A GPS receiver architecture is disclosed having digital correlation processing in faster than real-time, which is achieved by storing signal samples into a memory in real-time at a first rate and reading packs of stored samples at a second higher rate. For mitigating cross-correlation interference from the strong signal to reception of weak ones, a group of compensator blocks is introduced. A method of interference waveform reproducing is disclosed that compensates influence of stronger signal over long coherent accumulation intervals, not complicating processing of the strong signal over shorter coherent accumulation intervals. Search bins corrupted by under-compensated interference are pre-calculated and discarded.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to navigation systems and more specifically to receiver digital processing methods and apparatus improvements in satellite navigation systems such as the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS), the Russian Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) and the European Galileo system. For the sake of simplicity, reference will be made below only to the GPS system. The invention is directly applicable to other satellite navigation systems such as GLONASS and Galileo.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional GPS receiver contains an antenna and an analogous front-end (AFE) followed by a digital section comprising, usually, dedicated signal processing circuitry and a digital CPU with related program and data memory and external data interface controllers. The antenna together with the analogous front-end intercept, select (band-pass filter), amplify GPS signals, convert them to a convenient intermediate frequency (IF) normally ranging from DC to several tens of MHz. To perform frequency conversion, the AFE utilizes a reference frequency from a stable reference oscillator. The AFE typically outputs digitized samples of a combination of signals and accompanying noise at IF. The frequency of sampling the AFE output is selected according to the Nyquist criterion, and for the clear/acquisition (C/A) GPS signal component is, at least about 2 MHz. A number of bits in digital AFE samples varies from one to three or four bits.
A digital section of an existing typical GPS receiver contains several correlator channels that perform correlation processing of several GPS satellite signals in parallel. GPS signals employ phase shift keying modulation with pseudo-random noise codes, see, for example, "Understanding GPS: Principles and Applications. Edited by Elliott D. Kaplan. Artech House, Boston, London, 1996, pp. 83-97". Received signals are characterized by a priori uncertainty of signal parameters: its code phase due to unknown (or not ideally known) time of the signal coming to the receiver, and its carrier frequency due to unknown (or not ideally known) Doppler shift and the reference oscillator frequency drift. Signal search in a GPS receiver, i.e. resolution of the above-mentioned uncertainty, requires time. Many applications of GPS need receivers that are capable of acquiring signals rapidly in difficult signal environments. For example, this can be reception of weak GPS signals indoors and in urban canyons. A short time to acquire these weak signals is important both from a direct viewpoint of a user requirement to get the first position fix as soon as possible, and from the viewpoint of supply energy reduction as a result of a short time-to-first-fix (TTFF).
The first, and straightforward, way to accelerate GPS signal processing in the receiver is to increase the number of parallel correlator channels. It is effective (until some practical limit), and it is quite a common practice in design of modern GPS receivers. Examples are: U.S. Pat. No. 5,901,171 to Kohli et al., or PCT Application No. 2000/65751 by Abraham et al., or almost every GPS receiver on the market. The number of parallel correlator channels reaches 12, 24, and sometimes more. Limits of employing this way of signal processing acceleration in GPS receivers arise due to a proportional growth of hardware complexity and consumed energy with the increase of the number of correlator channels.
Another effective way to accelerate signal processing in GPS receivers is to process signals at a faster-than-real-time rate. The fundamental patents teaching this method are: U.S. Pat. No. 5,420,593 to Niles, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,329,549 to Kawasaki. The essence of the method, according to both patents, is that digitized samples of a combination of signal and noise are written into a digital memory at a real-time rate, and then these samples are reproduced from the memory and processed in correlator channels at a significantly higher rate. As a result, a significantly larger amount of candidate signal replicas are tried in a unit of time thus accelerating the overall signal search process. Different receiver options implementing the method can be found, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,901,171 to Kohli et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,091,785 to Lennen, U.S. Pat. No. 6,044,105 to Gronemeyer, U.S. Pat. No. 6,118,808 to Tiemann, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,300,899 to King. The effect gained with the method is bound by the allowed rate of digital processing that reflects the existing technical level in microelectronics, and/or the acceptable power consumed by the digital processing hardware that is, normally, directly proportional to the processing rate.
The third way to accelerate signal processing in GPS receivers is to implement parallel (pseudo-parallel) spectral analysis of preliminary correlation processing results with the help of a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) or a Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) method.
Examples of the use of FFT for acquisition of GPS signals may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,934 to Jasper, and PCT Application No. 2001/86318 by Bryant et al., or U.S. Pat. Application No. 2002/0005802 by Bryant.
Examples of the use of DFT for acquisition of GPS signals may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,347,284 to Volpi et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,237 to Volpi et al., PCT Application No. 2002/23327 by Van Wechel, PCT Application No. 2002/23783 by van Wechel, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,327,473 to Soliman et al.
When receiving weak GPS signals, for example, in urban canyons, indoor or under trees, a common problem appears associated with the fact that the signals can arrive to the receiver having significantly different strength. The problem is known as cross-correlating interference from stronger signals to affect the processing of weak signals. GPS signaling (its civil C/A component) was designed to be safely processed only if signals from other satellites are not stronger than by about 23 dB, or even less, to have a margin. General measures to mitigate the effect of cross-correlation interference are known. For example, the U.S. Pat. No. 6,236,354 to Krasner describes three techniques to decrease the effect of cross-correlation.
The 1st technique makes use of the evaluated parameters of a strong signal acquired by the receiver, reproduces its waveform, appropriately scales it, and subtracts it from the signal combination at the input before any signal processing to remove the interference component from the input signal. Potentially, this 1st technique is the most effective among the described ones. But implementing this technique as it is described in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,236,354 to Krasner has several disadvantages. First, the compensation of a strong signal can not be full, as there are two contradicting tasks: to suppress the strong signal that interferes with the reception of weak signals, and, simultaneously, to proceed tracking for the strong signal to use it in a navigation solution and continue fine tuning to suppress it. Second, in trying to deeply suppress the strong signal, it is easy to overcompensate it so that the replica becomes stronger than the original signal. There is a serious risk that continued tracking follows the subtracted replica, not the signal. The technique is not robust enough and needs improvement.
The 2nd and the 3rd techniques of mitigating cross-correlation according to the U.S. Pat. No. 6,236,354 to Krasner make use of the evaluated parameters of a strong signal acquired by the receiver, predict the cross-correlating effect from the strong signal to the anticipated weak signal, and correct the correlations accumulated for this weak signal. The difference between the techniques is that the 2nd one comprises subtracting the predicted effect from the accumulations, and the 3rd one simply discards potentially injured accumulations. A disadvantage of the 2nd and the 3rd techniques is their high computational requirements to predict the cross-correlation for all possible combinations of signals' PRN codes, code phase differences, and Doppler frequency differences. Possible simplifications reduce the effectiveness of the techniques. Another disadvantage of the 3rd technique is that discarded accumulations may contain the desired signal correlations, and the probability of this occasion rises with the strength of the interfering signal or, equally, with a decrease of the weak signal power. The above-mentioned disadvantages of the 1st technique proscribe effectively combining the techniques, for example, the 1st and the 3rd ones, and thus do not allow relaxing requirements of the 3rd technique.

Method of weak signal acquisition and associated apparatus


A plurality of communication bursts are transmitted substantially simultaneously in a time slot of a time division duplex/code division multiple access communication system. The communication system has a maximum number of K midamble shifts. Each burst has an assigned midamble. Each midamble is a shifted version of a basic midamble code having a period of P. A combined signal is received. The combined signal includes a received version of each of the communication burst's midambles. A P by P square circulant matrix is constructed including the K midamble shifts. A channel response is determined for each of the K midamble shifts using a prime factor algorithm (PFA) discrete Fourier transform (DFT) algorithm, the received combined signal and the P by P square circulant matrix. The PFA DFT algorithm has a plurality of stages. Each stage has P inputs.

This invention generally relates to wireless code division multiple access communication systems. In particular, the invention relates to channel estimation in such systems.
In code division multiple access (CDMA) communication systems, multiple communications may be simultaneously sent over a shared frequency spectrum. Each communication is distinguished by the code used to transmit the communication.
In some CDMA communication systems to better utilize the shared spectrum, the spectrum is time divided into frames having a predetermined number of time slots, such as fifteen time slots. This type of system is referred to as a hybrid CDMA/time division multiple access (TDMA) communication system. One such system, which restricts uplink communications and downlink communications to particular time slots, is a time division duplex (TDD) communication system.
In a typical TDD/CDMA communication system, communication data is sent using communication bursts. FIG. 1 illustrates a communication burst. A communication burst 16 has a midamble 20, a guard period 18 and two data fields 22, 24. The data fields carry the data of the communication burst. The guard period 18 separates the communication bursts to allow for the difference in arrival times of bursts transmitted from different transmitters. The midamble 20 separates the two data fields 22, 24 and has a known training sequence used to estimate the channel that the communication burst experiences. Using the estimated channel response, data from the data fields is recovered at the receiver.
It is desirable to have efficient approaches to perform channel estimation.

Channel estimation in a wireless communication system


An epitaxial structure comprising a silicon containing substrate and a high T.sub.c copper-oxide-based superconducting layer, which may include an intermediate layer between the silicon substrate and the superconductor layer. Epitaxial deposition is accomplished by depositing a superconductor on a (001) surface of silicon in a manner in which the unit cell of the superconductor layer has two out of three of its crystallographic axes rotated 45 degrees with respect to the corresponding axes of the silicon unit cell, the remaining axis of the superconductor unit cell being normal to the Si (001) surface.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to epitaxy of high temperature superconductive materials on silicon, and more particularly to methods and structures wherein high temperature copper-oxide superconductors are epitaxially formed on a substrate including a (001) silicon surface.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Recently, the remarkable discovery by J. G. Bednorz and K. A. Mueller, reported in Z. Phys. B.-Condensed Matter 64, 189 (1986) and Europhysics letters, 3,379 (1987) completely changed the direction and importance of superconducting technology. Their discovery was that certain metallic oxides can exhibit superconducting transition temperatures considerably in excess of 23K. These materials are often termed "High T.sub.c Superconductors". Since the initial discoveries of Bednorz and Mueller, a vast amount of research and development has been undertaken around the world to further study these types of superconducting materials in order to extend even farther the temperature range over which the materials are superconducting, as well as to understand the basic mechanisms for superconductivity in this class of materials.
Bednorz and Mueller first showed superconducting behavior in mixed copper-oxides, typically including rare earth and/or rare earth-like elements and alkaline earth elements, for example La, Ba, Sr, . . . , and having a perovskite-like structure. Materials including the so called "1-2-3" phase in the Y-Ba-Cu-O system have been found to exhibit a superconducting transition temperature in excess of 77K.
R. B. Laibowitz and co-workers were the first to achieve and describe a method for making thin films of these materials. These thin film structures and methods for making them are described in co-pending application Ser. No. 436,851 filed Oct. 31, 1989 which is a divisional application of Ser. No. 356,565 filed May 22, 1989 also co-pending which is a continuation of Ser. No. 027584, filed Mar. 18, 1987 now abandoned and assigned to the present assignee. The work of Laibowitz et al. is also described in Phys. Rev. B, 35, 8821 (1987). In this technique, a vapor transport process is used in which the components of the superconducting film are vaporized and deposited on a substrate in an oxygen atmosphere, after which the deposited film is further annealed.
Another paper describing thin films of these high T.sub.c superconductors, and specifically high critical currents in these materials is P. Chaudhari et al, Phys. Rev. Lett., 58, 2684, June 1987. Chaudhari et al. described epitaxial high T.sub.c superconducting films formed on substrates such as SrTiO.sub.3, in which the critical current at 77K was in excess 10.sup.5 A/cm.sup.2.
Other references generally describing the deposition of films or layers of high T.sub.c superconducting materials include J. Cuomo, co-pending application Ser. No. 276,085 filed Nov. 23, 1988 which is a continuation of Ser. No. 043,523, filed Apr. 28, 1987, now abandoned and A. Gupta, co-pending application Ser. No. 121,982, filed Nov. 18, 1987 now abandoned, and also assigned to the present assignee. The first of these co-pending applications describes a plasma spray coating process while the second describes a method for coating a substrate, as by spraying from solution, and then patterning the coated film to eventually produce a patterned layer of high T.sub.c superconducting material.
Epitaxy of high T.sub.c superconducting films has been accomplished on several substrates, including SrTiO.sub.3. In particular, superconducting films capable of carrying high critical currents have been epitaxially deposited as noted in a paper by P. Chaudhari et al, published in Physical Review Letters, 58, 2684, June 1987. However, while the epitaxial films have been prepared on substrates having a close lattice match to that of the superconducting film, no one has provided successful epitaxy on a substrate, such as silicon, whose lattice does not match well to that of the high T.sub.c superconducting film. Further, because silicon based materials have been shown to react with high T.sub.c superconducting films in a manner to destroy the superconductivity of these films, the provision of an epitaxial film which retains its superconducting properties at high temperatures without also destroying the desirable properties of silicon, would be a significant accomplishment.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a method for epitaxially depositing high T.sub.c superconducting films on a substrate including silicon, and the film-substrate combination thereby produced.
It is another object of the present invention to provide epitaxy of high T.sub.c superconducting films on silicon in a manner in which the high temperature processing required to produce the superconducting properties in these films does not adversely affect the superconducting films and the silicon-including substrate.
It is another object of the present invention to provide epitaxy of high T.sub.c superconducting films on a substrate including silicon, where the film-substrate combination is tolerant of high temperature processing steps.
It is another object of the present invention to provide high T.sub.c superconducting films/silicon-based epitaxial combinations which can be produced by many procedures as long as proper crystallographic orientations are maintained between the substrate and the superconducting film.

Epitaxy of high T.sub.c superconducting films on (001) silicon surface

International Business Machines Corporation


A bearing assembly for supporting a shaft comprising a support cartridge, a seal and a spacer is provided. The seal may be a multi-component seal including an outer ring and an inner sleeve, which rotates with the shaft. The seal's outer ring may have a first inwardly projecting annular lip, a second inwardly projecting annular lip and an annular groove defined between the first lip and the second lip. The seal's inner sleeve may have a peripheral flange retained in the outer ring's annular groove. The spacer is adapted to axially locate the inner sleeve's flange. Particularly, the spacer is configured for locating the inner sleeve's flange in the groove of the outer ring so that the flange does not contact either the first lip or the second lip during operation. The spacer may axially locate the inner sleeve such that the inner sleeve's collar contacts an inwardly-extending sealing ring.

Bearing assemblies are well known and are commonly used to support shafts, axles and other rotating components that may be present in various types of industrial equipment, vehicles and other machinery. Such bearing assemblies often include seals to form barriers in order to preclude the entry of external contaminants into the bearings and also to preclude lubricants from escaping from within the bearings. These seals each typically include a flexible seal portion. In some cases, the seals include multiple components, wherein one or more of the components rotate with the shaft and other components remain static.
There are certain difficulties that must be addressed with seals that include both rotating and non-rotating components, as metal-on-metal contact between the components can lead to friction and wear. When this occurs, the seal may become damaged or destroyed resulting in a bearing failure. Unfortunately, the replacement of a damaged seal and/or bearing can be difficult, time-consuming and usually results in an extended period of down time during which the machinery is out of service.
Thus, a need exists for a bearing assembly in which rotating metallic components are not in contact with non-rotating metallic components of the assembly. A further need exists for a means for axially locating and retaining one or more of the components of a multi-component seal once the seal has been installed into the bearing assembly.

Bearing assembly with spacer for locating a seal sleeve


An object of the present invention is to provide a novel ascochlorin derivative which activates adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), and is useful in the treatment or prevention of diseases or conditions that involve AMPK dysregulation. The present invention provides a compound presented by formula I, a pharmaceutically acceptable salt or a solvate thereof.

The adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is an important regulatory protein for cellular energy balance and is considered as a master switch of glucose and lipid metabolisms in various organs, especially in skeletal muscle, liver and fat tissue.
AMPK is also known to have critical roles in regulating cell growth and autophagy through inhibition of m-TOR, as well as mitochondrial biogenesis [Physiological Rev. 2009, vol. 89, page 1025, Nature Reviews/Molecular Cell Biology, 2012, vol. 13 page 251, Nature Cell Biology, 2011, vol. 13 (9), 1016, Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 2013 vol. 366, page 152, J. Physiol., 2006, vol 574.1 page 33.].
When intracellular ATP levels becomes lower, AMP or ADP can directly bind to the γ regulatory subunit of AMPK, leading to a conformational change that promotes AMPK phosphorylation at Thr172 by LKB1 (known as a tumor suppressor) or CAMKK2 (Ca++ dependent kinase). Further, the conformational change also protects AMPK from dephosphorylation by protein phosphatases 2A and C so that AMPK remains activated.
The dysregulation of AMPK is considered as a pathogenic factor for the diseases such as cancer, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome-associated diseases (dyslipidemia, adiposity, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)), inflammation and Alzheimer disease, and thus AMPK is considered as a target for the prevention and therapy of these diseases [metabolic syndrome: Science in Medicine, 2013, Vol. 123 (7) page 2764, Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 2013, vol. 366 page 135; cancer and inflammation: Oncotarget, 2015, vol. 6 (10), page 7365; cardiovascular disease: Circ Res., 2009 vol. 104 (3), page 282; inflammation, Diabetologia, 2010 vol. 53, page 2406, Am. J. Respir. Cell Mol. Biol., 2010, vol 42, page 676; Alzheimer disease: J Alzheimers Dis. 2009, vol. 16(4) page 731].
Metformin is known as an antihyperglycemic agent to indirectly activate AMPK through inhibition of respiratory chain complex 1 [Clinical Science, 2012, vol. 122, page 253]. Metformin, however, is reported to activate AMPK in HepG2 cell only at surprisingly high concentration of mM level for in vitro cellular experiment.
5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide (AICAR) is known as an AMP mimic. AICAR directly activates AMPK through binding to a regulatory γ-subunit to promote phosphorylation of AMPK and to protect AMPK from dephosphorylation. A-769662 is reported to be a direct AMPK-activator with a different binding mode [Cell Metabolism, 2006, vol. 3, page 403]. There are other AMPK-activators reported in literatures, but none of them is clinically used up to now, partly because of the insufficient in vivo efficacy and/or safety profile.
Therefore, novel AMPK activators with good efficacy and safety profile would provide therapeutic benefits to the patients with diseases that involve AMPK dysregulations.
4-O-Methy-ascochlorin (MAC) is a derivative of a fungal metabolite of ascochrolin, which is reported to have ability for activating AMPK in HepG2 cells [Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 2011, vol. 406, page 353]. 4-O-Substituted ascochlorin derivatives including MAC are described as an antidiabetic agent in JP H06-305959 A (published in 1994), and prodrugs of MAC that are Schiff base derivatives formed with natural amino acids are described in WO2004/074236. However, the development of any ascochrolin derivatives has not become successful.

Ascochlorin derivative and use thereof as AMPK activator


A system and method for ensuring the execution of commands is visible throughout that system. A flush command is received and enqueued in a first queue together with a synchronization value enqueued in a second queue. The flush command is delayed from being dequeued from the first queue until both the flush command and the synchronization value are advanced to the head of their respective queues. Thereafter, the flush command is dequeued subsequently causing the return of a quad-word of random data as an acknowledge signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of data coherency. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system and method for ensuring that data coherency is maintained for transactions through an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) interface.
2. Art Related to the Invention
For a number of years, personal computers (PCs) have maintained system-wide data coherency in part through reliance on a particular memory access protocol adopted by conventional architectures of its bridge and input/output bus such as a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus. For example, a bridge (e.g., 82430FX.TM. produced by Intel Corporation of Santa Clara, Calif.) is a chipset which interconnects various devices such as a processor, main memory, and the PCI bus. This bridge is implemented with general mechanisms to guarantee data coherency by loading the contents of its internal buffers to main memory in response to various events. In addition, the PCI bus is a "connected transaction" bus because it follows a bus ownership protocol that ensures a pending transaction is completed before another transaction begins. These transactions may be issued from any agent capable of gaining ownership of the PCI bus, including a graphics subsystem having a graphics controller coupled to both the PCI bus and a limited amount of dedicated graphic controller (GC) memory.
The graphics subsystem is responsible for rendering perspective views of a scene for display. Normally, objects in a three-dimensional (3D) scene are represented as polygons having bitmaps applied to their surfaces. Such bitmaps are referred to as "texture maps" because they are used to give a sense of texture to these polygonal objects. Since each 3D scene has a substantially large number of different perspective views, it is impractical to store all of these perspective views. Instead, by applying texture maps to various polygons within the scene, reshaping the polygons and remapping the texture maps to the polygons as the perspective view of the viewer changes, it becomes possible to render perspective views of the 3D scene in real-time.
Usually, texture maps and other information utilized by the graphics controller are commonly stored in main memory due to cost constraints and the fact that the majority of application programs running on PCs do not require a large amount of dedicated GC memory. As a result, the processor normally is responsible for either transferring data between the graphics controller and main memory over the PCI bus or setting up a direct memory access (DMA) operations between the graphics controller and main memory via the PCI bus.
Recently, it has been discovered that the PCI bus is poorly-suited for supporting graphics operations. The reason is that rendering usually requires repeated access to small portions of a texture mapping. In contrast, PCI-based graphics controllers are currently performing multiple bulk data transfers in order to load an entire texture mapping into its GC memory, even though only a particular portion of the texture mapping is desired. Thus, overall system performance is greatly reduced. In addition, for dynamic image rendering, image quality is sacrificed because the amount of texture mapping that can be stored in GC memory is restricted.

Method and apparatus for implementing a flush command for an accelerated graphics port device


The present invention discloses air compressor equipment for vehicles and, more particularly, a sealant dispensing unit that can work under upright orientation as well as inverted orientation so as to repair and inflate a punctured tire. The sealant dispensing unit has a first hose connector and a second hose connector. In use, the sealant dispensing unit allows a user to select upright orientation or inverted orientation for an operation, whereby the hose connectors of the sealant dispensing unit may serve as a channel for receiving the high-pressure air or serve as a channel for delivering the chemical sealant. A professional can perform a box design in cooperation with the sealant dispensing unit easily.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to air compressor equipment for vehicles and, more especially, to air compressor equipment that can repair and inflate punctured tires of vehicles.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional sealant dispenser generally includes a cap, a bottle, and a tube. The bottle contains the chemical sealant that can be used to repair a tire. The cap is provided with two hose connectors, one of which is used for receiving the high-pressure air generated by an air compressor, and the other one of which is used for delivering the chemical sealant. The tube is fitted into the cap, so that when the cap is combined with the bottle, the tube will be inserted into the bottle.
Currently, among the existing equipment for repairing tires, some equipment uses a box, being furnished with an air compressor therein, and a separate sealant dispenser in cooperation with the box. If a tire required to be repaired, the user can connect a first hose, which is attached with an inlet of the sealant dispenser, to an air outlet of the box and can connect a second hose, which is attached with an outlet of the sealant dispenser, to an air nozzle of a punctured tire. After starting the air compressor of the box, the chemical sealant contained in the bottle of the dispenser can be delivered to the punctured tire for a repair. This kind of separate box design only allows the sealant dispenser to be installed in one orientation for an application; namely, the sealant dispenser can only work under upright orientation or it can only work under inverted orientation, but it cannot work under upright orientation as well as inverted orientation. The term "upright orientation" means that the bottom of the bottle of the sealant dispenser faces downwardly while the cap of the bottle of the sealant dispenser faces upwardly when operating the dispenser. The term "inverted orientation" means that the bottom of the bottle of the sealant dispenser faces upwardly while the cap of the bottle of sealant dispenser faces downwardly when operating the dispenser.
EP1605162A2 disclosed an invention, wherein the box and the sealant dispenser are separate. The bottom of the bottle of the sealant dispenser faces upwardly, and the sealant dispenser can only work under inverted orientation. Such design has some shortcomings. One shortcoming is that the sealant dispenser is attached with two hoses, which may cause inconvenience in storing the dispenser. Another shortcoming is that the two hoses are not easy to be distinguished by users for a correct connection. A further shortcoming is that the sealant dispenser is easy to tip over while in operation.
WO2004/039567A1 disclosed an invention, wherein the sealant dispenser is positioned at a box and operated under upright orientation, but it cannot work under inverted orientation.
WO2003/004328A1 disclosed a sealant dispenser, which can be operated under inverted orientation, but it cannot work under upright orientation.
WO2009/119317A1 and WO2005/084968A2 disclosed inventions, wherein the sealant dispenser is installed to a box and only works under inverted orientation.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,178,564B2 disclosed an invention relating to a sealant dispenser that only works under a specific orientation (for supplying the chemical sealant, but not for reclaiming the chemical sealant).
U.S. Pat. No. 7,021,348B2, US2008/0098855A1, and WO2003/041949A1 disclosed inventions, wherein the sealant dispenser is operated under horizontal orientation (the bottle and the cap are parallel to the ground surface).
In view of the prior-art technology, all the conventional sealant dispensers cannot work under upright orientation as well as inverted orientation. Besides, the hose connector receiving the high-pressure air and the hose connector delivering the chemical perform their default functions respectively. In other words, the hose connector, which receives the high-pressure air, cannot be used to deliver the chemical sealant. Similarly, the hose connector, which delivers the chemical sealant, cannot be used to receive the high-pressure air.
Accordingly, in view of the shortcomings and inconvenience of the prior-art technology and based on a deep thinking of the related technology, applicant has contrived a piece of air compressor equipment that has an improvement over the prior-art technology.


A certificate revocation list (CRL) deployment system loads a portion of test data that represents revoked certificates into a cache at periodic intervals and generates a CRL for a corresponding periodic interval using the test data that is loaded in the cache at that corresponding periodic interval. The CRL deployment system determines a CRL size that the server computing system is capable to support using the generated CRLs and notifies a user of the CRL size that the server computing system is capable to support.

A certificate system provides a security framework to ensure that network resources are accessed by authorized users. The certificate system is capable of generating digital certificates for different users to verify the identity of a presenter. The certificate system can include a Certificate Authority (CA) subsystem to issue and revoke certificates. Revoked certificates are certificates that are no longer valid and should no longer be relied upon. A certificate revocation list (CRL) is a list of the revoked certificates.
Prior to installation of the CA servers, a system administrator can determine the number of CA servers to deploy for a certificate system. Typically, a system administrator can estimate a relationship between the number of certificates issued by a CA server and the number of certificates that are revoked by the CA server. For example, a system administrator may estimate that a CA server may revoke ten percent of the issued certificates. A system administrator can use this relationship to determine the number of CA servers for deployment. For example, a system administrator may determine that the size of a CRL for a CA server is 2.5 million revoked certificates and thus, the CA server is capable of issuing up to 25 million certificates. If the system administrator needs to build a certificate system capable of issuing 100 million certificates, the system administrator can deploy four CA servers.
The generation of a CRL consumes much of a CA server's resources. Once a system administrator can confirm the size of a CRL for a CA server, the system administrator can have confidence that a CA server can issue and revoke certificates based on the size of the CRL. Therefore, a system administrator, typically, first determines the size of a CRL for a CA server. The system administrator can determine the size of a CRL for a CA server by manually simulating real world application of a CA server. For example, a system administrator can take up to one week to generate 50 million certificates on a CA server and attempt to generate a CRL. The generated CRL may include 3 million certificates. The system administrator can use the user-defined relationship, such as ten percent, to determine that this CA server, which can support a CRL of up to 3 million revoked certificates, can issue up to 30 million certificates. If the system administrator needs a configuration to support 100 million certificates, the system administrator can plan to deploy at least four CA servers. Planning for deployment, however, may be an arduous and time-consuming process. System administrators may not have the resources for such a manual deployment planning process.

Determining CRL size in view of system capability


In a biometric information registration phase, an authentication server previously obtains user information and biometric information, and registers them in a user information management part and a biometric information registration part. An authentication software transmission part associates the authentication software in an authentication software management part with the biometric information so that the software is uniquely specified, and sends it to a user terminal of interest. Thus, the user terminal, the authentication software, and the biometric information are uniquely associated with each other. In a user authentication phase, biometric information sent from the user terminal 3 using the authentication software is compared with the registered biometric information to conduct user authentication.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a user authentication system for authenticating a user by using biometric information, and in particular to a user authentication system that accepts only access from a user having an access right to the system to authenticate the user.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, due to the rapid proliferation of the Internet and mobile phones, there are increased chances that each terminal can utilize various services on a network. Some services provided on the network require user authentication. In the case of conducting electronic commercial transactions, checking the balance on an account, making a payment, etc., user authentication via the network is required. Most user terminals are equipped with microphones for a voice input, so that a user can be authenticated by using a voice. Furthermore, CCD cameras recently become standard equipment on user terminals due to a lowered price thereof. Therefore, a user can also be authenticated by using a face picture. Still furthermore, a user authentication system using other various kinds of biometric information is being developed.
In user authentication using biometric information, higher security is ensured compared with the case of using a personal identification number. However, conventional user authentication using a user terminal connected to an authentication server on the network has a problem of unauthorized access by "a person who pretends to be a user". For example, most user terminals are equipped with microphones that allow a voice input to be conducted, so that in the case of user authentication using a voice as biometric information, it is possible to access an authentication server through the network by using any user terminal equipped with a microphone and to try pretending to be a user by inputting a voice as biometric information. In this case, a certain level of security can be ensured since an input of a voice as biometric information is required. However, as described above, it is possible to try accessing a user authentication server from any terminal by using biometric information through the network.
Thus, in a user authentication system using biometric information, it is required to manage a user terminal that is permitted to access a user authentication system. It is also required to associate a user terminal, a user who is permitted to input biometric information from the user terminal, and the contents of the biometric information with each other.

User authentication system using biometric information


A hydration tank provided with an interior rotating vessel located between a stationary wall of the hydration tank and a stationary wall of a central inlet tube provided centrally within the tank. Liquid flows downward into the tank via a central inlet tube, then upward between the inlet tube and the rotating vessel, and then again downward between the rotating vessel and the tank wall to the exit. Horizontal vanes are provided on both the inside and outside of the rotating vessel that interleaf with horizontally extending stationary vanes provided on the wall of the tank and the central inlet tube. Together, the stationary and rotating vanes constantly mix the liquid in a direction that is normal to the direction of flow of the liquid without interfering with flow of the liquid through the tank.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a first in first out hydration tank that prevents liquid flowing through the tank from stagnating in certain areas of the tank, thereby facilitating flow that is truly first in first out through the tank.
2. Description of the Related Art
In gel mixing systems, it is desirable to have first in first out hydration tanks so that gel mixtures flowing through the tanks have consistent and predictable residence time within each tank. Even if a traditional hydration tank has a defined flow circuit provided through the tank, such as the three tanks taught in FIG. 2 of Applicant's U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/426,742, there can still be a problem when the fluid that is flowing through the tanks is a highly concentrated fracturing gel mixture.
The reason this is true is that fracturing gel made from guar is a non-Newtonian fluid. Newtonian fluids, such as water and oil, will flow whenever even a slight pressure is applied to the fluid. Non-Newtonian fluids, on the other hand, require that a certain threshold pressure be applied to them before they begin to flow. This is due to the yield point of the fluid. Thus, non-Newtonian fluids have a threshold pressure required to start them moving, and below which they may deform but will not move. This phenomenon is referred to as gel strength and is directly proportional to the force required to cause the fluid to start moving.
In the mixing system described in Applicant's U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/426,742, a concentrated gel is prepared that can have significantly higher viscosity and gel strength than that of the final product. The concentrate allows greater hydration time in limited tank volume but has the problem of higher viscosities and gel strengths in the mixing and the hydration tanks.
If the fluid is not managed properly, parts of the tank will become gelled and motionless and will be difficult to get moving again. When gelation occurs, the objective of first in first out flow is defeated because the gelled fluid will remain in one place and the newly mixed fluids that enter the tank will bypass the gelled fluid. Thus, the tank is functionally smaller than its actual size since part of the fluid in the tank is not moving.
The present invention addresses this problem by stirring the fluid as it passes through the hydration tank, thereby preventing dead spots within the tank. By providing mixing that is normal to the nominal direction of flow, i.e. not forward or backward relative to the direction of flow through the tank and providing shear within virtually all of the volume, the mixing prevents the occurrence of dead spots or channeling within the flow path, while not moving some of the liquid towards the discharge port faster than other parts of the fluid volume, thereby insuring that all the fluid ends up with exactly the same residence time in the tank. By employing mixing that is normal to the flow of the liquid through the tank, all of the fluid flow paths through the tank move at a uniform velocity.
While the fluid is moving though the hydration tank, it is continuing to hydrate and thus continuingly increasing in viscosity. If the fluid does not keep moving uniformly through the hydration tank, it is possible that some parts of the fluid in the tank would develop greater viscosity due to slower velocity through the tank and therefore greater residence time. The slower moving volume within the tank will continue to develop higher viscosities which in turn tends to further slow its movement until eventually it could stop moving and become gelled. Once gelled, a much greater force is required to get the gel started moving again.
The present invention keeps all of the fluid moving at a uniform velocity so that there will not be areas with higher or lower viscosity at the same position within the flow path. Although viscosity will increase due to hydration from the entrance of the present tank to the exit, all fluid that is at the same position relative to the entrance and exit of the tank should have the same viscosity.
Still a further object of the present invention is an output from the tank that is uniform in its level of hydration. That is possible only if all of the liquid moves through the tank at the same velocity.


The present invention relates to a process for preparing poly(ethylene-2,6-naphthalene dicarboxylate) polymers wherein a low concentrations of an alkali metal salt is present. More specifically, 15 ppm to 100 ppm of an alkali metal derived from an alkali metal salt is added in the melt polymerization reaction mixture during formation of such polymers. The polymers are useful in applications where improved hydrolytic stability at elevated temperatures and high humidity (>50% relative humidity) are required.

It is well known that when polyesters are exposed to high temperatures, as they often must be during processing and application from the molten state, they tend to degrade with detrimental loss of physical and chemical properties such as a decrease in molecular weight and discoloration. This condition often results in inferior products at best, or worse, it renders these polyesters useless in the intended application. Therefore, it would be desirable to have polyester compositions with improved high temperature and high humidity stability.
Organic salts of alkali metals have been combined with polyethylene terephthalate type polyesters. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,017,680 and 3,962,189 disclose catalyst-inhibitor systems for preparing polyethylene terephthalate with a fast reaction rate and good color. U.S. Pat. No. 5,106,944 discloses a catalyst inhibitor system for preparing poly(1,4-cyclohexenedimethylene terephthalate) with a fast reaction rate and good color. The catalyst inhibitor system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,017,680 contains organic salts of alkali metals along with a complex of titanium alkoxide. The catalyst inhibitor system of U.S. Pat. No. 3,962,189 contains organic salts of alkali metals along with manganese, zinc or calcium, antimony, cobalt, phosphorous, and titanium. The catalyst inhibitor system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,106,944 contains organic salts of alkali metals along with a complex of titanium alkoxide. The patents do not include poly(ethylene-2,6-naphthalene dicarboxylate), and do not address hydrolytic stability.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,357,461 discloses a process for preparing a heat stable polyester resin wherein an alkali metal salt of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) is present in the melt polymerization reaction mixture. The patent does not include poly(ethylene-2,6-naphthalene dicarboxylate), and is chiefly concerned with reducing the acetaldehyde generation rate.
In contrast, the present inventors have unexpectedly determined that the hydrolytic stability of poly(ethylene-2,6-naphthalene dicarboxylate), referred to as PEN, particularly at high humidity (>50% relative humidity) and elevated temperatures (>23.degree. C.), can be significantly enhanced by the addition of 15 ppm to 100 ppm of an alkali metal derived from an alkali metal salt to the melt polymerization reaction mixture.

Process for preparing hydrolytically stable poly (ethylene-2,6-naphthalene dicarboxylate) polymers


Various embodiments are generally directed to techniques for reducing syntax requirements in application code to cause concurrent execution of multiple iterations of at least a portion of a loop thereof to reduce overall execution time in solving a large scale problem. At least one non-transitory machine-readable storage medium includes instructions that when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to parse an application code to identify a loop instruction indicative of an instruction block that includes instructions that define a loop of which multiple iterations are capable of concurrent execution, the instructions including at least one call instruction to an executable routine capable of concurrent execution; and insert at least one coordinating instruction into an instruction sub-block of the instruction block to cause sequential execution of instructions of the instruction sub-block across the multiple iterations based on identification of the loop instruction. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

It has become commonplace to solve large scale problems in such areas as optimization and simulation through concurrent execution of numerous iterations of a routine in which a calculation and/or search process is performed (sometimes referred to as concurrent routines or "coroutines"). In each such iteration, the same calculation or search process is performed with a different version of inputs than the others such that a concurrent "trial and error" process on a large scale is performed. Execution of such iterations may continue until either an entire predetermined range of versions of inputs has been tried or at least one of the versions of inputs has begotten a result fitting predetermined criteria.

Automated cooperative concurrency with minimal syntax


A motor control amplifier for position feedback control is provided utilizing the inherent inductor and/or resistor dynamics of the motor. The motor control amplifier applies a voltage to the motor equivalent to the electrical motor resistance multiplied by the current of the motor, canceling out the electrical motor resistance, and thereby providing position feedback control through motor inductance. A command term/voltage could be added to make the position feedback control relative to a setpoint. Further, a motor control amplifier for feedback control to arbitrary dynamics is provided. The motor amplifier applies a voltage proportional to a wave command signal. The motor amplifier has a sensing component to provide a wave return signal to construct a wave transformer from the electrical motor resistance.

Haptics, robotics, telerobotics and more generally motion control rely on high stiffness position control of electric motors. Traditionally, DC-motors are driven by current amplifiers designed to hide their electrical dynamics. Meanwhile encoder-based position feedback creates virtual springs. Unfortunately, this cancellation-replacement approach experiences performance limits due to sensor quantization, discretization, and amplifier bandwidths. The present invention advances the art with an alternate approach, noting that the inherent inductor-resistor dynamics of the motor can be beneficial to motor control in general and specifically haptic, robotic, and telerobotic tasks.

The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University


The present invention relates to systems, methods, and user interfaces for browsing a collection of content items saved by a user or by one or more buddies associated with a given user. The method of the present invention comprises saving one or more content items and one or more associated keywords as specified by a user. An interface is generated that displays the one or more saved content items and the one or more associated keywords, as well as the one or more buddies associated with a given user. A user indication of the selection of a given keyword or the selection of a given buddy by the user is received. The one or more displayed content items are filtered according to the selected keyword, buddy, or combination of selected keyword and buddy.

Users of computer systems interact with and collect content items in a wide variety of contexts. For example, users of the World Wide Web can view and save pages or documents of interest as bookmarks or in a personal library of content (e.g., using the "My Web" feature provided to registered users by Yahoo! Inc., assignee of the present application). Users may also collect digital photographs, MP3 files, digital video, or other media content items that might be created by the user or copied from a variety of other sources. Similarly, users may belong to one or more social networks or may interact with applications, such as instant messaging applications, with which one or more friends or "buddies" of a given user may be designated.
As users amass large collections of content, it becomes increasingly difficult for them to find a particular item in the collection. Therefore, most computer systems and programs that allow users to save content items also provide mechanisms for the user to organize such content items. Frequently, this mechanism is a folder or directory structure that allows users to classify content. Typically, hierarchical organization is supported. Thus, for instance, a user can have a "Travel" folder and separate subfolders for different destinations, e.g., "Travel/US," "Travel/Europe," etc. Further subfolders can be created within the folders, for example, "Travel/Europe/Spain," "Travel/Europe/Germany," etc. By placing content items into folders, a user can group related items together.
A user can find items in folders by browsing the folder hierarchy. Numerous user interfaces exist for folder-based browsing. Typically, the interface displays the content of a current folder, including subfolders and content items therein. The user can then navigate to a subfolder or open a content item. The interface usually also provides "Up" and/or "Back" controls, allowing a user to backtrack up the folder hierarchy.
Folders, however, are not an ideal organization for all forms of content as a single content item may fit into multiple categories. For example, if a user has a photograph of herself with a movie star in front of the Eiffel Tower that was taken on a trip to Paris, the user may want to be able to file the photo under the movie star's name and also under "Paris" or "Vacation" or some similar heading. To file the photograph in more than one location, the user would need to make one or more copies of the photograph or use a storage system that allows a content item to be linked to multiple folders.
Instead of utilizing folders, a more flexible organization can be provided by allowing the user to "tag" content items with one or more "keywords" (also referred to in the art as "tags"). A user may perform searches for content items using the one or more keywords associated with the content items. For example, the abovementioned photograph may be associated with the keywords "Paris," "Eiffel Tower," "Vacation," etc. However, while the organization of content items using keywords may allow a user to perform searches for a particular item of content, existing interfaces for performing such searches require a user to remember which keywords were assigned to each respective content item in order to perform a search that results in the retrieval of one or more content items. Additionally, current techniques for storing content items with associated keywords utilize a partially redundant folder structure to enable navigation and browsing.
Therefore, in order to overcome shortcomings with existing techniques for storing and searching among content items, as well as displaying content items to one or more users, embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for generating an interface that facilitates browsing saved content items that are associated with one or more user generated keywords.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

User interface for navigating a keyword space


An electronic component includes a circuit board that includes a ground terminal connected to a ground potential, a coil component that is assembled on the circuit board, the coil component includes a T-shaped core and an air-core coil, a ground connection electrode that is assembled on the circuit board next to the coil component and that is connected to the ground terminal, and a mixture of a metal composite magnetic material and a resin that is formed on the circuit board and that covers the coil component and the ground connection electrode as a package. A part of the ground connection electrode is exposed outside the mixture.

The present disclosure relates to an electronic component with a coil, a method for manufacturing the electronic component, and a power supply module. Specifically, the electronic component and the power supply module may have a coil component, such as an inductor element, surrounded by a metal composite magnetic material.
In the field of electronic components, it is well known to manufacture a coil component having a dust core (an air-coil core) by a press machine. According to this method, the press machine presses a mixture of magnetic powder and resin to seal a coil therewithin. This produces what is commonly referred to as a sealed coil-type magnetic component. Japanese Patent Publication Number JP 2007-81306 discloses a sealed coil-type magnetic component. The sealed coil-type magnetic component is configured with an air-core coil and a magnetic body. The magnetic body is made of a magnetic powder and resin mixture which seals the air-core coil. After the mixture is put in a metal mold of a press machine, the air-core coil is placed on the mixture. Thereafter, additional mixture is added over the air-core coil until the metal mold is filled. Next, upper and lower punches of the press machine press the mixture in the metal mold with a pressure of 3-5 ton/cm2.
Unfortunately, because the sealed coil-type magnetic component is formed under high pressure, the air-core coil may be deformed or broken. As such, the manufacturing yield decreases.
In the field of electronic components, it is also well known to manufacture a power supply module by injecting a thermoplastic resin. Such a power supply module is often configured with passive components such as a coil, a resistor and a capacitor, and an IC that are assembled on a circuit board. Japanese Utility Model Publication Number JPU H05-38994 discloses a method of manufacturing one such power supply module. According to the disclosed method, after an electronic component is assembled on a metal board, thermoplastic resin is injected on and around the electronic component. Then, the thermoplastic resin is hardened. However, because the magnetic permeability of the thermoplastic resin is quite low, an electromagnetic wave generated at the electric component (i.e., the coil) is transferred to other areas inside the power supply device but outside the power supply module. Therefore, electromagnetic interference may occur.

Electronic component with coil, method for manufacturing the same and power supply module


A lane departure detection/avoidance and data fusion system adapted for use with a vehicle and by an operator, includes at least one lane-marking sensor, at least one condition sensor, and a controller communicatively coupled to the sensors, and configured to determine a condition deviation, and compare the condition deviation to a pre-determined condition threshold, so as to improve system identification of operator engagement, lane departure detection upon curves, and detection of performance degradation.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to lane departure warning and avoidance systems, and, more particularly, to a lane departure warning and avoidance system configured to automatically reduce or suppress the warning threshold, or otherwise modify the warning algorithm, at predefined conditions.
2. Background Art
Lane departure warning and avoidance (LDW) systems have been developed to aid the orderly navigation of thoroughfares by vehicle operators. More particularly, safety systems assist operators in maintaining proper lane alignment by alerting the operator to a possible un-intentional lane departure. Unlike, scarifications commonly found on thoroughfare shoulders that alert the operator of an at least partially completed lane departure, LDW systems provide timely warnings prior to lane departure. These LDW systems typically utilize at least one camera/image processor or other type of sensor (e.g., IR) to detect the lane markings that delineate the lane boundaries. Other lateral support systems, such as lane keeping (LK) systems, have similarly been developed.
One of the factors used for robust lane marking identification is the preview length of the lane markings ahead of the vehicle. Due to the curvature of some thoroughfare curves, however, the cameras of these systems are often unable to view the approaching lane marking for a sufficient period (mainly due to limited camera field of view (FOV)). Thus, the lane sensing capability of these conventional systems deteriorate directly proportional to the radius of curvature. As a result, the LDW system may have difficulties in providing timely warnings on sharp curves, especially at high speeds.
Of further concern, these conventional systems do not provide means for detecting purposeful lane departures, and therefore, often result in false or annoyance alarms that may distract the operator during an intricate maneuver. In other words, these systems are unable to discern whether the operator is currently in control of the vehicle, and intends to leave the lane. Finally, these systems also do not provide for calibration means, or performance measuring. As such, these systems may further provide false (annoyance) alarms and missed detections due to the natural performance degradation of the image processor and/or camera.

Lane departure warning and avoidance system with warning modification criteria


An instrument for retrograde cutting of sockets or tunnels in bone for arthroscopic tenodesis. A retrograde cutter is used to form a recipient site socket from the inside out, i.e., using a retrograde technique, with minimal incisions of distal cortices and reduced intraarticular bone fragmentation of tunnel rims. The retrograde cutter is provided with a cutting blade that is configured to engage the shaft of the instrument and to lock onto the shaft.

During arthroscopic surgery, a small incision is made in the skin covering the arthroscopic site or joint so that surgical instruments may be placed in the joint and manipulated through arthroscopic visualization. As only a very small incision is made during arthroscopic surgery, it is often difficult to handle instruments within the joint capsule, where visibility and access to the structures of the joint capsule is minimal. It is also difficult to manipulate instruments during the formation of a recipient site socket (for example, a femoral or tibial tunnel) during reconstructive surgery, with minimal bone loss and reduced intraarticular bone fragmentation of tunnel rims.
Accordingly, a need exists for a surgical cutting instrument that is configured to allow improved handling of the instrument within a joint capsule, for example the knee capsule, during ACL reconstruction. A need also exists for a surgical cutter that is stable during knee arthroscopy and that provides drilling of femoral and tibial sockets or tunnels independently of one another and minimizes incisions of distal cortices and reduces intraarticular bone fragmentation of tunnel rims. Instruments and methods for creating a recipient site socket from the inside out, i.e., using a retrograde technique is also needed, as well as a technique for inserting a replacement osteochondral core or implant in recipient sockets formed in a retrograde manner.


Provided is an organic EL element, wherein the thickness of the organic EL element can be made small and the width of a seal can be made narrower, and change in light-emitting quality over time can be inhibited. The organic EL element (1) is configured to be provided with: a second electrode (13) provided so as to cover an organic compound layer (12); an inorganic insulation film (15) formed within a prescribed area within a non light-emitting area of a first electrode (11), and formed between the first electrode (11) and the second electrode (13); an inorganic film (14) provided so as to cover the second electrode (13); a sealing resin layer (3) provided so as to cover the inorganic film (14); and a sealing base material (4) provided upon the sealing resin layer (3).

In recent years, an organic electroluminescent element (hereinafter, referred to as an organic EL element) using an organic material has been regarded as promising, for example, in applications such as an inexpensive large-area full-color display device of a solid-state light-emitting type and a light-emitting element of a writing light source array, and the research and development of organic EL elements have been actively promoted.
The organic EL element is, generally, a thin film-type element that is provided with a substrate, a first electrode, an organic compound layer including a light-emitting layer, and a second electrode, and is a thin film-type element in which the first electrode, the organic compound layer and the second electrode are formed on the substrate in this order. Meanwhile, one of the first electrode and the second electrode constitutes an anode and the other constitutes a cathode. In addition, the light-emitting layer is constituted of one or a plurality of organic layers containing an organic light-emitting material.
In the organic EL element having such a configuration, when a voltage is applied between the first electrode and the second electrode, holes are injected into the light-emitting layer from one electrode (anode) and electrons are injected into the light-emitting layer from the other electrode (cathode). Then, the hole and the electron injected in the light-emitting layer recombine in the light-emitting layer, and thus the energy level of the organic light-emitting material returns from the conduction band to the valence band. The energy generated at this time is released as light from the light-emitting layer.
In the organic EL element that emits light based on the above-mentioned principle, a non light-emitting point called a dark spot expands over time in the light-emitting surface. The expansion phenomenon of the dark spot is generated due to the deterioration of the electrode, organic layer (light-emitting layer) or the like of the organic EL element, by permeation of oxygen or water vapor from the outside. Therefore, in order to prevent such permeation of oxygen or water vapor into the organic EL element, conventionally, various sealing technologies of the organic EL element are proposed (for example, see Patent Literatures 1 and 2).
In Patent Literature 1, a technique of providing a sealing film on an element substrate of an organic EL element is proposed. Furthermore, in Patent Literature 2, a technique of forming an inorganic sealing film on an element substrate of an organic EL element, and furthermore, sticking a sealing member on the inorganic sealing film via a sealing member is proposed.

Organic electroluminescent element and planar light-emitting unit


A silver halide photographic material is described having a hydrophobic polymer layer which is not substantially swollen with processing solutions on one surface of a support and having at least one light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer on the other surface of the support, and the material has a hydrophilic colloid layer containing a dispersion of fine solid grains of a dye having an absorption peak wavelength of from 600 nm to 1200 nm between the support and the emulsion layer. The material is exposed with a near infrared ray. The drying property of the processed material is improved, and the material is hardly curled during storage under varying conditions.

Recently, in processing a silver halide photographic material, shortening of the development time has been needed.
In order to satisfy for shortening the development time, a means of improving the drying property of a silver halide photographic material with shortened drying time is effective.
As a means of improving the drying property, a method of reducing the amount of the binder in a silver halide photographic material is known, but the method involves various problems of lowering the mechanical strength of the material, blackening the scratches formed in the material, and generating roller marks in the material.
Blackening the scratches formed in the material results from a phenomenon such that the scratches as formed on the surface of the material in handling it before development are blackened to black scratches after development. Roller marks are black spots caused by fine bumps on the surfaces of the rollers of an automatic developing machine while a silver halide photographic material is processed with the machine under pressure of the rollers.
The black scratches and roller marks both noticeably lower the commercial value of a silver halide photographic material.
As another means of improving the drying property of a silver halide photographic material, a method of increasing the amount of the hardening agent to be added to the material is also effective.
In accordance with this method, swelling of the material during development is reduced so that the drying property of the material is improved.
However, this method involves various problems of lowering the sensitivity of the material due to retardation of development, lowering the covering power of the material, and increasing the residual silver and residual color in the processed material due to retardation of fixation. Therefore, sufficient improvement of the drying property could not be attained by this method.
For a silver halide photographic material having a silver halide emulsion layer on one surface of a support (hereinafter referred to as a "one-surface-coated photographic material"), removal of the non-light-sensitive hydrophilic colloid layer from the back surface of the material or replacement of the binder in the non-light-sensitive layer on the back surface of the same by a hydrophobic binder is effective for improving the drying property of the material.
However, the non-light-sensitive layer on the back surface generally contains an anti-halation dye, which is decolored or dissolved out into a processing solution by development so that the dye does not remain in the processed material. If a hydrophobic binder is in the layer, such decoloration or dissolution of the dye is impossible.
In particular, recently in the field of photomechanical printing materials and photographic materials for medical use, image processing appliances operating on laser rays have been developed, and materials are needed to satisfy both rapid processability and high image quality.
Provision of an anti-halation dye layer between the support and the silver halide emulsion layer in a silver halide photographic material has heretofore been known, and dyes which have effective light absorbability of laser rays, which may be fixed in an anti-halation layer and which may be decolored by development have been desired.
Provision of a hydrophobic binder layer on the back surface of a silver halide photographic material defectively enlarges the curling property of the material, and provision of an anti-halation layer to the same further enlarges it. Therefore, development of an effective halation-preventing technique without enlarging the curling property has been desired.


A method is provided in one example embodiment and includes establishing a control channel between a first entity associated with an access network and a second entity associated with a core network. The control channel is associated with a session identifier identifying a user session. The method further includes receiving policy information associated with the user session from the second entity using the first control channel. The policy information is indicative of one or more policies to be applied in the access network to user data associated with the user session.

Today, a mobile user's data session is anchored on a mobile gateway such as a (GGSN, PGW) working as part of a mobile packet core. Anchoring the mobile data session on the mobile gateway includes anchoring both control and data traffic flows between the user's device and the mobile gateway. Control traffic is exchanged between the user's device and the gateway, and then terminated on the gateway. In an uplink direction, the data traffic is decapsulated from a mobile encapsulation protocol and presented on a Gi interface as Internet Protocol (IP) packets. The data traffic is then often sent either to a service provider private network to deliver services or service provider private content, or is sent to the Internet for content delivery. The mobile gateway terminates tunnel encapsulation specific to the mobile network and presents IP traffic on its Internet facing interface. The mobile gateway is also responsible to applying various services to the data stream based on a user profile. Examples of such services include quality of service (QoS), deep packet inspection, traffic management, lawful intercept, http header enrichment as well as billing the data stream sent to and/or from the user. These services are applied in the mobile packet core, and mobile operators typically have a complete infrastructure to provide these services to the mobile user based on his or her profile. All of the data traffic between the user equipment and its termination point in both the uplink and downlink directions passes via the mobile gateway.
In selected scenarios it is desirable to it terminate the mobile data path locally in the radio access network (RAN) or the transport. This is called the local termination point. A goal of the local data path termination is the need to serve local content or to apply localized services which in turn leads to greater network efficiency and better user experience. However the local termination needs to be very selective and it should be based on the user profile and other criteria only known to the core network. The set of criteria whether to terminate the data plane locally will depend on the user's subscription services, his service plan, billing status and other factors that are only known in the packet core. Therefore the decision to locally terminate the data path cannot be made at the potential local termination point because the local termination point is unable to make unilateral decision linked to the user's profile.
Furthermore, for the locally serviced traffic it is essential that the mobile packet core functions such as billing are still applied to the locally terminated traffic. Typical 3GPP network mechanism do not allow for this selective data path handling while still supporting mobile packet core services. The localized data path handling is required in the environments where there are suitable resources in the RAN to allow to localized content and service delivery. It remains a challenge to implement a solution to the problem in a practical and efficient manner so that the existing mobile packet core deployments are not disrupted.

Localizing a mobile data path in a radio access network under control of a mobile packet core in a network environment


Methods and compositions for determining the tumor suppressor status of cells are described, preferably as pertaining to the p53 status of tumor cells, and preferably in vivo using a recombinant construct consisting of a first polynucleotide sequence that encodes a reporter molecule and a second p53 binding polynucleotide sequence that is operably linked to the first polynucleotide sequence such that binding of p53 to the second polynucleotide sequence causes the expression of the reporter molecule which can be detected or quantified.

It has been known for some time that a variety of cancers are caused, at least in part, by mutations to certain normal genes, termed "proto-oncogenes." Proto-oncogenes are involved in regulating normal cell growth in ways that are only now beginning to be appreciated at the molecular level. The mutated proto-oncogenes, or cancer causing genes termed "oncogenes," disrupt normal cell growth which ultimately causes the death of the organism, if the cancer is not detected and treated in time.
During normal or cancer cell growth, proto-oncogenes or oncogenes, are counterbalanced by growth-regulating proteins which regulate or try to regulate the growth of normal or cancer cells, respectively. Such proteins are termed "tumor suppressor proteins." A number of such proteins are known.
A gene that encodes a tumor suppressor protein termed p53 is frequently mutated in a number of human cancers, and the inactivation of p53 is thought to be responsible for the genesis or progression of certain cancers (Nigro et al., 1989, Nature 342:705-708), including human colorectal carcinoma (Baker et al., 1989, Science 244:217-221), human lung cancer (Takahashi et al., 1989, Science 246:491-494; Iggo et al., 1990, Lancet 335:675-679), chronic myelogenous leukemia (Kelman et al., 1989, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 86:6783-6787) and osteogenic sarcomas (Madsuda et al., 1987, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 84:7716-7719). Tumor cells that exhibit p53 are more sensitive to radiation treatment than tumor cells that have little or no p53. Thus, knowledge of the p53 status of tumors has significant practical applications for aiding a physician in the selection of the most appropriate treatment modality.
Despite the strong experimental evidence supporting a role for p53 in tumorigenesis, there are currently only a few methods available for determining the presence of wild type or mutant p53 protein in mammalian cells. One widely used method involves time consuming DNA sequencing of the p53 gene itself. A limitation of this approach is that the presence of a normal p53 DNA sequence is not always an accurate predictor of the presence of functional p53 protein in the cells assayed since p53 function can be masked by binding of p53 protein to endogenous cellular or viral proteins (Momand, J. et al. (1992) Cell, 69:1237-1245; Oliner, J. D. et al. (1992) Nature, 358:80-83). Furthermore, this approach is both expensive to perform and time-consuming.
Another method used for determining the presence of wild type or mutant p53 involves the use of antibodies capable of distinguishing between these two forms of p53. However, this approach also has several limitations. Firstly, many of the mutations which arise in the p53 protein are point mutations and not all such mutations can be distinguished by a limited number of antibodies. Secondly, since p53 is the most commonly mutated protein identified in human cancers, the number of antibodies necessary to detect all of the different mutant forms of p53 may be quite high; this method would be impractical and costly. Thirdly, by its very nature the use of p53 antibodies, similar to the DNA sequencing method described above, is performed on cell lysates. It is not applicable to living cells.
Other methods for determining p53 in cells are shown in the following patent applications. EPA 518 650, inventor Vogelstein, B. et al., describes a method for detecting p53 in cellular extracts using DNA sequences that are specific for p53 binding.
WO 94/11533 describes determining the presence of functional p53 in cells by measuring mRNA or protein encoded by a gene termed GADD45, which is an acronym for growth-arrest and DNA-damage inducible gene.
It is important to note that all presently used p53 assays require several days to complete and cannot be performed in vivo. That is, they cannot be performed without surgically biopsing, and lysing the tumor cells.
Considering the importance that tumor suppressor proteins play in regulating cell growth, and those studies that have shown that their absence is involved in establishing the malignant phenotype, methods have been developed to replace tumor suppressors in cancer cells that lack them. The most studied method centers on the delivery of the appropriate tumor suppressor gene to cancer cells using a viral vector. Perhaps the most studied vector is adenovirus. Partly because of this work, a considerable amount of information exists regarding the genetic properties of adenovirus, and how to construct recombinant forms of the virus. See, for example, Horwitz, M. S. Adenoviridae and their Replication, In: Fields, B. N. and Knipe, D. M., eds., Fundamental Virology, 2nd ed. New York, N.Y., Raven Press, Ltd., pages 771-813 (1991); and Jolly, D. Cancer Gene Therapy, vol. 1, pages 51-64 (1994).
Mittal et al., Virus Research, vol. 28, pages 67-90 (1993) shows an adenovirus type 5-luciferase recombinant containing the firefly luciferase gene flanked by simian virus 40 (SV 40) regulatory sequences inserted into the early region 3 of the adenovirus-5 genome.
Quantin et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. vol. 89: pages 2581-2584 (1992), discloses a recombinant adenovirus containing the beta-galactosidase reporter gene under the control of muscle-specific regulatory sequences. This recombinant virus directs the expression of beta-galactosidase in myotubes in vivo.
Akrigg, A., et al., PCT/GB92/01195, discloses recombinant adenovirus for use in the detection of a trans-acting gene function in a target eukaryotic cell.
As mentioned above, the tumor suppressor protein p53 has recently been implicated as playing a critical role in causing tumor cell death, or apoptosis, induced by radiation or certain chemotherapeutic agents. See, Lowe et al., Cell, vol. 74; pages 957-967 (1993). Thus, it will be appreciated that an assay for p53 is desired that does not have the limitations of currently used assays. In particular, an assay that permits the in vivo diagnosis of the p53 status of tumor cells, or a more rapid method of assaying a tumor biopsy for p53, would greatly aid a physician in selecting the most effective method of ridding a patient of such tumors.


The window net (18) for racing and off-road vehicles (10) includes a woven mesh (50) with small apertures that provide good visibility through the mesh. Webbing members (68 and 74) are folded over the front and rear edges of woven mesh (50) and stitched together to retain the woven mesh sandwiched between the folded webbing material. Top and bottom webbing members (56 and 62) are folded over the upper edge and the lower edge of the woven mesh (50) and stitched together to retain the woven mesh sandwiched between the folded webbing material. The top webbing member (56) and the bottom webbing member (62) are also stitched to the front webbing member (68) and the rear webbing member (74) to completely encircle the woven mesh (50). The top and bottom webbing members (56 and 62) form sleeves which receive bars (20 and 22) to attach the window net to a vehicle (10). The woven mesh (50) distributes force, from any object that it catches, to the webbing members (56, 62, 68, and 74) around the entire periphery of the window net (18). Indicia can be applied to the woven mesh (50) by paint, dye or ink.

Stock car racers and other racing vehicles have bodies without side windows and frequently without doors. The drivers enter these vehicles by climbing through a window opening. A roll bar cage is provided inside the body shell to keep the body shell from collapsing in on a driver in the event of a collision or roll-over.
Seat belts came into use a number of years ago to hold a driver in his seat inside the roll bar cage. In 1964, Joe Weatherly's stock car hit a retaining wall on the driver's side. The seat belt allowed the upper part of Weatherly's body to be thrown around and his head, shoulder, and left arm were forced outside the roll bar frame and through the window opening. His head hit the retaining wall and he was killed. As a result of Joe Weatherly's death, window nets were introduced to keep a driver's left arm, left shoulder and head within an area defined by the roll bar cage.
The window nets that are used today are attached to the roll bar cage adjacent to the drivers left side. The function of window nets is to retain a driver's head, left shoulder, and left arm within the area defined by the roll bar cage in the event of a roll-over or side impact. The window nets are also to keep rocks, car parts, and other foreign objects from entering the space defined by the roll bar cage.
The governing bodies which sanction stockcar racers have established minimum test procedures and specifications for race car components, including window nets. The SFI Foundation, Inc. window net specification requires window nets to prevent pass through of a solid ball that is three inches in diameter. The specification further requires that window nets prevent the penetration of a bag that is ten inches in diameter, weighs one hundred seventy five pounds, and is dropped from a height of fifteen inches above window nets that are held in a horizontal position.
Two types of window nets are commonly used. They are string window nets and ribbon nets. String window nets have a plurality of spaced horizontal strings and a plurality of spaced vertical strings. Visibility through string window nets is good. However, string window nets do not have sufficient strength to pass impact tests. String window nets generally will not prevent the penetration of a ten inch diameter bag weighing one hundred seventy five pounds that is dropped from a vertical height of fifteen inches. String window nets could also be expected to fail if a driver's body hit the net relatively hard.
Ribbon nets are made from a plurality of horizontal and vertical straps that are stitched together. The straps, which are usually one inch nylon webbing, are stitched together on three and one-fourth inch centers. This spacing produces two and one-fourth inch square apertures. The one inch wide webbing reduces side visibility substantially. Some race car drivers contend that the driver should be looking forward and that drivers do not need to look to the side. Other drivers race without ribbon nets unless the race track management requires window nets because of the side visibility problem. Drivers of off-road vehicles often need the protection of window nets and the side visibility. The width of the one inch webbing used to make ribbon nets cannot be decreased. These window nets have to be double stitched and cross stitched at each point where the webbing crosses to pass impact tests. When ribbon nets are subject to the one hundred seventy five pound, fifteen inch drop test, the ten inch diameter bag tends to exert substantially all of the force on two or three horizontal straps and on two or three vertical straps. Unless the webbing is stitched together well, the stitching can fail and allow the bag to penetrate the ribbon net. It takes time to stitch the horizontal and vertical webs to each other at each place they cross. The stitching requirements increase the cost of the window nets.

Window net for racing and off-road vehicles


A mixing device for cylindrical jars, the device having two drive rollers and two guide rollers extending upward from a housing and through a top surface of the housing. The rear end of the top surface has a stop member. The drive rollers on one side of the jar and the guide rollers on an opposite side of the jar are mounted on axles positioned in the interior of the housing, wherein the axles slant downward 2 to 45 degrees from the front end to the rear end of the housing. A motor and transmission in the housing are connected operatively to the drive rollers. The drive rollers will rotate the jar at least 5 RPM with the jar tilted downward. Ajar of natural peanut butter rotated for 5 to 20 minutes will remain uniformly mixed for a week.

It is known to rotate cylindrical containers, such as jars, to churn milk, marinate food, and toss salads (see for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,597,291; 7,047,875; 7,670,042; and 7,229,656). However, these devices have not been useful for mixing natural peanut butter which normally separates into an oil layer on top of peanut solids.
Peanut butter is a food paste or spread made from ground dry-roasted peanuts. It often contains additional ingredients that modify taste and texture, such as salt, sweeteners, or emulsifiers. Peanut butter is popular in many countries, being flavorful and nutritious with a relatively high protein content. The United States is a leading exporter of peanut butter and itself consumes $800 million of peanut butter annually. Commercial peanut butter is a mixture of oil, water and solids.
Natural peanut butter retains the natural peanut oil with no additives but has the unfortunate inconvenience of needing to be stirred before it can be used. It is common for a jar of natural peanut butter at the grocery store to have a layer of liquid peanut oil ½ inch or more thick floating on top of the solids and water. Stirring natural peanut butter to an even consistency is laborious and often messy because of peanut butter's thick consistency and the tendency of the peanut oil to spill over the sides of the jar. The industry solution has been to replace the peanut oil with saturated oils that are solid at room temperature and therefore don't separate. However, saturated oils are considered to be less healthy than unsaturated oils. Mechanical solutions have been developed in the form of hand turning cranks or hand-held motorized wands. While effective for mixing the natural peanut butter, these devices must be inserted into the peanut butter and so must be cleaned after use, which is inconvenient and undesirable. What is needed is a device that will mix the natural peanut butter in the jar externally without having to open the jar.

Mixing device for natural peanut butter and other natural nut butters


A process for the production of a polymeric film comprising a copolyester having an acid component and a diol component, said acid component comprising a dicarboxylic acid and a sulfomonomer containing a sulfonate group attached to the aromatic nucleus of an aromatic dicarboxylic acid, said process comprising the steps of: (i) melt-extruding a layer of said copolyester; (ii) stretching the extrudate in at least one direction; (iii) heat-setting the film by raising the temperature of the stretched film to a temperature T1 in a first heating zone such that (TM-T1) is in the range of from 5 to 30° C., and then raising the temperature of the film to a temperature T2 in a second heating zone such that (TM-T2 is in the range of from 0 to 10° C., wherein TM is the peak melting temperature of the polymeric film; wherein T2 is greater than T1; and wherein the times which a transverse section of the film spends in the first and second heating zones are defined by t1 and t2, respectively, such that the ratio of t1 to t2 is at least 2:1; and a polymeric film obtainable thereby having an ultimate tensile strength at destruction in the range of 2 to 15 kgf/mm2 in the machine direction and 2.5 to 17 kgf/mm2 in the transverse direction.

In the manufacture of most polymeric films, it is an object to adjust the composition and process conditions to produce a film which exhibits good mechanical properties such as increased tensile strength, elasticity and tear resistance. However, in certain applications, it is desirable to increase the potential destructibility of the film.
One such application relates to anti-counterfeit, anti-theft, security or "tamper-evident" labels. A particular area of application for such labels is in the packaging of consumer products, such as compact disks, computer software and pharmaceuticals; in "overlaminating" films; and in document protection. Such labels should be sufficiently brittle so that the labels fracture if an attempt is made to remove the label from the object to which it is adhered. A problem for retailers and consumers is the tampering with the packaging of an article. In some cases the packaged materials are altered and repackaged. It is desirable to have a label which would show that the article within the packaging had not been opened and/or altered. A suitably brittle label could indicate when a label or a package containing the label has been altered. This feature prevents the certifying label being removed from a product of guaranteed authenticity and subsequently being re-attached to a counterfeit. It also prevents a protective film from being removed from an underlying document or image so as to tamper with the document or image.
Previous attempts to produce brittle films having a low tear resistance have involved the use of low molecular weight polyesters in the manufacture of the film. However, such films are very susceptible to fracture during the film-forming process.
Acetate films having a low tear resistance have successfully been manufactured but have a tendency to absorb water and are not resistant to solvents such as water.
Polyester films are superior to acetate films in terms of water absorption and water resistance. JP-A-1229042 discloses a readily tearable film comprising a copolyester of ethylene glycol, terephthalic acid, a metal sulphonate group-containing aromatic dicarboxylic acid and either an aliphatic dicarboxylic acid or an aromatic dicarboxylic acid other than terephthalic acid, the film having a tear propagation resistance in at least one direction of 300 g/mm or less.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,746,556 discloses a tamper-evident label comprising a surface layer, an easily breakable layer laminated to the surface layer, a first peel-off layer formed on the surface of the easily breakable layer, a second peel-off layer formed on a part of the main surface of the easily breakable layer, a covering layer and an adhesive layer. The surface layer is peeled off the easily breakable layer and cannot be re-adhered.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,842 discloses multi-layer labels, such as those used for preventing or detecting tampering and counterfeiting, which has a base layer with a permanent adhesive coated on a lower surface. Indicia or markings are applied to the bottom surface of the top layer and the top layer is laminated to the upper surface of the base layer. The top layer is laminated to the upper surface of the base layer by permanent patterned adhesive. A portion of each of the upper surface of the base layer and the bottom surface of the top layer are free of adhesive.
WO-A-98/01291 discloses a multi-layer tamper-evident label comprising a first and second layer of polymeric film, wherein the lower surface of the first layer contacts the upper surface of the second layer at a separation interface; a heat-sealable layer wherein the lower surface of the heat-sealable layer is bonded to the upper surface of the first layer; and an adhesive layer wherein the upper surface of the adhesive layer is bonded to lower surface of the second layer.

Process for the production of brittle polymeric film


An impact absorbing structure for vehicle steering systems includes a support and release mechanism for a tilt rotation center which mechanism makes it easy to change an impact load bearing capacity in a head-on collision. A steering column and a steering shaft are coaxially coupled to each other and are longitudinally rigid against compression. The steering column is supported by an upper bracket which can be released from a vehicle body in response to an impact and by a lower bracket which defines a tilt rotation center. A notch which has an open side to the front of the vehicle is formed in the lower bracket. A pivot, which is rigidly coupled to the steering shaft and provides a center of the tilt rotation, is engaged with the notch including a protrusion near the closed end.

The present invention relates generally to impact absorbing structures for vehicle steering systems, and more particularly to support and release mechanisms for tilt pivots of tilt steering columns.
When a tilt steering system has an impact absorbing structure by being provided with a steering column and a steering shaft which are coaxially coupled to each other and have an axially collapsible structure, a tilt pivot of a tilt rotation is enough supported by being rotatably coupled with a hinge to a lower bracket (nearer to a steering gear) rigidly attached to a vehicle body.
On the other hand, when a tilt steering system is provided with a steering column and a steering shaft which are coaxially coupled to each other and do not have an axially collapsible structure, that is, have a rigid structure against compression, a tilt pivot of a tilt rotation can not be supported in the same way. If the tilt pivot is rotatably coupled with a hinge to a lower bracket rigidly attached to the vehicle body, an impact can not be absorbed by releasing the steering column from the lower bracket even while the steering column can be otherwise released from an upper bracket at the impact. The lower bracket may be applied with the same structure of the upper bracket to provide a release mechanism. This structure however raises a product cost.
Accordingly, a tilt rotation and an axially collapse are provided by coupling a steering column to a lower bracket with a support pin and a simple slot. One such tilt steering system has been disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Provisional Publication No. 62-23771 (Kinoshita) published Feb. 13, 1987 (hereinafter is referred to as "JP62-23771").

Impact absorbing structure for vehicle steering systems