The present invention provides medicinally active extracts and fractions, and a method for preparing the same by extracting and fractioning constituents from the tissue of plant components of Ganoderma lucidum. These active extracts and fractions are useful for inhibiting tumor growth, modulating immune response, and increasing hematopoietic activity.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention provides medicinally active extracts and fractions, and methods of preparing the same, from the plant components of Ganoderma lucidum. These extracts and fractions have been found to be especially active in inhibiting tumor growth, modulating immune response, and increasing hematopoietic activity.
2. Description of the Related Art
Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi or Ling-Zhi) has been used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) as anti-tumor and immuno-modulating agent. It also exhibits liver protective, hypoglycemic and platelet aggregation-inhibiting activities1a, in addition to being effective in treating hypertension and neoplasia1b. The active constituents responsible for each of these activities have been qualitatively described, but the molecular basis of their action has not been elucidated. Of particular significance among these functions is its immuno-modulating and anti-tumor activities.2,3 Previous studies have shown that the polysaccharide components of Reishi exhibit the anti-tumor activity2 and are able to stimulate the expression of CD4 and T-cell counts during or after chemotherapy. The saccharides contain either a polysaccharide backbone with □-1,3-linkages3,4 or a polymannose backbone with □-1,4-linkages,5a both with side chains of unknown structure (Scheme 1). The real carbohydrate epitope responsible for the anti-tumor activity and its receptor has not been identified, though the receptor CR3 has been shown to bind the β-glucan polysaccharide with undefined side chains.3b

Immuno-modulating antitumor activities of


In commercial products to which a non-contact type or contact type ID label or ID tag is attached and ID cards, there is fear that, due to a difference between coefficients of thermal expansion between an antenna for communication and a resin provided around the antenna, stress is applied to the resin with the larger coefficient of thermal expansion to break the resin. This contributes to a decrease in manufacturing yield, lifetime, and reliability of an ID label or the like. In an article such as an ID label, an ID tag, and an ID card according to the present invention, a filler is included in a filling layer provided around an antenna forming an ID label, an ID tag, and an ID card so that the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion between the antenna and the filling layer can be reduced. This makes it possible to ease generation of stress due to the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion and prevent peeling and cracks of the filling layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates an article carrying a quite thin-model thin film integrated circuit that functions as a memory, a microprocessor (a central processing part, a CPU, or a MPU), or the like. The article includes, for example, an ID label, an ID tag, and an ID card, mainly for identifying human beings, animals and plants, commercial products, and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, in all kinds of industrial worlds such as food industry, manufacturing industry, or the like, calls have been heightened for strengthening safety and management systems of commercial products, and therewith, the amount of information on the commercial products are increasing. However, the current information on a commercial product is just information such as a country of manufacture, a manufacturer, an item number, or the like, mainly provided by ten and several figures of a bar cord, and the mount of information is quite small. Further, in the case of using a bar-code, carrying out by hand item by item makes reading of the bar-code require long time. Consequently, instead of the bar-code system, an automatic recognition technique by a non-contact IC tag utilizing an electromagnetic wave, referred to as RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), has been attracting attention.
In addition, in order to ensure safety (for example, a place of origin, or whether infected with an infectious disease or not) of animals and plants, a system is becoming common, in which IC chips are directly implanted into bodies of the animals and plants to obtain and manage information on the animals and plants by an information reading device (reader) outside the bodies.
In addition, the number of cards being carried per person has been recently growing, and above all, a non-contact IC card communicating by utilizing electromagnetic field is becoming common, for example, in forms of electronic money and electronic tickets (refer to Non-Patent Document 1).
(Non-Patent Reference 1) Nikkei Electronics (Nikkei Business Publications, Inc.) published on Nov. 18, 2002, pp. 67-76

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd


The present invention relates generally to compounds that inhibit serine proteases. In particular it is directed to novel 3,4-disubstituted benzamidines and benzylamines, or a stereoisomer or pharmaceutically acceptable salt form thereof, which are useful as selective inhibitors of serine protease enzymes of the coagulation cascade; for example thrombin, factor Xa, factor XIa, factor IXa, and/or factor VIIa. In particular, it relates to compounds that are factor VIIa inhibitors. This invention also relates to pharmaceutical compositions comprising these compounds and methods of using the same.

Factor VIIa is a plasma serine protease involved in the initiation of the coagulation cascade. It binds with high affinity to tissue factor in the presence of calcium ions to form a complex with enhanced proteolytic activity (Carson, S. D. and Brozna, J. P. Blood Coag. Fibrinol. 1993, 4, 281-292). The tissue factor/factor VIIa complex initiates blood coagulation by proteolytic cleavage of factor X to factor Xa, factor IX to factor IXa and additional factor VII to VIIa. Ultimately, the activity of factor VIIa induces the conversion of prothrombin to thrombin. Thrombin converts fibrinogin to fibrin, which forms a clot through polymerization.
While blood coagulation is essential to the regulation of an organism's hemostasis, it is also involved in many pathological conditions. For instance, thrombosis, or formation of a clot which obstructs circulation, plays a key role in unstable angina, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, deep vein thrombosis, perpipheral occlusive arterial disease, pulmonary embolism, and other diseases.
Because of its key role in the coagulation cascade, researchers have postulated that inhibition of factor VIIa could be used to treat or prevent thrombotic disease. (Girard, T. J.; Nicholson, N. S. Curr. Opin. Pharmacol. 2001, 1, 159-163). Work has accordingly been performed to identify and optimize factor VIIa inhibitors. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,866,542 describes recombinant nematode anticoagulant proteins which inhibit factor VIIa. U.S. Pat. No. 5,843,442 discloses monoclonal antibodies or antibody fragments possessing factor VIIa inhibitory activity, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,023,236 presents tripeptides and tripeptide derivatives that inhibit factor VIIa.
An alternative way of initiation of coagulation is operative when blood is exposed to artificial surfaces (e.g., during hemodialysis, 'on-pump' cardiovascular surgery, vessel grafts, bacterial sepsis). This process is also termed contact activation. Surface absorption of factor XII leads to a conformational change in the factor XII molecule, thereby facilitating activation to proteolytic active factor XII molecules (factor XIIa and factor XIIf). Factor XIIa (or XIIf) has a number of target proteins, including plasma prekallikrein and factor XI. Active plasma kallikrein further activates factor XII, leading to an amplification of contact activation. Contact activation is a surface mediated process responsible in part for the regulation of thrombosis and inflammation, and is mediated, at least in part, by fibrinolytic-, complement-, kininogen/kinin-, and other humoral and cellular pathways (for review, Coleman, R. Contact Activation Pathway, pages 103-122 in Hemostasis and Thrombosis, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins 2001; Schmaier A. H. Contact Activation, pages 105-128 in Thrombosis and Hemorrhage, 1998). Because plasma kallikrein plays a key role in the contact activation process, inhibitors of plasma kallikrein are anticipated to block contact activation and be therapeutically useful for treatment of inflammatory and/or thrombotic disease.
Plasma kallikrein is a zymogen of a trypsin-like serine protease and is present in plasma at 35 to 50 μg/mL. The gene structure is similar to that of factor XI, overall, the amino acid sequence of plasma kallikrein has 58% homology to factor XI. Proteolytic activation by factor XIIa at an internal I 389-R390 bond yields a heavy chain (371 amino acids) and a light chain (248 amino acids). The active site of kallikrein is contained in the light chain. The light chain of plasma kallikrein reacts with protease inhibitors, including alpha 2 macroglobulin and C1-inhibitor. Interestingly, heparin significantly accelerates the inhibition of plasma kallikrein by antithrombin III in the presence of high molecular weight kininogen (HMWK). In blood, the majority of plasma kallikrein circulates in complex with HMWK. Kallikrein cleaves HMWK to liberate bradykinin. Bradykinin release results in increase of vascular permeability and vasodilation (for review, Coleman, R. Contact Activation Pathway, pages 103-122 in Hemostasis and Thrombosis, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins 2001; Schmaier A. H. Contact Activation, pages 105-128 in Thrombosis and Hemorrhage, 1998).
Separate from the compounds reported herein, some benzamidine and benzylamine compounds have been reported in WO 02/62778 as antithrombotic compounds; and in WO 02/64578, WO 02/64598, and WO 02/64599 as matrix metalloproteinase inhibitors. The scope of the present invention is considered not to be exemplified nor suggested by the above references.
While a number of factor VIIa inhibitors have been discussed in the art, improved inhibitors, especially non-peptide inhibitors, of serine proteases for the treatment of thromboembolic disorders are always desirable. The present invention discloses 3,4-disubstituted benzamidines and benzylamines, and analogues thereof, as non-peptide inhibitors inhibitors of coagulation Factor VIIa and/or plasma kallikrein and as such are useful in the treatment of thromboembolic and/or inflammatory disorders.
In addition, it is also desirable to find new compounds with improved pharmacological characteristics compared with known serine protease inhibitors. For example, it is preferred to find new compounds with improved factor VIIa inhibitory activity and selectivity for factor VIIa versus other serine proteases. Also, it is preferred to find new compounds with improved plasma kallikrein inhibitory activity and selectivity for plasma kallikrein versus other serine proteases. It is also desirable and preferable to find compounds with advantageous and improved characteristics in one or more of the following categories, but are not limited to: (a) pharmaceutical properties; (b) dosage requirements; (c) factors which decrease blood concentration peak-to-trough characteristics; (d) factors that increase the concentration of active drug at the receptor; (e) factors that decrease the liability for clinical drug-drug interactions; (f) factors that decrease the potential for adverse side-effects; and, (g) factors that improve manufacturing costs or feasibility.

3,4-disubstituted benzamidines and benzylamines, and analogues thereof, useful as serine protease inhibitors


Systems and methods for displaying electronic messages are disclosed. In some implementations, a method includes, at a computing device, displaying a user interface for a messaging application, comprising an electronic message list. The message list comprises a plurality of objects. Each respective object in the plurality of objects is visually distinct in the message list and represents one or more corresponding electronic messages. The method includes detecting user selection of an object in the message list and in response to detecting user selection of the object, toggling display of the first object from a first state to a second state. The method includes moving a first subset of objects vertically upward, where the first subset of objects comprises one or more objects above the selected object, and moving a second subset of objects vertically downward, where the second subset of objects comprises one or more objects below the selected object.

The average user account of a messaging application comprises a large number of electronic messages, such as emails, social network posts, contact information, search queries and calendar entries. Such a large number of electronic messages can be cumbersome to navigate through, particularly while viewing the contents of one of the many electronic messages. Messaging application users wish to navigate through a listing of such electronic messages, while having the ability to quickly view the contents of one electronic message in the listing of several electronic messages.
Difficulties abound with offering such a feature, however. One challenge is in making a cohesive listing of electronic messages that allows the user to have a full scope of the listing, while viewing the contents of one or more messages. Another challenge is in seamlessly transitioning from a display of a listing of electronic messages to a display comprising the contents of one or more electronic messages, and vice versa.
The above identified technical problems are reduced or eliminated by the systems and methods disclosed herein.

Systems and methods for simultaneously displaying clustered, in-line electronic messages in one display


A monitoring apparatus includes a memory, and a processor coupled to the memory and configured to receive plural acknowledgment packets each including an identifier for identifying a packet and information indicating selective acknowledgment which are transmitted from a reception node that has received a data packet transmitted from a transmission node via a network to the transmission node via the network, and determine that a data packet loss occurs in the reception node in a case where a first identifier and first information included in a first acknowledgment packet among the plural acknowledgment packets are respectively matched with a second identifier and second information included in a second acknowledgment packet received after the first acknowledgment packet among the plural acknowledgment packets.

In a system including a communication apparatus on a transmission side, a communication apparatus on a reception side, and a network that connects both the communication apparatuses to each other, a packet transmitted from the communication apparatus on the transmission side to the communication apparatus on the reception side may be lost in some cases. For this reason, an apparatus configured to detect a packet loss occurring in the network has been proposed. Hereinafter, the communication apparatus on the transmission side is appropriately referred to as transmission node, and the communication apparatus on the reception side is appropriately referred to as reception node. The proposed apparatus is provided between the transmission node and the reception node and monitors a packet transmitted and received between the transmission node and the reception node to detect the packet loss in the network.
A case may also occur where the packet has been lost in the reception node besides the above-mentioned case where the packet has been lost in the network. An example of the case where the packet has been lost in the reception node is a case where even when the reception node normally has received the packet, the received packet is discarded. An administrator of a communication system (hereinafter, which will be appropriately referred to as administrator) is to perform so-called determining failure to determine whether the packet has been lost in the network or the packet has been lost in the reception node and prepare accurate failure countermeasures. This is because the administrator is to perform mutually different failure countermeasures in the case of the packet loss in the network and the case of the packet loss in the reception node.
Japanese National Publication of International Patent Application No. 2010-512090 has been proposed in related art.

Monitoring apparatus and method for determination of location of packet loss


A sensing device includes a first sensor configured to capture a first analyte in a fluid medium and to generate a first signal in response to capturing the first analyte. The sensing device also includes a second sensor configured to capture a second analyte in the fluid medium and to generate a second signal in response to capturing the second analyte, where the second analyte is different from the first analyte. The sensing device further includes a detector configured to collect the first and second signals to provide a total signal and to calculate a total concentration of the first and the second analyte in the fluid medium based on the total signal.

Calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) ions are generally responsible for the hardness of water. Elevated levels of Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions in water affect the performance and maintenance of appliances contacting the water. Efficiently detecting and monitoring a total hardness of water may be beneficial to a user, such as helping the user maintain water quality and improve the performance of appliances.


Provided is a method for producing, in a simple manner, a general-purpose dielectric insulating thin film that has a varying dielectric constant and accepts an accurate film thickness control and a control of the composition, the structure and the thickness thereof. The process includes a step (A) of making a substrate having a hydroxyl group in its surface or having a hydroxyl group introduced into its surface, adsorb a metal compound having a functional group capable of reacting with a hydroxyl group for condensation and capable of forming a hydroxyl group through hydrolysis, a step (B) of removing the excessive metal compound from the substrate surface, a step (C) of hydrolyzing the metal compound to form a metal oxide layer, and a step (D) of treating the metal oxide layer according to any one treating method selected from the group consisting of oxygen plasma treatment, ozone oxidation treatment, firing treatment and rapid thermal annealing treatment to thereby obtain a dielectric insulating thin film.

Fabrication of metal oxide ultra-thin films having a nano-scale film thickness and having a good insulating property and a good dielectric property is actively studied in various fields from their broad applicability and from the industrial demand for them. For example, in the current semiconductor industry, it is an important technical theme to further increase the degree of integration of one layer in large-scale integrated circuits. For this, it is necessary and indispensable to make an insulating capacitor, one constitutive element of a circuit, of nanometer-level thin films. In recent ultra-micropatterned CMOS devices, some device parameters are now being to their practicable limit. Accordingly, development of ultra-thin film materials of high-dielectric-constant oxides capable of being substitutable for silicon oxide gate-insulating films in MOS transistors, low-dielectric-constant insulating film materials capable of being introduced into the space of multi-level Cu wiring structures, and processes for producing them could be an important breakthrough to the high-speed, power-saving and high-integration devices that are coming in future.
In the field of optoelectronics expected for its industrialization in the coming days, a coating technique with a dielectric thin film material of metal oxide having good reflection efficiency is desired and studied, and also in this, it is an important technical theme to develop a nano-level, accurate and uniform thin film material of metal oxide having a relatively high dielectric constant and a process for producing it.
Further, as a microwave modulation element in high-speed communication devices such as mobile phones and radio-LAN-related devices, a metal oxide capacitor having a varying dielectric constant is used, and the capacitance of the capacitor itself has a significant influence on its properties. Specifically, also in this field, there may be a greatly increasing demand for metal oxide thin films that are thinner and have a higher dielectric constant.
Accordingly, since the application fields of dielectric thins films of metal oxides extend extremely broadly, the level of the dielectric constant thereof required varies depending on their application fields, and the value may range from 1.5 to 100 or more. Therefore, the necessary condition common to the process of producing such dielectric thin films of metal oxides is that a nano-level thin and dense film of a metal oxide having a good insulating property is produced with good thickness accuracy and, at the same time, the oxide thin film is produced under nano-level control of its composition and structure for the purpose of designing the dielectric property of the film in any desired range in accordance with the object thereof. In addition, it is desirable that the process is inexpensive and energy-saving, not producing a large environmental load.
Heretofore, a method mentioned below is known for producing an ultra-thin film of metal oxide. For example, it is known that, in a method of growing a thin film from a vapor phase, such as CVD or PVD, a thin film having a thickness in an order of a few μm can be relatively readily produced (G. D. Wilk, et al., J. Appl. Phys., 89, p. 5243 (2001)). However, when a thin film having a nanometer-range thickness is desired to be produced according to the method, then the economical load to the apparatus itself for the production may be large and there may occur various problems in point of the material cost, the energy consumption and the exhaust gas treatment. Accordingly, it could not always be said that the producibility in the production method as a whole may be good. In addition, the method is not always suitable for producing a thin and uniform film on a substrate having a complicated form or on a substrate having a large area. Further, in the film production method, in general, the substrate temperature must be kept at a high temperature, and therefore the method is further problematic in that the metal oxide/substrate interface reaction may form some interfacial phase and it may worsen the dielectric property of the ultra-thin film of oxide produced.
Recently, a novel thin film production method referred to as ALD has been proposed, in which vapor phase growth and surface reaction are combined. For example, when two types of reactive gases such as titanium tetrachloride and hydrogen peroxide are alternatively introduced into a reactor, then an oxide thin film having an atomic-level thickness can be formed one after another. In such an ultra-thin film production process combined with surface reaction, a uniform thin film can be formed on a substrate of any and every form, in principle (M. Ritala, et al., Science, 288, p. 319 (2000)). However, so far as a vapor-phase method is employed, it is difficult to dramatically improve the energy efficiency and the material balance in the production process. In addition, since the raw materials usable in the process are limited, it is extremely difficult to design the composition and the structure of the metal oxide thin films to be produced, in any desired manner in accordance with a broad application range of the produced films, and to control the electric properties of the produced films.
A sol-gel process is often used in a method of producing metal oxide thin films. The method comprises optionally adding water and an organic solvent to a metal alkoxide, and applying the resulting solution onto a substrate in mode of dipping or spin coating to thereby form a thin film having a thickness of a few μm. In this case, however, since the thickness of the gel coating film is determined depending on the hydrodynamic physical data of the sol such as the viscosity and the density thereof, it is extremely difficult to form a uniform thin film having a thickness of 0.1 μm or less. In addition, it is also difficult to uniformly control the film composition and, as a result, the mechanical strength of the film obtained is extremely low and this causes the reduction in the breakdown voltage of the film. This problem is a fatal defect in practical use of dielectric materials, and in fact, there is no example of using the ultra-thin film of metal oxide produced according to the method for an insulator capacitor material. The same problem is pointed out also in a coating and drying method of using a metal oxide colloid.
Further, a method of producing a metal oxide thin film from deposition of a supersaturated solution of an inorganic ion, and a method of producing an oxide thin film on the surface of an electrode in an electrochemical process are studied (T. P. Niesen, J. Electroceram., 6, p. 169 (2001)). In these methods, a particulate or rod-like structure is formed on a solid surface, and a metal oxide thin film having a uniform nano-level thickness could not be obtained.
On the other hand, a surface sol-gel reaction method is known as a type of a wet process, which comprises contacting an excess amount of a metal compound having a group capable of reacting with a hydroxyl group for condensation and capable of producing a hydroxyl group through hydrolysis, with a solid having a surface hydroxyl group in a mode of chemical adsorption, then removing the excess metal compound from the solid surface, and thereafter hydrolyzing the metal compound existing on the solid surface to thereby form a deposition of an ultra-thin layer of a metal oxide gel thereon (JP-A 9-241008). In this method, since the thickness of the oxide thin film to be formed is defined by the adsorption saturation of the metal compound on the solid surface, or that is, by the amount of the hydroxyl group existing in the solid surface, an ultra-thin film of metal oxide gel having a predetermined thickness can be formed and, when the operation is repeated, then the metal oxide gel film can be formed with good thickness accuracy one after another. However, since the oxide gel thin film obtained according to the above-mentioned method has a low density and since it has a remaining organic functional group, and the film is problematic in that it readily undergoes dielectric breakdown. Accordingly, the ultra-thin film of metal oxide gel obtained according to the method could not be directly used for a dielectric insulating film material.
When the problems with the above-mentioned prior-art production methods and dielectric insulating materials are taken into consideration, then the matter of importance in a novel method for producing a dielectric insulating thin film is that a dielectric insulating thin film is produced with nano-level accuracy and with good producibility from a general and inexpensive metal oxide precursor by the use of a simple production apparatus and that the method itself may accept the control of the composition, the structure and the thickness of the thin film produced therein in order that the film produced can satisfy the requirement for the properties of various dielectric insulating thin films in any desired manner. Further, it is also important that the novel dielectric insulating material comprises the above-mentioned metal oxide thin film and has a desired dielectric constant.
Given that situation, the present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned various problems, and an object of the invention is to provide a method for producing a dielectric insulating thin film, which is simple in its operation and which may produce a general-purpose dielectric insulating thin film having a varying dielectric constant and accepting an accurate film thickness control and a control of the composition, the structure and the thickness of the film produced. Another object of the invention is to provide a dielectric insulating thin film having a desired relative dielectric constant and a desired leakage current characteristic, and to provide a dielectric insulating material containing the dielectric insulating thin film.

Process for producing dielectric insulating thin film, and dielectric insulating material


A gas spectrometer is provided having an enhanced capability for maintaining initial calibration conditions therewithin. The gas spectrometer is particularly apt for respiratory gas analysis applications and includes a housing assembly that defines an internal containment area(s), within which a radiation source, optical assembly, sample gas assembly and radiation detection assembly are positioned. A gas removal assembly is provided for removing one or more undesired gas component types from within the internal containment area during field use. The gas removal assembly is selectively retractable from the housing assembly to permit periodic servicing (e.g., replacement of CO.sub.2 absorbent) without requiring disassembly or recalibration of the spectrometer.

Gas spectrometers are utilized in a wide variety of industrial and medical applications to monitor the presence and concentration of one or more predefined components in a gas sample. Typically, light of a known spectral content is directed through a gas sample and the intensity of the transmitted light at a number of different center-wavelengths is detected. By utilizing known light absorption characteristics of the predefined gas components at the center-wavelengths, the detected light intensities provide a basis to determine, via statistical processing, the concentrations of the predefined components. As will be appreciated, it is important that the initial calibration conditions of the spectrometer be maintained in order to accurately relate the measured light intensities to gas component concentrations.
This is particularly true in respiratory gas spectrometers for measuring the concentration of carbon dioxide and/or oxygen, and one or more anesthetic agents such as nitrous oxide, halothane, enflurane, isoflurane, sevoflurane and desflurane in a respiratory gas stream. In such applications, a separate sample stream is typically drawn from the patient respiratory gas assembly and directed into a sample chamber that is positioned on the optical path between the light source and detector.
It is particularly important in respiratory gas spectrometry that any significant absorbers of light at the center-wavelengths of interest that are on the optical pathway between the light source and detector be accounted for in calibration, and that the related calibration conditions be maintained during use. In this regard, the optical pathway(s) utilized in many respiratory gas spectrometers lie substantially within a sealed sample gas chamber. Further, given the responsivity needs of respiratory gas spectrometers, it is also important that the transmitted light reaching the detector be of an intensity that yields an acceptable signal to noise ratio.

Serviceable absorbent for gas spectrometer interior


An optical apparatus is disclosed which can perform accurate focus control even when an image of an object at low contrast is picked up in high resolution. The optical apparatus includes a plurality of band-pass filters for different frequency bands and extracts a focus signal from the image signal through each of the band-pass filters, and a controller which performs focus control based on the extracted focus signal. In the focus control by the controller, the band-pass filters are selectively used to extract the focus signal depending on a resolution for recording the image signal.

The present invention relates to an optical apparatus such as a video camera and a digital still camera, and more particularly, to an optical apparatus which performs focus control with a focus signal extracted from an image signal.
In a predominant auto-focus method for an optical apparatus such as a video camera, an object image is photoelectrically converted into an image signal by an image-pickup element, a focus signal representing the sharpness (contrast) of the image is extracted from the image signal, and the position of a focus lens is controlled so as to achieve the maximum level of the focus signal. This is referred to as a TV-AF (television auto-focus) method or a contrast detection method.
The focus signal also referred to as an AF evaluation value signal is provided by extracting a high-frequency component from the image signal through a band-pass filter. When an ordinary object image is picked up, the level of the signal is increased as the focus lens approaches an in-focus state, and the position where the level is at the maximum corresponds to the in-focus point. It is known that the level of the focus signal is abruptly changed when the central frequency of the band-pass filter is high in the band of the image signal and is gradually changed when the central frequency is low, as shown in FIG. 2.
The frequency characteristic of the band-pass filter for extracting the focus signal is set such that the level of the focus signal is adequately reduced by moving the focus lens within the depth of focus around the in-focus point. This enables clear determination of the peak of the focus signal, that is, the in-focus point. Even when the focus lens is located away from the in-focus point, the focus lens can be moved by an amount approximately equal to the depth of focus to provide obviously different levels of the focus signal, thereby allowing determination of an in-focus direction.
Recently, in addition to the conventional SD (standard-definition) image (720 H×480 V), the enhanced HD (high-definition) image (1440 H×1080 V) has been used, and video cameras therefor have been proposed. Specifically, in a proposed technique, an HD image signal is produced by an output from a first image-pickup area (1440 H×1080 V) of an image-pickup element and an SD image signal is produced by reducing an output from a second image-pickup area (1080 H×1080 V)
In video cameras, favorable auto-focus (AF) control needs to be performed regardless of whether the HD or SD image is used. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H07(1995)-107359 has disclosed a method in which an optical apparatus capable of converting an image signal formed by an image-pickup element into another image signal can produce an AF evaluation value signal from the image signal before the conversion to perform satisfactory AF control regardless of the HD or SD image.
With the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H07(1995)-107359, however, AF accuracy may be low in picking up an HD image. For example, when an image of an object at low contrast is picked up, it may be determined that an HD image is not in focus even when the AF accuracy is at a proper level for an SD image.
This is because the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H07(1995)-107359 cannot find a change in the focus signal level needed to perform AF control for the HD image when the object is at low contrast. In other words, even when the focus lens is driven within the depth of focus around the in-focus point, that in-focus point cannot be determined clearly.

Optical apparatus and focus adjustment method


A method of enhanced biogenic methane production and recovery of biogenic gas without removal of formation water is disclosed through introduction of carbohydrates causing biostimulation of methanogenic microorganisms allowing recovery of methane without removal of formation waters.

Removal of gas from gas producing formations is generally accomplished by separating gas from liquids present in the formations. For example, coal bed methane is a form of natural gas that can be extracted from coal bed formations. Coal bed methane is methane gas that is contained in coal seams as a result of biological processes. Methane is adsorbed into the matrix of the coal and lines the inside pores within the coal. It is often produced at shallow depths through a bore hole that allows gas and water to be produced.
Extraction of coal bed methane is known in the prior art and generally, to extract methane, a steel encased hole is drilled into the coal seam of less than 300 to over 4,920 feet below the surface of the ground. As the pressure within the coal seam declines due to pumping of water from the coalbed, both gas and water can surface through the pump tubing. More commonly, formation water is extracted through the tubing and the isolated coal bed methane gas travels upwardly from the casing of the wellbore and is collected at the surface. The gas is generally sent to a compressor station and into natural gas pipelines. The formation or produced water is either reinjected into isolated wells, or if it does not contain contaminants, released into streams, used for irrigation, or sent to evaporation ponds. The formation water typically contains dissolved solids such as sodium bicarbonate and chloride but its chemistry will vary depending upon the geographic location of the well.
The production of coal bed methane from formations is typically characterized by a negative decline in which the gas production rate initially increases as the water is pumped off and gas begins to desorb and flow. Desorption is the process by which coals free methane when the hydrostatic pressure in the coal formation is reduced. The methane desorption process follows a curve (of gas content vs. reservoir pressure) called a Langmuir isotherm. The isotherm can be defined by a maximum gas content (at infinite pressure), and the pressure at which half that gas exists within the coal. These parameters (called the Langmuir volume and Langmuir pressure, respectively) are properties of the coal, and vary widely depending upon the physical and chemical characteristics of the coal and the geographic location. As production occurs from a coal reservoir, the changes in pressure are believed to cause changes in the porosity and permeability of the coal. This is commonly known as matrix shrinkage/swelling.
About 20% of natural gas resources (biogenic gas) are produced by microorganisms living in various subsurface reservoirs/aquifers comprised of several different rock types (i.e. coal, shale, limestone & sandstone as examples). It is known that certain bacteria assemblages initiate methanogenesis resulting in the production of methane gas. Until recently, coal bed methane was thought to have formed millions of years ago when the coal itself was being formed. However, recent scientific discoveries suggest that much of the gas was generated by anaerobic microbial systems within the coal seams long after the initial process of coalification. This type of natural gas, referred to as biogenic natural gas, relies on the active biological conversion of organic nutrients from waters found in the coal and terrestrial sources into methane.
It is well known in the prior art to add amendments for the stimulation of biogenic gas generation in deposits of subsurface reservoirs/aquifers hosting assemblages of methanogenic bacteria. Once access is gained to the subsurface reservoir/aquifer, amendment(s) are added to the formation fluids by directly pouring, introducing or spraying the nutrient into the access point for stimulating methanogenic activity in the formation. As a result of the highly variable nature of these reservoir properties, 1) the coal's physical properties, 2) the coal's formation waters chemistry and 3) the distribution of the methanogenic biota, the amendment(s) may include all or only some of the following; nutrients or Food Grade Carbohydrates (FGCs); Bio-augmentation of methanogens; and an oxidizing agent. Once the formation fluids are treated with the amendment(s), the composition is incubated for a period of time during which the biogenic gas is generated and then may be removed from the well formation.
For example, the current method provides food grade carbohydrates, such as sucrose, fructose and glucose and more specifically, sugar molasses and corn extract or corn syrup to boost microbial populations within the formation and then removing biogenic methane from the coal bed formation without de-watering the coals. This is accomplished using a specialized isolation tool that provides for continuous recovery of coal bed methane from coal bed methane formations without releasing or removing formation water. The current method allows for the bacteria's habitat to remain intact, unlike the traditional methane production from coal that is dependent on de-watering the coals. Further, the current method results in the production of biogenic methane without burning the energy required to extract and dispose of formation water. As a result, this lowers the Carbon Index (CI) of the current method to the point where the farmed methane may qualify for carbon credits. Further, use of this method also maintains the favorable water habitat for the methanogenic bacteria that produce the methane, so that continuous recovery of methane is also possible.
The current methods utilize microorganism assemblages that convert complex organic molecules in coal and shale to natural gas (methane). One proposed method of methanogenesis is to stimulate the production of methane through the introduction of glucose or any form of sugar to cause biostimulation of the methanogenic microorganisms. In accordance with the disclosure, there is provided a method of methanogenesis by stimulating the production of methane through the introduction of food grade carbohydrates to cause biostimulation of the methanogenic microorganisms. Removal of the methane is accomplished without removing formation waters. Specifically, there are provided methods of separating methane from formation rock types and formation water in a gas producing well, the steps comprising selecting a food grade carbohydrate as a nutrient amendment, diluting the food grade carbohydrate with formation water, depositing via gravitational forces the dilute mixture into wellbore tubing, exposing assemblages of microorganisms within the well to the dilute mixture, incubating the mixture and the microorganisms for a pre-determined period of time, introducing an isolation tool within the wellbore, the isolation tool having connected first and second separator sections each having internal cavities, directing reservoir fluid upwardly into the second separator section of the isolation tool and limiting flow of solids into the second section with spaced perforations on the second separator section, limiting the passage of formation fluid through a hydrophobic sleeve member, allowing passage of gas through the sleeve member, a mesh member and a perforated tool insert and into an annulus of the tool insert, gathering isolated gas into transport tubing for passage into surface gas gathering pipelines, and maintaining formation fluid within the well. The tool may also include a bypass gas transport may have a protective casing, hydrophobic member and at least one centralizer.

Stimulation and continuous recovery of biogenic gas from coal beds


A crash cushion including a cushion filled with material; and a back plate including at least one recess communicating with a back of the cushion such that material from the cushion fills the recess; wherein the back plate is configured so that when a force is applied to said cushion, the material within the at least one recess breaks a portion of the bumper plate and exits the recess. A crash cushion including a cushion filled with material; a back plate, including at least one opening communicating with a back of the cushion such that the material from the cushion is capable of filling the recess; and at least one valve; wherein the at least one valve is configured so that when a force is applied to the cushion, a portion of the material within the cushion opens the valve and exits the cushion.

Existing vehicle bumpers can be filled with foam. The foam provides impact absorption when there is an impact between the vehicle and an object, such as another vehicle. However, the foam does sufficiently reduce the force of the impact.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,148,970 discloses an energy absorbing system in which a piston travels within a fluid filled chamber, which has weak spots formed in a sequence along a length of the side wall of the chamber. When an impact force is applied to the piston, the movement of the piston increases the pressure of the fluid within the chamber, which causes the weakest of the weak spots to rupture. As the force is increased, the weak spots will rupture in sequence, providing a superior shock absorbing system.
In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 6,695,104 discloses a reusable energy absorbing system similar to that in U.S. Pat. No. 6,148,970. In this system, the impact force on the piston causes a discharge of fluid through two-way valves from the chamber into an elastic balloon structure. Then, when the impact force is removed from the piston, the fluid returns into the chamber from the two-way valve.
The present invention relies on principles similar to those in U.S. Pat. No. 6,148,970 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,695,104 in order to provide an improved impact energy absorbing crash cushion that is suitable for use as, for example, a vehicle bumper.


A semiconductor light-receiving device includes: a semi-insulating substrate; a semiconductor layer of a first conduction type that is formed on the semi-insulating substrate; a buffer layer of the first conduction type that is formed on the semi-insulating substrate and has a lower impurity concentration than the semiconductor layer of the first conduction type; a light absorption layer that is formed on the buffer layer and generates carriers in accordance with incident light; a semiconductor layer of a second conduction type that is formed on the light absorption layer; and a semiconductor intermediate layer that is interposed between the buffer layer and the light absorption layer, and has a forbidden bandwidth within a range lying between the forbidden bandwidth of the buffer layer and the forbidden bandwidth of the light absorption layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a semiconductor light-receiving device, and more particularly, to a PIN-type photodiode that can perform high-speed operations and can be used in large-capacity optical fiber communication systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
As optical communication systems have been rapidly increasing in capacity, transmission systems with 40 Gbps or higher have been developed in recent years. Semiconductor light-receiving devices to be used in such large-capacity transmission systems need to be capable of operating at high-speed of 40 GHz or higher, and therefore, need to exhibit higher performance and higher reliability than conventional semiconductor light-receiving devices.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-127333 discloses this type of semiconductor light-receiving device in the form of a PIN-type photodiode having a tapered optical waveguide structure integrated therein. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an example structure of the PIN-type photodiode having a tapered optical waveguide structure integrated therein. In the circle denoted by A in FIG. 8, an enlarged section view of the light receiving unit of the photodiode is shown. As can be seen from FIG. 8, the photodiode 100 has a tapered optical waveguide structure 102 connected to a side surface of a light receiving element 103 on a semi-insulating InP substrate 101. The tapered optical waveguide structure 102 converts the size of light transmitted from optical fibers into a spot size, and then sends the converted light into the light receiving element 103 through a side surface of a light absorption layer 104.
A p-side electrode pad 105 of a predetermined shape is provided on the substrate 101, with an insulating film being interposed in between. Also, n-side electrode pads 106 are provided on the same plane as the p-side electrode pad 105. Accordingly, this photodiode 100 can be connected directly to a substrate of a coplanar strip line substrate. A P-type electrode 107 is formed on top of the light receiving element 103. The P-type electrode 107 is connected to the p-side electrode pad 105 by an air bridge 107a.
An N-type electrode 108 is formed on the surface of an N-type semiconductor layer 109 that is exposed by etching performed on the light receiving element 103 to form a mesa structure. The N-type electrode 108 is connected to the n-side electrode pads 106 extending onto the semiconductor layer 109. The n-side electrode pads 106 occupy large areas to secure a connection region for a bypass capacitor (later described) and to securely provide a ground potential to the N-type electrode 108 in a high-frequency operation.
FIG. 9 illustrates an example structure of such a PIN-type photodiode. An N+-InP contact layer 112, an N−-InP buffer layer 113, an undoped InGaAs light absorption layer 114, P−-InGaAsP composition graded layers 115 and 116, a P+-InP layer 117, and a P+-InGaAsP contact layer 118, are stacked in this order on an InP semiconductor substrate 111, as shown in FIG. 9. Etching is then performed on these semiconductor layers to form a mesa structure.
An N-side electrode 119 is ohmically connected to the N-side contact layer 112 with a double-layered metal of Au and Ge, for example. Also, a P-side electrode 120 is ohmically connected to the P-side contact layer 118 with a double-layered metal of Au and Zn, for example.
When the photodiode is operating, the N-side electrode 119 has a positive potential, the P-side electrode 120 has a ground potential, and the P-type semiconductor layer 117 and the N-type buffer layer 113 are reverse-biased. When carriers are generated by light incidence into the light absorption layer 114, electrons are taken out by the N-side electrode 119, while holes are taken out by the P-side electrode 120.
The response speed of the above receiving element is basically determined by the CR time constant and the running time of the carriers (mostly holes) in the depletion layer. To restrain the hole trapping by the heterobarrier at the interface between the P-type semiconductor layer 117 and the light absorption layer 114, the semiconductor intermediate layers (or the graded layers) 115 and 116 of graded compositions are interposed in between. Meanwhile, to reduce the PN junction capacity of the light receiving unit without increasing the running time of the holes, the buffer layer 113 is provided under the light absorption layer 114. The impurity concentration in the buffer layer 113 is made as small as 1×1016 cm−3, so that the thickness of the depletion region formed in the buffer layer 113 is increased. Accordingly, the electrostatic capacity C is reduced, and the response speed is increased.
In the conventional PIN-type photodiode having the buffer layer 113 to reduce the electrostatic capacity, however, adverse influence of electron trapping cannot be avoided due to the heterobarrier formed at the interface between the light absorption layer 114 and the buffer layer 113. If the impurity concentration in the buffer layer 113 becomes lower than 1×1017 cm−3 in practice, the band discontinuity between the buffer layer 113 and the light absorption layer 114 becomes an obstacle to the running of electrons. Particularly, when a high-speed operation with high-intensity light incidence is performed at 40 GHz or higher, the trapping time of not only holes but also electrons, due to the band discontinuity, becomes so long as to cause the problem of poor frequency response characteristics.


The present disclosure provides methods, systems, and non-transitory computer readable media for operating a cache drive in a data storage system. The methods include receiving, from an IO interface in the cache drive of the compute server, a write request to write data; caching the data corresponding to the write request in a cache storage of the cache drive of the compute server; performing one or more compute processes on the data; and in response to performing the one or more compute processes on the data, providing the processed data to a storage cluster for storing via the IO interface that is communicatively coupled to the storage cluster.

Datacenters are an increasingly vital component of modern-day computer systems of all form factors as more and more applications and resources become cloud based. Datacenters provide numerous benefits by collocating large amounts of processing power and storage. Datacenters can include compute clusters providing computing powers, and storage clusters providing storage capacity. As the amount of data stored in storage clusters increases, it becomes expensive to maintain both storage capacity and storage performance. Moreover, the compute storage disaggregation moves the data away from the processor and increases the cost of moving the tremendous amount of data. To enhance the overall distributed system performance for accomplishing more tasks in a unit time becomes more and more crucial.

Method and system for condensed cache and acceleration layer integrated in servers


A fluid-tight carrier (10) is disclosed which has main latches (34 and 36). Each main latch has a safety latch (70) which secures the main latches within the latched position until an operator deflects the safety latch (70) away from the slidable catch (42) to permit the main latch to be moved to the unlatched position. This prevents inadvertent opening of the carrier due to impact on the carrier. The carrier can be formed of anti-microbial material, have removable wear strips and includes an ergonomic design.

The transportation of items through pneumatic tubes is well known. Recently, a need has arisen to transport medical samples and other hazardous material within such carriers. For safety purposes, it has been desirable to seal the interior of the carrier from the outside in the event that a sample spills or leaks within the carrier. Examples of such designs are illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,636,947 to Valerino Sr. et al and U.S. Pat. No. 5,655,677 to Fratello et al.
Typically, such designs use some type of a seal which is compressed when the carrier is closed to provide isolation. Normally, a latch of some type is used to hold the carrier in the closed position. However, a latch can be caught by sharp corners in a pneumatic tube, or sprung by sudden impacts or violent motion within the tube. If the latch opens, the seal of the carrier is jeopardized. A need exists for a design which preserves the integrity of the seal during the rough handling that such carriers often experience. Other critical applications for latches also exist, such as on luggage transported by airplane, etc, where the luggage is subject to severe handling, and the unintentional opening of a latch can lead to loss of the contents, etc.


An assay device for the performance of assays for analytes, particularly those of biological interest, provides for improved efficiency and sensitivity by reducing background. The assay device performs an immunochromatographic assay and also provides a wash to remove unbound labeled specific binding partner and thereby reduce the background. Assay devices according to the present invention can use either a directly visible label such as a metal sol label or an enzyme label. One embodiment of assay devices according to the present invention is particularly suitable for assay of analytes in whole blood samples. The present invention also encompasses test kits and methods of use of the assay devices.

This invention is directed to test strips for determination of characteristics of samples, unitized housings, kits incorporating the test strips, and methods of determining the characteristics of samples using the test strips.
Among the many analytical systems used for detection and/or determination of analytes, particularly analytes of biological interest, are chromatographic assay systems. Among the analytes frequently assayed with such systems are:
(1) hormones, such as human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG), frequently assayed as a marker of human pregnancy;
(2) antigens, particularly antigens specific to bacterial, viral, and protozoan pathogens, such as Streptococcus, hepatitis virus, and Giardia;
(3) antibodies, particularly antibodies induced as a result of infection with pathogens, such as antibodies to the bacterium Helicobacter pylori and to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV);
(4) other proteins, such as hemoglobin, frequently assayed in determinations of fecal occult blood, an early indicator of gastrointestinal disorders such as colon cancer;
(5) enzymes, such as aspartate aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase, alkaline phosphatase, and glutamate dehydrogenase, frequently assayed as indicators of physiological function and tissue damage;
(6) drugs, both therapeutic drugs, such as antibiotics, tranquilizers, and anticonvulsants, and illegal drugs of abuse, such as cocaine, heroin, amphetamines, and marijuana; and
(7) vitamins.
Such chromatographic systems are frequently used by physicians and medical technicians for rapid in-office diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring of a variety of conditions and disorders. They are also increasingly used by patients themselves for at-home monitoring of such conditions and disorders. Among the most important of such systems are the "thin layer" systems in which a solvent moves across a thin, flat absorbent medium.
Among the most important of tests that can be performed with such thin layer systems are immunoassays, which depend on the specific interaction between an antigen or hapten and a corresponding antibody or other specific binding partner. The use of immunoassays as a means of testing for the presence and/or amount of clinically important molecules has been known for some time. As early as 1956, J. M. Singer reported the use of an immune-based latex agglutination test for detecting a factor associated with rheumatoid arthritis (Singer et al., Am. J. Med. 22:888-892 (1956)).
Among the chromatographic techniques used in conjunction with immunoassays is a procedure known as immunochromatography. In general, this technique uses a disclosing reagent or particle that has been linked to an antibody to the molecule to be assayed, forming a conjugate. This conjugate is then mixed with a specimen, and, if the molecule to be assayed is present in the specimen, the disclosing reagent-linked antibodies bind to the molecule to be assayed, thereby giving an indication that the molecule to be assayed is present. The disclosing reagent or particle can be identifiable by color, magnetic properties, radioactivity, specific activity with another molecule, or another physical or chemical property. The specific reactions that are employed vary with the nature of the molecule being assayed and the sample to be tested.
Immunochromatographic assays fall into two principal categories: "sandwich" and "competitive," according to the nature of the antigen-antibody complex to be detected and the sequence of reactions required to produce that complex. In general, the sandwich immunochromatographic procedures call for mixing the sample that may contain the analyte to be assayed with antibodies to the analyte. These antibodies are mobile and typically are linked to a label or disclosing reagent, such as dyed latex, a colloidal metal sol, or a radioisotope. This mixture is then applied to a chromatographic medium containing a band or zone. This band or zone contains immobilized antibodies to the analyte of interest. The chromatographic medium is often in the form of a strip resembling a dipstick. When the complex of the molecule to be assayed and labeled antibody reaches the zone of the immobilized antibodies on the chromatographic medium, binding occurs and the bound labeled antibodies are localized at the zone. This indicates the presence of the molecule to be assayed. This technique can be used to obtain quantitative or semi-quantitative results.
Examples of sandwich immunoassays performed on test strips are described by U.S. Pat. No. 4,168,146 to Grubb et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,366,241 to Tom et al., both of which are incorporated herein by this reference.
In addition to immunochromatographic assays, it is also known to use enzyme-based chromatographic assays. These techniques are roughly analogous to immunochromatographic assays, but use an enzymatically catalyzed reaction instead of an antigen-antibody reaction. The enzymatically catalyzed reaction frequently generates a detectable product. Other analogous chromatographic assays are known.
Although useful, currently available chromatographic techniques using test strips have a number of drawbacks. Many samples, such as fecal samples, contain particulate matter that can clog the pores of the chromatographic medium, greatly hindering the immunochromatographic process. Other samples, such as blood, contain cells and colored components that make it difficult to read the test. Even if the sample does not create interference, it is frequently difficult with existing chromatographic test devices to apply the sample to the chromatographic medium so that the sample front moves uniformly through the chromatographic medium to ensure that the sample reaches the area where binding is to occur in a uniform, straight-line manner.
Sample preparation and waste generation are responsible for other problems with currently available devices and techniques for immunochromatography. The increased prevalence of diseases spread by infected blood and blood fractions, such as AIDS and hepatitis, has exacerbated these problems. It is rarely possible to apply a sample (such as feces) or a sampling device (such as a throat swab) directly to the chromatographic medium. Several extraction and pretreatment reactions are usually required before the sample can be applied to the chromatographic medium. These reactions are typically carried out by the physician or technician performing the test in several small vessels, such as test tubes or microfuge tubes, requiring the use of transfer devices such as pipettes. Each of these devices is then contaminated and must be disposed of using special precautions so that workers or people who may inadvertently come into contact with the waste do not become contaminated.
When blood samples are involved, there are additional considerations. Whole blood samples are most easily accommodated by a reverse flow format, i.e., one that performs bidirectional chromatography. The reverse flow format has the advantage of allowing the test results to be read against the cleared, white chromatographic medium, eliminating the potential for obscuring weak test results. However, in such a reverse flow format, the amount of sample that is brought into contact with the capture line is very limited. In a typical assay, approximately 3-5 .mu.l of the applied sample is utilized, and hence assay sensitivity is "capture limited." This is especially true if the immunological reagents used are of low affinity or avidity for the performance of immunochromatographic assays or other analogous assays. Therefore, it would be desirable to have an immunochromatographic assay device that could perform assays for analytes found in blood with a undirectional assay format.
Additionally, such a device should be capable of receiving a possibly contaminated sample or a sample preparation device directly so as to eliminate the need for extraction vessels and transfer devices. Such a device, preferably in the form of a test strip, should also be capable of performing immunochromatographic assays on colored samples or samples containing particulates without interference and should be able to deliver the sample to the chromatographic medium uniformly and evenly to improve accuracy and precision of the test. This aspect of an improved assay device is particularly important in avoiding false negatives and false positives. In particular, an improved assay device should also be capable of performing a unidirectional assay on a whole blood sample.

Opposable-element assay device employing unidirectional flow


A power-measurement device includes a power detector and a tempering device. The power detector is integrated on a monolithic chip as an integrated circuit. It converts a high-frequency test signal into a signal which displays the power of the high-frequency test signal. The power-measurement device further includes a signal input. In this context, the tempering device is arranged outside the monolithic chip on a side of the monolithic chip facing away from the integrated circuit. The signal input is connected to the power detector by a first line on a synthetic substrate. The signal input guides the high-frequency test signal to the power detector by the first line.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a power sensor, especially a diode detector.
2. Discussion of the Background
Conventional power sensors use discrete detector diodes arranged in a hermetically encapsulated housing on a substrate, whereas the substrate is disposed in close thermal contact with the housing. Because of its high mass of, for example, 50 g, such a metallic housing provides a high thermal capacity. This leads to a high time constant with regard to a reaction to changes in temperature, if the housing were to be heated. Beyond this, a considerable thermal power would be necessary in order to heat the large mass.
With diode sensors, such as those shown in DE 100 39 665 A1, temperature fluctuations lead to various negative effects on the measurement result. For example, on the one hand, the zero-point resistance of the diodes is temperature dependent. This leads to different terminating resistances and accordingly to different reflection coefficients. In the case of Schottky diodes, a resistance-dependence of −4%/K is provided, for example. That is to say, with a temperature change of 15 K, the zero-point resistance of the detector diode is halved. Furthermore, the noise behavior of the detector diodes is also temperature dependent.
To prevent a falsification of the measured values of the diode detector resulting from its temperature dependence, compensation circuits are used. For instance, EP 1 026 822 B1 discloses a diode detector with compensated temperature drift. The disadvantage here is that the compensation cannot, on the one hand, eliminate all residual errors, and, on the other hand, a noise behaviour and reflection behaviour of the detector influenced by temperature changes cannot be compensated by this compensation.
Furthermore, the Japanese patent JP 10 267 970 A shows a power detector embodied as an integrated circuit. A heating diode is integrated in the integrated circuit. In this context, the high-frequency signal is supplied through a hollow conductor. The integrated circuit is disposed in an interruption of the hollow conductor. Part of the power of the high-frequency signal is received and supplied to the power detector by means of antennas which are also a part of the integrated circuit. The disadvantage here is that this structure is only suitable for supplying the signal by means of a hollow conductor.


The lactosucrose high-content powder according to the present invention is prepared by allowing an aqueous solution containing sucrose and lactose to act on a saccharidetransferring enzyme, removing concomitant saccharides in the resultant saccharide solution containing lactosucrose to obtain a solution having a high concentration of lactosucrose, i.e. lactosucrose content of 45 w/w % or more of the sugar composition, and spraydrying the resultant solution to obtain a powder having a high concentration of lactosucrose. The powder is incorporated in an orally- or parenterally-administrable product to obtain an orally- or parenterally-administrable product which exerts a selective growth-promoting-effect on a microorganism of the genus Bifidobacterium in vivo.

1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an industrial-scale preparation of a powder having a high concentration of lactosucrose and use of said powder, and, more particularly, to a preparation of a powder having a high concentration of comprising allowing a saccharide-transferring enzyme to act on an aqueous solution containing sucrose and lactose, removing concomitant saccharides from the resultant saccharide solution containing lactosucrose to obtain a solution having a high concentration of a lactosucrose with a lactosucrose content of 45 w/w %, on a dry solid basis (d.s.b.), or higher on sugar composition ("w/w %, d.s.b." will hereinafter be designated as of "w/w % " if not specified otherwise), and spray-drying the solution having a high concentration of lactosucrose into a powder; and to an orally- or parenterallyadministrable product in which the powder is incorporated.
2. Description of the prior art
Lactosucrose is a trisaccharide consisting of galactose, glucose and fructose, and lias the chemical structure shown by O-.beta.-D-Gal-(1.fwdarw.4)-O-.alpha.-D-Glc-(1.rarw.2)-.beta.-D-Fru (wherein "Gal", "Glc" and "Fru" mean galactose-, glucose- and fructoseresidues). As described in Japanese Patent Publication No.53,835/84, lactosucrose has been known for an extremely useful saccharide as a selective saccharide source for a microorganism of the genus Bifidobacterium.
It has been known that lactosucrose can be prepared by allowing a saccharide-transferring enzyme such as a fructose-transferring enzyme or a galactose-transferring enzyme to act on an aqueous solution containing sucrose and lactose. The fructose-transferring enzymes which have been advantageously used in conventional preparation include, for example, a levansucrase derived from a microorganism such as those of the genera Bacillus and Aerobacter as described in Japanese Patent Publication Nos.58,905/82 and 53,835/84; and a .beta.-D-fructofuranosidase derived from a microorganism of the genus Arthrobacter such as a microorganism of Arthrobacter sp. K-1 (FERM BP-3192 as described in Japanese Patent Application No.160,660/89 which had been applied to Japanese Patent Office on Jun. 26, 1989 by the present inventors. Arthrobacter sp. K-1 was deposited at the Fermentation Research Institute, Agency of Industrial Science and Technology, Ministry of International Trade and Industry, 1-3, Higashi, 1-chome, Tsukuka-shi, Ibaraki-ken 305, Japan, on May 19, 1989. The galactosetransferring enzymes which have been advantageously used in conventional preparation are present, for example, in a micro organism of the genus Sporoboromyces as described in Canadian Journal of Chemistry, Vol.43, pp.2,259-2,264 (1965), and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 85/090-89and in a microorganism of the genus Rahnella as described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.35,095/90. Intact cells or extracts of such microorganisms can be advantageously used.
It was confirmed that though the content of lactosucrose in a product produced by allowing the enzymes as described above to act on an aqueous solution containing sucrose and lactose was generally in the range of about 5-302, d.s.b., on sugar composition, we could only obtain an unstable powder which readily absorbed moisture and readily solidified to lose its free-flowing ability even when the product was directly dried and pulverized.

Process for preparing a powder having a high concentration of lactosucrose and use of said powder

Kabushiki Kaisha Hayashibara Seibutsu Kagaku Kenkyujo


An ink-supplied wire dot matrix printer head for actuating wires with ink attached to tip ends thereof into contact with a sheet of print paper to transfer ink to the sheet, thereby forming ink dots thereon. The ink-supplied wire dot matrix printer head includes a wire guide member having a wire guide hole for guiding the tip end of the wire, and an ink tank containing an ink absorbing body therein and having an ink supply port in which a portion of the wire guide member is inserted. The wire guide member has a capillary ink path communicating with a side of the wire and supplied with ink from the ink absorbing body.

1. Field of the invention:
The present invention relates to an ink-supplied wire dot matrix printer head having wires supplied with ink at their distal end faces and movable against a sheet of print paper for transferring ink to the sheet in the form of dots to record a character, a figure, a graphic image or the like on the sheet, and more particularly to the construction of an ink tank and an ink guide for guiding ink from the ink tank to the distal end faces of the wires.
2. Description of the Prior Art:
Ink supply systems for a wire dot matrix printer are known in which no ink ribbon is used, but ink is supplied from an ink tank to the distal ends of the wire and transferred from the wires directly to a sheet of print paper. One known ink guide mechanism for such an ink supply system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,194,846 and comprises a porous member capable of absorbing ink and for guiding ink from an ink tank with wires contacting the porous member. The porous member contains fine holes with their sizes or diameters varying within a certain range, with the result that the ink absorbing capability varies from porous member to porous member, and excessive and insufficient quantities of ink tend to be supplied to the distal ends of the wire. The quantities of ink retained in the vicinity of the distal ends of the wires widely differ, and the porous member is liable to vary in dimensions or be deformed due to coaction with the sides of the wires. Therefore, the ink densities of formed dots are irregular.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,456,393 discloses another ink supply mechanism in which ink is supplied by a pump from an ink tank to the distal ends of wires. The disclosed ink supply mechanism is disadvantageous in that the construction of a joint between the pump and a printer head is complex and results in an increased cost. It is necessary to provide a sufficient seal so as to gain sufficient pump performance and a large-torque drive source is required for driving the pump. The ink supply mechanism is rendered particularly complex for a multicolor printer head, and such ink supply mechanism is not suitable for use with a small-size printer head.
Another known ink tank construction with an ink-impregnated member 160 such as of a porous material being enclosed in tank 140. The illustrated ink tank construction is of a simple shape and can supply a suitable amount of ink to a printer head body under appropriate capillary attraction by the ink-impregnated member. The ink tank can be impregnated with a large quantity of ink while preventing unwanted ink outflow from an air hole 142 and an ink supply port 141.
When ink is supplied from the ink tank of such a construction, ink in the tank remote from the ink supply port flows toward the ink supply port under a pressure difference developed between ink close to the ink supply port and ink remote therefrom as capillary attraction of the ink-impregnated member in the vicinity of the ink supply port is increased due to ink consumption. However, as can be seen in porous materials, ink-impregnated members are generally subjected to an increased resistance to ink flow and interrupted ink paths preventing a smooth ink flow as the quantity of impregnated ink is reduced. If the ink flow is blocked until a pressure differential sufficient to move ink in the ink tank is produced, then ink remote from the ink supply port remains retained and unused, resulting in a short ink supply duration.
As shown schematically in FIG. 10, the ink tank frequently tends to trap air pockets in the ink-impregnated member. When ambient temperature rises or atmospheric pressure is lowered under such a condition, air communicating directly with the air hole expands and is discharged out of the air hole as indicated by the arrows A without applying any pressure on impregnated ink, whereas the completely trapped air is expanded as indicated by the arrows B while moving the ink surrounding it. When such air pocket reaches the ink supply port, an undesired ink outflow occurs. This causes a smear or ink spot on a sheet of print paper, or ink finds its way.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an ink-supplied wire dot matrix printer head which overcomes these problems associated with the prior art.


A user equipment is configured to receive an extensible authentication protocol (EAP) request from a session management function (SMF) that serves as an EAP authenticator for secondary authentication of the user equipment. The secondary authentication is authentication of the user equipment in addition to primary authentication of the user equipment. The user equipment is also configured to, responsive to the EAP request, transmit an EAP response to the SMF.

A wireless communication network conventionally authenticates a user equipment based on credentials that are pre-provisioned by the network operator and that are securely stored with the user equipment. Support for alternative ways to authenticate a user equipment would enable the wireless communication network to in turn support a variety of possible use cases. For example, this would allow factory owners or enterprises to leverage their own identity and credential management systems for authentication and access network security.
Supporting alternative authentication methods proves technically challenging, though. Many authentication methods have strict recommendations and requirements on the transport network. Moreover, relying on Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity for the support of alternative authentication methods proves inflexible and jeopardizes separation between the control plane and the user plane.

Secondary authentication of a user equipment


According to an exemplary embodiment, a power module is provided which comprises a semiconductor chip, a bonding substrate comprising an electrically conductive sheet and an electric insulator sheet which is directly attached to the electrically conductive sheet and which is thermally coupled to the semiconductor chip, and an array of cooling structures directly attached to the electrically conductive sheet and configured for removing heat from the semiconductor chip when interacting with cooling fluid.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to power modules and to methods of manufacturing a power module.
2. Description of the Related Art
A power module, for instance for automotive applications, provides a physical containment for power components, usually power semiconductor devices in form of electronic chips comprising one or more integrated circuit components. Examples of integrated circuit components of power modules are an insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT), and a diode.
There is still potentially room to reduce manufacturing cost and to simplify connecting the electronic chips of power modules to an outer circuit while efficiently removing heat.

Power module with cooling structure on bonding substrate for cooling an attached semiconductor chip


An electronic component that has a support structure with a plurality of electrical conductors, a series of wire bonds, each of the wire bonds extending from one of the electrical conductors respectively, each of the wire bonds having an end section contacting the electrical conductor and an intermediate section contiguous with the end section, a bead of dam encapsulant encapsulating the electrical conductors and the end section of each of the wire bonds, and a bead of fill encapsulant contacting the bead of dam encapsulant and encapsulating the intermediate portion of each of the wire bonds. The dam encapsulant has a higher modulus of elasticity than the fill encapsulant.

Integrated circuits fabricated on silicon wafer substrates are electrically connected to printed circuit boards by wire bonds. The wire bonds are very thin wires—around 25 to 40 microns in diameter—extending from contact pads along the side of the wafer substrate to contacts on the printed circuit board (PCB). To protect and strengthen the wire bonds, they are sealed within a bead of epoxy called encapsulant. The wires from the contact pads to the PCB are made longer than necessary to accommodate changes in the gap between the PCB and the contact pads because of thermal expansion, flex in the components and so on. These longer than necessary wires naturally form an arc between the contact pads and the PCB. The top of the wire arc is often about 300 microns above the contact pads although some wire bonding may extend even higher. As the name suggests, the encapsulant needs to encapsulate the full length of the wire so the encapsulant bead will extend 500 microns to 600 microns proud of the contact pads.
The integrated circuit fabricated on the silicon wafer is often referred to as a 'die'. For the purposes of this specification, the term die will be used as a reference to an integrated circuit fabricated on a wafer substrate using the well known etching and deposition techniques commonly used in semiconductor fabrication. If the die is purely an electronic microprocessor, there is little need to keep close control of the encapsulant bead dimensions. However, if the die is a micro-electro mechanical systems (MEMS) device with an active upper surface, it may be necessary or desirable to bring the active surface of the die onto close proximity with another surface. One such situation applies to inkjet printheads. The proximity of the print media to the nozzle array influences the print quality. Similarly, if a cleaning surface is wiped across the nozzles, the bead of encapsulant can hamper the wiping contact.
Wirebonders are automated devices that weld small lengths of wire from conductors on the PCB to the contact pads on an integrated circuit die. Wire is fed through a bonding tool that uses some combination of pressure, heat and/or ultra-sonic energy to attach the wire to the bond pads via a solid phase welding process. The two most common types of wire bonder are referred to as wedge bond and ball bond. These refer to the bonding tool and the configuration of the wire bond itself. With both types of wirebonders, the individual wire bonds extend in an arc from the bond pad on the integrated circuit (IC) die to the conductor on the PCB. This is because wires from the contact pads to the PCB are made longer than necessary to accommodate changes in the gap between the PCB and the bonds pads due to thermal expansion, flex in the components and so on.
Wedge bonders have the advantage of a lower loop height. Ball bonders weld a ball of metal to a contact with the wire extending away from the ball at right angles to the contact surface. In contrast, the wedge bonder presses the side of the wire against the contact and so incident angle of the wire to the plane of the contact is lower. Hence the loop height is also lower. However, there is a weak spot at the transition point between the wire welded to the contact and the wire extending away from the contact at an angle. This point is often referred to as the heel of the wire bond and is significantly strain hardened from bending and the ultra-sonic welding process. The metal becomes brittle and less resistant to crack propagation. The localized deformation caused by the wedge is a stress concentration that provides a crack initiation site and fatigue failure occurs quickly with thermal cycling.
The bead of encapsulant reinforces the wire but the difference in thermal expansion between the wire and the underlying support is still sufficient to cause bending at the heel and ultimately fatigue failure.
Accurately depositing the bead of encapsulant on the bond pads is problematic. One commonly used technique for depositing the encapsulant involves extruding it from a needle directly onto the line of wire bonds. The encapsulant volume and placement on the die is not very accurate. Variations in the pressure from the pump or slight non-uniformities in the speed of the needle cause the side of the bead contacting the active surface to be reasonably crooked. As the side of the bead is not straight, it has to be generously spaced from any active parts on the active surface to comfortably accommodate the perturbations. Spacing the electrical contacts away from the active portions (say for example, inkjet nozzles) of the active surface uses up valuable wafer real estate and reduces the number of dies that can be fabricated from a wafer disc.
"Jetting" is another common encapsulant deposition technique. A nozzle ejects relatively large drops (10 to 50 pico-liters) of epoxy encapsulant directly onto the wire bonds. This is a more precise method of deposition in terms of dimensional accuracy. However, jetting encapsulant down onto the wire bonds can produce bubbles of trapped air inside the bead. When the epoxy is cured, the heat increases the pressure in the bubbles and cause cracks in the epoxy. This can break or expose the wires which then fail prematurely.
The air bubbles are prone to form when the surface beneath the wire bonds has a complicated topography. For example, deep trenches or stepped formations can present shapes and geometries that do not completely fill with the uncured epoxy as it is flows over the wire bonds and into the underlying surface. In surface geometries with a section that is narrower than the meniscus curvature of the uncured epoxy, the epoxy flow pins at the narrow section and fails to wet the entire underlying surface thereby trapping an air bubble.
Another problem associated with jetting encapsulant is the generation of satellite drops that break off from the main drops of encapsulant. The satellite drops are several orders of magnitude smaller than the main drops and so susceptible to misdirection from air turbulence. With normal integrated circuit dies, misdirected satellite drops are of little consequence. However, if the die as an active surface such as an inkjet printhead die, the small satellite drops of epoxy can have detrimental effects on the operation of any MEMS structures.
In light of the widespread use of inkjet printheads, the invention will be described with specific reference to its application in this field. However, the ordinary worker will appreciate that this is purely illustrative and the invention is equally applicable to other integrated circuits and micro-device (such as lab-on-a-chip devices) that are wire bonded to a PCB or other support structure.

Electronic component with wire bonds in low modulus fill encapsulant


A waxless modular seal prevents leaks in the connection between the base of a toilet and the drain pipe. The waxless modular seal comprises a rubber portion and a resiliently compressible toroid-shaped foam ring, both of which are, in combination, designed to replace a traditional wax seal. The waxless modular seal captures the foam ring between an upper sealing ring and a lower sealing ring. Each sealing ring and the foam ring comprises a protrusion and at least one vertically disposed aperture, the apertures being sized sufficiently so as to allow a fastener to pass through the apertures. The foam ring may comprise a plurality of foam rings.

It is well known in the art that wax seals are used for the connection between a toilet base and a drain pipe into which waste and water flow from the toilet. Generally speaking, such seals work relatively well and last for a long time. However, when wax seals leak, the resulting water can damage floors and, if allowed to continue, can eventually cause damage to other parts of a home or building. Additionally, such seals can generally only be set once and are generally difficult for non-professionals to install properly in that the wax used in the seal tends to adhere to everything, including the hands of the installer. Further, if the toilet is not tightened down properly over the seal, the seal can be damaged by rocking of the toilet, which can occur during use of the toilet over time.
Therefore, in the experience of this inventor, there is need for a seal that is chemically resistant and does not absorb water. There is a further need for a seal with antimicrobial properties. Additionally, there is a further need for a more resilient type of seal so as to provide an upward sealing force against the toilet. There is an additional need for a seal that directs waste and waste water into the waste drain and prevents the waste and waste water from coming into contact with the flange.


A device for the in-vivo measuring of a constituent of a body fluid, the device including a light emitter which emits light in a wavelength range to which the constituent is sensitive and which is implantable in living tissue, and a light detector which, when the device is in a measuring position, receives the light emitted by the emitter and outputs a signal depending on the amount of light received, from which signal the constituent may be measured, wherein the light detector is situated outside the tissue when the device is in the measuring position.

The present invention relates to devices and methods for measuring, in-vivo, the concentration of a constituent of a body fluid. In one embodiment, the present invention relates to a device and method for measuring, in-vivo, glucose concentration within the context of diabetotherapy.
Devices used in diabetotherapy for measuring the glucose concentration in the blood or in another human body fluid are based on a chemical reaction between the glucose and a reactant. The diabetic injects himself with a needle under the skin and brings the blood penetrating through the skin at the injection point into contact with the reactant. The reactant is applied to a test strip. The test strip, including the point at which the reaction between the glucose and the reactant has occurred, is inserted into a measuring and evaluation means. A detector which is sensitive to the reaction between the glucose and the reactant records the result of the reaction and outputs a signal dependent on the result of the reaction. The glucose concentration in the blood sample is determined from the signal and optically displayed. More basic measuring devices are based on a color change of the test strip, the tint of the test strip being a measure of the glucose concentration in the blood sample. A disadvantage of the method is that the skin must be broken or injected again for each measurement.
WO 98/01071 describes a measuring device using which the glucose concentration in the blood or in the intercellular fluid can be optically measured. The device comprises a light source and a light detector which operate in the infrared range. The light source and the light detector are implanted in the human tissue. Their arrangement when implanted is such that a decoupling area and a detector area, lying directly opposite each other in the tissue, form a measuring distance between them in which light is absorbed. Light emitted from the decoupling area is absorbed by the detector area, once it has passed along the measuring distance. Infrared light of various wavelengths is used, and evaluated by means of infrared spectroscopy. The degree of absorption of the infrared light is used as a measure of the glucose concentration in the blood. Implanting is complicated and invasive.

Device for in-vivo measurement of the concentration of a substance contained in a body fluid


It may be determined whether text of an electronic mail message is in a format other than plain text. If the text of the electronic mail message is in a format other than plain text, the text may be converted to a plain text format for displaying. If the text of the electronic mail message is in a format other than plain text format and the electronic mail message contains a digital signature, converting the text of the electronic mail message to plain text including breaking the digital signature. Also, a message may be provided to a user to indicates that the electronic mail message is in a format other than plain text format, immediate display of the electronic mail message may be prevented, and an option of viewing the text of the electronic mail message in a non-plain text format or a plain text format may be provided.

There has been considerable effort in recent years to enhance the security of electronic mail. Junk emails, also referred to as "spam," have unfortunately become a component of the Internet that users must deal with carefully. Although some junk emails are easily detected by a user as being junk emails, other junk emails are disguised such that a user opens the email without knowing the true origin or the contents of the email, leading to potential exposure to computer bugs and/or viruses. Further, with the additional capabilities of hypertext markup language (HTML) and rich text format (RTF), incoming emails potentially pose a greater threat and unacceptable risks to users. Some users have concerns, whether real or imagined, when opening emails in HTML or RTF formats due to potential exposure to computer bugs or viruses from an email author.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art to provide enhanced security to users that receive electronic mail messages.

Method for reading electronic mail in plain text


Some embodiments provide a compound represented by Formula 1:

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to compounds for use in organic light emitting diodes, such as for host materials.
2. Description of the Related Art
White organic light emitting devices (WOLEDs) have attracted much attention and been intensively studied due to their potential applications as backlight sources, full color displays, and general lighting. Among various device configurations to produce white light, a single-emissive-layer device employing phosphorescent materials in combination with proper host materials is desirable. Some advantages of such device may include reduced overall cost, increased quantum efficiency and easier fabrication. Since phosphorescent emitters can harvest both singlet and triplet excitons, it may lead to the potential of achieving 100% internal quantum efficiency. Adding host materials may also reduce concentration quenching of the emissive materials and further increase the efficiency. In addition, adding host materials reduces the required amount of expensive emissive material, and the fabrication of a single layer device is easier and more cost effective than a multiple layer device. As a result, the single-emissive-layer device with phosphorescent and host materials can lower the overall cost of fabricating the WOLEDs.
The use of effective host materials is important in making efficient WOLEDs. A host may be improved if it transports both holes and electrons efficiently at the same speed. A host may also be improved if its triplet energy is high enough to effectively confine the triplet excitons on the guest molecules. Most currently used host materials are a mixture of hole-transport material and electron-transport material, which may pose potential problems of phase separation, aggregation and lack of uniformity, and unequal material degradation rates. Thus, development of an ambipolar single molecule (i.e., a molecule capable of transporting both holes and electrons effectively) for a host material would be useful.
Some ambipolar single molecule hosts have been used in either single colour or white OLED device applications. However, these molecules have either unbalanced hole-transport and electron-transport properties, or the devices made from these molecules have only moderate efficiency.
Thus there is a need for a new type of ambipolar host that can be easily synthesized, possesses high thermal and electrochemical stability, and has well balanced hole-transport and electron-transport mobility when used as a host for phosphorescent emissive materials. Such a host may be used to achieve a simple device structure with high quantum efficiency and low turn-on voltage.

Ambipolar host in organic light emitting diode

Abstract: wherein R1, R2, R3, R6, R7, and R8 are independently selected from the group consisting of H, optionally substituted C1-12 alkyl, optionally substituted phenyl, optionally substituted carbazolyl, optionally substituted diphenylamine and optionally substituted diphenylaminophenyl; provided that: at least one of R1, R2, and R3 is selected from optionally substituted carbazolyl, optionally substituted diphenylamine and optionally substituted diphenylaminophenyl and at least one of R6, R7, and R8 is selected from optionally substituted carbazolyl, optionally substituted diphenylamine and optionally substituted diphenylaminophenyl; and R4 and R5 are independently selected from the group consisting of H, optionally substituted C1-12 alkyl, optionally substituted phenyl, optionally substituted diphenylamine and optionally substituted diphenylaminophenyl. Other embodiments provide an organic light-emitting diode device comprising a compound of Formula I.