A zoom lens system comprising a plurality of lens units, wherein a lens unit located closest to an object side and a lens unit located closest to an image side are fixed with respect to an image surface in zooming from a wide-angle limit to a telephoto limit at a time of image taking, and at least three lens units among all the lens units are moving lens units that move along an optical axis in the zooming, at least one lens unit among the moving lens units is a focusing lens unit that moves along the optical axis in focusing from an infinity in-focus condition to a close-object in-focus condition, and the following condition: Σ(Tn)/H≦2.1 (Σ(Tn): the total of axial thicknesses of all the moving lens units, H: the maximum image height) is satisfied.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates to zoom lens systems, interchangeable lens apparatuses, and camera systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, interchangeable-lens type digital camera systems (also referred to simply as "camera systems", hereinafter) have been spreading rapidly. Such interchangeable-lens type digital camera systems realize: taking of high-sensitive and high-quality images; high-speed focusing and high-speed image processing after image taking; and easy replacement of an interchangeable lens apparatus in accordance with a desired scene. Meanwhile, an interchangeable lens apparatus having a zoom lens system that forms an optical image with variable magnification is popular because it allows free change of focal length.
As zoom lens systems to be used in interchangeable lens apparatuses, various kinds of zoom lens systems having high optical performance from a wide-angle limit to a telephoto limit have been proposed.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2007-078799 discloses a variable-magnification optical system comprising a first lens unit composed of a single negative lens, a second lens unit composed of a single positive lens, and a third lens unit composed of a single negative meniscus lens with a concave surface facing an image side.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2007-078800 discloses a variable-magnification optical system comprising a first lens unit having negative optical power, a second lens unit having positive optical power, and a third lens unit having negative optical power, in which at least one variable-refractive-index optical element is used in the first lens unit.

Zoom lens system, interchangeable lens apparatus and camera system

PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.


A method of making a high-temperature and fire-resistant fabric is described in which staple carbon fiber yarns are woven into a unified multi-layer woven fabric. The warp ends and filling picks of the unified multi-layer woven structure are positioned such that they prevent penetration of fire flames, welding sparks and molten metal spatter from penetrating through the unified multi-layer fabric.

Typical welding blankets of the prior art are made of carbon-based fibers formed into needle-punched non-woven fabrics. For example, a needle punched carbon fiber welding blanket is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,696,374 issued to Bridgeman, et al, which is incorporated herein, by reference, in its entirety. Other related prior art patents include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,916,057, 4,332,600, 4,332,601, 4,500,593, 4,508,777, 4,849,273, 5,582,912, 6,383,623, 6,551,951, and 6,579,396. Each of these related prior art patents is incorporated herein, in its entirety, by reference.
The present invention provides economic, yet effective and drapeable/flexible alternatives to single layer sheet materials of the prior art, including needle punched nonwovens and single layer woven and knitted carbon-based fiber fabrics of the prior art. The sheet materials of the present invention are either woven or knitted materials and their layers may be unified together during the weaving or knitting process or, alternatively, may be stitched together in a separate/subsequent, post weaving or knitting process/step.

High-temperature and fire-resistant fabric and a method of manufacturing thereof


An imaging spectrometer provides a three-dimensional (two (2) spatial and one (1) spectral) image cube of a target. In this apparatus, a diffractive optical element (DOE) performs the imaging and provides the dispersion necessary to separate a multi-spectral target into separate spectral images that are detected by a photodetector array. A lens (or set of lenses) relays the image formed by the DOE to the photodetector array. This lens allows the DOE and photodetector array to be mounted with a fixed separation and the spectral images to have a constant magnification. The lens is stepped or scanned along the optical axis, and each position of the lens corresponds to a particular wavelength being imaged onto the photodetector array. At each position of the relay lens the photodetector array records a spectral image by a process called diffractive spectral sectioning.

The present invention relates to a spectrometer, and, in particular, to a spectrometer that analyzes the spectrum of light emanating from one or more targets within an image.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,479,258 issued Dec. 26, 1995, to Hinnrichs discloses a spectrometer comprising a diffractive lens, a planar array of photodetector elements (pixels), means for changing the distance between the photodetector array and the diffractive lens along the optical axis, and a signal processor. If either the photodetector array or the lens is moved along the optical axis, different wavelengths of light come into and out of focus on the photodetector array, thereby generating sequential images that correspond to different wavelengths. The spectral composition of a target can be determined from the output of the photodetector array as a function of the position of the diffractive lens relative to the array. Targets have a fine spectral signature that is easily differentiated from the background (non-target) radiation, which generally appears as broad-spectrum white light. Processing to eliminate this background radiation may enhance the sequential images from the array of photodetector elements. Each target's spectrum is built up from sequential images and can be compared to a library of known target signatures.
The basis for Hinnrichs' design is the inherent chromatic aberration of a diffractive lens. The principal shortcoming of such a design is that the magnification is different for each wavelength in the recorded spectra. This shortcoming creates problems in image registration, provides inaccurate relative spectral signal strength, and yields an image space defined by shift variant transfer/imaging theory, thereby requiring complex and computationally intensive calculations.
Problems can arise with this prior-art technique. Resampling the detected image cube requires averaging a non-integral number of pixels, causing edges to blur and pixels to register inaccurately.
Thus there exists a need for a spectrometer with a more accurate optical method of obtaining an image cube with constant magnification.

Diffractive optic image spectrometer (DOIS)

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Air Force


A target throwing device, particularly for throwing frangible targets, such as "clay targets", has a first pivotal shaft, an arm mounted to said first shaft for throwing a target, and a spring connected to said first shaft by means of an eccentric wheel for rotation of the throwing arm during a target throwing operation. A second pivotal shaft which is essentially coaxial with said first shaft, has a drive motor coupled thereto for rotation thereof. Furthermore, the first and second shafts are interconnected so as to permit mutually independent rotation of the first and second shafts through an angle of between essentially 180.degree. and 360.degree., whereby the spring can rotate the first shaft at a high speed during the throwing operation.

Devices for throwing plate type targets wherein the throwing or catapult arm is mechanically driven are well known in the art. In such devices the drive means, which actually imparts momentum to the throwing arm, is typically a powerful traction spring. The prior art devices thus generally comprise a throwing arm, designed to accommodate a frangible target plate, mounted on one end of a rotatable shaft. The other end of the rotatable shaft is mechanically coupled to a mechanism, which is connected to the traction spring. In operation the throwing arm is moved to an angular position in which the spring is stretched and the arm is thereafter released for the throwing stroke.
Various techniques and devices have been proposed to accomplish, against the force of the traction spring, the cocking of the throwing arm. By way of example, use has been made of crank mechanisms, wherein the throwing arm and the crank mechanism are affixed to a pivotal shaft. A traction spring is attached to the crank mechanism, which is driven by an electric motor.
The prior art devices have been characterized by a relatively complicated design, including unidirectional clamping means.


The present invention relates in a first aspect to a process for hydrogenation of ketones having at least a carbon-carbon double bond in the y,8-position to the keto group by hydrogen in the presence of at least one chiral iridium complex of formula (I), where R1 represents a group of formula (II) or (III) or (IV). It has been shown that this process leads to a strong increase in preferential formation of a single isomer. The process is particularly suitable for the hydrogenation of y,8-unsaturated ketones which can be used as flavors and fragrances or for the preparation of vitamin E and its derivatives or of flavors and fragrances.

The hydrogenation of α,β-unsaturated ketones by hydrogen is known. The hydrogenation of ketones having at least a carbon-carbon double bond in the γ,δ-position to the keto group (=γ,δ-unsaturated ketones), however, differs strongly as the keto group and the double bond do not form a conjugated system. The carbon-carbon double bond is known in a majority of cases to be prochiral so that upon hydrogenation chiral centre(s) may be formed.
Hydrogenation products of such ketones having at least one carbon-carbon double bond play an important role particularly in the field of synthesis of vitamins, particularly of vitamins E and K1. However, traditional known hydrogenations of such γ,δ-unsaturated ketones are unspecific and, hence, lead to formation of mixtures of isomers, the number of which dramatically increases as the number of chiral centres being formed by hydrogenation increases.
The (biological) activities of vitamins, however, are contributed mainly to only one or a few isomers out of the plurality of isomers. Hence, there exists a large interest to offer a method of hydrogenation allowing a selective formation of primarily one single isomer.
WO 2006066863 deals with the hydrogenation of alkenes using chiral iridium complexes. These chiral iridium complexes show a particularly good selectivity in the hydrogenation of olefins.
A large variety of chiral iridium complexes are disclosed in Chem. Sci., 2010, 1, 72-78 where a large variety of trisubstituted olefins are hydrogenated in a asymmetrical manner. Apart from purely hydrocarbon substituted olefins, only certain ether, ester or hydroxyl functionalized olefins are disclosed to be hydrogenated by the use of said iridium complexes.

Hydrogenation of ketones having at least a carbon-carbon double bond in the γ,δ-position


A multistage decoder for decoding received symbols formed by symbols which have been subjected to multilevel coding in several successive partitioning levels from a constellation into several subsets. A symbol of the constellation is coded into several bits, and each stage of the multistage decoder determines a sequence of bits relative to a partitioning level for a sequence of estimated symbols which are selected from among the symbols of the constellation or of the subset as being each individually closest to the received symbols. The invention is characterized in that for at least one stage at least one detector generates an erasure bit for the estimated symbols whenever a received symbol lies in a predetermined erasure zone, whereupon the stage decoder then corrects the erasure bits. The decoder may operate in the adaptive or non-adaptive mode. The erasure zones may be angular sectors or bands of constant width. The widths of the zones are stored in preprogrammed memories.

The invention relates to a multistage decoder for decoding received symbols coded into blocks formed by symbols which are consecutively emitted after having undergone a multilevel coding according to several successive partitioning levels from a constellation into several subsets during an emission, a symbol of the constellation being coded by means of several bits, while each stage of the multistage decoder determines a sequence of bits relative to a partitioning level for a sequence of estimated symbols which are selected from among the symbols of the constellation or the subset as being each individually the closest to the received symbols, a stage comprising decision means followed by a stage decoder and being validated in cascade fashion by the outputs of the preceding stages in the order of succession of the said levels.
Such a decoder is used in the transmission of digital signals through a transmission channel.
This may relate to the transmission of digital television signals, for example high-definition, through a satellite channel, or digital signals through radio beams. It may alternatively relate to the transmission of sound by mobile radio, or digital data to be stored, for example, in a Compact Disc or digital video recorder. In these cases, it is necessary to carry out a preliminary reduction of the output rate at the source by a source encoder during the emission, and to re-establish the output rate at the receiving end by means of a source decoder. This rate reduction by a source encoder is not necessary in the case in which digital data are to be transmitted between two digital processing units, for example, between two calculators.
Since the most representative application is that of high-definition television (HDTV), for which the problems are the most wide-ranging, the present Patent Application is drawn up with reference to this technical application without any limitation whatsoever being implied thereby.
The digitization of high-definition television (HDTV) signals involves a total gross output rate of the order of 800 Mbits/s. The transmission of such information with such an output rate cannot be economically realised through existing transmission channels. Several coding techniques for reducing the output rate (source coding) have been developed. The performance levels of these coding algorithms are measured in terms of their "reduction factor" of the output rate and the quality of the restored image after decoding. The more the redundancy of the signal is reduced, the more the transmitted information is significant. Possible transmission errors which may be corrected fairly easily when the transmitted information is redundant have consequences of increasing gravity in proportion as the reduction factor increases.
As a result, the transmission of digital HDTV signals necessitates a suitable protection. If the effects of transmission errors should not be visible on a screen, the error rate per line must be lower than 10.sup.-11.
The channel used for "Direct Broadcasting by Satellite" (DBS) has the following characteristics:
a bandwidth of 27 MHz, PA1 a low power (especially for the signal coming from the satellite) and the presence of a high noise level, which can be considered as additive, white and Gaussian, and PA1 non-linear distortions. PA1 either the erasure bit, PA1 or the bit of the symbol closest to the received symbol, depending on whether the received symbol is or is not situated in an erasure zone. PA1 a detector which supplies a bit of the said estimated symbol for each received symbol, PA1 a comparator which compares the sequence of positions of the estimated symbols with at least one boundary position which defines the erasure zones, PA1 an erasure generator PA1 a counter which counts the number NE of erasure bits of a block of estimated bits, PA1 an adaptation member which, if the number NE is higher than a limit value q, modifies the boundary position of the comparator so as to reduce the width of the erasure zones, and which maintains the boundary position in the opposite case.
The transmission of digital HDTV signals through such a channel requires a source coding with a considerable degree of compression as well as a digital modulation with a high spectral efficacy.
The source coding techniques, for example, based on an orthogonal transformation, are capable of reducing the output level by a factor 10 while still providing a good quality of the restored image. This leads to the transmission of a binary output of the order of 70 Mbits/s. However, the transmission of such signals through a satellite channel requires a digital modulation with a spectral efficacy of up to 3 bits/s/Hz.
Furthermore, it is necessary to carry out a channel coding to protect the transmission from the imperfections of the channel. The classical coding and modulation techniques are found to have their limitations as regards full compliance with the requirements of a correct transmission (in these techniques, the coding function is regarded as an entity which is independent of the modulation function). The coding techniques, however, have been considerably improved thanks to the coding technique proposed by G. UNGERBOECK in the article "Channel Coding with Multilevel/Phase Signals" published in IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, vol. IT-28, no. 1, January 1982, pp. 55-67.
It is proposed to consider the channel coding and the modulation as one entity and to combine for this purpose a channel coding with a digital modulation. This renders it possible to increase the efficacy of the digital transmission, so to improve the performance, without sacrificing the spectral efficacy. The additional redundancy induced by the coding is transmitted through the redundancy of the alphabet instead of diminishing the data rate. This technique is based on the principle of maximizing the minimum Euclidean distance between the sequences of transmitted coded symbols.
Thus, after a coding step which transforms p bits of information into m bits, with m>p, in which m-p represents the added redundancy for information protection during transmission, with a modulation of 2.sup.m states, there are 2.sup.m-p extra states available for transmitting this redundancy. This modulation technique renders it possible to carry out a spatial, not temporal partitioning of the redundancy.
Following the discovery by G. UNGERBOECK, trellis-coded modulations (TCM), block-coded modulations (BCM) and multidimensional trellis-coded modulations have been proposed.
TCM of medium complexity (4 or 8 states) are capable of providing a coding gain of 3 to 4 dB. For large-scale applications, however, the addition of a Viterbi decoder necessary for decoding these TCM remains expensive with present-day technology. An attractive coding technique for these applications is that of multilevel coding. The interest of this technique lies in that it is adapted to a simple process of sub-optimal decoding which takes place in steps and offers a good compromise between performance and implementing complexity.
Based on the set partitioning principle as disclosed by G. UNGERBOECK, the use of multilevel coding has been analyzed in particular by G. J. POTTIE and D. P. TAYLOR in "Multilevel Codes Based On Partitioning" IEEE Trans. Information Theor., vol. 35, no. 1, January 1989, pp. 87-98.
In their article, these authors first of all analyze the principle of multilevel coding which consists in partitioning a constellation and coding the symbols of the constellation, and secondly define a multistage encoder, a coding stage being assigned to a partitioning level, while the symbols are transmitted in blocks through a transmission channel.
At the receiving end, a multistage decoder carries out the inverse operation and restores the symbols corresponding to the emitted symbols. In a classical decoder, this involves decision operations which estimate the symbols and determine bits for the codes of the estimated symbols as a function of the phase and the amplitude detected at the receiving end for each received symbol. Depending on the various transmission and reception conditions, some of the estimated bits are incorrect. A first stage of the multistage decoder takes decisions at the first partitioning level. The result delivered by this first stage is used for enabling the operation of the second stage, and so on, until the last stage. In the article by G. J. POTTIE and D. P. TAYLOR, a supplementary concept of erasure is introduced, which takes place after each decoding of a stage, in a concatenated decoding operation. This improves the performance of the decoder, but at the price of an increased complexity. In fact, this necessitates the addition of a second decoder for correcting the errors and filling up the erased positions.


A system for recording/reproducing a photosensitive recording medium, comprising: a photosensitive recording medium cartridge including a cartridge body, a shutter, and a lock mechanism as defined herein; and a recording/reproducing device including a housing, an insertion port shutter, an unlock mechanism, and a shutter opening mechanism as defined herein.

A holographic recording medium for recording data by holography has been already invented (e.g. see JP-A-2004-029476). This holographic recording medium is a photosensitive recording medium which is formed in such a manner that a holographic recording layer made of a photosensitive material is provided on a disk type support. Since data are multiplexedly recorded as interference fringes of laser light into a multilayer on the holographic recording medium, the holographic recording medium can have a larger data recording volume than that of a DVD which was heretofore a popular recording medium. When light is exposed to the holographic recording layer or dust is deposited on the holographic recording layer, the performance of the holographic recording layer of the holographic recording medium is affected adversely. For this reason, the holographic recording medium is handled after received in a cartridge having a light-shielding function and a dust-proof function (e.g. see JP-A-2003-317422 (corresponding to US 2003/0198177 A1)).
In the invention described in JP-A-2004-029476, the holographic recording medium is received in a cartridge similar to a cartridge of a DVD-RAM. This cartridge is formed out of a material small in transmittance of light rays in a wavelength range in which the holographic recording layer is affected by the light rays. Although JP-A-2004-029476 did not give any description on the detailed configuration of the cartridge, it may be conceived that the cartridge has the same configuration as that of a cartridge described in JP-A-2003-317422 (corresponding to US 2003/0198177 A1).
In the invention described in JP-A-2003-317422 (corresponding to US 2003/0198177 A1), the cartridge is made of a material capable of blocking a sensitive color in the holographic recording layer. Moreover, a sponge-like shielding material is attached to a joint of a movable portion for exposing the holographic recording medium to the outside. In addition, in the description, the cartridge is provided with a cartridge body for receiving a recording medium therein in a desirably rotatable state, an opening provided in the cartridge body and for exposing part of the recording medium to the outside, and a shutter for opening/closing the opening.

System for recording/reproducing photosensitive recording medium


A method of encoding data operates on an ordered set of input symbols and includes generating redundant symbols from the input symbols, and includes generating output symbols from a combined set of symbols including the input symbols and the redundant symbols, wherein the number of possible output symbols is much larger than the number of the combined set of symbols, wherein at least one output symbol is generated from more than one symbol in the combined set of symbols and from less than all of the symbols in the combined set of symbols. The redundant symbols are generated from an ordered set of input symbols in a deterministic process such that a first set of static symbols calculated using a first input symbol has a low common membership with a second set of static symbols calculated using a second input symbol distinct from the first input symbol.

Transmission of files and streams between a sender and a recipient over a communications channel has been the subject of much literature. Preferably, a recipient desires to receive an exact copy of data transmitted over a channel by a sender with some level of certainty. Where the channel does not have perfect fidelity (which covers most all physically realizable systems), one concern is how to deal with data lost or garbled in transmission. Lost data (erasures) are often easier to deal with than corrupted data (errors) because the recipient cannot always tell when corrupted data is data received in error. Many error-correcting codes have been developed to correct for erasures and/or for errors. Typically, the particular code used is chosen based on some information about the infidelities of the channel through which the data is being transmitted and the nature of the data being transmitted. For example, where the channel is known to have long periods of infidelity, a burst error code might be best suited for that application. Where only short, infrequent errors are expected a simple parity code might be best.
Data transmission is straightforward when a transmitter and a receiver have all of the computing power and electrical power needed for communications and the channel between the transmitter and receiver is clean enough to allow for relatively error-free communications. The problem of data transmission becomes more difficult when the channel is in an adverse environment or the transmitter and/or receiver has limited capability.
One solution is the use of forward error correcting (FEC) techniques, wherein data is coded at the transmitter such that a receiver can recover from transmission erasures and errors. Where feasible, a reverse channel from the receiver to the transmitter allows for the receiver to communicate about errors to the transmitter, which can then adjust its transmission process accordingly. Often, however, a reverse channel is not available or feasible. For example, where the transmitter is transmitting to a large number of receivers, the transmitter might not be able to handle reverse channels from all those receivers. As a result, communication protocols often need to be designed without a reverse channel and, as such, the transmitter may have to deal with widely varying channel conditions without a full view of those channel conditions.
The problem of data transmission between transmitters and receivers is made more difficult when the receivers need to be low-power, small devices that might be portable or mobile and need to receive data at high bandwidths. For example, a wireless network might be set up to deliver files or streams from a stationary transmitter to a large or indeterminate number of portable or mobile receivers either as a broadcast or multicast where the receivers are constrained in their computing power, memory size, available electrical power, antenna size, device size and other design constraints.
In such a system, considerations to be addressed include having little or no reverse channel, limited memory, limited computing cycles, mobility and timing. Preferably, the design should minimize the amount of transmission time needed to deliver data to potentially a large population of receivers, where individual receivers and might be turned on and off at unpredictable times, move in and out of range, incur losses due to link errors, cell changes, congestion in cells forcing lower priority file or stream packets to be temporarily dropped, etc.
In the case of a packet protocol used for data transport, a file, stream or other block of data to be transmitted over a packet network is partitioned into equal size input symbols and input symbols are placed into consecutive packets. The "size" of an input symbol can be measured in bits, whether or not the input symbol is actually broken into a bit stream, where an input symbol has a size of M bits when the input symbol is selected from an alphabet of 2M symbols. In such a packet-based communication system, a packet oriented coding scheme might be suitable. A file transmission is called reliable if it allows the intended recipient to recover an exact copy of the original file even in the face of erasures in the network. A stream transmission is called reliable if it allows the intended recipient to recover an exact copy of each part of the stream in a timely manner even in the face of erasures in the network. Both file transmission and stream transmission can also be somewhat reliable, in the sense that some parts of the file or stream are not recoverable or for streaming if some parts of the stream are not recoverable in a timely fashion. Packet loss often occurs because sporadic congestion causes the buffering mechanism in a router to reach its capacity, forcing it to drop incoming packets. Protection against erasures during transport has been the subject of much study.
It is known to use chain reaction codes to allow for generation of an arbitrary number of output symbols from the input symbols of a file or stream. This has many uses, including the generation of output symbols in an information additive way, as opposed to an information duplicative way, wherein the latter is where a receiver receives additional data that duplicates data the receiver already knows. Novel techniques for generating, using and operating chain reaction codes are shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,307,487 entitled "Information Additive Code Generator and Decoder for Communication Systems" issued to Luby ("Luby I"), U.S. Pat. No. 6,320,520 issued to Luby et al. entitled "Information Additive Group Code Generator and Decoder for Communication Systems" (hereinafter "Luby II"), and U.S. Pat. No. 7,068,729 issued to Shokrollahi et al. entitled "Multi-Stage Code Generator and Decoder for Communication Systems" (hereinafter "Shokrollahi"). To the extent permitted, the entire disclosures of those are herein incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.
One property of the output symbols produced by a chain reaction encoder is that a receiver is able to recover the original file or block of the original stream as soon as enough output symbols have been received. Specifically, to recover the original K input symbols with a high probability, the receiver needs approximately K+A output symbols. The ratio A/K is called the "relative reception overhead." The relative reception overhead depends on the number K of input symbols, and on the reliability of the decoder. For example, in one specific embodiment, and where K is equal to 60,000, a relative reception overhead of 5% ensures that the decoder successfully decodes the input file or block of the stream with a probability of at least 1-10−8, and where K is equal to 10,000, a relative reception overhead of 15% ensures the same success probability of the decoder. In one embodiment, the relative reception overhead of chain reaction codes can be computed as (13*sqrt(K)+200)/K, where sqrt(K) is the square root of the number of input symbols K. In this embodiment the relative reception overhead of chain reaction codes tends to be larger for small values of K.
Luby I, Luby II and Shokrollahi provide teachings of systems and methods that can be employed in certain embodiments according to the present invention. It is to be understood, however, that these systems and methods are not required of the present invention, and many other variations, modifications, or alternatives can also be used.
It is also known to use multi-stage chain reaction ("MSCR") codes, such as those described in Shokrollahi and developed by Digital Fountain, Inc. under the trade name "Raptor" codes. Multi-stage chain reaction codes are used, for example, in an encoder that receives input symbols from a source file or source stream, generates intermediate symbols therefrom and encodes the intermediate symbols using chain reaction codes. More particularly, a plurality of redundant symbols are generated from an ordered set of input symbols to be transmitted. A plurality of output symbols are generated from a combined set of symbols including the input symbols and the redundant symbols, wherein the number of possible output symbols is much larger than the number of symbols in the combined set of symbols, wherein at least one output symbol is generated from more than one symbol in the combined set of symbols and from less than all of the symbols in the combined set of symbols, and such that the ordered set of input symbols can be regenerated to a desired degree of accuracy from any predetermined number, N, of the output symbols.
For some applications, other variations of codes might be more suitable or otherwise preferred.


An X-ray analysis device makes use of a variable aperture for controlling the position and cross section of the X-ray beam. The variable aperture is configured to allow changes in the cross section and/or position of the beam by movement of one aperture component in one direction. In one embodiment, the aperture medium is a perforated disk that is rotated to expose different aperture holes to the beam. In another embodiment, the aperture medium is a perforated tape that is moved in a linear direction to expose different aperture holes to the beam. The tape may be wound about two axes to control its movement, or may be a continuous loop. A cassette may also be used to house the tape.

An X-ray optical device with a variable aperture is discussed in US Patent Application Publication No. US 2004/0170250 A1. In this device, the variable aperture consists of a fixed portion and a movable portion that moves relatively to the fixed portion to change the size of an opening formed between the portions. These portions together are capable of shaping an X-ray beam passed through the aperture to a rectangular cross-section. As the movable portion is moved, the cross-section and position of the X-ray beam output from the device are changed. Notably, it is not possible to change the beam position while maintaining a consistent cross-section, or to change the beam cross-section while maintaining the position, unless both portions of the aperture are exchanged for aperture portions of different configurations.
A known X-ray diffractometer (the "X8 Proteum" produced by Bruker AXS, Madison, Wis.) uses a beam aperture that is mounted in a holder so that it is positioned perpendicularly to an incident X-ray beam. The aperture limits the cross-section of the beam, and its position can be adjusted in two orthogonal directions prior to its being fixed in place. This allows a user to fine-tune the position of the transmitted beam as part of an initial setup. Different beam cross-sections may also be selected by choosing from apertures with different shapes. However, to accomplish any of these changes requires time-consuming adjustments of the aperture, either by repositioning in two independent directions or by the manual exchange of the aperture.

Analytical instrument with variable apertures for radiation beam


System and methods are provided for displaying objects at a treatment display screen coupled to an apparatus for performing a treatment. A first arrangement of the objects is presented at the treatment display screen. At least some objects of the first arrangement of the objects are in a fixed state on the treatment display screen. A rearrangement mode of operation of the treatment display screen is activated. The objects of the first arrangement of the objects are changed from the fixed state to a fluid state that allows for rearrangement of the objects of the first arrangement of the objects to a second arrangement of the objects that is different than the first arrangement of the objects. The treatment is prevented from being performed during operation in the rearrangement mode. The second arrangement of the objects is presented at the treatment display screen during operation in the rearrangement mode.

Hemodialysis machines are well-known for treating medical conditions related to renal failure, where a person's kidneys inadequately filter toxins and waste products from the blood. During a hemodialysis procedure, blood is removed from the patient and output to a dialyzer associated with the hemodialysis machine. The patient's blood circulates along one side of a semipermeable membrane in the dialyzer, referred to as an extracorporeal circuit (ECC). A dialysate is provided by a dialysate system, and flows between the dialysate system and the hemodialysis machine along the opposite side of the membrane, referred to as a dialysate circuit, to remove waste, toxins, and other undesirable products from the blood. In a regenerative dialysis system, the used dialysate is pumped through a sorbent cartridge at the dialysate system, which purifies the dialysate by removing the waste so that a constant stream of fresh dialysate is provided to the dialyzer. In a non-regenerative dialysis system, the used dialysate is discarded.
A hemodialysis machine typically includes various meters, sensors, and other event detection and monitoring systems positioned along the ECC and the dialysate circuit to monitor an array of safety-critical parameters and to detect abnormal events occurring prior to or during a dialysis procedure. Safety-critical parameters can include, but are not limited to, blood and dialysate flow rates, temperature, venous and arterial pressure, and dialysis solution conductivity. Parameter-related information is received at a control panel in communication with the hemodialysis machine, and presented as text, graphics, and the like at a control panel monitor, touchscreen, or other display. A set of screens, windows, and the like, can be presented at the display, which are populated with parameters or related information in the form of static or discrete objects, for example, graphical user interface (GUI) objects displayed as data buttons, keys, windows, icons, bar graphs, charts, and the like. One type of screen is a treatment display screen, which permits an operator to set and monitor treatment parameters before or during a dialysis procedure. Parameter buttons and other static objects are arranged at fixed locations of each treatment display screen. Static treatment display screen configurations are provided to maintain dialysis machine efficacy during operation and to provide a safe environment for a patient undergoing a dialysis procedure.

Systems and methods for displaying objects at a medical treatment apparatus display screen


A high density and high I/O count packaging methodology and associated fabrication technique is presented. A semiconductor die having logic circuits for multiplexing specified sets of I/O logic is electrically connected to an interposer having semiconductor logic circuits for multiplexing selected sets of module pins to allow a reduced number of I/O pads on the die and matching interconnect pads on the interposer. The interposer connects the reduced number of die I/O pads to a higher number of module pins corresponding to the number of I/O functions on the die. The interposer is fabricated from a semiconductor substrate using standard semiconductor processes and materials.

As the number of input and output (I/O) signals increases there will be a point where conventional packages, including multilevel ceramic (MLC) packages can not provide enough output pads within the footprint of the die or especially wire paths on the packaging substrate under the die footprint.
I/Os can be distributed on a die in two ways, along the periphery of the die in one or several rings of pads or throughout the surface area of the die in an array of pads. Dies using pad periphery layouts encounter space limitations at lower counts than pad array layouts. Given a 5 mm die with 100 micron pads on 200 micron centers only about 100 peripheral pads can be laid out but over 600 array pads. For a 20 mm die the number of pads are about 600 and 10,000 respectively. Moving from peripheral pad layouts to array pad layouts forestalls this problem somewhat. However pad array layouts require more complex and costly fabrication techniques invariably involving solder ball interconnection. Further as semiconductor technology results in further density increases resulting in decreasing die size and increasing I/O count even the pad size and spacing on array pad layouts must decrease. For example, a 10,000 I/O count on a 5 mm die would require pads of 25 micron on 50 micron centers. At such small pad sizes the cost and complexity of interconnect processing are not insignificant.
Wiring density on the surface of the package substrates has lead to the use of multi-level ceramic modules. However layer counts can increase extremely fast and when multi chip modules (MCM) are considered the difficulty of packaging wire density increases even more.
Finally the size and density of the wires or lands on the surface and within the layers of the packaging substrate is limited, such that, problems with resistance, capacitance, and delay issues arise.

High density signal multiplexing interposer

International Business Machines Corporation


A glass block construction kit comprises a peripheral frame with inwardly directed lips on its opposite sides and an interior frame having an outer wall held by the lips on the peripheral frame. The peripheral frame is made from a plastic material such as vinyl and the like while the interior frame is made of a more rigid material. The interior frame also includes a plurality of frame members which form glass block pockets. Glass block retainers are mounted on both sides of each frame member. These retainers are again made of plastic, preferably the same material used in forming the peripheral frame.

Glass block panels are becoming ever more popular. They are esthetically appealing and from a functional standpoint they allow light penetration without direct visibility to provide privacy depending upon what type of glass block is used in the panel.
Known glass block panels use a grid like frame with glass blocks fitted in the pocket regions of the frame. The frame is made from metallic material such as aluminum to provide required rigidity for holding the glass blocks.
While aluminum does have the benefit of being light in weight and relatively strong its use necessitates that the glass blocks be caulked, mortared or otherwise suitably sealed in the frame. Furthermore aluminum and other metallic frames have the undesirable characteristics that they rust or otherwise deteriorate in wet and/or salty conditions and that they allow loss of heat energy because of their high thermal conductivity. Accordingly thermal breaks are often required in a conventional glass block panel.
Examples of glass block panels using metallic frames are shown in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,210 issued Aug. 27, 1991 to Taylor and U.S. Pat. No. 5,218,806 issued Jan. 15, 1993 to Taylor. U.S. Pat. No. 5,003,744 issued Apr. 2, 1991 to Taylor also shows a glass block panel assembly using a metallic frame with thermal breaks to reduce the loss of heat energy through the glass block panel.
In each of the glass block panels shown in the above patents mortar, bonding or caulking agents are required to seal the blocks within the panel. These panels are therefore relatively labour extensive and time consuming to assemble and are not easily put together at the actual job site. These types of glass panels, generally speaking, could not be together by most home owners who might want to do their assembly and installation. Accordingly known glass block panels would generally be preassembled by people having professional skills and carried as a relatively large and heavy item to the job site.
Polyvinyl chloride, ie, vinyl is a material that is gaining more and more acceptance in standard window manufacturing. The vinyl is used as a surrounding frame for windows using a solid window pane. Vinyl has the benefit that it is a very good heat insulator and has esthetically desirable characteristics. For example vinyl can be extruded in different permanent colours without having to paint the vinyl. Furthermore vinyl does not rust like metallic material and therefore has great application in wet conditions such as those found in a naturally damp environment and even those found in a man made wet area such as a bathroom shower and the like.
To date vinyl has not been accepted as a suitable frame material in the manufacture of glass block panels because it does not have sufficient strength for supporting a series of small glass blocks in a grid like pattern or formation. Accordingly known glass block panels have not been able to take advantage of the benefits provided by vinyl and other similar plastic materials.


A new Diascia plant particularly distinguished by its pure white medium-sized flowers, relatively long and upright inflorescences, deep green foliage, narrow and pointed leaves, and narrow plant habit with mostly upright branches is disclosed.

The present invention comprises a new and distinct cultivar of Diascia, botanically known as Diascia barberae, and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name 'Dala Whit'. The new cultivar originated in 2003 in Andijk, The Netherlands from the self-pollination of 'DSZ-40-6' an unpatented rose-colored proprietary Diascia plant. The seeds produced by the self-pollination of 'DSZ-40-6' were sown in May 2003, and the resulting seedlings were selected in July 2003. A single plant selection was chosen for further evaluation and for asexual propagation in the fall of 2003.
The new cultivar was created in 2003 in Andijk, The Netherlands and has been asexually reproduced repeatedly by vegetative cuttings and tissue culture micropropagation in Andijk, The Netherlands over a two-year period. The plant has also been trialed at Gilroy, Calif., and Andijk, The Netherlands. The present invention has been found to retain its distinctive characteristics through successive asexual propagations.
Plant Breeder's Rights for this cultivar were applied for in Europe on Jan. 24, 2005 and in Canada on Jul. 19, 2005.


A ceiling tile product and method in which a slurry formed mat primarily comprising mineral wool and binder is provided with a binder enhancement zone at its face. The binder enhancement zone can reduce the total required latex content, reduce the amount of finish or paint needed to achieve a commercially acceptable color and improve noise reduction.

Ceiling tile is frequently manufactured using a felting process to construct a tile or board from a water-based slurry. The slurry, typically, includes a homogeneous mix of all of the raw materials that make up the body proper of the tile. Layers of felted slurry material are pressed into a mat and dried to form a board. Some tiles are constructed from boards that are embossed or patterned before they are completely dry, while others are made from boards that are first dried and then ground to obtain a desired thickness and a smooth finish. Typically, the raw materials include a binder such as latex or starch or a combination of the two that serves to hold the other materials together when the board is dried. Ordinarily, the binder represents a small percentage of the total weight of the board but represents a disproportionately high part of the cost of the materials. The binder content affects board strength and surface hardness. Conventionally, a level of binder content is maintained in the slurry mix to achieve a satisfactory surface hardness and, therefore, acceptable durability.

Ceiling tile with non uniform binder composition


An open-loop biasing circuit for a magnetoresistive element provides high common mode and power supply rejection. Two current sources are connected together by two conduction paths. A first conduction path has two impedances. One impedance is tied between the first current source and ground and the second impedance is tied between the second current source and ground. The second conduction path includes the magnetoresistive element. A capacitive path between the two current sources reduces power supply noise and a voltage follower reduces parasitic capacitance in the capacitive path.

The present invention relates to an open-loop biasing circuit for biasing a magnetoresistive element. In particular, the present invention relates to an open-loop biasing circuit with improved power supply and common mode rejection.
The present invention is typically used in a computer disc drive as part of a "read" channel that includes a magnetic-field sensing element used to "read" information stored on a magnetic disc. The information is stored on the disc as a series of small magnetic domains which produce a series of small localized magnetic fields. To "read" the stored information, the sensing element passes over the disc and creates an electrical signal based on the direction of the magnetic fields. The remainder of the read channel converts the electrical signal into a digital signal that is decoded to reproduce the stored information.
One type of sensing element, known as a magnetoresistive or MR head, "reads" the stored magnetic information by measuring changes in the electrical resistance of a material within the head as the head passes through the magnetic fields. To convert the changes in resistance into a usable voltage signal, MR heads are typically biased with a current that creates a voltage drop across the resistive portion of the MR head. Ideally, the bias current is controlled so that any changes in the voltage drop across the MR head are attributed to changes in the resistance of the head. Thus, when the head is properly biased, the voltage across the head tracks the changes in the magnetic fields, making the voltage useful as a read signal.
Often, the voltage across the MR head is amplified by a differential amplifier. To improve the linearity of the differential amplifier, it is advantageous if the MR head is biased so that the MR head's two terminals have the same voltage magnitude but opposite voltage polarity from each other. When the MR head is biased in this manner, an increase in the resistance of the MR head due to a magnetic field causes an increase in the voltage of one terminal of the head and an equivalent decrease in the voltage of the other terminal of the head.
This type of biasing can be achieved using two different current sources, one coupled to each terminal of the MR head. The current sources and any additional biasing components, must be balanced relative to the MR head, so that the same magnitude voltage is developed at each terminal of the MR head. Thus, not only must the current sources create the same amount of current, but the impedance seen by one terminal of the MR head must be identical to the impedance seen by the other terminal of the MR head at all relevant frequencies (DC--200 MHz).
In some prior art biasing circuits, feedback loops have been used to keep the terminal voltages of the MR head centered about ground. These feedback loops use the voltages at the terminals of the MR head to control one of the current sources so that the voltages at the terminals are kept centered about ground. Although such feedback loops can be effective, they require a large number of devices to implement and are hampered by an inherent feedback loop delay.
In addition to having balanced current and resistive elements, the two terminals of the MR head should have matching frequency responses so as to remove any noise that is common to both current sources. In other words, an input noise signal that is common to both current sources should produce the same voltage increase or decrease at the two terminals of the MR head. If both terminals increase or decrease together, the voltage drop across the MR head remains the same and the common noise is not amplified. Common noise that is not amplified is considered suppressed or rejected, and this type of reaction to common noise is known as common mode rejection.
In MR head biasing circuits, common mode rejection is dependent on the capacitance seen by each terminal of the MR head since such capacitance determines the frequency response of each terminal. If one terminal sees more capacitance than the other terminal, the voltage at one terminal will change slower than the voltage at the other terminal for a given common noise signal. This will cause the common noise to be amplified by the differential amplifier and thereby will cause a deterioration of common mode rejection.
A second type of noise suppression is known as power supply rejection. This type of noise suppression attempts to eliminate noise that is found in only one of the two current or power sources.
In bias circuits that use feedback loops, power supply noise is reduced by monitoring the MR head's terminals for voltage offsets caused by power supply noise. If an offset is detected, the feedback loop is used to adjust one of the two current sources based on the offset voltage at the terminals of the head. By modifying one of the current sources, the voltage offset may be negated. Although such feedback circuits are effective at removing some noise frequencies, the delays inherent in the feedback loops limit the range of noise frequencies that the loops can suppress.
Power supply rejection can also be achieved by using capacitors. However, off-chip capacitors, those which are not formed within the same integrated circuit as the remainder of the biasing circuit, are expensive to add to the biasing circuit and, sometimes, are a source of additional noise in the circuit. Integrated circuit capacitors, although cheaper and easier to add to MR head biasing circuits, include unwanted parasitic capacitances.
The parasitic capacitances found in integrated circuit capacitors is caused by the physical structure of the capacitor, which is shown in cross-section in FIG. 2. The cross-section of FIG. 2 shows a typical integrated circuit capacitor with three terminal connections: upper-plate connection 20, lower-plate connection 22, and body connection 24. Preferably, all three terminal connections are composed of a metallic material. Upper-plate connection 20 has a large surface area composed of a width in the horizontal direction of FIG. 2 and a length in the direction orthogonal to the page of FIG. 2. This surface area allows upper-plate connection 20 to act as one plate of the capacitor.
Extending below the entirety of upper-plate connection 20 is insulating material 26. Insulating material 26 is typically formed as a single layer during the production of the capacitor. After insulating material 26 has been deposited, portions of the material are removed to provide openings so that lower-plate connection 22 and body connection 24 can make contact with parts of the capacitor located below insulating material 26.
Below insulating material 26, and extending under upper-plate connection 20 and lower-plate connection 22, is lower plate 30. Lower plate 30 is separated from upper-plate connection 20 by insulating material 26, but makes direct contact with lower-plate connection 22. Lower plate 30 is preferably constructed from a P-doped semi-conductor material. Lower plate 30, insulating material 26 and upper-plate connection 20 together form the desired nominal capacitance for this capacitor.
Lower plate 30 is deposited within body 28, also known as the tub. Body 28, which is deposited on a substrate 32, is in direct contact with body connection 24 and is preferably composed of an N-doped semi-conductor material. The fact that body 28 is N-doped and lower plate 30 is P-doped means that there is a P-N junction between lower plate 30 and body 28. This P-N junction creates the parasitic capacitance found in integrated circuit capacitors. Specifically, the P-N junction forms a significant junction capacitance because the P-N junction must be reverse biased at all times to prevent current from flowing from the lower plate to the body. This junction capacitance is not fixed, but instead, increases as the reverse-bias voltage across the junction increases. Thus, the parasitic capacitance is a function of the voltage difference between the body and the lower plate.
This parasitic capacitance makes it difficult to add integrated circuit capacitors to MR head biasing circuits since all of the capacitance added to the circuit must be balanced relative to the two terminals of the MR head to ensure good common mode rejection. Thus, both the nominal capacitance and the parasitic capacitance must be balanced in the circuit so that the two terminals of the MR head have the same frequency response to common noise. In the prior art, this balance has not been achieved, partly because the parasitic capacitance is voltage dependent. In some circuit layouts, this voltage dependence causes one terminal of the MR head to see a larger parasitic capacitance than the other terminal of the MR head, simply because one terminal is at a higher voltage than the other terminal. Thus, it has been difficult to achieve both high power supply and common mode rejection in MR head biasing circuits.

Open-loop MR biasing circuit with high power supply and common mode rejection


The invention relates to a method for realizing surface acoustic wave filter arrangements of the kind comprising a piezo-electric substrate and on said substrate metallic strip elements constituting impedance filter elements arranged in a network scheme. In such an arrangement by electrostatic interaction between the network elements is produced a parasitic resonance at a frequency different from the operational resonance frequency. The method is characterized in that means are provided in the filter arrangement which produce a shifting of the parasitic resonance frequency to a frequency substantially equal to said operational resonance frequency. The invention can be used for filter arrangements.

Surface acoustic wave filter arrangements of this kind are already known. The FIG. 1 shows a portion of such a network realized in the shape of a ladder network, the circuit diagram of which is shown on FIG. 2. On this figure, between an input terminal 1 and an output terminal 2 a plurality of seriesly connected impedance elements 3 are shown with a parallel impedance element 4 between respectively the input terminal 1, the output terminal 2 and the nodes 5 between two adjacent series impedance elements 3 on the one hand, and the ground 6 on the other hand. On the FIG. 1, the series impedance elements 3 are realized as upper and lower metallic strips forming bus-bars 7, 8 deposited on a piezoelectric substrate (not shown). The parallel impedance elements 4 are realized as inter-digital electrodes 9, 10 extending perpendicularly respectively from the upper bus-bar 7 and the lower bus-bar 8.
The FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate the electrical behaviour of a ladder network in accordance to the FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 3 shows the simulated impedance performance Zi/Zo of impedance elements 3 and 4, Zi and Zo being the input and output impedances. The first impedance element 3 has a low impedance of for instance 1 Ohm, at a resonance frequency f1 and a high impedance of for instance 1000 Ohms, at an anti-resonance frequency f2. The second impedance element is shifted in frequency so that the resonance frequency f1 of the series impedance element 3 and the anti-resonance frequency f4 of the parallel impedance element 4 were about the same.
The simulation of this impedance element arrangement yields the electrical bandpass filter performance such as shown on FIG. 4 for a Γ-type scheme with a passband around f1 and f4 and deep notches at f2 and f3. This figure shows the dependency of the amplitude AM in dB from the frequency f in MHz.
In practice the real impedance performance differs from the illustrated simulated performance, particularly due to parasitic effects. One of these is caused by the electrostatic interaction between the bus-bars 7 and 8 and the edges 12 of the inter-digital electrodes 9 and 10. This electrostatic interaction creates a periodic charge and electric field distribution in the bus-bar area 13 adjacent the corresponding inter-digital electrodes edge 12 and in the gap 14 with the same periodicity as for inter-digital electrodes 9, 10. On the FIG. 4 the electric field distribution is illustrated by arrows. Both the gap electrical field and the bus-bar charge distribution create a parasitic acoustic resonance on a higher frequency, the frequency shift and the amplitude of which depend on substrate material, metal thickness, mark-to-period ratio and is usually in a range of 0.01 to 1% for the frequency shift and in a range of 0.1 to 10% for the amplitude. Due to this parasitic interaction the real passband of an impedance element filter is narrower than the simulation made without taking into account the parasitic interaction.
The FIG. 5 illustrates the frequency response FR of a 947.5 MHz surface acoustic wave filter whereon the dashed line indicates measured values and the solid line the simulated filter response. It is to be noted that the 3 dB level L of the measured curve has a width of 5 MHz less than the simulated curve, on the lower frequency side of the centre frequency. In the filter which has been used the parallel impedance elements 4 were about four times longer than the length of the elements 3. When the length of the series impedance elements 3 is greater than the length of the parallel elements 4, the main difference between the measured and the simulated curve is on the side of the higher frequencies with respect to the centre frequency of the passband.
A second parasitic effect resides in the wave-guide mode excitation.

Method for realizing surface acoustic wave filter arrangements and filter arrangement obtained in accordance to this method


Flame retardant formulations comprising boric acid and diammonium phosphate are disclosed herein. Such formulations are in an aqueous form or a powdered form. Methods of generating a flame retardant formulation are also disclosed herein. Such methods comprise combining boric acid and diammonium phosphate in an aqueous solution, wherein the boric acid and the diammonium phosphate is in a ratio range selected from the group consisting of 1:1 to 99:1 and 1:1 to 1:99; and heating the solution until dissolved; thereby generating a flame retardant formulation, wherein the flame retardant formulation consists essentially of boric acid and diammonium phosphate.

Flame retardants are generally well known for the treatment of fires and as a fire prevention tool. They are chemical compounds used in thermosets, textiles and coatings that inhibit or resist the spread of fire. Flame retardants are typically added to consumer products to meet flammability standards for furniture, textiles, electronics, and insulation.
Many combinations of inorganic and organic chemicals such as chlorinated organic compounds, amino compounds, asbestos, urea, melamine, antimony trioxide and mixtures thereof, have been used in flame retardants. However, many of these compounds utilize toxic chemicals such as halogenated compounds that have negative effects on the environment and human health. Indeed, these toxic compounds have been known to degrade over time in the end products in which they've been either integrated in or coated on, emitting toxic gasses that have been linked to several cancers and neurological diseases. (Roze et al. Environmental Health Perspectives (December 2009) 117(12): 1953-1958)
Many of the starting chemicals and halogenated compounds used in current flame retardancy methods require additives in the manufacturing process to neutralize pH. In addition, existing flame retardant formulations tend to impair the integrity of the materials in which they are integrated in or coated on. Such flame retardant formulations are readily available in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,270,694 discloses urea-organic compound-based flame retardants.
The non-toxic flame retardant formulations of the present invention are generated by the reaction of boric acid with diammonium phosphate. U.S. Pat. No. 5,082,640 discloses methods of reacting boric acid with diammonium phosphate for generating luminescent grade boron phosphate for fluorescent lamp phosphors. However, the methods disclosed require a wash step with ammonium hydroxide which washes away excess boric acid. The resulting luminescent grade boron phosphate contains a homogenous mix of equal parts boric acid and diammonium phosphate.
Accordingly, these references do not disclose the embodiments of the present invention.
Therefore, a need exists in the art for an improved non-toxic, yet effective flame retardant formulation. In particular, there exists a need for an improved method of bringing flame retardancy to products without impairing the desired structural integrity of the materials within the products. The flame retardants of the present invention offer such improved flame retardant formulations and methods for bringing flame retardancy to consumer products.
All documents and references cited herein and in the referenced patent documents, are hereby incorporated herein by reference.

Flame-retardant formulations and methods relating thereto


A color printer is disclosed which includes a photosensitive drum, a rotary developing device, a laser unit, a toner container, and a toner supply device. The rotary developing device is located adjacent to the photosensitive drum and includes a plurality of developing units corresponding to a plurality of colors. The laser unit is located above the photosensitive drum and on the rear side in the device. The toner container is located above the photosensitive drum and on the front side in the device. The toner container contains each color toner to be supplied to each of the developing units. The toner supply device is located above the photosensitive drum and between the laser unit and the toner container. The toner supply device supplies each of the developing units with each of color toners contained in the toner container.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a color image forming device, and more particularly to a color image forming device that includes a rotary developing device for rotating a plurality of developing units for development, and a toner container located apart from the developing device from which toner is supplied to the developing units.
2. Background Information
A color image forming device includes a plurality of developing units corresponding to a plurality of color toners. The developing units are arranged in several ways, such as in a lateral direction, around the photosensitive drum in a circumferential direction, and within a rotary frame located adjacent to the photosensitive drum.
The rotary developing device having a plurality of the developing units within the rotary frame is shown in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-182768. In this device, the rotary frame is rotatably located adjacent to the photosensitive drum, and supports four color developing units. When the rotary frame is rotated, each of the developing units is sequentially placed opposite the photosensitive drum so as to develop each color.
In addition, other types of the rotary developing device have been proposed so as to reduce the size of the rotary frame, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publications No. 10-198149 and No. 2001-134045. The rotary developing device includes a toner container located apart from the developing units supported by the rotary frame. In this device, the toner is supplied from the toner container to the developing units through a toner supply device including toner supply pipes.
In the device, the toner container is located separate and apart from the developing device so that the developing units are downsized and the rotary frame is also downsized. However, it is necessary to ensure a space for the toner container, otherwise the image forming device as a whole may grow in size even though the rotary frame itself is reduced in size. In this respect, the device shown in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-134045 includes a toner container located at an axial end of the rotary developing device so as to provide a long axial length, although Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10-198149 does not show the specific location of the toner container.
In the image forming device, a fixing device is typically composed of a fixing roller having a heat source and a pressing roller. In the image forming process, it is necessary to keep the fixing roller at a high temperature to fix the toner image to the transfer sheet, thereby generating radiant heat. In addition, a driving motor for driving the photosensitive drum generates heat in the imager forming process. These heat sources increase temperature in the image forming device, and thus the quality of formed images and the lifespan of the mechanical components in the image forming device might be affected. In particular, some image forming devices are downsized and the layout in the device is restricted so that low heat resistance components and heat sources may be located close together.
In order to solve the problem, in the device shown in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-98860, heat from the fixing device is exhausted so as to prevent the temperature in the image forming device from increasing and improve the quality of the formed image. In the device shown in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-98860, an exhausting means is provided to guide the heat generated by the fixing means to a conveyance path located above the fixing means by means of natural convection. Although it is possible to exhaust the heat from the fixing means in this device, it is necessary to further prepare a cooling duct for exhausting the heat from other heat sources, and thus it is difficult to further reduce the image forming device in size.
It is an object of the present invention to reduce the size of the rotary developing device without letting the image forming device grow in size.
It is another object of the present invention to reduce the image forming device in size and cost by exhausting the heat from the heat sources through a minimum space for cooling.


A developing device includes a storage portion storing a developer, a conveying portion stirring and conveying the developer in the storage portion, a sensor, an acquisition processing portion, and a correction processing portion. The sensor outputs an electrical signal in accordance with magnetic permeability at a predetermined detection position in a conveyance path of the developer. The acquisition processing portion acquires a specific value based on the electrical signal outputted during a rotation period of the conveying portion. The correction processing portion corrects the specific value based on a rotation speed of the conveying portion when a fluctuation width of the electrical signal outputted during the rotation period of the conveying portion is less than a predetermined threshold, and corrects the specific value based on the rotation speed of the conveying portion and the fluctuation width when the fluctuation width is equal to or greater than the threshold.

The present disclosure relates to a developing device, an image forming apparatus, and a developer detection method.
An electrophotographic image forming apparatus includes a developing device configured to develop an electrostatic latent image that is formed on an image-carrying member such as a photoconductor drum. The developing device includes a storage portion that stores a developer such as a toner. The developing device develops the electrostatic latent image using the developer stored in the storage portion.
For example, the storage portion of this type of developing device stores two-component developer containing non-magnetic developer and magnetic carrier. In addition, the storage portion has a conveying portion and a sensor. The conveying portion is rotatably provided in the storage portion, and conveys the developer and the carrier while stirring the developer and the carrier. The sensor outputs an electrical signal in accordance with permeability at a predetermined detection position in a conveyance path of the developer and the carrier that are conveyed by the conveying portion. The sensor is used for detecting a storage amount of the developer of the storage portion.
When a rotation speed of the conveying portion increases, an amount of the carrier scooped by the conveying portion increases, thereby causing density of the carrier at the detection position to decrease. Accordingly, an output of the sensor changes regardless of whether the storage amount of the developer in the storage portion changes. Therefore, in a configuration in which the rotation speed of the conveying portion can be changed, detection accuracy of the storage amount of the developer in the storage portion decreases. To overcome this problem, an image forming apparatus that corrects an output value of the sensor based on the rotation speed of the conveying portion has been known, focusing on a fact that there is a relationship that can be expressed by a linear expression between the rotation speed of the conveying portion and the output value of the sensor.

Developing device capable of detecting storage amount of developer, image forming apparatus, and developer detection method


A curable composition includes a functionalized poly(arylene ether) resin, an acryloyl monomer, and a phosphorus flame retardant. The composition exhibits an improved balance of properties such as toughness, flame retardance, heat-resistance, and moisture resistance. It is useful, for example, as an encapsulant for semiconductor products.

Curable compositions are often used to encapsulate electronic components. These encapsulating materials must be self-extinguishing in the case of ignition. Commercially available compositions for encapsulation typically employ a combination of halogenated aromatic compounds and antimony oxides to achieve flame retardance. However, the halogenated aromatic compounds interfere with the recycling of electronic devices, and concerns have been raised about health effects associated with antimony oxides. There is therefore a need for flame-retardant encapsulant compositions that reduce or eliminate halogenated aromatic compounds and antimony oxides while maintaining or improving the balance of toughness, heat resistance, and moisture resistance.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Flame-retardant thermoset composition, method, and article


The invention provides purified human metabotropic glutamate receptors, compositions comprising such receptors, and nucleic acids that encode such receptors.

Metabotropic glutamate receptors (hmGluR) belong to the class of G-protein (guanine nucleotide binding protein) coupled receptors which upon binding of a glutamatergic ligand may transduce an extracellular signal via an intracellular second messenger system such as calcium ions, a cyclic nucleotide, diacylglycerol and inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate into a physiological response. Possessing seven putative transmembrane spanning segments, preceded by a large extracellular amino-terminal domain and followed by a large carboxy-terminal domain metabotropic glutamate receptors are characterized by a common structure. Based on the degree of sequence identity at the amino acid level the class of mGluR can be divided into different subfamilies comprising individual receptor subtypes (Nakanishi, Science 258, 597–603 (1992)). Each mGluR subtype is encoded by a unique gene. Regarding the homology of an individual mGluR subtype to another subtype of a different subfamily, the amino acid sequences are less than about 50% identical. Within a subfamily the degree of sequence identity is generally less than about 70%. Thus a particular subtype may be characterized by its amino acid sequence homology to another mGluR subtype, especially a subtype of the same mammalian species. Furthermore, a particular subtype may be characterized by its region and tissue distribution, its cellular and subcellular expression pattern or by its distinct physiological profile, e.g. by its electrophysiological and pharmacological properties.
The amino acid L-glutamate being the major excitatory neurotransmitter, glutamatergic systems are presumed to play an important role in numerous neuronal processes including fast excitatory synaptic transmission, regulation of neurotransmitter releases, long-term potentation, learning and memory, developmental synaptic plasticity, hypoxic-ischemic damage and neuronal cell death, epileptiform seizures, as well as the pathogenesis of several neurodegenerative disorders. Up to today, no information is available on human metabotropic glutamate receptor (hmGluR) subtypes, e.g. on their amino acid sequence or tissue distribution. This lack of knowledge particularly hampers the search for human therapeutic agents capable of specifically influencing any disorder attributable to a defect in the glutamatergic system. In view of the potential physiological and pathological significance of metabotropic glutamate receptors, there is a need for human receptor subtypes and cells producing such subtypes in amounts sufficient for elucidating the electrophysiological and pharmacological properties of these proteins. For example, drug screening assays require purified human receptor proteins in an active form, which have not yet been attainable.

Human metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype mGluR7b


The invention provides a novel nitrogen-containing heterocyclic derivative having 2,6-disubstituted styryl and a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, and a pharmaceutical composition comprising the nitrogen-containing heterocyclic derivative and a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, in particular, a pharmaceutical composition effective as a sodium channel inhibitor, having an excellent analgesic action especially on neuropathic pain with minimized side effects.

A voltage-dependent sodium channel is a protein responsible for the initiation and propagation of action potentials in neurons. The voltage-dependent sodium channel is composed of one larger α subunit with four domains, each consisting of six transmembrane segments, as a common structure and two smaller β subunits. A major part of the channel function is played by α subunit. To date, more than 10 different α subunit subtypes have been known (Goldin A L, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 868:38-50, 1999). Each voltage-dependent sodium channel subtype shows distinct distributions in the central and peripheral nerve tissues. These subtypes regulate neural excitability and play an important role in regulating physiological functions in individual tissues. It is also suggested that they are deeply associated with various pathological conditions (Goldin A L, Annual Review of Physiology 63:871-894, 2001).
In recent years, it has become clear that voltage-dependent sodium channels are deeply involved in neural transmission of pain, and sodium channel blockers are expected to be excellent pain therapeutics, especially neuropathic pain therapeutics (Taylor C P, Current Pharmaceutical Design 2: 375-388, 1996).
Neuropathic pain means a pain that results from dysfunction in the central or peripheral neurons and refers to diabetic neuropathic pain, cancer pain, trigeminal neuralgia, phantom limb, post herpetic neuralgia, thalamic pain, etc. The clinical picture of neuropathic pain includes stabbing pain, burning pain, hyperalgesia, allodynia, etc.
In medical scenes, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, narcotic analgesics such as morphine, etc. are used for the purpose of relieving pain. Recently, antiarrhythmic drugs and anticonvulsants, which are sodium channel blockers, have come to be used as well, for the purpose of relieving pain.
The non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are not completely satisfied in terms of analgesic actions and involve the problem of side effects such as gastrointestinal disturbance or renal disorder. The narcotic analgesics such as morphine are effective for nociceptive pain, but encounter serious side effects on the alimentary, respiratory or central nervous system. In addition, these drugs are generally less effective for neuropathic pain.
The antiarrhythmic drugs such as lidocaine or mexiletine and the anticonvulsants such as carbamazepine, which are sodium channel blockers, have come to be used to relieve pain. Mexiletine has been approved and is available as an anti-diabetic neuropathic pain drug. However, these sodium channel blockers involve problems that they have central side effects such as convulsions or drowsiness, or peripheral side effects such as bradycardia and hence, have difficulty to increase a dose to a sufficient level, resulting in failure to achieve satisfactory analgesic effects.
As above, analgesics that are useful for the treatment of neuropathic pain and are excellent in safety have not been found yet. Accordingly, sodium channel blockers having an excellent analgesic action especially on neuropathic pain with minimized side effects have been desired.
Lidocaine, mexiletine, carbamazepine, etc. mentioned above are reported but do not fall under nitrogen-containing heterocyclic derivatives having styryl group.
Derivatives having a 1-pyridylalkylpiperidine as a basic skeleton are disclosed and have a sodium channel inhibitory activity (Patent Literature 1). In this literature, compounds having 2-cyclohexylmethyloxy-6-fluorophenylethenyl on the piperidine ring as a substituent are disclosed.
Also, compounds containing a mono-substituted phenylethenyl having a halogen or cyclohexylmethyloxy at the 2- or 3-position of a 1-aromatic heterocyclic group-alkylpiperidine ring as a substituent are described (Patent Literature 2).
On the other hand, compounds, not as sodium inhibitors but as metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) inhibitors and analgesics, which are one of therapeutics for various diseases, based on mGluR inhibitory effects are disclosed (Patent Literatures 3-4). Specifically, there are described 2-pyridine compounds having styryl group (Patent Literature 3), thiazole, oxazole, 1,2,4-thiadiazole, 1,2,4-oxadiazole, 1H-1,2,4-triazole, 2-oxo-1,3,4-oxathiazole, 2H-tetrazole, 2-pyridine, pyridinium, pirazine, indolinium, benzothiophene, benzothiazonium, quinoline or quinolium compounds having styryl group (Patent Literature 4), imidazole compounds having styryl group (Patent Literature 5), and imidazole, 1,2,4-triazole or 2H-tetrazole compounds having styryl group (Patent Literature 6), but these compounds are unsaturated heterocyclic compounds having styryl group.
Furthermore, piperidine compounds having benzyl or phenylmethylene based on NMDA/NR2B antagonizing effect are disclosed (Patent Literature 7).
On the other hand, nitrogen-containing heterocyclic derivatives having styryl group, which are formed by combining groups, are disclosed (Patent Literatures 8 and 9) and among these derivatives, only the compounds that phenyl group and a nitrogen-containing heterocyclic ring are combined via a —O-lower alkylene-(Patent Literature 3), a —S-lower alkylene- or a -lower alkylene-C(O)O— are specifically disclosed (Patent Literature 4) but nitrogen-containing heterocyclic derivatives are neither disclosed specifically nor even suggested. Moreover, these derivatives are used as calcium channel antagonists (Patent Literature 8) or for promotion of acetylcholine release (Patent Literature 9) but nothing is disclosed or even suggested on any sodium channel inhibitory activity or any analgesic action.    Patent Literature 1    European Patent Publication No. 1254904    Patent Literature 2    WO03/84948 Pamphlet    Patent Literature 3    WO99/02497 Pamphlet    Patent Literature 4    WO01/16121 Pamphlet    Patent Literature 5    WO02/46166 Pamphlet    Patent Literature 6    WO99/08678 Pamphlet    Patent Literature 7    WO01/32615 Pamphlet    Patent Literature 8    WO94/13291 Pamphlet    Patent Literature 9    WO97/19059 Pamphlet

Nitrogen—containing heterocyclic derivatives having 2,6-disubstituted styryl


A support device selectively disposed between a floor surface and a lower surface of distal end of a cantilever toilet in which a base defines a surface oriented at an oblique angle relative to a horizontal plane and with a guide rail attached to an upper portion of the base substantially parallel to the upper surface. A traveler operatively engaged to the guide member moves on the upper surface for selective positioning to bear against a lower surface of a cantilever toilet. A method of supporting a cantilever toilet is disclosed.

Recent years have seen increasing numbers of bariatric patients who suffer from obesity or weight significantly in excess of typical weights for individuals. For example, persons having a body mass index of 40 or greater (or often more than one hundred pounds over conventionally recommended body weight), may be considered morbidly obese. Special surgeries are available for such individuals, and hospitals handling this medical condition typically have facilities equipped for providing physical support and assistance to such individuals for accomplishing typical and ordinary physical functions. Additional supports are needed because the increased mass imposes higher than normal loadings on commonly used devices such as toilet bowls, chairs, beds, and the like.
Additional supports are particularly needed to assist the bariatric patient with using bathroom devices such as toilet bowls. Many facilities use cantilever mounted toilet bowls, whereby one end of the toilet bowl connects to a support in the wall. Cantilever toilets facilitate cleaning and mopping of the floor. The other support devices include rails mounted above the toilet bowl to facilitate grasping by the bariatric patient in order to assist use of the toilet bowl. However, such entrance and egress supports do not provide support to the cantilever toilet bowl, and the full weight of the bariatric patient on the toilet bowl can lead to failure and collapse of the toilet bowl.
While facilities especially designed for treating bariatric patients include floor-supported toilets, medical facilities are finding an increasing number of bariatric patients admitted for other reasons. Typical hospital rooms are configured for bathroom devices supporting patients of average weights, and particularly cantilever toilet bowls. Yet these fail to adequately provide reliable support to a heavily loaded toilet bowl, such as may be necessary for a bariatric patient.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a device for selectively and conveniently providing support to cantilever toilet bowls that are subject periodically to high mass loading. It is to such that the present invention is directed.

Support device for cantilever toilet bowl


A new and distinct Rhipsalis cultivar named ‘RUITMAGI’ is disclosed, characterized by very compact growth form, large numbers of side shoots and with fresh shoots of a slightly red color. The new variety is a Rhipsalis, typically produced as an ornamental plant.

This application relates to a new cultivar of Rhipsalis. The new variety is the product of chance discovery, by the inventor, Jacco de Ruiter. The new variety originated as a naturally occurring whole plant mutation from an unnamed, unpatented commercial variety Rhipsalis lindbergiana.
The new variety was first selected by the inventor, in the breeder's commercial greenhouse in Nieuwerkerk, Netherlands during 2009. After identifying the new variety as a potentially interesting selection, the inventor continued confidential testing and propagation of 'RUITMAGI', assessing stability of the unique characteristics of this variety.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar 'RUITMAGI' was first performed at in the breeder's commercial greenhouse in Nieuwerkerk, Netherlands by vegetative cuttings in 2010. Access to all plants was restricted, as plants were kept in a greenhouse not open to the public. Through subsequent propagation, around 6 generations have been reproduced, which have shown that the unique features of this cultivar are stable and reproduced true to type.


A method for forming a field oxide of a semiconductor device is disclosed, which takes advantage of wet oxidation at an early stage of field oxidation to prevent the ungrowth of field oxide and dry oxidation at a later stage of field oxidation to make the slope of field oxide positive, thereby improving the production yield and the reliability of semiconductor device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to a method for forming a field oxide of a semiconductor device and, more particularly, to a method by which the ungrowth of field oxide is prevented and a gate oxide enhanced in reliability can be produced.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In order to better understand the background of the invention, a description will be given of the conventional method of forming a field oxide in conjunction with figures.
Referring to FIG. 1, there are illustrated processes of forming a field oxide, according to the conventional technique.
First, as shown in FIG. 1a, prepared a semiconductor substrate 1 is over which a pad oxide 2 and a first nitride 3 are sequentially formed, through which the first nitride 3 with a mask at a predetermined field region is etched. At this time, the first nitride 3 is over-etched in such a way that the semiconductor substrate 1 is recessed to a predetermined thickness, for example, about 50-100 Angstrom.
On the resulting structure a second nitride 4 is then deposited, as shown in FIG. 1b.
Subsequently, the whole surface of the second nitride 4 is subjected to dry etching without any mask, to form a nitride spacer 4', as shown in FIG. 1c.
A further dry etching process is executed to recess the exposed region of the semiconductor substrate 1, as shown in FIG. 1d. At this time, since the etching selection ratio of silicon to nitride has a certain value, the nitride 3 of the active region, besides the semiconductor substrate 1 of the field region, is partially etched to create nitride residues R, which are collected in the recess. At a site with a relatively small area ratio of active region to field region, such as the cell region of a memory device, the nitride residues are produced at a small amount. But, a significant amount of the nitride residues is produced in a site which has a much larger area of active region than that of field region, for example, at a peripheral circuit region. The nitride residues R produced in the silicon recess etch process are either released or redeposited on the gorge shape field region. As an example of the latter case, because such residues occur at a significant amount at a field region of a peripheral circuit site, part of the residues remain on the bottom of the field region.
FIG. 1e is a cross section after an additional dry etch is performed to remove the residues. However, as seen, the nitride residues are not completely removed by the additional etch but remain thin and partial.
When field oxidation is applied under this state, the following properties appear depending on oxidation conditions. Herein, because it takes too much time for dry oxidation, the properties are those which are obtained on the assumption that the field oxidation is executed in a manners only.
When a part of the nitride residues R remain, a wet field oxidation using hydrogen and oxygen allows the normal growth of a field oxide 5 as shown in FIG. 2a. This is because wet oxidation has an excellent ability to oxidize nitride components.
When a dry field oxidation using oxygen alone is carried out, the field oxide thus obtained has an abnormal shape, owing to the residues, in that the field oxide does not grow at the central portion, as shown in FIG. 2b. This is attributed to the fact that dry oxidation is far inferior to wet oxidation in oxidizing the nitride residues R.
However, at a site with a large ratio of active region to field region, even dry field oxidation can make the field oxide grow normally because there are no nitride residues, as shown in FIG. 2c.
FIG. 3 illustrates different points in the shape of the field oxides which are formed in wet and dry field oxidation manner.
FIGS. 3a and 3b show the field oxides which are obtained by carrying out a wet oxidation process at a temperature of 950.degree. C. and 1,100.degree. C., respectively, while the field oxide of FIG. 3c is obtained by carrying out a field oxidation at a temperature of 1,100.degree. C. in a dry manner. As seen, while the field oxide under a nitride spacer has a negative slope at such a low temperature of 950.degree. C. Even at a relatively high temperature of 1,100.degree. C., the slope of the field oxide obtained becomes near zero. In the case that the slope of the field oxide is negative or zero, when a gate oxide is formed after the removal of the nitrides 3 and 4 and a sacrificial oxidation process, an electric field is focused on the boundary between the field oxide and the gate oxide, leading to a degradation of the reliability of the gate oxide.
In FIG. 4, the reliability of the gate oxide obtained under conventional wet field oxidation is shown. As shown in FIG. 4, the reliability is poor because the slope of the field oxide is negative or zero.
Dry field oxidation at 1,100.degree. C. gives a positive slope to the field oxide 5 under a nitride spacer, as shown in FIG. 3c. In this case, the phenomenon where an electric field is focused on the boundary at which the field oxide meets the gate oxide is prevented.
As afore illustrated, carrying out dry field oxidation in the presence of the nitride residues, by-products which are produced in a significant amount in a large active region-to-field region site such as a peripheral circuit region when forming a field oxide, results in abnormally growing the field oxide at the center of the field region. Further, when the conventional wet field oxidation process is executed, the field oxide has a negative or zero slope at the boundary to the active region, degrading the properties of the gate oxide.

Method for forming field oxide of semiconductor device using wet and dry oxidation

Hyundai Electronics Industries Co., Ltd.


A measurement method, comprising acquiring, by a measurement apparatus, a plurality of at least three measurement segments, wherein each measurement segment is acquired at a corresponding measurement time, and wherein time information is gathered, wherein the time information allows to derive ratios of time differences between said measurement times; and playing back the plurality of at least three measurement segments, wherein each measurement segment is played back at a corresponding playback time, and wherein, using said time information, the playback times are chosen such that ratios of time differences between said playback times correspond to ratios of time differences between the corresponding measurement times.

An electronic measurement apparatus, such as an oscilloscope, generates an electronic signal which corresponds to a measured physical quantity. For example, the measurement apparatus may determine the response of a device under test to a test signal with varying frequency.
Often, the user wants to know how the response changes if certain components or electronic properties of the device under test are adjusted or changed. Therefore, the measurement apparatus may comprise a memory for storing the measured signal. The user may then select a specific measurement segment of the plurality of measurement segments and display the measurement segment. However, it is difficult to obtain information regarding the time behavior of the measurement segments by accessing single measurement segments, only.
Therefore, there is a need for an improved visualization of the time behavior of measurements.

Measurement method and measurement apparatus