The invention is a pedicle screw assembly (10) for use with a rod (11) for the immobilization of bone segments. The assembly is composed of a screw (12), a poly-axial housing (20), a washer (34), a set screw (48), and a cup shaped washer (40). When the screw is placed inside the poly-axial housing (21), the head of the screw (12) comes into contact with a middle section of the poly-axial housing (18), and is secured into the bone so that the poly-axial housing is pivotable. The housing includes a pair of upstanding posts (38) with interior threads. A washer (24) is inserted between the head of the screw (12) and the rod. A cap (40), having a bottom with a pair of openings (43) and a lateral cross connector (44), is placed over the posts (38) so that the cross connector (44) engages the rod. The cross connector and washer have semi-cylindrical rod engaging surfaces. A set screw (42) is threaded into the housing posts to secure the rod.

The present invention relates to the medical field commonly referred to as Osteosynthesis, i.e., the fusion between segments of the spine and more particularly to a pedicle screw and rod system for immobilizing the segments during the fusion process.
Osteosynthesis is achieved by immobilizing the bone. When trying to achieve osteosynthesis and specifically fusion between different segments of the spine, one has to provide some type of immobilization. There are various prior art systems which try to achieve this purpose. The different systems involve placement of screws into the bone. The screws are then connected to each other by use of various sizes of rods or a plate. The bone segments that are being connected, especially in the spine, may be carrying different angles and different medical-lateral positions. Placement of a rod with a rigid screw or placement of a plate between two rigid screws is difficult because of the medial lateral displacement or angulation at different segments. One has to bend the rod or plate and at times achieve a complex bend in order to connect two different segments of the bone and especially two different areas in the spine. When dealing with the spine, the screws are ordinarily placed into the Pedicle, and due to the different positions of the pedicle and different angulations of the screw as it enters the pedicle, one encounters difficulty in positioning and connecting these screws at various points.
Even though one can create a complex bend at the rod or the plate in order to connect two or more screws, there are places in the pedicle where one runs the chance of stress risers at different points and breakage of the system as the bends can never be perfect.
A screw system, which is capable of accommodating the rod in a perfect location without creating any appreciable areas of stress riser, will alleviate some of the above problems. Such a screw system would allow the rod to be bent to achieve fixation between two different points while adjusting to any imperfections in the bend.
There is at least one polyaxial screw system that has been used in the past which will achieve some of these goals; however, there are some inherent problems with this particular system. This polyaxial screw has many components which makes placement of such a screw cumbersome, which in turn, lengthens the operative time for this particular procedure. The system has a locking screw on the inside as well as a locking nut on the outside of the housing, which causes the operation to take much longer to perform. The fixation point which will lock the polyaxial screw and keep it from angling once the system is tightened is also not ideal.
Several patents teach the use of a pedicle screw system which appear to provide several degrees of freedom (i.e., rotation and limited angular deflection about a fixed point) for the immobilization of bone segments. See for example U.S. Pat. No. 5,360,431 to Puno et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,443,467 to Biedermann et al and U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,678 to Tsou. Each of these patented structures has certain drawbacks including the use of a conventional nut to secure the rod into place for support of the bone segments. The nuts have flat surrounding edges which are engaged by a wrench to tighten the nut. Due to the surrounding tissue, and the confined area, difficulty can arise in placing the nut in the correct position thus requiring even more time to perform the operation. During the operation the patient is under anesthesia and this extra time increases the risk to the patient. Also, when secured the nut protrudes into the surrounding soft tissue after the operation is completed. This protrusion can lead to irritation of the surrounding soft tissue and possibly inflammation.
Another problem arising with the use of the nut is the tightening process. The nut is secured through the use of a wrench. The wrench requires space around the nut to be operable which necessarily increases the scope of the surgical procedure. Furthermore, the wrench should not come into contact with the surrounding soft tissue to avoid the possibility of peripheral tissue damage. These limitations tend to further increase the risk to the patient during the operation.
Yet another problem with the prior art systems involves the manner in which the screw system is affixed to the rod. For example, systems like that disclosed in the Biedermann et al patent utilize washers or nuts on each side of the rod to secure the rod to the housing. The nuts or washers have planar surfaces which make contact with the rod only along segments of a line. Such a minimal contact with the rod will not provide sufficient purchase on the surface of the rod to prevent post operative movement between the rod and housing. Unless the screw housing is firmly grasps the rod the rod will have a tendency to twist or rotate inside of one or more of the housings. If the rod is allowed to rotate relative to one housing (and associated screw) while an adjacent housing and screw remain locked to the rod the screw secured to the locked housing may travel and break out of the vertebrae in which it was embedded. This will result in a damaged vertebrae and perhaps a severed nerve exiting the spinal column at that point. If the rod is allowed to rotate relative to all of the several housings to which it was originally secured it may migrate into muscle, soft tissue or even into the spinal column itself.
There is a need for a more reliable pedicle screw and rod system which may readily and rapidly be secured in place, with less bulky equipment and which is less intrusive to the surrounding soft tissue.
The present invention addresses the stabilization of bone segments through the use of a polyaxial pedicle screw assembly and rod. The rod is arranged to be secured between two or more embedded screw assemblies to immobilize segments of the spine. The assembly includes a screw which has a head and a threaded cylindrical shaft and is threaded into the bone. The head of the screw has a top and bottom, both of which are spherically convex in shape with the head being larger than the diameter of the cylindrical shaft. The top of the screw head has a wrench engaging surface, such as an allen wrench socket.
The screw fits within a polyaxial housing having a stepped bore adapted to receive the rod. The polyaxial housing is divided into three sections. The top section of the housing receives the entire screw including the head and is formed by a pair of spaced upstanding posts which define a U-shaped slot therebetween for receiving the rod. The inner walls of the posts are threaded for receiving a set screw which secures the rod in place. The middle section of the housing has an inner spherically concave surface for cradling the bottom of the head of the screw. The bore through the bottom section has a diameter which allows only the threaded cylindrical shaft to pass through. The screw, after insertion into the polyaxial housing, is threadably secured into the bone.
A washer with a generally spherically concave bottom surface to engage the head of the screw is then placed within the housing. Preferably the bottom surface of the washer is provided with a roughened surface, such as asperities in the form of sharp edges to provide a locking action between the washer and the screw head in the assembled condition. The top of the washer is provided with a concave surface, preferably semicylindrical or saddle shaped, to conform to the shape of the rod.
The lower surface of the washer provides for a positive gripping surface area with the screw head thereby adding to the stability of the rod and screw, once in place.
The screw assembly further includes a cup-shaped cap having two opposing openings to receive the posts and a cross-connector extending across the bottom of the cap. The cross-connector has a flat top and a bottom with a concave semicylindrical or longitudinal saddle shape to conform to the shape of the rod. The cup-shaped cap is adapted to be placed over the polyaxial housing with the bottom surface of the cross-connector making contact with the rod.
A set screw of conventional configuration is arranged to be threaded into the top section of the polyaxial housing by means of a wrench inserted into a wrench engaging surface, such as a allen wrench socket, in the top of the set screw, to tighten the assembly into place. The rod engaging surface of the cross connector may be provided with asperities formed, for example, by a series of sharp ridges (or edges) running parallel to the longitudinal axis of the rod or formed with a smaller radius of curvature at the bottom than at the top so that the cross connector will firmly grasp the rod and prevent it from twisting within the housing when the set screw is tightened.
With the set screw in place, but not tightened, the assembly has three degrees of freedom, i.e., rotatable and angularly positionable about the head of the screw. The tightening of the set screw secures the assembly into a single position. The set screw allows the assembly to be tightened while overcoming the disadvantage of potential soft tissue damage due to the use of a nut. The screw assembly of the present invention when secured in place does not protrude into the surrounding soft tissue and thus reduces the risk of irritation and soft tissue damage.
The present invention provides a highly flexible and stable bone segment immobilization system with a minimum number of components which results in a reduction in the time that a patient must remain under anesthesia.
The construction and operational features of the present invention may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the appended drawings in which like components in the several figures are identified by the same reference numerals.


The invention provides human phosphodiesterases (HPDE) and polynucleotides which identify and encode HPDE. The invention also provides expression vectors, host cells, antibodies, agonists, and antagonists. The invention also provides methods for diagnosing, treating, or preventing disorders associated with aberrant expression of HPDE.

Phosphodiesterases make up a class of enzymes which catalyze the hydrolysis of one of the two ester bonds in a phosphodiester compound. Phosphodiesterases are therefore crucial to a variety of cellular processes. Phosphodiesterases include DNA and RNA endonucleases and exonucleases, which are essential for cell growth and replication, and topoisomerases, which break and rejoin nucleic acid strands during topological rearrangement of DNA. A Tyr-DNA phosphodiesterase functions in DNA repair by hydrolyzing dead-end covalent intermediates formed between topoisomerase I and DNA (Pouliot, J. J. et al. (1999) Science 286:552-555; Yang, S.- W. (1996) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 93:11534-11539).
Acid sphingomyelinase is a phosphodiesterase which hydrolyzes the membrane phospholipid sphingomyelin to produce ceramide and phosphorylcholine. Phosphorylcholine is used in the synthesis of phosphatidylcholine, which is involved in numerous intracellular signaling pathways, while ceramide is an essential precursor for the generation of gangliosides, membrane lipids found in high concentration in neural tissue. Defective acid sphingomyelinase leads to a build-up of sphingomyelin molecules in lysosomes, resulting in Niemann-Pick disease (Schuchman, E. H. and S. R. Miranda (1997) Genet. Test. 1:13-19).
Glycerophosphoryl diester phosphodiesterase (also known as glycerophosphodiester phosphodiesterase) is a phosphodiesterase which hydrolyzes deacetylated phospholipid glycerophosphodiesters to produce sn-glycerol-3-phosphate and an alcohol. Glycerophosphocholine, glycerophosphoethanolamine, glycerophosphoglycerol, and glycerophosphoinositol are examples of substrates for glycerophosphoryl diester phosphodiesterases. A glycerophosphoryl diester phosphodiesterase from E. coli has broad specificity for glycerophosphodiester substrates (Larson, T. J. et al. (1983) J. Biol. Chem. 248:5428-5432).
Cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases (PDEs) are crucial enzymes in the regulation of the cyclic nucleotides cAMP and cGMP. cAMP and cGMP function as intracellular second messengers to transduce a variety of extracellular signals including hormones, light, and neurotransmitters. PDEs degrade cyclic nucleotides to their corresponding monophosphates, thereby regulating the intracellular concentrations of cyclic nucleotides and their effects on signal transduction. Due to their roles as regulators of signal transduction, PDEs have been extensively studied as chemotherapeutic targets (Perry, M. J. and G. A. Higgs (1998) Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 2:472-481; Torphy, J. T. (1998) Am. J. Resp. Crit. Care Med. 157:351-370).
Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterase Families
Families of mammalian PDEs have been classified based on their substrate specificity and affinity, sensitivity to cofactors, and sensitivity to inhibitory agents (Beavo, J. A. (1995) Physiol. Rev. 75:725-748; Conti, M. et al. (1995) Endocrine Rev. 16:370-389). Several of these families contain distinct genes, many of which are expressed in different tissues as splice variants. Within PDE families, there are multiple isozymes and multiple splice variants of these isozymes (Conti, M. and S.-L. C. Jin (1999) Prog. Nucleic Acid Res. Mol. Biol. 63:1-38). The existence of multiple PDE families, isozymes, and splice variants is an indication of the variety and complexity of the regulatory pathways involving cyclic nucleotides (Houslay, M. D. and G. Milligan (1997) Trends Biochem. Sci. 22:217-224).
Type 1 PDEs (PDE 1s) are Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent and appear to be encoded by at least three different genes, each having at least two different splice variants (Kakkar, R. et al. (1999) Cell Mol. Life Sci. 55:1164-1186). PDE1s have been found in the lung, heart, and brain. Some PDE1 isozymes are regulated in vitro by phosphorylation/dephosphorylation. Phosphorylation of these PDE1 isozymes decreases the affinity of the enzyme for calmodulin, decreases PDE activity, and increases steady state levels of cAMP (Kakkar, supra). PDE1s may provide useful therapeutic targets for disorders of the central nervous system, and the cardiovascular and immune systems due to the involvement of PDE1s in both cyclic nucleotide and calcium signaling (Perry, M. J. and G. A. Higgs (1998) Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 2:472-481).
PDE2s are cGMP-stimulated PDEs that have been found in the cerebellum, neocortex, heart, kidney, lung, pulmonary artery, and skeletal muscle (Sadhu, K. et al. (1999) J. Histochem. Cytochem. 47:895-906). PDE2s are thought to mediate the effects of cAMP on catecholamine secretion, participate in the regulation of aldosterone (Beavo, supra), and play a role in olfactory signal transduction (Juilfs, D. M. et al. (1997) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94:3388-3395).
PDE3s have high affinity for both cGMP and cAMP, and so these cyclic nucleotides act as competitive substrates for PDE3s. PDE3s play roles in stimulating myocardial contractility, inhibiting platelet aggregation, relaxing vascular and airway smooth muscle, inhibiting proliferation of T-lymphocytes and cultured vascular smooth muscle cells, and regulating catecholamine-induced release of free fatty acids from adipose tissue. The PDE3 family of phosphodiesterases are sensitive to specific inhibitors such as cilostamide, enoximone, and lixazinone. Isozymes of PDE3 can be regulated by cAMP-dependent protein kinase, or by insulin-dependent kinases (Degerman, E. et al. (1997) J. Biol. Chem. 272:6823-6826).
PDE4s are specific for cAMP; are localized to airway smooth muscle, the vascular endothelium, and all inflammatory cells; and can be activated by cAMP-dependent phosphorylation. Since elevation of cAMP levels can lead to suppression of inflammatory cell activation and to relaxation of bronchial smooth muscle, PDE4s have been studied extensively as possible targets for novel anti-inflammatory agents, with special emphasis placed on the discovery of asthma treatments. PDE4 inhibitors are currently undergoing clinical trials as treatments for asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and atopic eczema. All four known isozymes of PDE4 are susceptible to the inhibitor rolipram, a compound which has been shown to improve behavioral memory in mice (Barad, M. et al. (1998) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 95:15020-15025). PDE4 inhibitors have also been studied as possible therapeutic agents against acute lung injury, endotoxemia, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and various neurological and gastrointestinal indications (Doherty, A. M. (1999) Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 3:466-473).
PDE5 is highly selective for cGMP as a substrate (Turko, I. V. et al. (1998) Biochemistry 37:42004205), and has two allosteric cGMP-specific binding sites (McAllister-Lucas, L. M. et al. (1995) J. Biol. Chem. 270:30671-30679). Binding of cGMP to these allosteric binding sites seems to be important for phosphorylation of PDE5 by cGMP-dependent protein kinase rather than for direct regulation of catalytic activity. High levels of PDE5 are found in vascular smooth muscle, platelets, lung, and kidney. The inhibitor zaprinast is effective against PDE5 and PDE 1s. Modification of zaprinast to provide specificity against PDE5 has resulted in sildenafil (VIAGRA; Pfizer, Inc., New York N.Y.), a treatment for male erectile dysfunction (Terrett, N. et al. (1996) Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 6:1819-1824). Inhibitors of PDE5 are currently being studied as agents for cardiovascular therapy (Perry, M. J. and G. A. Higgs (1998) Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 2:472-481).
PDE6s, the photoreceptor cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases, are crucial components of the phototransduction cascade. In association with the G-protein transducin, PDE6s hydrolyze cGMP to regulate cGMP-gated cation channels in photoreceptor membranes. In addition to the cGMP-binding active site, PDE6s also have two high-affinity cGMP-binding sites which are thought to play a regulatory role in PDE6 function (Artemyev, N. O. et al. (1998) Methods 14:93-104). Defects in PDE6s have been associated with retinal disease. Retinal degeneration in the rd mouse (Yan, W. et al. (1998) Invest. Opthalmol. Vis. Sci. 39:2529-2536), autosomal recessive retinitis pigmentosa in humans (Danciger, M. et al. (1995) Genomics 30:1-7), and rod/cone dysplasia 1 in Irish Setter dogs (Suber, M. L. et al. (1993) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90:3968-3972) have been attributed to mutations in the PDE6B gene.
The PDE7 family of PDEs consists of only one known member having multiple splice variants (Bloom, T. J. and J. A. Beavo (1996) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 93:14188-14192). PDE7s are cAMP specific, but little else is known about their physiological function. Although mRNAs encoding PDE7s are found in skeletal muscle, heart, brain, lung, kidney, and pancreas, expression of PDE7 proteins is restricted to specific tissue types (Han, P. et al. (1997) J. Biol. Chem. 272:16152-16157; Perry, M. J. and G. A. Higgs (1998) Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 2:472-481). PDE7s are very closely related to the PDE4 family; however, PDE7s are not inhibited by rolipram, a specific inhibitor of PDE4s (Beavo, supra).
PDE8s are cAMP specific, and are closely related to the PDE4 family. PDE8s are expressed in thyroid gland, testis, eye, liver, skeletal muscle, heart, kidney, ovary, and brain. The cAMP-hydrolyzing activity of PDE8s is not inhibited by the PDE inhibitors rolipram, vinpocetine, milrinone, IBMX (3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine), or zaprinast, but PDE8s are inhibited by dipyridamole (Fisher, D. A. et al. (1998) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 246:570-577; Hayashi, M. et al. (1998) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 250:751-756; Soderling, S. H. et al. (1998) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 95:8991-8996).
PDE9s are cGMP specific and most closely resemble the PDE8 family of PDEs. PDE9s are expressed in kidney, liver, lung, brain, spleen, and small intestine. PDE9s are not inhibited by sildenafil (VIAGRA; Pfizer, Inc., New York N.Y.), rolipram, vinpocetine, dipyridamole, or IBMX (3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine), but they are sensitive to the PDE5 inhibitor zaprinast (Fisher, D. A. et al. (1998) J. Biol. Chem. 273:15559-15564; Soderling, S. H. et al. (1998) J. Biol. Chem. 273:15553-15558).
PDE10s are dual-substrate PDEs, hydrolyzing both cAMP and cGMP. PDE10s are expressed in brain, thyroid, and testis. (Soderling, S. H. et al. (1999) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96:7071-7076; Fujishige, K. et al. (1999) J. Biol. Chem. 274:18438-18445; Loughney, K. et al (1999) Gene 234:109-117).
Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterase Structure
PDEs are composed of a catalytic domain of about 270-300 amino acids, an N-terminal regulatory domain responsible for binding cofactors, and, in some cases, a hydrophilic C-terminal domain of unknown function (Conti, M. and S.-L. C. Jin (1999) Prog. Nucleic Acid Res. Mol. Biol. 63:1-38). A conserved, putative zinc-binding motif has been identified in the catalytic domain of all PDEs. N-terminal regulatory domains include non-catalytic cGMP-binding domains in PDE2s, PDE5s, and PDE6s; calmodulin-binding domains in PDE1s; and domains containing phosphorylation sites in PDE3s and PDE4s. In PDE5, the N-terminal cGMP-binding domain spans about 380 amino acid residues and comprises tandem repeats of a conserved sequence motif (McAllister-Lucas, L. M. et al. (1993) J. Biol. Chem. 268:22863-22873). This motif has been shown by mutagenesis to be important for cGMP binding (Turko, I. V. et al. (1996) J. Biol. Chem. 271:22240-22244). PDE families display approximately 30% amino acid identity within the catalytic domain; however, isozymes within the same family typically display about 85-95% identity in this region (e.g. PDE4A vs PDE4B). Furthermore, within a family there is extensive similarity (>60%) outside the catalytic domain; while across families, there is little or no sequence similarity outside this domain.
Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases in Disease
Many of the constituent functions of immune and inflammatory responses are inhibited by agents that increase intracellular levels of cAMP (Verghese, M. W. et al. (1995) Mol. Pharmacol. 47:1164-1171). A variety of diseases have been attributed to increased PDE activity and associated with decreased levels of cyclic nucleotides. For example, a form of diabetes insipidus in mice has been associated with increased PDE4 activity, an increase in low-Km cAMP PDE activity has been reported in leukocytes of atopic patients, and PDE3 has been associated with cardiac disease.
Many inhibitors of PDEs have been identified and have undergone clinical evaluation (Perry, M. J. and G. A. Higgs (1998) Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 2:472-481; Torphy, T. J. (1998) Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 157:351-370). PDE3 inhibitors are being developed as antithrombotic agents, antihypertensive agents, and as cardiotonic agents useful in the treatment of congestive heart failure. Rolipram, a PDE4 inhibitor, has been used in the treatment of depression, and other inhibitors of PDE4 are undergoing evaluation as anti-inflammatory agents. Rolipram has also been shown to inhibit lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced TNF-α which has been shown to enhance HIV-1replication in vitro. Therefore, rolipram may inhibit HIV-1 replication (Angel, J. B. et al. (1995) AIDS 9:1137-1144). Additionally, rolipram, based on its ability to suppress the production of cytokines such as TNF-α and β and interferon γ, has been shown to be effective in the treatment of encephalomyelitis. Rolipram may also be effective in treating tardive dyskinesia and was effective in treating multiple sclerosis in an experimental animal model (Sommer, N. et al. (1995) Nat. Med. 1:244-248; Sasaki, H. et al. (1995) Eur. J. Pharmacol. 282:71-76).
Theophylline is a nonspecific PDE inhibitor used in the treatment of bronchial asthma and other respiratory diseases. Theophylline is believed to act on airway smooth muscle function and in an anti-inflammatory or immunomodulatory capacity in the treatment of respiratory diseases (Banner, K. H. and C. P. Page (1995) Eur. Respir. J. 8:996-1000). Pentoxifylline is another nonspecific PDE inhibitor used in the treatment of intermittent claudication and diabetes-induced peripheral vascular disease. Pentoxifylline is also known to block TNF-α production and may inhibit HIV1 replication (Angel et al., supra).
PDEs have been reported to affect cellular proliferation of a variety of cell types (Conti et al. (1995) Endocrine Rev. 16:370-389) and have been implicated in various cancers. Growth of prostate carcinoma cell lines DU145 and LNCaP was inhibited by delivery of cAMP derivatives and PDE inhibitors (Bang, Y. J. et al. (1994) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 91:5330-5334). These cells also showed a permanent conversion in phenotype from epithelial to neuronal morphology. It has also been suggested that PDE inhibitors have the potential to regulate mesangial cell proliferation (Matousovic, K. et al. (1995) J. Clin. Invest. 96:401-410) and lymphocyte proliferation (Joulain, C. et al. (1995) J. Lipid Mediat. Cell Signal. 11:63-79). A cancer treatment has been described that involves intracellular delivery of PDEs to particular cellular compartments of tumors, resulting in cell death (Deonarain, M. P. and A. A. Epenetos (1994) Br. J. Cancer 70:786-794).
The discovery of new phosphodiesterases and the polynucleotides encoding them satisfies a need in the art by providing new compositions which are useful in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of eye, neurological, cardiovascular, cell proliferative, and autoimmune/inflammatory disorders, and in the assessment of the effects of exogenous compounds on the expression of nucleic acid and amino acid sequences of phosphodiesterases.


An image forming apparatus includes an interpolation reference data creating unit, a reference space coordinate calculating unit, an interpolation operation unit, and a color conversion unit. The interpolation reference data creating unit divides a hue plane with grid points and creates interpolation reference data where triangular shapes formed by the grid points for an linear interpolation are varied in portions where saturation of the hue plane is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold and where the saturation of the hue plane is higher than the predetermined threshold. The interpolation operation unit performs the linear interpolation with the coordinates of the triangular shapes formed by the grid points in the hue plane adjacent to the coordinates calculated by the reference space coordinate calculating unit so as to create the color conversion table. The color conversion unit converts a color value with the color conversion table.

Unless otherwise indicated herein, the description in this section is not prior art to the claims in this application and is not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
There is provided an image forming apparatus such as a Multi-Functional Peripheral (MFP) that can print a document and an image. A color value in a RGB (Red, Green, and Blue) color space is used for general print data of an image forming apparatus. In contrast to this, the color value in a CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, black, or Key plate) color space is often used in outputting to recording sheets in the image forming apparatus. In view of this, the image forming apparatus is required to perform a color conversion from the color value in the RGB color space into the color value in the CMYK color space for image formation.
There exist simple conversion equations for the color conversion from the RGB color space into the CMYK color space.C=(1−R−K)/(1−K)M=(1−G−K)/(1−K)Y=(1−B−K)/(1−K)K=min(1−R,1−G,1−B)However, performing the color conversion accurately using the above-described equations is difficult for the model dependent CMYK color space. In view of this, a color conversion table (LUT, Lookup Table) is used for the color conversion from the RGB color space into the CMYK color space. In a color conversion table, when RGB each have 8 bits, holding an assignment of an output value of CMYK or a device independent color space (a CIE XYZ color space, a CIE LAB/CIE LCh color space, or a similar color space) causes to much data volume with respect to input values of about 1678 million colors, which are 256 tones to the third power for each color. In view of this, it is general that the color conversion table, where the data volume is reduced by thinning the colors instead of using all colors in the RGB color space, is created and is stored in the image forming apparatus.
In the color conversion table where the data volume is reduced, the assignment from the color value in the RGB color space into the color value in the CMYK color space is being set for each grid point, which divides the RGB color space at a predetermined interval. For the color value other than the position of the grid point, the color value in the CMYK color space is calculated by an interpolation operation. In the interpolation operation, a method such as a linear interpolation or an interpolation by an approximation formula is used. For example, there is provided an image processing apparatus that preliminarily registers high-order bits as grid point information and low-order bits as information on determining an interpolation proportion and perform an N-point interpolation using information described above.

Apparatus, method, and non-transitory computer-readable recording medium for image forming that create highly accurate color conversion table


The present invention includes a programmable thin film filament resistor and method of constructing same. The finished construction includes: a core member of hydrogenated amorphous silicon; upper and lower electrodes made of a barrier metal such as molybdenum or tungsten applied to the upper and lower surfaces of the core member; and, backing layers, typically made of aluminum, applied to the outside surfaces of the electrodes. An insulator may be added to the upper surface of the core member. A programming voltage is applied to the electrodes, creating a discharge path between the upper and lower electrodes. When a critical current is reached, a filament is formed as the aluminum of the backing layers, the barrier metal of the electrodes, and the amorphous silicon are fused together. The result is a filament resistor with linear properties within a defined operating range. In an alternate embodiment, the upper and lower electrodes are overlapped in an alternating pattern, creating fusion zones. When the programming voltage is applied, an electric field forms within the fusion zones which creates multiple filaments with linear resistive qualities.

A multi-chip module ("MCM") consists of a number of unpackaged chips which are mounted directly on and electrically interconnected by a passive substrate, thereby enabling high density packaging. The chips in a MCM are usually active integrated circuit chips. However, it is not always possible to implement a desired module function exclusively with integrated circuit chips. Specifically, there is often a need for discrete resistors. In digital circuits, discrete resistors may be needed as transmission line terminators, pull-ups or pull-downs for die outputs, and tie-ups or tie-downs for die inputs. In analog circuits, discrete resistors may be needed for operational amplifier networks.
An unpackaged, single resistor, also known as a "single resistor chip," is available and can be mounted on the substrate together with the active chips. The single resistor chip, however, is highly undesirable. Small in comparison to the active chips, the single resistor chip still consumes inordinate amounts of substrate surface area and is much more difficult to assemble. It may also introduce noticeable parasitic capacitances and inductances.
In the past, attempts have been made to mitigate the disadvantages of the single resistor chip by "sweeping" a number of single resistors together to form a multi-resistor chip. This leads, however, to a different problem. Whenever the resistors in a given multi-resistor chip require different values because of a specific electrical application, a standard "off-the-shelf" chip in which all the resistors have equal values can no longer be used.
The need for resistors having differing values of resistance in a multi-resistor chip may occur even if the application calls for equal resistances. In the case of pull-down resistors or transmission line terminators, for instance, an application may need a large number of equal resistors. However, if the resistors or terminators are concentrated in a multi-resistor chip, each resistor has to be connected by a trace on the substrate to connection points which then invariably adds the resistance of the trace itself to the resistance of the individual resistor. Thus, the resistance of each individual resistor on a multi-resistor chip may have to be individually adjusted in order to compensate for the trace resistance to obtain the required total resistance.
Another approach previously used to mitigate the single resistor chip problem has been to integrate the resistors as thin-film resistors into the substrate. The conventional method of constructing thin film resistors involves creating a horizontal rectangle of resistive material located within a film (usually by etching or a similar process). Disadvantages of the thin film approach include the need for additional steps and the introduction of different materials to the substrate manufacturing process. The thin film resistors may also consume significant amounts of substrate area, whereby reducing the area available for the necessary interconnect traces.

Programmable thin film filament resistor and method of constructing same


A golf club head includes a face panel and a hollow casing directly molded from aluminum alloy on the face panel and covered over the border area of the face panel, wherein a weight is mounted in a back recess at the center of the back side wall of the face panel to concentrate the center of gravity of the face panel at the center area, a metal locating plate is welded to the back side wall of the face panel to fixedly secure the weight in place, and a plurality of V-shaped metal ribs are welded to the back side wall of the face panel and embedded in the aluminum alloy of the casing, the metal ribs each defining with the back side wall of the face panel a through hole, which is filled up by the aluminum alloy of the casing.

The present invention relates to golf club head, and more particularly to an improved structure of golf club head which has a reinforced face panel mounted with a weight, which concentrates the center of gravity of the face panel at the center area.
A variety of golf clubs have been disclosed, and have appeared on the market. These golf clubs have different club heads made of different materials. FIG. I shows a golf club head according to the prior art. This structure of golf club head 10 is expensive because it is integrally molded from titanium alloy. FIG. 2 shows another structure of golf club head according to the prior art. The golf club head 10 shown in FIG. 2 is molded from aluminum alloy, having a front recess 101 and a titanium face panel 20 mounted in the front recess 101 and fixedly secured thereto by screws, rivets, glue, etc. This structure of golf club head is less expensive, however the face panel tends to vibrate or to fall from the body of the club head upon a high impact force.


A method of measuring a track value is shown. The track value is related to track mis-registration, and is compared to a track value limit to assess a condition of the track. In example embodiments, the track value is determined as a function of multiple position error signals from previous wedges in the track. During a self servo writing operation, the track value and the track value limit are used to selectively perform a recovery action. In example embodiments, the track value limit is dynamically adjusted.

A disk drive is an information storage device. A disk drive includes one or more disks clamped to a rotating spindle and at least one head for reading information representing data from and/or writing data to the surfaces of each disk. The head is supported by a suspension coupled to an actuator that may be driven by a voice coil motor. Control electronics in the disk drive provide electrical signals to the voice coil motor to move the head to desired positions on the disks to read and write the data in tracks on the disks.
Servo wedges are commonly written onto a disk surface to locate the read/write head on the disk surface during operation. Because tracks are never absolutely perfect circles on a disk, an amount of track mis-registration (TMR) is measured, and used to evaluate a number of operations in a drive such as quality of self-servo writing. Another use for TMR data includes evaluation of a wedge offset reduction field. It is desirable to obtain a measure of TMR that provides the most useful statistical information about the track for a given drive function such as self-servo writing, wedge offset reduction, etc.


A system, method and/or apparatus is provided for visualization or imaging of the transverse carpal ligament and surrounding structures/features of a hand of a patient, and treatment of the transverse carpal ligament, particularly, but not necessarily, for performing non-invasive carpal tunnel release. The subject invention utilizes ultrasound waves preferably, but not necessarily, in the high frequency range and cavitations to image the transverse carpal ligament (TCL), record its location in three-dimensional space, and perform precision treatment on the transverse carpal ligament. Treatment may range from stretching or lengthening the TCL to complete tissue ablation or dissection of a portion or portions of the TCL (as is performed in a standard carpal tunnel release procedure) in order to release pressure within the carpal tunnel. Particularly, high temperature conditions are generated at target tissue of the TCL resulting in elongation or necrosis/dissection. The subject system, apparatus and/or method provides the surgeon to relieve a patient of carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms in a bloodless, efficient, and accurate manner.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to procedures for relieving problems associated with carpal tunnel syndrome and, more particularly, to a procedure for performing a minimally invasive to non-invasive surgical procedure on a transverse carpal ligament.
2. Background Information
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a common problem that affects the hand and wrist. This condition, or syndrome, has become the focus of much attention in the last few years due to suggestions that it may be linked to certain occupations that require repetitive use of the hands, such as typing. While certain occupations may experience more problems with carpal tunnel syndrome, many people develop this condition regardless of their occupation.
Particularly, carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a condition that results when the median nerve of the hand does not function properly. Usually, this occurs because there is too much pressure on the median nerve that extends into the wrist through an opening called the carpal tunnel. The median nerve extends into the hand to receive sensation from the thumb, index finger, long finger, and half of the ring finger. The median nerve also provides a branch to the muscles of the thumb (i.e. the thenar muscles).
The carpal tunnel is an opening into the hand that is made up of the bones of the wrist (i.e. the carpals) on the bottom and the transverse carpal ligament on the top. The median nerve and the flexor tendons extend through the carpal tunnel into the hand. The median nerve lies just under the transverse carpal ligament. A material called the tenosynovium covers the flexor tendons. The tenosynovium is slippery and thus allows the tendons to glide against each other as they move. Any condition that causes irritation or inflammation of the tendons can result in swelling and/or thickening of the tenosynovium. As the tenosynovium begins to swell and/or thicken, pressure begins to increase in the carpal tunnel. This is because the bones and ligaments that constitute the carpel tunnel are fixed in size and thus are not able to stretch in response to the swelling. Increased pressure in the carpel tunnel begins to squeeze the median nerve against the transverse carpal ligament, since the median nerve is the softest structure in the carpal tunnel. Eventually, the pressure reaches a point where the median nerve can no longer function normally. This manifests itself as pain and numbness in the hand.
There are many conditions that can result in irritation and inflammation of the tenosynovium, and eventually cause carpal tunnel syndrome. Different types of arthritis can cause inflammation of the tenosynovium directly. A fracture of the wrist bones may later cause carpal tunnel syndrome if the healed fragments result in abnormal irritation on the flexor tendons. Particularly, anything that causes abnormal pressure on the median nerve will result in the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.
In the early stages of carpal tunnel syndrome, non-operative treatments are typically used. One such non-operative treatment is the use of a brace. The brace keeps the wrist in a neutral position. When the wrist is in a neutral position, the carpal tunnel is as large as it can be so the median nerve has as much room as possible.
Another non-operative treatment that tries to reduce the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome is the use of anti-inflammatory medications to help control swelling of the tenosynovium. Anti-inflammatory medications include over the counter medications such as ibuprofen and aspirin, as well as high doses of vitamin B-6. Injections of cortisone into the carpal tunnel may also be used in order to decrease swelling of the tenosynovium and thereby give temporary relief of symptoms.
If the non-operative treatments fail to control the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome, surgery may be required to reduce the pressure on the median nerve. There are essentially three surgical techniques designed to relieve pressure on the median nerve. The first and most common surgical procedure is the traditional open incision technique. The second surgical procedure is known as the mini-open. The third procedure is an endoscopic technique.
The traditional open incision technique requires a 2 to 2½ inch incision to be made in the palm of the hand. A structure called the palmer fascia is then incised in order to reach the transverse carpal ligament. The transverse carpal ligament is then cut while making sure that the median nerve is out of the way and protected. The cut or incision may be slight (small incised amount) or drastic (e.g. as in a full carpal tunnel release (CTR) procedure). Pressure on the median nerve is relieved after cutting of the transverse carpal ligament. The incised skin is then sutured. The transverse carpal ligament remains open and the gap is slowly filled by scar tissue.
Major drawbacks to the standard, open incision technique are the slowness of recovery and the size of the resulting scar. Often the 2 inch palm side scar remains sensitive to direct pressure for approximately six to eight weeks. For a working patient, this scar sensitivity can preclude return to normal work activities. In summation, the greater the invasiveness, the longer patient recovery time.
The mini-open technique utilizes a 1 to 1½ cm incision proximate the transverse carpal ligament. Various instruments are placed through the incision and utilized to cut the TCL from underneath as appropriate.
In the endoscopic carpal tunnel release technique, a small horizontal incision is made at the wrist and an arthroscope is introduced underneath the transverse carpal ligament. A small knife or blade, attached to the end of the arthroscope, is utilized to incise or cut the transverse carpal ligament. Again, cutting through the transverse carpal ligament alleviates the compression on the median nerve. While the endoscopic carpal tunnel release technique is less invasive than the traditional, and is typically accomplished on an outpatient basis, it is nonetheless an invasive procedure that requires time to heal. With the endoscopic method, however, poor or low quality visualization typically tends to make surgeons prefer an open technique.
Moreover, with current invasive techniques, the surgeon must rely on his/her own expertise for visualization, not only for the initial incision on the palm of the hand, but also in locating where dissection of the transverse carpel ligament takes place. The place of dissection is critical because while it is desired to split the transverse carpal ligament, the surgeon must not lacerate any major branch of the median or ulnar nerves.
Furthermore, although current complication rates are low (approximately 3–4%), inadvertent laceration of a nerve (either fully or partially) can have catastrophic effects on the functionality of the patient's hand, as well as impact the surgeon's practice. Because of the risks, may patients suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome forego the surgical procedure because of the involved risks.
It should be appreciated in view of the above, that it is desired to have a non-invasive technique for performing carpal tunnel release.
It should also be appreciated in view of the above, that it is desired to have pre-surgical visualization of all critical structures (e.g. nerves, blood vessels, transverse carpal ligament, etc.) particularly in order to produce more accurate work and/or reduce surgical mistakes.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Imaging and surgical procedure for carpal tunnel syndrome


A time code display system comprising: a video receiver configured for receiving a plurality of non-homologous video signals; a time code parser connected with the video receiver and configured for extracting time code data of each video frame from each video signal; a write controller and a buffer, the write controller being connected with the video receiver and the time code parser; a synchronous clock component configured for generating a local clock signal according to a channel associated clock signal of any video signal; and a read controller and a display, the read controller being connected with the synchronous clock component and the buffer and configured for reading out the video frame of each video signal and the time code data corresponding to the video frame from the buffer at the same time, according to the local clock signal.

A time code is a code recorded for each frame of image when a camera records image signals, and is a digital signal applied to streaming, which assigns a number to each frame in a video to represent hours, minutes, seconds and frame numbers. Traditional monitor display systems store time codes and video frames separately, and the time codes are output in a delayed manner according to the number of cache frames of the video in a memory, or according to the way of frame rate conversion.

Time code display system and method, displaying device, storage medium and electronic apparatus


The present invention relates to novel chip compositions containing specific polyol ester as the major carrier for liquid skin benefit agents. Addition of specific polyol esters wherein the melting temperature and HLB are specifically defined has been found to remarkably enhance the oil/humectant structuring capability of a skin cleansing bar. Such a polyol ester also permits the liquid benefit agents to be released into a personal wash liquor and then to be delivered to skin via personal wash. In a second embodiment, the invention relates to a method for enhancing the bar's capability of including high levels of oil and/or humectant by applying the adjuvant technology. That is, by coextruding and stamping the mixture of chips containing skin benefit agents and base chips containing a surfactant system, high levels of oils and/or humectants can be incorporated into solid toilet bars by standard extrusion technology. In the third embodiment, skin mildness and especially skin moisturization are significantly enhanced by the detergent bar compositions comprising the combination of the specific polyol ester with oil and/or humectant.

It is technically difficult to include high levels (e.g., 10-20%) of liquid hydrophobic emollient oil (e.g., sunflower seed oil) and/or hydrophilic liquid humectant (e.g., glycerin) in the form of a solid personal washing bar and meanwhile maintain the bar mildness and benefit delivery to the human skin.
For example, high levels of humectants (e.g., glycerin, low MW polyalkylene glycol) can be trapped in a solid matrix of caboxylic fatty acid soap. However, it is known that carboxylic soap is harsh to skin especially when the soap concentration is high and when the soap is dissolved in the aqueous washing liquor through its own hydrophilic tendency or through the acts of cosurfactants in the bar.
On the other hand, non-soap synthetic bar formulations are primarily structured by either hydrophobic crystalline materials such as free fatty acid or paraffin wax or by hydrophilic crystalline materials such as polyalkylene glycol of high molecular weight (e.g., MW between 2000 and 20000).
Not to be bound by the theory, formulating high levels of emollient oil into the hydrophobic crystalline materials is believed to result in tightly binding the oil with the hydrophobic crystalline structurants. This contributes to the incapability of releasing the oil to water from the bar and may prevent delivering oil to skin via personal wash (see Example 1).
Including liquid oils and/or liquid humectants in bars structured by hydrophilic crystalline materials leads to another difficulty. That is, the oil and the humectant are not compatible with the hydrophilic structurants such as PEG 8000, and this incompatibility results in oil leakage and phase separation from the bulk portion of the bar solid (see Example 1).
Therefore, a novel mild bar structuring system is required to be able to satisfactorily structure the oil and/or the humectant in the bar solid while simultaneously permitting oil release from the bar to the aqueous liquid and then to the human skin via the route of personal wash.
Novel to the art, the applicants of the subject invention found a specific group of polyol esters (i.e., having specific ranges of HLB and specific melting temperature) are capable of both structuring a high level of hydrophobic emollient oils and/or humectants in solid form while still permitting the oil and humectants to be released from the solid into aqueous liquor to be delivered to the human skin through the route of personal wash. Balancing the ratio between polyol ester and oil/humectant are critical to achieve the desired oil structuring and oil releasing. The polyol ester solids containing high level of emollients/humectants can be processed into the form of soft solid chips, flakes or powders and then mixed with "base" chips (comprising the surfactant system) prior to milling, extruding and stamping the bars. This specific way of processing the bars is referred herein as the "adjuvant technology". Using the said specific polyol esters to incorporate high levels of emollients/humectants in the adjuvant chips that are then mixed with the base chips results in novel bar formulations, which are able to deliver high dosage of benefit agents to skin via personal wash and provide satisfactory bar user properties such as cream and/or lotion-like lather even in the presence of high oil levels. The presence of high levels of oil and/or humectant in bar made by said adjuvant technology also effectively reduces the skin irritation potential of surfactants.
The use of polyol esters in personal washing bars is not new.
European Patent Application EP 94105052.8 assigned to Kao Corp. (invented by M. Tonomura and T. Ohtomo), for example, teaches the use of monoglyceridesto boost the lather of formulations comprising only nonionic surfactants. The application does not teach the use of the combination of specific solid monoglycerides and high level of liquid emollient oils/humectants to make bars, preferably pourable, cast melt bars, preferably comprising anionic surfactants and amphoteric surfactants. It does not teach the use of "adjuvant technology" to make high emollient/humectantcontaining bars in general. By contrast, the subject invention found that by using a specific polyol ester (e.g., specific range of HLB, polyol ester to oil/humectant ratio), high levels of emollient oil and/or humectants can be satisfactorily incorporated into adjuvant chips and then mixed with the "base chips" through the adjuvant technology.
An international application published under PCT WO 92/13060 to Procter & Gamble (authored by R. James) teaches the use of monoglycerides in general, PEG and fatty acid as binders for an extruded syndet bar formulation. The prior art, however, does not teach the use of a specific combination of specific monoglycerides (e.g., specific ranges of HLB) and PEG and fatty acid to incorporate high level of liquid emollients (e.g., vegetable oils)/liquid humectants (e.g., glycerin) to make a bar. The prior art also does not teach the specific bar formulation spaces to ensure that high levels of liquid oils and/or humectants can be structured in the solid bar matrixes and can be delivered to skin via personal wash. In contrast, the subject invention uses the adjuvant technology to prepare chips containing high levels of oils and/or humectants. By using a specific polyol ester (e.g., polyol esters with specific range of HLB, specific polyol ester to oil ratio, and specific polyol ester to other structurant (e.g., PEG and fatty acid) ratio), high levels of emollient oil and/or humectants can be satisfactorily incorporated into adjuvant chips and then into bars and can be delivered from the bars to skin under the personal wash condition.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,510,050 to J. Dunbar, P. Beerse, and E. Walker also teaches the use of monoglycerides in general as a non-preferred candidate for the plasticizers in an extruded cleansing bar containing liquid polyols (4-15%) and magnesium soap (4.5 to 50%). The preferred plasticizers are fatty acids, sodium soap, and paraffin wax (Column 5, line 22-24). The prior art, however, does not teach the use of a specific combination of specific monoglycerides (e.g., specific ranges of HLB) and other plasticizers to incorporate high level of liquid emollients (e.g., vegetable oils)/liquid humectants (e.g., glycerin) into a bar. The prior art also does not teach the specific bar formulation spaces to ensure that high levels of liquid oils and/or humectants can be structured in the solid bar matrixes and can be delivered to skin via personal wash. In fact, as found by the subject invention, the preferred plasticizers used in the prior art hinder the skin deposition of liquid oils from bars to skin. The prior art has to use magnesium soap as the key ingredient to aid processing (column 2, line 26). In contrast, the subject invention uses the adjuvant technology to prepare solid chips containing high levels of oils and/or humectants. By using a specific polyol ester (e.g., polyol esters with specific range of HLB, specific polyol ester to oil ratio, and specific polyol ester to other structurant (e.g., PEG and fatty acid) ratio), high levels of emollient oil and/or liquid humectants can be satisfactorily incorporated into chips and then into bars and can be delivered from the bars to skin under the personal wash condition. In the subject invention, carboxylic acid soap is not included in the chip composition and is an optional ingredient of the total bar composition.
A Great Britain Patent GB 1,570,142 assigned to GAF Corp. teaches the use of both hardened triglycerides and fatty alcohols as the plasticizers in an extruded syndet formulation. In contrast to the subject invention, the application does not teach the use of the combination of specific monoglycerides and high level of liquid emollient/humectants to make bars. It does not teach the use of adjuvant technology to make high emollient/humectant containing bars in general. By contrast, the subject invention found that by using a specific polyol ester (e.g., specific range of HLB, polyol ester to oil ratio, and polyol ester to other structurant ratio), high levels of emollient oil and humectants can be satisfactorily incorporated in the bar for the skin benefit through the adjuvant technology.
The art of using the adjuvant technology to incorporate emollients into bars is not new.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,849 to Visscher et al. teaches bar compositions containing a silicone skin mildness/moisturizing aid component. In one embodiment, the silicone component may be mixed with a carrier which is selected to facilitate incorporation of the silicone. At column 16, the reference describes that silicone is mixed into melted Carbowax (i.e., polyethylene glycol), that the mixture is cooled to form flakes, and that the flakes are preferably added to an amalgamator.
It is clear, however, that the Visscher et al. contemplates a silicone/carrier system different from the adjuvant chips of the subject invention. First, the Visscher patent does not teach selecting a carrier having specific HLB to both carry high levels of oils and permit oil release from the solid into water. For example, polyethylene glycol (HLB>18) is not miscible with most of hydrophobic oils such as silicone oil or vegetable oil at mixing temperatures (e.g., 70-120.degree. C.), and upon cooling, oil tends to leak out of the PEG solid matrix. Therefore PEG has a poor oil-carrying capacity although it permits oil release from oil into water and then to skin via personal wash (see Example 1). On the other hand, fatty acid, ethers, alcohols or paraffin wax (HLB<2) have high oil carrying capability (Example 1); however, it is difficult to have oils released from those hydrophobic solids into water and then to skin at conditions relevant to personal wash. Novel to the art, subject invention found that specific solid polyol esters (i.e., specific HLB between 2.5 and 15) are capable of carrying high levels of oil/humectant and simultaneously providing oil release from the solid into water then to skin via personal wash.
U.S. Patent applications filed by Unilever (95-R385-EDG and 95-R385-B-EDG) use additional thickeners such as fumed silica or additional hydrophobically modified polyalkylene glycols or EO-PO copolymers to improve the oil-carrying capability of polyalkylene glycol in the adjuvant chips and to modify the dissolution speed of the adjuvant chips in water. Nevertheless, those applications use highly hydrophilic materials such as PEG and EO-PO (HLB>>15) and do not teach selecting a carrier having specific HLB (between 2.5 and 15, preferably between 2 and 8) to not only carry high levels of oils but also permit oil release from the solid into water. For example, polyethylene glycol (HLB>18) or hydrophobically modified PEG claimed (HLB>15) are not miscible with most of hydrophobic oils such as silicone oil or vegetable oil at mixing temperatures (e.g., 70-120.degree. C.), and, upon cooling, oil tends to leak out of the solid matrix (see Example 1). Thus thickeners such as fumed silica have to be added to improve the adjuvant's oil-carrying capacity. Nevertheless, fumed silica is in the form of very fine powders (i.e., 7-30 millimicrons), which increase the processing difficulties and potentially increase the cost. By contrast, subject invention teach the use of specific solid polyol esters (i.e., specific HLB between 2.5 and 15) to carry high levels of oil/humectant and provide oil release from the solid into water then to skin via personal wash without or with a reduced level of thickeners such as fumed silica (e.g., 0-0.5%), which is advantageous because potentially processing can be simplified and cost can be reduced.
In summary, none of the references, alone or in combination teach that the use of specific polyol esters (e.g., having specific melting temperature, especially specific hydrophobic-lipophobic balance (HLB)) in specific adjuvant chips, flakes or granules or powders (i.e., containing greater than or equal to 5% hydrophobic emollient oils and/or humectants in the adjuvant chips, the polyol ester to oil/humectant ratio greater or equal to 1:1, and the polyol ester to other structurant ratio greater than 1:1) will result in bars, processed by adjuvant technology, with enhanced oil/humectant carrying and releasing capabilities. These capabilities are crucial to benefit delivery to the skin via personal wash.
Not to be bound by the theory, it is believed that the adjuvant chips of the subject invention entrapped emollient oils by a mechanism that is different from those of prior art. That is, hydrophobic oils such as sunflower seed oil tend to be miscible with said polyol esters during mixing (temperature between 65-120.degree. C.) to form an one phase isotropic liquid. Upon cooling, the oil may not be in the form of discrete droplets as is found in the adjuvant chips where polyalkylene glycol is the major carrier. Instead, oils may exist in the crystalline cracks or even in the form of solid solution in the chips of the subject invention. The chemical affinity of oil and polyol ester is believed to contribute significantly to the stability of the oils in the polyol ester carrier.

Lever Brothers Company, Division of Conopco, Inc.


A process of preparing alkylhydroxyalkylcellulose (e.g., methylhydroxyethylcellulose and methylhydroxypropylcellulose) by reaction of cellulose in the presence of alkali metal hydroxide with an alkylating agent and a hydroxyalkylating agent is described. The process includes: (a) alkalizing cellulose by means of 0.9 to 2.9 equivalents of an alkali metal hydroxide I/AGU of the cellulose in the form of an aqueous alkali metal hydroxide solution, in the presence of a suspension medium containing at least 0.2 equivalents of an alkylating agent I/AGU of the cellulose; (b) reacting the alkalized cellulose of step (a) with alkylating agent I and a hydroxyalkylating agent at a temperature above 65° C.; (c) adding additional alkali metal hydroxide 11 in the form of an aqueous alkali metal hydroxide solution; and (d) adding additional alkylating agent 11 in an amount of at least the absolute value of the difference between (i) the number of equivalents of alkylating agent I/AGU of the cellulose already added, and (ii) the total number of equivalents of alkali metal hydroxide/AGU of the cellulose added. Additional alkylating agent 11 is not added in step (d) if (i) the number of equivalents of alkylating agent I/AGU of the cellulose already added exceeds (ii) the total number of equivalents of alkali metal hydroxide/AGU of the cellulose already added. In a further step (e), the alkylhydroxyalkylcellulose is isolated from the reaction mixture. The isolated alkylhydroxyalkylcellulose may be optionally purified.

The highly varied class of cellulose ethers, including the group of binary alkylhydroxyalkylcelluloses including the commercially available representatives methylhydroxyethylcellulose (MHEC) and methylhydroxypropylcellulose (MHPC) has been a field of academic and industrial activity for a number of decades and has been widely described. An overview of the chemical fundamentals and principles of their preparation production processes and process steps) and a listing of materials and description of the products and possible applications of the various derivatives are given, for example, in Houben-Weyl, Methoden der Organischen Chemie, Makromolekulare Stoffe, 4th edition, Volume E 20, p. 2042 (1987)
The processes described and employed for preparing alkylhydroxyalkylcelluloses, e.g., methylhydroxyethylcellulose and methylhydroxypropylcellulose, are based either on a heterogeneous reaction (multiphase reaction mixture) or homogeneous reaction (e.g. single-phase solution). The process itself can be carried out either batchwise or continuously. Heterogeneous reactions are additionally subdivided into gas-phase processes (without liquid reaction medium) and slurry processes (in the presence of a liquid reaction medium).
All process variants for preparing alkylhydroxyalkylcelluloses, e.g., methylhydroxyalkylcelluloses, which have been described and implemented industrially are generally based on the following chemical reaction scheme: In a preceding substep, the cellulosic starting material is activated, preferably by means of aqueous alkali metal hydroxide solution. The alkali metal salt of cellulose which is formed is subsequently reacted with the appropriate alkylene oxide and methyl chloride, with any excess alkali used advantageously being largely neutralized by superstoichiometric amounts of methyl chloride. In the subsequent purification step, salt formed and other by-products are separated off, preferably by washing with hot water.
DE-A 2402740, U.S. Pat. No. 2,949,452 and EP-A 134465 describe gas-phase processes for preparing MHPC in which no liquid or condensed media are present during the etherification reaction. In these processes, the substitution (DS and MS) can advantageously be varied over a wide range. However, as a result of the absence of a liquid heat transfer medium, the exothermic nature of the chemical reactions can not be satisfactorily controlled. In addition, distribution of alkali used and the reactants is a problem. This results in only a moderate level of reproducibility with regard to substitution, and in an uncontrolled and quite substantial decrease in the molecular weight, and thus a fluctuating property profile of the resulting products. In addition, high-viscosity products cannot be obtained by the gas-phase process because of the substantial degradation of the molecular weight.
The problems mentioned in the case of the gas-phase process occur to a much lesser extent, if at all, in the presence of a liquid reaction medium. In the slurry process, inert organic solvents, the reactant methyl chloride in excess or appropriate mixtures thereof usually function as the dispersion medium and heat transfer medium. The reaction medium which is present during the activation and reaction phase achieves, firstly, more uniform alkalization of the cellulose and better transport of the reactants into the alkali metal salts of the cellulose, more uniform substitution with higher reproducibility and chemical yield. Secondly, effective heat removal makes the process more readily controllable overall and significantly suppresses molecular weight degradation by avoidance of local overheating, so that even very high-viscosity products are obtainable. Owing to these process and product advantages, industrial production processes predominantly involve the use of a slurry process.
A disadvantage of the standard slurry process in which the total amounts of the reactants alkylene oxide and methyl chloride are present together during the etherification phase is the restricted ability to adjust the MS. For example, in the case of methylhydroxypropylcellulose, a formally parallel reaction of the reactants results in products having a high DS (methyl) and a low MS (hydroxypropyl). The converse product variant, i.e., a high MS (hydroxypropyl) and intermediate to low DS (methyl), is not obtainable in this type of process even by increasing the amount of propylene oxide employed because of the reaction kinetics. However, such highly propoxylated MC derivatives are of particular interest because of a series of substance-specific properties.
According to U.S. Pat. No. 4,096,325, highly propoxylated MC derivatives can be prepared when the hydroxypropylation and the methylation are carried out separately. As such a variant, EP-A 567869, for example, describes the stepwise reaction of the alkali metal salt of cellulose firstly with propylene oxide, and subsequently in a solvent with methyl chloride. In this way, the DS and the MS can be varied in a targeted manner over a wide range.
In the above-mentioned process variants with stepwise reaction, the hydroxypropylation is generally carried out at high temperatures. In contrast, the methylation, which is strongly exothermic per se, is carried out with cooling at relatively low temperatures. Owing to the long process times and the countercurrent energy flow, these processes have little industrial utility for economic reasons. In addition, increasing separation of the reaction steps results, in a manner similar to the gas-phase process, in problems with uniformity and reproducibility of the substitution, temperature control and molecular weight degradation (viscosity yield).
Owing to the abovementioned disadvantages of the process variants which have been developed and described to date, there is a continuing need for a process which combines the process engineering and product advantages and also the economic advantages of a slurry process with the flexibility of the gas-phase process in respect of achievability and proportion of the MS and DS over a wide range.

Process of preparing alkylhydroxyalkylcellulose


An apparatus for and method of automatically tuning control parameters of a servo or spindle drive system controlled by a numerical control unit is disclosed. The numerical control unit employs an automatic tuning device that automatically selects a tuning program and test run program associated with a selected control parameter. The tuning device test runs the servo or spindle according to the test run program selected and changes and controls the status value data measured in accordance with the control parameter selected. The invention also relates to a method of changing a criterion for the feature values of a control parameter, a method of comprehensively determining the feature values where there are a plurality of tuning conditions, and a method of sampling the status value data of the servo or spindle.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to the field of numerical control units for controlling multiple axis machine tools or the like. More specifically, the present invention is directed to an apparatus for and method of automatically tuning and setting control parameters that define the accuracy of movement of a servo or spindle motor drive system that is controlled by a numerical control unit. The present invention also relates to a process for changing criteria for feature values of a control parameter, a process for comprehensively determining the feature values where there are a plurality of tuning conditions, and a process for sampling the status value data of the servo or spindle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A known prior art numerical control unit for controlling a servo or spindle motor drive system is illustrated in FIG. 26. The numerical control unit 1C controls the servo or spindle motor 3 via a servo or spindle amplifier 2C. The numerical control unit 1C is controlled by a control section 6C that outputs position and velocity commands generated by a position/velocity command generator 7C for generating a motor position or velocity command value according to a machining program. These commands are transmitted to the servo or spindle amplifier 2C via an interface 10C.
A control parameter storage device 8C stores the control parameters of the servo or spindle motor drive system. These parameters and other information are both transmitted to and received from the servo or spindle amplifier 2C. The numerical control unit is coupled to an operation board 5 having a cathode ray tube (CRT) screen 25 for displaying internal data of the numerical control unit 1C. A keyboard 26 mounted on the operation board 5 transmits data input by an operator to the numerical control unit 1C via the input/output (I/O) control section 11. A synchroscope 41 allows the operator to monitor the internal data of servo or spindle amplifier 2C by receiving information converted by a digital-to-analog (D/A) converter 40. The spindle amplifier receives position and velocity commands, and information such as control parameters, from the numerical control unit 1C via an amplifier interface 28. Such information is used by a motor drive control section 27 for controlling the parameters such as current, position, velocity, and the like of the motor 3 and a corresponding machine element.
FIG. 27 illustrates a flow chart of the procedure used in the prior art system described above when the operator tunes the control parameters. In the beginning of the procedure, the operator checks the initial settings of the control parameters on the CRT screen 25 of the operation board 5 (S81). The operator then conducts a test run to obtain the necessary information for tuning the parameters (S82). During the test run, the operator monitors the data displayed on the CRT screen 25, or the data shown on the synchroscope 41 in the form of a waveform (S83). The operator then determines whether the control parameters are appropriate or not on the basis of such data (S84). When the data is determined to be appropriate, the tuning is terminated. When the data, however, is deemed to be inappropriate, the operator enters a new control parameter value from the keyboard 26 (S85), and repeats steps S82 through S84 until the control parameter is determined to be appropriate.
With reference to FIGS. 28(a) and 28(b), a method of tuning a position command will now be described. When a position command, shown as signal waveform (i) in FIG. 28(a), is issued, the servo response is delayed, as indicated by waveforms (ii) through (iv). In particular, when the control parameter setting is improper, the response delay approximates the signal waveform (iv). To tune this parameter, the operator increases a velocity loop gain. If the gain is increased too greatly, vibration occurs, as shown in FIG. 28(b). While viewing the appearance of this vibration on the synchroscope 41, the operator sets a maximum gain at which the vibration does not take place. The response at the gain set as described above is indicated as signal waveform (iii) FIG. 28(a)).
Elements associated with control of a servo or a spindle that need to be tuned by the numerical control unit include a velocity loop control system, a position loop control system, spindle orientation c-axis control, and the like. Control parameters within the velocity loop control system that need to be tuned include, for example, a velocity loop gain, a velocity lead compensation, machine resonance suppression filter central frequency, and other such parameters, including multiple control parameters.
Also known in the prior art is the process of automatic tuning of control values in a process control system. For example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 83703/1990 relates to the automatic tuning of the control parameters of a proportional, integral, differential (PID) control or PI control elements in a process control system. According to this process, the control parameters are continuously monitored, and when a feedback value offsets from a reference value, the automatic tuning function is activated to operate on an offset value according to a fuzzy inference. Such a tuning process does not cure the foregoing problems of a numerical control unit for controlling a machine tool because the numerical control unit requires tuning when proper accuracy is not provided at the time the machine is installed, or due to mechanical system variations with time. The tuning of the control parameters of such a numerical control unit does not require continuous automatic tuning.
Thus, tuning the control parameters for a servo or spindle motor drive system, carried out as described above, requires measuring devices such as a synchroscope and a CRT screen. Where one numerical control unit has a plurality of servo or spindle drive systems to be tuned, each servo or spindle motor drive system has a plurality of control parameters that must be tuned. A skilled operator must therefore tune a wide variety of control parameters which each influence each other, thus creating a complicated relationship therebetween. Moreover, the control parameters are not changed accurately on the basis of definite data; instead they are often changed on a trial and error basis by the operator. Such a tuning process requires much time and often leads to an individual difference between tuning results.

Apparatus for and method of automatically tuning and setting control parameters for a numerical control unit


In a load transfer mechanism which transfers load to a load cell that constitutes a Roberval mechanism, a load transfer member has at least an area right above a load cell mounting section in the top surface thereof as a concave surface area formed to be lower than the remaining area of the top surface thereof so that it does not contact a cover member. Thus, if the barycentric position of the load of an object to be weighed placed on the cover member, regardless of whether the load is concentrated load or divided load, the load transfer mechanism can reduce the difference of the influence of deflection of the load transfer member or moment imposed on the load, transfer given load to the load cell through the load transfer member and decrease a span error produced by the load position of an object to be weighed.

(i) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a load transfer mechanism to be incorporated in a weighing machine.
(ii) Description of the Related Art
Heretofore, in a weighing machine using a load cell, a number of load transfer mechanisms have been proposed that do not apply load directly to a load cell but apply load through a load transfer member (hereinafter referred to as "frame") which receives load from an object to be weighed and transfers the load to the load cell.
For example, the crossing section of an X-shaped frame is attached to the top surface of a load cell, the ends of the X-shaped frame are positioned near the four corners of a cover member on which an object to be weighed is placed, a load receiving section which receives load applied to the cover member is provided, and the four corners of the cover member are supported by the load receiving sections. Thereby, a mechanism for transferring the load of the object to be weighed from the four corners of the cover member to the load cell through the X-shaped frame is formed (for example, refer to Patent Literature 1 or 2).
Further, a mechanism formed such that an H-shaped frame is attached to a side face of a load cell and a load receiving section which receives load from the four corners of a cover member is provided at each end of the frame as in the above load transfer mechanism is disclosed (for example, refer to Patent Literature 3).
These load transfer mechanisms always receive the load of an object to be weighed which is placed on the cover member by the ends of the frame which support the four corners of the cover member and transfer the load to the load cell along with deflection of the frame. Thus, the mechanisms have an effect of stabilizing load applied to the load cell. Further, when the frame or load receiving section is formed by an elastic material, the load transfer mechanisms have an effect of protecting the load cell by reducing impact when an object to be weighed is dropped on the cover member.
Patent Literature 1
Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 58-19236
Patent Literature 2
Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 62-190422
Patent Literature 3
Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 59-68230
However, in the conventional load transfer mechanisms, when load is applied to the center of the cover member, the cover member is bent and contacts the frame or load cell, depending on the strength of the cover member, the distance between the cover member and the frame by the load receiving sections or the position of the load of an object to be weighed placed on the cover member (in the example of the prior art of Patent Literature 1 or 2, the cover member contacts the crossing section of the X-shaped frame attached to the load cell, and in the example of Patent Literature 3, the cover member contacts the load cell). That is, some or most of load having been transferred from the four corners of the frame to the load cell is applied from right above the top surface of the load cell, not through the four corners of the frame but directly. That is, load with a moment of nearly zero is applied, and it can be said that influence on the load cell is clearly different from that when load is applied to the load cell only from the four corners of the frame.
This is recognized as a span error as indicated in the results of measurements made by the present inventors that will be described in detail in examples. Further, the above contact does not occur when low load is applied and may occur when load is applied beyond a certain level. Since the influence of moment on the load cell changes abruptly upon occurrence of the above contact, a decrease in nonlinearity accuracy may occur.
To simply avoid this influence, it is conceivable to improve the strength of the cover member so as to prevent deflection of the cover member or to keep a distance at which the cover member and the frame do not contact each other. However, since these lead to an increase in the weight, height or cost of weighing machine, they are not suitable for production of a thin, light and easy-to-use weighing machine.
Thus, an object of the present invention is to solve the above problems and provide a load transfer mechanism capable of transferring given load to a load cell through a frame and reducing a span error.


A method for operating a rack system preferably in a dispatch unit (1), with a rack (2) and an associated rack serving device for the storage and retrieval of containers (3), trays or the like to or from the rack. A rack region of the rack (2) has a plurality of rack planes (13) arranged one above the other and is served by a dedicated, mechanically coupled, height and length-adjustable rack serving device (4). In each track region embodied as an independent, closed rack unit (A, B, C), containers (3), trays or the like undergo interim storage in a buffer zone (P1, P2, P3) on the same level, are transferred for storage or retrieval and transported by an elevator (5; 6a, 6b) and/or a preferably horizontal transport connection (F1, F2) arranged in the region of the rack unit (A, B, C) at the same level, from or to a transport system or workplace outside the rack system.

According to a known prior art, containers are removed from a container storage area and sent via a height-adjustable rack serving device, which can be displaced along the container storage area, to a central distribution system, which joins the container storage area. In particular, the rack serving device serves two opposite storage racks over the entire height of the rack (cf. DE 197 12 839 A1). The limited dispatch output and inflexibility of the rack serving system is a disadvantage.

Method and system for operating a racking system preferably in a dispatch unit


After a coil 24 is wound through an open slot 26 which forms a sufficient space for the winding operation of an armature core 10, a magnetic member 34 is inserted and mounted into the open slot 26 and is then engaged with and fixed to the umbrella portions 20 of the armature core 10. A gap 36 formed in the central portion of the open slot 26 operates to narrow a gap between the magnetic poles of mutually adjoining salient poles 16, which reduces not only the generation of cogging phenomena and vibrations but also variations in quality between products, that is, the armature cores 10 produced.

1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an armature core for use in a motor and, in more particular, to a magnetic treating means for treating magnetic flux in an open slot formed between mutually adjoining salient poles provided in the armature core.
2. Related art
As shown in FIG. 10, a conventional armature core 110 comprises a plurality of, for example, three salient poles 116 which are respectively disposed at uniform intervals from each other and are projected radially from the central portion 118 of the armature core 110, while each of the salient poles 116 includes an arm portion 112 and an umbrella portion 114. And, between the mutually adjoining umbrella portions 114 of the salient poles 116, there is formed an open slot 120 which extends in the peripheral direction of the armature core 110 to provide a space necessary for a winding operation to wind a coil 122 around the arm portion 112 of the salient pole 116.
Referring to the coil winding operation, as shown in FIG. 10, while guiding a lead wire 124, the armature core 110 is rotated (in the direction of an arrow A shown in FIG. 10) around a nozzle 126 from which the lead wire 124 is played out, so that the lead wire 124 is wound around the arm portion 112 of the armature core 110. The open slot 120 forms an operation space in order to prevent the umbrella portion 114 from interfering with the winding operation, while the nozzle 126 which is moved in a controlled manner forms the coil 122. The coil 122 can be wound by the nozzle 126 around the arm portion 112 but only in the range that is shown by reference character .delta.. Part of the inside portion of the umbrella portion 114 is filled up with the winding collapsed portion of the coil 122 that is produced in the end portion thereof, but the remaining portions thereof are left as a dead space 128.
On the other hand, the distance of the opening 130 of the open slots 120 formed between the mutually adjoining umbrella portions 114 causes a change in the magnetic resistance due to the angle of rotation of the motor, which in turn provides a factor in a cogging due to Maxwell stress which is in proportion to the square of a magnetic flux density, thereby obstructing the smooth continuous rotation of the motor.
That is, in order to facilitate the winding operation of the coil, if the gap of the opening 130 of the open slot 120 is widened too much, then the magnetism of the present portion decreases, so that the magnetic resistance increases to thereby increase the cogging. On the other hand, if the width or gap of the opening 130 is narrowed, then the winding operation of the coil 120 becomes difficult, which not only lowers the productivity of the coil 120 but also reduces the occupation rate of the volume of the coil 120 to thereby make it impossible to obtain a required motor output.
In order to solve the above problems, in Unexamined Japanese Utility Model Publication Hei. 6-88178, an additional core is provided in the adjoining space (open slot) formed between the salient poles after completion of the coil winding operation. However, according to this proposal, because the structure of the armature core is complicated to a certain degree, the cost thereof is caused to increase. Also, there is a possibility that a magnetic path can short-circuit between the mutually adjoining umbrella portions to thereby deteriorate the efficiency of the motor.

Motor having magnetic slot closure for salient poles

Kabushiki Kaisha Sankyo Seiki Seisakusho


To facilitate handling of a wafer with its thickness reduced by grinding its rear surface, and prevent any protrusions and depressions matching those of the front surface from being formed on its rear surface, the method including the steps of disposing an unevenness absorbing pad between a chuck table and a device region of the wafer for absorbing unevenness of the device region, and causing the wafer held by the chuck table to be rotated and ground, while having a grindstone kept in contact with rear surface of the wafer at center of rotation of the wafer, and out of contact with a portion of its rear surface opposite from the outer excess region, thereby forming a concavity in the portion of the rear surface of the wafer opposite from the device region, and forming an annular reinforcing portion including the outer excess region around the concavity.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of grinding the rear surface of a wafer to form a concavity therein and an unevenness absorbing pad for supporting a wafer during its grinding.
2. Related Art
A wafer having a plurality of IC, LSI or like devices formed on its front surface is cut into the individual devices by means of e.g. a dicing apparatus and those devices are widely used in various kinds of electronic machines and instruments. Before a wafer is cut into the individual devices, it is ground on its whole rear surface, while its front surface is held by a chuck table in a grinding machine, so that its thickness may be reduced to, say, 20 to 100 μm to enable a reduction in size and weight of electronic machines and instruments, as described in, for example, JP-A-2004-319885.
However, a wafer ground and reduced in thickness loses rigidity and its handling and transportation are thereafter difficult. For example, its handling is not easy when it has to be removed from the chuck table in the grinding machine, or when it has to be cut into the individual devices, and it is also difficult to transport from one process step to another. Its handling is also difficult when its ground rear surface has to be coated with a gold, silver, titanium or other metal film having a thickness of several tens of nanometers, and its electrical testing is also difficult.
Moreover, a wafer having a very small thickness not exceeding 50 μm gives devices having uneven rear surface with a low degree of flatness having protrusions and depressions matching those of the front surface, and those devices have undesirably low die strength.

Method for concave grinding of wafer and unevenness-absorbing pad


In order to secure a series built-in unit on the section of a fitting rail (4) and to be able to detach it again therefrom and from the electric collector busbar (2, 5), in the region of a recess (13) on both side of the housing wall of the device is pivotably fitted a U-bracket-shaped coupling component (3) of elastic material which is divided by a slot (7) extending into the two U-arms of the frame-like widened connecting web into a supporting end (8) for the engagement of the fitting rail (4) and an actuating end (9) spring-loaded on the casing (1) lockable and unlockable by swinging in relation to the bearing position (6).

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device for rapid attachment and removability of electrical serially-mounted apparatus on mounting rails.
2. The Prior Art
Such devices are used to allow simple assembly, exchange and resetting of switches, safety switches and control apparatus, combined in a permanent manner in domestic distribution systems and the like, as well as to hold them securely in position for ease of use when built into an electrical installation.
DE 25 23 197 03 discloses known snap sliders comprising slide member linearly displaceable against the force of a spring in order to provide complementary engagement behind a profile of the mounting rail. These slides have the drawback that the apparatus itself cannot be displaced transversely to the mounting rail, allowing it to be released and lifted out of its connection with an electrical bus bar. This type of attachment requires total dismantling of the existing bus bar in each separate case.
On the other hand devices which do not require removal of the bus bar in order to function, are expensively assembled from several separate parts and require a relatively powerful spring in order to ensure perfectly secure seating of the installed assembly when mounted in apparatus (cf. DE 34 43 540 01, DE 39 10 938 A1).

Device for rapid attachment of serially-mounted electrical apparatus


An adjustable vehicle pet platform assembly and method of use prevents inadvertent or intentional activation of an air bag sensor incorporated in a seat portion of a vehicle seat by supporting the pet on a platform body. The platform body extends and retracts longitudinally to accommodate variously sized pets. The platform body is suspended in a spaced-apart disposition from the seat portion. A length and angle-adjustable front leg support elevates the platform body above the seat portion from the floor surface of vehicle. An angle-adjustable rear leg support supports the platform body from the rear portion of the seat.

Typically, an airbag is a type of vehicle safety device that works as an occupant restraint system during impact or sudden stops. The airbag is designed to inflate extremely rapidly then quickly deflate during a collision or impact with a surface or a rapid sudden deceleration. It consists of an airbag cushion, a flexible fabric bag, inflation module, and impact sensor. The impact sensor is often integrated into a passenger seat of a vehicle. Generally, the impact sensor is a flexible laminate mat with printed resistors and cylindrical force concentrators. Force concentrators are bonded to the sensor mat over the printed resistors. When the surface of the seat is depressed, the sensor mat and printed resistors will wrap around the force concentrators, which creates a change in the circuit resistance. Based upon the pattern and the weight of the depression, the impact sensor can determine whether or not to deploy the passenger side air bag in a crash situation.
Often, a seat weight sensor is employed to determine if the occupant in the seat is large enough for safe air bag deployment. A circuit for actuating respective air cushions for the driver and passengers of a vehicle in the event of a collision includes relay contacts connected in the series network for firing the squib which controls inflation of the passenger cushion. When the seat is occupied by a passenger, the seat sensor disables the relay controlling the contact and the series network is armed. If no passenger occupies the seat the relay is energized to open circuit the series network and prevent inflation of the passenger cushion in the event of a collision. However, it is often not desirable to employ the air bag, such as when an inanimate object or a moving animal occupies the seat.
Often, pet owners transport their pets in their vehicles. The weight of the pet, especially larger pets, can trigger the air bag sensor or seatbelt alert system. Furthermore, animal transportation often places both the driver and pet in a potentially risky situation. If the driver is forced to make a sudden maneuver the pet may be thrown, thus causing injury to the pet and possibly to the driver as well. Also, a pet freely roaming about a vehicle may distract a driver, thus creating a dangerous situation. Further, pets placed in the seat of a vehicle can be thrown out of the seat upon impact or sudden stops if not secured to the vehicle seat properly. Or in some cases, the pets may damage the seat and interior of the vehicle if they are too overactive.
The present invention features a vehicle pet platform assembly that elevates the pet over the passenger seat for helping to keep the pet secure and safe in the seat. The assembly can also help protect the vehicle's seats and interior from damage caused by an overactive pet. The assembly is easy to install and remove, and the assembly is also easy to clean.
Therefore, a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above.

Adjustable vehicle pet platform assembly and method of use


A golf bag and strap system for supporting a golf bag, having a central hub including a number of arms. Each arm has at least one attachment point to which straps are connected. The arms include upper arms and lower arms, and upper straps are attached to the upper arms, and lower straps are attached to the lower arms. Each attachment point preferably includes a D-ring. The central hub also preferably includes a padded portion having a raised portion which acts as a center of rotation for movement of the central hub.

Golf is a game in which obtaining exercise is one of many goals, but in which its practitioners generally like to avoid discomfort. As golf can be practiced by people of many ages and physical conditions, it is important that carrying the golf clubs around the course not be perceived as burdensome. In an effort to make carrying the bag of golf clubs as easy as possible, many types of straps have been produced to improve the comfort of the user. The first types of straps used were generally single straps that extended from the bottom or foot of the golf bag to somewhere around the top of the bag. This was of course an improvement over carrying the bag by hand, and left the user's hands free.
The dual or double strap system has several advantages over the single strap because the weight is divided between the two straps, thus causing less stress on each of the shoulders. Several US patents have been involved with this dual strap concept. Among them are U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,038,984, 5,042,703 and 5,042,704 to Izzo, U.S. Pat. No. 5,348,205 to Steurer and U.S. Pat. No. 5,636,778 to Jones. Each of these makes an attempt to improve the balance and/or weight distribution of the golf bag to improve the user of the user who is carrying the bag. Crucial considerations in the balance of the bag are the placement of the strap mounting points.
The stability of the bag as the user walks about is also of concern. A bag that bounces or swings excessively is undesirable, as this type of motion can be very tiring, as well as possibly annoying. Users of prior golf bags often are seen holding the ends of the bag to minimize motion. This of course defeats the purpose of providing the user with a "hands free" implementation.
Thus there is a need for a golf bag which is more stable, involving very little swing or bounce, which distributes the weight of the bag on the shoulders well and has improved balance.