A cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for use in an alkaline storage cell comprising a main active material comprising at least one of powdered cadmium oxide and powdered cadmium hydroxide; a reserve charging substance comprising powdered metal cadmium; and an additive comprising powdered nickel hydroxide whose grain shape is substantially globe and/or whose average grain size is 1.5 to 200 xcexcm.

(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for use in an alkaline storage cell like a nickel-cadmium storage cell and its manufacturing method.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
As a cadmium negative electrode for use in an alkaline storage cell like a nickel-cadmium storage cell, a paste-type cadmium non-sintered negative electrode is widely used because it is manufactured easily and at a low cost. This type of cadmium negative electrode is produced by kneading a cadmium active material like powdered cadmium oxide or powdered cadmium hydroxide with a liquid binder to obtain a paste, coating the paste on a conductive substrate and drying it. However, this type of negative electrode has a problem that a cell employing it has a shorter cycle life than a cell employing a cadmium sintered negative electrode. This is attributed to the following two points (a) and (b):
(a) Capacity deterioration of the cadmium negative electrode.
It is known that a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode produced in the above method deteriorates its capacity in the course of charge-discharge cycles.
To solve this problem, U.S. Pat. No. 3,870,562 has proposed manufacturing a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode by mixing cadmium oxide, metal cadmium comprising globe grains having an average grain size of 3 to 12 xcexcm, and 0.1 to 5% of nickel hydroxide. The above patent says the above manufacturing method can restrict capacity deterioration which is caused by inactivation of the cadmium active material accompanied by charge-discharge cycles.
However, a residual capacity ratio of a cell which has been left for a while, namely storage characteristic and cycle characteristic of a cell vary depending on the grain shape and grain size of added nickel hydroxide.
(b) Leak of electrolyte caused by pressure valve operation
The paste including the above active material is soft. Therefore, when the negative electrode plate coated with the paste is wound together with a positive electrode and a separator by a pressure roller or the like to make an electrode assembly, the outermost end of the negative electrode of the assembly is given more pressure than its innermost end, whereby the porosity of the negative electrode plate is reduced. If the negative electrode plate has not been subjected to electrochemical formation when employed in a cell, the negative electrode plate retains a smaller amount of electrolyte, compared with if the same negative electrolyte plate has been subjected to electrochemical formation when employed in a cell. Therefore, in the former case, undischarged cadmium is accumulated in the cadmium negative electrode in the course of charge-discharge cycles. Accordingly, the porosity of the negative electrode is increased, whereby the amount of electrolyte retained in the negative electrode is increased. As a result, the amount of electrolyte retained in the separator is reduced, and so the cycle characteristic is lowered.
To solve this problem, another method has been proposed in which the above paste is coated on a conductive substrate to obtain an electrode plate and this plate is prehydrated in an aqueous solution of alkali. According to this method of chemically prehydrating cadmium oxide, cadmium hydroxide formed of large crystals is obtained. Therefore, comparatively large holes are uniformly formed in the paste-type active material and also the mechanical strength of the negative electrode plate is increased. Accordingly, even if the negative electrode plate is wound around by a pressure roller to make an electrode assembly, its porosity is kept uniformly high. If sodium hydroxide is used as an aqueous solution of alkali for prehydration, the obtained cadmium hydroxide is formed of xcex3-type crystals, which make the cell easy to charge. This means that generation of hydrogen gas from the negative electrode plate is restricted, and so the inner pressure of the cell is prevented from increasing.
Though prehydration in an aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide takes time, it can be shortened by raising the temperature of the solution of sodium hydroxide.
However, prehydration is conducted in too a high temperature results in obtaining cadmium hydroxide formed by xcex2-type crystals instead of xcex3-type ones. Since xcex2-type crystals are large enough to make the cell hard to charge, hydrogen gas is easily generated and so the inner pressure of the cell is increased. As a result, the pressure valve is operated to leak the electrolyte and then deteriorate the cell cycle characteristic.
Accordingly, this invention has a primary object of offering a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for increasing cell cycle characteristic and its manufacturing method.
Another object of this invention is to offer a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for increasing cell storage characteristic and its manufacturing method.
Still another object of this invention is to offer a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for restricting hydrogen gas generation and its manufacturing method.
Still another object of this invention is to offer a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode which can be manufactured in simple procedures and its manufacturing method.
The above objects are fulfilled by a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for use in an alkaline storage cell, comprising a main active material comprising at least one of powered cadmium oxide and powdered cadmium hydroxide; a reserve charging substance comprising powdered metal cadmium; and an additive comprising powdered nickel hydroxide whose grain shape is substantially globe.
The above objects are also fulfilled by a method of manufacturing a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for use in an alkaline storage cell, comprising the steps of kneading a main active material comprising at least one powdered cadmium oxide and powdered cadmium hydroxide, a reserve charging substance comprising powdered metal cadmium, an additive comprising powdered nickel hydroxide whose grain shape is substantially globe, a binder and a dispersion medium to obtain an active material paste; coating a conductive substrate with the active material paste; and drying the active material paste.
The nickel hydroxide may be added in a weight ratio (%) of 0.5 or more and 3.0 or less.
The powdered metal cadmium may be formed of fine grains.
The powdered metal cadmium may have an average grain size of 1.0 to 2.4 xcexcm.
The powdered metal cadmium may be produced by substitute reaction of powdered metal zinc and a solution of cadmium sulfate. The above-obtained powdered metal cadmium desirably has a specific surface area of 1 to 2 m2/g, or more desirably 1 to 1.5 m2/g. Though metal cadmium obtained by the Atomizer method usually has a specific surface area of 0.1 m2/g or less, the specific surface area exceeding 0.1 m2/g is desirable.
The reasons will follow.
The nickel hydroxide which has conventionally been used is formed by various-shaped grains. (This type of nickel hydroxide will be referred to as various-shaped nickel hydroxide hereinafter.) Being chemically unstable, the nickel hydroxide formed of various-shaped grains throws out foreign substances such as NO3xe2x80x94, or SO42xe2x80x94 included in its own crystals in small amounts into the active material during the cell charge-discharge in the alkaline electrolyte. As a result, the storage characteristic of the cell is deteriorated. On the other hand, the nickel hydroxide formed of globe grains (will be referred to as globe nickel hydroxide) used in the present invention are extremely chemically stable (confirmed through experiments). Therefore, it hardly throws out the above foreign substances even during charge-discharge. In consequence, an alkaline cell employing the globe nickel hydroxide restricts the decline of its storage characteristic and its cycle characteristic is excellent.
The above objects are also fulfilled by a method of manufacturing a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for use in an alkaline storage cell, comprising the steps of kneading a main active material comprising at least one of powdered cadmium oxide and powdered cadmium hydroxide, a reserve charging substance comprising powdered metal cadmium, an additive comprising powdered nickel hydroxide, a binder and a dispersion medium to obtain active material paste; coating a conductive substrate with the active material paste; drying the active material paste to obtain an unhydrated electrode plate; and prehydrating the unhydrated electrode plate in a solution of sodium hydroxide.
The binder may comprise at least one of the group consisting of methyl cellulose, polyvinyl alcohol and carboxymethyl cellulose.
The dispersion medium may comprise a water including at least one oxyacid salt selected from the group consisting of phosphate, silicate, arsenate and chromate.
The active material paste may further include a reinforcing agent.
The reinforcing agent may comprise at least one of the group consisting of polyamide staple, polyolefine staple and acrylic staple.
One of the reasons of the problem of the prior art, namely capacity deterioration of the cadmium negative electrode, is solved by the above construction and method.
The above deterioration is caused by inactivation of the cadmium active material, which is attributed to the following two phenomena: (a) in the course of charge-discharge cycles, cadmium as a main active material is dissolved and deposited in repetition although by a very small amount, whereby its grains get large; and (b) surfaces of the grains of the cadmium active material are covered with cadmium hydroxide which has been formed by discharging, whereby the cadmium active material remains undischarged and is not involved in charge-discharge reaction.
Since the cadmium negative electrode lowers its capacity in the course of charge-discharge cycles, the cell capacity gets determined by the negative electrode capacity. However, if nickel hydroxide is added to the cadmium active material as in the present invention, the above two phenomena can be restricted. It has been confirmed through experiments that if the added nickel hydroxide has an average grain size of 1.5 xcexcm or more, its effect can be especially conspicuous. The reason is: nickel hydroxide grains of that size or nickel ions existing between the grains of the cadmium active material attract the cadmium, thereby to reduce the amount of the cadmium dissolved in the electrolyte, and also to restrict the grains of the cadmium active material from getting large.
It should be noted that the average grain size of more than 200 m is not desirable because nickel hydroxide formed of so large grains is hard to add uniformly to the cadmium negative electrode.
Therefore, the desirable average grain size of the nickel hydroxide is 1.5 to 200 xcexcm.
The above objects are also fulfilled by a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for use in an alkaline storage cell, comprising a main active material comprising at least one of powdered cadmium oxide and powdered cadmium hydroxide; a reserve charging substance comprising powdered metal cadmium; and an additive comprising powdered nickel hydroxide whose average grain size is 1.5 to 200 xcexcm.
The above objects are also fulfilled by a method of manufacturing a cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for use in an alkaline storage cell, comprising the steps of kneading a main active material comprising at least one of powdered cadmium oxide and powdered cadmium hydroxide, a reserve charging substance comprising powdered metal cadmium, an additive comprising powdered nickel hydroxide having an average grain size of 1.5 to 20 xcexcm, a binder and a dispersion medium to obtain an active material paste; coating a conductive substrate with the active material paste and drying the active material paste.
The powdered metal cadmium may be formed of fine grains.
The other reason of the problem of the prior art, namely leak of electrolyte caused by pressure valve operation, is solved by the above construction and method.
It has been confirmed through experiments that, when cadmium oxide is hydrated in an aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide, the reacting speed is increased by raising the temperature of the sodium hydroxide solution. For example, the reaction takes an hour by the solution of 20xc2x0 C. while it takes only 10 minutes by the solution of 70xc2x0 C. When magnesium oxide is used as a dendrite preventor as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication laid-open No. 56-30259 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 62-15994, cadmium hydroxide formed of xcex3-type crystals which make the cell easy to charge is obtained if the solution temperature is 20xc2x0 C. However, if the prehydration is conducted quickly in the solution of as high as 70xc2x0 C., the obtained cadmium hydroxide is mainly formed of xcex2-type crystals (FIG. 1). Since xcex2-type crystals are large, the surface area of the cadmium hydroxide is decreased and hydrogen overvoltage is lowered. Especially when the cell is charged at a low temperature, hydrogen gas is easily generated.
However, it has been confirmed that if nickel hydroxide is added as a dendrite preventor as in the present invention, cadmium hydroxide formed of xcex3-type crystals is obtained even if the prehydration is conducted at a high temperature (FIG. 2). Since xcex3-type crystals are very fine, the surface area of the cadmium hydroxide is increased. Therefore, the obtained cell is easy to charge and can restrict hydrogen gas generation. Since the inner pressure of the cell is not raised, there is no operation of the pressure valve or electrolyte leak. As a result, the cycle characteristic can be kept high.

Cadmium non-sintered negative electrode for an alkaline storage cell and its manufacturing method


The present invention relates to a work train, a device and a method for distance measurement between a transport device and a milling device. During the loading of a transport device with milled material from the milling device, the operator of the milling device normally transmits control commands to the transport device driver for coordination of the loading process. Through the automated distance measuring between the transport device and the milling device and control of a display device according to the present invention, this task is taken over from the operator of the milling device, who can concentrate on the actual milling process.

Generic milling devices are known from the prior art and are used, for example, in road construction, especially as cold milling machines, stabilisers and/or recyclers, or for the removal of soil material, for example in open cast mining operation as surface miners. Such a milling device features a work roller, the outer surface of which is equipped with a multitude of milling tools, especially chisels. Depending on the application and the normal operation, the work roller can be operated in or against the working direction of the milling device. During the milling operation, the work roller rotates about its axis of rotation and the cutting tools submerging into the ground remove soil to a predetermined milling depth. Such milling equipment is designed either as an attachment parts or, preferably, as self-propelled machines. In order to guarantee an effective and continuous work process, the soil milled off by the work roller is normally transported to a drop point during the milling operation with the help of a conveyor device. From the drop point, the milled material is discharged into a transport container of a transport device, such as a lorry or dump truck. In this process, various arrangements of the milling device and the transport device with respect to the conveyor device are possible. If the milling device is designed as a so-called rear loader, the milled material is discharged from the milling device backward into the transport device. If the conveyor is a side loader, the milled material is transported to the side, and in case of a front loader, the milled material is transferred forward, or in the working direction of the milling device, into the transport device. As soon as the transport container of a transport device is loaded to its maximum fill height, the transport device is removed from the work train and replaced with a transport device with an empty transport container.
During milling operation, the milling device moves in the work direction over the ground to be processed. To achieve a simultaneous milling and discharging of the milled material, the transport device and the milling device must always move in the working or travelling direction at such a distance to one another that the milled material can be transported by the conveyor device into the corresponding transport container of the transport device. Because the transport device normally cannot move forward as slowly as the milling device does and thus the drop point of the conveyor device shifts relative to the transport container in the working direction, the challenge lies in continually monitoring the distance between the transport device and the milling device, adjusting it accordingly and keeping it in a range in which the milled material can still be discharged into the transport container of the transport device reliably and as completely as possible, so as to avoid for example milled material falling off beside the transport container, which poses a considerable accident risk to nearby persons. A common practice is the repeated driving forward and stopping of the transport device relative to the nearly continually moving milling device. Evenly loading over the entire surface of the transport container of the transport device poses a further challenge. This method is explained in greater detail below with a front-loader street milling machine.
If the transport device drives ahead of the milling device, it is difficult for the driver of the transport device to observe the discharging process of the milled material taking place behind his back. Therefore, the following tasks fall upon the driver of the milling device: First, it must be ensured that the milling device mills ground in the desired area and that the milled-off material reaches the transport container of the transport device via the conveyor device as completely as possible. Furthermore, the transport container should be loaded evenly. Moreover, the driver must avoid a collision between the milling device and the transport device driving ahead or following behind. In present practice, coordinating these tasks is solely the responsibility of the operator of the milling device. In addition, he must scan the surroundings for potential dangers, obstacles or curves. All this adds up to place especially high demands on the attentiveness of the operator of the milling device and can quickly lead to errors in the milling and loading operation.
At present, the coordination of the distance between the milling device and the transport device usually occurs in practice via horn signals that are triggered by the operator of the milling device manually and at his own discretion. If the transport device has driven too far forward in the working direction, the milled material no longer reaches the transport container but falls to the ground between the transport device and the milling device. To prompt the driver of the transport device to stop and thus bring the transport container back into the range of the conveyor device, the milling device driver triggers the horn. When the milling device, moving forward with nearly constant speed, has drawn closer to the stopped transport device up to a minimum distance, the milling device driver triggers the horn again to alert the transport device driver to start driving again in order to avoid a collision between the two vehicles. The minimum distance is the distance at which the conveyor device can just still discharge the milled material into the front part of the transport container and at which the milling device does just not yet immediately collide with the transport device. Thereupon, the transport device driver drives forward until the maximum distance between the two vehicles is reached. The maximum distance for the loading process is the distance between both vehicles of the work train in which the milled material is just still discharged into the transport container and does just not yet fall behind the transport container onto the ground. When the maximum distance is reached, the milling device driver again uses a horn signal to instruct the transport device driver to stop the transport device. Relative to one another, the milling device and the transport device therefore oscillate during the loading process between the maximum and minimum distances to one another while moving forward as a whole in the working direction. If the transport container is full, the operator of the milling device gives another corresponding horn signal for departing.
Considering the multitude of tasks that fall upon the operator of the milling device, this activity places especially high demands on his concentration and attentiveness. Moreover, the horn signals can confuse other traffic participants, who might misunderstand the horn signals of the milling device as warning of a danger. At the same time, the driver of the transport device can also be confused and unsettled by the horn signals by other traffic participants. Furthermore, people who live in the area near construction sites, especially in the case of night construction work, can be disturbed by the repeated horn signals.

Work train with a milling device and a transport device with a sensor device for distance monitoring, milling device with a sensor device and method for distance monitoring with a work train


A plurality of captured images of a still subject are obtained by changing at least one of a position and a direction of illumination of a light source to illuminate the still subject. Sequenced frame images are formed based on the captured images. The sequenced frame images are sequentially switched so that the selected ones can be displayed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image display method for representing texture of a subject such as glossiness of a surface of a still subject or finely woven texture, an image processing method for this image display, an image processing apparatus for implementing this image processing method, a scan capturing apparatus for obtaining a captured image for performing the image display, and an image signal generation method for representing the texture of the subject.
2. Description of the Related Art
In these days, although it is possible to capture an image of a subject with a scanner or a camera to obtain a high quality image, it is difficult to reproduce texture such as glossiness of a substantially planar subject or fine unevenness on the surface of the subject by a raptured image obtained by photographing the subject. A method of representing texture of a subject includes processing by computer graphics (CG). For example, in three-dimensional data on a computer representing a subject, a specular reflection ratio, a diffuse reflection ratio, and the like are defined as information representing the texture, the three-dimensional data is subjected to rendering processing to calculate two-dimensional data and display the two-dimensional data as a two-dimensional image.
In general, the texture that a person feels, such as glossiness of a subject is obtained through a change in a state of specular reflection of the subject due to a change in a viewpoint of a viewer as in the case in which, when a person evaluates an object, he/she evaluates it while holding and shaking it by hands.
Therefore, in the above-mentioned CG, it is also necessary to subtly change a direction for illuminating a subject and perform rendering processing repeatedly such that specular reflection light changes dynamically. Since an amount of this rendering processing is large, time required for the rendering processing becomes extremely long.
Even if a processing speed of a computer further increases in future, it is still difficult to promptly generate realistic shape data and information on the texture of a subject using the method of the above-mentioned CG.
On the other hand, it has been proposed to perform modeling of three-dimensional data including information on the texture of a subject with a computer using a photographed image of the subject.
In JP 07-066436 B and JP 2001-108421 A, a method of photographing a plurality of images from different viewpoints to obtain three-dimensional data is proposed. However, since this method does not separate specular reflection light and diffuse reflection light, sufficient information on the texture of a subject cannot be obtained.
On the other hand, as a method of separating specular reflection light and diffuse reflection light in order to perform three-dimensional modeling of a subject, a method based on a dichroism reflection model is proposed ("Extraction of Specular Reflection Using Multiple Color and Range Images", Otsuki, et al., The Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers Transaction, D-II Vol. J-80-D-II No. 6 pp. 1352–1359, June 1997).
However, in this method, a statistical processing for estimating a color vector is necessary and surfaces of a subject of a certain size with the identical texture are required. Thus, if different materials and colors are combined finely in a subject, it is difficult to use the above-mentioned method for this subject.
On the other hand, in JP 08-039841 A, there is proposed a method in which subject images with different directions of illumination are photographed to obtain a signal of a state in which reflected light is large and a signal of a state in which reflected light is small, and a glossiness signal representing glossiness of the subject is obtained from these two signals and used to provide glossiness by image forming means. However, since the image forming means used in this method does not give a dynamic change to an image of the subject, the feel of glossiness cannot be reproduced on the image. In addition, since the glossiness signal is obtained by subtracting the signal of a state in which reflected light is small from the signal of a state in which reflected light is large, it is also impossible to represent the texture of a woven fiber or the like having directionality in glossiness according to subtle unevenness of a subject.
Moreover, since glossiness is provided by the above-mentioned image forming means through re-heating by heat transfer, a fine texture of a subject cannot be controlled due to spread of heat by the re-heating. Therefore, there is a problem in that the feel of a woven fiber and wrinkle cannot be represented sufficiently.

Image display method, image processing method, image processing apparatus, scan capturing apparatus and image signal generation method


Conformationally locked 4',6'-cyclopropane-fused carboxylic nucleoside analogues. The compounds are prepared by condensing a cyclopropane-fused carbocyclic allylic alcohol with substituted purine or pyrimidine bases. The condensation products are then modified to produce the adenosine, guanosine, cytidine, thymidine, and uracil nucleoside analogues. The compounds are therapeutically useful as antimetabolites, or in the preparation of anti-metabolic agents.

Nucleoside analogues, such as those species lacking the 3' hydroxyl group or both the 2' and 3' hydroxyl groups, of the naturally-occurring nucleosides can act as chain terminators of the DNA into which they are incorporated. Intense effort has focused on the design and use of these compounds as inhibitors of viral replication (Van Roey et al., (1990) Ann. NY Acad. Sci., 616: 29). Although the conformation of the sugar moiety in these analogues is believed to play a critical role in modulating biological activity, including the anti-HIV 1 activity mediated by derivatives such as 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (AZT) and dideoxyinosine (ddI), the main problem encountered in attempting to correlate a specific type of sugar conformation with the biological activity of nucleoside analogues is that the sugar ring is quite flexible and its conformation in solution can differ markedly from its conformation in the solid state (Jagannadh, et al., (1991) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 179: 386; Plavec et al., (1992) Biochem. Biophys. Methods, 25: 253.). Thus, any structure-function analysis based solely on solid state conformational parameters would be inaccurate unless it was previously determined that both solution and solid-state conformations were the same.
Some 3.1.0!-fused 2',3'-modified cyclopropane-fused dideoxynucleosides (FIG. 1A; Wu and Chattopadhyaya, (1990) Tetrahedron Lett., 46: 2587; Okabe and Sun, (1989) Tetrahedron Lett., 30: 2203; Beard et al., (1990) Carbohyd. Res., 205: 87; Codington et al., (1962) J. Org. Chem., 27: 163) appear quite rigid and their altered sugar moiety shows the same conformational preference in solution as in the solid state. However, the conformation of the furanose ring in these compounds is well outside the typical range of the Northern (N) or Southern (S) geometry conformations that are characteristic of nucleosides (Koole et al., (1991) J. Org. Chem., 56: 6884). A different type of 3.1.0! fusion, an epoxide ring between carbons 4' and 6', is found in the naturally-occurring carbocyclic nucleoside analogue neplanocin C (Kinoshita et al., (1985) Nucleosides & Nucleotides, 4: 661), which allows this compound to adopt a rigid N-geometry.
In solution there is a dynamic equilibrium between N and S type furanose conformers (Taylor et al., (1990) Antiviral Chem. Chemother., 1: 163-173. The conformations of nucleosides and their analogues can be described by the geometry of the glycosyl link (syn or anti), the rotation about the exocyclic C4'-C5' bond and the puckering of the sugar ring leading to formation of the twist and envelope conformations. Two conformations are preferred for ribose ring puckering; C3'-endo (N) and C2'-endo (S). The endo and exo refer to displacement of the atom above or below the plane of the ribose ring, respectively. The torsion angles .chi. C2-N1-C1'-O4' (pyrimidines) or C4-N9-C1'-O4' (purines)! and .gamma. (C3'-C4'-C5'-O5') describe, respectively, the orientations of the base and the 5'-hydroxyl group relative to the ribose ring.
In ribonucleosides and 2'-deoxyribonucleosides, two types of sugar puckering are generally energetically preferred, namely the C3'-endo (N) and the C2'-endo (S) conformations. In DNA duplexes, a 2'-endo (S) conformation of the repeating nucleoside unit confers upon the double helix a B-conformation, whereas the 3'-endo (N) conformation induces an A-conformation double helix. The A and B forms of DNA differ in the number of base pairs per turn, the amount of rotation per base pair, the vertical rise per base pair and the helical diameter. In addition, in stretches of DNA containing the alternating purines and pyrimidines, a left-handed helix called Z-DNA may form.
Since DNA in solution may exist in several different conformations, the present invention provides a means of locking DNA into a specific conformation. This can be useful in elucidating the structural requirements influencing DNA-protein, DNA--DNA and DNA-RNA interactions and the development of valuable therapeutics able to specifically block these interactions.

Conformationally locked nucleoside analogues

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services


The present invention is directed to presqualene diphosphate (PSDP) analogs having an active region of natural PSDP and a metabolic transformation region resistant to rapid intracellular inactivation in vivo. For example, PSDP and its stable analogs can inhibit neutrophil signal transduction events in cellular activation that result in the generation of active oxygen species, regulation of leukocyte adherence, both homotypic (leukocyte-leukocyte) or heterotypic adherence with leukocytes and epithelial cells of mucosal origin or endothelial cells of vascular origin. These analogs can also be used to regulate leukocyte-dependent tissue injury.

The environment contains a variety of infectious microbial agents, such as viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites, any one of which can cause pathological damage to the host organism. Consequently, most organisms, such as mammals, i.e. humans, have developed an immune system. The immune system is divided into two functional divisions, the innate immune system and the adaptive immune system.
The innate and adaptive immune system consists of a variety of molecules and cells distributed throughout the body. The most important cells are leukocytes. Leukocytes are categorized as phagocytes, including polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs), monocytes and macrophages, and lymphocytes, which mediate adaptive immunity.
Inflammation is the body's response to invasion or an injury, such as an invasion by an infectious microbial agent and includes three broad actions. First, the blood supply is increased to the area. Second, capillary permeability is increased, thereby permitting larger molecules to reach the site of infection. Third, leukocytes, particularly PMNs, migrate out of the capillaries and into the surrounding tissue. Once in the tissue, the PMNs migrate to the site of infection or injury by chemotaxis. These events manifest themselves as inflammation. Examples of conditions which cause these reactions to occur include clamping or tourniquet vessel-induced ischemia reperfusion injury, chronic inflammatory conditions such as asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease, as well as autoimmune diseases.
Aberrant activation of phagocytic cells, in particular neutrophils, leads to the generation of superoxide anion, which when released to the extracellular milieu can evoke damage to surrounding tissues. Reactive oxygen species derived from neutrophil oxygen burst can play a deleterious role in generating secondary products that lead to loss of function. During surgery, in particular clamping of vessels, there is clear evidence that reperfusion following the release of the clamp involves neutrophil-derived mediators. The neutrophil-derived oxygen radicals and other toxic products that are normally intended for killing of microbial agents once they spill over into the surrounding tissue can lead to second organ injury, most notably in the lung and cardiac tissues, sequelae which are observed following ischemia reperfusion injury (Welbourn et al., Brit. J. Surg. 1991; 78:651-655).
Once at the site of infection, PMNs perform phagocytic and degradative functions to combat the infectious agent. As part of the response to the infectious agent, PMNs generate superoxide anions, reactive oxygen species (ROS) to kill infested material and adhere to epithelial cells of mucosal surfaces or vascular endothelial cells of the blood vessels. As a consequence, the host can experience undesirable side effects during the elimination of the infectious agent such as, pain, swelling about the site, and nausea.

Polyisoprenyl phosphate stable analogs for regulation of neutrophil responses


In a processing device for processing an STS-1 signal (10) into a DS-3 signal (11), an output circuit (19) outputs an idle code signal when a judging circuit (16) judges that a detected STS path signal label part indicates that an STS synchronous payload envelope of the STS-1 signal is unequipped or unused. The idle code signal represents an idle code prescribed for the DS-3 signal and is generated by a generator (18). The detected STS path signal label part is produced by a detecting circuit (12, 15) which detects an STS path signal label part from STS path overheads of successive subframes of the STS synchronous payload envelope. The judging circuit judges whether or not the detected STS path signal label part indicates that the STS synchronous payload envelope is unequipped. An extracting circuit (17) successively extracts information parts of payloads of the subframes of the STS synchronous payload envelope from the STS-1 signal as a succession of extracted information parts. The output circuit outputs the succession of the extracted information parts as the DS-3 signal when the judging circuit judges that the detected STS path signal label part indicates that the STS synchronous payload envelope is not unequipped. On processing a VT into a DS-1 signal, use is made of another idle code prescribed for the DS-1 signal.

This invention relates to a method and a device for processing an STS-1 signal (namely, a synchronous transport signal level 1) into a DS-3 signal (that is, a digital signal level 3). This invention relates also to another method for processing a VT (virtual tributary) into a DS-1 signal (namely, a digital signal level 1).
The STS-1 signal and the VT are prescribed in American National Standard for Telecommunications-Digital Hierarchy-Optical Interface Rates and Specifications (SONET), T1X1.5/90-025R3/T1X1/90-055R2, Draft-November 1990, pages 9-23, published by American National Standards Institute, Inc.
As prescribed in the above-mentioned Standard on Paragraph 5, pages 14-15, the STS-1 signal has a bit rate of 51.840 Mbits/s. The STS-1 signal comprises an STS synchronous payload envelope (STS-1 SPE) comprising first through M-th subframes, where M represents a plural natural number. In a practical use, M is equal to 9. Each of the first through the M-th subframes comprising an STS path overhead (STS-1 POH) and a payload comprising an information part.
As also prescribed in the above-mentioned Standard on page 21, a predetermined one of the STS path overheads of the first through M-th subframes is allocated as an STS path signal label part to indicate whether or not the STS synchronous payload envelope is unequipped. The STS path signal label part indicates an unequipped code consisting of all zero bits when the STS synchronous payload envelope is unequipped. In the practical use, the STS path overhead of a third subframe is allocated as the STS path signal label part.
The information parts of the payloads of the first through the M-th subframes are used in transporting the DS-3 signal when the STS synchronous payload envelope is not unequipped. When the STS synchronous payload envelope is not unequipped, the STS-1 signal is practically used. When the STS synchronous payload envelope is unequipped, the STS-1 signal is not used and is therefore referred to as an unused STS-1 signal. The DS-3 signal has a bit rate of 44.736 Mbits/s. At any rate, the DS-3 signal can be transported by the STS synchronous payload envelope.
Inasmuch as the DS-1 signal has a lower bit rate of 1.544 Mbits/s relative to the DS-3 signal, the DS-1 signal is transferred by the VT of size x defined in the STS synchronous payload envelope as prescribed in the above-mentioned Standard on the left-hand column of page 15. For example, the VT of size 1.5 has a bit rate of 1.728 Mbits/s as prescribed in the above-mentioned Standard on Paragraph 8.1.3 of page 16.
The VT of size x comprises a VT synchronous payload envelope (VT SPE). The VT synchronous payload envelope comprises a VT path overhead (VT POH) and a payload comprising an information part. A part of the VT path overhead is allocated as a VT path signal label part to indicate whether or not the VT synchronous payload envelope is unequipped. The VT path signal label part indicates an unequipped code consisting of all zero bits when the VT synchronous payload envelope is unequipped. The information part of the payload of the VT synchronous payload envelope is used in transporting the DS-1 signal when the VT synchronous payload envelope is not unequipped. When the VT synchronous payload envelope is not unequipped, the VT of size x is practically used. When the VT synchronous payload envelope is unequipped, the VT in question is not used and is therefore called an unused VT.
As mentioned above, the above-mentioned Standard prescribes that the unequipped code should be set in the STS path signal label part for the unused STS-1 signal and that the unequipped code should be set in the VT path signal label part for the unused VT of size x. However, inasmuch as the above-mentioned Standard never prescribes as regards both the information parts of the payloads of the first through the M-th subframes of the STS synchronous payload envelope for the unused STS-1 signal and the information part of the payload of the VT synchronous payload envelope for the unused VT of size x, an unprescribed code consisting of, for example, all zero bits is inevitably transported by the information parts of the unused STS-1 signal and by the information part of the unused VT of size x.
When the unused STS-1 signal and the unused VT of size x are processed in conventional processing devices, every one of the conventional processing devices produces or outputs the unprescribed code instead of the DS-3 and the DS-1 signals. A subsequent terminal equipment unavoidably generates an unnecessary alarm in response to the unprescribed code.

STS-1 signal processing method and device which can prevent subsequent terminal equipment from generating unnecessary alarm


The present invention provides fusion proteins comprising a mucin-domain polypeptide covalently linked to an active protein that has improved properties (e.g. pharmacokinetic and/or physicochemical properties) compared to the same active protein not linked to mucin-domain polypeptide, as well as methods for making and using the fusion proteins of the invention.

The pharmacokinetics, pharmacodistribution, solubility, stability, enhancement of effector function and receptor binding of protein therapeutics can be significantly influenced by the carbohydrate moiety of glycosylated proteins. In addition, many biologically active peptides and proteins have limited solubility, or become aggregated during recombinant productions, requiring complex solubilization and refolding procedures. Furthermore, protein and peptide therapeutics with molecular weights lower than 60 kilodaltons (kD) often suffer from short half-lives due to renal clearance.
Current strategies employed to extend serum half-life of protein therapeutics primarily fall within two general categories: 1) utilization of FcRn-mediated recycling and 2) increase of hydrodynamic volume. Specific approaches which have been described include conjugation, binding, or fusion to FcRn-binding proteins or domains (Fc, albumin) for the former strategy, and multimerization, chemical coupling to polymers or carbohydrates (such as PEG, Colominic acid, or Hydroxyethyl starch), incorporation of N-glycosylation sites for the latter. However, the production of Fc-fusion proteins is a time-consuming, inefficient, and expensive process that requires additional manufacturing steps and often complex purification procedures. In addition, chemical coupling strategies, PEGylation being the most widely used, result in significant increases in production costs due to the addition of conjugation and purification steps and reduced overall yields. Recently, other recombinant PEG mimetics produced through fusion of a long, flexible polypeptide sequence, such as those described in U.S. 2010/0239554 A1, have also been described. Although this technology circumvents the additional conjugation step, the added peptide sequence, being non-endogenous, has the potential for immunogenicity.
Mucin proteins and mucin-domains of proteins contain a high degree of glycosylation which structurally allows mucin proteins and other polypeptides comprising mucin domains to behave as stiffened random coils. This stiffened random coiled structure in combination with the hydrophilic branched hydrophilic carbohydrates that make up the heavily glycosylated mucin domains is particularly useful in for increasing the hydrodynamic radius of the active protein beyond what would be expected based on the molecular weight of the expressed protein. Also because of the high level of glycosylation, addition of a mucin domain has the potential to modify the physicochemical properties of a protein such as charge, solubility and viscoelastic properties of concentrated solutions of the active protein.
The fusion protein compositions and methods of the present invention improve the biological, pharmacological, safety, and/or pharmaceutical properties of an active protein.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Fusion polypeptides comprising an active protein linked to a mucin-domain polypeptide


A condenser for a carrier recovery apparatus of a liquid imaging system is provided. The condenser for a carrier gas recovery apparatus of a liquid imaging system for recovering a carrier gas as a liquid carrier by collecting and condensing the carrier gas evaporated by a drying unit of the imaging system, includes a bubble generating member provided at a vapor discharging end of a gas duct for inducing the collected carrier gas into the liquid carrier contained in the condenser. The bubble generating member generates bubbles from the carrier gas in the liquid carrier and a rotation member installed in front of the bubble generating member rotates to make the bubbles generated by the bubble generating member into finer bubbles. A rotation driving device rotates the rotation member. Therefore, since the carrier vapor is turned into fine bubbles, the contact area of the bubbles with the liquid carrier increases and condensation is sufficiently performed, thereby improving the recovery efficiency of the carrier vapor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a condenser for a vapor recovery apparatus of an imaging system. More particularly, this invention is directed to a condenser for a vapor recovery apparatus of an imaging system having a vapor generator for generating fine bubbles in a carrier vapor so that the carrier vapor is more effectively condensed.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, an imaging system, applied to a printer or a copier, uses a photosensitive medium such as a photoreceptor drum or a photoreceptor belt, on which a latent electrostatic image is formed.
The imaging system is largely divided into a wet type and a dry type according to the type of toner used. Tile liquid imaging system employs a developer liquid having a toner mixed with a volatile liquid carrier. The liquid imaging system using such a developer liquid has a better printing quality than the dry imaging system using a powdered toner, and also protects against ill effects of the harmful toner powder, and thus, is being used increasingly.
Referring to FIG. 1, the typical liquid imaging system includes a photoreceptor belt 110 on an endless track, a first transfer roller 121, a second transfer roller 122 and a third transfer roller 123, for circulating the photoreceptor belt 110 in a given path.
Also, a main charger 135 is installed at one side of the photoreceptor belt 110 for charging the surface of photoreceptor belt 110 into uniform charges. In the lower portion of the photoreceptor belt 110, there are provided a laser scanning unit (LSU) 130 for scanning a laser beam onto the photoreceptor belt 110 according to an image signal and to form a latent electrostatic image, and a development device 140 for developing the latent electrostatic image into a toner image by applying a developer liquid composed of a toner having a predetermined color to a region where the latent electrostatic image is formed. Particularly, in the case of a color printer, there are provided a plurality of laser scanning units (LSUs) 130 for color image implementation and a plurality of development devices each containing a developer liquid having a predetermined color.
As described above, since the liquid carrier is contained in the developer liquid which sticks to the latent electrostatic image region of the photoreceptor belt 110, the carrier is removed in a drying unit 150 after the developing of the latent electrostatic image. The drying unit 150 includes a drying roller 151 and a heating roller 152 installed parallel to and spaced a predetermined distance apart from the third roller 123. The drying roller 151 absorbs the liquid carrier from the surface of the photoreceptor belt 110 and dries the developer liquid so that only the toner image remains. The liquid carrier absorbed into the drying roller 151 is heated by the heating roller 152 and evaporated to then be removed.
FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate a carrier gas recovery apparatus provided in the vicinity of the drying unit 150 in the conventional liquid imaging system having the aforementioned configuration. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a carrier gas recovery mechanism of the carrier recovery apparatus and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the carrier recovery apparatus.
Since the carrier evaporated by the drying unit 150 is harmful to humans, it is necessary to prevent the evaporated carrier from being effused to the air. Also, in order to decrease operating costs, it is necessary to reduce the overall consumption of the liquid carrier by recycling the liquid carrier. Thus, there is generally provided a carrier gas recovery apparatus for recovering the carrier gas as a liquid carrier by collecting and condensing the carrier evaporated by the drying unit 150.
Referring to FIG. 2, the carrier gas recovery mechanism of the conventional liquid imaging system will now be described. The carrier gas evaporated by the drying unit 150 is collected by a collector 160. Part of the carrier gas is liquefied in the collector 160 and the remaining carrier gas is sent to a condenser 170 to be condensed and then liquefied. The liquid carrier is sent to a recovery reservoir 180 for recycling. The air from which the carrier gas is removed while passing through the condenser 170 is exhausted outside via a filter 190.
As shown in FIG. 3, the drying unit 150 includes the drying roller 151 and the heating roller 152. The drying roller 151 is installed parallel to and spaced a predetermined distance apart from the third roller 123 and absorbs the liquid carrier sticking to the photoreceptor belt 110. The heating roller 152 evaporates the absorbed liquid carrier.
The collector 160 installed to surround the drying unit 150 collects the carrier gas. Part of the collected carrier gas is again liquefied and sent to the recovery reservoir 180 installed under the collector 160. Most of the remaining carrier gas is sent to the condenser 170. The cold liquid carrier is contained in the condenser 170.
A gas duct 171 for inducing the carrier gas from the collector 160 and an air exhaust tube 174 for exhausting the air from which the carrier gas is removed are provided in the upper portion of the condenser 170, and a liquid carrier exhaust tube 173 for exhausting the liquid carrier is connected to one side of the condenser 170. The liquid carrier exhaust tube 173 is installed a predetermined height from the bottom of the condenser 170 for maintaining a constant height from the surface level of the liquid carrier contained in the condenser 170.
When the carrier gas is induced into the condenser 170 via the gas duct 171, the air is also induced inside the condenser 170. Here, the carrier gas is contacted with the cold liquid carrier to then be liquefied, and the air is exhausted outside via the air exhaust tube 174 while passing through the liquid carrier. A tan 191 is provided for discharging the air to the outside. The condensed liquid carrier is exhausted to the recovery reservoir 180 via the liquid carrier exhaust tube 173 positioned at a predetermined height at one side of the condenser 170.
A first pump 172 for pumping the carrier gas present within the collector 160 is installed at a predetermined position of the gas duct 171. Also, a second pump 182 for supplying the liquid carrier recovered in the recovery reservoir 180 to the development device is installed at a predetermined position of a liquid carrier supply tube 181.
In the condenser 170 for a carrier gas recovery apparatus of the aforementioned conventional imaging system, the collected carrier gas is simply injected into the cold liquid carrier contained in the condenser 170. The carrier gas injected into the liquid carrier is turned into bubbles, and the bubbles move upward to the surface level of the liquid carrier so as to contact the cold liquid carrier to then be condensed and liquefied.
However, since the bubbles are relatively large, the contact area with the liquid carrier is not sufficient. Also, due to the large size the bubbles move fast so that the contact time is not sufficient either. Thus, the carrier gas is not sufficiently liquefied. Since the carrier gas is not sufficiently liquefied, the recovery efficiency of the carrier gas is decreased. Accordingly, part of the carrier gas is not liquefied but is exhausted to the outside in a vapor state, which is harmful to humans.

Condenser for carrier recovery apparatus of liquid imaging system


A rear seat shoulder belt guide for a vehicle having a rear seat shoulder belt allowing for adjustment of the routing of the shoulder belt for smaller than average passengers. The rear seat shoulder belt guide is detachably connected to the shoulder belt and may be removed when not in use. A tab is mounted to the vehicle side trim adjacent the rear seat back cushion and is designed to retain the shoulder belt guide when not in use while also being hidden from view from the vehicle's passenger compartment.

It is well known to provide rear seat passenger compartments of vehicles with a seat belt that comprises of a shoulder belt in combination with a lap belt. The lap belt lies across the lap or waist of the passenger while the shoulder belt routes across the torso and shoulder of the passenger. It is known to utilize an anchor ring extending through a seat back for rerouting the path of a shoulder belt. It is also known to use a strap in conjunction with an elastic self-retracting feature for relieving the tension on a shoulder belt. It would be desirable to provide a detachable and slidable shoulder belt guide in conjunction with an elastic cord to adjust the routing of a shoulder belt over a passenger's torso while also providing a means to store the shoulder belt guide in a non-visible location when not in use.


The invention encompasses beam expanders and methods of using such beam expanders. A beam expander according to the present invention may advantageously be used with an interferometer. Beam expanders according to the present disclosure contain at least an input and an output lens, with the output lens having a plano-convex arrangement such that the surface of the output lens is optically flat and can be used as the reference surface in a Fizeau interferometer. The beam expander may also encompass a housing, a partially reflective coating and an anti-reflective coating.

I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to interferometry, in particular to an external beam expander for use with an interferometer.
II. Description of Related Art
Interferometry is the use of interference phenomena for measurement purposes, either for very small angles or for tiny distance increments (the displacement of two objects relative to one another). An interferometer is an instrument that measures distance in terms of wavelength; it can be used to determine wavelengths of particular light sources.
Virtually all interferometers operate on the same basic principle: From a beam of light coming from a single source (such as, e.g., a laser), two or more flat mirrors, partially reflective mirrors, or beam splitters are used to split off (or "pick off") different light beams. These beams are then combined to interfere with each other. The desired result is to find alternating bands of light and dark, called fringes. Fringes are bright where the beams are constructively adding together and dark where they are canceling each other out. Based on this interference, measurements can be carried out.
A variety of interferometers are available with different optical configurations, which help to achieve the location of fringes. These configurations include for example, Fizeau, Fabrey-Perot, Michelson, and Twyman-Green. Fizeau interferometers, also known as image-plane interferometers, utilize a reference and test light path of unequal distance. Fabrey-Perot interferometers are frequency-tuning devices that exploit the properties of interference between two adjacent flat, parallel surfaces. Michelson interferometers are constructed using a half-silvered mirror inclined at a 45° angle to the incoming beam. Half the light is reflected perpendicularly and bounces off a beam-splitter; the other half passes through and is reflected by a second beam-splitter. Light passing through the mirror must also pass through an inclined compensator plate. The beam splitter and mirror arrangement of Twyman-Green interferometers resembles that of a Michelson interferometer, but a Twyman-Green interferometer is illuminated differently. While Michelson interferometers use an extended light source, the Twyman-Green interferometers use monochromatic point sources, located at the principal focus of lens.
In general, the reference surface in an interferometer separates the beam into two beams, a test beam, and a reference beam. The two beams of light travel different paths. The test beam leaves the interferometer and interacts with a surface or surfaces under test. In typical commercial applications, the surfaces under test are at succinct stages of a manufacturing process and are uncoated, resulting in a small reflection available to the interferometer for testing.
Large aperture interferometry has many commercial applications. Typically, large-scale interferometry utilizes only a small beam size, greatly limiting the use of this measurement technique. For instance, in many optical applications, such as large deformable mirror testing and large flat mirror testing, large area surface testing requires beam sizes larger than the typically commercially available beam size of 4 inches. Use of an interferometer in such optical applications requires a beam expander, which increases the size of the beam after exiting the interferometer. Existing beam expanders that convert the output of an interferometer, for example from four (4) to twelve (12) inches in diameter, consist of an off-axis mirror configuration that is cumbersome, difficult to align and maintain. Such an arrangement limits the utility of the interferometer in many test environments.
A typical Fizeau interferometer such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,965,435 to Ina, has an internal beam expander where the final surface optical is not flat, cannot be, and is not used as a reference surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,561,525 to Toyonaga et al. discloses an interferometer with an internal and external beam expander. The external beam expander only expands the light leading to the reference surface, and neither beam expander lens is optically flat to act as a reference surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,188,122 to Massie et al. discloses an interferometer, which has two beam expanders. Neither beam expander, however, has a final surface that is flat enough to act as a reference surface.
Thus, there remains a need for a beam expander suitable for large aperture interferometry that is compact and that can be interfaced to existing phase-shifting interferometers.


A hybrid solar lighting system and components having at least one hybrid solar concentrator, at least one fiber receiver, at least one hybrid luminaire, and a light distribution system operably connected to each hybrid solar concentrator and each hybrid luminaire. A controller operates each component.

Throughout the 1900s, use of the sun as a source of energy has evolved considerably. Early in the century, the sun was the primary source of interior light for buildings during the day. Eventually, however, the cost, convenience, and performance of electric lamps improved and the sun was displaced as our primary method of lighting building interiors. This, in turn, revolutionized the way we design buildings, particularly commercial buildings, making them minimally dependent on natural daylight. As a result, lighting now represents the single largest consumer of electricity in commercial buildings.
During and after the oil embargo of the 1970s, renewed interest in using solar energy emerged with advancements in daylighting systems, hot water heaters, photovoltaics, etc. Today, daylighting approaches are designed to overcome earlier shortcomings related to glare, spatial and temporal variability, difficulty of spatial control and excessive illuminance. In doing so, however, they waste a significant portion of the visible light that is available by shading, attenuating, and or diffusing the dominant portion of daylight, i.e., direct sunlight which represents over 80% of the light reaching the earth on a typical day. Further, they do not use the remaining half of energy resident in the solar spectrum (mainly infrared radiation between 0.7 and 1.8 μm), add to building heat gain, require significant architectural modifications, and are not easily reconfigured. Previous attempts to use sunlight directly for interior lighting via fresnel lens collectors, reflective light-pipes, and fiber-optic bundles have been plagued by significant losses in the collection and distribution system, ineffective use of nonvisible solar radiation, and a lack of integration with collocated electric lighting systems required to supplement solar lighting on cloudy days and at night.

Hybrid solar lighting systems and components


The present invention provides an organic electroluminescence element driving circuit that is capable of realizing application of reverse bias without increasing power consumption and cost. The connected relationship between a power supply potential Vcc and the GRD is changed by manipulating switches. With this arrangement, application of reverse bias to an organic electroluminescence element can be realized without newly preparing additional power supplies such as a negative power supply, and the like, whereby the life of an organic electroluminescence element can be increased.

1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a driving circuit for an active matrix type display using an electro-optical element, such as an organic electroluminescence element (hereinafter referred to as "organic electroluminescence element"), and the like. The invention further relates to a driving method of electronic device and an electronic apparatus, and to the electronic device. More particularly, the present invention relates to a driving circuit having a function for applying reverse bias to an electro-optical element to suppress the deterioration thereof, to a driving method of electronic device and an electronic apparatus, and to the electronic device.
2. Description of Related Art
It is known that a display can be realized by arranging a plurality of pixels in matrix that include an organic electroluminescence element that is one of electro-optical elements. In such a display, the organic electroluminescence element is arranged such that a laminated organic thin film including a light emitting layer is interposed between a cathode formed of a metal electrode, for example, Mg, Ag, Al, Li, and the like and an anode formed of a transparent electrode composed of ITO (indium tin oxide).
FIG. 8 shows an ordinary arrangement of a driving circuit for an active matrix type display using an organic electroluminescence element. In this figure, the organic electroluminescence element is shown as a diode 10. Further, the driving circuit 1 is composed of two transistors Tr1 and Tr2 each composed of a thin film transistor (TFT) and a capacitance element 2 for accumulating electric charge.
Herein both the transistors Tr1 and Tr2 are p-channel type TFTs. The transistor Tr1 can be controlled to be turned on and off according to the electric charge accumulated in the capacitance element 2 in the figure. The capacitance element 2 is charged by a data line VDATA through the transistor Tr2 that is turned on by setting a selection potential VSEL to a low level. When the transistor Tr1 is turned on, a current flows to the organic electroluminescence element 10 through the transistor Tr1. The continuous flow of the current to the organic electroluminescence element 10 permits the element to emit light continuously.
FIG. 9 shows a brief timing chart for the circuit of FIG. 8. As shown in FIG. 9, when data is to be written, the transistor Tr2 is turned on by setting the selection potential VSEL to the low level, whereby the capacitance element 2 is charged. This charge period is a writing period Tw in the figure. An actual display period follows the writing period Tw. In this period, the transistor Tr1 is turned on by the electric charge accumulated in the capacitance element 2. This period is shown as a display period TH in the figure.
FIG. 10 shows another arrangement of the driving circuit for the organic electroluminescence element. The driving circuit shown in the figure is written in the literature "The Impact of Transient Response of Organic Light Organic Light Emitting Diodes on the Design of Active Matrix OLED Displays" (1998 IEEE IEDM 98-875). In FIG. 10, reference numeral Tr1 denotes a driving transistor, reference numeral Tr2 denotes a charge controlling transistor, reference numeral Tr3 denotes a first selection transistor, and reference numeral Tr4 denotes a second selection transistor that is turned off during the charge period of a capacitance element 2.
As is well known, the characteristics of transistors are dispersed even if they have the same standard. Accordingly, even if the same voltage is applied to the gates of transistors, a current having a given value does not always flow through the transistors, which may cause irregular luminance and the like. In contrast, in this driving circuit, electric charge is accumulated in the capacitance element 2 based on an amount of current according to a data signal output from a current source 4. Thus, the emitting state of organic electroluminescence can be controlled based on the amount of current according to data.
Herein all the transistors Tr1 to Tr4 are P-channel type MOS transistors. The transistors Tr2 and TR3 are turned on by setting a selection potential VSEL to a low level, which causes electric charge having a value according to the output from the current source 4 to be accumulated in the capacitance element 2. Then, after the selection potential VSEL goes to a high level and the transistors Tr2 and Tr3 are turned off, the transistor Tr1 is turned on by the electric charge accumulated in the capacitance element 2 and the transistor Tr4 is turned on by a data holding control signal Vgp so that a current flows to the organic electroluminescence element 10.
FIG. 11 shows a brief timing chart as to the circuit of FIG. 10, As shown in FIG. 11, when data is to be written by the current source 4, the transistors Tr2 and Tr3 are turned on by setting the selection potential VSEL to the a low level, thereby charging the capacitance element 2. This charging period is a writing period Tw in FIG. 11. An actual display period follows the write period Tw. During the period in which the data holding control signal Vgp is set to the low level, the transistor Tr1 is turned on, and this turned-on period is a display period TH.
FIG. 12 shows still another arrangement of the driving circuit for the organic electroluminescence element. The driving circuit shown in the figure is the circuit disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 11-272233. In this figure, the driving circuit includes a transistor Tr1 for supplying a current from a power supply to an organic electroluminescence element 10 when it is turned on, a capacitance element 2 for accumulating electric charge for maintaining the transistor Tr1 in the turned-on state, and a charge controlling transistor Tr5 for controlling the charge of the capacitance element 2 according to an external signal. Note that when the organic electroluminescence element 10 is to emit, a potential Vrscan is maintained to a low level to turn off a charge controlling transistor Tr7. With this operation, no reset signal Vrsig is output. Note that reference numeral Tr6 denotes an adjustment transistor.
The transistor Tr5 is turned on, and the capacitance element 2 is charged by a data line VDATA through a transistor Tr6. Then, the conductance between the source and the drain of the transistor Tr1 is controlled according the charged level of the capacitance element 2, and a current flows to the organic electroluminescence element 10. That is, as shown in FIG. 13, when a potential Vscan is set to a high level to turn on the transistor Tr5, the capacitance element 2 is charged through the transistor Tr6. The conductance between the source and the drain of the transistor Tr1 is controlled according the charged level of the capacitance element 2, and a current flows to the organic electroluminescence element 10. The organic electroluminescence element 10 emits.

System and methods for providing a driving circuit for active matrix type displays


An applicator for an external male urinary catheter is described for applying and securing a catheter to a user. The applicator has a solid cylinder preferably with slits surrounded by a flexible skirt on which the catheter is installed, and the cylinder causes the skirt to invert to apply the catheter to the user.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an applicator for the application of an external catheter for male urinary incontinence apparatus, wherein the catheter comprises a soft elastic thin-walled, substantially cylindrical body portion which is open at one end to receive a penis and is narrow at the opposite end for connection to a suitable collection or drainage receptacle. The present invention is also directed to a method of applying a male catheter using the apparatus described herein.
2. Art Background
External male catheters generally take the form of an elastic penile sheath connected at its distal end to a drainage tube that, in use of the device, leads to a suitable collection receptacle. Such a catheter is typically held in place by a pad or coating of pressure sensitive adhesive, or by adhesive applied directly to the interior walls of the catheter. Such sheath has an inner sleeve that sealingly but non-adhesively engages the glans of a patient's penis, the inner sleeve being held in position by a coating or pad of adhesive material in contact with the penile shaft on the glans. U.S. Pat. No. 4,963,137 to Heyden and U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,688 to Hauser disclose such an external catheter.
Since the users of such articles are often elderly persons under nursery or disabled persons, the application of such devices must frequently be performed by the nursing personnel. However, such application is often considered embarrassing to the patients. The act of applying the device may be embarrassing to the care giver as well, since he or she would prefer not to touch the patient's genitals. In order to remedy these disadvantages, applicators for use in the application of an external catheter have been suggested. The applicators are delivered to the user with the catheter disposed thereon so that the user need only uncap the applicator and optionally remove release paper if provided, to expose the adhesive, apply the catheter and disengage the applicator. Relevant catheters and applicators are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,540,409, 4,586,974, 4,589,874, 4,759,753 and 4,894,059 and U.S. Des. Pat. No. 299,865.
Adhesive means, preferably an internal coating of pressure sensitive adhesive, may be used to secure the sheath section to the penile shaft and glans. Ideally, the sheath section includes a non-adhesive portion that is stretched over the glans just behind the urethral meatus to protect the glans against injury that might otherwise be occasioned by prolonged contact with residual amounts of urine that are often retained within an external catheter. The sheath section may optionally include an adhesive to secure the catheter to the penis, although, if no adhesive is provided, the catheter may be retained by the catheter's elastic property or an external or internal adhesive coated tape.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,586,974 shows a catheter with an applicator wherein the applicator is a cylinder on which the catheter is directly installed in an inverted arrangement. The catheter is pushed onto the penis and is forced to slide over the exterior of the applicator smoothly and regularly in order to apply it. This design has several inherent flaws in that the applicator is not very easy to use because it requires the thin and flexible latex sheath of the catheter, which is disposed on the applicator, to be slid over the extensive surface of the applicator. It also requires the penis to be somewhat rigid and equal in length to the sheath in order for the patient or care giver to push the catheter thereon.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,894,059 discloses a catheter applicator having a rolled up catheter which is unrolled as the catheter is applied. A cap is provided over the rolled-up catheter. This device also requires a semi-rigid penis or one with substantial length for easy application of the catheter because the catheter is forced over the end of the penis.
The inherent problems of easy application of the catheter are addressed by the present invention which is described below.

Applicator for external catheter and method of using same


A motor vehicle air conditioning system including a Coanda effect air distributor device and mixing means which allow to vary the temperature of the air available to the different outlet conduits of the distributor device for the same setting of the means for regulating the temperature of the system. In this way, for a same setting of the temperature regulating means, the air conveyed to the outlets situated at the base of the windshield is at a higher temperature than the air conveyed to the other outlets and in particular to those adjacent to the floor of the motor vehicle passenger compartment. Preferably, a third, still lower temperature level is available to the outlets situated in the front part of the dashboard of the motor vehicle in the direction of the motor vehicle occupants.

The present invention relates to a motor vehicle air conditioning system comprising an air distributor device including a structure defining a main conduit and a plurality of outlet conduits communicated to the main conduit and to be connected to a plurality of outlets for delivering air into the passenger compartment of a motor vehicle, and distributor means exploiting the Coanda effect, which are mounted in the structure of the distributor device and movable in a plurality of operative positions, each causing deviation by the Coanda effect of the flow of air from the main conduit into a selected outlet conduit.
An air distributor device exploiting the Coanda effect, of the type indicated above, was disclosed in prior Italian Patent Application no. T02001A000223, filed on 12 Mar. 2001 by the same Applicant, as well in corresponding International (PCT) Patent Application WO02072371. In a typical case, the main conduit branches off into three outlet conduits which are to be connected to respective air outlets for delivering air into the passenger compartment of the motor vehicle. The outlets are located at the base of the windshield ("defroster" function), as well as on the front part of the dashboard, to direct air towards the driver and the passenger occupying the front seat ("ventilation" function) and also below, adjacent to the floor of the motor vehicle passenger compartment ("heating" function). Also according to a typical configuration, the system comprises a plurality of (typically four) main conduits each branching off into three outlet conduits, to serve outlets situated at the centre of conduits, to serve outlets situated at the centre of the passenger compartment or adjacent to a side of the motor vehicle, respectively for the driver side and for the passenger side.
On the other hand, in air heating and cooling systems for motor vehicles there is the need to obtain that the air exiting the outlets located respectively adjacent to the windshield, on the front side of the dashboard and adjacent to the floor is at a different temperature for a same setting of the air temperature regulating device.

Motor vehicle air conditioning system with air distributor and mixer device, with Coanda effect, having outlets at differentiated temperatures


A protective helmet, particularly a motorbike protective helmet, comprising an outer shell (1) for the distribution of impact forces, the outer shell (1) comprising a chin shell region (2) for covering a chin part of the person wearing the protective helmet, wherein the outer shell (1) comprises a viewing opening (3) arranged above the chin shell region (2), for the person wearing the protective helmet to see through, and the protective helmet has a slot (4a) with a slot shape for interlockingly receiving an electronic module (5a) corresponding to the slot shape, said slot (4a) comprising a slot opening substantially bordering an edge of the viewing opening (3). The protective helmet comprises another slot (4b) having another slot opening substantially bordering the edge of the viewing opening (3) and having the slot shape for interlockingly receiving another electronic module (5b) corresponding to the slot shape.

In the field of passenger cars, head-up displays are increasingly being used as display systems. These make it possible to project different information about the operating state of the vehicle or else also graphics, such as arrows, bars or the like, as direction or route data for a navigation application, into the viewing field of the driver. In this manner, not only can route information be overlaid on the environment, which facilitates the assignment of route information to the possible routes in the environment, rather it is also made possible for the driver of the vehicle to detect much other information without changing their field of view, that is to say without turning their viewing direction away from the environment, for example downwards.
Recently, head-up displays have also been developed for motorcycle riders. In this case, the requirements for placing the corresponding devices are obviously very different from in the case of a passenger car.
A protective helmet with a display device constructed as a head-up display is known from the prior art and specifically from US 2015/0338659 A1. In this case, this display device may, in a first variant, be fastened externally on the protective helmet in the region of the viewing opening, so that the optical module with the projection surface for projecting an image can be arranged outside the visor, in the region of the viewing opening. In a second variant, a mount, in which the display device can be arranged, is provided inside the protective helmet in the chin shell region. The projection surface is then in front of the visor with respect to the person wearing the protective helmet, so that the person wearing the protective helmet does not have to see through the visor onto the projection surface. The arrangement in the protective helmet also makes it possible to retain the external shape of the protective helmet substantially.
However, it is disadvantageous for this arrangement inside the protective helmet, that the mount must be dimensioned very large due to the size of the display device, which leads to massive limitations for the configuration of the chin shell region in view of the small installation space available. Also, particularly large risks of injury result from this due to the display device in the event of a crash. Additionally, the user of a head-up display regularly has a dominant eye, in front of which the projection surface is advantageously arranged. In the case of the variant with external engagement, this circumstance can easily be taken into account in that the display device is fastened interchangeably on the protective helmet on the left or the right side. For arrangement inside the protective helmet, a mechanism would have to be used, which allows pivoting of the projection surface from left to right, which mechanism would be complex and probably involve a risk of injury.


A brassiere holder is presented that includes two cup receiving portions, a connecting portion and a hook portion. When the cup receiving portions are pressed from the side, the connecting portion is elastically deformed to allow the two cup receiving portions to be folded back on each other such that a part of a flange portion of the two cup receiving portions is brought into contact with the other part of the flange portion and a gap gradually increasing toward the upper side is formed between the two cup receiving portions. In this manner, since the cup portions of the brassiere are formed in a shape similar to a shape obtained in a state in which a three-dimensional shape of a breast of a human being is folded into two, the cup portions are positioned as they are under their current state and are put in a soft net bag.

Generally, a brassiere is made of flexible and delicate fabric such as lace and cloth because it directly comes into contact with a soft and sensitive breast of a woman. When such a brassiere is put in a washing machine as it is, and then washed, loss of shape in brassiere cup portions for covering a breast may occur and wires inserted into the lower peripheral edges of the cup portions may be deformed and twisted.
Accordingly, there is proposed a washing aid (JP-UM-A-62-199076) having a configuration in which two bowl-shaped cup receiving portions foldably connected to each other by a connecting pin cover two cup portions of a brassiere, are folded back on each other to put shoulder strips and under-belts of the brassiere inside thereof, and are put in a net bag, and then a strip of the mouth edge of the net bag is fastened to put the net bag in a washing machine. In this washing aid, since the brassiere is fastened by the net bag, displacement of the brassiere from the cup receiving portions by the strong flow of water during washing does not occur.
However, the cup receiving portions are simply folded back on each other and then fastened by the net bag. Accordingly, when the brassiere is covered with the cup receiving portions and the cup receiving portions are folded without disregard to a three-dimensional shape of a breast of a human being, that is, a three-dimensional shape of the brassiere, a tensile force in an outward direction is applied to the lower portions of the cup portions of the brassiere and the other portions are raised from the cup receiving portions. In such a state, flexible and delicate fabric of the brassiere may be damaged when the brassiere is put in the net bag, tightened and washed.
In addition, there is proposed a hanger set (Japanese Utility Model No. 3,111,045 and Japanese Utility Model No. 3,114,798) configured by a brassiere holder which includes at least two cup receiving portions covering cup portions of a brassiere to keep three-dimensional shapes of the cup portions to thereby minimize loss of shape, a connecting piece portion connecting the two cup receiving portions with each other, and a hook provided in the connecting piece portion and hooking an area between the cup portions of the brassiere, is stored in a drawer, and makes it difficult to occur loss of shape when being carried for a trip, and a hanger removably holding the brassiere holder.


A metal line of a semiconductor device includes an insulation layer formed on a semiconductor substrate. The insulation layer has a metal line forming region. A diffusion barrier is formed on a surface of the metal line forming region of the insulation layer. The diffusion barrier includes a multi-layered structure that includes an MoB2 layer, an MoxByNz layer and an Mo layer. A metal layer is formed on the diffusion barrier to fill the metal line forming region of the insulation layer.

The present invention relates generally to a metal line of a semiconductor device and a method for forming the same, and more particularly, to a metal line of a semiconductor device having a diffusion barrier with improved characteristics thereby improving the characteristics of a metal line, and a method for forming the same.
In a typical semiconductor device, metal lines are formed to electrically connect elements or lines to each other, and contact plugs are formed to connect lower metal lines to upper metal lines. In order to conform to the trend towards high integration in semiconductor devices, the design rule of a semiconductor device has decreased. When the design rule is decreased, the aspect ratio of a contact hole in which a contact plug is to be formed is increased. The increase in the aspect ratio of a contact hole leads to difficulty in forming the metal line and the contact plug, and thus the importance of the metal line an contact plug forming processes has been noted.
Aluminum and tungsten have wide use as a material for forming the metal line of a semiconductor device due to the good electrical conductivity of these materials. Recent undertakings have explored the potential of copper as a next-generation material for a metal line due to the excellent electrical conductivity and the low resistance of copper when compared to aluminum and tungsten. Copper (Cu) can therefore solve the problems associated with RC (resistance-capacitance) signal delay in a semiconductor device having a high level of integration and high operating speed.
However, unlike aluminum, when copper is used as the material for a metal line, copper diffuses through an insulation layer to the semiconductor substrate. Semiconductor substrates are typically made of silicon, and the diffused copper acts as a deep-level impurity and induces leakage current. Therefore, it is necessary to form a diffusion barrier at the interface between a copper layer for a metal line and the insulation layer.
Hereinbelow, a conventional method for forming a metal line of a semiconductor device will be briefly described.
After forming an insulation layer on a semiconductor substrate, a metal line forming region is defined by etching the insulation layer. Then, a diffusion barrier is formed on the insulation layer including on the surface of the metal line forming region, and a copper seed layer is formed on the diffusion barrier. Next, a copper layer is formed on the copper seed layer, and the copper layer is chemically and mechanically polished (CMP) to form a metal line comprising the copper layer.
However, in the conventional method described above, as the size of cells decreases in conformance with the trend toward high integration of a semiconductor device, it becomes difficult to properly prevent the diffusion of a copper constituent by means of the diffusion barrier formed according to the conventional method.
Also, in the conventional method described above, it is difficult to increase the thickness of the diffusion barrier so as to improve the characteristics of the diffusion barrier. Due to this fact, the characteristics of the diffusion barrier become worse, and thereby the resistance of the metal line increases. As a consequence, the characteristics and the reliability of the semiconductor device along with the characteristics of a metal line are likely to be diminished.

Metal line of semiconductor device having a multilayer molybdenum diffusion barrier and method for forming the same


A heat shield for the upper surface of a carpet seaming tape iron, preferably formed of polytetrafluorethylene or other heat resistant synthetic material, covers only so much of the upper surface of the iron as is needed to assure that the carpet backing coming into contact with the iron will not be overheated. Since some heating of the carpet backing is desirable in the hot melt carpet seaming tape operation, the forward and rear surfaces of the iron are left at least partially exposed so that the carpet backing will have some direct contact with the hot metal heat transferring surface at the top of the iron's body. The heat shield is contoured so as to fit closely down against the surfaces of the carpet seaming tape iron, avoiding any unnecessary deflection of the carpet edges during the seaming operation and providing an integral feel to the assembly. Assembly may be as original equipment or as a retrofittable addition to an iron.

The invention relates to carpeting tools, and more specifically to carpet seaming tape irons used for seaming carpet edges in the well known conventional manner, using hot melt carpet seaming tape.
Heat shields of polytetrafluorethylene material (Teflon, a trademark of DuPont), for fitting onto a carpet seaming tape iron, are well known. It is known that the Teflon material produces a low-friction glide against the carpet backing as the iron is advanced during the seaming operation. Also, Teflon is quite heat resistant and somewhat insulative as are many plastic materials, and with the Teflon heat shield lying over the existing stainless steel heat shield of the iron, the carpet is insulated from contact with the hot metal heat shield. This purpose of the known heat shields has been to prevent overheating of the carpet backing which can destroy the integrity of the carpet backing and/or the seam formed during the hot melt seaming operation. A typical add-on heat shield for fitting onto existing irons has been marketed by Roofing Equipment Inc., 11075 E. 47th Avenue, Denver, Colo.; and also by Orcon Corporation of Union City, Calif. This heat shield device had a pair of legs forming a slot between them, with the front ends of the legs riveted together. Such construction provided an opening which could be positioned over the handle of an existing iron, so that the heat shield could be assembled down over the handle. The legs at the front end enabled some pivoting at this point about the rivet, adding to the flexibility of the slot when installed over the iron's handle.
One problem with such conventional retrofittable heat shields has been that, even though the heat shield was formed in a nonplanar, somewhat contoured configuration, the heat shield did not fit down closely over the upper surface of the iron and tended to lie on the iron with edges riding considerably upward from the iron's metal heat shield. Another problem of such heat shields has been their length, generally co-extensive with the back end of the iron's upper surface and extending nearly to the front of the iron. Extension of the heat shield in front of and behind the handle was necessary due to the manner in which the heat shield was installed on the iron--by fitting a slot over the iron's handle. Material was required forward of the handle and rearward of the handle for adequate integrity of the structure--to receive a rivet on the one end, and to form an adequate juncture at the other end to hold the heat shield together.
Irons in other fields have also employed heat shields or protective insulative layers, usually to protect the user. In the field of flatirons, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,793,753, 2,579,726, 2,095,954, 626,286, 279,971, 191,935, 142,334, 75,611 and 58,138.
Thus, prior carpet iron heat shields of the type described exhibited several problems--effectively raising the profile of the carpet seaming tape iron and hindering the installer; sometimes underheating the carpet backing during the seaming operation; and generally giving the appearance and feel of not fitting properly over the top of the seaming iron. These and additional problems are overcome by the heat shield of the present invention described below.