The invention comprises a method for synthesizing polyethylene terephthalate from waste polyethylene terephthalate by cleavage with ethylene glycol and separation of bis(hydroxyethylene) terephthalate from the cleavage mixture with a specific temperature program, recrystallization from water, and esterification and polycondensation with the addition of terephthalic acid.. The invention further comprises a method for synthesis of polyethylene naphthalate from waste polyethylene naphthalate in a similar manner.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns a process for synthesizing of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) from polyethylene terephthalate waste by cleavage with ethylene glycol, separation of bis(hydroxyethylene) terephthalate (BHET) from the cleavage mixture, and esterification and polycondensation of BHET with terephthalic acid. The invention also concerns a process for producing polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) from polyethylene naphthalate waste by cleavage with ethylene glycol, separation of bis(hydroxyethylene) naphthalate (BHEN) from the cleavage mixture, and esterification and polycondensation of the BHEN with naphthalene dicarboxylic acid.
2. Summary of the Related Art
PET is produced on a large scale in order to manufacture from it products such as textile fibers and packaging materials. After use of these products, considerable quantities of wastes consisting essentially of PET are generated. These wastes often include mixtures with other polymers such as polyvinyl chloride, polyolefins, and other polymers. For ecological as well as economic reasons, it is desirable to recycle the main component of the waste, namely PET, in a production process to permit unlimited use of the newly synthesized PET.
It is known that PET wastes can be cleaved with the help of ethylene glycol, and then the cleavage mixture can be subsequently filtered and subjected to polycondensation while distilling off ethylene glycol and reaction water (British Patent No. 610,136, U.S. Pat. No. 3,222,299, European Patent no. A 174,062). However, these methods are suitable only for pure, unused PET wastes without any additives. Otherwise, contaminated glycolyzation product or PET is obtained that is not suitable for most applications. The delustering agents present in fiber wastes can be removed by treating the cleavage mixture with active carbon, celite, bentonite, etc. and then filtering (Italian Patent No. 702,065). Most contaminants, however, require that the BHET formed by cleavage be subjected to recrystallization from water before renewed polymerization (British Patent No. 610,136, East German Patent No. 13,537, Japanese Patent No. B 70-41,215, Indian Patent No. 143,323, European Patent No. A 723,951) or that the BHET first be hydrolyzed to terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol, which are then purified by crystallization and distillation (European Patent No. A 641,366).
One problem is the separation of BHET from the cleavage mixture prior to the purification step. BHET is obtained as an amorphous to very finely crystalline mass that is difficult to separate. On a very small scale, starting with 1 to 2.5 g PET, BHET yields of 55% to 70% are obtained when using ethylene glycol and approximately 82% when using mother liquor by cooling to 0.degree. C. (German Patent No. B 1,052,394). When cooled rapidly to 90.degree.-100.degree. C. and then cooled slowly to 20.degree. C., yields of approximately 75% are obtained when starting from 20 g PET (Indian Patent No. 143,323). However, these results obtained on a small scale cannot be scaled up to an industrial level--a pasty mixture is obtained, and the liquid containing glycol cannot be separated completely from the paste.
In addition, it is also known that BHET synthesized from the monomer can be reacted with terephthalic acid in the presence of a catalyst to yield PET (British Patent No. 775,030, U.S. Pat. No. 3,070,575). Use of BHET obtained from PET waste is not mentioned.
It is also known that dimethyl naphthalene-2,6-dicarboxylate can be produced by cleavage of PEN with methanol or with ethylene glycol and subsequent ester exchange with methanol (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,876,378 and 5,430,174). However, production of BHEN is not disclosed.
The object of the present invention is to improve the profitability of the production of high-quality PET from waste PET by cleavage with ethylene glycol and subsequent polycondensation on an industrial scale. In particular, the object of this invention is to provide conditions for the crystallization of BHET in the cleavage mixture so that only large crystals that can be separated almost completely from the liquid phase are formed. The object of this invention is also to produce PEN from waste PEN by cleavage with ethylene glycol and subsequent polycondensation.

Process for the synthesis of polyethylene carboxylate from polyethylene carboxylate waste


Fluid delivery systems, methods and apparatus to dispense a dose of fluid on an animal, which may be particularly used for behavior modification of the animal, are disclosed. A system may particularly comprise an apparatus wearable by the animal. The apparatus is suitable for storing a fluid contained therein, and dispensing a dose of fluid on the animal, particularly to spur or otherwise induce behavior modification of the animal, particularly in response to training stimuli during a training scenario.

Fluid spray dispensing collar based training devices for canines have existed at least since approximately 1986, at which time a fluid spray release animal training system was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,627,385, entitled "Bark Restraining Device for Dogs", to Vinci.
Since their inception, fluid spray training collars have proved as effective, and far more humane, than collars applying a variable and often painful electric shock to a canine's throat region as an aversive training technique. However, while it may be generally well known that electric shock aversive training is effective, it is not as well know that releasing one or more sprays of a harmless fluid under a canine's chin as an irritant aversive may be equally, if not more, effective as an aversive training tool.
Since 1986, new applications using pressurized fluid spray release in human-animal interactions have been developed. However, not all applications have been aversive based applications. For example, fluid spray rewards based training is also possible. Moreover, in addition to aversive training for barking control, fluid spray release based aversive training systems for boundary and barrier control have been developed, as well as remote aversive training techniques.
However, none of the advancements in the field of animal spray training are understood to have addressed the storage tank arrangement and size (capacity), limiting factors in prior fluid spray dispensing collar devices. Prior spray dispensing collars have been limited in the tank size (capacity) for containing the pressurized fluid, as the only ergonomic location for the storage tank has been to include the tank in an enclosure *housing that hangs off the neck of the animal, which includes all the electronic and related components of the sprayer. For example, the enclosure housing that holds the storage tank also specifically holds the complex electronic printed circuit boards with all the signal processing and voltage regulating components, a release valve and solenoid for the spray, and a battery with a large capacity enough to run the associated circuitry.
Crowding all components into a single enclosure housing that hangs off the neck of the animal severely limits space (volume) for the pressurized holding tank. As such, often times the tank is exhausted prior to a successful training session, or before the animal ceases the undesired behavior. This requires a break in training to refill the tank, which reduces the effectiveness of the fluid spray dispensing collar.
Furthermore, an additional challenge of locating the storage tank in the enclosure housing that hangs off the neck of the animal has been leak prevention. Known storage tanks include a seam, and the length of the seam is vulnerable to a range of small leaks to complete seam failure, due to the constant pressure against the seam of the pressurized fluid, as well as the chemical nature of the fluid (liquid spray) propellant.
Attempts to minimize leaks have ranged from ultrasonic sealing of the seam to adding gaskets or "O" rings. However, a tank solution that eliminates seams and the need for gaskets, as well as minimizes entry and exit ports, is long overdue.
Moreover, an additional limiting factor regarding the storage tank is that the pressurized fluid requires head space, which further minimizes space for actual fluid. Head space may be understood as a volume inside the tank that does not contain any fluid for releasing. Rather, head space is the volume inside the tank reserved for the pressure that is necessary for any propellant to push the fluid out of the tank when the release valve is activated.
While, in theory, a larger capacity tank could be applied inside the single enclosure housing with the other sprayer components, such a larger capacity tank is not believed to have ever been put into practice, as this would make the enclosure housing hanging off the neck of the animal too weighty and/or cumbersome to effectively work as designed, or too awkward and unmanageable that the pet owner or trainer would choose not to put it on the animal for training. This is especially restrictive for smaller animals that are to be trained, where a large reservoir within the enclosure housing, by nature of their size, exclude smaller animals from practical usage.
A solution is one that moves the tank outside of the enclosure housing, which permits use of a smaller, more aesthetically pleasing housing which may not even appear as a training device. As such, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide a system with a seamless external pressurized storage tank, which increases fluid and head capacity, and which is connected to a separate enclosure housing containing a complex printed circuit board, a solenoid driven release valve and a battery, all while minimizing the volume the system occupies.

Fluid delivery systems, methods and apparatus to dispense fluid on an animal


Techniques for connecting known entities to a protected network are described. A user device with a certified application installed is authenticated with an identification repository. The authentication is accomplished using credentials associated with the certified application. The user device is also enrolled with an authentication server and the authenticated user device is connected to the protected network.

Customers and consumers require a secure mechanism for joining wireless networks while reducing user interruptions and user interactions in order to provide a better user experience. Various methods exist to reduce the number of user interactions and automate parts of a connection process to allow a user's device to connect to secure wireless networks at multiple remote access points. However, for enterprise type networks, the various existing secure methods and mechanisms create extra identification and authentication steps for the user, even when the user has logged into the secured network many times before. This often leaves a user logging in multiple times on devices, such as mobile phones, using constrained user interfaces that prevent the user from accurately and quickly entering authentication information. Users may have to repeatedly enter login information both when reconnecting to previously connected networks and when the user has an ongoing connection, but the connection credentials timeout resulting in manual re-authentication from the user. This creates an interaction intensive and frustrating experience for the user.
To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is contemplated that elements disclosed in one embodiment may be beneficially utilized on other embodiments without specific recitation.

Access to secured networks for known entities


The invention, in one embodiment, is directed to systems, devices and methods for supporting an anatomical location using a self-supporting implantable device without a need for an anchor.

Urinary incontinence affects over 13 million men and women of all ages in the United States. Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) affects primarily women and is generally caused by two conditions, intrinsic sphincter deficiency (ISD) and hypermobility. These conditions may occur independently or in combination. In ISD, the urinary sphincter valve, located within the urethra, fails to close properly (coapt), causing urine to leak out of the urethra during stressful activity. Hypermobility is a condition in which the pelvic floor is distended, weakened, or damaged, causing the bladder neck and proximal urethra to rotate and descend in response to increases in intra-abdominal pressure (e.g., due to sneezing, coughing, straining, etc.). The result is that there is an insufficient response time to promote urethral closure and, consequently, urine leakage and/or flow results.
A popular treatment of SUI is the use of a sling, which is permanently placed under a patient's bladder neck or mid-urethra to provide a urethral platform. Placement of the sling limits the endopelvic fascia drop, while providing compression to the urethral sphincter to improve coaptation. Generally, the sling is surgically placed under urethra, close to the high-pressure zone with no elevation of the urethra. The ends of a sling may be secured to an anatomical location by, for example, a bone anchor. When abdominal pressure increases, the sling stops the descent of the urethra and functions as a mechanism of closure for the urethra to prevent urine leakage by maintaining its position relative to the anchored location. However, too much tension may be applied by this method, and the patient may go into retention, unable to void the bladder and suffer a pressure build-up in the bladder. Such pressure build-up can lead to reflux of urine up the ureters and into the kidney, eventually resulting in kidney damage, and, potentially, kidney loss. Clinically, there is technical challenge to positioning and applying the correct tension to the sling.
Additionally, conventional slings are typically formed from a woven fabric. The woven fabric can become twisted, stretched or otherwise permanently deformed during implantation, which can affect whether the sling operates correctly. To address this issue, conventional slings typically employ a protective sleeve to reduce the likelihood of the sling becoming deformed during implantation. A disadvantage of this configuration is that the sleeve ultimately needs to be removed from the patient's body.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved surgically implantable sling-like support to which it is easier to apply a correct tension, and that does not easily permanently deform and/or require a protective covering.

Systems, devices and methods relating to a shape resilient sling-like support for treating urinary incontinence


A photoresist composition includes a polymer that includes a first structural unit shown by a formula (1), and an acid generator. R1 represents a hydrogen atom, a fluorine atom, a methyl group, or a trifluoromethyl group. R2 represents a divalent hydrocarbon group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms. A represents —COO—*, —OCO—*, —O—, —S—, or —NH—, wherein “*” indicates a site bonded to R3. R3 represents a single bond or a divalent hydrocarbon group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms. The polymer preferably further includes a second structural unit that includes an acid-labile group.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a photoresist composition and a resist pattern-forming method.
2. Discussion of the Background
In the field of microfabrication used to produce an integrated circuit device or the like, lithographic technology that utilizes short-wavelength radiation (e.g., KrF excimer laser light (wavelength: 248 nm) or ArF excimer laser light (wavelength: 193 nm)) has been under development in order to achieve a higher degree of integration. A resist material that exhibits high sensitivity, high resolution, and the like is required when using such an exposure light source. A chemically-amplified photoresist composition that includes an acid-labile group-containing component and an acid generator that generates an acid upon exposure to radiation has been normally used as the resist material (see Japanese Patent Application Publication (KOKAI) No. 59-45439). In recent years, technology that utilizes radiation having a wavelength shorter than that of excimer laser light (e.g., X-rays, electron beams (EB), or extreme ultraviolet (EUV) light) has been studied along with a further increase in the degree of integration (miniaturization) of devices.

Photoresist composition and resist pattern-forming method


A firearm trigger locking device with two sides and fixed hardened steel pins. The device is designed to be universal for a particular family of guns—e.g., all rifles, all shotguns, or all handguns (or all revolvers or automatic pistols)—of a given firearm manufacturer. The device further features a pin behind the trigger to prevent firing, hardened steel plates in each side sufficient in size to cover the trigger guard and prevent transverse application of a saw to the trigger guard, and a ring of hardened steel pins around the periphery of the trigger guard to prevent application of a saw between the plates. The method for producing this trigger locking device uses lateral and axial profiles of the family of firearms to develop features and feature locations that will allow it to be used with any member of the family of firearms.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to the field of trigger locks for firearms. More particularly, the invention pertains to a trigger lock with fixed pins designed to fit a family of firearms.
2. Description of Related Art
Gun manufacturers generally provide some type of trigger lock or gunlock with new firearms. Numerous locks have been developed for this purpose. Cable locks use lengths of cable extending/threaded through the action of the weapon, blocking usage. Another type of lock is the trigger guard plate lock. The trigger guard plate lock uses two "plate" sections that can be locked together from opposite sides over the trigger guard. A grooved (ratchet) cylinder on this type of lock extends from one section through the trigger guard and locks into the other section. In addition, pins can be provided that extend from one plate and fit into insertion holes in the other plate. When stationary pins (i.e., rigid and non-retractable pins) are used, they are located in such a manner as to abut parts of the trigger guard and/or to otherwise hold the plates in position on a particular fire arm. There are also retractable pin designs having retractable spring biased pins. In this type of design, some pins may be blocked by features of the firearm (such as the trigger guard and trigger), but others will fit in and around these obstructions so as to enter insertion holes in the opposite plate. There are also combinations of cable locks and plate locks.
Thus, there are patents and designs for trigger guard plate locks having multiple stationary pins for particular and individual firearms and there are patents and designs for trigger guard plate locks with retractable pins that will fit many different firearms. However, there are currently no trigger guard plate locks designed with multiple stationary pins for use with a whole family of firearms produced by a particular manufacturer.


There is disclosed a cellulosic microporous filtration membrane with upper and lower porous protective layers with a porous sponge-type intermediate layer between the two protective layers, wherein the sponge-type structure consists of two isotropic regions having different pore sizes.

The present invention relates to a cellulosic microporous filtration membrane and to an environmentally friendly method for producing the membrane. Symmetrical cellulosic filtration membranes are known. See DE 44 38 381 A1. Asymmetric membranes are known as well, which are typically made from synthetic polymers such as polysulfone. See EP 1 118 377 A2. Asymmetric membranes are characterized by a pore size gradient throughout the thickness of the membrane, with the smallest diameter pores on the active filtration layer which is situated on the outside of the membrane (feed side or gas side), while the pores with the largest diameters are in an underlying porous layer. With asymmetric membranes, the pore size gradient generally gradually increases throughout the thickness of the membrane. Symmetrical membranes display a substantially uniform pore size diameter throughout the entire thickness of the membrane. A region which has uniformly sized pores is referred to as an isotropic region.
U.S. Patent Application Publication 2003/0038081 A1 describes asymmetric cellulose membranes having first and second layers, as well as an intermediate porous layer between the first and second porous layers. The same Publication describes a membrane provided with a so-called "funnel with a neck" structure and that has an asymmetric and an isotropic region, with the pores in the isotropic region having a uniform size.
EP 0 723 993 B1 describes a method for the production of a cellulose acetate film from a cellulose acetate solution using a solvent consisting of an ester having 3 to 12 carbon atoms.
DE 199 25 929 C2 describes a microfiltration membrane based on cellulose acetate containing hydrophilic silicic acid, and a conventional method for the production of the membrane.
The primary object of the present invention is to provide a cellulosic filtration membrane that has excellent filtration performance and service life, as well as to provide a method of making such a membrane that is particularly environmentally friendly.
The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


A light generating device includes a body having discharge spaces generating light in response to a voltage signal, and electrodes providing the voltage signal to the discharge spaces. The discharge spaces are apart from each other and arranged substantially parallel with each other. The electrodes are disposed at external portions of the body. The body includes a first substrate, and a second substrate disposed on the first substrate. The second substrate includes space forming members and space dividing members. The discharge spaces are each formed between corresponding one of the space forming members and the first substrate. The space dividing members are each disposed between the adjacent space forming members. The space dividing members include connecting passages each connecting adjacent ones of the discharge spaces. A display device includes a display panel for displaying images using an image signal, a driving signal and light, the planar light generating device for providing the light to the display panel, and an inverter for generating the voltage signal to the planar light generating device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices for displaying images, and more particularly, to a device for generating planar light and an image display device having the planar light generating device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Liquid crystal display (LCD) devices are one of the types of the image display devices. Since the LCD devices have advantageous properties such as small thickness, low driving voltage, low power consumption, etc., they have been widely used for displaying images.
The LCD devices display images using liquid crystal, and it is necessary to externally provide light to the liquid crystal in an LCD device. Accordingly, the LCD devices generally have a backlight assembly to generate light to the liquid crystal.
Conventional backlight assemblies include a cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) having a tubular shape. The CCFLs may be classified into edge illumination type CCFLs and direct illumination type CCFLs. In an LCD device employing the edge illumination type CCFL(s), one or two edge illumination type CCFLs are disposed on edge portions of a light guide plate having a reflecting layer so as to supply light to an LCD panel. In an LCD device employing the direct illumination type CCFL, the direct illumination type CCFL is disposed under the light guide plate. A reflection plate and a diffusion plate are disposed under the direct illumination type CCFL and on the light guide plate, respectively, so as to supply light to an LCD panel.
A conventional backlight assembly includes optical members, such as the light guide plate or the diffusion plate, so that the optical members absorb a portion of the light. As a result, luminance of the light generated from the backlight assembly is decreased. Also, uniformity of the luminance is decreased. In addition, since the conventional backlight assemblies have a complex structure, their manufacturing cost increases.
Planar light generating devices have been developed to solve the above mentioned problems. The planar light generating devices generally include a body and electrodes. The body includes discharge spaces disposed adjacent to one another. A discharge voltage is applied to the body through the electrodes. The discharge spaces are connected to one another so that distribution of a discharge gas in the discharge spaces may be uniformized. The discharge voltage is applied to the electrodes to form a plasma discharge in the discharge spaces, thereby generating the light.
When the plasma discharge is formed in the discharge spaces, current may flow through the discharge spaces so that a voltage drop is formed in each of the discharge spaces. The amount of the voltage drop is substantially equal to the current multiplied by a square of a resistance of each of the discharge spaces. The resistances of the discharge spaces are different from one another, so that the voltage drops of the discharge spaces are different from one another. The difference between the voltage drops form a potential difference between the discharge spaces, so that a portion of the current may be concentrated on one of the discharge spaces, thereby forming a channeling of the current. The channeling of the current deteriorates the luminance, and the uniformity of the luminance may also be decreased. As a result, image display quality of the LCD device is lowered.

Planar light generating device and display device having the same


Systems, methods and apparatuses are described herein that employ machine learning techniques to assess a likelihood or risk that one or more patients will experience an adverse outcome, such as a decline in renal function, within one or more timeframes. The embodiments may utilize patient data relating to demographics, vital signs, diagnoses, procedures, diagnostic tests, biomarker assays, genetic tests, behaviors, and/or patient symptoms, to determine risk information, such as important predictive features and patient risk scores. And the embodiments may automatically execute patient workflows, such as providing treatment recommendations to providers and/or patients, based on determined risk scores.

This specification relates to applications, systems and methods that employ machine learning models to predict risk of patient outcomes, such as renal function decline, from electronic patient data.
Predictive analytics is an emerging approach for disease treatment and prevention that uses data and statistical algorithms to identify the likelihood of future outcomes based on historical data. In healthcare applications, a primary goal of predictive analytics is to develop quantitative models that can be used to determine a patient's current health status and to predict specific future events or developments. In particular, for disease treatment and prevention, predictive analytics may take into account individual variability in genes, environment, health, and lifestyle.
Recently, risk prediction of renal function decline and progression to end-stage renal disease ("ESRD") has become a research priority. Early diagnosis and initiation of disease management of chronic kidney disease ("CKD") may delay the need for emergency dialysis, transplantation or renal replacement therapy; slow the progression of CKD; and allow for identification of reversible and modifiable disease risk factors. Importantly, studies have demonstrated that timely nephrology visits have been associated with reduced mortality and hospitalization.
Existing tools that predict risk of renal function decline and progression to ESRD have received widespread attention and validation. In particular, the Kidney Failure Risk Equation ("KFRE") is seen as the current prevailing standard for ESRD risk prediction in North American patients with CKD Stages 3 to 5. The KFRE makes use of four clinical variables: age, sex, estimated glomerular filtration rate ("eGFR") and urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio ("UACR"); each variable is assigned a standard weight for a traditional risk score calculation. The KFRE is detailed in Navdeep Tangri et al., "Multinational Assessment of Accuracy of Equations for Predicting Risk of Kidney Failure: A Meta-analysis," JAMA, 315:2 (2016) pp. 164-174, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
While the KFRE offers mathematically significant predictive models for ESRD prediction, it falls short in clinical practice. First, the KFRE's reliance on eGFR and UACR significantly limits the population on which risk scores can be calculated; most patients for whom such information is available have already received a nephrology consult. Accordingly, the KFRE often proves to be an impractical way of assessing risk across a population in order to identify those at highest risk of unplanned dialysis starts. Moreover, because the KFRE presents a fixed score based on one-time values, it does not take into account the natural longitudinal variability of laboratory results.
Accordingly, there is a need for improved predictive modeling systems and methods that could aid clinicians in their assessment of the risk of renal function decline and/or progression to ESRD. It would be beneficial if such systems and methods allowed for risk-stratification across patient populations to drive preemptive care. It would be further beneficial if such systems and methods could leverage the widespread use of electronic health records ("EHR") systems in order to identify important risk factors and utilize such information to accurately predict risk of renal function decline and/or progression to ESRD.

Machine learning systems and methods for predicting risk of renal function decline


A housing for an electronic device includes a ceramic base comprising ceramic material, at least one electronic element embedded in the ceramic base, and a buffer layer made of resin. The ceramic base includes an inner surface. The buffer layer is formed on the inner surface. A method for making the housing is also provided.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a housing for an electronic device and a method for making the housing.
2. Description of Related Art
Housings of portable electronic devices are usually made of plastic or metal. Although plastic housings can be formed easily by injection molding, they are not very strong and not very resistant to abrasion. Although metal housings are stronger and have greater abrasion resistance, they are electrically conductive, which may cause them to interfere with communication signals.
Therefore, there is room for improvement within the art.


An apparatus for monitoring the immediate surroundings of a vehicle displays on a display within the vehicle cabin a captured image of the vehicle immediate surroundings captured by a camera mounted on a back door which can open and close. The apparatus determines whether the back door is open based on a signal output from a back door courtesy switch. If it is determined that the back door is open, a written notification that the back door is open is superimposed on the display showing the captured image from the camera. If it is determined that the back door is not open, the written notification is not shown.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an apparatus and method for monitoring the immediate surroundings of a vehicle, and more particularly, to an apparatus and method for monitoring the immediate surroundings of a vehicle, which is provided with a camera mounted on a vehicle door able to open and close, and which displays a captured image of the vehicle immediate surroundings captured by the camera on a display.
2. Description of the Related Art
JP(A) 8-16999, for example, discloses an apparatus for monitoring the immediate surroundings of a vehicle which notifies the driver using warning means when a captured image of the vehicle immediate surroundings from a camera is off from a desired reference image. This apparatus uses as the desired reference image an image captured when a reference mounted on a fixed portion of the vehicle that is in the image area captured by the camera is in an initial position, and detects a change in position of that reference in the captured image. If it is determined that the position of the reference has changed from the initial position, the driver is notified. This apparatus therefore enables a situation to be avoided in which a vehicle occupant perceives the immediate surroundings of the vehicle erroneously due to a captured image that is improper because of the mounting position of the camera serving as the imaging device.
However, with cameras or the like mounted on a front portion and rear portion of the vehicle so as to capture areas to the front and rear of the vehicle, there may be cases in which a fixed portion of the vehicle is not in the image area captured by the camera, in which case it is difficult to establish an appropriate reference in the captured image area. With the apparatus of the foregoing publication, therefore, if the fixed portion of the vehicle is not included in the image area captured by the camera, it is not possible to detect whether the direction of image capture by the camera is off with respect to the desired direction. As a result, if the direction is off, the occupant may be led to have an erroneous perception of the immediate surroundings of the vehicle.

Apparatus and method for monitoring the immediate surroundings of a vehicle


A fan mounting apparatus for dissipating heat from an electronic device, the mounting apparatus includes a bracket (50) and a fan module (40). The bracket defines an opening (57), two vertical slots (59) at opposite sides of the opening and two fixing holes (58) under the slots and aligned with the respective slots. The fan module includes a fan (10) and a pair of clamping members (30). The pair of clamping members respectively attached to opposite sides of the fan, an engaging portion (35) formed on each clamping member for engaging with the corresponding slot of the bracket, and each engaging portion has a sliding portion (351) and a clamping portion (353), wherein each sliding portion is capable of being received in the corresponding slot, and the clamping portion engaging with the fixing hole.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to fan mounting apparatuses, and more particularly to a fan mounting apparatus for a computer system.
2. Description of Related Art
In a working computer system, a large amount of heat is generated from electric elements of the computer system. If the heat is not dissipated timely, the electric elements may be damaged. So heat-dissipating devices are desired.
A fan is often used as a conventional means to dissipate the heat from the computer system. In conventional means, a bracket is provided for receiving a fan. A plurality of through holes is defined in the bracket. In installing the fan to a plate of the computer system, the fan is received into the bracket. The bracket together with the fan is placed on the plate, which defines a plurality of screw holes therein. The through holes of the bracket align with the screw holes of the plate. The fan is enclosed by the bracket and the plate. A plurality of screws extends through the through holes and is screwed into the corresponding screw holes. The fan is thereby secured to the plate of the computer system. With this mounting means, it is well known that assembly and disassembly of the fans is very inconvenient.
What is needed, therefore, is a mounting apparatus for conveniently installing and removing a fan in a computer system.

Fan mounting apparatus for heat dissipation

Hong Fu Jin Precision Industry (ShenZhen) Co., Ltd.


A processor interleaves instructions according to a priority rule which determines the frequency with which instructions from each respective thread are selected and added to an interleaved stream of instructions to be processed in the data processor. The frequency with which each thread is selected according to the rule may be based on the priorities assigned to the instruction threads. A randomization is inserted into the interleaving process so that the selection of an instruction thread during any particular clock cycle is not based solely by the priority rule, but is also based in part on a random or pseudo random element. This randomization is inserted into the instruction thread selection process so as to vary the order in which instructions are selected from the various instruction threads while preserving the overall frequency of thread selection (i.e. how often threads are selected) set by the priority rule.

A number of techniques are used to improve the speed at which data processors execute software programs. These techniques include increasing the processor's clock speed, using cache memory, and using predictive branching. Increasing the processor clock speed allows a processor to perform relatively more operations in any given period of time. Cache memory is positioned in close proximity to the processor and operates at higher speeds than main memory, thus reducing the time needed for a processor to access data and instructions. Predictive branching allows a processor to execute certain instructions based on a prediction about the results of an earlier instruction, thus obviating the need to wait for the actual results and thereby improving processing speed.
Some processors also employ pipelined instruction execution to enhance system performance. In pipelined instruction execution, processing tasks are broken down into a number of pipeline steps or stages. Pipelining may increase processing speed by allowing subsequent instructions to begin processing before previously issued instructions have finished a particular process. The processor does not need to wait for one instruction to be fully processed before beginning to process the next instruction in the sequence.
Processors that employ pipelined processing may include a number of different pipeline stages which are devoted to different activities in the processor. For example, a processor may process sequential instructions in a fetch stage, decode/dispatch stage, issue stage, execution stage, finish stage, and completion stage. Each of these individual stages my employ its own set of pipeline stages to accomplish the desired processing tasks.
Multi-thread instruction processing is an additional technique that may be used in conjunction with pipelining to increase processing speed. Multi-thread instruction processing involves dividing a set of program instructions into two or more distinct groups or threads of instructions. This multithreading technique allows instructions from one thread to be processed through a pipeline while another thread may be unable to be processed for some reason. This avoids the situation encountered in single-threaded instruction processing in which all instructions are held up while a particular instruction cannot be executed, such as, for example, in a cache miss situation where data required to execute a particular instruction is not immediately available. Data processors capable of processing multiple instruction threads are often referred to as simultaneous multithreading (SMT) processors.
It should be noted at this point that there is a distinction between the way the software community uses the term "multithreading" and the way the term "multithreading" is used in the computer architecture community. The software community uses the term "multithreading" to refer to a single task subdivided into multiple, related threads. In computer architecture, the term "multithreading" refers to threads that may be independent of each other. The term "multithreading" is used in this document in the same sense employed by the computer architecture community.
To facilitate multithreading, the instructions from the different threads are interleaved in some fashion at some point in the overall processor pipeline. There are generally two different techniques for interleaving instructions for processing in a SMT processor. One technique involves interleaving the threads based on some long latency event, such as a cache miss that produces a delay in processing one thread. In this technique all of the processor resources are devoted to a single thread until processing of that thread is delayed by some long latency event. Upon the occurrence of the long latency event, the processor quickly switches to another thread and advances that thread until some long latency event occurs for that thread or if the circumstance that stalled the other thread is resolved.
The other general technique for interleaving instructions from multiple instruction threads in a SMT processor involves interleaving instructions on a cycle-by-cycle basis according to some interleaving rule. A simple cycle-by-cycle interleaving technique may simply interleave instructions from the different threads on a one-to-one basis. For example, a two-thread SMT processor may take an instruction from a first thread in a first clock cycle, an instruction from a second thread in a second clock cycle, another instruction from the first thread in a third clock cycle and so forth, back and forth between the two instruction threads. A more complex cycle-by-cycle interleaving technique may involve assigning a priority (commonly via software) to each instruction thread and then interleaving to enforce some rule based upon the relative thread priorities. For example, if one thread in a two-thread SMT processor is assigned a higher priority than the other thread, a simple interleaving rule may require that twice as many instructions from the higher priority thread be included in the interleaved stream as compared to instructions from the lower priority thread.
A more complex cycle-by-cycle interleaving rule in current use assigns each thread a priority from "1" to "7" and places an element of the lower priority thread into the interleaved stream of instructions based on the function 1/(2|X−Y|+1), where X=the software assigned priority of a first thread, and Y=the software assigned priority of a second thread. In the case where two threads have equal priority, for example, X=3 and Y=3, the function produces a ratio of ½, and an instruction from each of the two threads will be included in the interleaved instruction stream once out of every two clock cycles. If the threads' priorities differ by 2, for example, X=2 and Y=4, then the function produces a ratio of ⅛, and an instruction from the lower priority thread will be included in the interleaved instruction stream once out of every eight clock cycles.
There are, however, occasional situations or scenarios in which the enforcement of a priority rule may lead to a conflict that will interfere with the advancement of either thread into the interleaved stream. In these situations, commonly referred to as "live lock" situations, instructions from the different threads are interleaved according to a priority rule in a cyclical fashion that ends up stalling all of the different instruction threads. For example, instructions from different instruction threads in a multi-thread processor may both need a resource that is shared between them. In this case, cyclically interleaving instructions from the various threads according to a priority rule may cause the instructions to effectively block each other from gaining access to the resource and thus cause the processor to stall.

Method and apparatus for randomizing instruction thread interleaving in a multi-thread processor

International Business Machines Corporation


A display apparatus having improved display quality is disclosed. According to one aspect, the display apparatus includes a display panel including first to Mth data lines extending in a first direction, where M is an integer greater than 2, first to Nth scan lines extending in a second direction, where N is an integer greater than 2, and a plurality of pixel regions defined by one or more of the data lines and one or more of the scan lines. An image data processor is configured to process input image signals and output corrected input image signals, and a data driver is configured to receive the corrected input image signals and supply the same to the first to Mth data lines. The plurality of pixel regions include first to Mth pixel arrays extending in parallel, and the image data signal processor is configured to output the corrected input image signals to adjust a gray value applied to at least one of the first pixel array and the Mth pixel array.

1. Field
The disclosed technology generally relates to a display apparatus, and more particularly, to a display apparatus having improved display quality.
2. Description of the Related Technology
Recently, the demand for thin and lightweight monitors, televisions, and portable display devices has increased. In response to the demand, flat panel displays, such as a liquid crystal displays, are rapidly replacing the conventional cathode ray tube (CRT) display.
The flat panel displays, such as liquid crystal displays, include a display area having a plurality of pixels and a non-display area surrounding and defining the display area. The non-display area includes a light-shielding material, such as a black matrix.
In a flat panel display, such as a liquid crystal display, the leftmost and rightmost pixel arrays are directly adjacent to a black matrix of a non-display area. In some instances, the pixel arrays provided in the leftmost and rightmost sides of the display area can be perceived more noticeably by the eye relative to surrounding pixel arrays. For example, when an edge area of display areas adjacent to the non-display area is configured to display a fully white image, display areas can be perceived more noticeably. Accordingly, since the color of the pixel array is perceived by user's eyes, vertical striped patterns may be seen in the leftmost and rightmost pixel arrays of the display area.

Display apparatus for adjusting a gray value of an image signal


A steam generating apparatus includes a chamber defining structure for defining a heating chamber for heating a fluid medium such as liquid and/or air; an exciting coil mounted on the chamber defining structure so as to surround the heating chamber and operable, when electrically energized by application of an alternating current power thereto, to produce an alternating magnetic field; a porous heating element disposed within the heating chamber, said porous heating element having a high porosity and adapted to be heated by an induction current developed by the alternating magnetic field produced by the exciting coil; and a liquid supply system for supplying a liquid medium to the heating chamber to allow the liquid medium to be heated in contact with the porous heating element to thereby produce steam.

The steam generating apparatus for producing steam from water by an induction heating system is well known in the art. FIG. 20 of the accompanying drawings illustrate a longitudinal sectional view of the prior art steam generator such as disclosed in the Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 4-51487, published in 1992. Referring to FIG. 20, the steam generator 1 includes an iron core 2 around which an electroconductive wire is would to form an induction coil 3. A steam generating tank 5 having its bottom formed by an iron plate 4 capable of creating a magnetic flux circuit is mounted atop the iron core 2 with the iron plate 4 resting on the iron core 2. The prior art steam generator 1 also includes a fluid supply means comprising a water spraying pipe 6 for spraying water onto the iron plate 4 within the steam generating tank 5 and a water supply pump 7, and a steam discharge means comprising a steam discharge pipe 9 having a needle valve 8 disposed thereon. The induction coil 3 referred to above is electrically connected with a commercial AC power source providing an alternating current power of a utility frequency. In this prior art steam generator 1, the iron plate 4 defining the bottom of the steam generating tank 5 serves as a heating element.
Another prior art heating element for heating water or air is disclosed in, for example, the Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 3-98286, published in 1991, and is shown in FIGS. 21 and 22 of the accompanying drawings. Referring to FIGS. 21 and 22, the heating element comprises a generally cylindrical hollow column 10 of insulating material around which a coil 11 is formed, and a laminated filler 13 accommodated within the hollow of the column 10. The laminated filler 13 is made up of a plurality of generally elongated base members 12 each formed with a number of corrugations 4-1, which base members 12 are laminated together with the corrugations in one base member 12 laid so as to intersect the corrugations in the neighboring base member 12. In this structure, when an alternating current is supplied to the coil 11, eddy currents are produced in the laminated filler 13 to allow the latter to evolve heat. Air or liquid flowing through the column 10 as shown by the arrows is heated in contact with the laminated filler 13 then heated in the manner described above.
According to the prior art steam generator shown in FIG. 20, the heating element used as a bottom of the steam generating tank 5 flat, having its opposite surfaces parallel to each other, and has a relatively small surface area at which heat exchange takes place. Therefore, the amount of heat supplied per unitary surface area, that is, the amount of the fluid medium vaporized, is limited. In order to increase the amount of the fluid medium vaporized, the surface area of the heating element must be increased, resulting in increase of the size of the steam generator as a whole.
Also, the metallic material forming the heat element has a substantial thickness and is bulky in terms of heat capacity, exhibiting a relatively low response to heat. For this reason, the amount of the fluid medium vaporized cannot be controlled accurately.
Moreover, since the heating element is disposed at the bottom of the steam generating tank, not only is the prior art steam generator unable to heat the steam once produced to produce steam of an increased temperature, but also the heating speed at which the steam is heated cannot be controlled.
In the case of the heating element in which the laminated filler is employed, the base members forming the laminated filler are electrically coupled with each other through points of intersection between the corrugations 4-1 and 4-2 in the neighboring base members and, therefore, the laminated filler is susceptible to a localized heating that takes place at the points of intersections of the corrugations under the influence of the induction current. For this reason, the heating element utilizing the laminated filler is difficult to accomplish an efficient induction heating.
In addition, since the heating element is designed to heat only liquid or air, no simultaneous or selective production of steam and hot air is possible although only steam or hot air can be produced.

Microwave oven with induction steam generating apparatus

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


Methods and systems configured to virtualize graphic processing services in a virtual machine environment are disclosed. A virtual machine monitor (VMM) may be configured to maintain a virtual machine (VM) based on a host operating system (OS) executing in the system. The VM may contain a virtualized graphics library (vGLib) configured to support a graphic command from an application executing in the VM. The host OS may contain a graphics library (GLib) configured to support the graphic command and utilize a graphics processing unit (GPU) in the system to process the graphic command. Upon receiving the graphic command from the application, the vGLib may be configured to allocate a memory section in the VM to store the graphic command. And the VMM may be further configured to share access to the memory section with the host OS, thereby allowing the host OS to retrieve the graphic command from the memory section and deliver the graphic command to the GLib for processing.

OpenGL ES (Open Graphics Language for Embedded System) is a cross-platform API for rendering 2D and 3D graphics on an embedded system. For a system that is equipped with an OpenGL ES compatible graphics processing unit (GPU), a graphic application may take advantage of the GPU acceleration by using OpenGL ES commands to perform its graphic tasks. For a system that does not have a GPU, the graphic application may be forced to utilize the central processing unit (CPU) to process these OpenGL ES commands. As a result, the performance of a graphic application in a system that contains a GPU is generally faster than in a system that does not contain a GPU. In addition, OpenGL ES 2.0 standard may require mandatory GPU support. Thus, a graphic application that is programmed based on the OpenGL ES 2.0 standard may not be executable in an embedded system that does not have a GPU.
A virtual machine (VM) may be configured to simulate an embedded system that supports an OpenGL ES application. An OpenGL ES application executing in the VM may issue OpenGL ES commands to the VM. However, the VM, which is a software emulating a physical machine, may not have a direct access to a GPU. In this case, the VM may provide OpenGL ES supports based on software implementations. Still, the software-implemented OpenGL ES supports may require a lot of CPU throughputs, which may slow down the application's performance in the VM significantly. Alternatively, the VM may be implemented with a virtualized GPU, or have a virtualized GPU driver which can interface with a physical GPU. However, these solutions may not be flexible as the VM may have to support different GPUs for different embedded systems.

Method and system to virtualize graphic processing services


A silver halide color photosensitive material of less than 320 ISO speed, comprising at least two red-sensitive emulsion layers, at least two green-sensitive emulsion layers, at least one blue-sensitive emulsion layer and at least one nonsensitive layer, wherein silver halide tabular grains of 0.15 μm or less grain thickness are contained in an amount of 50% or more in respective layers with the highest speed among the green- and red-sensitive emulsion layers; wherein the total dry film thickness of the material on the emulsion layer side thereof is 24 μm or less; and wherein the compound (A) is contained in at least one silver halide emulsion layer or the nonsensitive layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a silver halide color photosensitive material capable of realizing an extremely high image quality excelling in graininess and in bright acuity.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, photosensitive materials of high photographic speed are placed on the market in quick succession in accordance with the progress of technology relating to photosensitive materials for photographing. Accordingly, the photographed areas are expanding to night scenes, dark indoor space, etc.
However, with respect to such photosensitive materials of high photographic speed, it is difficult to obtain satisfactory image quality when the print size is large. For example, in professional photographic fields such as those in business, it is highly important to realize excellent graininess for enhancing the print quality. On the market of such fields, the ratio of handling of large-size prints is high, and from this viewpoint as well, graininess is critically important.
Further, the magnification ratio at printing must be high for preparing large-size prints, so that excellent bright acuity in broad frequency domain is simultaneously important.
Various techniques for sensitivity enhancement have been studied (see, for example, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. (hereinafter referred to as JP-A-) 2003-156823 and JP-A-2000-194085). These however on their own cannot attain excellent graininess.
Graininess improvement to a certain level can be achieved by combining the technology for sensitivity enhancement with techniques involving the use of coupler of low activity, use of DIR compound, reduction of the dimension of silver halide grains, etc. However, the use of couplers of low activity in large amounts is attended by harmful effects, such as strong influence of variations of processing solution composition. The use of DIR compounds leads to a change of the level of interlayer effect, making compatibility with color reproduction difficult. The reduction of the dimension of silver halide grains leads to an intensification of light scattering, making it difficult to attain an enhancement of image quality involving bright acuity.
On the other hand, improvement of bright acuity to a certain level can be achieved by combining the technology for sensitivity enhancement with irradiation neutralizing dyes. However, improvement of graininess cannot be attained thereby.

Silver halide color photosensitive material

Abstract: Compound (A): heterocyclic compound having one or more heteroatoms, which heterocyclic compound is capable of substantially increasing the sensitivity of silver halide color photosensitive material by addition thereof as compared with that exhibited when the compound is not added.


An obstacle detection device includes: an obstacle detection section (11) for emitting beams having a predetermined divergence angle consecutively in a plurality of different directions, receiving a reflected wave from an obstacle for each direction, and detecting the obstacle existing within an emission angle range of the beam for the direction; a distance calculation section (12) for calculating a distance representative of an interspace between the obstacle and the vehicle for each direction based on a received signal of the reflected wave for the direction outputted from the obstacle detection section; an obstacle image creation section (14) for creating, as an obstacle image, a figure two-dimensionally developed in the emission angle range of the beam emitted in each direction while treating, as a basis for image creation, the distance calculated by the distance calculation section for the direction, and for creating and outputting image data for displaying the obstacle image; and a display section (15) for receiving the image data created by the obstacle image creation section and displaying an image showing a positional relationship between the obstacle and the vehicle.

In a conventional obstacle detection device (hereinafter referred to as a "first obstacle detection device") a radar that detects an obstacle within a predetermined angular range is used to detect an obstacle behind a vehicle as well as another vehicle on an adjoining traffic lane. If the first obstacle detection device detects an obstacle, it lights an indicator lamp to indicate a direction in which the obstacle has been detected, and displays, in numerals, a distance to the obstacle.
Another obstacle detection device (hereinafter referred to as a "second obstacle detection device") uses a radar to detect an obstacle in the vicinity of the vehicle and displays an image representing the shape of the detected obstacle. The second obstacle detection device stores, as point data, the location of the obstacle as accurately detected by using a laser radar, and draws, based on the stored point data, a line diagram representing the external shape of the obstacle to create a map of the surrounding area of the vehicle.
With the first obstacle detection device, however, it is difficult for a driver to obtain an intuitive grasp of a positional relationship between his or her vehicle and an obstacle, because the location of the obstacle is represented by lighting of a lamp indicating the direction and a numerical value indicating the distance.
Meanwhile, with the second obstacle detection device, which displays a map in which the external shape of a detected obstacle is drawn with a line diagram, a driver can easily grasp a positional relationship between his or her vehicle and the obstacle. However, in order to detect locations of obstacles as points, the second obstacle detection device is equipped with a laser radar whose beam divergence angle is very narrow. As a result, since laser radars are generally costly, the cost of the whole device becomes very high.
Here, the use of a comparatively low-priced, ultrasonic radar or radio-wave radar is conceivable. However, to make the divergence angle of ultrasonic or radio-wave beams narrow, it is necessary to greatly enlarge a horn for emitting ultrasonic waves or an antenna for emitting the radio waves, which causes a problem of a large installation space having to be secured in the vehicle. In other words, regardless of whether the type of beam is laser, sonic, or radio, a problem of cost or installation occurs. Thus, it is not practical to use a radar that emits beams whose divergence angle is very narrow in an obstacle detection device.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an obstacle detection device that displays a positional relationship between a vehicle and an obstacle such that the driver can easily obtain an intuitive grasp of the positional relationship, even in the case where a radar whose beam divergence angle is comparatively wide is used to detect the obstacle.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


The present invention provides compositions and methods for modulating lymphocyte activation. Nucleic acids encoding proteins and proteins so encoded which are capable of modulating lymphocyte activation are provided. Compositions and methods for the treatment of disorders related to lymphocyte dysfunction or dysregulation are also provided. Prophylactics and methods for the prevention of such disorders are also provided. Also provided are compositions and methods for diagnostic and prognostic determination of such disorders. Further provided are assays for the identification of bioactive agents capable of modulating lymphocyte activation.

The immune response comprises a cellular response and a humoral response. The cellular response is mediated largely by T-lymphocytes (alternatively and equivalently referred to herein as T cells), while the humoral response is mediated by B-lymphocytes (alternatively and equivalently referred to herein as B-cells).
B-cells produce and secrete antibodies in response to the presentation of antigen and MHC class II molecules on the surface of antigen presenting cells. Antigen presentation initiates B-cell activation with the engagement of the B-cell receptor (BCR) at the cell's surface. Following engagement, the BCR relays signals that are propagated through the cell's interior via signal transduction pathways. These signals lead to changes in B-cell gene expression and physiology, which underlie B-cell activation.
T cells produce costimulatory molecules, including soluble cytokines and cell surface proteins, that augment antibody production by B-cells during the humoral immune response. Cytokines also play a role in modulating the activity of T cells themselves. Many T cells act directly to engulf and destroy cells or agents that they recognize by virtue of the cell surface proteins they possess. The engagement of cell surface receptors on T cells results in the propagation of intracellular signals that provoke changes in T cell gene expression and physiology, which underlie the cellular immune response. B-cells in turn express cell surface proteins that modulate the activity of T cells and cellular immunity.
Antigen recognition alone is usually not sufficient to initiate a complete effector T or B cell response. The generation of many B-cell responses to antigen is dependent upon the interaction of B-cells with CD4+ helper T cells directed against the same antigen. These helper T cells express the CD40 ligand "CD40L" (also known as CD154) which binds to the cell surface receptor, CD40, on resting B-cells. This interaction provides a critical activation signal to B-cells. Mutations in the CD40L lead to the X-linked immunodeficiency disorder hyper-IgM syndrome, which is characterized by low levels of IgA and IgG, normal to elevated levels of IgM, absence of germinal center formation, and decreased immune response. In addition, transgenic mice lacking CD40 exhibit reduced graft rejection. (Zanelli et al., Nature Medicine, 6: 629-630, 2000; Schonbeck et al., Cell Mol Life Sci, 58:4-43, 2001).
CD40L expression on helper T cells is in turn regulated by the expression of CD80 on B cells. CD80 interacts with the T cell surface receptors CD28 and CD154 to modulate the activity of T cells, including the B cell-modulating activity of T cells (Sperling et al., 153:155-182, 1996). CD80 expression is in turn regulated by CD40 activity in B cells.
CD80 is expressed in a variety of antigen presenting cells (APCs) including B cells and dendritic cells and is essential for T cell co-stimulation. When T cells encounter peptide-MHC complexes on an APC, CD28 acts in conjunction with the TCR to produce a maximal cellular response. CD80 is currently being evaluated as a target for the treatment of clinical conditions including transplantation, graft-versus-host disease, psoriasis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
Non-lymphocyte myeloid derivatives are also activated by surface receptor engagement in immune response and in response to injury. For example, mast cells and basophils are activated by binding of antigen to surface IgE, while platelets are activated by the binding of thrombin to its receptor.
Intercellular communication between different types of lymphocytes, as well as between lymphocytes and non-lymphocytes in the normally functioning immune system is well known. Much of this communication is mediated by cytokines and their cognate receptors. Cytokine-induced signals begin at the cell surface with a cytokine receptor and are transmitted intracellularly via signal transduction pathways. Many types of cells produce cytokines, and cytokines can induce a variety of responses in a variety of cell types, including lymphocytes. The response to a cytokine can be context-dependent as well as cell type-specific.
In addition, the expression of cytokine receptor subunits may be dynamically regulated. For example, the II-2 receptor α-subunit (CD25) is dynamically regulated in B cells and expression has been associated with leukemia (de Totero et al., Leukemia 9:1425-1431, 1995; Leonard et al., Cold Spring Harbor Symp. Quant. Biol., 64:417-424, 1999).
Dysregulation of intercellular communication can perturb lymphocyte activation and the regulation of immune responses. Such dysregulation is believed to underlie certain autoimmune disease states, hyper-immune states, and immune-compromised states. Such dysfunction may be cell autonomous or non-cell autonomous with respect to lymphocytes.
The activation of specific signaling pathways in lymphocytes determines the quality, magnitude, and duration of immune responses. In response to transplantation, in acute and chronic inflammatory diseases, and in autoimmune responses, it is these pathways that are responsible for the induction, maintenance and exacerbation of undesirable lymphocyte responses. Identification of these signaling pathways is desirable in order to provide diagnostic and prognostic tools, as well as therapeutic targets for modulating lymphocyte function in a variety of disorders or abnormal physiological states. In addition, the ability to modulate these pathways and suppress normal immune responses is often desirable, for example in the treatment of hosts receiving a transplant.
While the extracellular domains and cognate ligands of lymphocyte receptors vary widely, many receptors have similar intracellular domains (such as the "immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif" (ITAM)), and associate with common intracellular signaling molecules.
Tyrosine kinase activation is a critical event in the propagation of intracellular signals by many receptors on lymphocytes, including antigen receptors on B and T cells (for a review see Turner et al, Immunology Today, 21:148-154, 2000, incorporated herein in its entirety by reference).
With regard to the B-cell antigen receptor (BCR), the BCR is rapidly phosphorylated on tyrosine residues following engagement of the receptor by antigen or other crosslinking agents. This tyrosine phosphorylation leads to associations with several SH2-containing signaling proteins. SH2-containing proteins are known to bind to phosphorylated tyrosine residues in the context of specific amino acid sequences (Pawson, Nature, 373:573-580, 1995; Pawson et al., Science, 278:2075-2080, 1997).
Many non-receptor tyrosine kinases have been shown to interact with tyrosine phosphorylated receptors in lymphocytes, including the antigen receptors of B and T cells. These non-receptor tyrosine kinases include members of the src family and the Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) family. Importantly, many of these genes are associated with oncogenesis (van Leeuwen et al., Curr. Opin. Immunol., 11:242-248, 1999).
Btk is a non-receptor tyrosine kinase that is involved in the BCR signaling pathway and is critical for B cell development (for a review, see Tsukada et al., Advances in Immunology, 77:123-162, 2001; incorporated herein by reference). Btk was originally identified as a tyrosine kinase deficiency in human X-linked agammaglobulinemia. The Btk protein comprises a number of motifs, including SH1, SH2, SH3 and PH motifs, and interacts with a number of proteins in the BCR signal transduction pathway.
The present application discloses the finding that Btk binds to Mkk3b, a dual specificity kinase.
Mkk3b is a known dual specificity kinase that phosphorylates and activates p38 MAP kinase on specific threonine and tyrosine residues (Han et al., FEBS Letters 403:19-22, 1997; Ravanti et al., J. Biol. Chem. 274:37292-300, 1999). A second isoform, namely Mkk3, has similar function but is much less efficient at phosphorylating and activating p38 MAP kinase (Han et al., ibid). Mkk3b has an additional 29 amino acids at the N-terminus compared with Mkk3. Both Mkk3 and Mkk3b comprise a kinase domain, which can be further subdivided into an ATP pocket and an activation site. The activation site contains a serine at position 218, and a threonine at position 222.
Mkk3 responds to a variety of stresses such as shear stree, oxidative stress, and osmotic shock, as well as to cytokines and growth factors such as TNF, and FGF (Han et al., supra; Wysk et al., Proc. Natl Acad. Sci., 96:3763-3768, 1999; Matsumoto et al., J. Cell Biol., 156:149-160, 2002; Davis et. al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,736,381; Davis et. al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,804,427; Davis et. al. WO 96/36642). Mkk3b is activated by phosphorylation of residues serine 218 (S218) and threonine 222 (T222). Mkk3 is activated by mixed lineage kinase 1 (MLK3) (Tibbles et al., EMBO J, 15:7026-7035,1996), and apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 (ASK1) (Ichijo et al., Science, 275:90-94, 1997). Autophosphorylation of Mkk3 has been detected (Derijard et al., Science 267:682-685,1995) and Mkk3b is dephosphorylated by protein phosphatase 2C (Hanada et al, FEBS Letters 437:172-176, 1998). A constitutively active variant of Mkk3b which does not require phosphorylation in order to exhibit Mkk3b bioactivity has also been generated (Wang et al., J. Biol. Chem., 273:2161-2168, 1998).
Once activated, Mkk3b phosphorylates p38, a kinase involved in the inflammatory responses including the regulation of T and B cell activation and differentiation. The activation of human p38 is mediated by phosphorylation of threonine residue 180 and tyrosine residue 182 by Mkk3 and Mkk3b (Derijard et al., Science 267:682-685, 1995; Han et al., FEBS Letters 403:19-22, 1997; Moriguchi et al., J. Biol. Chem. 271:26981-8, 1996). Homozygous p38 gene inactivation in mice is lethal. Most p38 nullizygous mice die during embryogenesis; those that survive exhibit a deficit in erythropoietin expression and die early in adulthood (Tamura et al., Cell 102:221-231, 2000).
In contrast, mice deficient in Mkk3 function exhibit inflammatory, but not systemic, defects. Inactivation of the Mkk3 gene in mice has been shown to perturb the Th1 response, and Mkk3 deficient macrophages and antigen presenting cells exhibit a deficit in IL-12 induction in response stimulation with LPS or CD40L. Mkk3 nullizygous mice also exhibit a defect in interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) secretion by Th1 cells, and in proinflammatory cytokine production by fibroblasts following TNF stimulation (Lu et al., EMBO J. 18:1845-1857, 1999). Importantly, Mkk3-deficient mice are viable and fertile, exhibit no developmental defects, have no gross histological abnormalities, and exhibit normal numbers and development of B cells, T cells, monocytes, and dendritic cells.
Despite its implication in inflammatory processes, a role for Mkk3b in B cells has not been established.

Modulators of lymphocyte activation, Mkk3b compositions and methods of use


A user interface displays visual representations of user interaction with a series of nodes in a defined pipeline. The pipeline includes several nodes in a defined order with a starting node and an ending node. Each of the nodes is represented by a symbol, such as a circle, with elements, such as arrows, showing the movement of users to and from the respective nodes. User movement to a node outside of the pipeline nodes may also be shown with arrows or other elements. In some implementations such as web analytics, the nodes may be webpages and the users may be viewers who browse from one page to the next. One illustrative pipeline may be a series of webpages that a viewer interacts with in order to complete an online purchase.

The prevalence, diversity, and economic value of electronic commerce have increased dramatically as Internet use has grown. Retailers that participate in this electronic commerce often do so by maintaining a website for potential customers to view and purchase goods and services. Accordingly, studying the way people interact with retail websites can yield important insights about how to attract customers and close sales. This interest in electronic commerce, specifically web-based sales, has led to the development of web analytics, which is the study of Internet data derived from users interacting with webpages.
The Internet data used for web analytics may be provided by computers in a numerical or tabular form, such as in a web server log file that records transactions that occurred on a web server. However, the raw data presented in this numerical or tabular form may be difficult for people to interpret. Therefore, various techniques for displaying this data in a visual or graphical form have been developed. However, the visualization techniques developed thus far are not able to show interactions between customers and websites with sufficient clarity and detail. Some visualization techniques suffer from oversimplification in which important details are not presented graphically while other visualizations are overly complex and difficult to interpret.

Visual representation of user-node interactions


A recording head includes a slider, and a recording element fixed to a side surface of the slider on the side of an outflow end and having a main magnetic pole and an auxiliary magnetic pole which generate a recording magnetic field. A spot light generating element includes a core having a reflecting surface that reflects a luminous flux introduced from one end side to the other end side in a direction different from the direction of introduction and a luminous flux condensing unit configured to generate a spot light by propagating the reflected luminous flux to the other end side while condensing the same, and a clad configured to confine the core in the interior thereof. The spot light generating element is fixed adjacently to the recording element in a state in which the other end side is faced toward a magnetic recording medium. A luminous flux guide is arranged in parallel with the slider and allows the luminous flux to be introduced from the one end side into the core whereby the luminous flux condensing unit generates a spot light in the vicinity of the main magnetic pole.

In recent years, the recording density of data in a single recording plane is increased in association with increase in capacity of a hard disk or the like in computer equipment. For example, in order to increase the recording capacity per unit area of a magnetic disc, it is necessary to increase the surface recording density. However, in association with increase in recording density, the recording area per one bit on a recording medium is reduced. When the bit size is reduced, the energy possessed by one bit data becomes close to the heat energy of ambient temperatures, and hence a problem of heat demagnetization such as recorded data is inverted or lost due to heat fluctuations or the like arises.
Although a generally used in-plane recording system is a system to record magnetism so as to cause the direction of magnetization to direct toward the in-plane direction of the recording medium, with this system, the above-described loss of the recorded data or the like due to the heat demagnetization is apt to occur. Therefore, in order to solve such inconveniences, it is in the course of transferring to a vertical recording system which records magnetizing signals in the direction vertical to the recording medium. This system is a system in which magnetic data is recorded on the basis of a principle to bring a single magnetic pole to the recording medium. According to this system, a recording magnetic field is directed substantially vertical to a recording film. Data recorded in the vertical magnetic field is easy to maintain its energetic stability since an N-pole and an S-pole can hardly generate a loop in the recording film plane. Therefore, this perpendicular recording system is resistive against the heat demagnetization in comparison with the in-plane recording system.
However, the recording medium in recent years is required to have a higher density in response to a need such that recording and reproduction of a larger amount of higher density data or the like is desired. Therefore, the recording medium having a higher coercivity are started to be employed in order to minimize influences between adjacent magnetic domains or the heat fluctuations. Therefore, even with the above-described perpendicular recording system, recording of data in the recording medium becomes difficult.
Therefore, in order to solve this inconvenience, a hybrid magnetic recording system in which the magnetic domain is locally heated using a spot light obtained by condensing a light or a near field light to lower the coercivity temporarily to allow writing during this period is proposed. In particular when using the near field light, handling of optical data in an area not exceeding the wavelength of the light, which has been considered to be limited in the optical system in the related art, is enabled. Therefore, high-density of a recording bit exceeding the light data recording and reproducing apparatus or the like in the related art is achieved.
Although various types of writing heads on the basis of the hybrid magnetic recording system described above are provided, as one of those, a near field optical head in which heating is performed utilizing the near field light is known (for example, see JP-A-2004-158067 and JP-A-2005-4901).
This near field optical head mainly includes a main magnetic pole, an auxiliary magnetic pole (return pole), a coil winding having a helical conductive pattern formed in the interior of an insulator, a metal scatterer configured to generate a near field light from an irradiated laser beam, a plane laser light source configured to irradiate the metal scatterer with the laser beam, and a lens configured to focus the irradiated laser beam. These respective components are attached to a side surface of a slider fixed to a distal end of the beam.
The main magnetic pole has a surface opposing the recording medium on one end side, and is connected to the auxiliary magnetic pole on the other end side. In other words, the main magnetic pole and the auxiliary magnetic pole constitute a single magnetic poly type vertical head having one magnetic pole (single magnetic pole) arranged in the vertical direction. The coil winding is fixed to the auxiliary magnetic pole in such a manner that part of it passes between the magnetic pole and the auxiliary magnetic pole. The magnetic pole, the auxiliary magnetic pole, and the coil winding as described above constitute an electromagnet as a whole.
The above-described metal scatterer formed of gold or the like is attached to a distal end of the main magnetic pole. The above-described plane laser light source is arranged at a position apart from the metal scatterer and the above-described lens is arranged between the plane laser light source and the metal scatterer.
The respective components as described above are attached in the order of the auxiliary magnetic pole, the coil winding, the main magnetic pole, the metal scatterer, the lens, and the plane laser light source in sequence from the side of the side surface of the slider.
When utilizing the near field optical head configured in this manner, various data are recorded in the recording medium by applying the recording magnetic field simultaneously with the generation of the near field light.
In other words, the laser beam is applied from the plane laser light source. This laser beam is focused by the lens and is applied on the metal scatterer. Then, since free electrons in the interior of the metal scatterer are uniformly oscillated by the electric field of the laser beam, a plasmon is excited so that the near field light is generated at a distal end portion. Consequently, a magnetic recording layer of the recording medium is locally heated by the near field light, and the coercivity is temporarily lowered.
Also, by supplying a drive current to the conductive pattern of the coil winding simultaneously with the above-described laser beam irradiation, the recording magnetic field is locally applied on the magnetic recording layer of the recording medium close to the main magnetic pole. Accordingly, recording of various data in the magnetic recording layer in a state in which the coercivity is temporarily lowered is achieved. In other words, the recording in the recording medium is achieved in cooperation between the near field light and the magnetic field.    [Patent Document 1] JP-A-2004-158067    [Patent Document 2] JP-A-2005-4901

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Recording head and data recording and reproducing apparatus


Disclosed is a backlight unit and an LCD device having the same. The backlight unit comprises a plurality of light sources for generating light, a light guide plate for converting linear light generated from the light source into planar light and irradiating the light onto an LCD panel, a plurality of optical patterns formed on the light guide plate, wherein the optical patterns have different sizes for uniformly applying light incident onto the LCD panel to the entire LCD panel, and a diffusion sheet for transmitting light emitted from the light guide plate in a direction substantially perpendicular to the LCD panel.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display (LCD) device. More particularly, the present invention relates to a backlight unit capable of controlling a brightness and obtaining a high brightness, and an LCD device having the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a liquid crystal display (LCD) device serves to display a desired image on a screen by controlling an amount of light transmitted to a backlight unit by a plurality of liquid crystal cells arranged in a matrix form and a liquid crystal panel composed of a plurality of controlling switches for switching video signals to be supplied to each of the liquid crystal cells.
The related art backlight unit of an LCD device will be explained with reference to FIG. 1.
FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a construction of a backlight unit in accordance with the related art.
In FIG. 1, the related art backlight unit comprises a light guide plate 11 for guiding light beam 51 having passed through a light introducing portion 20, a reflection plate 31 disposed below the light guide plate 11 for reflecting the light beam 51 passing through a lower surface and a lateral surface of the light guide plate 11 towards an upper surface of the light guide plate 11, a first diffusion sheet 33 for diffusing the light beam 51 having passed through the light guide plate 11, a first prism sheet 35 and a second prism sheet 37 for controlling a moving direction of the light beam 51 having passed through the first diffusion sheet 33, a second diffusion sheet 39 for diffusing the light beam 51 having passed through the first prism sheet 35 and the second prism sheet 37, and an LCD panel 41 for receiving the light beam 51 diffused through the second diffusion sheet 39.
The light introducing portion 20 is composed of a light emitting lamp 21 for generating the light beam 51, and a lamp housing 23 for mounting the light emitting lamp 21 and reflecting the light beam 51 of the light emitting lamp 22 to the light guide plate 11.
The light beam 51 of the light introducing portion 20 is uniformly moved towards an upper surface of the light guide plate 11 via printed patterns formed at a lower surface of the light guide plate 11 so as not to satisfy a total reflection of the light beam 51 in every direction. The light beam 51 having been transmitted to the lower surface and the lateral surface of the light guide plate 11 is reflected by the reflection plate 31 thus to be transmitted to the upper surface of the light guide plate 11. An unexplained reference numeral 13 denotes a light guide reflection pattern.
The light beam 51 having passed the light guide plate 11 is diffused to an entire region of the LCD panel by the first diffusion sheet 33.
The light beam 51 having passed the first prism sheet 35 and the second prism sheet 37 passes through the second diffusion sheet 39 thereby to be incident on the LCD panel 41.
However, the related art backlight unit of an LCD device has the following problems.
In a process that a light beam generated from the light emitting lamp is guided to the light guide plate via the light introducing portion, whereas a large amount of the light beam is introduced to the light guide plate near the light introducing portion, a lesser amount of the light beam is introduced to the light guide plate distant from the light introducing portion.
Accordingly, the light beam is not uniformly distributed on the entire light guide plate, but is distributed with a different amount.
Therefore, in the related art light guide plate, a lamp brightness is not stabilized and the brightness is not easily controlled.
Furthermore, in the related art backlight unit, only a single light emitting lamp is used thereby to have a limitation in implementing various kinds of brightness.

Backlight unit and liquid crystal display having the same


A battery powered computer system monitors the address bus to determine when selected peripheral devices have not been accessed for a preset amount of time. When the preset amount of time has passed the system powers itself down and stops the system clock, placing it in a standby mode. The system is awakened by depressing a standby switch, unless there is insufficient energy in the batteries, under which circumstances an AC power source must be connected before the system can be awakened.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to battery powered computer systems, and more particularly, to circuits and methods for reducing the power consumption of the computer system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Portable computer systems are rapidly developing the capabilities of conventional desktop or floor mounted personal computer systems. Hard disk units are being integrated into portable computers because of the large amounts of information being processed and the large size of many applications programs. At east one floppy disk unit is integrated in the vast majority of portable computers, even if a hard disk unit is installed, to allow loading of information and use of applications requiring key disks and of diagnostic programs. Modems have been integrated into portable computers for some time to allow communications and information transfer between the user and a remote location, for example, the home office. The displays in the portable computer systems are becoming much more elaborate and readable. The pixel count on the standard liquid crystal displays (LCD's) utilized is increasing, as is the viewing angle. The use of backlighting allows use of LCD's in low light environments and improves the contrast ratio of the display. More complex circuitry is being installed in the portable computers to support these improved peripheral devices and to support the increased speeds and capabilities of the microprocessors utilized in the portable computer systems.
The various peripheral devices and high speed circuitry mentioned above consume large amounts of power when operating. This has made it very difficult to provide all the possible functionality available and yet have an acceptable battery life when the portable computer system is battery powered, so that it can be used in locations where alternating current is not available. Using CMOS components helped reduce the power consumption of the circuitry, but even the use of CMOS components is insufficient at the clock speeds and performance levels of available circuitry. Therefore, a dilemma arises whether to provide lesser functionality with longer battery life or greater functionality with lesser battery life or even no battery operation.
Various alternatives were tried to resolve the problem. For example, the IBM Corporation PC Convertible included a switch which the user could press to place the computer system in a standby mode, but the PC convertible with relatively simple, with a low level of functionality as compared to what is currently available and the requirement of a user action limited its use to circumstances where the user remembered to depress the switch. Blanking the display after a period of keyboard inactivity saved power as well as prolonged the life of the display and was widely utilized. A hard disk unit was developed which reduced the power used by the controlling electronics by utilizing only certain portions of the track for servo information and turning off the read channel circuitry until just before a servo burst was expected. Additionally, a programmable value could be provided to the hard disk unit so that after a given inactivity interval defined by this value, the hard disk unit was allowed to spin down and all but some interface circuitry was shut down. While these alternatives did provide some relief, they were not complete solutions to satisfactorily resolve the dilemma and design tradeoffs still were forced to occur.

Apparatus for reducing computer system power consumption


A scaffold mount bracket having an upper horizontal mount member, a wedge head, a lower horizontal mount member, a clamp, a vertical mount member, the vertical mount member having coupled proximate to the upper end thereof, and orthogonally thereto, the upper horizontal mount member and coupled to a lower end of the vertical mount member, and orthogonally thereto, the lower horizontal mount member. Coupled to the top of the vertical mount member is an attachment member having an aperture or structure for receiving, either directly or indirectly, a cable for hoisting or lowering a scaffold to which the invention is mounted or for hoisting or lowering a separate scaffold member or structure.

Tube and coupler scaffolds are so-named because they are built from tubing connected by coupling devices. Due to their strength, they are frequently used where heavy loads need to be carried, or where multiple platforms must reach several stories high. Components of scaffolds include vertical standards having coupling rings or rosettes, horizontal components such as ledgers and guardrails coupled to the coupling rings or rosettes, footings, decks/platforms and diagonal braces. Their versatility, which enables them to be assembled in multiple directions in a variety of settings, also makes them difficult to build correctly.
Conventional scaffolding systems have various components. FIG. 1 illustrates a supported scaffold 100 consisting of one or more platforms supported by rigid support members such as poles, tubes, beams, brackets, posts, frames and the like. More specifically, the supported scaffold 100 includes the following components: deck/platform 101, horizontal members, or ledgers 102, vertical standards 103. Additional components include diagonal braces to increase the stiffness and rigidity of the scaffold 100.
FIG. 2 is an illustration of a vertical standard 103. Vertical standards are typically cylindrical tubes 200 comprised of hot-dip galvanized steel or aluminum. A collar with an expanded or reduced diameter or a spigot at either or both ends of the vertical standard facilitates the joining of vertical standards from end to end. Rosettes 201 are positioned and then welded or otherwise attached along the tubes providing connections for horizontal members and diagonal braces. The vertical standard can have from one to 8 or more rosettes placed along the tubing using a predetermined spacing between rosettes, for example, about every 20 inches.
FIG. 3 illustrates a ledger 102. A ledger is a horizontal member that serves as both a guardrail and bracing element. The ledger 102 is comprised of tubing 300, heads 301 and wedges 302. Ledgers 102 are available in different lengths, depending on the scaffolding bay length, deck type and load. Once the tubing is installed, decks or platforms 101 made of, e.g., hot-dip galvanized steel, aluminum, wood or an aluminum frame with plywood board are installed to allow workers to traverse the scaffold 100 and install the guardrails (e.g., ledgers 102).
Referring now to FIG. 4, wedge 302 is shown being hammered into the slot or gap of head 301 at the end of a ledger 102 so as to couple it to the rosette 201 of the vertical standard 200.
A conventional rosette 500, as seen in FIG. 5, has a central aperture 503 to receive the vertical tubing, four small openings 501A-D to facilitate right-angled connections and four larger openings 502 A-D to facilitate connections at any angles. Typically, a vertically and horizontally slotted head 504 coupled to the end of a ledger is positioned with respect to the rosette 500 such that the horizontal slot of the head 504 is positioned over and under the rosette 500 and the vertical slot of the head is aligned with an aperture of the rosette 500. A wedge 302 is then hammered into the vertical slot (or gap) to couple the ledger 102 via the head 504 to the vertical standard 103 via the rosette 500 using, inter alia, frictional force.
What is desired is a structure that can be coupled to vertical standards of a conventional scaffold structure so as to allow the scaffold structure to be raised and lowered using a machine comprised of one or a plurality of cables, pulleys, motors or similar electromechanical devices.