A portable liquid drug delivery device has a reservoir part and a driving part, and the driving part has a drive that produces a torque. The reservoir part has a reservoir that retains liquid drug and an outlet port is in fluid communication with the reservoir. An engagement member has an inner thread that engages the thread of a piston rod in an engaged position and is disengaged from the thread of the piston rod in a disengaged position. The engagement member is prestressed in the disengaged position to thereby bias the engagement member toward the engaged position. The engagement member only converts the torque of the drive into a linear movement of the piston rod when the engagement member is in the engaged position. The piston is configured, upon the linear movement of the piston rod, to deliver the liquid drug to the outlet port.

This disclosure relates to a portable liquid drug delivery device, as well as a reservoir part for a portable liquid drug delivery device.
Drug delivery devices are medical devices that provide prescribed fluids to patients. For example, medication such as antibiotics, chemotherapy drugs and insulin are commonly delivered to patients via a drug delivery device. For example, WO 2009/125398 A2 discloses a portable therapeutic fluid dispensing device which includes a reusable part comprising a reusable part housing including at least a controller in the first portion of a driving mechanism, and a disposable part comprising a disposable part housing including at least a reservoir to retain the therapeutic fluid, an outlet port to which the therapeutic fluid is dispensed, a fluid conduit providing fluid communication between the reservoir and the outlet port, and the second portion of the driving mechanism.
This disclosure teaches an improved portable liquid drug delivery device and an improved reservoir part for such a portable liquid drug delivery device.
Embodiments relate to a portable liquid drug delivery device comprising a driving part comprising a driving mechanism and a reservoir part comprising:                a reservoir adapted to retain a liquid drug,        an outlet port in fluid communication with the reservoir,        a threaded piston rod with a piston,        an engagement member having an inner thread configured to engage with the thread of the piston rod in an engagement position and to disengage from the thread of the piston rod in a disengagement position, the engagement member being prestressed in the disengagement position, the prestress being adapted to force the engagement member to move from the disengagement position to the engagement position, the engagement member being adapted for only converting in the engagement position torque of the driving mechanism into a linear movement of the piston rod, the piston rod being adapted upon the linear movement of the piston rod to deliver the liquid drug to the outlet port.
Embodiments may thus provide for a portable liquid drug delivery device in which by linear movement of the threaded piston rod the liquid drug is pressed by the piston towards the outlet port. Since the engagement member is configured to have two positions that include an engagement position and a disengagement position, it may be possible to enable pushing or pulling of the piston rod during priming or reservoir filling in the disengagement position and to restrict the displacement of the piston rod during operation of the portable liquid drug delivery device in the engagement position.
Since the engagement member is prestressed in the disengagement position with the prestress being adapted to force the engagement member to move from the disengagement position to the engagement position, the operational force that has to be brought up by a user of the portable liquid drug delivery device in order to bring the device to an operational mode, i.e., a mode in which the engagement member is in the engagement position, may be minimized. The prestress may support the user to move the engagement member from the disengagement position to the engagement position, which may be of significant benefit especially for elderly people who typically do not any longer have the power to mechanically manipulate the engagement member. Thus, the operational force may be minimized while still maintaining the possibility to distinguish between the engagement and the disengagement position, allowing for both an operational use of the reservoir part with the portable liquid drug delivery device as well during priming or reservoir filling.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, the engagement member is adapted to automatically move from the disengagement position to the engagement position upon a mechanical coupling of the reservoir part with the driving part. Thus, upon the mechanical coupling of the reservoir part with the driving part, the piston rod is automatically coupled with the driving mechanism in such a manner, that a rotational movement of the driving mechanism is transformed into the linear movement of the piston rod in order to deliver the liquid drug to the outlet port.
The automatic movement of the engagement member from the disengagement position to the engagement position has the advantage that the operational readiness of the drug delivery device is automatically guaranteed. Thus, the situation is avoided that a user of the drug delivery device may forget to move the engagement member from the disengagement position to the engagement position and thus lacks the provision of the liquid drug even though the driving mechanism is operating, i.e., performing a rotational movement.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, the piston rod is:                rotatable with respect to the reservoir part and adapted for being directed or rotatory coupled to the driving mechanism upon the mechanical coupling of the reservoir part with the driving part, the engagement member being fixed with respect to the reservoir part or        non-rotatable with respect to the reservoir part and adapted for being indirectly mechanically coupled to the driving mechanism via the engagement member, the engagement member being adapted for being directly rotatory coupled to the driving mechanism upon the mechanical coupling of the reservoir with the driving part.
Thus, in the first alternative the driving mechanism may directly rotate the piston rod, which in the engagement position of the engagement member is winding itself up within the, e.g., nut-shaped engagement member.
In the second alternative, the, e.g., nut-shaped engagement member is rotated by the driving mechanism while the piston rod itself is non-rotatable with respect to the reservoir part. Since nevertheless the piston rod and the engagement member are engaged with respect to each other in the engagement position, the rotation of the engagement member leads to a linear movement of the piston rod and thus the piston inside the reservoir.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, in the engagement position on the circumference of the piston rod the threads of the piston rod fully engage with the threads of the engagement member. This may have the advantage that the mechanical stability that may be described for example by the stiffness of the interface between the piston rod and the engagement member may be significantly enhanced compared to a scenario in which the piston rod is only partially guided by the engagement member. This may increase the probability that even in case of a mechanical force acting onto the portable drug delivery device from outside the operation of the drug delivery device is not negatively influenced in such a manner that for example the threads of the piston rod and the threads of the driving mechanism are not fully meshing with each other anymore.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, the prestress is the result of anyone of the following: an inner prestress of the engagement member, an elastic element inducing the prestress onto the engagement member. Having an inner prestress of the engagement member may have the advantage of a simple mechanical setup for which the space occupied by the engagement member is minimized. Using an elastic element like for example a rubber band or a spring may have the advantage that the durability of the engagement member is enhanced.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, the engagement member comprises a nut, the nut comprising two parts with threads, the two parts:                clutching the piston rod in the engagement position such that the threads of the two parts are engaging with the threads of the piston rod,        release the piston rod in the disengagement position such that the threads of the two parts are disengaged from the threads of the piston rod.
Again, as mentioned above, in the engagement position the threads of the two parts are for example completely engage with the threads of the piston rod.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, the two parts are joined with each other by a hinge, wherein the engagement member is adapted such that the movement of the engagement member from the disengagement position to the engagement position comprises a swiveling of the two parts towards each other around the hinge. This may have the advantage, that again the mechanical setup of the drug delivery device can be simplified. In accordance with an embodiment, the two parts and the hinge are connected with each other by a substance-to-substance bond. For example, the engagement member may be manufactured together using a single injection molding process and one common mold.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, the portable drug delivery device further comprises a handle, the handle being adapted in the disengagement position for blocking the movement of the two parts from the disengagement position to the engagement position. Usage of a handle may have the advantage that the movement of the two parts from the disengagement position to the engagement position can be easily initiated by suspending the blocking of the two parts such that thereupon the two parts are automatically moving themselves towards the engagement position due to the prestress available with the two parts. Again, the operational force to suspend the blocking by the handle can therefore be rather low.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, each part comprises an arm, wherein:                in the disengagement position the handle is located in between the arms and adapted for blocking the movement of the two parts from the disengagement position to the engagement position,        in the engagement position the handle is retracted from the arms to the extent that the two parts can take the engagement position.
In accordance with a further embodiment of this disclosure, the handle is further adapted to automatically move the two parts apart from each other from the engagement position towards the disengagement position upon a mechanical decoupling of the reservoir part from the driving part. Alternatively, it is possible that by a direct user operation of the handle, the two parts are moved apart from each other from the engagement to the disengagement position for example in case the reservoir part is detached from the driving part. Thus, in general due to a mechanical force acting upon the handle the handle moves the two parts apart from each other, wherein the mechanical force is the result either of a decoupling of the reservoir part from the driving part or a user-initiated mechanical force.
In accordance with an embodiment of this disclosure, the handle comprises a mandrel, the mandrel being adapted for being located in between the two parts for blocking the movement of the two parts from the disengagement position to the engagement position, the mandrel and the two parts being shaped such that the mandrel forces the movement of the two parts apart from each other from the engagement position towards the disengagement position upon the mechanical force acting upon the handle. Again, the mechanical force acting upon the handle may for example be either the result of the mechanical decoupling of the reservoir part from the driving part or due to a user-initiated force acting upon the handle. The user may push or pull or rotate the handle for this purpose.
This embodiment may have the advantage that in a mechanically easy manner the two parts can be moved from the engagement position to the disengagement position. For example, the two parts may have a common hole that is formed in the engagement position and that is adapted to receive the mandrel. In case the mandrel is conically formed, pressing the mandrel into the hole results in a gradual sliding of the two parts away from each other, the more, the conically-shaped mandrel is moving between the two parts.
An alternative possibility would be that the two arms are V-shaped and that the cylindrical mandrel is laterally moved towards the piston rod in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the piston rod.
In accordance with a further embodiment of this disclosure, the handle is mounted in a pivoted way around an axis on the reservoir part, the handle being adapted for performing a rotation around the axis in between the engagement position and the disengagement position. Alternatively, the handle is mounted on the reservoir part in a laterally movable manner and the lateral movement is a movement in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the piston rod, as discussed above.
In accordance with a further embodiment of this disclosure, the driving part is a reusable part and the reservoir part is a disposable part.
In another aspect, this disclosure relates to a reservoir part for a portable liquid drug delivery device as described above.
It is understood that one or more of the aforementioned disclosed embodiments may be combined as long as the combined embodiments are not mutually exclusive.


A method of generating an axial shear wave in a formation surrounding a wellbore comprising urging a clamp pad into contact with a wall of the wellbore, and applying an axial force to the clamp pad to impart a shear force into the wall of the wellbore to generate a shear wave in the formation.

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of acoustic logging.
Certain earth formations exhibit a property called "anisotropy", wherein the velocity of acoustic waves polarized in one direction may be somewhat different than the velocity of acoustic waves polarized in a different direction within the same earth formation. Anisotropy may arise from intrinsic structural properties, such as grain alignment, crystallization, aligned fractures, or from unequal stresses within the formation. Anisotropy is particularly of interest in the measurement of the velocity of shear/flexural waves propagating in the earth formations. Shear or S waves are often called transverse waves because the particle motion is in a direction "transverse", or perpendicular, to the direction that the wave is traveling.
Acoustic waves travel fastest when the direction of particle motion polarization direction is aligned with the material's stiffest direction. If the formation is anisotropic, meaning that there is one direction that is stiffer than another, then the component of particle motion aligned in the stiff direction travels faster than the wave component aligned in the other, more compliant, direction in the same plane. In the case of 2-dimensional anisotropy, a shear wave induced into an anisotropic formation splits into two components, one polarized along the formation's stiff (or fast) direction, and the other polarized along the formation's compliant (or slow) direction. Generally, the orientation of these two polarizations is substantially orthogonal (components which are at a 90° angle relative to each other). The fast wave is polarized along the direction parallel to the fracture strike and a slow wave in the direction perpendicular to it.
A significant number of hydrocarbon reservoirs comprise fractured rocks wherein the fracture porosity makes up a large portion of the fluid-filled space. In addition, the fractures also contribute significantly to the permeability of the reservoir. Identification of the direction and extent of fracturing is important in reservoir development for at least two reasons.
One reason for identification of fracture direction is that such a knowledge makes it possible to drill deviated or horizontal boreholes with an axis that is preferably normal to the plane of the fractures. In a rock that otherwise has low permeability and porosity, a well drilled in the preferred direction will intersect a large number of fractures and thus have a higher flow rate than a well that is drilled parallel to the fractures. Knowledge of the extent of fracturing also helps in making estimates of the potential recovery rates in a reservoir and in enhancing the production from the reservoir.

Apparatus and method for determining formation anisotropy


The present invention provides a method and apparatus for combining tristate buffers into busses with a large number of drivers. The invention provides for an arbitrary number of drivers to be accommodated on a single line in a circuit wherein the number of tristate buffers coupled to the line is limited. A plurality of lines are used to support the required number of tristate buffers, and a multiplexing circuit is used to select the active line. Tristate control signals for the tristate buffers are utilized to generate the requisite multiplexer select signals. In one embodiment, the multiplexing function and the select signal generation logic are implemented in configurable logic blocks. In another embodiment, wired logic functions perform the select signal generation, and a cascade configuration of tristate buffer driven lines performs the multiplexing function.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of digital electronics, and more particularly to digital logic implementations in programmable logic devices such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).
2. Description of the Background Art
In the construction of electronic circuits, many designers use programmable logic devices such as FPGAs to implement digital circuit designs. One commonly-known FPGA is the Xilinx XC4000.TM. Series device, which is described on pages 4-5 through 4-78 of the Xilinx 1996 Data Book entitled "The Programmable Logic Data Book" (hereinafter referred to as "the Xilinx Data Book"), published September, 1996, available from Xilinx, Inc., 2100 Logic Drive, San Jose, Calif. 95124, which are incorporated herein by reference. (Xilinx, Inc., owner of the copyright, has no objection to copying these and other pages referenced herein but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.)
Using a programmable logic device can reduce the amount of time between the conception of a circuit design and the production of a working circuit prototype, as well as facilitating later design changes. However, the utility of a programmable logic device for implementing large and/or complex logic functions may be limited by a lack of appropriate logic circuitry. Specifically, the number of drivers that may be supported on a single line or bus is typically limited by a fixed number of tristate buffers in the device architecture. This problem may be more clearly understood with reference to FIG. 1, which shows a simplified version of the Xilinx XC4000 Series FPGA architecture.
An FPGA typically comprises programmable logic blocks and programmable interconnect mechanisms for interconnecting the blocks. The FPGA of FIG. 1 includes a central array of Configurable Logic Blocks (CLBs) comprising function generators, registers, and so forth, surrounded by a ring of Input/Output Blocks (IOBs). Programmable interconnect lines of various lengths (not shown except for horizontal long lines) provide interconnections between the various CLBs and IOBs. Horizontal long lines are provided that span the device between the rows of CLBs. Each long line is accessible both from each CLB in the associated row and from the IOBs situated at each end of the row. Each row of CLBs has two associated long lines, one above and one below the row of CLBs. The long line drivers are implemented using tristate buffers, shown as diamond shapes in FIG. 1. The long lines are commonly used to implement busses in the FPGA, and the number of drivers on the bus is therefore limited by the number of tristate buffers along the horizontal long line. In the FPGA of FIG. 1, the maximum number of drivers on a long line is equal to the number of CLBs in the row plus two for the IOBs.
The tristate buffers are more clearly shown in FIG. 2, which is a detailed block diagram of a single row of CLBs and associated long lines from the FPGA architecture of FIG. 1. (An FPGA typically comprises many more than four CLBs per row, but only four are shown in the figures herein in order to simplify the drawings.) Each tristate buffer (206-213) has a data input, a tristate input (T206-T213), and an output that drives a long line (200, 201). Each tristate buffer is programmable and may assume any of several states, as described on pages 4-29 to 4-30 of the Xilinx Data Book. To avoid contention on long line 200, only one tristate buffer on each long line should be enabled at a given time.
In FIG. 2, CLBs 202, 203, 204, 205 are coupled to long line 200 via tristate buffers 206, 207, 208, 209, respectively. CLBs 202, 203, 204, 205 are further coupled to long line 201 via tristate buffers 210, 211, 212, 213, respectively.
When implementing a bus having a plurality of signal lines (bit lines), typically one long line is used for each bit line. In the circuit of FIG. 2, for example, long lines 200 and 201 can be configured to implement a two-bit bus with four bus drivers, wherein long line 200 carries a first bit and long line 201 carries a second bit of the bus signal.
In summary, in the FPGA of FIGS. 1 and 2, as well as in other programmable logic devices, the number of tristate buffers associated with any one long line is fixed, placing a maximum on the number of drivers that can drive each long line. The utility of the device in applications having a large number of drivers driving a common line or bus is diminished once this tristate buffer limit is reached. No mechanism is provided in the prior art for implementing tristate buffer driven lines having an arbitrarily large number of driver inputs.
A related problem is the implementation of functions with a large numbers of inputs ("wide logic functions"). While logic functions are typically implemented in CLBs, the number of inputs is limited. For example, functions with up to nine inputs can be supported by a single Xilinx XC4000 Series CLB. To calculate functions with more than nine inputs, additional CLBs must be used and cascaded together. This cascading introduces additional block delays into the circuit. Another disadvantage to using CLBs to implement wide logic functions is that all of the inputs must be brought to the CLBs, introducing interconnect delay and producing interconnect congestion that can make the resulting circuit unroutable. Therefore, it is commonly known to use long lines to implement wide functions, using a technique known as "wired logic", or "wired AND functions". (Such logic, for example, is shown and discussed in pages 3-5 through 3-11 of the Xilinx Data Book, which pages are incorporated herein by reference.) However, the number of inputs to a wired logic function is limited by the number of tristate buffers along the long line. It is desirable to provide a structure for generating wide functions of an arbitrary width.

Method and apparatus for connecting long lines to form wide busses


In a network supporting transactions between clients and servers and proxies that are interposable in a network path, a pair of proxies can modify a packet stream such that packet data from client to server is transformed at a client-side proxy of the pair and untransformed at a server-side of the pair and packet data from server to client is transformed at the server-side proxy and untransformed at the client-side proxy. A discovering proxy transparently discovers its position in a proxy pair by using proxy signals. A discovering proxy might determine that it is a client-side proxy by receipt of a packet from client without a proxy signal, or that it is a server-side proxy by receipt of a packet from server without a return proxy signal. Once a proxy pair is discovered, it might transform traffic from server to client or vice versa, transforming and untransforming the traffic.

A network is typically used for data transport among devices at network nodes distributed over the network. Some networks are considered "local area networks" (LANs), others are considered "wide area networks" (WANs), although not all networks are so categorized and others might have both LAN and WAN characteristics. Often, a LAN comprises nodes that are all controlled by a single organization and connected over dedicated, relatively reliable and physically short connections. An example might be a network in an office building for one company or division. By contrast, often a WAN comprises nodes that might include nodes over which many different organization's data flow, and might involve physically long connections. In one example, a LAN might be coupled to a global internetwork of networks referred to as the "Internet" such that traffic from one node on the LAN passes through the Internet to a remote LAN and then to a node on that remote LAN.
Data transport is often organized into "transactions", wherein a device at one network node initiates a request for data from another device at another network node and the first device receives the data in a response from the other device. By convention, the initiator of a transaction is referred to herein as the "client" and the responder to the request from the client is referred to herein as the "server".
Notably, in some instances, what is normally thought of as the client is in fact the server, as with the example of a window system referred to as "X". In some instances, a device, program, or other computing entity can be a client for some transactions and a server for others. For example, suppose device A and device B are coupled by a network and device A makes a request for data of device B. For that transaction, device A is the client and device B is the server. Now, if device B only responds to authorized requests, device B might make a request of device A for authentication data. Thus, for the authentication transaction, device B would be the client and device A would be the server, the reverse of the roles for the data request transaction.
As explained above, a transaction over a network involves bidirectional communication between two computing entities, where one entity is the client and initiates a transaction by opening a network channel to another entity (the server). Typically, the client sends a request or set of requests via a set of networking protocols over that network channel, and the request or requests are processed by the server, returning responses. Many protocols are connection-based, whereby the two cooperating entities (sometimes known as "hosts") negotiate a communication session to begin the information exchange. In setting up a communication session, the client and the server might each maintain state information for the session, which may include information about the capabilities of each other. At some level, the session forms what is logically (or physically, in some cases) considered a "connection" between the client and server. Once the connection is established, communication between the client and server can proceed using state from the session establishment and other information and send messages between the client and the server, wherein a message is a data set comprising a plurality of bits in a sequence, possibly packaged as one or more packets according to an underlying network protocol. Typically, once the client and the server agree that the session is over, each side disposes of the state information for that transaction, other than possibly saving log information.
To realize a networking transaction, computing hosts make use of a set of networking protocols for exchanging information between the two computing hosts. Many networking protocols have been designed and deployed, with varying characteristics and capabilities. The Internet Protocol (IP), Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) are three examples of protocols that are in common use today. Various other networking protocols might also be used.
Since protocols evolve over time, a common design goal is to allow for future modifications and enhancements of the protocol to be deployed in some entities, while still allowing those entities to interoperate with hosts that are not enabled to handle the new modifications. One simple approach to accomplishing interoperability is a protocol version negotiation. In an example of a protocol version negotiation, one entity informs the other entity of the capabilities that the first entity embodies. The other entity can respond with the capabilities that the other entity embodies. Through this negotiation, each side can be made aware of the capabilities of the other, and the channel communication can proceed with this shared knowledge. To be effective, this method must ensure that if one entity advertises a capability that the other entity does not understand, the second entity should still be able to handle the connection. This method is used in both the IP and TCP protocols—each provides a mechanism by which a variable length set of options can be conveyed in a message. The specification for each protocol dictates that if one entity does not have support for a given option, it should ignore that option when processing the message. Other protocols may have a similar features that allow for messages to contain data that is understood by some receivers of the data but possibly not understood by other receivers of the data, wherein a receiver that does not understand the data will not fail in its task and will typically forward on the not understood data such that another entity in the path will receive that data.
A message from a client to a server or vice-versa traverses one or more network "paths" connecting the client and server. A basic path would be a physical cable connecting the two hosts. More typically, a path involves a number of physical communication links and a number of intermediate devices (e.g., routers) that are able to transmit a packet along a correct path to the server, and transmit the response packets from the server back to the client. These intermediate devices typically do not modify the contents of a data packet; they simply pass the packet on in a correct direction. However, it is possible that a device that is in the network path between a client and a server could modify a data packet along the way. To avoid violating the semantics of the networking protocols, any such modifications should not alter how the packet is eventually processed by the destination host.
While routing protocols generally control how packets are forwarded through a network, sometimes it is desirable to control the forwarding of an individual packet according to rules that override the normal packet routing logic. A common mechanism for accomplishing this is via a set of packet filtering rules. These rules specify characteristics of individual packets and a desired action or actions to take on each individual packet that meets the characteristics. For example, a firewall employs certain packet filters to dictate that some packets should be forwarded, while other packets should be rejected.
Another mechanism that affects the forwarding of an individual packet and overrides the normal packet routing logic is network address translation (NAT). Using NAT, an entity that receives packets modifies the packet's destination and/or source address before passing on the packet. NAT is commonly used at the border between one network of hosts and another network of hosts (or the Internet as a whole). A router or other such device deployed at the border is configured with a set of rules indicating which packets should have the NAT operation applied, though this may in practice end up being all packets that traverse the device. In this scenario, a set of hosts can be configured with a private range of IP addresses that is not exposed to other hosts in the network—rather the border router rewrites the source address of outgoing packets from the original host's private address to one of a given set of public addresses. This way, the destination server does not need to have routing information to reach the private address, since it perceives all connections as coming from the public address. The router maintains state such that for response packets coming back from the server (addressed to the public destination address), it rewrites the destination and forwards the packet to the original private address, thus routing the packet back to the original client host.
NAT is also used by Layer 4 switch devices ("L4 switches"). An L4 switch is a device that is deployed in the network path that can route all the packets for a particular connection to a destination that differs from the original destination field of each packet in the connection. A common deployment of L4 switches is for use in load balancing. In this type of deployment, a set of servers (each having distinct addresses) is deployed to share the load from client requests such that a connection from a client to a particular server (often called a virtual server) can be routed to and terminated by any server in the set. Rather than rely on the client to choose one of the given servers, an L4 switch is deployed in the network path between the clients and this set of servers. The switch examines the packets and, based on its configuration, uses NAT to forward all packets from a particular client-server connection to a particular server in the set, and conversely, forward all packets from that particular server to the client such that, to the client, the packets appear to come from the virtual server.
Another related concept is that of a network proxy. A network proxy is a transport-level or application-level entity that functions as a performance-enhancing intermediary between the client and the server. In this case, a proxy is the terminus for the client connection and initiates another connection to the server on behalf of the client. Alternatively, the proxy connects to one or more other proxies that in turn connect to the server. Each proxy may forward, modify, or otherwise transform the transactions as they flow from the client to the server and vice versa. Examples of proxies include (1) Web proxies that enhance performance through caching or enhance security by controlling access to servers, (2) mail relays that forward mail from a client to another mail server, (3) DNS relays that cache DNS name resolutions, and so forth.
One problem that must be overcome when deploying proxies is that of directing client requests to the proxy instead of to the destination server. One mechanism for accomplishing this is to configure each client host or process with the network address information of the proxy. This requires that the client application have an explicit proxy capability, whereby the client can be configured to direct requests to the proxy instead of to the server. In addition, this type of deployment requires that all clients must be explicitly configured and that can be an administrative burden on a network administrator.
One way around the problems of explicit proxy configuration is to deploy a transparent proxy. The presence of the transparent proxy is not made explicitly known to the client process, so all client requests proceed along the network path towards the server as they would have if there were no transparent proxy. This might be done by placing the transparent proxy host in the network path between the client and the server. An L4 switch is then employed so the proxy host can intercept client connections and handle the requests via the proxy. For example, the L4 switch could be configured so that all Web connections (i.e., TCP connections on port 80) are routed to a local proxy process. The local proxy process can then perform operations on behalf of the server. For example, the local proxy process could respond to the request using information from its local cache. When intercepting the connection, the L4 switch performs NAT so the connection appears to the client as having been terminated at the origin server, even though the client communicates directly with the proxy. In this manner, the benefits of a proxy can be realized without the need for explicit client configuration.
Some benefits of a transparent proxy require that a proxy pair exist in the network path. For example, if a proxy is used to transform data in some way, a second proxy preferably untransforms the data. For example, where traffic between a client and a server is to be compressed or encrypted for transport over a portion of the network path between the client and the server, a proxy on one side of that portion would compress or encrypt data before it flows over that portion and a proxy on the other side of that portion would uncompress or decrypt the data and send it along the network path, thereby providing for transparent transformation of data flowing between the client and the server.
For actions that require a proxy pair, preferably both proxies in the proxy pair do not perform a transformation unless they can be assured of the existence and operation of the other proxy in the proxy pair. Where each proxy must be explicitly configured with indications of the pairs to which it belongs and to the identity of the other members of those pairs, the administrative burden on a network administrator might well make some operations infeasible if they require proxy pairs. Even where a proxy is interposed in a network and gets all of the traffic from a client or server, it still must discover the other member for each proxy pair the proxy needs, if the proxy is to perform actions that require proxy pairs.
Users will often need to run applications that are designed with acceptable performance for a particular network configuration, but have to run those applications over a network configuration that has a much lower performance. As a common example is a LAN-based application that must accommodate a WAN, that example is used herein in several places.
Several approaches to overcoming the network performance for the lower performance network that is to handle data for applications designed with higher performance networks in mind. However, most solutions are unsatisfactory in one way or another.
One approach is to replicate servers and deploy systems that automatically mirror or replicate data from origin servers in data centers to replicated servers in distributed locations to, in effect, move copies of the data closer to clients. The replicated servers would then have copies (a mirror) of the data from the origin server, but the replicated servers would be closed to the clients they server than the origin server. Clients would access data from their local replicated server to achieve better performance, since the data would be "closer" in a network sense. This approach suffers from the complexity and expense of deploying duplicate servers and managing the flow and synchronization of data from the origin servers to the replicated servers. With this approach, it is in difficult to predict what data is needed where and when, so the implementation often just duplicates all available data in each location.
Another approach that has been used with Web content and streaming media is to deploy proxy cache devices at distributed locations to enhance the access performance to data that is retrieved at a given location more than once. In such an arrangement with LANs/WANs, caching proxies are situated on LANs near clients. A caching proxy would act as an intermediary between its set of clients and servers that are accessed across a WAN. A caching proxy stores previously transmitted data in the hope that the cached data will be requested sometime in the future. When a client requests data from a Web server, for example, that client's Web connection is intercepted by the proxy cache. If the proxy cache has the requested data, it simply serves the data locally across the LAN. If it does not have the requested data, it retrieves the requested data from the server across the WAN, transmits the data to the requesting client, and stores the retrieved data in its cache, indexed by its uniform resource locator (URL) in hopes that it would be reused for a later request.
In this fashion, data accessed multiple times suffers the performance bottleneck of the WAN only on the first client request, then enjoys the performance benefit of the LAN for all subsequent accesses. However, for data that is only accessed once, there is no performance benefit. Other techniques are used to improve performance for the first client request for data (that is subsequently requested again or is only requested once). For example, network caching systems have been augmented with content delivery capabilities whereby operators can move desired content into the proxy caches before it is requested. In this model, a content publishing system usually interfaces with a content delivery system to allow an operator to publish content to the set of proxy caching servers. Thus, presuming a certain piece of data has been pre-loaded into a proxy cache in this fashion, the first client request for that data will experience high performance. However, such systems are generally complex to create and administer, and often require new business process to be deployed to support this mode of information delivery. Also, relying upon user configuration to place content appropriately is generally expensive, sub-optimal, and prone to error.
Therefore, improved techniques for handling data over networks are needed.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Cooperative proxy auto-discovery and connection interception


The present invention relates to a process, a cell culture medium, and a kit for the rapid, high-efficiency transfection of mammalian cells with exogenous DNA. The process comprises incubating a cell culture in the presence of a transfection medium comprising a serum that is different from the serum in the normal growth medium used to grow the cells, and DNA to produce transfected cells. In a preferred embodiment the normal growth medium comprises fetal bovine serum and the transfection medium comprises a serum such as human, calf, horse, lamb, or pig serum. The transfection medium may further comprise an hydroxylated sterol such as 25-hydroxycholesterol.

In the late 1970's, methods were developed which allowed the introduction and expression of foreign or exogenous DNA into mammalian cells in culture. This technique, known as transfection or transformation, is a powerful method for examining the function and expression of various genes of mammals and many mammalian viruses.
By introducing exogenous DNA of interest into a cell, and monitoring the expression of a gene contained in the DNA, the gene can be analyzed in greater detail than in a cell where it is naturally expressed. For example, mutations and/or deletions of defined regions of a gene can be used to identify DNA elements within the gene that are important for the regulation of its expression. Such studies have lead to the discovery of novel transcriptional regulatory elements for genes as well as various RNA processing and translational signals. In addition, the introduction of an exogenous gene into a cell line can be used to study the effect of that gene on the growth of the cell or the effect of drugs and other agents on the expression of the transfected gene.
Transfection techniques have also been used to isolate genes by transfecting cells with a pool of genomic DNA and selecting the desired cells using genetic complementation techniques. Various mammalian genes, including the chicken thymidine kinase gene, the human hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyl-transferase (HPRT) gene, the human thymidylate synthase gene, the human transferrin receptor gene, a human DNA repair gene, and new oncogenes, have been isolated using this technique.
The broad applicability and usefulness of transfecting DNA into mammalian cells has led to the development of a number of protocols for performing transfections, many of which involve the use of either calcium phosphate or DEAE-dextran (or its analogs) as a carrier to promote the uptake of exogenous DNA by cultured mammalian cells. Other methods have used "lipofection" techniques, which incorporate the use of synthetic cationic lipids to effect the transfection. Osmotic shock of the cells or treatment of the cells with lysosomal inhibitors has been used in an attempt to enhance transfection efficiencies. Other attempts to increase the efficiencies have used high-voltage electric pulses to create pores in the cell membranes to increase the efficiency of DNA uptake by the cells.
The transfection efficiencies obtained by these methods are relatively low, ranging from 0.001% to 1%, depending on the cell line used as a recipient. (Transfection efficiency is often expressed as either: the % of cells which have acquired the characteristic conferred by the introduced gene, as may be determined by staining the treated cells; or a measure of the aggregate amount of DNA taken-up by the cells as determined by assaying for a gene product encoded in the transfected DNA.) These low transfection frequencies have limited the application of the technique to a few cell lines which exhibit high transfection efficiencies.
The ability to transfect a wide variety of cell lines, such as those carrying mutations of interest, would facilitate the analyses of the regulatory regions controlling the expression of genes, allow the isolation of genes by genetic complementation, or the cloning of CDNA sequences on the basis of their expression.
Recently, there have been described higher-efficiency transfection techniques which use a modification of the calcium phosphate-mediated transfection method. The modified calcium phosphate-mediated cell-transfection technique is performed in a BES (N,N-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)-2-amino-ethane-sulfonic acid)/phosphate-buffered saline, adjusted to a pH of about 6.9 to 7.0. An equal volume of the BES/phosphate-buffered saline is added to a solution comprising DNA and 0.25M CaCl.sub.2, mixed, and incubated for 10 to 20 minutes at room temperature. The DNA/CaPO.sub.4 precipitate which forms is then added dropwise to each 60 mm plate of cells incubated in 5 ml of media containing fetal bovine serum (FBS). The cells are initially incubated in an atmosphere of 3%, by volume, CO.sub.2 at 35.degree. C. for about 15 to 24 hours (Chen and Okayama, Molecular and Cellular Biology, 7, 2745-2752, 1987). With this transfection method, cells are grown in 10%, by volume, FBS during the transfection procedure. Under these conditions, many common cultured mammalian cell lines have reportedly been transfected with efficiencies as high as 10 to 50%. It should be noted that the results for determining transfection efficiencies reported from this method required long growth periods of the cells prior to quantification, thus allowing "daughter" cells from the originally transfected cells to "reseed" the plate, resulting in an artificially high measure of transfection efficiency.
While such techniques represent an improvement over the previously known techniques, it is desirable that a transfection method is provided which results in higher transfection efficiencies, as determined by the number of cells which take up DNA and the amount of DNA taken up by the cells. It is also desirable that the time taken to perform the transfection procedure is reduced so that results of the transfection can be evaluated in a shorter time period than is currently required.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a method of transfecting cells which results in high transfection efficiencies, with a wide variety of mammalian host cell lines, and which requires only a short period of time for cells to take up exogenous DNA.

Method for mammalian cell transfection using 25-hydroxycholesterol


The present invention provides a method, system, and computer program product for providing an instant messaging (IM) interface with dynamically generated message buttons. A method in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention includes: retrieving information from a user associated application; dynamically generating a message button based on the retrieved information and a user policy; and rendering the dynamically generated message button on the IM interface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to graphical user interfaces, and more specifically relates to a method, system, and computer program product for providing an instant messaging interface with dynamically generated message buttons.
2. Related Art
Instant messaging (IM) is a powerful and widely used form of electronic communication. Each participant in an IM session ("chat") uses an IM interface provided by an IM client to read and post messages. Buttons are presented on the IM interface that allow a user to send a message, invite additional users to join the IM session, close the IM session, etc. An example of such an IM interface 10 is depicted in FIG. 1. As shown, the IM interface 10 generally includes a conversation pane 12 for displaying a history of an IM session, a message pane 14 for displaying an IM message 16 to be sent, a Send button 18 for sending the IM message in the message pane 14 to the IM users involved in the IM session, an Invite Others button 20 for inviting other IM users into the IM session, and a Close button 22 for closing the IM interface 10. The Send button 18, Invite Others button 20, and Close button 22 are static in nature, always present on the IM interface 10, and are configured to initiate a single predefined action when actuated by a user.
During an IM session, a user may have to answer the phone, leave for a meeting, or perform other tasks. As a result, the user will typically compose and send a message to this effect to the other users participating in the IM session. If the user is participating in multiple simultaneous IM sessions, the user will typically compose and send the same message to the users participating in each of the multiple IM sessions. The typing (and retyping) of such messages is an inefficient and time consuming task, especially when the same message is composed and sent multiple times.

Method, system, and computer program product for providing an instant messaging interface with dynamically generated message buttons

International Busines Machines Corporation


A vehicle safety belt bypass warning system involves, a video camera, at least one processor, face detection software, a safety belt, and a safety belt engagement sensor circuit. The processor detects that a human face is present and associated with an individual seat. An infrared (IR) emitter output is positioned on the safety belt and transmits individually coded light pulses unique to the occupied seat. At least one IR receiver receives individually coded light pulses from occupied seat IR emitters and, in response, will output coded electrical signals indicative of which occupied seat(s) the individually coded light pulses were received from. The at least one processor will wait for receipt of the coded electrical signals from the IR receiver. If the processor does not receive an indication for a particular occupied seat, the processor will trigger a safety belt bypass warning indicator.

It is indisputable that safety belt usage in vehicles saves lives. The changeover from simple lap belts to "three point" safety belts, made up of both a lap belt and a belt that extended from the shoulder across the torso to the lap further improved vehicle safety. Nevertheless, despite general availability of three point safety belts as standard equipment in vehicles for more than thirty years, some people continue to avoid their use.
Another annoyance is the fact that most current automobiles all now include some form or circuit to detect and warn when at least a certain amount of weight is in a vehicle seat and the safety belt is not latched.
In an effort to avoid safety belt usage, some people bypass this warning system by latching the safety belt before sitting down and then sitting on the belt, or, at the very least, by engaging the safety belt properly, but then moving the torso restraint portion of the safety belt behind them, largely defeating their ability to protect the person if necessary.
However, such warning systems can become annoying even for those who always use their safety belts because heavy objects, such as pets, large bags of groceries, or other objects, on a vehicle seat can trigger the warning system, even though the seat is not occupied by a person.

Vehicle safety belt bypass warning system

International Business Machines Corporation


An automatic toilet seat lowering hinge assembly for automatically lowering a toilet seat from a raised position to a lower position above the toilet seat includes a housing having a chamber through which a shaft is disposed therein. The shaft is releasibly attached to the toilet seat. The housing has a baffle extending from the inner surface of the housing to the surface of the shaft and a descent paddle extends from the shaft outwardly toward the inner surface of the housing to partition the chamber into two compartments. A vent controls the transfer of fluid between the partitioned chamber compartments so that the toilet seat pivots from the raised position to the lower position in a predetermined amount of time.

The present invention relates generally to toilet seat hinges. More particularly, this invention relates to a toilet seat hinge assembly which allows the toilet seat to automatically return to a horizontal or lowered position from a vertical or raised position via controlled hydraulic operation.
Generally, toilets are designed with a toilet seat having a hinge which allows the toilet seat to be manually pivoted between either a lowered position or a raised position for use. Many discussions and even heated arguments have arisen between the male and female population, particularly couples and family members, regarding the position the toilet seat should remain when in not in use. Specifically, many female individuals feel adamant that in residential homes the toilet seat should remain in the lowered position. This requires male individuals after use of the toilet as a urinal to be conscious of manually pivoting the toilet seat to its lowered position.
Numerous devices have been invented in an effort to try to solve the above mentioned problem. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,092, granted to Smallwood, discloses a spring mechanism wherein a spring is placed in torsion about a hinge shaft when a user manually moves the toilet seat to its use position. The spring acts either to upright a lowered toilet seat or to lower a raised toilet seat. The angular rotation of the toilet seat is slowed by the hinge shaft having a large gear engaging a small gear on an idler shaft with the rotation of the idler shaft braked by a slipping clutch.
Another example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,551,866, to Hibbs, discloses an automatic toilet seat lowering device having a lever mechanism attached to the toilet seat and to a piston which moves in an operating cylinder. Movement of the toilet seat compresses a biasing spring which urges the piston to return the toilet seat to the lowered position. The piston operates on a fluid in the cylinder to delay the lowering of the toilet seat. See also U.S. Pat. No. 454,743, to Kremelberg.
Another example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,491,989, to McGrail, discloses a closure device for toilet seats which includes a spring-biased latching lever which is activated by the flushing handle of the toilet and dampening device. The dampening device is mounted to one hinge of the toilet cover and includes a housing that rotates about a stationary hinge pin when the toilet seat or toilet seat and cover is raised or lowered. The hinge pin has a passage or bore which acts on air in the housing to delay the lowering of the toilet cover or toilet cover and toilet seat.
A further example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,995,120, to Tager, discloses a toilet seat closing device incorporating a reversible DC electric motor controlled by either an electronic circuit timer or a manual remote control device.
Other inventions for toilet seats include automatic lifting devices for lifting toilet seats from a lowered position to a raised position. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,951,323, to Shalom, uses a spring mechanism, whereas U.S. Pat. No. 2,092,707, to Zulkoski, uses a manual hydraulically operated foot pedal.
While satisfactory, the prior art devices all have certain significant disadvantages. Some are unreliable and cumbersome to use; others are complicated and expensive in construction and difficult to install on a standard or conventional toilet. In addition, some of these devices also require electrical power supplies, batteries or plumbing hookups, and they do not afford a variable rate descent control.

Automatic toilet seat lowering hinge assembly


A variable camber sanding board includes a generally planar and flexible sanding base, which is adapted to receive abrasive sheet material. A front frame is pivotably linked to a mid handle via a front pivot connection. The front pivot connection includes a pin passing through coaxial bores formed in the mid handle and front frame. A mid handle includes a slotted attachment member which is pivotably secured to a trigger link, forming a middle pivot connection. The trigger link is pivotably secured to a rear handle which is secured to the sanding base via a rear frame. An adjustment pivot connection includes a pin passing through coaxial bores formed in the slot link and rear frame, respectively. A threaded knob assembly, which passes through a bore located in the trigger link and a slot in the slot link can be selectively tightened in a desired position along the length of the slot link.

None
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to sanding boards. In particular, the invention relates to flexible tools for sanding and shaping workpieces having rounded contours.
2. Description of the Related Art
The use of abrasive-coated sheet material, or xe2x80x9csandpaperxe2x80x9d, is historically well-known. Records show that the Chinese bonded seashells to parchment with natural gum in the 13th century. Although the details of its construction are sketchy, and abrasive paper was used in Europe in the 1700""s. By the 1800""s, varnish was used to bond calcined pumice to paper.
Modern xe2x80x9csandpaperxe2x80x9d does not use sand at all. Today, extremely hard abrasive particles, known as xe2x80x9cmineralxe2x80x9d, are bound to backing material using complex resins. The mineral is selected on the basis of its durability and its ability to penetrate the surface to be abraded. Typical minerals in general use are Aluminum Oxide and Silicone Carbide. As the objects to be sanded have become more complex, various devices have been developed to apply sandpaper to the surface to be abraded. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 470,794 to Shempp is directed to a holder for supporting a piece of sandpaper in smoothing or polishing moldings and other woodwork having a curved or irregular surface. The holder includes a working edge that can be varied to fit the contour of the molding.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,570,177 to Pointer discloses a sanding block in which a large number of thin metal blades which slide relative to one another to conform to an irregular surface to be sanded.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,137,670 to Goralski shows a hand file board of the type used in repairing damage to the bodies of automobiles. The hand file provides a firm elongate planar support surface against which a sheet of abrasive material may be secured, and front and rear handles which can be used for manipulating the file to shape, sand, or scuff a surface with abrasive material supported on the file board. A central handle is provided between the front and rear handles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,128 to Reiter illustrates a hand sander with an automatic slack take-up feature. The sander includes pairs of cooperating wedges to effect the degree of displacement as the base member is passed over an arcuate surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,203,123 to Travis is directed to a deformable sanding block having a central metallic core which is deformable, yet shape-retaining. The core is enclosed totally within an elastomeric covering which is non-abrasive.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,700,187 to Balbi sets forth a tool to stopper and abrade concave and convex surfaces. The tool includes a deformable plastic supporting base plate that may be adjusted to the shape of a surface.
While many of these patents provide sanding surfaces that conform to workpiece shapes, none has the capability to xe2x80x9cfloatxe2x80x9d, i.e., to flex when encountering changes in contour. Furthermore, known devices are relatively complex and difficult to adjust. These shortcomings, among others, make known devices unsuitable for use in many automotive bodyshop applications.
It can be seen from the foregoing that the need exists for a relatively simple and inexpensive sanding board capable of conforming to surfaces and conditions encountered in automobile body work.
These and other objects are achieved by providing a variable camber sanding board. The sanding board includes a generally planar sanding base. The sanding base is relatively flexible, and is adapted to receive sanding media in the form of abrasive sheet material. A front frame is provided on the sanding base. A front handle is mounted on the front frame, and is provided with a grip member. The front frame is pivotably linked to a mid handle via a front pivot connection. The front pivot connection includes a pin passing through coaxial bores formed in the mid handle and front frame. The mid handle includes a slotted attachment member. A bolt assembly pivotably secures the attachment member to a trigger link, forming a middle pivot connection. The trigger link includes a plurality of adjustment bores, which allow the location of the middle pivot connection to be varied by selective placement of the bolt assembly within the various adjustment bores.
The trigger link is pivotably secured to a rear handle via a rear pivot connection. The rear pivot connection includes a pin passing through coaxial bores formed in the trigger link and the rear handle, respectively. The rear handle is secured to the sanding base via a rear frame.
A slot link is pivotably secured to the rear frame via a adjustment pivot connection. The adjustment pivot connection includes a pin passing through coaxial bores formed in the slot link and rear frame, respectively. A threaded knob assembly passes through a bore located in the trigger link and a slot in the slot link. The knob assembly can be selective tightened in place in a desired position along the length of the slot link.
The invention itself, however, both as to organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may be best understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.