It is provided an apparatus, including base station means adapted to provide a base station functionality for a first user equipment attached to a first network and a second user equipment attached to a second network different from the first network; access barring broadcasting means adapted to broadcast, via the base station means, a first EAB parameter including a first category indication for extended access barring related to the first network and a second category indication for extended access barring related to the second network.

Abbreviations
3GPP 3rd generation partnership project
AC Access Class
ACB Access Class Barring
AS Access Stratum
E-UTRAN Evolved UTRAN
eNodeB, eNB Evolved NodeB
EAB Extended Access Barring
EDGE Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution
GERAN GSM Edge RAN
GSM Global system for mobile communication
IE Information element
MME Mobility Management Entity
MMEGI MME group identity
MMEC MME code
MTC Machine Type Communication
NAS Non Access Stratum
PLMN Public Land Mobile Network
RAN Radio Access Network
RRC radio resource control
SIB System Information Block
UE User equipment (same as terminal)
UL UpLink
UTRAN Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network
The present application is related to extended access barring (EAB). 3GPP is discussing EAB as a mean to bar the UEs in overload situations. The requirements are captured in 3GPP TS 22.011 V11.0.0. (chapter 4.3.4).
EAB should be applied depending on the category where UE belongs to and this category is up to the PLMN registration situation as following;                a) UEs that are configured for EAB;        b) UEs that are configured for EAB and are neither in their HPLMN nor in a PLMN that is equivalent to it;        c) UEs that are configured for EAB and are neither in the PLMN listed as most preferred PLMN of the country where the UE is roaming in the operator-defined PLMN selector list on the SIM/USIM, nor in their HPLMN nor in a PLMN that is equivalent to their HPLMN.
Above categories are designed as many MTC devices are roamers.
For instance, in some MTC application, MTC devices are using roamer SIM/USIM with preferred PLMN. That means Operator-A in country-1 gives Operator-A's SIM card of country-2 to its MTC devices in country-1. So all the MTC devices are actually roamers in country-1 but PLMN of Operator-A in country-1 will be the most preferred PLMN. Thus above category is important to bar separately between all the roamers (b) and roamers which are not in the most preferred PLMN(c). In the above example, if Operator-B's network node, which is serving the same area as Operator-A's network node, is breaking down, all Operator-B's MTC devices will try to roam to Operator-A's system and this will cause overload to Operator-A as well. However if there is no separation of category c) from b), network bars all roamer with b), Operator-A's own MTC devices cannot be served either. Thus in this case, category c) barring can be used only to bar the Operator-B's MTC devices.
However, in case that network sharing is used in the network, it is not clear how EAB should be applied and how EAB related parameters should be broadcast. If the E-UTRAN is shared by multiple operators, the system information broadcasted in each shared cell contains the PLMN-id of each operator (according to current specifications up to 6 PLMN-ids), i.e. PLMN-IdentityList as in FIG. 8. The UE shall read up the PLMN-ids to select one of the PLMN-ids during PLMN selection procedure and to indicate this PLMN-id to the E-UTRAN via RRC Connection Setup Complete message. The E-UTRAN then selects an appropriate MME for the PLMN indicated by the UE.
FIG. 8 explains parameters related to network sharing in pseudo-code language.
In case the network broadcasts multiple PLMN_IDs, UE AS layer will forward them to NAS layer and NAS layer will select one. And NAS layer will indicate this selected PLMN to AS layer and AS layer will include it in the corresponding RRCConnection Setup Complete message as shown in FIG. 9.
Basically, the content of the RRCConnectionSetupComplete message is set as follows:
1> set the content of RRCConnectionSetupComplete message as follows:2>set the selectedPLMN-Identity to the PLMN selectedby upper layers (see TS 23.122, TS 24.301) from the PLMN(s)included in the plmn-IdentityList inSystemInformationBlockType1;2>if upper layers provide the 'Registered MME',include and set the registeredMME as follows:3>if the PLMN identity of the 'Registered MME' isdifferent from the PLMN selected by the upper layers:4>include the plmnIdentity in theregisteredMME and set it to the value of thePLMN identity in the 'Registered MME' receivedfrom upper layers;3> set the mmegi and the mmec to the value received fromupper layers;
Combining network sharing and overload situation generates more cases to consider.
For instance, Operator-A and Operator-B are sharing the RAN node in country 1 as shown in FIG. 1. And Operator-C is serving the same area as Operators A and B but has his own RAN system. And Operator-A and Operator-B have own MTC customers but have different business models. Operator-A's MTC devices have Operator-A's Country-2 SIM/USIM (i.e, they are roamers in country 1), while Operator-B's MTC devices have Operator-B's Country-1 SIM/USIM (i.e., they are in their home network). And in case MME3 is broken, MTC devices of Operator-3 will try to roam to Operator-A/B's network which may cause overload. Thus EAB has to be set in eNB-a to prevent serving Operator-3's MTC devices while eNB-a still serves MTC devices of Operator-A/B as normal.
PLMN selection of Operator-C's MTC devices may vary depending on the settings of devices and the policy of Operator-C. They may select either PLMN1 or PLMN2. From Operator-A's point of view, Operator-C's MTC devices belong to category c) while from Operator-B's point of view Operator-C's MTC devices belong to category b). Thus with the current solution, if category b) is set for EAB in eNB-a, MTC devices of Operator-A will be also barred. If category c) is set for EAB in eNB-a and PLMN2 is configured as preferred PLMN in Operator-C's MTC devices, Operator-C's MTC devices will be served if they select PLMN2.
Even though EAB is invented to prevent RAN overload, the same mechanism may be used for Core network overload mitigation. In this example, MTC business model is the same as the above. (i.e., Operator-A's MTC has roamers' SIM/USIM while Operator-B's MTC has home SIM/USIM)
As in FIG. 2, in case MME2 is heavily loaded, eNB will want to bar the MTC devices of Operator-B while Operator-A's MTC devices can be served normally. However if the category for the EAB is common for all PLMN in network sharing, eNB will not be able to bar only Operator-B's MTC devices as it has to bar Operator-B's MTC devices in category a) while serves normally Operator-A's MTC devices in category b). Such a scenario is described in CR 178 to 3GPP TS 22.011.
For Access Class Barring in LTE system, SIB broadcasts barring related parameters are as according to FIG. 10.
According to 3GPP TS 22.011 V11.0.0, section 4.3.1, for access class barring the UE determines the barring status with the information provided from the serving network, and performs the access attempt accordingly. The UE draws a uniform random number between 0 and 1 when initiating connection establishment and compares with the current barring rate to determine whether it is barred or not. When the uniform random number is less than the current barring rate and the type of access attempt is indicated allowed, then the access attempt is allowed; otherwise, the access attempt is not allowed. If the access attempt is not allowed, further access attempts of the same type are then barred for a time period that is calculated based on the 'mean duration of access control' provided by the network and the random number drawn by the UE.
Thus one could consider extending ACB parameters for EAB, as proposed in R2-113339 and R2-113217. Also for GERAN, some detailed solutions for EAB had been discussed in G2-110010, G2-110018, G2-110026.
However currently all access barring parameters in LTE are common to all PLMNs which share the RAN node. And none of the proposals clarifies how EAB should work in case of network sharing.
In UMTS, the concept of per-PLMN access class barring is present. The network may include a "Domain Specific Access Restriction For Shared Network" IE which includes one or several Domain Specific Access Restriction Parameters per PLMN in case of network sharing in SIB3. However, the "domain specific access Restriction" indicates whether the cell is barred or not for Access Class 0 up to Access class 15. That means the parameter indicates whether the cell is barred for UEs having a certain access class and having selected a certain PLMN. Thus, this concept would mix up the ideas of access class barring and EAB. Thus, the operator may not apply simultaneously access class barring to certain access classes and EAB to UEs of a certain roaming status reducing flexibility for the operator.

Extended access barring and network sharing


A computer program analyzes an image including features that correspond to emissions detected from a biological probe array. The program aligns one or more grids, each having one or more grid cells, with all or portions of the image; selects one or more grid cells to be associated with features based on distributions of pixel intensity values within the grid cells; locates a shape, such as a circle, in each selected grid cell based on distributions of pixel intensity values within the grid cells; and associates one or more intensity values with a feature based on intensities of feature pixels, or feature pixels and portions of feature pixels, within the shape located in the selected grid cell associated with the feature. The features may correspond to spots of biological material such as nucleic acid, peptide, protein fragment, protein, antibody, ligand, receptor, or small molecule.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to computer systems, methods, and products for analyzing images and, more particularly, for aligning grids on scanned images of high-density arrays of biological materials and analyzing pixilated information within individual grid elements.
2. Related Art
Spotted arrays, such as those made using the Affymetrix® 417™ or 427™ Arrayer from Affymetrix, Inc. of Santa Clara, Calif., are widely used to generate information about biological systems. Also, synthesized probe arrays, such as Affymetrix® GeneChip® arrays, have been used to generate unprecedented amounts of information about biological systems. For example, the GeneChip® Human Genome U133 Set (HG-U133A and HG-U133B) is made up of two microarrays containing over 1,000,000 unique oligonucleotide features covering more than 39,000 transcript variants that represent more than 33,000 human genes. Experimenters can quickly design follow-on experiments with respect to genes, EST's, or other biological materials of interest by, for example, producing in their own laboratories microscope slides containing dense arrays of probes using the Affymetrix® 417™ or 427™ Arrayer, or other spotting device.
Analysis of data from experiments with synthesized and/or spotted probe arrays may lead to the development of new drugs and new diagnostic tools. In some applications, this analysis begins with the capture of fluorescent signals indicating hybridization of labeled target samples with probes on synthesized or spotted probe arrays. The devices used to capture these signals often are referred to as scanners, an example of which is the Affymetrix® 428™ Scanner.
There is a great demand in the art for methods for organizing, accessing and analyzing the vast amount of information collected by scanning microarrays. Computer-based systems and methods have been developed to assist a user to obtain, analyze, and visualize the vast amounts of information generated by the scanners. These commercial and academic software applications typically provide such information as intensities of hybridization reactions or comparisons of hybridization reactions. This information may be displayed to a user in graphical form. In particular, data representing detected emissions conventionally are stored in a memory device of a computer for processing. The processed images may be presented to a user on a video monitor or other device, and/or operated upon by various data processing products or systems. Techniques are known for identifying the data representing detected emissions and separating them from background information. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,090,555 to Fiekowsky, et al., which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety for all purposes, describes various of these techniques.

Computer software system, method, and product for scanned image alignment


A seamless clock distribution scheme for a system incorporating sequential digital logic devices disposed on multiple parallel boards for reducing or substantially eliminating skew. The multiple parallel boards are positioned on and project outward from one side of a centerplane. A single clock board, generating multiple copies of the system clock and mounted at a right angle to the parallel boards on the opposite side of the centerplane are connected by shared pins passing through apertures formed in the centerplane. This shared pin connection allows for simple, though near-ideal transmission of the clock signal copies between the parallel logic boards and the clock board with a minimum mismatch of the clock signal between two parallel boards.

I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to digital computing and switching systems, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for distributing clock pulses to multiple clocked digital devices with little or no skew resulting.
II. Discussion of the Prior Art
A stable oscillator is an essential element of any digital system employing sequential logic. Digital computers, both general purpose and special purpose, are examples of sequential logic systems. Special purpose digital devices such as switches, multiplexors and device controllers may also employ sequential logic. A typical sequential logic digital system contains a single oscillator, known as the master clock, which controls the sequential operation of all of the digital logic which comprises a given system. The clock distribution system is the means by which the master clock signal is transformed, replicated and distributed to each clocking site in the system.
The leading edge of each clock cycle typically captures the results of the logical operations performed in the previous cycle such that these results become the source of input data for the logical operations to be performed in the present cycle. Proper operation requires that logical results propagate to every clocking site before the corresponding clock signal arrives. From the foregoing it can be understood that the ultimate throughput, i.e., the number of logical steps per second, of any sequential logic system is constrained by both the propagation delay of the combinatorial logic circuits and the uncertainty regarding the time of arrival of the clocking signal at the many clocking site distributed throughout the system. The difference between earliest and latest possible time of arrival of all clock signals is defined as clock skew. It is a common practice to minimize clock skew to thus allow the largest possible fraction of each clock cycle to be available for useful computational work.
A clock distribution system is typically comprised of a master oscillator, wave shaping circuits which establish specified on and off periods for the clock signal, fan-out circuitry which regenerates and replicates the clock signal, and transmission circuitry which distributes the fanned-out signals to remote clocking sites. Most systems require a multi-phase clock which is a set of clock signals having identical wave shape and a specified phase relationship. This discussion will deal only with the distribution of a single phase clock, recognizing that additional phases or subordinate clock signals may be derived after distribution. Also, all comments made regarding the distribution of a single-phase clock are equally applicable to the distribution of a multi-phase clock employing a separate distribution system for each phase.
A clock distribution system is analogous to a wheel comprised of a hub, spokes and rim. The master oscillator and wave shaping circuits are located at the hub. Each spoke represents a divergent transmission path to the remote clocking sites located at the rim. Clock skew arises from the difference in propagation time from spoke to spoke and in an ideal system each spoke would have identical propagation time and negligible degradation of the clock wave shape.
The principal contribution to clock skew is the difference in the electrical length of the transmission circuitry. The electrical length is a function of both the physical length of the electrical conductor and the dielectric medium surrounding the conductor. Electrical signals propagate approximately one foot in one nanosecond in free space, however the propagation time increases as the dielectric constant of the surrounding medium increases. Further an impedance mismatch between the driver circuit and the transmission circuitry may additionally increase propagation time due to signal reflections. In a typical system, the transmission circuitry will include printed circuit foil on the cards which contain the source and destination of the active circuitry, the conductors which comprise the interconnecting backplane and intervening connectors. Since the destination circuitry can be located anywhere in the system, it is inevitable that there will be a disparity in the physical length of the many transmission paths of a typical system. There will be an even greater disparity in the electrical length of transmission paths due to the dielectric differences between the path segments associated with printed circuit boards, connectors and backplane, even when the backplane is itself a multi-layer printed circuit board. The electrical length is further affected by the proximity of the transmission conductors to ground planes and the loading effect of stubs along the transmission path.
Various approaches have been devised for propagating a system clock to digital logic devices populating multiple printed circuit boards. A typical minicomputer shown in FIG. 1, comprises a number of parallel boards, including a CPU card 105, an I/O card 108, and two memory cards 106 and 107. The cards 105 through 108 are interconnected by a backplane 104, with each card connecting to the backplane through a connector 110 having a plurality of terminal pins. The backplane carries data and control signals between the different boards. To make sure that all boards work at the same beat, a special signal called "System Clock" is used to time all of the circuitry on all of the boards. In the example of FIG. 1, the System Clock generator 120, located on the processor board 105, sends the system heartbeat to the circuits 121 of board 105 through the conductive printed circuit traces 113 contained on the board 105, then to the circuits 122 of board 106 through connector 109 of board 105, trace 114 of backplane 104, connector 110 of board 106 and trace 115 of board 106. The generator also sends the heart beat to circuits 123 of board 107 through connector 109 of board 105, trace 114 of the backplane 104, connector 111 of board 107, trace 116 of board 107 and to circuits 124 of board 108 through connector 109 of board 105, trace 114 of backplane 104, connector 112 of board 108, and trace 117 of board 108.
There are two main problems with the prior art clock distribution in the minicomputer configuration illustrated in FIG. 1, namely, clock skew and clock waveform distortion. Concerning clock skew, all clock signals applied to the clock inputs of ICs 121 through 124 must be synchronous or, at least synchronous within an acceptable range. The difference in timing between the clock signals on ICs 121 and 124 is called "clock skew", and a typical value of this clock skew across a system such as is illustrated in FIG. 1 is about 10 percent of the system clock. This corresponds to about four nanoseconds for a system clock running at 25 MHz, corresponding to a 40 ns cycle time. Clock skew, of course, depends upon the difference in clock signal propagation time for the different clock signal paths. This propagation time itself depends on the electrical length of the path and the loading of the clock generator. The path electrical length depends on its physical length and on the different electrical characteristics of the path. In the arrangement shown in FIG. 1, there is a very short physical length of the path from the clock generator 120 to the clock input of IC 121, especially when contrasted to the path length from the clock generator 120 to the IC 124 on the I/O 108. Here, the clock signal must traverse the foil on board 105 leading to the connector 109, through the connector 109 and through the bus 114 on the backplane 104, through the connector 112 for I/O card 108 and, thence, through the printed wiring on that card to the clock input of IC device 124. Assuming a backplane, which is 16 inches in length and that the IC traces on the cards 105 and 108 are each five inches, the path from the clock generator 120 to the device 124 represents an additional physical length of about 26 inches or 2 ns for a typical epoxy backplane. In addition cross the connectors 109 and 112 such that the minimum skew between the two paths is 3 ns.
A significant improvement in reducing clock skew can be achieved using the prior art arrangement shown in FIG. 2 disclosed in an article by Mears entitled "To Clear System Bottlenecks Drive Backplanes with ECL", Electronic Design Bow 35, No. 24, Oct. 15, 1987, pp. 83-88. It shows how the overall distance between the parallel boards can be reduced by placing a clock board 120 on the opposite side of the backplane, now called the centerplane, in that both sides thereof are utilized. The traveling distance of the clock signal via trace 114 is minimized as represented in FIG. 2, but this scheme requires a complex assembly procedure of the connectors that are now soldered on both sides of the backplane.
Another prior art attempt to minimize the skew problem in distributing clock signals from a clock pulse generator to ICs on a series of logic boards is set out in an article entitled "High Chip Density Boosts Performance of Interactive Parallel Super Computer" by John Bond, Computer Design Vol. 29, No. 17, Sep. 1, 1989, pp. 48-50. The scheme disclosed in that article uses an active backplane as is represented in FIG. 3. In this arrangement, active circuitry, such as the clock generator 120, is soldered onto the backplane rather than being disposed on a separate board plugged into the backplane. This offers the advantages of eliminating the need for additional clock distribution board and optimization of the distance between boards. Distances are even shorter if the clock circuitry 120 is mounted on the second side of the backplane, whose first side is occupied by the connectors of the parallel boards.
The drawback to the arrangement shown in FIG. 3 is the attendant complexity in the design of the backplane which now has components on it. This makes it more expensive to manufacture because there must be more traces in the backplane to accommodate the added components. The arrangement shown in FIG. 3 has the additional problem in that the backplane is used as a controlled medium for transmission of clock signals. In practice, the backplane is heavily used for routing a large number of data and control signals and it is very difficult to guarantee that the clock signal will be given precedence over these data and control signals to minimize the miss-match. For example, in a typical minicomputer, such as the one represented in FIG. 1 the backplane 104 would commonly connect ten cards together through connectors having, for example, 400 connects each. This means there are 4,000 connector points or pins. Each pin has to be connected at least to one other pin in the backplane by means of a trace. Thus, in the example under discussion, about 4,000 traces would be required. Because the dimensions of the traces are defined by the backplane technology and cannot be reduced at will, the number of layers of the backplane needs to be increased if it is to support active components thereon. Some backplanes now have up to 60 layers, and their cost is extremely great. If the best possible matching paths for the clock signals through the backplane are to be achieved, a dedicated layer sandwiched between a ground plane and a power plane, must be used if impedance considerations are to be addressed. Increasing the complexity of the backplane by these three layers compounds the cost problem.
Another way of solving the clock distribution problem to minimize skew is to provide an independent clock propagation path outside of the backplane. This can be achieved using discrete cables or discrete optical fibers of equal electrical length running from the clock generating board to the parallel logic boards. The use of cables, however, is not always possible when system size constraints are considered. If the digital system must meet stringent volume requirements, the added bulk attributable to multiple cables used for distributing clock signals from the clock generator to the individual circuit cards can make this an unacceptable solution.


An ultraviolet sterilization unit having a housing attached to an air heating and cooling system. The housing including two apertures into which lamp cartridges are inserted. The lamp cartridges carrying ultraviolet lamps operating in a frequency capable of sterilizing air within the system. The cartridges are configured to automatically de-energize the lamps when a lamp cartridge is removed from the housing. When the sterilization unit is a multiple lamp system, when one of the lamp cartridges is removed all lamps are de-energized. The de-energizing of the lamps occurring before a user will view the lamp.

This invention pertains to the art of ultraviolet germicidal lamps used for air sterilization.
The invention is applicable to compact ultraviolet germicidal sterilization units which are inserted within the air ducts of forced air heating and cooling systems, and will be described with particular reference thereto. It will be appreciated, however, that the invention has broader applications and may be advantageously employed in other environments and applications that benefit from the sterilization of recirculated air.
Ultraviolet energy which can be grouped into three wavelength categories, "long," "middle," and "short" wave ultraviolet, has been shown to be beneficial for a variety of uses. All of ultraviolet wavelengths are shorter than visible light waves and, therefore, are invisible to the human eye.
It has been further shown that ultraviolet wavelengths in the short wave category, and in particular in the region of 253.7 nm, are useful in the destruction of bacteria and other micro-organisms in the air or on exposed surfaces. Micro-organisms which are invisible to the unaided eye, include bacteria, mold spores, yeast and viruses. Each of these are microbes, but different from each other. Microbes are living cells approximately 1/25,000 of an inch in length which reproduce by one cell dividing every twenty minutes or faster. This is a continuous cycle and, if left unchecked, from one bacteria there would be several billion bacteria in less than twelve hours. Indoor air may contain countless bacteria and mold spores and/or viruses, which are the source of spoilage of perishable products and the cause of disease in humans and animals. Germicidal rays emitted by ultraviolet lamps in the short wavelengths in the range of 253.7 nm travel through the air and destroy micro-organisms which are in the path of the rays.
In order for the ultraviolet rays to kill bacteria, etc., the rays must directly strike the micro-organisms. Thus, micro-organisms floating in the air may easily be reached by the ultraviolet rays and, therefore, are readily destroyed. Exposure to ultraviolet rays necessary to kill bacteria, etc. is the product of time and intensity. High intensity for a short period of time, or low intensity for a long period are fundamentally equal in lethal action on bacteria (disregarding the life cycle of the bacteria).
It has been found that the characteristics of germicidal ultraviolet, i.e. those rays in the short wavelength region of 253.7 nm, are useful in air heating and cooling systems to make the air passing through system ducts equivalent, as much as possible, to outdoor air in freedom from live bacteria, etc.
In the average installation, a 90% kill of air borne bacteria, equivalent to most outside air, is recommended. Where a maximum sterilization is imperative, as in hospitals and pharmaceutical laboratories, the highest bacterial reduction possible is desirable--at least 98%. Such conditions can be obtained by increasing the number of lamps in the air conditioning system.
Since the effectiveness of their radiation increases with time of exposure, ultraviolet (germicidal) are known to be installed in the part of the heating and cooling system where the air velocity is the lowest. It has been determined that placement after the filters, if at all possible, is optimal.
A specific example of existing ultraviolet sterilization equipment inserted within forced air heating and cooling system A is illustrated in FIG. 1. Sterilization equipment B is located at an intake end of cool air return duct D, and sterilization equipment C is located in a centralized area of cool air return duct D. A preferred location for placement of sterilization equipment C is within the cool air return D. While ultraviolet lamps can be placed on the warm air side of the system, this tends to decrease the life of the ultraviolet lamps. As can be seen more closely in FIGS. 2a-2c, such lamps are presently arranged in a variety of configurations, including FIG. 2a which is a lamp holder E with one lamp F, FIG. 2b a lamp holder G with two lamps H, I as well as FIG. 2c which is a sixteen lamp grid J arrangement four feet square by eighteen inches deep. Thus, existing units may be used in a small installations such as found in homes, as well as in larger industrial type heating/air conditioning systems found in commercial buildings.
A drawback known to exist in using germicidal ultraviolet lamps for sterilizing recirculating air is that the rays from ultraviolet lamps are harmful to the eyes and skin of humans and animals.
For this reason, in personal protection applications, that is, the use of the lamps for room irradiation in homes, schools, offices, etc., indirect fixtures are placed on the wall or suspended from the ceiling above eye level. Only the upper air is irradiated and the people occupying the room should receive no direct radiation. It is also known that plant life may be damaged by direct or reflected germicidal ultraviolet rays and transient dyes and colors will fade from exposure to ultraviolet rays.
When sterilization equipment such as B and C are within the forced air heating and cooling system A, there is no concern as to harm to humans, animals, plants, etc. However, over time the lamps degrade and need to be replaced. Also, it is important that functioning lamps be kept on a maintenance schedule which includes cleaning and inspection. Dust in the air within air ducts tend to cover the lamps, thereby degrading their usefulness by limiting the intensity and amount of ultraviolet rays emitted. Cleaning, inspection and replacement of lamps require complete removal of equipment B and C from heating and cooling system A.
A concern with removal of such sterilization equipment is the possibility of harm being caused due to the lamps being removed while they are energized. Manufacturers of these units address the issue of safety by requiring large "Caution" notices and other warnings near the lamp fixtures instructing a person to ensure that they de-energize the lamps prior to working near the installation. The commonly suggested warning is that no one should look directly at a lighted lamp, or work near a lighted lamp without adequate eye protection. It is further suggested that tube and reflector cleaning and tube replacement should be entrusted only to personnel who will observe the strict precaution of never exposing the face and eyes to a lighted tube while they are working on it or on the reflector. It is noted that reflectors are often used to direct the rays of the lamps in installations.
In larger units such as the sixteen lamp configuration J shown in FIG. 2e, it is possible to provide an access door for periodic checking and cleaning of the lamps in a chamber or air duct in which the lamps are mounted. As a safety measure, some installations configure the door so it is locked with an electrical circuit such that the lamps are turned off automatically when the door is open. Further, a window of ordinary glass, which filters out the ultraviolet, is provided to allow safe observation of the lamps.
Thus, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, for small size installations, such as household use, etc. the manner of ensuring that harmful rays are not viewed by a user replacing or cleaning ultraviolet lamps, is the use of a "caution" notice. However, in many instances such caution notices are either ignored, accidentally removed, or otherwise not effective, resulting in a user looking directly at an energized lamp, without adequate eye protection.
Further, while there is a certain degree of control in large industrial settings, such as ensuring automatic turn off of the lamps when a door is open, these turn offs are not implemented in the smaller sized settings. Particularly, in the smaller installations no access door provided, due in part to size constraints. In view of the foregoing, if there is an increase in the number of sterilization units used in residential or smaller settings, there will likely be a corresponding increase in the number of users forgetting or ignoring instructions to de-energize the lamps and/or otherwise not following the proper precautions resulting in an increase in injuries.
Thus, there has not been a wide use of ultraviolet sterilization equipment in residential or smaller installations where de-energizing of the lamps is not ensured. This is in part due to manufacturers' concerns of being liable for injuries sustained by a person misusing the sterilization equipment. The above factors result in an undesirable situation where bacteria and other micro-organisms, which would otherwise be destroyed, through application of ultraviolet rays are recirculated through an air heating and cooling systems thereby increasing the spread of viruses, bacteria, etc. in these settings.
Therefore, it has been deemed desirable to develop an ultraviolet sterilization unit for use in forced air heating and cooling systems which ensures the turning off/de-energizing of an ultraviolet lamp prior to exposing the lamp to the view of a user. Further, the ultraviolet sterilization unit should be compact and easy to insert within the air heating and cooling ducts thereby encouraging those with limited mechanical capabilities to install the unit. Still further, the ultraviolet sterilization unit should be configured for use with multiple lamps and should ensure the turning off of all lamps in the multiple lamp unit when any one of the lamps is removed and/or exposed to human view.


A display device, of which the frame is not easily visible in an edge portion, is provided.

A transmissive liquid crystal display device generally includes a liquid crystal display panel, a backlight unit, circuits and power supplies for supplying various kinds of electrical signals to the liquid crystal display panel, and a housing to house all of these components. The light emitted from the backlight unit is modulated on a pixel-by-pixel basis by the liquid crystal display panel, thereby conducting a display operation.
The liquid crystal display panel includes a display area (active area) in which a plurality of pixels are arranged and a frame area which surrounds the display area. In the display area, pixel electrodes, TFTs and other members are arranged and an image or video is displayed. In the frame area, on the other hand, arranged are a seal member to seal a liquid crystal material between the substrates, wiring connected to scan lines and signal lines, and terminals to be connected to an external driver circuit.
The frame area of the display panel is an area that does not contribute to a display operation, and therefore, decreases the planar area of the display area on the display screen of the panel. Also, in an arrangement in which a number of display devices are assembled densely together with no gaps left between them to form a single big screen (and which is sometimes called a "multi-display system"), the frame area is sensed to the viewer's eyes as a non-display area (black frame) representing the seams of the display device. Although the frame area has been narrowed year after year, it is difficult in principle to eliminate the frame area altogether.
Methods for making those seams less sensible to the eye in display devices which form a multi-display system have been studied in the related art. For example, Patent Documents Nos. 1 to 3 disclose a display device in which a light-transmitting cover is provided closer to the viewer than the display panel is. The end portion of the light-transmitting cover includes a curved portion which functions as a lens.
That curved portion (lens portion) of the light-transmitting cover is typically arranged to cover not only the frame area of the display panel but also a part of the display area near the frame area (which will be sometimes hereinafter referred to as a "peripheral display area"). Part of the light that has gone out of pixels that are arranged in the peripheral display area is refracted by the lens portion, and an enlarged image is also displayed in front of the frame area. As a result, it looks to the viewer's eye as if an image was being displayed on the frame area, too, thus providing an image, of which the seams are less sensible to the viewer's eye.

Abstract: This display device includes: a display panel having a display area and a frame area provided outside of the display area; a light-transmitting cover arranged closer to a viewer than the display panel is and including a lens portion that is arranged at a position corresponding to the boundary between the frame area and the display area of the display panel; and a housing including a lateral housing portion arranged to face the display panel's side surface. The outer side surface of the lateral housing portion is located in a space between a first plane which is parallel to a normal to the display panel's screen surface and which contacts with the outer end face of the lens portion of the light-transmitting cover and a second plane which defines an acute angle θ of 25 degrees or less with respect to the normal to the display panel's screen surface and which contacts with the surface of the lens portion.


Methods and compositions for digital profiling of nucleic acid sequences present in a sample are provided.

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention relate in general to methods and compositions for determining the expression profile of one or more (e.g., a plurality) nucleic acid sequences in a sample.
2. Description of Related Art
Although an organism's cells contain largely identical copies of genomic DNA, the RNA expression levels vary widely from cell to cell. RNA expression profiling can be measured. See Pohl and Shih (2004) Expert Rev. Mol. Diagn. 4:41 and Wang et al., Nature Reviews 10, 57-63 (2009), WO2007/076128, US2007/0161031 and WO2007/117620. Expression profiling has also been applied to single cells. See Tang et al., Nature Methods, 6, 377-382 (2009) and Tang et al., Cell Stem Cell, 6, 468-478 (2010). However, many nucleic acids exist at low copy numbers in a cell making detection difficult and a complete expression level profile involves a network containing thousands of genes. Therefore, a technique for genome-wide, digital quantification of nucleic acid molecules with a high dynamic range and single molecule sensitivity is needed to answer fundamental biological questions.

Single cell nucleic acid detection and analysis

President and Fellows of Harvard College


This invention provides novel peptides that function in vivo as agonists of the VPAC2 receptor. These insulin secretagogue polypeptides are shown to lower blood glucose in vivo more than controls upon glucose challenge. The polypeptides of this invention are also stable in formulation and have long half-lives. The peptides of the present invention provide a new therapy for patients with decreased endogenous insulin secretion, in particular type 2 diabetics. In particular, the invention is a polypeptide selected from a specific group of VPAC2-related polypeptides, or functional equivalents thereof. The invention is also directed to a method of treating a metabolic disease in a mammal comprising administering a therapeutically effective amount of the insulin secretagogue peptides to said mammal. Also disclosed are methods of making the peptides, both recombinant and synthetic.

Diabetes is characterized by impaired glucose metabolism manifesting itself, among other things, by an elevated blood glucose level in the diabetic patient. Underlying defects lead to a classification of diabetes into two major groups: type 1 diabetes, or insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), which arises when patients lack β-cells producing insulin in their pancreatic glands, and type 2 diabetes, or non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), which occurs in patients with an impaired β-cell function and alterations in insulin action.
Type 1 diabetic patients are currently treated with insulin, while the majority of type 2 diabetic patients are treated with agents that stimulate β-cell function or with agents that enhance the tissue sensitivity of the patients towards insulin. Over time almost one-half of type 2 diabetic subjects lose their response to these agents and then must be placed on insulin therapy. The drugs presently used to treat type 2 diabetes are described below.
Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors (e.g., Precose®, Voglibose™, and Miglitol®) reduce the excursion of postprandial glucose by delaying the absorption of glucose from the gut. These drugs are safe and provide treatment for mild to moderately affected diabetic subjects. However, gastrointestinal side effects have been reported in the literature.
Insulin sensitizers are drugs that enhance the body's response to insulin. Thiozolidinediones such as Avandia™ (rosiglitazone) and Actos™ activate the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma subtype and modulate the activity of a set of genes that have not been well described. Rezulin™ (troglitazone), the first drug in this class, was withdrawn because elevated liver enzyme levels and drug induced hepatotoxicity. These hepatic effects do not appear to be a significant problem in patients using Avandia™ and Actos™. Even so, liver enzyme testing is recommended every 2 months in the first year of therapy and periodically thereafter. Avandia™ and Actos™ seem to be associated with fluid retention and edema. Avandia™ is not indicated for use with insulin because of concern about congestive heart failure. Another potential side effect is weight gain.
Insulin secretagogues (e.g., sulfonylureas (SFUs) and other agents that act by the ATP-dependent K+ channel) are another drug type presently used to treat type 2 diabetes. SFUs are standard therapy for type 2 diabetics that have mild to moderate fasting glycemia. The SFUs have limitations that include a potential for inducing hypoglycemia, weight gain, and high primary and secondary failure rates. Ten to 20% of initially treated patients fail to show a significant treatment effect (primary failure). Secondary failure is demonstrated by an additional 20-30% loss of treatment effect after six months on an SFU. Insulin treatment is required in 50% of the SFU responders after 5-7 years of therapy (Scheen, et al., Diabetes Res. Clin. Pract. 6:533-543, 1989).
Glucophage™ (metformin HCl) is a biguanide that lowers blood glucose by decreasing hepatic glucose output and increasing peripheral glucose uptake and utilization. The drug is effective at lowering blood glucose in mildly and moderately affected subjects and does not have the side effects of weight gain or the potential to induce hypoglycemia. However, Glucophage™ has a number of side effects including gastrointestinal disturbances and lactic acidosis. Glucophage™ is contraindicated in diabetics over the age of 70 and in subjects with impairment in renal or liver function. Finally, Glucophage™ has the same primary and secondary failure rates as the SFUs.
Insulin treatment is instituted after diet, exercise, and oral medications have failed to adequately control blood glucose. This treatment has the drawbacks that it is an injectable, that it can produce hypoglycemia, and that it causes weight gain.
Because of the problems with current treatments, new therapies to treat type 2 diabetes are needed. In particular, new treatments to retain normal (glucose-dependent) insulin secretion are needed. Such new drugs should have the following characteristics: dependent on glucose for promoting insulin secretion (i.e., produce insulin secretion only in the presence of elevated blood glucose); low primary and secondary failure rates; and preserve islet cell function. The strategy to develop the new therapy disclosed herein is based on the cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) signaling mechanism and its effects on insulin secretion.
Cyclic AMP is a major regulator of the insulin secretion process. Elevation of this signaling molecule promotes the closure of the K+ channels following the activation of protein kinase A pathway. Closure of the K+ channels causes cell depolarization and subsequent opening of Ca++ channels, which in turn leads to exocytosis of insulin granules. Little if any effects on insulin secretion occurs in the absence of low glucose concentrations (Weinhaus, et al., Diabetes 47:1426-1435, 1998). Secretagogues like pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide ("PACAP") and GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide 1) use the cAMP system to regulate insulin secretion in a glucose-dependent fashion (Komatsu, et al., Diabetes 46:1928-1938, 1997; Filipsson, et al., Diabetes 50:1959-1969, 2001; Drucker, Endocrinology 142:521-527, 2001). Insulin secretagogues working through the elevation of cAMP such as GLP-1 and PACAP is also able to enhance insulin synthesis in addition to insulin release (Skoglund, et al., Diabetes 49:1156-1164, 2000; Borboni, et al., Endocrinology 140:5530-5537, 1999).
PACAP is a potent stimulator of glucose-dependent insulin secretion from pancreatic β-cells. Three different PACAP receptor types (PAC1, VPAC1, and VPAC2) have been described (Harmar, et al., Pharmacol. Reviews 50:265-270, 1998; Vaudry, et al., Pharmacol. Reviews 52:269-324, 2000). PACAP displays no receptor selectivities, having comparable activities and potencies at all three-receptors. PAC1 is located predominately in the CNS, whereas VPAC1 and VPAC2 are more widely distributed. VPAC1 is located in the CNS as well as in liver, lungs, and intestine. VPAC2 is located in the CNS, pancreas, skeletal muscle, heart, kidney, adipose tissue, testis, and stomach. Recent work argues that VPAC2 is responsible for the insulin secretion from β-cells (Inagaki, et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 91:2679-2683, 1994; Tsutsumi, et al., Diabetes 51:1453-1460, 2002). This insulinotropic action of PACAP is mediated by the GTP binding protein Gs. Accumulation of intracellular cAMP in turn activates the nonselective cation channels in β-cells increasing [Ca++], and promotes exocytosis of insulin-containing secretory granules.
PACAP is the newest member of the superfamily of metabolic, neuroendocrine, and neurotransmitter peptide hormones that exert their action through the cAMP-mediated signal transduction pathway (Arimura, Regul. Peptides 37:287-303, 1992). The biologically active peptides are released from the biosynthetic precursor in two molecular forms, either as a 38-amino acid peptide (PACAP-38) and/or as a 27-amino acid peptide (PACAP-27) with an amidated carboxyl termini (Arimura, supra).
The highest concentrations of the two forms of the peptide are found in the brain and testis (Arimura, supra). The shorter form of the peptide, PACAP-27, shows 68% structural homology to vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP). However, the distribution of PACAP and VIP in the central nervous system suggests that these structurally related peptides have distinct neurotransmitter functions (Koves, et al., Neuroendocrinology 54:159-169, 1991).
Recent studies have demonstrated diverse biological effects of PACAP-38, from a role in reproduction (McArdle, Endocrinology 135:815-817, 1994) to an ability to stimulate insulin secretion (Yada, et al., J. Biol. Chem. 269:1290-1293, 1994). In addition, PACAP appears to play a role in hormonal regulation of lipid and carbohydrate metabolism (Gray, et al., Mol. Endrocrinol. 15:173947, 2001); circadian function (Harmar, et al., Cell 109: 497-508, 2002); and the immune system, growth, energy homeostasis, and male reproductive function (Asnicar, et al., Endrocrinol. 143:3994-4006, 2002); regulation of appetite (Tachibana, et al., Neurosci. Lett. 339:203-206, 2003); as well as acute and chronic inflammatory diseases, septic shock, and autoimmune diseases (e.g., systemic lupus erythematosus) (Pozo, Trends Mol. Med. 9:211-217, 2003).
Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) is a 28 amino acid peptide that was first isolated from hog upper small intestine (Said and Mutt, Science 169:1217-1218, 1970; U.S. Pat. No. 3,879,371). This peptide belongs to a family of structurally-related, small polypeptides that includes helodermin, secretin, the somatostatins, and glucagon. The biological effects of VIP are mediated by the activation of membrane-bound receptor proteins that are coupled to the intracellular cAMP signaling system. These receptors were originally known as VIP-R1 and VIP-R2, however, they were later found to be the same receptors as VPAC1 and VPAC2. VIP displays comparable activities and potencies at VPAC1 and VPAC2.
To improve the stability of VIP in human lung fluid, Bolin, et al., (Biopolymers 37:57-66, 1995) made a series of VIP variants designed to enhance the helical propensity of this peptide and reduce proteolytic degradation. Substitutions were focused on positions 8, 12, 17, and 25-28, which were implicated to be unimportant for receptor binding. Moreover, the "GGT" sequence was tagged onto the C-terminus of VIP muteins with the hope of more effectively capping the helix. Finally, to further stabilize the helix, several cyclic variants were synthesized (U.S. Pat. No. 5,677,419). Although these efforts were not directed toward receptor selectivity, they yielded two analogs that have greater than 100-fold VPAC2 selectivity (Gourlet, et al., Peptides 18:403-408, 1997; Xia, et al., J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther., 281:629-633, 1997).
GLP-1 is released from the intestinal L-cell after a meal and functions as an incretin hormone (i.e., it potentiates glucose-induced insulin release from the pancreatic β-cell). It is a 37-amino acid peptide that is differentially expressed by the glucagon gene, depending upon tissue type. The clinical data that support the beneficial effect of raising cAMP levels in β-cells have been collected with GLP-1. Infusions of GLP-1 in poorly controlled type 2 diabetics normalized their fasting blood glucose levels (Gutniak, et al., New Eng. J. Med. 326:1316-1322, 1992) and with longer infusions improved the β-cell function to those of normal subjects (Rachman, et al., Diabetes 45:1524-1530, 1996). A recent report has shown that GLP-1 improves the ability of β-cells to respond to glucose in subjects with impaired glucose tolerance (Byrne, et al., Diabetes 47:1259-1265, 1998). All of these effects, however, are short-lived because of the short half-life of the peptide.
Amylin Pharmaceuticals is conducting Phase III trials with Exendin 4™ (AC2993), a 39 amino acid peptide originally identified in Gila Monster. Amylin has reported that clinical studies demonstrated improved glycemic control in type 2 diabetic patients treated with Exendin 4™. However, the incidence of nausea and vomiting was significant.
Applicants disclosed novel polypeptides that function in vivo as agonists of the VPAC2 receptor in WO 01/23420, the specification of which is incorporated herein in its entirety, and in particular, Applicants disclosed a VPAC2 agonist identified as R3P66. The polypeptides described therein, including R3P66, however, are not suitable commercial candidates given stability issues associated with the polypeptides in formulation, as well as issues with the polypeptides' short half-life.
There exists a need for improved peptides that have the glucose-dependent insulin secretagogue activity of PACAP, GLP-1, or Exendin 4™, but with fewer side-effects, and preferably which are stable in formulation and have long plasma half-lives. Furthermore, tighter control of plasma glucose levels may prevent long-term diabetic complications. Thus, new diabetic drugs should provide an improved quality of life for patients.

Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide (PACAP) receptor (VPAC2) agonist peptide


Methods and systems are disclosed which relate to submitting auction bids via interface surfaces printed with information and coded data. The coded data, encoded visibly or invisibly, may be queried by an appropriate sensing device. The sensing device communicates with a computer system. Together, the interface surfaces, sensing device and computer system are capable of effecting auction bid transactions over a network.

Auctions are well known, allowing potential buyers to submit bids for items offered by sellers. Although traditionally held in auctions rooms where buyers are brought face-to-face with sellers (or their proxies), auctions are increasingly being conducted on the Internet where buyers and sellers may be geographically separated and bid acceptance can be automated, subject to pre-specified reserve prices.


The picking system according to the present invention for executing operation assistance corresponding to an operation target relating to physical distribution receives an order designating a specific article, retrieves a first storage position at which the specific article is stored from shelf stock information, generates operation instruction data relating to a specific operation target for instructing to move the specific article from the first storage position to a second storage position, refers to operation station information and accesses the first storage position, retrieves a specific operation station capable of performing the specific operation target, transmits the operation instruction data to a terminal of the specific operation station, and transmits, to a movement device, conveyance instruction data instructing to convey a conveyance rack to the specific operation station.

The present invention pertains to a picking system and a picking method for picking articles.
Picking operations in which a worker picks articles from a rack according to orders are performed in warehouses and factories. In order to pick articles from racks on which many articles are placed, in many cases a worker moves within the warehouse and picks prescribed articles while referring to a list. In order to reduce the amount of time that the worker moves in search of the articles in order to improve work efficiency, there is a system in which a conveyance vehicle moves the racks on which the articles are placed to the worker.
Also, during a picking operation, the articles are stored at a height accessible by the worker. Thus, the upper space of the rack where articles would be stored is often not used. An example of efficient use of the upper space is disclosed in JP 2010-18375 A, for example. JP 2010-18375 A discloses providing a picking rack portion where articles to be picked are stored, and a resupply rack portion for storing articles for resupply above the picking rack portion, with a means being provided to convey articles in the resupply rack portion to the picking rack portion. As a result, the upper space of the racks can be used.
However, with the technique disclosed in JP 2010-18375 A, a resupply rack is provided in the upper space of a fixed picking operation rack and a device to which articles from the resupply rack are supplied is used, but the racks cannot be moved. Thus, if there are movable racks, articles cannot be resupplied to such racks, and the picking operation efficiency and spatial use efficiency are reduced.


An M of N decoder circuit includes N output terminals, log.sub.2 (n+1) logic input terminals, two voltage input terminals, and (N+1)log.sub.2 (N+1) pass transistors, each having a gate connected to one of the logic input terminals, a source connected to one of a voltage input terminal and an output terminal, and a drain connected to one of said output terminals, each of the pass transistors for passing a voltage signal from source to drain when the gate has applied to it one logic level and for not passing said voltage signal when the gate has applied to a different logic level. More particularly, half of the pass transistors are of one conduction type and half of the pass transistors are of an opposite conduction type. The gates of N+1 pass transistors are connected to each of the log.sub.2 (M+1) input terminals. For i =0 to log.sub.2 (N+1)-1, pass transistors of one conduction type whose gates are connected to an i-th input terminal are connected in groups of 2.sup.i, and pass transistors of the opposite conduction type whose gates are connect to the i-th input terminal are also connected in groups of 2.sup.i.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to decoder circuits for digital to analog converters and more particularly to a compact glichless M of N decoder circuit.
2. State of the Art
Digital to analog converters are well-known. In one type of digital to analog converter, digital input signals are used to control current sources to produce a precisely controlled current at a circuit node. The precisely controlled current is caused to flow through a resistor to produce an analog voltage. A decoder circuit is required to turn on and off the appropriate current sources based on the digital inputs. Desirable characteristics of such a decoder circuit are that it be compact, glichless in the sense of causing the current sources to turn on in a desired predictable order, and easily scaleable in order to realize digital to analog converters of different resolutions. The present invention exhibits each of the foregoing characteristics.

Compact glitchless M of N decoder circuit for digital to analog converters


A stent is described and comprises an elongate strut having a first end and a second end, an aperture formed in the strut, and a barb having a base and a distal anchor. The barb base is attached to the strut and the barb extends distally from the base through the aperture. Other devices, systems, and methods are described.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to medical devices and, in particular, to prostheses for placement in a body lumen.
2. Description of Related Art
The functional vessels of human and animal bodies such as the esophagus, bile duct, and blood vessels occasionally become damaged or diseased. For example, the aortic wall can weaken, resulting in an aneurysm. Upon further exposure to haemodynamic forces, an aneurysm can rupture.
Intraluminal prostheses, such as stents and stent grafts, may be used for treating damaged or diseased functional vessels. For example, a stent graft may be used for repairing abdominal and thoracic aortic aneurysms. Such a stent graft is placed inside the vessel and provides some or all of the functionality of the original, healthy vessel.
One of the challenges of designing and using an intraluminal prosthesis is preventing migration of the prosthesis once it is placed in a body lumen. This challenge is particularly great when the environment in which the prosthesis is placed is subject to a continuous strain, such as by the pulsatile force of blood flow in the vasculature. When an intraluminal prosthesis is used, for example, to repair an aneurysm, migration of the device may result in inadequate exclusion of the aneurysm, and increased risk of aneurysm rupture.
Various devices have been proposed to address migration. For example, a prosthesis may comprise one or more barbs or hooks that extend outwardly from the prosthesis and are configured to engage surrounding body tissue. Typically, such barbs or hooks may be attached to the prosthesis, for example, by sewing, gluing, wrapping, chemical bonding, welding, brazing, soldering, and the like.
Although each of these attachment methods may create a strong bond between the barb and the prosthesis, these bonds have been known to break when the device is placed in situ. One possible explanation is that the attachment is particularly prone to the mechanical and chemical hazards of the intraluminal environment. For example, cardiovascular pulsatile forces may be concentrated at the junction between the barb and the stent, which may also be the site of a weld, solder, or the like. In addition, the saline, oxygen-rich, and acidic physiological environment of the body may tend to weaken and corrode the stent-barb attachment.
One solution to address barb detachment was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,776 to Chuter et al. The barb includes both a mechanical attachment, as well as the traditional solder bond. The mechanical attachment comprises a helical winding of the base of the barb around a strut of the stent. This mechanical attachment supplements the traditional solder bond to help protect the solder joint from breaking. In addition, the barb is made laterally flexible to help accommodate forces acting at the anchor point. These improvements help ensure that the barb does not readily separate from the stent due to a failure of the solder joint alone. While the combination of both solder and a mechanical means to affix the barb to the stent has proved effective in most respects, this area of the barb remains most subject to stresses, such as from cyclic load resulting from the pulsatile action of the implant vessel.


The invention relates to an integral seat of an automotive vehicle having an underframe, a seat pan carried by underframe, a seat back and a seat belt mechanism, where the seat belt mechanism includes a seat belt with a tongue member that divides the seat belt in a shoulder belt and a lap belt, the seat belt having an upper end formed by the shoulder belt and a lower end formed by the lap belt, a primary automatic belt tensioner that is disposed on the underframe and in which there is secured the lower end of the seat belt and a secondary automatic belt tensioner that is disposed in the seat back and in which there is secured the upper end of the seat belt.

The invention relates to an integrated seat.
The great advantage of integrated seats is that they combine all the functions of the seat, including the function of the seat belt. As a result, integrated seats can be removed from and inserted into a vehicle as one piece and are for example suited for application as removable vehicle seats.
Integral seats have an underframe by means of which they can be secured to the underbody of an automotive vehicle. The underframe can comprise a lengthwise adjustment device with two pairs of rails. The underframe typically has two sides, namely one inboard side and one outboard side. The seat pan is carried by the underframe and may be adjustable in height and/or in tilt by means of an adjusting device. A seat back of the integral seat is secured to the seat pan or to the underframe and the amount of its recline can be adjusted. Finally, the integral seat has a seat belt mechanism with an automatic belt tensioner. Two different prior art embodiments are known: In some integral seats, the automatic belt tensioner is disposed in the seat back where it is primarily associated with the shoulder belt. This automatic belt tensioner arrangement however occupies precious space within the passenger compartment, the spacing between occupants seated behind each other being determined inter alia by the automatic belt tensioner. In another configuration, the automatic belt tensioner is associated with the underframe and is disposed in the rear lateral region of the underframe. This results in an advantageous transmission of the crash forces and in an arrangement that occupies very little space. The drawback however is that forward movement of a seat occupant is rendered much more difficult. In order for an occupant to be capable of moving his torso forward he must be given sufficient shoulder belt release. For this purpose, the automatic belt tensioner, which is disposed very low, must release the belt which must slip over the occupant in the region of the lap belt, pass through the tongue member and also slip over the torso of the occupant in the region of the shoulder belt so that slack belt material be provided between shoulder and seat back. Due to the friction conditions of the belt, forward movement of the occupant's torso is rendered much more difficult.

Integrated seat of an automotive vehicle


A fire seal (52) for an aircraft propulsion system including at least one mating plate pair (54) formed between a nozzle body (44) and an outer structure (24) and a support pylon (26). The mating plate pairs (54) each include an upper plate row (58) and a lower plate row (60), both rows extending in an arc (66) about an upper region (56) of the propulsion system, with a vertical overlap (88) existing between the upper and lower plate rows. A gap (90) exists between the upper plate row (58) and lower plate row (60) of each mating plate pair (54), preferably at all times. A seal region (62) exists between the forward-most mating pair and the aft-most mating pair. A pressure equalization mechanism controls pressure between the area forward of the seal region (62) and the area aft of the seal region (62). A number of endplates (110) are positioned at various longitudinal locations near the lateral ends of the mating plate pairs. A method of fire-sealing an aircraft propulsion system fire zone area including providing at least one mating plate pair (54) positioned between opposed surfaces in order to create a labyrinth path through which flame has difficulty passing. The method further includes controlling pressure between the area forward of the mating plate pairs and the area aft of the mating plate pairs.

There are regulatory requirements for modem aircraft which require the containment of a fire created by a source within a power plant installation. The most obvious instance is of a fire created in an aircraft propulsion system, such as a gas turbine engine. Commercial aircraft propulsion systems are generally required to include a fire seal that is capable of containing and isolating a fire, not only from other propulsion system components (e.g., nacelles and engine fairings), but also from areas surrounding the propulsion system (e.g., wing struts and fairings). Currently, there are a number of disadvantages associated with known fire seals.
By way of example, FIG. 1 shows a gas turbine propulsion system 16 that includes a primary exhaust nozzle 18 connected to the aft end of a gas generator 20 that is housed in an inner shell or casing 20. Thrust reverser components or other various outer structures 24 surround portions of the inner casing 22 and nozzle 18. Typically, an aft engine mount (see FIG. 9, item 92) is located in this region for attaching the propulsion system to a support structure 26, e.g., a wing strut or pylon. In the example of FIG. 1, a fire zone 28 exists generally within the inner shell 22 and at the primary nozzle 18. A fire seal, such as seal 30 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, is connected to an upper region of the nozzle and is oriented to inhibit flame from spreading aft of the generator or outward to the surrounding structures. The fire seal 30 forms a barrier across the upper area of the exhaust nozzle 18, roughly at the intersection of the nozzle and the support structure 26. In FIG. 1, this intersection is generally within the circle designated by the number 27.
One known fire seal arrangement is shown in FIG. 2, and due to its shape, is called a "turkey feather" fire seal 40. The turkey feather seal 40 consists of a circumferential sheet metal spring 42 formed of segmented steel "fingers" overlapped and attached to a primary exhaust nozzle body 44. Typically, a nozzle fairing 46 is included at a downstream location. The turkey feather fire seal 40 compresses against the lower surface of the support structure 26 and the outer structure 24 when the propulsion system is fully installed. The metal spring 42 is angled upward and then downward, in the forward direction, to provide a solid barrier so that flame cannot pass to downstream locations. This fire seal 40 thus protects the support structures, the wing structures, the surrounding fairings, and the aircraft fuselage from fire emanating from the gas generator, e.g., through an annular area the inner shell and exterior generator surface. (See also FIG. 9.)
There are a number of disadvantages in using turkey feather fire seals 40 in propulsion systems operating in high temperature and/or constant vibration environments. One disadvantage is the possibility of annealing of the seal 40, which can lessen the hard contact sealing force between the nozzle 18 and the support structure 26 and/or outer structure 24. A second disadvantage is potential wear at the seal contact surface due to any relative motion between components. Relative motion can occur due to such circumstances as high sonic vibrations or large relative thermal growth of adjacent components. Because the metal springs 42 are rounded at their contact edge, wear tends to concentrate across a contact line instead of a larger flat surface. The seals 40 can become very sharp as they wear through, causing a potential hazard to surrounding components and/or to maintenance crew.
There exists a need for an installation fire seal that does not allow flame to pass from one location to another and cause an additional fire hazard. Such a seal should ideally be highly reliable, especially in hostile operating environments, such as those found in propulsive systems. In particular, such an ideal aircraft, industrial, or power generation installation fire seal should be unaffected by high temperatures, vibrations, and relative motion between components. The present invention is directed to fulfilling this need.


A method for extracting fumes from a robotic welder is disclosed. The method includes controlling a robotic welder to produce a weld and extracting fumes produced by the robotic welder via a vacuum source. The method also includes selectively varying the vacuum source as a function of the position of the robotic welder.

Welders such as, for example, gas shielded metal arc welders often include fume extraction equipment that develops an air flow near the welding arc to remove welding fumes. Welders also typically have a shield gas envelope for protecting the weld.
One attempt at providing fume extraction for robotic welders is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,656,329 (the '329 patent) issued to Moerke. The '329 patent discloses a rotatable mount for a robot machine that includes a welding unit having a welding tip. The '329 patent discloses that the welding tip is housed within a gas nozzle for releasing shield gas. The '329 patent also discloses an external assembly for welding fume extraction that is connected to the welding unit. The extraction assembly draws in welding fumes via an inlet disposed on the welding unit adjacent to the welding tip.
Although the welding system of the '329 patent may provide a method for fume extraction for a robotic welder, it may fail to appropriately vary the rate of suction flow as a function of a welding procedure. Because the rate of flow may not be appropriately adjustable, the welding system may have too low of a fume extraction flow rate during certain stages of the welding procedure and thus may not extract enough welding fumes. Also, the welding system may have too high of a fume extraction flow rate during certain stages of the welding procedure and may extract the beneficial shield gases.
The present disclosure is directed to overcoming one or more of the shortcomings set forth above and/or other deficiencies in the art.


A torque converter includes a turbine impeller integrally connected to a pump impeller, a side-cover having a boss and covering the turbine impeller, and a turbine shaft extending through the boss and connected to the turbine impeller. A radial bearing and a one-way clutch are disposed axially adjacent to each other between the boss of the side-cover and the turbine shaft. The radial bearing serves to retain the boss and the turbine shaft concentrically, and the one-way clutch connects the turbine shaft and the side-cover to each other, when a back load is applied to the turbine shaft. Therefore, a load received by a clutch element of the one-way clutch such as a sprag between the turbine shaft and the side-cover is equalized. Thus, when a back load is applied to the turbine shaft, a slipping between the turbine impeller and the pump impeller is prevented, thereby providing a good engine brake effect.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a torque converter which is incorporated in a transmitting system mainly in an automobile, a motorcycle or the like and which includes a pump impeller connected to an input shaft, and a turbine impeller which is opposed to the pump impeller and to which a turbine shaft is connected.
2. Description of the Related Art
Such a torque converter is widely known, for example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 11-230303.
In such a known torque converter, when a back load is applied to the turbine shaft, a slipping occurs between the turbine impeller and the pump impeller. For this reason, it is impossible to provide a large engine brake effect such as when a manual transmission is used.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a torque converter of a high durability, which is designed so that a slipping is prevented from occurring between a turbine impeller and a pump impeller upon application of the back load to a turbine shaft, thereby providing a good engine brake effect.
To achieve the above object, according to a first aspect and feature of the present invention, there is provided a torque converter comprising a pump impeller connected to an input shaft, and a turbine impeller which is opposed to the pump impeller and to which a turbine shaft is connected, wherein the torque converter further includes a radial bearing and a one-way clutch, which are disposed coaxially adjacent to each other between a boss of a side-cover integrally connected to the pump impeller to cover the turbine impeller and the turbine shaft extending through the boss and connected to the turbine impeller, the radial bearing serving to retain the boss and the turbine shaft concentrically, and the one-way clutch connecting the turbine shaft and the radial bearing to each other when a back load is applied to the turbine shaft.
With the arrangement of the first feature, when the back load is transmitted from a drive gear to the turbine shaft during deceleration of a vehicle, the one-way clutch connects the turbine shaft and the side-cover to each other, so that the back gear is transmitted from the turbine shaft directly to the side-cover and further from the pump impeller to a crankshaft. Therefore, a slipping cannot occur between the turbine impeller and the pump impeller, and a good engine brake effect can be provided. Moreover, the radial ball bearing adjacent to the one-way clutch is interposed between the turbine shaft and the side-cover to ensure the concentricity of the turbine shaft and the side-cover with each other. Therefore, a load received by the clutch element of the one-way clutch such as a sprag between the turbine shaft and the side-cover is equalized, whereby the durability of the clutch can be enhanced.
According to a second aspect and feature of the present invention, in addition to the first feature, the radial bearing is axially non-movably mounted on the boss of the side-cover, and a boss of the pump impeller is secured to the input shaft, so that a thrust load applied to an output gear which is connected to an outer end of the turbine shaft in a direction toward the turbine impeller is applied to the radial bearing.
With the arrangement of the second feature, during transmission of the torque, a thrust load generated on the output gear in the direction toward the turbine impeller is borne on the input shaft from the radial bearing through the side-cover and the pump impeller each having a relatively high rigidity. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the bearing of the thrust load on the turbine impeller and the stator impeller to enhance the durability of them.
According to a third aspect and feature of the present invention, in addition to the first or second feature, the boss of the pump impeller is secured to the input shaft, and the radial bearing has an outer race which is axially non-movably mounted to the boss of the side-cover, and an inner race which is axially non-movably retained on the turbine shaft.
With the arrangement of the third feature, an assembly of the torque converter can be formed by cooperation of the bearing and the output gear with each other before assembling of the torque converter to the crankshaft. Therefore, during assembling of the torque converter to the crankshaft, the boss of the pump impeller is secured to the input shaft. Therefore, the entire torque converter can be axially positioned and moreover, during transmission of the torque, the thrust load applied to the output gear is borne on the input shaft from the radial bearing through the side-cover and the pump impeller each having a relatively high rigidity, irrespective of the direction of the thrust load. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the bearing of the thrust load on the turbine impeller and the stator impeller to enhance the durability of them.
According to a fourth aspect and feature of the present invention, in addition to any of the first, second and third features, a seal means is provided between the turbine shaft and the side-cover at a location displaced from the radial bearing and the one-way clutch in a direction opposite to the turbine impeller for sealing the turbine shaft and the side-cover from each other.
With the arrangement of the fourth feature, the radial bearing and the one-way clutch can be lubricated by oil filling the inside of the side-cover of the torque converter, and the oil can be prevented from being leaked to the outside through between the turbine shaft and the side-cover.
According to a fifth aspect and feature of the present invention, in addition to any of the first, second and third features, the radial bearing is formed with a seal and disposed on the side opposite of the one-way clutch to the turbine impeller.
With the arrangement of the fifth feature, the one-way clutch can be lubricated by oil filling the inside of the side-cover of the torque converter, and the oil can be prevented from being leaked to the outside by the radial bearing.
According to a sixth aspect and feature of the present invention, in addition to the fifth feature, the output gear fixedly mounted at the outer end of the turbine shaft is opposed to an outer end of the boss of the side-cover, and a seal ring is slidably fitted to an inner peripheral surface of the outer end of the boss of the side-cover and come into close contact with a side face of the output gear upon reception of the pressure of the oil passed through the bearing.
With the arrangement of the sixth feature, when the seal of the radial bearing is damaged to permit the oil within the side-cover to be passed through the bearing, the pressure of the oil causes the seal ring to be forced against a bottom surface of an annular recess in the output gear, whereby the oil can be prevented from being leaked to the outside. Moreover, in a normal state in which the seal of the ball bearing has no damage, the pressure urging the seal ring against the output gear is not generated. Therefore, no frictional resistance is produced between the seal ring and the output gear and hence, it is possible to prevent a frictional loss of power due to the seal ring.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


A method and system for discriminating atrial and ventricular signal components from a single heart lead, and for using this information for identifying an arrhythmia condition as being atrial or ventricular in origin. The invention is effective in identifying P waves occurring in complex signal which includes relatively stronger R waves or other ventricular artifacts which mask the P waves. The contribution of the R wave signal to the complex signal is obtained by filtering, time windowing and transfer function estimation, then the R wave estimate is subtracted from the combined signal to leave the P wave. The ratio of P waves to R waves, P-P and R-R intervals, and their ratios to one another and to fixed values can be estimated, and used in a comparison to discriminate between atrial and ventricular arrhythmia, to thereby enable appropriate treatment.

The detection and treatment of ventricular arrhythmias by implantable devices is a proven technique for patients with serious heart conditions. Such devices contain an energy source, an electrode lead system in contact in the heart, a sensing system to detect the onset and type of arrhythmia, and a pulse generator for delivering pulses to treat the arrhythmia. Such devices may also include systems for detecting ventricular fibrillation, and for delivering defibrillation shocks.
One technique for detecting arrhythmias involves comparing the number of atrial P waves to the number of ventricular R waves occurring in an interval. This may be done by counting P waves and R waves as received by an endocardial lead system. If the two counts do not match, a determination of atrial or ventricular arrythmia can be made. However, if the P waves and R waves cannot be accurately discriminated from each other, the accuracy of the determination of arrythmia is impaired.
The reliable sensing of ventricular arrhythmia is critical, and is sometimes difficult because in many lead and sensing systems ventricular signals are combined or cross-coupled with atrial signals. Discrimination is further complicated by the fact that atrial and ventricular components will occur at different rates in the case of arrhythmias. This is a problem in devices which have only one lead in the ventricle, because discriminating atrial from ventricular arrhythmia is very difficult, and it is important to treat the patient appropriately. Examples of atrial arrhythmia include exercise (ST) or AF, AFL, SVT. Atrial arrhythmia is better left untreated by the ventricular defibrillator, but ventricular arrhythmia may be fatal and accordingly must be treated immediately.
Prior art techniques have generally relied on two strategies. One is to use two separate leads for the atrium and ventricle, with sensing electrodes positioned to maximize receiving the desired signals with minimum cross-coupling or unwanted contribution from the other. This technique can be successful, but requiring two separate leads is a disadvantage.
The other prior art technique is to use a single lead in the ventricle and to try to use electronic filtering to separate the atrial and ventricular signals received on this single lead. This has not been entirely successful in the prior art because the nature of the two signals, in terms of frequency and rate, makes them difficult to distinguish. In particular, tracking relatively small atrial P waves in the presence of larger far-field ventricular effects is very difficult in arrhythmia. Because of this, current devices with one ventricular lead cannot always discriminate atrial from ventricular signals, resulting in "inappropriate shocks".

Discrimination of atrial and ventricular signals from a single cardiac lead


The present invention is a magnetic recording medium comprising a substrate and a magnetic layer, wherein said magnetic layer is coated on said substrate, said magnetic layer is an Fe--N--O magnetic layer, each of Fe content F.sub.1, N content N.sub.1 and O content O.sub.1 contained in said Fe--N--O magnetic layer satisfies respective requirements F.sub.1 =50-80 at. %, N.sub.1 =9-25 at. %, O.sub.1 =11-36 at. % and N.sub.1 <O.sub.1, and said magnetic layer exhibits a coercive force Hc in a horizontal direction ranging from 1200 to 2400 Oe. This magnetic recording medium exhibits excelleny C/N.

The present invention relates to a magnetic recording medium provided with an Fe--N--O metallic magnetic layer.
A magnetic recording medium of a metallic thin film type, which is prepared by depositing or spattering, has been well known. The magnetic layer is produced by using a magnetic alloy sourced from, for example, Co--Ni, Co--Cr or the like.
However those metals Co, Ni, Cr or the like are expensive. Then inexpensive metal such as Fe has been expected for the application.
A JP-A-54023/1986 discloses a magnetic recording medium provided with a magnetic layer formed of Fe.sub.1-x-y N.sub.x O.sub.y (0.25.ltoreq.X+Y<0.60, X>Y). The obtained magnetic recording medium has excellent magnetic property, weather resistance and durability but fails to provide a high regeneration output nor good S/N.
Another JP-A-112043/1994 discloses a magnetic recording medium provided with an Fe--N--O magnetic layer formed of Fe (70-90 at. %), N (5-15 at. %) and O (5-15 at. %). For example, the magnetic recording medium provided with the Fe--N--O magnetic layer formed of 80 at. % of Fe, 5 at. % of N and 15 at. % of O is disclosed. The obtained magnetic recording medium, however, has been found not to provide a high regeneration output.


An ebb and flow watering system having controls for starting an internal timing clock when a fluid in a control bucket reaches a fill level, restarting the internal timing clock if the fluid drops below the fill level, and shutting off the fill pump if the internal timing clock runs for a complete fill period; and starting an internal timing clock when the fluid in the control bucket reaches a drain level, restarting the internal timing clock if the fluid raises above the drain level, and shutting off the drain pump if the internal timing clock runs for a complete drain period.

Growing plants indoors requires the grower to control and manage all facets of the plant growing environment. Historically, a substantial problem in growing plants indoors is keeping a constant human vigilance in maintaining ideal water saturation. The grower must also manage the light exposure, nutrients, and a litany of other complicated balances to enhance plant growth, but the most fundamental element is and always has been water.
The present invention relates to the electronic controller solutions available for growing plants indoors, specifically hydroponic or ebb and flow systems. The ebb and flow watering system as referenced herein, necessarily includes a control bucket, that is in fluid communication with the plant containers at the same elevation, such that the water level in the control bucket, is the same as the water level in the plant containers. Float switches that indicate water level and trigger pump action are also standard, and generally one is located at the bottom of the control bucket to signal empty, and one at the top to signal full. Water pumps that are either on or off move fluid from a reservoir into the control bucket, that then gravity fills the plant containers. An electromechanical timer initiates fill and drain cycles based on user set time periods. Varying methods implemented in the prior art enable these components to work in cooperation, allowing for the timely watering of plants.
For the beginning hydroponic or ebb/flow grower, the management of watering is a first priority, as the absence of soil reduces the margin of error for maintaining adequate moisture but not too much. Ebb and flow gardening requires a controlled regimen cycle of flooding the media which holds the moisture until the next cycle, and then quickly and completely draining the water before unhealthy conditions develop at the plant root system. If the cycles of watering are too far apart, the plants suffer drought conditions, and if the cycles are too close together, over watering can stunt growth or cause disease. Leaving the roots under water or "Root Wet" conditions can also lead to hypoxia in the root cluster, which could lead to fatal plant disease. In short, water management, when growing with an ebb/flow system, is critical for success.
Multi-cycle timers like the described electromechanical short interval timer as shown and described in Flaig U.S. Pat. No. 4,490,051 is a common solution to the watering problem, as the timer turns on and off pumps that facilitate the watering of the plants. The motorized electromechanical timer usually has a dial with a periphery of receiving apertures, and the dial rotates once during a 24 hour period. Depending on user placement of small "tabs" within the periphery apertures of the timer's dial, the timer's rotation toggles (activates and deactivates) an electrical switch within the timer turning electrical components on and off. The tabs may be moved around the dial to accurately set the desired component or watering schedule.
Coupling the electromechanical timer and water pumps with mechanical float switches in a control bucket is a common configuration for ebb and flow gardening. The water gravity feeds from the control bucket to the plant containers along flood lines. The control bucket is at the same elevation and in fluid communication with the plant containers, so the level of water in the control bucket is approximately the same as the level of water in the plant containers. The timer triggers a fill pump to come on, and the fill pump runs until the upper float switch located at the top of the control bucket shuts the pump off when the "Full" level is reached in the control bucket. After the desired time passes per the timer, the timer triggers the drain pump to come on to remove the water from the control bucket and plant containers, pumping the water from the control bucket (and the plant containers) back into the reservoir to be recycled or reused for the next watering cycle. When the lower float switch located at the bottom of the control bucket indicates empty, the mechanical float switch shuts off the drain pump. The above described system provides the basic watering control for the standard ebb and flow systems.
The shortcoming of the timer and float switch combination arises from the hydraulic flow delay between fluid movement between the control bucket and the plant containers or vice versa, as water migration does not occur instantaneously. There may be several flood lines in fluid communication with one control bucket, and each flood line has a plurality of plant containers. Just because the control bucket is "Full" does not mean that all of the plant containers down each flood line are "Full". Gravity fills the plant containers from the control bucket, so the filling of containers is slowed by the limitations of fluid flow at the fittings, grow media, and hose lines. In the common ebb and flow configuration, the control bucket may be at the correct water level when the fill pump shuts off, but as the plant containers finish gravity filling, the level in the control bucket recedes or goes down, leaving the plant containers short on water. Similarly during the drain cycle, the lower float switch may indicate drained, and shut off the drain pump, but water from the flood lines and plant containers are still draining back which results in water standing at undesirable levels in the control bucket and plant containers.
To help illustrate by prior art example, when the electromechanical timer signals 'fill' the fill pump is powered on with the upper float switch connected in series so that when the upper float switch is down the circuit between the electromechanical timer relay and the fill pump is closed. When the upper float switch floats to the full position, the circuit between the electromechanical timer relay is broken, the fill pump is shut off. The problem lies in the water being pumped into the control bucket is entering at a faster rate than the water flowing out of the control bucket down the flood lines and to the plant containers. After the upper float switch indicates 'full' and the fill pump is shut off by the circuit being broke, water continues to recede in the control bucket due to the delay of water flowing down the flood lines, resulting in inadequate levels of water at the plant containers. Due to the hydraulic delay described, when the upper float switch finally drops to a level that signals the fill pump to come back on, the electromechanical timer has timed past the 'fill' cycle, so the fill pump stays off, and the plant containers are not watered adequately.
Other problems with using the prior art float switches that signal 'open' or 'closed' only, is waves or disturbances within the control bucket. If a float switch is set to signal with more accuracy, then it becomes more susceptible to waves in the control bucket which create false 'full' signals which shut the fill pump off, and when the float drops a little as caused by a disturbance, the fill pump is turned back on. This on and off pump cycling is a problem not resolved in the prior art.
The drain cycle is performed much the same way, having the drain pump shut off when the lower float switch drops indicating that the control bucket is adequately drained, opening the circuit thereby shutting off the drain pump. The hydraulic delay of water flowing back through the flood line from the plant containers raises the lower float switch that closes the circuit to the drain pump, causing the drain pump to come back on, only if the electromechanical timer is still in the 'drain' cycle. If the hydraulic delay is such that the 'drain' cycle has ended, the water flowing back is not removed by the drain pump, and an undesirable level of water is left in the plant containers causing a root wet condition. This root wet condition can be detrimental to plant health.
If a less accurate float switch is used that requires considerable change in level before signaling, the fill or drain pump is shut off initially when the desired level is reached, and not turned back on until the level changes considerably, and usually not until after the electromechanical timer has already run through it's 'fill' or 'drain' cycle. Conversely, the more accurate of float switches used, as in the float switch indicates with less change in level, the more susceptible the system is to pulsing the pumps on and off due to waves in the control bucket or under conditions when the hydraulic delays closes match the pump flow. Over cycling the pumps on and off excessively is undesirable, as it causes premature failure of the pump, makes for unnecessary noise, increases power consumption, and decreases the life of the electrical components of the ebb and flow system.
Other problems not addressed in the prior art relate to shutting off the pumps if there is a problem with the system. For example, water leaking from the flood line would cause the upper float to drop, turning on the fill pump, pumping water until the reservoir is empty, or until the timer ends its fill cycle. A reservoir may hold 55 gallons, which if pumped out onto the floor may cause considerable damage. Similarly, a 'run dry' prior art problem occurs when the reservoir gets too low to fill the flood lines, control bucket, and plant containers during the fill cycle. The fill pump is turned on but the control bucket never reaches the desired level, and the upper float switch remains down, keeping the fill pump powered. When the reservoir runs out of water, the fill pump continues to run dry until failure.
Visual indication of fill or drain states have been implemented in prior systems, and are historically accomplished by the use of LEDs that become lit when the corresponding pump is powered. The user can then look and see which pump is running to understand whether the system is filling or draining, but no further indication information is available. Visual indication advances have been implemented in the prior art that requires additional float switches which then turn on and off LEDs depending on water level in the control bucket effectively tied to a particular float switch in the control bucket. However, the addition of float switches increase expense, while decreasing reliability.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.