharge at the metallized layer 11d and the lid body 14 is conducted by way of a first conductive layer C electrically connected with the lid body 14 and a second conductive layers D electrically connected with the metallized layer 11d formed at the lower surface of the substrate 11. Further, a frame member 13 can be provided between the ceramic base 11 and the lid body 14 (refer, for example, to Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 2004-227959 (pages 4 to 6, FIG. 1)).
In the rechargeable battery or electric double layer capacitor E using the ceramic base 11 shown in FIG. 10, since the ceramic is excellent in the chemical resistance, the ceramic base 11 is less corroded by the electrolytic solution A-4 containing an organic solvent, acid, etc. and the electrolytic solution A-4 is not degraded by the intrusion of an impurity dissolved from the ceramic base 11 into the electrolytic solution A-4, and the performance of the rechargeable battery or electric double layer capacitor E can be maintained favorably.
However, since a metal layer 11c or the frame member 13 for bonding the lid body 14 to the ceramic base 11 is made of the metal, use of the high performance electrolytic solution A-4 cause a problem that these metal is dissolved into the electrolytic solution A-4 to degrade the electrolytic solution A-4.

Container, battery and electric double layer capacitor


A process for obtaining low temperature refrigeration in an existing or new low temperature refrigeration system designed to operate with, or suitable for use with, or capable of being used with HCFC-22 as the refrigerant, the refrigerant composition being a refrigerant composition comprising difluoromethane (HFC-32), pentafluoroethane (HFC-125) and tetrafluoroethane (HFC134a), the three components being present in the composition in amounts such that the operating characteristic of the refrigerant composition in regard to superheat is provided at an acceptable level and the operating characteristics of the refrigerant composition in regard to cooling capacity, mass flow and efficiency (COP) characteristics, when employed as the refrigerant in a low temperature refrigeration system, are each at least 95% of the operating characteristics of chlorodifluoromethane (HCFC-22) if HCFC-22 were to be employed as the refrigerant in such low temperature refrigeration system.

Mechanical refrigeration systems, and related heat transfer devices such as heat pumps and air conditioners, using refrigerant liquids are well known in the art for industrial, commercial and domestic uses. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were developed in the 1930s as refrigerants for such systems. However, since the 1980s the effect of CFCs on the stratospheric ozone layer has become the focus of much attention. In 1987 a number of governments signed the Montreal Protocol to protect the global environment setting forth a timetable for phasing out the CFC products. CFC's were replaced with more environmentally acceptable materials that contain hydrogen or hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFC's). Subsequent amendments to the Montreal protocol accelerated the phase-out of these CFCs and also scheduled the phase-out of HCFCs. Thus, there is a requirement for a non-flammable, non-toxic alternative to replace these CFCs and HCFCs. In response to such demand industry has developed a number of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which have a zero ozone depletion potential.
The importance of refrigeration systems, especially low temperature refrigeration systems, to the food manufacture, distribution and retail industries is fundamental. Such systems play a vital role in ensuring that food which reaches the consumer is both fresh and fit to eat. In such low temperature refrigeration systems the popular refrigerant employed has been chlorodifluoromethane (R-22 or HCFC-22), which has an ozone-depleting potential and will be phased out completely.
A number of patent publications have suggested replacements for HCFC-22. That is, these patent publications have suggested refrigerants or refrigerant compositions that can be used instead of HCFC-22 in new refrigeration systems to be built or installed. Among such patent publications there may be mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,185,094, U.S. Pat. No. 5,370,811, U.S. Pat. No. 5,438,849, U.S. Pat. No. 5,643,492, U.S. Pat. No. 5,709,092, U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,256, U.S. Pat. No. 6,018,952, U.S. Pat. No. 6,187,219 B1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,606,868 B1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,669,862 B1, published US application NO. US 2004/00691091 A1, and published European application nos. EP 0 430169 A1, EP 0 509 673 A1 and EP 0 811 670 A1. While all the mentioned US patents and published EP applications disclose ternary mixtures of difluoromethane (HFC-32), pentafluoroethane (HFC-125) and tetrafluoroethane (HFC134a) for use in refrigeration or air conditioning systems, they do not address the ability to replace HCFC-22 in existing R-22 refrigeration systems or systems suitable for use with R-22 refrigerant, particularly in low temperature refrigeration systems, while obtaining at least about 95% of the operating characteristics of R-22 without the necessity for modification of the system, especially without the necessity for adjustment or replacement of the expansion valve of the low temperature refrigeration system. Comparative examples provided later in the present specification of this application show that tertiary compositions within the scope of the prior art disclosure are not suitable for use in low temperature R-22 refrigeration systems. Those prior art compositions do not obtain at least about 95% of the operating characteristics of R-22 so as to enable one to use such compositions in low temperature R-22 refrigeration systems over a wide range of low refrigeration temperatures and ambient temperatures without the necessity for modification of the system.
In order to retrofit an existing low temperature refrigeration system employing HCFC-22 refrigerant with replacement refrigerant, it is necessary that that the replacement refrigerant operating characteristics, such as evaporator superheat, cooling capacity, refrigerant mass flow rate, efficiency, pressure and energy consumption, are substantially identical to that of the HCFC-22 refrigerant being replaced. This near match in properties of the replacement refrigerant to those of HCFC-22 are essential for their use in such existing low temperature refrigeration systems or systems designed for using R-22 refrigerant, without requiring equipment replacement or modification, e.g. replacement or modification of expansion valves of the low temperature refrigeration system. The solutions suggested by the industry for R-22 replacements, such as R-407A and R-407C refrigerants, do not solve this problem since they require modification of the systems in an attempt to match R-22 operating characteristics.

Refrigerant compositions and use thereof in low temperature refrigeration systems


A method of performing microbeam radiosurgery on a patient whereby opposing portions of target tissue within a patient are exposed to a flux of high energy quanta via microbeam envelopes. The microbeam envelopes are applied in multiple non-parallel orientations such that the exposed portions of the target tissue define a substantially closed volume. The tissue remaining inside is thereby denied blood flow and dies.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods for performing radiosurgery on a patient using microbeam radiation.
2. Description of the Related Art
A radiosurgery method which employs sub-millimeter beams of X-rays, termed microbeams, was patented by Slatkin et al. nearly two decades ago (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,339,347, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference). Subsequent scientific studies of the effects of microbeam radiation have further illuminated Slatkin's work, showing that while the tissue cells in the direct path of a microbeam are destroyed, the region of destruction is sufficiently small in width that the adjacent undamaged tissue is capable of healing the damaged region (see Dilmanian et al., Experimental Hematology, Vol. 35, 2007, pp. 69-77, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference). This feature of microbeam radiation, combined with proper targeting technique, promises a means to destroy diseased tissue without damaging the functionality of the surrounding normal healthy tissue.
The most successful prior art targeting technique is termed multidirectional interlaced microbeam radiation therapy (MIMRT). This technique was patented by Dilmanian et al. (see U.S. Pat. No. 7,194,063 B2, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference). MIMRT is comprised of cross firing from several directions such that the diseased tissue receives dosage in a broad beam pattern while surrounding healthy tissue receives dosage in a segmented beam pattern.
As an example, referring to FIG. 1A, a body of diseased tissue 100 is targeted by three linear arrays of planar microbeams 120, 122, and 124. The direction of motion vectors for these arrays, 140, 142, and 144, respectively, are located in the same plane, XY for the coordinate system shown, and are separated in angle by 120 degrees.
Referring to FIG. 1B, each microbeam array is comprised of planes of radiation with width 180, height 182, and pitch 184. The pitch 184, in this example, is equal to three times the width 180. The height 182 is sufficiently large to span the breadth of the body of diseased tissue.
Referring again to FIG. 1A, the array 122 is displaced by one beam width 180 in the Z direction relative to the array 120. The array 124 is displaced by two beam widths 180 in the Z direction relative to the array 120.
Referring to FIG. 1C, the intersection of arrays 120, 122, and 124 at the targeted body of diseased tissue 100 is shown. The arrays 120, 122, and 124 are interlaced.
Referring to FIG. 1D, a cross section through the diseased tissue 100 is shown. Because the microbeam arrays 120, 122, and 124 are interlaced at the target body 100, the entire volume of the target body 100 is exposed to radiation. Normal tissue outside the target body 100, however, is exposed only to the segmented radiation pattern of the individual arrays. By this scheme, the diseased tissue 100 is destroyed while the functionality of the surrounding normal tissue is spared.
A serious difficulty associated with MIMRT is patient motion. The microbeam arrays 120, 122, and 124 of FIG. 1A are delivered sequentially in time. If the target body 100 moves during the time between deliveries of the respective microbeam arrays, the interlacing of damaged regions in the target body 100 does not properly occur and a broad beam damage pattern is not achieved. As such, the diseased tissue 100 is not completely destroyed. Patient motion on the order of a microbeam width compromises the effectiveness of MIMRT. Patient motion larger than this is guaranteed in practice. As an example, for a target body of diseased tissue located in the lung, MIMRT is completely ineffective.

Targeting method for microbeam radiosurgery


A receive part demodulates and decodes a digital modulated signal obtained by receiving a digital broadcast to generate a transport stream, and extracts data-broadcast data transmitted over a data channel. An electronic program list generator generates, from program sequence information included in the transport stream, display data for a program list. Based thereon, a video display part displays the program list. When the user looks at this and selects a program desired for preset recording through an input operation part, a system control part determines whether or not the weather during the broadcast time period of the program will be bad based on weather forecast information obtained from the data-broadcast data. As a result, if the weather is determined as bad, the system control part causes the video display part to provide a display indicating a possibility of degradation in image quality, etc., during the broadcast time period.

In television receivers, analog broadcasts are gradually degraded in image quality (hereinafter referred to as "receive image quality") as the receive state becomes poorer. On the other hand, degradation in receive image quality of digital broadcasts is not observed even if the receive state becomes poor until it exceeds limitations in an error correcting capability of a television receiver. That is, the receive state and the receive image quality in analog broadcasts, and those in digital broadcasts respectively have a relationship as shown in FIG. 12. From this, it can be said that the receive image quality in digital broadcasts is less prone to be affected by the receive state than that in analog broadcasts. In a case of digital broadcasts, however, the receive quality is rapidly degraded when the receive image state becomes so poor as to exceed the limitations in the error correcting capability of the television receiver. Moreover, when the receive state becomes so poor as to exceed the error correcting capability, digital broadcast television receivers are generally formed so as not to carry out video display.
The receive state in television broadcasting using a satellite or a ground wave is affected by weather. Therefore, when a television program is preset for recording by a VCR, etc., the image quality of recorded video is affected by weather during the broadcast time period of the program. Particularly, in a case where a digital broadcast program is preset for recording, if the receive state will become so poor as to exceed the limitations in the error correction capability of the television receiver due to bad weather during the broadcast time period of the program that is desired for preset recording, it is practically impossible to record the program. Some digital broadcasts require a fee, and therefore the desire can be considered particularly strong to prevent a situation in which recording of the program that is preset for recording is practically impossible due to bad weather.
Furthermore, in a case of drawing up a schedule for viewing a certain program to be aired as a digital broadcast, it will be convenient to know in advance the possibility of degradation in receive image quality due to bad weather during the broadcast time period of the program.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a digital broadcast recording/viewing support apparatus which is capable of reliably recording or viewing a program that is scheduled to be aired as a digital broadcast.

Digital broadcast recording/viewing support apparatus

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


Piezoelectric osteotomy devices and corresponding systems and methods for removing an acetabular cup or shell from a patient's acetabulum are disclosed. In one embodiment, the piezoelectric osteotomy device includes a piezoelectric element to actuate a cutting tip on an armature. In some such embodiments, the cutting tip may be extended and/or retracted to facilitate cutting of bone around an acetabular cup. The armature may include a fluid output port located proximate the cutting tip to mitigate heat generated by the cutting tip. In one embodiment, the piezoelectric osteotomy device is arranged and configured to provide constant current adjustment.

Articulating regions of the anatomy can include areas where two bone sections move relative to one another. For example, an acetabulum, or pelvis, can provide a region for articulation with a femoral head. Sometimes, the articulating region, typically referred to as the hip joint, can become injured or worn, but it can be replaced with various prostheses. Such prostheses can replace the acetabulum, the femoral head, and various other portions of the femur, or other combinations thereof. The replacement of both the acetabulum and the femoral head is generally referred to as a total joint replacement.
Acetabular prostheses are one type of prosthesis currently used in joint replacement. Generally speaking, an acetabular prosthesis includes an acetabular cage coupled via, for example, an adhesive, to an acetabular cup implanted in the acetabulum. Sometimes, a revision surgery is performed to address issues with a previously implanted acetabular cup. Frequently, the acetabular cup must be removed during such revision surgeries. However, damage to bone and/or surrounding vasculature (e.g., iliac, obturator, pudendal, and/or gluteal vessels) often results from removing the acetabular cup.
It is with this in mind that the present disclosure is provided.

Devices and techniques for hip revision surgery

Smith & Nephew Asia Pacific Pte. Limited


A system and method for inspecting an optical fiber, particularly an epoxy region of an optical fiber in a supporting structure. The inspection may use an initialization routine including determination of whether the centering between the optical fiber and the illumination source is sufficient. The meters used to determine completion of initialization may be displayed. The inspection may analyze the uniformity of the thickness of an epoxy layer between the fiber and the supporting structure. The inspection may also analyze the core and clad zones of the optical fiber for scratches and other intensity variations, referred to generically as blobs. The core zone preferably encompasses a region larger than the core alone, e.g., an area which is a multiple of the core diameter. Different criteria are established for the core and clad zones, with no discontinuities being tolerated in the core zone. Scratches may be extracted using a windowing technique. The clad zone has a two-dimensional discrimination factor for both scratches and blobs, one dimension being cumulative for a totality of the intensity variations and the other dimension being for each individual intensity variation. The effect of the illumination of the core on the discrimination may be accounted for.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed generally to a system and method for inspecting an optical fiber. More particularly, the present invention is directed to automating the inspection of an optical fiber, advantageously including inspecting an epoxy area surrounding the optical fiber, while providing repeatability of the inspection, simplicity of assessing results of the inspection, and insuring, upon passing the inspection, a high-quality, durable fiber.
2. Description of Related Art
Optical fibers are widely employed to transmit light for many applications. The demand for inexpensive, reliable, high-performance optical fibers continues to grow.
A cross-section of a typical optical fiber is shown in FIG. 1. The optical fiber includes a core region 102 surrounded by a cladding region 104. Both the core region 102 and the cladding region 104 may be manufactured out of glass. The core region 102 is typically very small, e.g., about four to nine microns in diameter for a single mode fiber. The cladding region 104 typically has a larger diameter than the core region, e.g., about 125 microns in diameter. The cladding region 104 may be surrounded by a supporting structure or ferrule region 108 which protects the core region 102 and the cladding region 104 from damage. The ferrule region 108 may be made of zirconia and may be approximately 2500 microns in diameter. The ferrule region 108 may be attached to the cladding region 104 by an epoxy layer 106.
In order to insure good performance of the optical fiber, the optical fiber needs to be relatively free of defects such as scratches, blobs, cracks, chips, pits, dirt, and other discontinuities/irregularities. The presence of such defects in the optical fiber, particularly in the core region, may result in at least one of increased insertion loss, poor return loss, and premature failure due to the increase of the regions having defects. This increase in the regions having defects may be the result of environmental or mechanical stresses.
Initially, optical fibers were inspected manually by viewing them under a microscope. Such manual inspection has the obvious drawbacks of being time consuming, subjective, not very repeatable, and limited by human visual acuity.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,179,419 discloses a method for detecting, classifying and quantifying defects in an optical fiber. This method provides quantitative information regarding the discontinuities on the optical fiber, but does not provide a qualitative guide for a user. Thus, while the inspection itself is automated, the ultimate conclusion of acceptability of the optical fiber is left to the user. The generation of all of the quantitative information is also quite time consuming.
Another problem with both automated and manual inspection systems is the reliability in terms of repeatability. In other words, the same inspection performed on the same fiber may yield different results.
Further, now that optical fibers have been in use for many years, some of those optical fibers inserted into ferrules or other supporting structures which initially were deemed acceptable have begun to fail. With the increasing use of optical fibers in ferrules or other supporting structures, there is also a need to assess additional long term performance of these optical fibers. One such factor in determining long term performance is the evenness of a layer used to secure the fiber in the supporting structure and to eliminate any resulting gap between the supporting structure and the fiber inserted therein, herein referred to as an epoxy layer. Current approaches for analyzing end surfaces do not take into account the long term effect of any uneven distribution of the epoxy layer or even suggest how to reliably analyze the epoxy layer.

System and method for inspecting an optical fiber including an epoxy area surrounding the optical fiber


A metal or silicide buried layer in MOS semiconductor devices provides a drain contact on the upper surface of the device with a greatly reduced resistance. The methods of manufacture include depositing the buried layer, rather than diffusing, so that interference with other components is greatly reduced and spacing between components is reduced to reduce the over-all size of the device.

Generally, vertical MOS devices are constructed with gate and source external contacts on the front, or top, major surface of a semiconductor substrate and an external drain contact on the opposite (bottom or back) major surface. This structure is a natural result of the fact that the drain is formed first and can be contacted from the opposed major surface without additional manufacturing steps. However, having external contacts on both sides of the substrate severely limits the mounting and applications of the structure.
To overcome this problem, the prior art diffuses a heavily doped conductive buried layer in the substrate. An epitaxial layer is grown over the buried layer and a plurality of deep wells are diffused into the epitaxial layer so as to be in contact with the buried layer. Vertical MOS devices are then formed in the epitaxial layer so that the drains are in contact with the buried layer. External drain contacts are formed on the surface of the epitaxial layer in contact with the deep wells. Thus, all of the electrodes of the MOS devices are on the same side of the substrate and the mounting problems are eliminated.
One of the major problems that occurs in the prior art buried layer structure is that the buried layer, which is heavily doped to make it conductive, diffuses into the epitaxial layer during subsequent processing. To stop this diffusion from interfering with proper MOS device functions, the epitaxial layer must be formed thick enough so that the effects of up diffusion can be accounted for. This often requires an epitaxial layer thickness of more than 10 microns. Because of the thickness of the epitaxial layer, the diffused deep wells contacting the buried layer must be much deeper which, therefore, results in the width of the deep wells being very large. The width of the deep wells is larger than 30 microns which requires a substantial amount of substrate surface and greatly reduces the number of devices that can be formed in the substrate.

Semiconductor device including very low sheet resistivity buried layer


A method for repairing the cylinder block of an internal combustion engine. The cylinder block engages a standard cylinder head and includes an outer cylinder casting that surrounds an inner cylinder sleeve. The casting has corrosion formed in an end surface that faces the cylinder head. The method includes the steps of providing a repair ring that is separate and distinct from the cylinder sleeve and has a selected thickness. A counterbore is formed in the end surface of the cylinder casting to remove the corrosion therefrom. The counterbore has a depth that is no greater than the thickness of the ring. The ring is installed annularly about and in close tolerance fit with the cylinder sleeve and is introduced into the counterbore. At least one of the cylinder sleeve and the ring are machined for form thereon respective, generally co-planar surfaces that face the cylinder head.

Outboard marine engines tend to exhibit rapid and often premature deterioration due to water corrosion. Most engine blocks employ aluminum cylinder castings, which are surrounded and otherwise bounded by a water jacket. These castings are highly susceptible to corrosion, particularly when the engine is used in a saltwater environment where electrolysis is likely to occur. Such corrosion is accelerated if the boat owner neglects to flush the engine after each use.
Progressive corrosion of the engine block often leads to total failure of the engine. The cylinder castings and the cylinder head are sealably interengaged by a conventional head gasket. Excessive pitting and corrosion of the castings will eventually cause the head gasket to fail. As a result, cooling water from the water jacket leaks into one or more of the combustion chambers and the engine malfunctions.
Traditionally, corroded engine blocks have been discarded and replaced. This is expensive and highly inefficient. The only known technique that attempts to repair the engine block involves the replacement of the cast iron cylinder sleeve. This sleeve, which is surrounded by the casting, is removed and replaced by an entirely new sleeve having a circumferential flange. This procedure is almost as expensive and inefficient as replacing the entire engine block. Considerable time, expense and complexity are required to manufacture these special replacement sleeves.

Method for repairing corroded cylinder castings in water-cooled engine blocks


Apparatus and methods for treating acid gas, which utilizes multi-stage absorption cycle of ammonia desulfurization to treat acid tail gas after pre-treatment of the acid gas, thereby achieving the purpose of efficient and low-cost treatment of acid tail gas. The parameters of the acid tail gas may be adjusted by a regulatory system such that the enthalpy value of the acid tail gas is in the range of 60-850 kJ/kg dry gas, for example, 80-680 kJ/kg dry gas or 100-450 kJ/kg dry gas, to meet the requirements of ammonia desulfurization, and achieve the synergy between the acid gas pre-treatment and ammonia desulfurization. Furthermore, hydrogen sulfide may be converted into sulfur/sulfuric acid plus ammonium sulfate at an adjustable ratio.

Acid gas refers to the process gas that includes, among other things, sulfur-containing materials such as hydrogen sulfide, sulfur oxides, organic sulfur and the like, which is derived from petrochemical, natural gas chemical, coal chemical, shale oil chemical, and shale gas chemical industries and the like. The harmful components in the acid gas are primarily hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, COS, CS2, etc. with a high concentration of H2S (generally, 70%-95% for petrochemical industry, 30%-80% for natural gas chemical industry, and 20%-50% for coal chemical industry), and need to be treated to meet a discharge standard.
There are various methods for treatment technologies of sulfide-containing acid gas, such as conventional Claus plus hydrogenation reduction absorption regeneration (low temperature SCOT (Shell's Shell Claus Off-gas Treating (multi-step process for sulfur recovery from Claus tail gas))) technology, dry process for making sulfuric acid, incineration plus tail gas desulfurization technology, wet process for making sulfuric acid, conventional Claus plus SUPERCLAUS (registered; multi-stage process for sulfur recovery from H2S-containing tail gas) and/or EUROCLAUS (registered; multi-stage process for sulfur recovery from H2S-containing tail gas) technology, conventional Claus plus tail gas incineration plus tail gas desulfurization technology, conventional Claus plus catalytic oxidation, conventional Claus plus biological desulfurization, etc., wherein the most commonly used technology is the conventional Claus plus hydrogenation reduction absorption regeneration technology.
In the Claus sulfur recovery stage, 85%-99% of hydrogen sulfide is converted into sulfur, and less than 15% of the sulfide is reduced by hydrogenation, absorbed and regenerated to obtain H2S which is returned to the Claus sulfur recovery device.
However, after the above treatments, the acid gas is still difficult to meet environmental standards and cannot be directly discharged, and further treatment is required. Further treatment technologies include tail gas desulfurization by alkali method, tail gas bio-desulfurization, CANSOLV (registered; system for capturing CO2 from low-pressure streams such as flue gas) and the like. With increasingly strict standards for sulfur discharged into the environment, a compulsory sulfur recovery rate may reach 99.9% or more, and the sulfur oxide concentration in the tail gas may be required to be controlled at 100 mg/Nm3 or even below 50 mg/Nm3.
However, in general, existing processes have large investment, high operating cost, and high emission concentrations of pollutants, or even have difficulty in meeting discharge standards, especially during the startup and shutdown periods.
The Chinese invention patent with Application No. CN 200910188118 discloses a high-concentration flue gas desulfurization method, which uses sodium-method desulfurization and simultaneously recovers the by-product sodium sulfite, wherein the flue gas is deoxidized before desulfurization. The concentration of sulfur dioxide in flue gas before treatment ranges between 10,000-100,000 mg/m3, the oxygen content ranges between 2,000-10,000 mg/m3, and the concentration of sulfur dioxide in the flue gas after treatment is less than 200 mg/m3. Compared with the common sodium sulfite method, deoxidation step in this method requires conversion of part of sulfur dioxide into low-value low-concentration sulfuric acid as an efflux, and the recovery rate of sulfur dioxide in the flue gas is reduced. Furthermore, this method is difficult to deoxidize thoroughly, the purity of the product sodium sulfite is low, and this method has large investment and high operating cost.
The Chinese invention patent with Application No. CN 200580011908.X discloses a biological desulfurization technology, which is used for biological desulfurization of Claus tail gas to obtain desulfurized tail gas and sulfur product. The main process is that: tail gas is introduced into an absorber and contacted with a lean solvent to obtain desulfurized tail gas and a rich solvent; the rich solvent is introduced into a bioreactor device in which the dissolved hydrogen sulfide is bio-oxidized to obtain a sulfur product and a lean solvent. The hydrogen sulfide in the tail gas can be less than 10 ppm. This method has large investment, difficult operation, and waste liquid discharge, and it is difficult to keep the continuous and stable biological activity.
The Chinese invention patent with Application No. U.S. Pat. No. 5,019,361 illustrates the CANSOLV process flow as below: the concentration of sulfur dioxide is 7×10−4-5×10−3, the mass concentration of the organic amine liquid is not less than 20%, the temperature of absorption liquid is 10° C.-50° C., sulfur dioxide absorbed per 1,000 g of absorption liquid is greater than 100 g, the desorption temperature is 70° C.-90° C., and 4 g-10 g of steam will be consumed per desorption of 1 g of sulfur dioxide. This method has large investment, waste acid discharge and high energy consumption.
The Chinese invention patent with Application No. CN 201210288895 discloses a method for treating Claus process tail gas, in which the Claus process tail gas containing sulfur dioxide, oxygen and water is continuously added into a reactor filled with a porous carbon desulfurizer; at a reaction temperature of 30° C.-150° C., sulfur dioxide and water in the tail gas undergo catalytic oxidation reaction on the surface of the porous carbon to form sulfuric acid, and the regeneration detergent is continuously introduced into the reactor at the same time. In this method, the desulfurization rate is up to 93%, and the final tail gas discharge cannot meet the high environmental protection requirements, and the by-product low-concentration sulfuric acid is difficult to use. The multi-stage Claus process tail gas still fails to meet the discharge requirements.
Countries around the world discharge sulfur dioxide to different degrees. China's sulfur dioxide emissions are huge and have a great impact on the environment and society. The total amount of sulfur dioxide emissions in 2014 was 19.74 million tons, and the total amount of sulfur dioxide emissions in 2015 was 18.591 million tons, ranking first in the world, which caused a huge economic loss and seriously affected China's ecological environment and people's health.
In view of the shortcomings of the above technologies and the reality of sulfur dioxide emission load in China, various tail gas desulfurization technologies are emerging. At present, there are hundreds of mature desulfurization technologies, among which the wet desulfurization process is the most widely used, accounting for about 85% of the world's total installed capacity of desulfurization. Common wet flue gas desulfurization technologies include limestone-gypsum method, double alkali-method, sodium carbonate-method, ammonia-method, magnesium oxide-method, and the like. Ammonia desulfurization is a wet desulfurization process using ammonia as an absorbent, this method can produce ammonium sulfate fertilizer using SO2, and is a green flue gas management scheme with low energy consumption, high additional value and the implementation of recycling utilization of resources. Since a large amount of available ammonia water is generated in the production process of the chemical industry, the use of ammonia desulfurization may be desirable for the tail gas in the chemical industry.
The ammonia desulfurization process is mainly composed of three processes: absorption, oxidation and concentration (crystallization). Firstly, sulfur dioxide is absorbed with ammonium sulfite to obtain a mixed solution of ammonium sulfite and ammonium hydrogen sulfite, and then neutralization by adding ammonia is performed to obtain ammonium sulfite again:(NH4)2SO3+H2O+SO2=2NH4HSO3 (NH4)xH(2−x)SO3+(2−x)NH3═(NH4)2SO3
Oxidized air is introduced into the solution to oxidize ammonium (hydrogen) sulfite to obtain ammonium (hydrogen) sulfate:(NH4)2SO3+½O2═(NH4)2SO4
The circulating absorption liquid containing ammonium sulfate is subjected to concentration, crystallization, solid-liquid separation and drying to obtain the final product, ammonium sulfate.
The Chinese invention patent with Application No. CN 201310130225.4 discloses an ammonia-method flue gas management apparatus and methods for acid tail gas, specifically comprising the following steps: 1) controlling the concentration of sulfur dioxide in the tail gas to be introduced into an absorption tower at ≤30000 mg/Nm3; 2) process water or ammonium sulfate solution is provided in the inlet flue pipe of the absorption tower or within the absorption tower for spraying to lower the temperature; 3) an oxidation section is provided in the absorption tower, and an oxidation distributor is provided in the oxidation section to realize oxidation of the desulfurization absorption liquid; 4) an absorption section is provided in the absorption tower, and an absorption liquid distributor is used to achieve desulfurization spray absorption by the ammonia-containing absorption liquid in the absorption section; the ammonia-containing absorption liquid is supplemented through an ammonia storage tank; 5) the upper part of the absorption section in the absorption tower is equipped with a water washing layer, which washes the absorption liquid in the tail gas to reduce the escape of the absorption liquid; 6) the upper part of the water washing layer in the absorption tower is equipped with a defogger to control the content of fog drops in the purified tail gas; in the coal chemical industry, the use of integrated desulfurization technology of Claus sulfur recovery plus ammonia desulfurization can reduce the investment cost of post-treatment, and the flow is simpler, and the process is mainly applied to acid gas treatment in the coal chemical industry, wherein the concentration of sulfur dioxide in the tail gas to be introduced into the absorption tower needs to be controlled at ≤30,000 mg/Nm3, and the requirements for other parameters of the tail gas such as enthalpy value and impurity content are not specified.
The Chinese invention patent with Application No. CN 201410006886.0 discloses a method for efficiently removing acidic sulfide gas using ammonia desulfurization technology, comprising the following steps: 1) pre-treatment: sulfide in acid gas is subjected to the pre-treatment method such as sulfur recovery, sulfuric acid production and/or incineration, and thus the remaining sulfur in the acid gas is converted into sulfur oxides to obtain acid tail gas containing sulfur oxides; the acid gas is derived from petrochemical, natural gas chemical, coal chemical industries and the like; 2) ammonia absorption of sulfur oxide: the acid tail gas containing sulfur oxides is introduced into an ammonia absorption device, and the sulfur oxides are absorbed by a circulating absorption liquid; 3) ammonium sulfate post-treatment: the saturated or nearly saturated absorption liquid which fully absorbs sulfur oxides is subjected to concentration, crystallization, solid-liquid separation, and drying to obtain a solid ammonium sulfate product. Sulfur oxides (sulfur dioxide, sulfur trioxide, and hydrates thereof) are removed from the acid tail gas; furthermore, sulfuric acid, sulfur and ammonium sulfate by-products are generated, and clean gas is discharged meeting the standard. The components, density, circulation amount or other parameters of the absorption liquid are adjusted according to different sulfur oxide concentrations and sulfur oxide absorption amounts in the acid tail gas. When the concentration of sulfur oxide in the acid gas is lower than 30,000 mg/Nm3, the acid gas is directly introduced into the ammonia absorption device without pre-treatment. The enthalpy value and the impurity content of the acid tail gas after the pre-treatment are not specified in this process, as well as the treatment measures after the impurities enter the ammonia desulfurization system.
The Chinese patent applications with Application Nos. CN 201611185413.7, CN 201611185413.7, and CN 201810062243.6 have also attempted to improve the treatment of acid tail gas by ammonia desulfurization, respectively, but these improvement measures are still not ideal. Moreover, the control over the enthalpy value of the acid tail gas has not been noted in these publications either.
Therefore, it is desirable to determine more suitable acid tail gas parameters and further improve the desulfurization method. This may reduce the investment and operating cost of the ammonia desulfurization device, may achieve long-period stable operation, may achieve synergistic control of acid gas pre-treatment and ammonia desulfurization of tail gas, may improve ammonia recovery rate, may control the production of aerosol, and may improve the product quality.

Jiangnan Environmental Protection Group Inc.


Pre-amorphization of a surface layer of crystalline silicon to an ultra-shallow (e.g., less than 100 nm) depth provides a solution to fabrication problems including (1) high thermal conduction in crystalline silicon and (2) shadowing and diffraction-interference effects by an already fabricated gate of a field-effect transistor on incident laser radiation. Such problems, in the past, have prevented prior-art projection gas immersion laser doping from being effectively employed in the fabrication of integrated circuits comprising MOS field-effect transistors employing 100 nm and shallower junction technology.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the fabrication of integrated circuits (IC) and, more particularly, to the fabrication of IC comprising metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFET) employing 100 nm and shallower junctions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
CMOS field-effect transistors (FET) employing 0.25 mm gate length dimensions will soon be commercially available. Fabrication of such 0.25 mm dimension FETs typically employs ion implantation for silicon doping. However, MOSFETs having reduced gate-length dimensions of only 0.18 mm and lower are currently being developed. Reduction of gate lengths necessitates source-drain junction depth scaling. For the 0.18 mm CMOS technology, these junctions depths are projected, by the Semiconductor Industry Association's "The National Technical Roadmap for Semiconductors" (1995), to be at less than 80 nm Such junctions are difficult to form using ion implantation due to ion-channeling and transient enhanced diffusion.
Incorporated by reference herein is in the article "Two-Step Doping Using Excimer Laser in Boron Doping of Silicon," by T. Akane et al., Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. Vol. 31 (December 1992) Pt. 1, No. 12B, pages 4437-4440, which discloses an alternative means for silicon doping. In this regard, further incorporated by reference herein is the article "A Shallow Junction Submicrometer PMOS Process Without High-Temperature Anneals," by P. G. Carey et al., IEEE Electron Device Letters, Vol. 9, No. 10, (October 1988), pages 542--544.
Also incorporated by reference herein are the articles "Role of Ion Mass, Implant Dose, and Wafer Temperature on End-of-Range Defects," by S. Prussin et al., J. ElectroChem. Soc., Vol. 137, No. 6 (June 1990), pages 1912--1914; "Damage Removal/Dopant Diffusion Tradeoffs in Ultra-Shallow Implanted p.sup.+ -n Junctions," by R. B. Fair, IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices, Vol. 17, No. 10 (October 1990), pages 2237-2241, and "Avoiding End-of-Range Dislocations in Ion-Implanted Silicon," by S. Acco et al., Materials Science and Engineering, B34, (1995) pages 168-174, all of which are directed to ion implantation to effect silicon amorphization.
Were it not for the high thermal conduction in crystalline silicon, ultra-shallow (e.g., less than 100 nm) junction formation would be possible using prior-art projection gas immersion laser doping (P-GILD), due to near surface absorption of the laser light and short laser pulse widths. In this regard, the geometry of an MOSFET device being fabricated results in shadowing and diffraction of the laser light illuminating the device's surface which has a large effect on thermal loading. Unfortunately, the high thermal conduction in crystalline silicon acts to reduce the junction depth at the edges. These thermal conduction effects become apparent as the dimensions of the doped regions approach the thermal diffusion lengths. As a result, the attributes of the doped region are a function of their dimensions and the surrounding geometry. In the case of source/drain doping in a CMOS device, this results in the doped regions not extending up to the gate (negative gate overlap) or the isolation. This presents an unacceptable problem, since device performance suffers due to high parasitic resistances and shorts between the junctions and the wells.

Fabrication method for reduced-dimension FET devices


A method for producing a photoreceptor having a substrate subjected to a surface finishing treatment to result in a finished substrate surface, wherein the method includes:. (a) analyzing the finished substrate surface by performing a first surface energy reading, a first ellipsometry reading, a first x-ray diffraction reading, and a first profilometry reading; PA1 (b) removing electrochemically via an alternating voltage or alternating current a portion of the finished substrate surface, thereby resulting in a cleaned substrate surface; PA1 (c) analyzing the cleaned substrate surface by performing a second surface energy reading, a second ellipsometry reading, a second x-ray diffraction reading, and a second profilometry reading, wherein the removing step (b) is accomplished to the extent that the second surface energy reading and the second ellipsometry reading are measurably changed from the first surface energy reading and the first ellipsometry reading, but the second x-ray diffraction reading and the second profilometry reading are measurably unchanged from the first x-ray diffraction reading and the first profilometry reading; and PA1 (d) depositing a layer of the photoreceptor on the cleaned substrate surface.

Depending on the photoreceptor surface finish needed, a substrate may be subjected to a surface finishing treatment such as lathing to produce a rough surface or a smoother mirror-like surface or honing which involves spraying a mixture of a liquid and abrasive particles against the substrate surface to produce the desired surface characteristics. Presently, these surface finishing treatments are performed with an aqueous type cutting fluid. Residues of this fluid, along with other debris, often reside on the interior and exterior of the substrate. Then, the substrates are cleaned with an aqueous cleaning process prior to coating. Recent studies have shown that the aqueous cleaning process experiences limitations with exceedingly dirty incoming substrates. Also, there is data that indicates that the detergent presently used in the aqueous cleaning process is corrosive and may form micelles. Other documented setbacks of the aqueous cleaning process involve significant instrumentation downtime and a suspected cause of dermatitis. Finally, the nature of the aqueous cleaning process does not allow for direct process control; the only controllable parameters are detergent conductivity, temperature, and ultrasonic settings. Thus, the present invention addresses the above described problems of the aqueous cleaning process by providing one or more of the following benefits: stronger cleaning power, faster cycle time, direct control, mechanical reliability, and use of stable, safe, and environmentally benign chemicals.
Conventional surface treatment methods are disclosed in Maruta et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,090,993; Yu-Zhong, U.S. Pat. No. 4,678,546; and Childs, U.S. Pat. No. 4,481,090.