An encryption system is provided. The system includes a plurality of communication devices, one or more processors, one or more memory components, one or more network connections, and a data repository. The data repository is stored by the plurality of communication devices on the one or more memory components thereof. A polynomial function is developed to point to message data within the data repository, wherein the polynomial function is transmitted between the plurality of communication devices to exchange the message data.

The modern world increasingly depends on computing. Therefore, computing security continues to increase in importance. Encryption is a foundational aspect of computing security. Often times, encryption is implemented through the mathematical principals inherent in the difficulty of factoring large prime numbers. The multiplication of prime numbers is a computationally efficient and fast operation. By comparison, extracting the unique pair of prime numbers comprising a number requires a relatively large computational effort. Furthermore, given the state of the art, a truly efficient solution is not currently available with conventional computing methods.
Conventional encryption uses the relatively large computational costs for factoring large prime numbers as an advantage. Many prior art encryption techniques are constructed, in part, on operations with pairs of prime numbers acting as both a public and private key, thereby allowing data to be encrypted for transmission. When the key is a large prime number, uncovering the key by a brute-force decryption method would have an impractically long runtime, perhaps billions of years.
However, inefficiency associated with computing prime pairs arises from the nature of conventional, linear computing methods. Recent advances in the art related to quantum computing may offer alternative solutions to address this inefficiency. In conventional computing, information is stored according to a binary methodology, i.e. as "ones" and "zeroes." However, according to a quantum computing methods data is stored as a continuous superposition of quantum states. As the state of the art related to quantum computing becomes more robust, the integrity of conventional security/encryption techniques may be undermined.
For example, Shor's algorithm is a quantum algorithm for integer factorization. Shor's algorithm runs in polynomial time, i.e., for a problem of size n, the time or number of steps needed to find the solution is a polynomial function of n. On a relatively small-scale, Shor's algorithm has been implemented with quantum computers operating on quantum bits (qubits). Other quantum algorithms such as GEECM, which uses quantum computing techniques to perform elliptic-curve factorization, also indicate possible efficiency gains in integer factorization. Development of these and other quantum algorithms at least foreshadows that it is possible for integers to be factorized and, therefore, for conventional encryption techniques to be broken. As will be apparent to the reader, breaking of conventional encryption represents a serious threat to modern computing and, likewise, threatens the foundations of modern social, economic, and industrial structures.
Therefore, a security method and/or system that is an alternative to conventional prime number based encryption represents an advancement in the art. The present disclosure describes an atypical method of data encryption that forecloses any possibility of qubits being used for decryption. In fact, it is impractical, if not impossible, for quantum or classical computers to break the encryption of the method and/or system detailed hereinbelow.
The description provided in the background section should not be assumed to be prior art merely because it is mentioned in or associated with the background section. The background section may include information that describes one or more aspects of the subject technology.

System and method for encrypting information with polynomial distributed strings


A disk playback device holds a disk in a playback position. A turntable moves toward the disk to a raised position where its support surface is adjacent a back of the disk. A spindle inserts through a center hole of the disk to align the disk with the turntable. A clamper is held above the disk on a side of the disk opposite the turntable. The clamper is supported close enough to the disk that when the turntable is in the raised position, a magnet in the turntable exerts a substantial force on a piece of ferromagnetic material in the clamper. When the clamper is released it clamps the disk to the turntable. By bringing the clamper and turntable to the disk rather than moving the disk toward one or the other, no space is required for the displacement of the disk in a direction perpendicular to its surface. The clamper is supported by a pair of holders, slidable in a direction parallel to the surface of the disk. Wedge-shaped surfaces on the holders engage a flange on top of the clamper to lift and hold the clamper above the disk. If a disk is misaligned with the spindle when the turntable is brought to the raised position, the disk is pressed against the clamper. The clamper in turn presses against inclined surfaces of the holders causing the holders to spread apart. The spreading is detected to invoke a control routine to correct the misalignment.

The present invention relates to a recorded disk playback device, such as a CD player, and specifically to such a device as employs a clamper to clamp the disk onto a turntable.
Disk players that employ a turntable to rotate recorded disks for playback are known. Some known devices transport the disk to a playback position and then lift the disk out of its support, for example a tray, toward a rotatable clamp. The clamp has a magnet that is attracted to the turntable surface. The turntable continues to move upward, carrying the disk off its support (eg. surface of the tray), until it is close enough to cause the clamp to settle against the disk, thereby securing it to the turntable. This moves the disk away from the mounting surface of the tray, and the magnet arranged in the clamper is attracted to the turntable. In this way the disk is clamped between the turntable and the clamp so that the turntable can rotate the disk.
One problem with the type of device described above is that a substantial amount of space is required to permit the disk to move upward perpendicular to its surface. Since compactness is usually an important design goal for such devices, this space requirement is undesirable. For example, to make a CD player for a computer that fits into the standard form factor for peripherals, space is difficult to find. Any refinements to avoid the space requirement, such as by keeping the disk in place and moving the clamping elements toward it, would add complexity and cost to the design as well as introduce additional space requirements.

Disk playback with clamping mechanism and misalignment detector


A digital radiographic tool with drive car for moving along track sections attached longitudinally to a pipe is shown. The drive car carries (1) a collimator on one side of the pipe for projecting x-rays or gamma rays on said pipe and (2) a linear digital array on an opposing side of the pipe for collecting x-rays or gamma rays that have passed through the pipe. The collected rays are processed to indicate any defects in the pipe. The digital radiographic tool is adjustable to allow inspection of pipes that have obstructions adjacent thereto.

Pipelines are commonly used to transport material such as gas, oil, slurry or similar substances over long distances. Such pipelines are normally made out of metal and are commonly joined together with welds. In refineries, pipelines are used to transport material from one portion of the refinery to another. The pipeline may (or may not) be covered with insulation.
Such pipelines may corrode and, if the corrosion is not detected early enough, the pipelines may start to leak. If the leak is not detected early, catastrophic results may occur, including fires and/or explosions. Preferably, the corrosion is detected before a leak ever occurs.
Non-destructive testing, including the use of x-rays or gamma rays penetrating the pipeline, is used to determine if a pipeline has defects therein as may typically be caused by corrosion. U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2012/0201347 A1, published on Aug. 9, 2012 by Prentice et al. and assigned to Shawcore Ltd. shows a method and apparatus for inspecting pipelines to determine if there are any defects in a pipeline. However, the Prentice patent is difficult to install and requires access to the entire circumference of the pipeline. If a pipeline is in a refinery and is supported on support beams, the Prentice invention cannot inspect the pipe where the pipe touches the support beam.
In pipelines, if the pipeline is buried, non-destructive testing of the buried pipeline is normally made by sending a pig through the pipeline. The pig is typically made up of (a) a drive package, (b) a flux loop that does the sensing and (c) a recorder package. Using such a pig, the entire Trans Alaska Crude Oil Pipeline was tested in 1997. However, for many pipelines, especially in refineries or processing plants, a pig cannot be run through the pipeline. Also, many of the pipelines are covered with insulated material which prevents direct access to the pipeline.
The purpose of the non-destructive testing is to use a non-invasive technique to determine the integrity of a pipe or quantitatively measure any corrosions or defects in the pipe. Non-destructive testing inspects and measures without doing harm to the pipe. There are many different ways of non-destructive testing, including, but not limited to, (a) acoustical emissions, (b) ultrasonic, (c) eddy current, (d) magnetic measurements, (e) microwave, (f) flux leakage or (g) x-ray. The use of x-rays or gamma rays is one of the more common techniques for non-destructive testing. In the use of x-ray or gamma ray technology for non-destructive testing, the pipe being tested is placed between the radiation source and a detector. The less radiation that reaches the detector, the better the pipe. The more radiation that reaches the detector, the more wear or corrosion in the pipe.
In industrialized countries such as the United States, many refineries or processing facilities were built years ago. Over time, corrosion or erosion can cause the pipes in the plant to wear thin and eventually leak. If a pipe leaks, depending upon what is being moved through the pipe, the leak can cause catastrophic results. The detection of a thin section of pipe before it leaks can be very critical.
The use of non-destructive testing for pipelines has become so common that standards have been developed by ASTM International. A collection of ASTM standards under "Radiology (X and Gamma) Method" have been developed.
One of the entities that has performed non-destructive testing on insulated pipes in the past is IHI Southwest Technologies, Inc. located in San Antonio, Tex., assignee of this invention. IHI has developed digital radiograph tools for detecting internal and external corrosion in insulated piping. Generally, a radiation source will create a radiation beam that penetrates a pipe under test. The radiation beam will penetrate not only the pipe, but also insulation there-around. A detector array is located on generally the opposing side of the pipe being inspected using a radiation source. In this manner, the detector array can determine if there is any corrosion and the severity of the corrosion. However, the prior systems developed by IHI were very complex and hard to move along a pipe being inspected to give good results. Also, dead zones would occur that were not being penetrated by the radiation. Because of the difficulty in installation and maneuverability of the prior digital radiographic imaging by IHI, it was difficult to eliminate the dead zones. The prior developed digital radiographic tool requires a lot of time to install and operate.

Apparatus and method for digital radiographic inspection of pipes


The present invention provides for novel immunological and vaccine formulations comprising a newly applied non-crosslinked polyacrylic acid polymer adjuvant. The adjuvants may be combined with a wide variety of immunogens to produce vaccines that are safe and effective when administered to a wide range of target animals. The immunogens may include, but are not limited to: inactivated pathogens, attenuated pathogens, subunits, recombinant expression vectors, plasmids or combinations thereof. The animals may include, but are not limited to: humans, murine, canines, felines, equines, porcines, ovines, caprines and bovines.

The use of polymers including acrylic acid units as an adjuvant in vaccine composition has already been proposed. In most cases, polyacrylic acid polymers recommended as an adjuvant are cross-linked polymers. For instance, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,790,665 and 3,919,411 describe the use of an acrylic acid polymer cross-linked with a polyallyl saccharide, as an adjuvant. Adjuvants corresponding to polymers of acrylic or methacrylic acid which are cross-linked, especially with polyalkenyl ethers of sugars or polyalcohols, are also described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,163,926. Such kinds of polymers are sold under the name CARBOPOL®. The use of CARBOPOL 974P, 934P and 971P which are cross-linked polymers with high Mw (i.e. about 3 million for 974P, according to the data provided by the producer) is described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,163,926, EP 1 058 558 and WO 2009/118523.
Some research efforts have focused on the use of linear polyacrylic acid polymers which have a low weight or on acrylic acid/acrylic acid ester copolymers:
WO 2005/065712 proposes a complex that comprises a narrow molecular weight distribution polymer that includes units derived from an acrylic acid or a salt thereof, and a substance that has a pharmacological activity against a pathogenic organism or a cancer, or one or more antigens or immunogens. The polymer may be a homopolymer or a copolymer of an acrylic acid or methacrylic acid or a salt thereof. A molecular weight of 100 000 or less is advocated.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,610,310 and EP 0 804 234 describe the use of a polymer having anionic constitutive repeating monomer units and hydrophobic constitutive repeating monomer units. In particular, EP0804234 discloses the use of a polymer partially consisting of acrylic acid units (constitutive repeating units anionic) and ester of acrylic acid units (constitutive hydrophobic repeating units) as a vaccine adjuvant in an aqueous solution. A polyacrylic acid polymer CARBOPOL® 907 is compared in these documents to its advocated homologous partially esterified polyacrylic acid polymers and provides a poorer immune response. Similarly, the publications of L. Hilgers et al. in Vaccine, 2000, 18, 3319-3325 and Vaccine 1998 Vol. 16, No. 16, 1575-1581 also disclose the use of such esterified polymers and teach that the use of alkyl esters of polyacrylic acid provides a better immune response in the majority of the cases. CARBOPOL® 907 is a polyacrylic acid polymer that is not available today anymore and whose characteristics cannot be reliably determined. It belongs to the CARBOPOL family which is known as cross-linked polymers. This polymer has a weight average molecular weight Mw which is different from a document to another one: the publication of Vaccine, 1998 Vol. 16, No. 16, page 1575 to 1581 provides a weight average molecular weight Mw of 450 kDa without precision regarding the method used for its determination. It does not mention its polydispersity index. In contrast, "Liquid Detergents", surfactant series Science, Vol. 67, page 147 (1996, CRC Press, Publisher: Kuo-Yann Lai), provided for the same polymer a weight average molecular weight Mw of 603.3 kDa determined by chromatographic technique by gel permeation (GPC) and a polydispersity index IP of 4.124. There is doubt regarding the characteristics of CARBOPOL® 907. Additionally, most of the time, the Mw data given by the producers differ from the Mw that can be determined by standardized methods, as shown in the examples of the present patent application.
In addition to the uncertainties as to the precise characteristics of existing polymer adjuvants, there is an ongoing need to develop new adjuvants with improved safety and efficacy properties. The instant disclosure fills those needs by providing safe and effective immunological and vaccine formulations comprising non-crosslinked acrylic acid polymer adjuvants.

Immunogenic formulations comprising linear or branched polyacrylic acid polymer adjuvants

Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health USA Inc.


An optical component including: a first substrate body which is made of a platy member allowing infrared laser beam to be transmitted therethrough and having a refractive index of 2 to 4 with respect to the infrared laser beam, and which has an input surface where the infrared laser beam is incident, and an inclined surface inclined to the input surface at an angle of inclination, calculated in accordance with Formula (I):n(λ)×sin θ(λ)=1×sin(x)  (I)and formed with a transmitting phase retarding film that shifts a phase of the infrared laser beam; and a second substrate body which is made of the platy member and which has an output surface from which the infrared laser beam is emitted, and an inclined surface inclined at the angle of inclination to the output surface and formed with the transmitting phase retarding film. The inclined surfaces of both substrate bodies are arranged as opposed to each other so as to have a space therebetween.

Laser processing which uses infrared laser beam such as carbon dioxide laser beam (hereinafter referred to as "infrared laser processing") has been applied to processing of an object such as a metal material, e.g., fine drilling, cutting and welding. In the case of cutting the object by such infrared laser processing, there may occur a problem in terms of processing quality due, for example, to a difference in a cutting width or a cutting plane quality depending on a polarization direction of laser beam. For this reason, in a laser processing machine for use in the infrared laser processing, a circular polarization mirror as a reflective-type optical component is provided for the purpose of eliminating an influence on the processing quality exerted by the polarization direction of the infrared laser beam, thereby to convert a polarization of the infrared laser beam from linear polarization to circular polarization which has no dependency on the processing direction.
However, the laser processing machine provided with the reflective optical component is required to have a large space for returning of laser beam as well as a complicated folded optical system in order to convert laser beam into a desired polarization, which leads to an increased size of the machine and an increased number of components, and hence the machine has disadvantages of low mass productivity, high cost and low industrial productivity.
Thus, from the viewpoint of making the machine compact and reducing the number of components, there have, for example, been proposed transmission-type optical components which are: an infrared wave plate allowing light in a visible region to a far-infrared region to be transmitted therethrough and using a crystal such as cadmium sulfide that is a low-absorption uniaxial crystalline; and a transmission-type phase retardation substrate made of a transparent substrate formed with transparent multilayers (e.g., see Patent Literature 1).
However, the above infrared wave plate has its limit on an element aperture permitted for the uniaxial crystal and low permitted intensity of laser beam, and hence the infrared wave plate has a disadvantage of having limited applicability.
Further, in the phase retardation substrate described in Patent Literature 1, since optical axis displacement of a transmission beam occurs in accordance with the thickness of the transparent substrate, a component for correcting the optical axis displacement, or the like, is further required in addition to the phase retardation substrate, and furthermore, adjustment of the optical axis is difficult.
There has then been proposed a transmission-type phase retardation substrate (e.g., see Patent Literature 2) or the like, made up of a pair of substrate bodies. The substrate body is made of a platy member that allows infrared light to be transmitted therethrough, one surface of which is formed with a fine structure of periodically repeating a roof-like structure in a cross-sectionally triangular shape or a roof-like structure in a cross-sectionally trapezoidal shape and provided with a phase retardation substrate, and the other surface of which is made a smooth surface. The surfaces of the substrate bodies, which are formed with the fine structures, are joined for integration.


An apparatus and method for processing a multimedia digital bitstream is disclosed. The apparatus comprises a processing chain made up of a plurality of media processors. Each media processor processes a portion of the multimedia digital bitstream in real time. Each portion of the multimedia digital bitstream is split into a primary bitstream and a secondary bitstream. The primary bitstream is processed and merged with the unprocessed secondary bitstream. The parallel processing method of the present invention enables the processing chain to output a fully processed bitstream in real time. The processing chain may be used to transcode a high definition (HD) video bitstream in real time using a plurality of bitrate transcoder units.

The development of high quality multimedia devices, such as set-top boxes, high end televisions, digital televisions, personal televisions, storage products, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless Internet devices, etc., is leading to a variety of architectures and to more openness towards new features for these devices. The development of these new products and their ability to display video data in any format has resulted in new requirements and opportunities with respect to video processing and video enhancement algorithms. Most of these devices receive and/or store video in the MPEG-2 format.
Next generation storage devices, such as the blue laser based Digital Video Recorder, will have high definition (HD) capability to some extent. A high definition (HD) program is typically broadcast at twenty million bits per second (20 megabits per second or 20 Mb/s) and encoded according to the MPEG-2 video standard. The storage capacity of a Digital Video Recorder is in the range of approximately twenty Gigabytes (20 GB). This represents about two (2) hours of recording time of HD video per video disc.
To increase the amount of record time per video disc, long play modes can be defined. For example, in a Long Play (LP) mode, a broadcast bitrate of twenty megabits per second (20 Mb/s) may be recorded at a storage bitrate of ten megabits per second (10 Mb/s). This will provide about four (4) hours of recording time per video disc. In an Extended Long Play (ELP) mode, a broadcast bitrate of twenty megabits per second (20 Mb/s) may be recorded at a storage bitrate of five megabits per second (5 Mb/s). This will provide about eight (8) hours of recording time per video disc.
The process of recording a bitstream at a lower rate is referred to as "transcoding" the bitstream. One method of transcoding a high bitrate bitstream involves the steps of decoding the high bitrate bitstream with an MPEG-2 decoder, de-interlacing the bitstream, converting to a lower resolution by applying 2D scaling, re-interlacing the bitstream, and encoding the resulting bitstream at the lower bitrate. Another method of transcoding a high bitrate bitstream involves directly transcoding the bitstream to a lower bitrate without fully decoding and re-coding the video. This method is known as Direct Bitrate Transcoding (DBT).
Media processors are capable of transcoding multimedia data in the MPEG format. If a bitrate transcoder of a media processor is able to transcode MPEG video data at the same rate at which the MPEG video data arrives, then the transcoding process is said to be done in "real time." If the computing resources of the media processor are not sufficient to process the MPEG video data in real time, then completion of the transcoding process will occur after the arrival of the last portion of the MPEG video data.
Media processors can achieve real time performance levels if the media processing requires minimal computing resources or if the size of the MPEG frames to be processed is small. For example, the Trimedia™ family of media processors (TM1100, TM1300) manufactured by Philips Electronics North America Corporation can perform an MPEG video transform on standard definition (SD) MPEG video data in almost real time. A Trimedia™ processor would require approximately two hundred fifty (250) to three hundred (300) megacycles per second to process high definition (HD) MPEG video data. This level of level of processing power is not presently available.
There is therefore a need in the art for an apparatus and method that will enable presently existing media processors to process high definition (HD) MPEG video data to achieve bitrate transcoding of HD video data in real time.

Apparatus and method for parallel multimedia processing


P-Selectin on platelets and endothelium binds cell surface chondroitin sulfate (CS) proteoglycans, which are abundantly and stably expressed on the surface many cancer cells. Binding of the cancer cells through the CS moieties may be blocked to inhibit the interaction of cancer cells with platelets and endothelium. The present inventors disclose compositions and methods for the inhibition of cancer metastasis.

Cancer metastasis is strongly correlated with a poor prognosis of patients. The multi-step process of metastasis includes release of malignant cells from the primary neoplasm, migration of cancer cells into circulation, adhesion at distant sites, and growth of the disseminated cancer cells within the vessels or within the tissue following extravasation. Each step in this process requires different types of interaction between cancer cells and the host microenvironment.
The selectin family of adhesion molecules include P-Selectin, L-Selectin, and E-Selectin. P-Selectin is a 140 kDa protein that is commonly expressed on the surface of a variety of cell types, including, but not limited to, platelets and endothelium. (See, for example, GenBank Accession No. P16109 (Homo sapiens) or GenBank Accession No. AAA40008 (Mus musculus).) E-Selectin is commonly expressed in a variety of cell types, including, for example, vascular endothelium. (See, for example, NP_000441 (Homo sapiens) or AAA37577 (Mus musculus).) L-selectin is expressed on lymphocytes.
Cell surface proteoglycans (PGs) are another class of cell surface adhesion molecules. These PGs may comprise glycosaminoglycan (GAG) side chains covalently bound to a protein core. The GAG side chain can be heparin sulfate (HS) or chondroitin sulfate (CS).
The mammary cell line 4T1 is a model system of spontaneous breast cancer metastasis. This model exhibits a deficiency in the oligosaccharides sialyl Lewis X (sLex) and sialyl Lewis A (sLea). This deficiency results in diminished homotypic adhesion and higher motility of the tumor cells.

The Board of Trustees of The University of Arkansas


A golf ball is provided having a solid core which is formed of a core stock comprising a thermoplastic resin or elastomer and fibrous aluminum borate whiskers. The ball is improved in restitution. Particularly, the one-piece golf ball is durably resistant to damages by iron shots.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a golf ball having improved restitution and more particularly, a one-piece golf ball having improved durability in terms of cut resistance and scuff resistance upon iron shots
2. Prior Art
Golf balls known in the art include one-piece golf balls, solid golf balls, and wound golf balls. The one-piece golf balls are generally prepared by heat curing a rubber composition comprising polybutadiene, methacrylic acid, zinc oxide and peroxide. The solid golf balls including two- and three-piece golf balls are generally prepared by heat curing a rubber composition comprising polybutadiene, zinc acrylate and peroxide to form a solid core and molding a cover around the core with an intermediate layer optionally interposed therebetween. The wound golf balls are generally prepared by molding a cover around a wound core.
One-piece golf balls and solid cores are often formed of rubber compositions as mentioned above It is also proposed to use thermoplastic elastomers such as thermo-plastic polyester elastomers in the manufacture of one-piece golf balls and solid cores since these elastomers are relatively easy to mold and durable.
The one-piece golf balls and solid cores of thermoplastic elastomers, however, are prone to deformation by repetitive shots and leave room for improvement in durability. Particularly when such a one-piece golf ball is hit with an iron, the ball is readily indented by the club face and scuffed thereby to become fluffy or scraped on the surface. Sometimes cracks occur and dimples can be scraped off. Thus the one-piece golf ball needs further improvement in durability in terms of scuff resistance and cut resistance.


A process and a system for producing a fatty acid alkyl ester from an alcohol and a feedstock containing transesterifiable lipids are provided.

Biodiesel is a non-petroleum-based fuel made from renewable resources, for example, plants, microorganisms, or the like. It can be used as a diesel fuel substitute or as a component of fuel blends. Biodiesel is biodegradable and non-toxic, so fuel spills pose far less risk to the environment. Further, because the production of biodiesel "recycles"CO2, biodiesel production and use does not significantly contribute to global warming.
Biofuels, and in particular biodiesel, are now produced in many countries as alternatives to petroleum products. Biodiesel is usually produced from a variety of oils, such as vegetable oils or recycled fryer oils, and waste animal fat. Biodiesel may be used alone or in mixture with petroleum diesel to fuel all types of vehicles equipped with diesel engines including trucks, locomotives, industrial equipment, private cars and boats. Biodiesel use reduces greenhouse gas emission and consequently many governments have promoted it through tax exemption and other various incentives. Therefore, several biodiesel production plants have been built throughout the world and more are planned to enter into production in the next few years.
Chemically, biodiesel feedstock can be composed primarily of transesterifiable lipids, including for example glycerides, which are formed from a single molecule of glycerol with one to three long chain fatty acids attached.
Biodiesel can be produced by direct transesterification of such lipids (including mono-, di-, or triglycerides) from an oil or a fat with an alcohol, often methanol, in presence of an acidic or basic catalyst:

Several acidic or basic catalysts are known to be useful for this reaction.

Process and system for producing a fatty acid alkyl ester


A tamper-evident heat induction liner for sealing a container includes at least four stacked layers and exhibits improved resistance to moisture migration. A heat seal polymer layer is provided for induction bonding against a container opening. A moisture-impermeable foil layer is secured against the polymer layer opposite the container opening. Tear-resistant backing layer is provided, and is secured to a low cohesive strength layer which is disposed between the backing layer and the foil layer. The low cohesive layer splits when the backing layer is lifted, leaving the foil layer and polymer layer with a portion of the split low cohesive strength layer covering the container opening in a tamper-evident, rupturable manner.

The present invention generally relates to tamper-evident induction foil liners for sealing containers. The present invention more specifically relates to an improved tamper-evident induction foil liner which provides an enhanced water vapor barrier.
Tamper-evident liners are common for sealing containers, for example, bottles containing drugs or food. Such liners are especially useful because they prevent or warn of tampering with a containers contents.
To facilitate user-friendly liner removal, liners are often provided with an integral pull-tab which may be gripped by a person's fingers. One such type of pull-tab is formed by a portion of the foil disk seal which extends over the outer diameter of the container. The tab can be pulled upward and across the container opening to peel the foil disk from the container lip. A pull-tab liner of that type is disclose in U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,618, to Goth, which is incorporated herein by reference. That patent discloses a pull-tab liner structure and suitable materials for a fusion peelable-bond induction foil liner which is removed cleanly and easily from a container lip.
Referring to the Figures, a prior art liner 10 of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,618 is illustrated in FIGS. 1, 1A and 4. The prior art liner 10 consists of four stacked layers A, B, C and D. A first layer A is a peelable polymer layer which may be fusion-bonded to a lip defining an opening of a container 14. A second layer is a low cohesive strength layer B, disposed against the polymer layer A. A third layer is a foil layer C disposed against layer B on a side opposite the low cohesive strength layer A. A fourth layer is a tear-resistant backing layer D disposed on top of the foil layer C.
In certain applications, it is desirable that a pull-tab container liner minimizes or prevents the migration of moisture into a container interior. For example, dampness or humidity can damage or negatively affect various goods. Also, moisture migration out of a container is undesirable, as it may result in the drawing out of a product over an extended period. Unfortunately, many known induction foil liners, including that disclosed in afore-mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,618, permit an undesirable amount of moisture migration.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved tamper-evident foil induction liner which reduces or prevents water vapor migration.

Tamper-evident pull tab induction liner with improved moisture migration resistance and method of sealing with same


A semiconductor structure that includes at least one logic device region and at least one static random access memory (SRAM) device region wherein each device region includes a double gated field effect transistor (FET) wherein the back gate of each of the FET devices is doped to a specific level so as to improve the performance of the FET devices within the different device regions is provided. In particular, the back gate within the SRAM device region is more heavily doped than the back gate within the logic device region. In order to control short channel effects, the FET device within the logic device region includes a doped channel, while the FET device within the SRAM device region does not. A none uniform lateral doping profile with a low net doping beneath the source/drain regions and a high net doping underneath the channel would provide additional SCE control for the logic device.

A major problem with static random access memory (SRAM) scaling is the role of doping fluctuations. It is expected that for the 45 nm node doping fluctuations will be one of the single most important inhibitors for further scaling.
Projecting the threshold mismatch from the current available data, a one sigma mismatch of 80 mV is expected. This would result in an array of fail rates that is beyond a practical repair rate.
Doping fluctuation scaling is related to the absolute number, N, of doping atoms in the channel and their distribution, where N is proportional to the device area. The doping fluctuation will scale approximately to the equation 1/sqrt(W*L), where W and L are the device width and device length, respectively. Furthermore, the threshold variation is scaled by the square root of the second moment of the doping distribution perpendicular to the gate interface, which is related to the total number of dopants N in the channel. Shrinking feature sizes will require higher doping levels and because SRAM devices have one of smallest device areas known in the semiconductor art, doping fluctuation will tend to impair this region first.

Substrate solution for back gate controlled SRAM with coexisting logic devices

International Business Machines Corporation


A first amorphous film containing hafnium, oxygen and a first element such as zirconium is formed, a plurality of grains containing a second element different from any of hafnium, oxygen and the first element are formed on the first amorphous film, a second amorphous film made of the same material as the first amorphous film is formed on the plurality of grains and on the first amorphous film, and a metal film is formed on the second amorphous film. Thereafter, by performing heat treatment, the first amorphous film is crystallized to form a first orthorhombic ferroelectric film and the second amorphous film is crystallized to form a second orthorhombic ferroelectric film.

In recent years, ferroelectric memory cells using a ferroelectric layer have been developed as semiconductor memory elements operating at a low voltage. A ferroelectric memory cell is a non-volatile memory cell in which a writing state and an erasing state of information are changed by controlling the direction of polarization of the ferroelectric layer.
US Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0340372 A1 (Patent Document 1) discloses a non-volatile memory cell in which a ferroelectric layer formed above a selection transistor is electrically connected to one of diffusion regions of the selection transistor.

Semiconductor device and method of manufacturing the same


Disclosed herein is a gradient thin film, formed on a substrate by simultaneously depositing different materials on the substrate using a plurality of thin film deposition apparatuses provided in a vacuum chamber, wherein the gradient thin film is formed such that the composition thereof is continuously changed depending on the thickness thereof by deposition control plates provided in the path through which the different materials move to the substrate. The gradient thin film is advantageous in that the thin film is formed by simultaneously depositing different materials using various deposition apparatuses, so that the composition thereof is continuously changed depending on the thickness thereof, with the result that the physical properties of a thin film are easily controlled and the number of deposition processes is decreased, and thus processing time and manufacturing costs are decreased, thereby improving economic efficiency.

In various conventional thin film deposition methods, a method of depositing a buffer layer of a superconducting sheet is performed through a sputtering process, an evaporation process or an electron beam deposition process. However, such a method of depositing a buffer layer of a superconducting sheet is problematic in that processes of depositing a thin film must be repeatedly conducted in order to form a multi-layered thin film, and thus additional costs for establishing a system for conducting the processes and maintaining the system are incurred, and it is difficult to decrease the manufacturing time of a superconducting sheet and to secure economic efficiency because the number of the processes for depositing a thin film is increased.
For instance, a REBCO (for example, YBCO, SmBCO, GdBCO or NdBCO) based superconducting sheet, which is a typical second-generation superconducting sheet, must have a multi-layered buffer thin film (for example, Y2O3/YSZ/CeO2, CeO2/YSZ/CeO2, etc.) deposited thereon. Therefore, in order to form such a multi-layered buffer thin film, deposition apparatuses, such as a sputterer, an evaporator and an electron beam laser, are sequentially operated depending on the number of components (Y2O3, YSZ, and CeO2) constituting the multi-layered buffer thin film.
The multi-layered buffer thin film formed above is problematic in that processes of depositing a thin film are conducted several times and deposition conditions must be differently set for each of the processes, and thus productivity is decreased and costs are increased in the manufacturing of a superconducting sheet, thereby decreasing economic efficiency.
Further, the multi-layered buffer thin film is problematic in that the difference in the physical properties between buffer thin films causes various problems, and it cannot properly serve as a buffer layer between a substrate and a superconductor because it is difficult to control the processes of depositing a buffer layer, which are conducted to set all of the characteristics of a superconducting sheet.

Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute


A defect detection apparatus (1) comprises an image pickup part (3) for picking up an image of a substrate (9) to acquire a grayscale target image, from which pixel values of the target image are sequentially outputted to a defect detector (43). The defect detector (43) compares the target image with a reference image to generate a defect region image representing regions of defects included in a plurality of predetermined inspection regions, to be stored in a defect region image memory (44). A computer (5) obtains an area and a barycentric position of each of the defects in the defect region image to specify an inspection region including the defect and performs limitation (i.e., selection) of defects on the basis of a defect detection condition set for each inspection region on the area of defect. It is possible to detect defects with high efficiency by using a defect detection condition on a different area of defect for each inspection region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique for detecting defects of a pattern formed on a substrate.
2. Description of the Background Art
In a field of inspecting a pattern formed on a semiconductor substrate, a glass substrate, a printed circuit board, or the like (hereinafter, referred to as "substrate"), conventionally, a comparison check method has been used. For example, from a grayscale target image to be inspected and a grayscale reference image, a differential absolute value image representing absolute values of differences in pixel value between these images is obtained and each of pixels in this image is binarized by a predetermined threshold value, to detect a region specified on a pixel basis as a defect.
Japanese Patent Application Laid Open Gazette No. 11-135583 (Document 1) discloses a method for detecting a defect with high accuracy with detection sensitivity in accordance with each inspection region, from a grayscale differential image generated with a grayscale conversion parameter and a threshold pixel value for each inspection region.
On a substrate, usually, a variety of patterns are formed. In a case where a very fine and dense wiring pattern is formed, for example, even a defect whose size (area) corresponds to one pixel or so may be critical, causing a short circuit, an open or the like in interconnection. Alternatively, in a case where a coarse and sparse pattern is formed, a defect of one pixel or so mostly has little effect. In a case where such a dense pattern and a sparse pattern are mixed in a target image, even if the detection sensitivity is changed as appropriate, as shown in Document 1, some small and unnecessary defects are detected to some degree and the efficiency of defect detection is not largely improved, and this requires a long time for an operator or other apparatus to check (review) the picked-up image of the defects.

Defect detection apparatus and defect detection method


A two-dimensional inductive position sensing system uses four drive inductors arranged at the vertices of a parallelogram and a sensing inductor positioned within the parallelogram. The sensing inductor is movable within the parallelogram and relative to the drive inductors. A first oscillating current at a first frequency is supplied to a first pair of the drive inductors located at ends of a first diagonal of the parallelogram. A second oscillating current at a second frequency is supplied to a second pair of the drive inductors located at ends of a second diagonal of the parallelogram. As a result, the sensing inductor generates a first output voltage at the first frequency and a second output voltage at the second frequency. A processor determines a position of the sensing inductor relative to the drive inductors using the first output voltage and the second output voltage.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to position sensors, and more particularly to a two-dimensional inductive position sensing system using an arrangement of parallel inductors.
2. Description of Related Art
A variety of position sensors are known in the art. Examples include capacitance-based position sensors, laser-based position sensors, eddy-current sensing position sensors, and linear displacement transducer-based position sensors. While each type of position sensor has its advantages, each also presents disadvantages for some applications. For example, the size of capacitors can make their use impractical when the position sensor must be small in size. The same is true for linear displacement transducers. The complexity and/or cost of laser-based sensors and eddy-current-based sensors can negate their advantages in a number of applications.
More recently, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2011/0133727 disclosed an inductive position sensor using three inexpensive inductors arranged along a line. Briefly, the two inductors on either end of the linear arrangement are driven in series at the same frequency, but such that they generate opposing magnetic fields. The total magnetic field between them cancels at a central location, yet varies in a surprisingly linear fashion about the central location. The third inductor is used as a sensor to sample this magnetic field. The third (sensing) inductor is positioned between the two drive inductors and generates a voltage that is linearly dependent on the third inductor's position between the two drive inductors over reasonable translation ranges. However, the three aligned inductors define a one-dimensional inductive position sensor that is not sensitive to movement of the third (sensing) inductor off of the line that defines the linear arrangement of the three inductors. That is, if the third (sensing) inductor moves off the line that connects the outer two drive inductors, the voltage change caused by such movement is minimal thereby making it difficult to monitor an off-line motion or position.

Two-dimensional inductive position sensing system

The United States of America as Represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Adminstration


A system and method usable for receiving data from an optical device and converting the data to a condition value, apply analytical tools to the condition value as determined by the optical device in real time, or substantially real time, analyze data, and generate automated reports in real time, or substantially real time at the location and time that condition values are received.

A need exists for a system capable of receiving data from an optical device and converting the data to a condition value. Further, a need exists to apply analytical tools to the condition value as determined by the optical device in real time, or substantially real time. Further, a need exists to analyze data and generate automated reports in real time, or substantially real time at the location and time that condition values are received.
Current optical devices, such as infrared cameras and visible spectrum cameras have various physical structures and data output mechanisms. A need exists for a system that can easily be adapted to interface with multiple types of optical devices to both analyze condition values, as well as generate automated reports.
A further need exists for a system to access the native data of optical devices and calculate pertinent information about conditions in the visual field of the optical device.
Numerous applications spanning multiple industries exist for such a system. For example, temperature distribution analysis of industrial equipment can be conducted to identify potential failures or weak points. Condition values of crops can be analyzed to identify insect intrusion, or diseased plants, plant under or overwatering, and potential crop yield.
Condition values, such as temperatures, can provide invaluable information for analysis in applications spanning multiple industries. A need exists for a lightweight and miniature system capable of being installed on a drone, or unmanned flight vehicle for remote use capable of collecting and supplying condition values. Remote use of such a system allows for rapid data collection, data collection in difficult to reach areas, and data from otherwise impractical perspective views.
However, typical analysis procedures involve capturing data at a single instance of time, and then applying analytical tools to the data at a later time to generate reports with findings. An inability for data analysis and reporting in real time, or substantially real time can lead to inefficiency, greater costs, errors, and omissions in the reporting process.
A need exists, therefore for a system and method to combine various disparate elements of data capture and reporting in order to eliminate the above issues.
The present embodiments meet these needs.
The present embodiments are detailed below with reference to the listed Figures.

System and method for automated condition value reporting


A method for testing a reservoir warning apparatus of a fluid reservoir for a hydraulic motor vehicle brake system, with the reservoir warning apparatus comprising a switching unit with at least one reed contact as the switching element. In order to find all possible faults in the reed contact, a dynamic contact resistance and a transient response of the reed contact are measured at the preassembled switching unit.

In a hydraulic motor vehicle brake system, the required brake fluid is located in the fluid reservoir, with the reservoir warning apparatus for monitoring the reservoir filling level usually having a reed switch with a reed contact as the switching element and usually having a magnet as the transducer.
As is known, a reed contact comprises two ferromagnetic reeds which are coated with noble metal and are fused into a glass body or small glass tube. The two reeds overlap to a minimum extent in this case. The small glass tube is evacuated before fusing and partly filled with nitrogen or a gas mixture with a high nitrogen content.
If the level of brake fluid falls and the magnet passes a predefined switching point, the reeds of the reed switch close on account of the generated magnetic field since the magnetic attraction force of the reeds exceeds the spring action of the individual reeds. The reed switch can, as described, be provided as a closer or NO switch in which the reeds are open in the inoperative position. However, it is also possible to use a reed switch which is in the form of an opener or an NC switch which has reeds which are closed in the inoperative state and are opened under the action of a magnetic force.
This signal is evaluated in a controller and the driver of the motor vehicle can be warned by way of an optical and/or acoustic indicator. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the fluid reservoir is always filled with a statutorily predefined minimum amount of brake fluid in order to not compromise the functioning of the brake system. Reservoir warning apparatuses for monitoring the reservoir filling level in which a float, which is provided with the magnet, switches the reed contact as soon as the float assumes a position (switching point) in which the reservoir filling level falls below a defined minimum are generally used. A warning signal which can be sensed by the driver is triggered by the reed contact.
A fluid reservoir for a hydraulic motor vehicle brake system and a described switching unit are known, for example, from DE 10 2005 009 657 A1.
In line with current practice, the reservoir warning apparatuses are subject to a switching point test and a pivoting test (180° rotation) in the installed state, that is to say after installation of the reservoir warning apparatus into the fluid reservoir.
In spite of these tests, the switching units with reed contacts often fail since some manufacturer faults are not found by the switching point test and pivoting test and subsequent faults can occur in the field due to handling (transportation, assembly etc.).
Possible faults or failures which can occur in an installed reed contact in the field are:                Broken glass body (hairline cracks)        Leaks between the glass body and contacts        Floating particles in the glass body        Bent reeds in the glass body        Skewed orientation of the reeds in the glass body        Tendency for the reeds to stick in the contact region

Method for testing a container warning device of a compensation container, and testing apparatus for testing a container warning device


A method for manufacturing a film or sheet comprises deforming a polymeric alloy at a temperature effective to impart to the deformed alloy a birefringence retardation of greater than or equal to about 750 nanometers. A method eliminating comets and veins in an optical film or sheet comprises annealing the film or sheet to a temperature greater than the lowest glass transition temperature of the polymeric resins contained in the alloy. A composition comprises a first polymeric resin in an amount of about 1 to about 99 wt %; and a second polymeric resin in an amount of about 1 to about 99 wt %, wherein the polymeric resins are blended with a deforming force effective to produce a polymeric alloy having a birefringence retardation of greater than or equal to about 750 nanometers.

This disclosure relates to polymeric blends for optical devices and method of manufacture thereof.
High optical quality devices such as films and sheets are generally sought to be utilized in many applications such as optical elements, ophthalmic lenses, and the like. These optical devices generally utilize additional functional properties such as light polarization, photo-chromism, tint, color, decor, indicia, hardness, anti-abrasion, anti fog, X-ray recording capabilities, photographic film capabilities, digital storage capabilities, light management capabilities, and the like. It is generally desirable to use polymeric alloys for these applications, where certain specific functionality can be economically and cost effectively met. Polymeric alloys however, generally suffer from drawbacks such as the presence of veins and comets, which render the film inadequate for such high quality optical applications. It is therefore generally desirable to develop polymeric alloy compositions, which can be effectively utilized in optical devices. It is additionally desirable to develop methods for processing polymeric alloys into optical films and lenses wherein such defects are reduced or eliminated.

Polymeric blends for optical devices and method of manufacture thereof


A bracket for joining tables and/or table tops, includes a first bracket member adapted for attachment to one table or table top and having at least one hook-like projection, a second bracket member adapted for attachment to another table or table top to be joined and having at least two hook-like projections for so cooperating with the first bracket member that the projection of the first bracket member interlocks between the projections of the second bracket member. A connection element made of elastic and deformable material is placed between the projections of the first and second bracket members such that the projections of the first and second bracket members partially encompass the connection element, with the connection element generating a clamping force acting upon the projections of the first and second bracket members while being subject to an elastic deformation, thereby bracing the first and second bracket members with one another.

The present invention generally refers to a bracket for joining tables or table tops, and more specifically to a bracket of a type having at least two bracket members for attachment to respective tables and/or table tops, and a connection element for joining the bracket members.
In general, only rigid brackets are utilized to join single desk tops for providing work stations with multiple work surfaces and thereby attempt to produce a stable, load-bearing, precise and lasting alignment of the tables in relation to one another. Lately, desks are increasingly designed for vertical adjustment. There are designs that propose a vertical adjustment of the entire table assembly, e.g. by means of a crank and a gearing. More common for reasons of reduced costs are however tables which have individually height-adjustable legs. This type of adjustment results however in temporary misalignment of the tables or table tops, causing i.a. stress upon the bracket. Furthermore, this type of height adjustment also leads to overextension of the brackets as a result of a mutual support of the bracket members and eventually to the formation of a gap between the tables or table tops.
As a consequence of their inherent elasticity, conventional brackets cannot be subject or only slightly to such loads. Thus, unless the height adjustment of the table assembly is effected in many small increments, or the brackets are removed altogether prior to adjustment, the applied loads will result in damage, buckling and ripping out of the screws etc.
Until now, the office furniture industry has given little attention to this problem because the height adjustment of tables necessitates substantial efforts or is difficult to handle and therefore of little use. On the other hand, effective and rapidly operating adjusting mechanisms are known which are, however, difficult to modify for effecting a useful and risk-free solution to the foregoing problems.
Conventional brackets are typically formed by simple metal sheets which are screwed to the underside across the interface of neighboring table tops to effect a precise positional and height alignment of the table tops relative to one another. In these types of brackets, when the table tops are tilted upwards, the metal sheets are stretched so that the screw fasteners are ripped out.
Another conventional method includes a secure attachment of supporting underframes of the table in various ways, whereby the table tops, which are supported by the underframes, are joined together without a direct connection. There is a risk however of ripping out and deforming the frame connection.
Still another conventional method proposes to attach stable load-carrying supports to the frames of main desks, with connection plates being directly secured to the supports. Also in this case, there is a risk of deformation and resultant gap formation of the table tops. Further constructions are known in the field of seminar tables which require temporary and reversible joining of table tops. Proposals include connections of tables with catches, clamps, hooks, latches, or the like, with some connections exhibiting a certain flexibility. However, additional manual manipulations are required to brace or loosen the connection, or a permanent play in the connection must be accepted.
It is further known to join table tops by means of piano straps, hinges, strap hinges and special fittings. These types of connections allow angular modifications up to a complete folding of the table tops, but usually only in one direction. Only when the edges of the table top are pointed and of triangular configuration is flexibility in both directions possible. However, such edges are expensive to manufacture and limit the universal use of office desks so that their application is not common in the area of standard office furniture.
Also known are so called swing door brackets. They permit angular changes of connected plates in both directions, however, they project on both sides beyond the plates so that their application as brackets is not possible for tables.
Conventional brackets are thus either generally unfit to compensate angular changes, or complex and expensive, demand much space and require recessed areas or casings, or are visible and adversely affect the look of the table surface. In any event, they are not specifically designed to carry out the necessary angle compensation during height adjustment of the table.

Bracket for joining tables and/or table tops


ANGPTL4 compositions and methods of using such compositions, and agonists or antagonists thereof, for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases or disorders are included, including methods to modulate cell proliferation, cell adhesion, and cell migration.

Angiopoietin-like 4 protein (ANGPTL4) is a member of the angiopoietin family of secreted proteins. Conserved regions of the angiopoietin family include a coiled-coil domain and a C-terminal fibrinogen (FBN)-like domain. See, e.g., Kim et al., Biochem. J. 346:603-610 (2000). Other members of the family include angiopoietin 1, angiopoietin 2 and angiopoietin 3. Angiopoietin 1, angiopoietin 2 and angiopoietin 3/angiopoietin 4 bind to Tie2 receptor. See, e.g., Davis et al., Cell 87, 1161-1169 (1996); Maisonpierre et al., Science 277, 55-60 (1997); Valenzuela et al, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96, 1904-1909 (1999); and, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,521,073; 5,650,490; and, 5,814,464. Angiopoietin 1 and 4 appear to be an agonist for the Tie2 receptor, while Angiopoietin 2 and 3 appear to be an antagonist (and possibly an agonist) for the Tie2 receptor. See, e.g., Folkman & D'Amore, Cell, 87:1153-1155 (1996); Suri et al., Cell, 87:1171-1180 (1996); Masionpierre et al., Science 277:55-60 (1997); and, Ward & Dumont, Seminars in Cell & Developmental Biology, 13:19-27 (2002). The Tie2 receptor belongs to a family of endothelial cell specific receptors tyrosine kinases, which also include the Tie1 orphan receptor. Another member of the family, angiopoietin-like 3 protein was found to bind to integrin αvβ3. See, e.g., US patent application 20030215451 and Camenisch et al., J. Biol. Chem., 277(19):17281-17290 (2002).
ANGPTL4 is known by other terms. For example, ANGPTL4 is also known as hepatic fibrinogen/angiopoietin-related protein (HFARP) (Kim et al., Biochem. J. 346:603-610 (2000)), PPARγ angiopoietin related protein (PGAR) (Yoon, et al., Mol. Cell Biol., 20:5343-5349 (2000)), and fasting induced adipose factor (FIAF) (Kerten et al., J. Biol. Chem., 275:28488-28493 (2000)).
In vitro and in vivo studies and characterizations of ANGPTL4 can provide valuable identification and discovery of therapeutics and/or treatments useful in the prevention, amelioration or correction of diseases or dysfunctions associated with ANGPTL4 activity and/or expression. For example, tissue culture studies and genetically engineered mice have proven to be invaluable tools for the functional dissection of biological processes relevant to human disease, including immunology, cancer, neurobiology, cardiovascular biology, obesity and many others. There is a need to discover and understand the many biological functions of ANGPTL4. The invention addresses these and other needs, as will be apparent upon review of the following disclosure.

Compositions and methods of using angiopoietin-like 4 protein antibody


A boring tool for the fine finishing of surfaces of holes having at least one cutting bit and at least one guide ledge which are introduced and fixed in place in grooves arranged in the circumferential surface of the base body of the boring tool, characterized by the fact that a setting device is provided which is positively coupled with at least two cutting bits associated with each other; that the cutting bits are arranged displaceable by means of the setting device in the base body with respect to the circumferential surface; that the association of the cutting bits consists in that they are displaceable in opposite directions, with respect to the axis of rotation or center line of the boring tool; and that the setting device in each case displaces one cutting bit into a working position and the other cutting bit into a position of rest.

The present invention relates to a boring tool and a method for the fine finishing of the surfaces of holes.
Boring tools as well as methods for the fine finishing of the surfaces, of holes are known. It has been found that several steps are frequently necessary, for which furthermore several different tools must be used. This means a changing of the tool, which substantially increases the cost of the fine finishing of the surface of the holes.

Mapal, Fabrik fur Prazisionswerkzeuge Dr. Kress KG


In various embodiments, a method for processing a request made by a requester is provided. The method may include receiving at least one request from at least one requester, the request being in the form of natural language; analyzing the request with an agent; selecting at least one form based on analyzing the request; permitting a service agent to perform at least one step in association with the request; executing at least one update based on at least one form; and, forwarding information regarding processing of the request to a learning module operatively associated with the agent.

Organizations often devote tremendous resources to implement workflow systems that allow users to request, obtain and process information. Organizations typically use internal web sites with FAQs, printed documentation, and administrative support help desks to help employees keep information update and accomplish various workflow tasks. Users may update databases through workflow (for structured or semi-structured information), document editing (for unstructured information), or through direct manipulation (for complex objects).
Consider an employee who wants to modify the automatic deposits that are made to her pension plan. Because she makes this type of modification rarely, she most likely does not know the appropriate procedure or where to find the appropriate form. In an organization, the employee can take one of several actions: (i) search the intranet web site for a FAQ that describes the procedure and provides the URL of the form; (ii) call the human resources department for help; (iii) delegate the task to an assistant, if she has one; or (iv) ask another employee if he knows how to solve this task. Regardless of the action taken, considerable "hunt time" (time to find the correct form) will be spent by the employee or other personnel. To reduce effort on this kind of task, organizations often devote substantial resources to prepare print and web documentation and maintain support staff.
Next, consider a manager who issues a request to a webmaster support staff member to: "Add a new employee, John Doe, to the website." In the best case, the webmaster understands the request and has all the information needed to complete the task and notifies the manager of the result. More often, confusion, ambiguity, missing information, and mistakes abound that result in an e-mail "ping pong" involving clarification requests. For example, if every person on the website must be associated with a project, then the webmaster must seek additional information to address the manager's request. This results in additional employee time and corporate resources being spent to resolve the request.
In the foregoing scenarios, it can be seen that the hunt time of the employee to locate a resource to complete a task, as well as the human resources devoted to the execution of the task, are substantial. In addition, when a support person is involved in a request, the total time to complete a task increases, because support personnel typically are not readily available at all times to address requests.
In certain contexts, many companies monitor their internal work practices, looking for opportunities to transition problematic work—work practices that are still being developed—into procedural activities that can benefit from the productivity gains of automation. However, in doing so, companies often turn workers into "translator" service agents who convert their co-workers natural expressions of intent into the language and structures required by underlying information systems. Such translators may spend significant time performing mundane, repetitive, procedural tasks, typically in response to e-mail requests or other communications. Examples of procedural tasks include, without limitation, updates to web sites, new equipment purchases, reporting vacation days, registration of computers on networks, conference room reservations, new hires, and many others.
The problem of translation occurs mainly for tasks with the following three properties: (i) the requester has an intent that aligns with a procedural task, (ii) the requester knows who the service agent is that can process this request, and (iii) the requester performs the task infrequently. For example, consider the task of transferring a student from the waitlist at a university to a course roster. In this example, suppose the requester is a professor who has a clear intent that matches a procedural task. The professor knows that the service agent who can process this request is the department coordinator. The professor can express his intent via an e-mail to the service agent with the relevant information such as the student's name and the course identification number. While the professor may perform this task twice a year, it is infrequent enough that she has not inquired about learning how to make the update herself.
Companies may address the handling of this class of procedural tasks by assigning a service agent, such as the department coordinator mentioned above, to specialize in processing certain types of requests. Examples of service agents include, without limitation, administrative assistants, secretaries, webmasters, network administrators, purchasers, and other like personnel. While the update request is often infrequent for requesters, the work generally has high frequency for the service agents who by design of the company infrastructure support many other workers. In most cases service agents have many duties to perform, and these mundane, update tasks reduce time that can be devoted to tasks that require more creative thinking and problem solving.
Often when companies have procedural tasks that can be automated, solutions can be developed such as designing an invoicing system or a web site that allows users to register new computers on the network, for example. While this approach can be effective at improving productivity by eliminating the service agent, it may not be appropriate in all situations. A procedural task may have a low enough frequency that it would not be worth the expense to engineer a solution. In addition, workplace practices are generally dynamic. As a consequence of changes in the market, the law, customer needs, internal company policy, and in underlying information infrastructure, work practices evolve and engineered solutions often have a difficult time keeping pace with the changes. Examples of this breakdown are ubiquitous in the business world as evidenced by the number of printed forms augmented by workers with annotations and adhesive notes, for example, that address the mismatch between the current procedure and the form instrument.
In view of these issues and problems, what are needed are more effective and efficient processes and systems for facilitating and processing user requests to modify or update information.

Intent-based information processing and updates in association with a service agent


A reusable safety syringe training device is provided. The device comprises a syringe contained within a syringe protective member. The syringe protective member is movable vertically within an outer protective sheath from a first position to a second position and back to the first position. In the first position, the device is in an injection-ready position with the needle exposed and the syringe protective member in a locked vertical position with respect to the outer protective sheath. In the second position, the device is in a post-injection position such that the syringe protective member is no longer vertically locked with respect to the outer protective sheath and has moved vertically upward thereby rendering the needle within the outer protective sheath. The plunger carries a release flange sufficient to engage release latches that otherwise retain the syringe protective member in the first position. The release flange engages that release latches when the user pushes the plunger down to effectuate the injection. Once pressure is removed from the plunger after the injection has concluded, a springe mechanism drives the syringe protective member upwards to the second position. The user can then turn the plunger such that the release flange is no longer able to engage the release latches and push the plunger back down to lock the syringe protective member in its first position. The user is then able to pull the plunger back up while the syringe protective member remains locked, turn the plunger back to a position where the release flange is in a position to engage the release latches again, and perform another injection.

A wide variety of drugs are administered in prefilled syringes. To limit the potential for disease transmission, the majority of prefilled syringes are packaged within safety devices. These devices deploy at the end of injection and physically cover the needle, consequently preventing needle sticks and disease transmission due to these sticks. However, once the safety device is deployed, it is locked in place to prevent reuse.
To deliver needle stick protection, the patient or caregiver must use the safety device correctly; some level of training is required to obtain proficiency of use. Typically the drug contained within the syringe is expensive and therefore too costly to be used in a training environment. Placebo syringes are far cheaper, but still expensive; and they cannot be reused.
There is a need for a low cost, reusable safety syringe trainer that can be used as a teaching tool for the care giver and a practice tool for the patient.

Patient training device for use with a safety syringe injector


The present invention is directed to a thermally inhibited, subsequently enzymatically hydrolyzed, ungelatinized, granular starch or flour and the process of making such starch or flour. Such starch or flour is useful as an ingredient in food products, particularly fruit- or vegetable-based products.

The present invention relates to thermally-inhibited, enzymatically-treated starches and to a process for their preparation. Such starch products are useful in the preparation of food products, particularly fruit and vegetable based products.
Numerous starch products prepared using a variety of processes are known in the art. These include starches which are prepared by thermal inhibition or enzymatic treatment.
Thermally inhibited starches have been disclosed in the art. For example, European Patent Application Publication No. 0 721 471 discloses thermally inhibited starches and flours and No. 0 735 827 discloses their use in food products.
Enzymatic treatment of starches has also been disclosed in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 3,644,126 discloses a method of liquefying a starch slurry using .alpha.-amylase and then malt enzymes and glucoamylase to make a highly fermentable starch conversion syrup with a DE less than 35. U.S. Pat. No. 3,922,196 discloses solubilization of a granular starch to essentially dextrose using .alpha.-amylase. U.S. Pat. No. 5,445,950 discloses a method of using .alpha.-amylase to prepare slightly decomposed starch granules with a DE preferably between 0.1 and 1.0 to produce a material useful as a raw material in the sugar industry.
EP 182 296 discloses a granular .alpha.-amylase hydrolyzed starch for use as a dusting powder. EP 231 729 discloses a gelatinized starch hydrolysate useful as a sweetener in foods which is prepared using .alpha.- and .beta.-amylase in a two-step process. EP 704 169 discloses partially gelatinized starch which is hydrolyzed to a DE of preferably between 4 and 10 for use as a fat or oil substitute.
The use of glucose syrups in a variety of foods, including ketchup, jams, marmalades and fruit preparations, has been reported in Food Review, 19(6):33 (1993). Glucose syrups are purified, concentrated aqueous solutions of nutritive saccharides of DE 20 or more obtained by hydrolysis of edible starch. See Whistler et al., Starch Chemistry and Technology, 2.sup.nd Ed., Academic Press, Inc. Orlando, pp. 612 (1984). Further, glucose syrups known in the art do not add viscosity to food products. They are primarily added to provide or balance sweetness, as a bulking agent or filler, and to enhance Maillard browning.
Surprisingly, it has now been discovered that thermal inhibition followed by enzyme hydrolysis produces unique starches useful in food products, particularly vegetable- or fruit-based products.

Use of thermally-inhibited subsequently enzymatically-treated starches in food products

National Starch and Chemical Investment Holding Corporation


A valve assembly (6000) for use with a valve body (7000) having a valve seat (7112) is disclosed, the valve assembly (6000) comprising: a cartridge (6200) threadably engaged with and extending away from the valve body (7000); a poppet (6500) slidably engaged with the cartridge (6200); a plate (6600) engaged with the poppet (6500); a plunger (6400) slidably engaged with the cartridge (6200) and slidably extending through the plate (6600); and a retainer (6450) captured between the plate (6600) and a surface of the poppet (6500), wherein the retainer (6450) is threadably engaged with the plunger (6400). The valve assembly (6000) can regulate fluid flow.

Cryogenic cylinder control systems include several components welded to a cryogenic cylinder and used to regulate fluid in the cryogenic cylinder. A cryogenic cylinder generally houses liquid (such as liquid natural gas) along with gas in a head space above the liquid. A typical cryogenic cylinder control system includes various pressure relief devices (such as valves and/or burst discs) to release pressure in the head space when it exceeds a certain threshold. A typical cryogenic cylinder control system also includes a pressure-building circuit comprised of multiple valves and a vaporizer coil to convert some of the liquid within the cryogenic cylinder to gas and to introduce the gas into the head space within the cryogenic cylinder. A typical cryogenic cylinder control system also includes an economizer circuit including multiple valves used to dispense overpressure gas from the head space within the cryogenic cylinder to a user device.
Typical globe valves are used to convey and regulate the flow of fluid. A typical globe valve includes a valve body that defines an inlet in fluid communication with an outlet and a valve seat between the inlet and the outlet. A typical globe valve includes a hand wheel attached to one end of a valve stem and a seat disc connected to the other end of the valve stem. The valve stem is movable via rotation of the hand wheel between a closed position in which the seat disc sealingly engages the valve seat to prevent fluid from flowing from the inlet to the outlet and an open position in which the seat disc is disengaged from the valve seat to enable fluid to flow from the inlet to the outlet.
Typical solenoid valves are used to regulate the flow of fluid through a valve body. A typical solenoid valve is mounted to the valve body and includes an electromagnetic coil that is energizable to either open (in the case of a normally closed valve) or close (in the case of a normally open valve) the valve. This opening or closing either prevents or enables fluid flow past the solenoid valve, depending on the configuration.

Cryogenic cylinder control system, globe valve, and solenoid valve


A pad for a pedal such as a brake pedal on an automotive vehicle is formed of two components, namely a body of a moldable, relatively soft material, and an insert of a relatively hard material having raised lettering on one surface. The body is molded about the insert in a manner such that the insert is completely encased in the body except for the tips of the lettering which project through and are visible at the surface of the body. The body and insert are formed of compatible materials, preferably including polypropylene, causing them to adhere and bond to one another after being molded together.

Pads for levers such as brake pedals often carry indicia with operating instructions. For example, the parking brake pedal of an automobile may bear the lettering "PUSH TO RELEASE". Such lettering is typically applied to the brake pedal pad by a decal or sticker or by other similar techniques and wears off quite quickly.
In accordance with the present invention, the lettering is made of a relatively hard material and is imbedded and permanently anchored in a softer material. The softer material provides the proper feel and friction so that the operator's foot will not slip off the pad. The lettering projects through and is visible at the surface of the softer material.
One problem with this construction is that to successfully imbed the hard material in a softer material, the two materials must be compatible so that they adhere or cling together without the need of adhesives or primers. In the particular embodiment about to be described, the hard component is made of glass filled polypropylene, and the softer component is made of a compatible thermoplastic elastomer based on polypropylene. When the softer component is molded about the hard component under heat and pressure, a welding or bonding together of the compatible materials occurs, producing a virtually inseparable union of the two components.
Preferably the softer component or body of the brake pedal has a front face, and the hard component has a base which is completely imbedded in the body with lettering projecting from the base through the front face of the body. The base is mechanically locked in the softer material, as well as being, in effect, welded or bonded thereto.
It is an object of this invention to provide a pad for a brake pedal or the like which has the foregoing features.
Another object is to provide a pedal pad which is of a relatively simple and inexpensive construction, is rugged and durable in use, and is easy to manufacture.
Other objects, features and advantages will become more apparent as the following description proceeds, especially when considered with the accompanying drawings.


An apparatus and method for retrieving densely stored data from various types of magnetic media. A medium is scanned to provide an input signal. The input signal is conditioned through differentiation, equalization and partial integration. Positive and negative signal peak detectors are connected to the conditioned signal, and a threshold signal is generating corresponding to an average or midpoint of the measured positive and negative signal peaks. An output signal is generated by comparing the conditioned signal and the threshold signal. The DC component of the input signal is accounted for by feeding back the output signal and adjusting the threshold signal based on the duty cycle of the output signal.

Various types of recordable and/or erasable media have been used for many years for data storage purposes. Such media may include, for example, magnetic tapes or disks in systems having a variety of configurations.
Magneto-optical ("MO") systems exist for recording data on and retrieving data from a magnetic disk. The process of recording in a magneto-optical system typically involves use of a magnetic field to orient the polarity of a generalized area on the disk while a laser pulse heats a localized area, thereby fixing the polarity of the localized area. The localized area with fixed polarity is commonly called a pit or mark. Some encoding systems use the existence or absence of a pit or mark on the disk to define the recorded data as a "1" or "0", respectively.
When recording data, a binary input data sequence may be converted by digital modulation to a different binary sequence having more desirable properties. A modulator may, for example, convert m data bits to a code word with n modulation code bits (or "binits"). In most cases, there are more code bits than data bits--i.e., m <n.
Most if not all disk drive systems use run-length-limited ("RLL") modulation codes, such as RLL 2/7/1/2 or RLL 1/7/2/3 codes. Another family of modulation codes are group-coded recording ("GCR") codes, such as GCR 0/11/8/9 or GCR 0/3/8/9 codes (sometimes abbreviated as GCR 8/9). The numbers appended to the names of particular codes typically refer to certain encoding constraints, such the relationship between bits and flux reversals, or the minimum and maximum number of contiguous binits possible without flux transitions. For example, a commonly used encoding system for pit-type recording is the RLL 2/7/1/2 code which constrains the recorded information to have a minimum of two and a maximum of seven zeroes between ones. In general, RLL recording provides a relatively high data-to-pit ratio but may not, however, in many circumstances allow for high data storage densities because amplitude and timing margins deteriorate very rapidly as frequency is increased.
A GCR 0/3/8/9 code, on the other hand, not only requires nine flux reversals for every eight data bits but further requires a minimum of no zeroes and a maximum of three zeroes between ones.
The density ratio of a given recording system is often expressed according to the equation (m/n).times.(d+1), where m and n have the definitions provided above, and d is defined as the minimum number of zeroes occurring between ones. Thus, the RLL 2/7/1/2 code has, according to the above equation, a density ratio of 1.5, while the GCR 0/3/8/9 code has a density ratio of 0.89.
For reading data in an MO system, a focused laser beam or other optical device is typically directed at the recording surface of a rotating optical disk such that the laser beam can selectively access one of a plurality of tracks on the recorded surface. The rotation of the laser beam reflected from the recorded surface may be detected by means of Kerr rotation. A change in Kerr rotation of a first type, for example, represents a first binary value. A change in Kerr rotation of a second type represents a second binary value. An output signal is generated from the first and second binary values occurring at specified clock intervals.
Although there has been a continual demand for disk systems capable of storing increasingly higher data densities, the ability to achieve high data storage densities has met with several limitations. As a general matter, the reasonable upper limit for data density is determined in part by reliability requirements, the optical wavelength of the laser diode, the quality of the optical module, hardware cost, and operating speed. Maximum data densities are also affected by the ability to reject various forms of noise, interference, and distortion. For example, the denser that data is packed, the more intersymbol interference will prevent accurate recovery of data. Moreover, because the technology for many intermediate and high performance optical disk drives has been limited by downward compatibility constraints to older models, signal processing techniques have not advanced as rapidly as they might have otherwise.
When attempting to recover stored data, existing read channels of magneto-optical and other types of disk drives commonly suffer from a number of problems due to the unintended buildup of DC components in the read signal. One cause of DC buildup results from the recording of asymmetric data patterns over a number of bytes or data segments. A symmetric data pattern may be considered as one having an average DC component of zero over a region of interest. Because sequences of recorded bits may be essentially random in many modulation codes, however, localized regions of recorded data having particular patterns of 1's and 0's will produce an asymmetric read signal having unwanted DC components. Because the data patterns vary over time, the level of DC buildup will also vary, causing wander of the DC baseline, reduction of threshold detection margins, and greater susceptibility to noise and other interference.
Undesired DC buildup is also caused by variance in pit size due to thermal effects on the writing laser or the storage medium. As the writing laser heats up, for example, the spot size may increase leading to wider pits or marks. When the recorded pits are read, variations in pit size will cause an asymmetric input signal having DC components. Variation in pit size not only causes undesired DC buildup but also causes the relative locations of the data to appear shifted in time, reducing the timing margin and leading to possible reading errors.
Various attempts have been made to overcome the described problems. For example, various tape drive systems commonly use a DC-free code such as a 0/3/8/10 code, otherwise referred to simply as an 8/10 code. Because an 8/10 code requires 10 stored bits to yield 8 data bits, however, it is only 80% efficient which is a drawback when attempting to record high data densities.
Another method for handling DC buildup involves the use of double differentiation. This method typically involves detection of the peaks of a first derivative of the input signal by detecting zero-crossings of the second derivative of the input signal. Thus, the DC components are effectively filtered out. One drawback of this method is that differentiation or double differentiation can cause undesirable noise effects. A second drawback is that the method may decrease the timing margin to unacceptably low levels (e.g., by as much as 50 percent).
In another method for addressing DC buildup, the data to be stored is randomized prior to recording such that none of the data patterns repeat over a data sector. However, this method may not be acceptable by ISO standards and may lack downward compatibility with previous disk drive systems. As a further drawback to this method, de-randomizing the data may be complex.
Yet another method for controlling DC buildup involves the use of so-called resync bytes between data segments. This method generally involves the examination and manipulation of data before it is recorded in order to minimize DC buildup upon readback. Before recording, two consecutive data segments are examined to determine if the patterns of 1's and 0's are such as to cause positive DC, negative DC, or no DC components when read back. If, for example, two consecutive data segments have the same DC polarity, one of the data segments is inverted prior to being recorded on the medium. In order to stay within the constraints of the particular encoding system, however, a resync byte between the segments may need to be written so that the pattern of contiguous bits and flux reversals is proper. A drawback of such a method is that it will not necessarily reduce all DC buildup, and time constants must be determined such that the predictable DC buildup will not affect performance. Further, the method requires additional overhead including the examination of data segments to determine their relative polarity.
It would therefore be advantageous to have a method and device for reading stored data from a medium without suffering the undesirable effects of DC buildup, without creating unacceptable levels of noise or significantly reducing timing margins, without the requirement of large amounts of overhead or de-randomizing algorithms, while providing high data storage efficiency.

Data recovery with differentiation and partial integration stages to eliminate noises and DC offset level


An adjustable book holder that includes a stand support member; an angularly adjustable book support assembly pivotally mounted to the stand support member; an X-Y positionable, transparent copy arm slidably mounted on a vertically oriented track member that itself is slidable along a horizontal positioning rod; a locking mechanism between the transparent copy arm and the vertically oriented track member; a page holding mechanism including a pivot block in connection with the book support assembly and a page holder including first and second lengths of wire, each length of wire being pivotally connected to the pivot block and having a ball secured at a far end thereof; and a angular positioning assembly including an angular positioning rod affixed to a back surface of the book support assembly and a stand off member slidably mounted on the angular positioning rod and extending away from the angular positioning rod at a right angle.

Many individuals require or enjoy using a book support for holding a book or magazine while reading. It would be a benefit to have such a book holder that was simple to construct. Because many individuals enjoy reading while reclining in bed, it would be a further benefit if the book holder had a relatively flat support surface to allow the book holder to be placed on the user's stomach if desired. In addition, because momentary distractions can cause a reader to lose his/her place, it would also be a benefit if the book holder included a line pointing element that was lockable in position to maintain the line where reading is to resume. When such a line pointing element is provided, it would be an additional benefit if the line pointing element was transparent to allow a user to read text positioned beneath the line pointing element. Because it is more comfortable to read with the book, magazine or the like at an angle, it would be a further benefit to have a book holder that included a book support surface that could be a adjusted by the user to a desired angle. Also because it is easier to read pages that are held in a flat position, it would be a still further benefit to have a page holding mechanism that could maintain the pages of a book or magazine in a flat easily readable position.


A method and apparatus for inexpensively retrofitting existing cash register tills with an insert comprising a coin cup holder designed to fit into an existing bill slot for stabilizing coin cups. The coin cup holder allows the coin cup to rest evenly without rocking, and the coin cup can be removed from the till for ease of counting coins. A special coin cup is provided designed to rest in the coin cup holder and comprising a notch in one of the walls to allow it to pass the attachment points of a bill weight typically provided in existing cash tills to hold down bills in the bill slots.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cash register till design. More particularly, the invention relates to a method and apparatus for retrofitting existing cash tills to accommodate extra coin holders.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Currently, there is a large installed base of cash register tills that are typically designed to hold four or five different types of coins. The same tills also typically have a like number of currency slots for holding different denominations of bills. FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a typical prior art cash register till having five bill slots and five coin compartments. The U.S. Mint has decided to release a new one dollar coin and possibly new two and five dollar coins. This has created a need for retailers to be able to handle these new coin types efficiently. Absent some way to increase coin holders in existing cash register tills, merchants will have to either purchase new tills with additional coin compartments already present to accommodate the new coin types or decide not to hold some coin types in the cash register till.
Accordingly, there is a need for a new method and apparatus to inexpensively retrofit the large installed base of cash register tills to allow for efficient handling of additional coin types as they are placed into circulation.
The present invention solves the above-described problems and provides a distinct advance in the art of cash register till design. More particularly, the present invention provides a method and apparatus for inexpensively retrofitting existing cash register tills that provides inserts designed to fit into existing bill slots for stabilizing additional coin cup holders.
The apparatus of the present invention broadly includes an insert for holding coin cups in a cash till bill slot. A special coin cup is provided designed to rest in the coin cup holder and comprising a notch in its back wall to allow it to pass under the attachment points of a bill weight typically provided in existing cash tills to hold down bills in the bill slots. The coin cup holder allows the coin cup to rest evenly without rocking and can be removed from the till for ease of counting. The coin cup holder and coin cup may be made of any appropriate size to fit into various existing bill slots.
By constructing coin cup inserts and coin cups as described herein, numerous advantages are realized. For example, relatively inexpensive retrofits of existing cash tills are possible, substantially reducing the cost to merchants in accommodating new coin types as they are put into circulation by government authorities.
These and other important aspects of the present invention are described more fully in the detailed description below.

Added coin compartments for current cash tills