The invention relates to a method for the removal of leucocytes from blood which comprises bringing blood that comprises infected leucocytes into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes than for uninfected leucocytes especially cellulose acetate. The method can be used in the apheresis treatment of diseases caused by pathogenic organisms, for example, HIV, HCV or malaria. It is especially useful for treatment of HIV.

This invention relates to a method involving blood leucocyte apheresis for treatment of disease.
For some time, therapeutic apheresis has been known as an alternative strategy for the management of disorders. The technique involves the removal of cells or proteins that are implicated in the pathogenesis of the disorder, for example rheumatoid factor, immune complexes and other humoral mediators in the plasma (1, 2). Procedures employing selective removal of blood cells or plasma components, without the use of replacement fluids, are associated with minimal side effects (1). An outpatient approach is possible, which is more convenient for the patient and reduces the cost of the procedure (2). Many of the unacceptable side-effects of chronic drug therapy are also reduced by use of the technique.
In EP-A-0-319961 there is described a method for the selective removal of granulocytes from blood by bringing the blood into contact with an adsorbent carrier having a higher affinity for granulocytes than for lymphocytes. That invention is concerned with cancer treatment. An apparatus for carrying out the method is also described in that application. A similar apparatus is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,725,768.
In JP 0193 481 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,567,443 there is described a method for the treatment of inflammatory disease which comprises bringing blood from a patient into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has an affinity for inflammatory cells (granulocytes and monocytes) which is greater than its affinity for lymphocytes. The method is reported to be useful for treating acute respiratory distress syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, autoimmune diseases, allergic diseases and reflow disorders following myocardial infarction.
AIDS is a life-threatening immunodeficiency condition caused by HIV (human immunodeficiency virus). After confirmation and onset of HIV infection, the mortality rate is very high. No effective treatment strategy has been established yet for the treatment of AIDS and, owing to a long latent period, it is also difficult to establish an effective measure for the prevention of infection.
After infection with HIV, anti-HIV antibody appears in the blood, generally within 6 to 8 weeks. Deficiency of or disturbance to the immune system proceeds, leading eventually to AIDS. For convenience, the intermediate stage is classified as AIDS related complex (ARC). Certain cells infected with HIV harbour the virus and act as reservoirs of the HIV. Such cells include mononuclear cells (monocytes/macrophages) and resting CD4+ lymphocytes. While the virus is inside those cells, it is protected from clearance by the immune system. The virus is also shielded from contact with administered drugs so effective treatment of the condition is thus difficult.
The main symptoms of AIDS include fever, persistent systemic lymphadenoma, weight loss (cachexia) and diarrhoea. In addition, opportunistic infectious diseases and malignant tumours may develop and profoundly aggravate the patient""s condition. Neuropathy may also become a serious problem and, depending on the patient, a disease of the cranial nervous system may also appear.
Based on an immunological consideration of full blown HIV-induced disease (AIDS), the condition is characterised by a profound impairment of the immune response, including decline in CD4+ T lymphocytes, dysregulated cytokine production, increased production of proinflammatory or immunosuppressive cytokines such as TNF-xcex1, IL-1xcex2, IL-6 and IL-10 by peripheral blood cells (3-6) including monocytes (3) and also by granulocytes (4) and enhanced susceptibility of immune cells to apoptosis. HIV antigens such as gp120 bound to immune complexes are believed to induce apoptosis of CD4+ cells (7-12). TNF-xcex1, IL-1xcex2, IL-6 are reported to promote HIV replication (3). At the same time, there is a profound impairment of the ability of monocytes from HIV-infected patients to generate IL-12 (an immunoregulator cytokine). Thus, in healthy individuals, monocytes mainly produce IL-12, whereas in HIV-infected individuals, monocytes produce mainly IL-10. IL-10 was shown to have a pivotal role in the aforementioned changes in the production of cytokines (5, 6). In this context, it is also important to indicate that IL-2 and IL-12 reduce, whereas IL-10 increases susceptibility of CD4+ cells of HIV-infected patients to apoptosis (13-17).
Currently, the treatment strategy for HIV infection consists primarily of highly active antiretroviral drug therapy (HAART) which includes a protease inhibitor. However, whilst in some patients, HAART has been shown to increase CD4+ cell count and to suppress plasma HIV viral load to undetectable levels, as yet no drug treatment is known to affect cellular reservoirs of HIV, for example, in cells including mononuclear cells (monocytes/macrophages) and resting CD4+ lymphocytes. These cells serve as sites for an HIV reservoir and as sites for HIV replication and dissemination. This means that when drug treatment is ceased, there is a very strong possibility of relapse attributable to HIV propagation from the aforementioned reservoir cells and de navo infection. In the light of this understanding and for complete eradication of HIV, it is considered to be essential to eliminate the infected resting cells (latent HIV reservoirs). However, at present, there is no drug that can affect the cellular HIV reservoirs, the HIV-1 proviral DNA load in the latently infected mononuclear cells (monocytes/macrophages) and resting CD4+ lymphocytes.
The hepatitis C virus (HCV) infects cells, for example liver cells, and subsequently harbours in those cells and in leucocytes during an apparently latent period. At present, there is no drug that can affect the cellular HCV reservoirs in those latently infected cells.
Mycobacterium leprae infects and then remains in mononuclear cells. Present drug treatments are largely ineffective against the organism when inside the cells.
The present invention is based on the surprising observation that leucocytes infected with HIV can be selectively removed from blood.
The present invention provides a method for the removal of infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes from blood, which comprises bringing blood that comprises infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes than for uninfected, non-activated or non-defective leucocytes. If desired, the treated blood may be returned to the subject from whom it was obtained.
The method of the present invention effects selective adsorption of infected, defective and activated leucocytes including mononuclear cells i.e. monocytes/macrophages, and also activated lymphocytes, for example CD4+ lymphocytes, including resting CD4+ lymphocytes. Normal, that is to say, non-infected, non-activated and non-defective leucocytes do not appear to adhere to the adsorbent carrier. This is surprising, as the previous uses of apheresis were based on the fact that granulocytes or inflammatory cells, classified as granulocytes and monocytes, were selectively adsorbed in preference to lymphocytes. Contrary to the previous observations that selective adsorption is based on cell type, we have now found that infection of a leucocyte with a virus, which is an intracellular parasite, activation of a leucocyte and/or defects in a leucocyte brings about adsorption to an apheresis column regardless of the leucocyte type.
We presently believe that infection results in selective binding of a population of leucocytes to an adsorbent carrier. We believe that this is owing to a change in a property of the leucocytes, for example a change in the cell surface receptor population, for example a change in receptor types or receptor numbers. A change caused to a leucocyte by infection may be considered as activation of the leucocyte, or the leucocyte may be regarded as defective. However, leucocytes may be activated or rendered defective in other ways that result in the same or analogous selective binding as does infection. Infection, activation and/or defects may result in the same or similar cell surface changes, for example the changes may be in the same receptor type. However, this may not be the case, and the method of the invention is not dependant on the precise mechanism of the selective adsorption of the infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes.
Whilst the aforementioned is the current theory for the functioning of the invention, the applicant is not bound by this theory.
In a further embodiment of the invention immune recovery in a patient infected with a pathogenic organism is effected by contacting blood from the patient with a carrier having a contact angle to water within the range of from 55xc2x0 to 95xc2x0 and returning the blood to the patient. The absorbent carrier may be as described above, and is preferably cellulose acetate, especially in one of the preferred forms described above.
When the method of the invention is carried out, the above described effects relating to leucocyte removal and the immune recovery both occur.
Immune recovery denotes an improvement in any one or more aspects of the immune system. One aspect of immune recovery is an immunological improvement. HIV has a particularly profound effect on a subject""s immune system.
Another aspect of immune recovery is the immuno reconstitution that results from removal of leucocytes and their replacement by new leucocytes. Yet a further aspect of immune recovery may result from reduced generation of immunosuppressive cytokines (TNF-xcex1).
Certain aspects of immune recovery appear to result from removal of infected leucocytes whilst other aspects may be fully or partly independent of leucocyte removal.
In AIDS, the CD4 leucocyte count is regarded as indicative of the status of a subject""s immune system. When blood of an HIV positive person is contacted with a carrier as defined above the person""s CD4 count increases, thereby demonstrating an immune improvement, and hence immune recovery. The present invention also provides use of an adsorbent carrier described above in the manufacture of an agent or adsorbent for use in apheresis for the various aspects of immune recovery described above.
The invention further provides a method for the treatment of a patient having an infection that involves infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes, which comprises bringing blood from the patient into contact with a carrier that has a higher affinity for infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes than for uninfected non-activated or non-defective leucocytes and returning the treated blood to the patient.
Particularly, the leucocytes may be activated or infected leucocytes and the cells may be brought into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for activated or infected leucocytes than for normal leucocytes.
More particularly, the leucocytes may be infected leucocytes and the cells may be brought into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for infected leucocytes than for normal leucocytes.
Leucocytes may be infected with a virus or with another intracellular pathogenic organism, for example, an intracellular parasitic organism. Leucocytes may be infected with a virus that stimulates the cells and brings about an activation and/or a change in the surface receptors of the cells. For example, the virus is HIV or HCV, particularly HIV. HIV has a profound effect on cells of the immune system.
As explained above, HIV infects monocytes/macrophages and CD4+ lymphocytes. Different viruses may infect different populations of leucocytes. Monocytes/macrophages may be particularly subject to infection owing to their phagocytic activity. However, different viruses may infect different populations of lymphocytes. HIV infects CD4+ lymphocytes because the virus effects entry via the CD4 receptor. Other viruses may effect entry into lymphocytes via different receptors and hence infect the population of lymphocytes that possess that particular receptor.
The leucocytes may be infected with an intracellular parasitic organism which organism brings about an activation and/or a change in the surface receptors of the cells, for example, Mycobacterium leprae. Mycobacterium leprae infects monocytes in paricular.
The invention further provides the use of an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes than for normal leucocytes in the manufacture of an agent for the removal of infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes from blood.
The invention further provides a method for use in flushing out (purging) infected leucocytes from resting sites in a subject, which comprises bringing blood from the subject, which blood comprises infected leucocytes into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for infected leucocytes than for normal leucocytes. The treated blood may be returned to the subject to flush out infected cells from resting sites. Such flushing out of cells is commonly known in the art as xe2x80x9cpurgingxe2x80x9d. The cells are especially leucocytes infected with a virus; for example, HCV or especially HIV. Such infected cells include mononuclear cells (monocytes/macrophages) and CD4+ lymphocytes. Flushing infected cells from resting sites results in the virus within the cells becoming vulnerable to drug therapy.
The invention further provides a method for use in the treatment of a disease in which infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes have a changed surface, which comprises bringing blood that comprises infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes than for uninfected, non-activated or non-defective leucocytes. The treated blood may be returned to the patient to complete the treatment of the disease.
The types of diseases and disorders with which the present invention may be used include those in which infection of host cells, for example, with a virus or with another intracellular pathogenic, for example, parasitic organism, gives rise to an alteration of surface properties of the infected cells. For example, infection of cells of the immune system may give rise to activation of those cells, accompanied by a change in surface receptors.
The invention further provides a method for use in the treatment of a patient having a disease or disorder in which leucocytes are infected, which comprises bringing blood that comprises infected leucocytes into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes than for uninfected leucocytes. The treated blood may be returned to the patient to complete the treatement of the disease or disorder.
Still further, the invention provides a method for the treatment of a patient which method comprises bringing blood that comprises infected leucocytes from the patient into contact with an adsorbent carrier that has a greater affinity for infected, activated and/or defective leucocytes than for uninfected leucocytes and returning the blood to the patient.
Diseases which may be treated according to the present invention include leprosy, HCV infection and HIV infections, including ARC, AIDS and symptomless HIV infections. Still further, the invention provides the use of an adsorbent carrier in the preparation of materials for use in the above methods.
The invention further provides a method for effecting immune recovery in a patient infected with a pathogenic organism, particularly HIV, which comprises contacting blood from the patient with an adsorbent carrier that has a contact angle to water in the range between 55xc2x0 and 95xc2x0. For example, the patient may be infected with HIV.
In any embodiment of the present invention the adsorbent carrier may be contacted with plasma as an alternative to whole blood. Blood may be separated into plasma and other components in an appropriate manner before treatment according to the present invention. However, it is generally simpler and cheaper to treat whole blood. In general, therefore, plasma is used only in special circumstances.

Methods of treatment of disease using adsorbent carriers

Japan Immunoresearch Laboratories Co., Ltd.


A system is provided for facilitating the imaging of a specimen, such as a laboratory rat, within an imaging machine such as an MRI machine. A sliding, self-centering interconnection is provided between a magnetic positioning and spacing assembly and a specimen positioning and retention assembly. Support and abutment surfaces are provided for facilitating the proper mounting locations of a gradient coil and probe coil within the main magnet coil and for optimally locating a specimen with respect to the main magnet coil and with respect to the gradient and probe coils.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to an apparatus which spaces, locates and aligns one or more magnet coils concentrically within the bore of a main magnet coil of an MRI machine. The invention more particularly relates to such an apparatus which further concentrically positions a specimen tube accurately within the MRI bore along predetermined axial and radial planes for optimum imaging of the specimen.
2. Description of Prior Developments
In some magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines, a removable gradient coil is axially movably mounted with the bore of the main magnet coil with a simple sliding friction fit. This adjustable and removable fit allows an operator to selectively replace or interchange various gradient coils within the bore of the main coil to optimize the MRI machine for selected imaging applications.
While this feature has proved useful, it requires considerable time, effort and expertise to accurately reposition and install one replacement gradient coil in place of another. Prior replaceable gradient coils required trial and error adjustment of the axial position of the gradient coil within the main magnet coil bore, making repeatable imaging results difficult to achieve.
Even further adjustment of prior MRI machines was needed to accurately axially and cumferentially position and hold a specimen within the main magnet coil bore to achieve optimum imaging of the specimen. This problem is particularly, difficult in the case of laboratory animal specimens being imaged in the MRI machine, as the area being imaged is quite small. For example, the area imaged to cover a rodent brain is quite small and requires accurate adjustment and positioning within the MRI fields.
In order to further shape, condition and focus the magnetic field within the main coil bore, an additional coil, referred to as a probe coil, surface coil or radio frequency coil can be provided within the main coil bore. This coil must be carefully aligned axially, radially and circumferentially (clockwise) within the main coil bore and further carefully positioned with respect to the gradient coil and with respect to the specimen being imaged. Alignment of this probe coil has required considerable time, effort and expertise.
In some cases, it is desirable to interchange various probe coils to adapt the MRI machine for specific applications. It can be appreciated that such replacement can involve considerable time, effort and expertise in order to achieve optimum alignment with the other magnet coils and with the imaging area of the specimen.
In each of the cases noted above, the respective coil and specimen positioning and locating procedures must not only be accurate, but also highly repeatable so that results may be accurately duplicated for verification, sampling and proofs. Because of the trial and error positioning of magnets and specimens associated with prior procedures, accurate repeatable imaging results have been difficult to achieve.

Imaging machine / MRI positioning assembly for magnet coils and specimens at the sweet spot of an imaging field


This invention relates to an apparatus and method for increasing the cooling rate of an item and its contents within a refrigeration system. The item is supported in a housing that also includes a motor driven fan. The apparatus containing the item to be cooled is placed in a refrigeration system and the motor driven fan moves cold air from the refrigeration system through the housing, thereby quickly and favorably cooling the item. An important use of the apparatus and method is for quickly cooling scientific and medical specimens and substances.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus and method for cooling specimens and substances within refrigeration systems. In particular, this apparatus and method favorably decrease the temperature of a specimen or substance quicker than the refrigeration system can alone.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,314 discloses a method and apparatus for preserving biological materials that provide a coolant to a cooling chamber within which air is continuously circulated. This system uses its own coolant in a freezing chamber, and is not itself for use within a separate refrigerant system.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,485,641 discloses a device for freezing biological products that uses a liquid gas such as liquid nitrogen within a container in which a biological specimen is supported. This patent specifies the use of a motor, external to the container, that drives an impeller, within the container, by means of a communicating shaft. The impeller circulates vapors from the liquid gas coolant throughout the cooling system.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,664 discloses a portable refrigerating/heating apparatus in which the cooling means is a Peltier heat exchanging unit integral with the apparatus itself. Because the apparatus produces its own cold air, it is self-contained and not dependent on the cold air of a separate refrigeration system such as a freezer, refrigerator or cooler.
In the art of cooling biological samples, several laboratory devices are available for bench top use. For example, several products have metallic blocks, which receive and hold test tubes and other laboratory containers, sometimes in association with a freezing gel, that are precooled and then used on the laboratory bench to keep reagents, enzymes, and other materials cold, yet conveniently available.

Apparatus and method for quickly cooling specimens and substances within refrigeration systems


A cleaner impregnated towel comprises a flexible, porous substrate and, impregnated into the substrate, a cleaner formulation comprising d-limonene, dibasic acid ester, N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, secondary alcohol ethoxylate, sodium lauryl sulfate, polysorbate 80, a salt of a coconut oil fatty acid ester of isethionic acid, glycerine, ethyl alcohol, an antimicrobial preservative, and optionally water.

Cleaners for cleansing the skin of humans are known in the art. Likewise, it is known to combine premeasured amounts of cleaners with articles such as pouches or flexible carrier sheets.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,888 to Kiefer et al. discloses a detergent sheet, comprising an alkyl polyglycoside and a detergency builder impregnated into a flexible substrate. The detergent formulation disclosed in Kiefer et al., however, is harsh and unsuitable for prolonged contact with human skin. Generally, the detergent sheets disclosed in the prior art contain detergents or other ingredients which irritate the skin.
A particularly useful and cost-effective cleaner impregnated towel is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,698,475 to Vlasblom.
It would be desirable to develop an improved cleaner impregnated towel which is very mild in contact with human skin, and which delivers copious quantities of stable foam.


UV curable hardcoat compositions are provided which impart improved abrasion resistance to thermoplastic substrates when applied and cured thereon. Enhancement in abrasion and weathering properties have been achieved by the use of certain UV curable branched or carbocyclic monoacrylates, such as isobornyl acrylate.

The present invention relates to UV curable hardcoat compositions which are useful for imparting abrasion resistance and improved weathering resistance to thermoplastic substrates when applied and cured thereon. More particularly, the present invention relates to UV curable mixtures of a monofunctional branched or carbocyclic acrylate, such as isobornyl acrylate, which is used in combination with hexanediol diacrylate, colloidal silica, the hydrolysis product of an alkoxysilyl acrylate and an effective amount of a UV photoinitiator.
Prior to the present invention, as shown by Olson et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,455,205, acrylic monomer, such as hexanediol diacrylate was utilized in combination with a UV photoinitiator, colloidal silica and an alkoxysilyl acrylate of the formula, ##STR1## where R is a C.sub.(1-13) monovalent hydrocarbon radical, R.sup.1 is a C.sub.(1-8) alkyl radical, R.sup.2 is a divalent C.sub.(2-8) alkylene radical, R.sup.3 is a monovalent radical selected from hydrogen and a C.sub.(1-8) alkyl radical, a is a whole number equal to 0 or 1, b is an integer equal to 1 to 3 inclusive, c is an integer equal to 1 to 3 inclusive, and the sum of a +b +c is equal to 4. Although the UV curable hardcoat compositions of Olson et al have been found to provide adherent and abrasion resistant coatings on thermoplastic substrates when cured, and the cured coated articles have been found to have improved weathering resistance, additional hardcoat compositions having increased abrasion and weathering resistance are constantly being sought by the plastics industry.

UV curable abrasion-resistant coatings with improved weatherability


A filtering structure intended to be incorporated a vertical swimming pool wall has a filtering device and a pumping device with the pumping device having an electrical part, including an electric motor, and a hydraulic part equipped with a turbine. The filtering structure has a suction port facing towards a nominally horizontal access passageway partly submerged in water, and emerging towards a nominally vertical tank arranged thereunder. The filtering structure has a tank communicating with a nominally vertical column, partly in the upper part of which is arranged the hydraulic part. The electrical part is arranged above the level of the water to be treated and is contained in the nominally horizontal access passageway, while the hydraulic part is immersed in a volume of filtered water.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns the field of swimming pool water filtration and, more particularly, relates to a filtering structure designed to be incorporated in one of the generally vertical walls of a swimming pool.
2. Description of Related Art
A plurality of filtering devices of this type has to date been proposed. They comprise mainly a portion immersed in the water of the swimming pool, equipped with a suction port and a discharge outlet for water once it has been filtered. They also comprise filtering and pumping means located outside the pool basin, either at a locality technically developed for this purpose at a more or less considerable distance from the pool basin, or in a space such as a casing, directly adjacent to the immersed portion.
The pumping and filtering means, such as, for example, sand or cartridge filters or filtering bags, are interconnected by Connecting pipes, the said pumping and filtering means allowing the passage of water through the Connecting pipes. The unit is furthermore connected to a suction port by way of suction pipes and to a discharge outlet by way of backflow pipes.
The presence of these pipes, even if less important when the filtering and pumping device is in the form of a casing, inevitably brings about load losses diminishing the performance of the known Systems. These losses are generally compensated for by using "oversized" pumping means, in particular with regard to the electric motor. Moreover, in the prior art devices the Connecting pipes often pass above the water level, resulting in priming difficulties.
The use of oversized pumping means results of necessity in increased production costs, but also in higher energy consumption and therefore higher electricity bill of the owner of a pool equipped with such devices.
It is imperative that the pipe unit is perfectly watertight in order to prevent leaks or the intake of air detrimental to the proper functioning of the unit.
Furthermore, the devices whose pumping and electric control means are arranged in an underground location adjacent to or remote from the immersed portion, are subjected to flooding in case of heavy rains, resulting inevitably in serious damage to the pumping system or imposing considerable and costly work in order to carry out gravitational drainage at the bottom of the technical location.


An apparatus (200) and method (300) for receiving a communications signal. A spread spectrum signal demodulator (210) is adapted to demodulate a packet header (110) of a data packet (102) that is communicated by a wireless communications signal. The packet header (110) is modulated with a spread spectrum technique and the spread spectrum signal demodulator (210) produces a packet header detection signal (220) representing a successful detection of a predefined packet header value. A non-spread spectrum signal demodulator (212) is communicatively coupled to the spread spectrum signal demodulator (210) and demodulates, in response to the packet header detection signal (220), a non-spread spectrum modulated data payload within the data packet. A data output select (234) produces demodulated data produced by either one or both the spread spectrum signal demodulator (210) and the non-spread spectrum signal demodulator (212).

1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to reception of digitally modulated wireless signals, and more specifically to reception of wireless signals modulated with both spread spectrum and non-spread spectrum modulation.
2. Related Art
Direct sequence spread spectrum communications systems operate by encoding each data bit over a number of modulated channel symbols, which are referred to as chips. Each channel symbol also encodes a pseudorandom data sequence. Although a direct sequence spread spectrum communications system includes modulation and receiving equipment that process the signal at the modulated chip rate, the user data throughput is reduced by the spread spectrum encoding. Direct sequence spread spectrum receivers correlate a received signal with a reproduction of the pseudorandom data sequence to extract the encoded data. The operation of direct sequence spread spectrum systems allows the communication of data with enhanced interference rejection.
One direct sequence spread spectrum communications application is the IEEE 802.15.4 communications standard. The incorporation of direct sequence spread spectrum signals in the IEEE 802.15.4 communications standard allow reliable communications over an extended range. This use of direct sequence spread spectrum signals, however, reduces the data throughput of IEEE 802.15.4 systems relative to the total bandwidth consumed by the system and the corresponding capacity of the processing hardware of the communications equipment.
Therefore, a technique that would allow the hardware used to implement an IEEE 802.15.4 receiver to communicate at a higher data rate throughput than is supported by that standard expands the usability of that hardware.

System and method for receiving a multiple format wireless signal


An industrial robot, having an end-effector supporting mechanism for holding an end-effector and accommodating an imaging device of a visual sensor, which is free from the interference with the periphery and capable of taking an image of the working position. A container-shaped adaptor of the end-effector supporting mechanism is attached to a distal end of a wrist flange provided in a robot wrist supported by a robot arm. The adaptor has a first attachment section provided with a first attachment surface to be attached to the wrist flange, and a second attachment section provided with a second attachment surface disposed generally parallel to a wrist flange surface at a position apart from the first attachment section by a predetermined distance along a rotary center axis of the wrist flange. On the second attachment surface, a tool holding member of the end-effector supporting mechanism for holding the working tool is attached.

1. Technical Field
The preset invention relates to an industrial robot and, more specifically, to an industrial robot provided with an imaging device of a visual sensor for detecting a working tool and a working position.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an industrial robot (hereinafter referred to simply as a robot), there are many cases wherein an imaging device of a visual sensor is mounted for detecting a working tool and a working position (for example, a digital CCD camera). For example, when a robot program is made on off-line, there is usually an error between an actual operation path for this program and a desired operation path, and for the purpose of correcting the same, a method for mounting an imaging device of a visual sensor for detecting the working position in the vicinity of the working tool and correcting a teaching point by using detected data obtained through the imaging device (for example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10-128538).
When the visual sensor is actually supported in the vicinity of the operative tool, however, it is liable to interfere with a workpiece or others because it has a considerable size in the vertical and horizontal directions. Accordingly, it is difficult to obtain the same operation path during the actual operation (for example, welding), whereby there has been a limitation in an applicable program. Also, a conventional sensor supporting structure (a structure for supporting an imaging device) may interfere with a part of a body of the robot on a side of a torch cable for supporting a welding cable or assist gas to an arc-welding torch.
In a more concrete prior art, an imaging device and a working tool holding member are attached by well-known attachment means (not shown) using adhesive, screws or others to a distal end of a wrist flange supported by a robot arm. The working tool supported by the working tool holding member is, for example, an arc welding torch (hereinafter merely referred to as a torch) used for corner welding or other work. When the corner welding is carried out in a narrow and complicated portion of a workpiece, part of the imaging device (particularly, a distal end portion) may approach the workpiece and interfere therewith. Further, interference between the torch and the body of the robot may occur.
To avoid such interference, in the above-mentioned prior art, a different structure of the working tool is used in the production from that used in the teaching, or the imaging device is removed if necessary. Such a countermeasure, however, is problematic in that the teaching cannot be corrected as in the production. Alternatively, the working tool may be of a detachable type to allow the working tool to be detached from the distal end of the wrist and, instead, the imaging device of the visual sensor is mounted thereto so that the interference with the peripheral equipment is temporarily eliminated. In the latter case, there is another problem caused by the attachment error of the working tool or in that it is impossible during the teaching to correct the deviation of the welded position due to the change of wire bending due to a posture of the robot (see FIG. 4 and the explanation thereof described later).
In this regard, relating to the embodiments of the present invention described later, IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION (Vol. 5, No. 3, June 1989) "A New Technique for Fully Autonomous and Efficient 3D Robotics Hand/Eye calibration" is cited as a prior art.


A stiffness control and systems for the same are disclosed herein. A first plate and a second plate can be connected with rigid support, a hydraulic actuator and a high roughness surface. Upon actuation, the actuator can force the high roughness surface against the first plate, thus increasing rigidity through hydraulic pressure against the first plate and the second plate. Thus, the stiffness of the surface can be altered in a variable and reversible fashion.

Various load receiving devices, such as tables, structural supports, flat-bed trucks, forklifts, warehouse storage shelving and the like, are necessary for transporting and storing goods and materials to various locations. For example, large scale heavy shipments are transported daily using large big rig trucks and are stored in warehouses capable of holding various types of materials. These transportation and storage devices used for holding and supporting other objects. As well, some these transportation and storage devices allow large scale goods and materials to be moves or stored without compromising safety or attentiveness. These devices are generally built to receive weight under and up to a maximum weight before failure, withstanding a specific amount of force and failing above that level of force.

Structure with selectively variable stiffness

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.


High purity silicon oxyfluoride glass suitable for use as a photomask substrates for photolithography applications in the VUV wavelength region below 190 nm is disclosed. The inventive silicon oxyfluoride glass is transmissive at wavelengths around 157 nm, making it particularly useful as a photomask substrate at the 157 nm wavelength region. The inventive photomask substrate is a xe2x80x9cdry,xe2x80x9d silicon oxyfluoride glass which exhibits very high transmittance in the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) wavelength region while maintaining the excellent thermal and physical properties generally associated with high purity fused silica. In addition to containing fluorine and having little or no OH content, the inventive silicon oxyfluoride glass suitable for use as a photomask substrate at 157 nm is also characterized by having less than 1xc3x971017 molecules/cm3 of molecular hydrogen and low chlorine levels.

The present invention relates generally to lithography, and particularly to optical photolithography glass for use in optical photolithography systems utilizing vacuum ultraviolet light (VUV) wavelengths below 193 nm, preferably below 175 nm, preferably below 164 nm, such as VUV projection lithography systems utilizing wavelengths in the 157 nm region.
The invention relates to glass that is transmissive at wavelengths below 193 nm, in particular, a photomask silicon oxyfluoride glass suitable for use in the Vacuum Ultraviolet (VUV) 157 nm wavelength region.
Refractive optics requires materials having high transmittance. For semiconductor applications where smaller and smaller features are desired at the 248 and 193 nm wavelengths, high purity fused silica has been show to exhibit the required minimum transmittance of 99%/cm or better.
Projection optical photolithography systems that utilize the vacuum ultraviolet wavelengths of light below 193 nm provide benefits in terms of achieving smaller feature dimensions. Such systems that utilize vacuum ultraviolet wavelengths in the 157 nm wavelength region have the potential of improving integrated circuits with smaller feature sizes. Current optical lithography systems used by the semiconductor industry in the manufacture of integrated circuits have progressed towards shorter wavelengths of light, such as the popular 248 nm and 193 nm wavelengths, but the commercial use and adoption of vacuum ultraviolet wavelengths below 193 nm, such as 157 nm has been hindered by the transmission nature of such vacuum ultraviolet wavelengths in the 157 nm region through optical materials. Such slow progression by the semiconductor industry of the use of VUV light below 175 nm such as 157 nm light has been also due to the lack of economically manufacturable photomask blanks from optically transmissive materials. For the benefit of vacuum ultraviolet photolithography in the 157 nm region such as the emission spectrum VUV window of a F2 excimer laser to be utilized in the manufacturing of integrated circuits there is a need for mask blanks that have beneficial optical properties including good transmission below 164 nm and at 157 nm and that can be manufactured economically.
The present invention overcomes problems in the prior art and provides a economical high quality improved photomask blanks and lithography glass that can be used to improve the manufacturing of integrated circuits with vacuum ultraviolet wavelengths.
Use of high purity fused silica as optical elements in photolithography stems from the fact that high purity fused silica is transparent over a wide range of wavelengths, spanning from the infrared to deep ultraviolet regions. Furthermore, high purity fused silica exhibits excellent chemical durability and dimensional stability. These properties have made high purity fused silica highly suited for use as optical lenses as well as for photomask substrates in photolithography, but use has been limited to the KrF and ArF wavelength regions.
Photomask glass qualifications are comparatively different from other optical elements used in photolithography in that they characteristically have smaller thicknesses of as low as only a few millimeters through the optical path. As such, they must meet very strict requirements for dimensional stability (warping and shrinkage) in order to ensure the extreme accuracy required to form fine circuit patterns on the photomask plate and target. And as the demand for even smaller features continues to drive the lasing wavelength further down to the 157 nm region and lower, the choice of optical materials meeting the minimum required transmittance becomes severely limited for all optical elements, but even more so for photomask substrates due to the reasons stated above. Crystalline materials such as calcium fluoride, barium fluoride and magnesium fluoride for example, have been shown to exhibit transmittances which are suitable for 157 nm wavelength applications. Unfortunately, these materials tend to have certain drawbacks making them unsuitable for these applications, in addition to manufacturing/economic problems. For example, calcium fluoride exhibits unacceptably high thermal expansion properties for photomask applications in the 157 nm wavelength region. Magnesium fluoride on the other hand, exhibits acceptable expansion but is unsuitable because it is naturally birefringment.
It has been suggested in EP 0 636 586 A1 that in order to be suitable for use as a photomask substrate for certain photolithography applications at 248 and 193 nm wavelengths, high purity fused silica made by the direct flame method must contain high molecular hydrogen in the range of 1017 to 1019 molecules/cm3. Similarly, JP 1-201664 discloses that synthetic quartz glass for use as photomask material whose optical properties have been changed due to sputtering, plasma etching or excimer irradiation, can be restored to its original condition by heat treating the glass in a hydrogen atmosphere. Specifically, this document describes the effect on synthetic quartz of exposure to 248 and 193 nm wavelengths. The effect of exposure to 248 and 193 nm wavelengths on fused silica is also described in xe2x80x9cDensification of Fused Silica under 193 nm excitation,xe2x80x9d by Borrelli et al, in J. Opt. Soc. Am. B/Vol. 14, No. 7, pp. 1606-1615 (July 1997); and by Allan et al., in xe2x80x9c193-nm excimer-laser-induced densification of fused silica,xe2x80x9d Optics Letters, Vol. 21, No. 24, pp. 1960-1962 (Dec. 5, 1996).
EP 0 901 989 A1 discloses a manufacturing method for making silica glass substantially free of chlorine. In a direct deposit concurrent vitrifying process silicon tetrafluoride is flame hydrolyzed to provide a silica glass in which fluorine is controlled within the range 100 ppm to 450 ppm and OH group density in the range from 600 ppm to 1300 ppm.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,326,729 discloses quartz glass having excimer laser resistance produced by subjecting the glass to dehydration treatment in a temperature range lower than the transparent vitrification temperature of the glass followed by transparent vitrification and molding to a desired shape, followed by a doping treatment in a hydrogen atmosphere.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,474,589 discloses a UV light permeable fluorine-doped synthetic quartz glass with decreased defects.
Applicants, previously have disclosed several effective methods for improving the optical properties of high purity fused silica when used as an optical lens in photolithography at both the 248 and 193 nm wavelength regions. See for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,616,159; 5,668,067 and 5,735,921 all incorporated herein by reference.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to disclose a silicon oxyfluoride glass for use as a photomask substrate at VUV wavelengths below 193 nm, preferably in the F2 Excimer Laser 157 nm region, method of making such glass, and method for characterizing such silicon oxyfluoride glass.
In the present invention we disclose silicon oxyfluoride lithography glass suitable for use as optical elements, for use as a lens or preferably for use as a photomask substrate at VUV wavelengths below 193 nm. In particular, the inventive silicon oxyfluoride glass exhibits certain properties tailored for applications in the photolithography VUV wavelength region around the 157 nm Excimer laser wavelengths and below 193 nm.
The object of the invention is achieved by use of a dry low hydroxy radical fluorine-doped SiO2 fused synthetic silicon oxyfluoride glass which exhibits very high transmittance in the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) wavelength region while exhibiting excellent thermal and physical properties. By xe2x80x9cdryxe2x80x9d we mean having an OH content below 50 ppm by weight, preferably dehydrated below 10 ppm OH by weight, and most preferably below 1 ppm by weight.
In another aspect, the object of the invention is further achieved by ensuring that the silica oxyfluoride glass is essentially free of chlorine.
In yet another aspect, the object of the invention is achieved by ensuring a low molecular hydrogen content in the glass. By this we mean that the molecular hydrogen (H2)content is below 1xc3x971017 molecules/cm3.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the detailed description which follows, and in part will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from that description or recognized by practicing the invention as described herein, including the detailed description which follows, the claims, as well as the appended drawings.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are merely exemplary of the invention, and are intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and character of the invention as it is claimed. The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various embodiments of the invention, and together with the description serve to explain the principals and operation of the invention.

Vacuum ultraviolet transmitting silicon oxyfluoride lithography glass


A disposable diaper includes: a main body having a liquid-permeable topsheet, a liquid-impermeable outer sheet an absorber provided between the topsheet and the outer sheet, and a gather. The gather includes a plurality of elastic members arranged in a width direction outboard of the absorber. The elastic members are fixed to the gather in a state where the elastic members are stretched in a longitudinal direction. A side flap is located in one of end portions of the main body in the longitudinal direction and projects outwardly beyond at least one of end portions of the main body in the width direction. A joint portion joins the side flap and the main body. In a spread-out state of the disposable diaper, an outermost elastic member among the elastic members is arranged outboard of the joint portion in the width direction.

A known open-type diaper includes a waistline member and a main body. The open-type diaper also includes fastening tapes to join the waistline member and the main body, and leakage prevention portions configured to prevent body discharge from leaking between the main body and the wearer's legs as disclosed, for example, in Published Japanese Translation of PCT International Application No. 2000-513636. Thereby, it is possible to fit the open-type diaper on the waistline of the wearer and to bring the diaper into close contact with the crotch of the wearer.
When the known disposable diaper is put on the wearer, an absorbent surface of the main body is firstly fitted to the crotch of the wearer. Subsequently, the waistline member is stretched so as to fit to the waistline of the wearer, and is then fastened to the main body with the fastening tapes.


An under hoist support stand in which the spin handle to turn the threaded support screw can be selectively engaged and disengaged from the support screw and allows the screw to be positioned along a longitudinal axis of the support stand.

This invention relates to under hoist support stands that are used to support portions of a vehicle to allow for the repair, installation, or disassembly of a component that is accessed from beneath a vehicle.
One typical prior art design for an under hoist stand includes a spin handle on a support screw which further supports the under hoist support saddle. To extend the screw, the spin handle is manually turned in a clockwise direction which will extend the support screw until the saddle touches the under vehicle part. Additional turning/tightening of the spin handle will firmly engage the saddle up against the under vehicle component and providing support. Since the retracted height of the under hoist stand is less than a typical vehicle working height of 72 inches, continuous turning of the spin handle is necessary to extend the support screw. The continuous spinning for engaging and disengaging the saddle is a time consuming process. Accordingly, there is room for improvement and variation within the art.


A method of deploying a network service across a plurality of data centers, includes the steps of: in response to a request for or relating to a network service, identifying virtual network functions associated with the network service and determining network connectivity requirements of the virtual network functions, issuing commands to provision a first virtual link between at least two of the data centers in which the virtual network functions are to be deployed, and issuing commands to provision a second virtual link to one of the data centers in which the virtual network functions are to be deployed.

An architectural framework, known as network functions virtualization (NFV), has been developed to enable the telecommunication industry to deliver network services with enhanced agility, rapid innovation, better economics and scale. The NFV platform dramatically simplifies delivery of network functions that support the network services by implementing virtual network functions (VNFs) that are delivered through software virtualization on standard hardware. As a result, network service providers have been able to quickly adapt to the on-demand, dynamic needs of telecommunications traffic and services.
A simplified block diagram of the NFV platform is illustrated in FIG. 1. The foundation of the NFV platform is network functions virtualization infrastructure (NFVI) 10 that includes a virtualization manager 20 which is management software that cooperates with hypervisors running in hosts 11 to provision virtual compute, storage and network resources, from physical hardware resources that include hosts 11, storage hardware 12, and network hardware 13.
NFVI 10 may be deployed in a multi-tenant cloud computing environment and FIG. 1 illustrates such a case where a virtualized infrastructure management software, referred to herein as virtualized infrastructure manager (VIM) 30, runs on top of virtualization manager 20 to partition the virtual compute, storage and network resources for different tenants. VIM 30 also exposes the functionality for managing the virtual compute, storage and network resources, e.g., as a set of application programming interfaces (APIs), to allow NFV orchestration software (e.g., NFV orchestrator 50) to deploy VNFs 15 through VNF managers 40 of the corresponding VNFs 15.
Using the NFV platform of FIG. 1, a network service may be provisioned according to the following process. First, NFV orchestrator 50 determines VNFs that need to be deployed to support the network service being provisioned. Then, NFV orchestrator 50 carries out the step of deploying each of the VNFs, which has two phases.
The first phase of VNF deployment is onboarding, which involves getting the VNF package from a vendor of the VNF. The VNF package includes a VNF descriptor which describes the properties of the VNF, a VNF manager, and element management system, and installing them in the NFV platform. The VNF manager is software that is executed to deploy the VNF in NFVI 10 by issuing API calls to VIM 30. As such, a different VNF manager is developed for each of different types of VIM 30 or different software versions of the same type of VIM 30. Virtualized infrastructure management software developed, released, and branded under different names are referred to herein as different "types" of VIM 30. Some examples of different types of VIM 30 are VMware vCloud Director®, OpenStack®, and Kubernetes®. The element management system is software that is executed to manage the configuration of the VNF after the VNF has been instantiated.
The second phase of VNF deployment is instantiation. After the VNF package has been installed in the NFV platform, the VNF manager of that package is executed to instantiate the virtual machines that will function as VNFs according to the requirements specified in the VNF descriptor. More specifically, the VNF manager makes API calls to VIM 30 and VIM 30 communicates with virtualization manager 20 to instantiate and configure the virtual machines that are needed for the VNF. The API call that is made to configure the virtual machines includes a pointer to the element management system. The virtual machines communicate with the element management system to receive initial configuration parameters as well as configuration changes during the lifecycle of the VNF.
To meet the speed and latency goals of 5G networks, VNFs are being deployed as close to the end users as possible. As such, 5G networks employ a far greater number of radio towers, edge compute sites, and regional compute sites than prior generation networks. Scaling a platform that supports deployment of VNFs across hundreds of compute sites to one that supports deployment of VNFs across thousands, even tens of thousands, of sites has proven to be challenging and requires improvements to the NFV platform.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Multi-site hybrid networks across cloud environments


Disclosed is a toner having an excellent transparency for full color development, which comprises a binder resin and a magenta coloring dispersed therein wherein (i) said magenta coloring agent is a quinacridone pigment, (ii) said pigment is dispersed in the binder resin in the form of fine particles and that when the toner is formed into a layer having a thickness of 0.9 .mu.m, the area occupied by the dispersed pigment in 780,000 .mu.m.sup.2 of the area of the formed surface is such that the number of dispersed pigment particles having a size of 10 to 12.5 .mu.m.sup.2 is smaller than 40 and the number of dispersed pigment particles having a size of 12.5 to 15.0 .mu.m.sup.2 is smaller than 20, and (iii) the binder resin has an electroconductivity of 1.0.times.10.sup.-9 to 5.0.times.10.sup.-9 (s/cm). The critical quantities of these dispersed particles having the above sizes differ among magenta, cyan and yellow toners. Each of these color toners has an excellent light-transmitting property, and therefore, these toners can be valuably used for the full color development where these toners are developed in the overlapped state on a transfer material to form a full color image.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a toner for the full color development where a plurality of toners are overlapped on an image on a copying sheet. More particularly, the present invention relates to a toner for the full color development, in which development characteristics and transfer characteristics are made substantially equal in the toners to be overlapped.
Furthermore, the present invention relates to magenta, cyan and yellow toners among toners for the full color development. More particularly, the present invention relates to these toners having such an excellent transparency that when these toners are mingled on an image on a transfer sheet, the respective toners can show intended colors sharply.
(2) Description of the Related Art
In the fields of the electrophotography and electrostatic printing, toners are used for visualizing electrostatic latent images formed on image carriers. In these toners, a resin having desirable electroscopic and binding properties, for example, a styrene resin or a polyester resin, is used as the resin medium, and carbon black or other organic or inorganic coloring pigment is used as the coloring agent.
The full color development in which magenta, cyan, yellow and black color toners are overlapped to form an image has been recently proposed and worked.
In this full color development, a multiple-color original is exposed to light through a color-separating filter, this operation is repeated a plurality of times by using cyan, yellow and magenta color developers and a black toner, and toner images are thus overlapped to obtain a multiple-color image. Organic pigments are used as coloring agents for cyan, yellow and magenta toners used for this full color development, and carbon black is used for a black toner.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating developing and transfer zones of an image-forming apparatus for obtaining a full color image. In this apparatus, an electrostatic latent image formed on a photosensitive drum 1 by appropriate means is visualized by a developer in any of developing devices 3a, 3b, 3c and 3d of a developing unit 2 and is then transferred by a transfer charger 5 onto a transfer material held on a transfer drum 4 by a gripper 6, from which electricity is removed by an electricity-removing charger 7. Furthermore, a toner image developed by a developer in another developing device of the devices 3a, 3b, 3c and 3d is transferred onto the transfer material by the transfer charger, and third and fourth color images are similarly transferred. Thus, a predetermined number of color images are transferred onto the transfer material held on the transfer drum 4, and the transfer material is delivered to a fixing step (not shown) to form a multiple-color image. In general, in the above-mentioned transfer step, an operation of transferring a toner of a different color onto a toner layer transferred on a transfer material is carried out. At this operation, it sometimes happens that the charge of the toner already transferred on the transfer material reduces the working transfer electric field at the transfer of the subsequent toner and therefore, an image having a desired hue cannot be reproduced. For obviating this disadvantage, there is sometimes adopted a method in which the transfer voltage is gradually elevated at the transfer step or the transfer voltage is elevated at the transfer of the third and subsequent toners where the toner layer becomes thick.
However, since behaviors of toners at the practical transfer step are delicate and complicated, even if a predetermined transfer voltage is applied and the value of the transfer voltage is elevated in the later stage, scattering of the toners or insufficient transfer is often caused because the respective color toners are different in various characteristics (such as charging characteristics and electric characteristics), and no satisfactory results can be obtained in formation of a toner image of a desirable hue.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 01-32981 proposes a method in which the quantity of the charge of a toner to be developed and transferred is made larger than the absolute value of the already developed and transferred toner to compensate the reduction of the working transfer electric field and stabilize the transfer operation. According to this method, if it is intended to adopt common development conditions (charge characteristics of the photosensitive material, the development bias voltage and the sliding contact state between the photosensitive material and the developer carrier), since toners are extremely different in the charge characteristics, development unevenness (Insufficient density of the solid portion, thickening of line and dot images and formation of toner dusts in the peripheral portion of the image area) is caused or scattering of toners is caused in the machine, and a shear in the hue and a fog are often observed in the formed image.
It is important that color toners should be excellent not only in spectral reflection characteristics but also in spectral transmission characteristics, and if this requirement is not satisfied, an image having a hue similar to the inherent color cannot be obtained. When a full color image is formed by overlapping a plurality of color toners, it is especially important that a transparency should be given to the toners. If color toners poor in the transparency are used, the colors of the toners interfere with one another and the formed image becomes dark, and it often happens that an image of a desired color cannot be obtained.
As the means for overcoming the foregoing defects, there have been proposed a method in which a specific fluorine-containing acrylic resin is used as a binder resin medium (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-273569) and a method in which an oil-soluble dye such as C.I. Solvent Yellow 60 is incorporated into a yellow toner (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-273572).
However, even if these methods are adopted, the original image hue cannot be sharply reproduced by mingling the colors, and it often happens that the formed image becomes obscure and the characteristics of colors are not effectively utilized. Therefore, the problem cannot be solved by these methods.

Method and toner for full color development


A timing control circuit to be used for a phase locked loop (PLL) wherein, a plurality of delay circuit elements capable of controlling the delay connected in series are used as a signal delay circuit, delay values of all the delay circuit elements can be changed at the same time with the delay control signals of the respective delay circuit elements being commonly connected, and the delay control signal is controlled so as to select the desired delay with the combination of a selecting circuit, a bi-directional shift register circuit, a phase detecting circuit, a shift control circuit, a delay control circuit so as to realize the wide range of timing control, thereby to provide a function of adjusting the delay of a signal delay circuit for effecting a timing control operation.

The present invention generally relates to an integrated circuit apparatus having timing control circuits for delaying inputted digital signals by a constant time under a certain control so as to output them, and more particularly, even among them, to a timing control circuit to be used when the delay of the signals is controlled dynamically in a phase locked loop (PLL).
In a microprocessor and its peripheral system having an operation frequency exceeding 40 MHz, a synchronous interface with a high bus-band-width is demanded so as to obtain a high performance. Especially when the bus clock becomes 25 ns or lower, the skew existence between an internal clock and a bus clock of the function device cannot be neglected with respect to the bus clock despite the synchronous operation of the respective function devices (especially integrated circuits) with the bus clock. The higher speed (especially retention of setup time and hold time) of the access to the memory subsystem becomes difficult to effect.
Influences upon the setup time and the hold time by the skew existence between the internal clock and the bus clock of the above described function device will be described in one example with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 11 shows the relationship between the reading data from the memory subsystem synchronized with the bus clock and the internal clock of the function device. Here all the timings are prescribed with respect to the rising edge of the bus clock. Assume that the setup time of the reading data with respect to the rising edge of the bus clock is d1, and the hold time is d2. Further, the reading data are adapted to be sampled with a rising edge of the internal clock.
When the internal clock is delayed by time d with respect to the bus clock as shown in FIG. 11 (a), the hold time with respect to the rising edge of the internal clock becomes (d2-d). When the value is deviated from the specification of the functional device, the reading data cannot be sampled correctly any more in the function device. Such a situation is caused in a function device for generating, operating the internal clock from the bus clock. Generally, the minimum value of the hold time is often prescribed to be ONs. The hold time with respect to the bus clock becomes necessary to be at least 3 through 5 ns or so if d=3 through 5 ns although it is the amount of the load of the internal clock.
When the bus clock is delayed by time d with respect to the internal clock as shown in FIG. 11 (b), the setup time with respect to the rising edge of the internal clock becomes d1-d. When the value is deviated from the specification of the functional device, the reading data cannot be sampled correctly any more in the function device. Such a situation is caused in a function device for generating the bus clock from the internal clock so as to feed it. Generally the maximum value of the setup time is desired to be 3 ns or so. The setup time with respect to the bus clock becomes necessary to be at least 5 through 10 ns or so if d=5 through 10 ns although it depends upon the size of the bus load.
A margin considering the time difference d of the internal clock with respect to the bus clock is necessary to be provided with respect to the setup time d1 and the hold time d2 of the reading data with respect to the rising edge of the bus clock. This makes it difficult to have the higher speed of the access to the memory subsystem.
In order to obtain the high performance with these clock skews being made as small as possible, the phase locked loop (PLL) for controlling the phase is used with the use of the timing control circuit with an eye to making the skew between the internal clock of the function device and the bus clock as small as possible.
One conventional example of the phase locked loop (PLL) for controlling the phase with the use of the timing control circuit will be described hereinafter with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 12 is one conventional embodiment of the phase locked loop (PLL) for controlling the phase with the use of the timing control circuit. In FIG. 12, the signal delaying circuit 30 is composed of the series connection of a plurality of delay circuit elements with the clock signals 32 being made as input signals, signals with clock signals 32 being delayed are outputted as delay clock signals 34 from the output of the respective delay circuit elements. One of these delay clock signals 34 is selected by a selecting circuit 40 and is given to an internal clock generating circuit 110. A bus control circuit 112 generates an internal bus clock 114 by an internal clock 48 to be caused. A bus clock 116 is a clock having twice a period of the clock signals 32, is inputted to the phase detecting circuit 120 together with the internal bus clock 114 so as to produce the phase control signal 122 corresponding to the phase difference. The phase control signal 122 is inputted to a shift control circuit 124, the shift control circuit 124 controls the shift operation of a bi-directional shift register circuit 50 and the bi-directional shift register circuit 50 controls the selecting circuit 40.
A signal delay circuit 30, a selecting circuit 40, a bi-directional shift register circuit 50, a bus control circuit 112, an internal clock generating circuit 110, a phase detecting circuit 120, a shift control circuit 124 compose a phase locked loop (PLL). The phase detecting circuit 120 generates a phase control signal 122 corresponding to the phase difference between the internal bus clock 114 and the bus clock 116. The shift control circuit 124 shifts the set bit of the bi-directional shift register circuit 50 with the use of the phase control signal 122. The set bit exists in the only register within the bi-directional shift register circuit 50 with the others being reset bits. The set bit and the reset bit become control signals of the selecting circuit 40 so as to select the delay clock signal 34 of the signal delay circuit 30 corresponding to the set bit. The delay 10 clock signal 34 of the signal delay circuit 30 corresponding to the reset bit is not selected. The delay of the clock signal 32 is selected so that the phase difference of the internal bus clock 114 with respect to the bus clock 116 may become minimum. For example, when the internal bus clock 114 is delayed with respect to the bus clock 116, a delay clock signal 34 which is small in delay is selected with the use of the selecting circuit 40 and the bi-directional shift register circuit 50 so as to advance the internal bus clock 114. When the internal bus clock 114 advances with respect to the bus clock 116, the delay clock signal 34 large in the delay is selected with the use of the selecting circuit 40 and the bi-directional shift register circuit 50 so as to delay the internal bus clock 114.
The controlling operation is effected so that the phase of the internal bus clock 114 may be brought into conformity with respect to the bus clock 116 so as to minimum the skew between the clocks. One realizing example of such phase locked loop (PLL) is described in "The 68040 32-b Monolithic Processor (IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits, Vol. 25, No. 5, Oct. 1990, p1178-1180)."
But the above described construction has such problems as described hereinafter.
(1) As the delay of the respective delay circuit elements for constituting the signal delay circuit 30 is constant, it is difficult to change the range and accuracy of the phase control. In order to solve the problems, it is easily supposed that the delay of the delay circuit element for constituting the signal delay circuit 30 has only to be varied so as to change the phase range and accuracy by the situation of the phase control. Unless a means of precisely grasping the situation of the phase control is realized, the range and the accuracy of the phase control cannot be change easily. PA1 (2) There is no means to know whether or not the delay necessary to the phase synchronous operation is in the delay to be controlled by the signal delay circuit 30.
(3) Two types of clock signals (bus clock and clock having frequencies twice as many as it) are used so as to simplify the phase synchronization. When only the bus clock is used (when the frequency of the bus clock itself is sufficiently high, the clock having frequency twice as many as it is hard to use), the phase of the bus clock is necessary to be delayed by 360.degree. (180.degree. when the logic has been inverted by a logic inverting circuit). To cope with the wide frequency range, the delay becomes insufficient in the signal delay circuit 30 only, thus making it impossible to effect a controlling operation.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A security kit is provided that enables retrofitting a mobile electronic device with a theft preventing security slot. The slot allows locking therein a lock head, a cable of which is attachable to an immovable object. The security kit includes a security bracket having an attachment plate with a screw hole formed therein, and having a thickened portion having a security slot formed therein. A fork-shaped screw extracting tool is used to extract from the mobile electronic device one of the body screws and then re-use it to attach the security bracket to the housing of the electronic device.

The present invention generally relates to devices for inhibiting the theft of relatively small but expensive pieces of equipment such as computers, telephones and the like. More specifically, the present invention is directed to a theft preventing bracket or tab that can be attached to certain computers, tablets and the like, which do not have a built-in security slot, in which the security slot is formed in the bracket that is in turn attached to the body of the computer by the end user.
The present invention is directed to computer security locks, security slots and security brackets of the general types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 9,549,476 and 9,476,229, the contents of which are incorporated fully by reference herein.
Since the early 1990s, computer vendors have been providing security slots in portable electronic devices almost without exception. The instant inventors aforementioned and incorporated by reference U.S. Pat. No. 9,549,476 and the prior art documents cited therein reflect the highly developed state of technology associated with security slots and locks therefor.
Nonetheless, with the shrinking size of laptops, tablets and the like, recently some computer manufacturers have developed ultrathin-body laptops, tablets and other types of mobile devices in which they have opted not to provide a security slot. Consumers of these types of devices, on the other hand, prefer and some insist on being provided with a security slot.
The present invention is generally directed to a bracket or strip-style, add-on security device, of the type disclosed in the instant inventor's aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 9,476,229 that ameliorates the problem ensuing from computer manufacturers providing laptops that lack security slots.


An idler arm bracket bearing includes a plurality of inwardly extending fingers to contact the bracket. The fingers deflect toward the bearing body as the fingers contact the bracket, thereby ensuring a full contact fit that provides a tighter joint assembly. Rib members are located between the fingers to center the bracket and limit the resilient deflection of the fingers.

Non-articulating joints are applicable to a wide range of applications, including Pitman-idler arms used in steering linkages of automotive vehicles. Exemplary joints are found in commonly-owned U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,607,249, 6,146,045 and 6,371,682, to Maughan, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. Such joints typically include a cylindrical housing member adapted to receive a bearing together with a portion of a stud or bracket. The bearing reduces the amount of friction between the housing and the bracket while frequently adapting for wear induced looseness between the stud and housing members.
Such joints have critical manufacturing features. Typically, the stud head or bracket end must be precisely machined to ensure an adequately tight joint. Further, the stud head or bracket end must be forced into the bearing. Even with such tolerances, some bearings have an undesirable looseness after assembly, particularly when very rigid, stiff, inelastic materials are used. One way to tighten the joint is to lower manufacturing tolerances of the bearing, bracket, and socket assembly. However, some looseness may be experienced with lower tolerances, manufacturing costs may increase, and wear within the joint will increase the looseness.
What is needed, therefore, is an improved idler arm socket joint that forms a tighter assembly without requiring more costly manufacturing methods.

Zero radial play idler arm bracket bearing


A method and apparatus of a device that performs a generalized moment based variation aware timing analysis on a circuit design is described. The device receives a signal path that traverses a plurality of gates. For each of the plurality of gates, the device retrieves a statistical distribution that represents delay variation at the gate. The statistical distribution for each gate is measured by a number of statistical moments that include higher order statistical moments besides the mean and the standard deviation of the distribution. The device computes statistical moments to represent the timing variation on the signal path by propagating statistical distributions of the gates on the signal path. The device reconstructs a statistical distribution function for timing variation on the signal path based on the computed statistical moments.

Continuous scaling of integrated circuits has made circuits increasingly susceptible to variations. These variations can erode timing windows, and eventually contribute to circuit failure. This has resulted in increasing interest in statistical modeling techniques that can be used to enable statistical analysis and optimization of circuit designs.
Sampling based statistical timing analysis is prohibitively expensive and difficult to construct. An efficient but still pessimistic approach known as on-chip variations (OCV) approach uses timing-derating factors on gate and wire delays. OCV imposes unrealistic performance penalty on the circuit designs. A less pessimistic approach known as parametric on chip variation (POCV) assigns each gate delay the standard deviation of its change. Hence, the probability density functions (pdf) of the gate delays are always assumed Gaussian.
The Gaussian is a poor assumption for capturing the shapes of gate delay distributions. The reason is that any Gaussian distribution has zero skewness so if the distribution of the delay through the gate is skewed, this skewness will not be captured by any Gaussian distribution. Also, the Gaussian distribution has zero peakedness (kurtosis) so it cannot capture the peakedness of the distribution. Therefore, the POCV approach cannot accurately capture the shapes of gate delay distributions. Moreover, in order to maintain the presumed Gaussian assumption, a crude approximation is applied to the maximum operation which results in pessimistic mean and standard deviation.

Generalized moment based approach for variation aware timing analysis


A micromechanical structure is described. A region of semiconductor material has a first surface, a second surface opposite to the first surface, and a lateral surface that surrounds the region of semiconductor material. Insulative material covers the first surface and the lateral surface of the region of semiconductor material to provide electrical isolation to the region of semiconductor material by forming a boundary. To form the micromechanical structure, a trench is etched in a semiconductor substrate to surround a region of the semiconductor substrate. A surface of the semiconductor substrate and the trench are oxidized to form a top oxide and a lateral oxide region. A backside of the semiconductor substrate is etched to expose a backside of the region of the semiconductor substrate and a portion of the lateral oxide.

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are systems employing electrical and mechanical technology that are fabricated using integrated circuit technology at microscopic dimensions. Micromachining processes are used to fabricate MEMS. Micromechanical devices and structures are likewise mechanical devices and structures fabricated using integrated circuit technology at a microscopic scale.
Electrically-actuated MEMS gimbaled mirrors have been designed for optical telecommunication switches for fiberoptic networks. Other MEMS devices have been used for other applications, including pressure and inertial sensing.
MEMS devices have employed electrostatic and capacitive circuits along with higher voltages, leading to problems involving shorting, leakage, parasitic capacitance, capacitive coupling, and reduced breakdown voltages, for example. Trench isolation techniques were developed to provide electrical isolation for MEMS devices to help to minimize such problems.
FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C illustrate a traditional trench isolation structure. Silicon beam 10 is comprised of two segments 12 and 14 separated by isolation joint 16. Isolation joint 16 is comprised of silicon dioxide (Si02), which is a dielectric. A layer 15 of silicon dioxide resides near the top of beam 10. A metal trace layer 11 resides over silicon dioxide layer 15 in order to provide desired electrical connections to particular portions of MEMS structures. Layers 17A and 17B reside on respective sidewalls of silicon beam 10. Layers of silicon dioxide also reside on respective sidewalls of isolation joint 16. The dielectric joint 16 provides a degree of electrical isolation between segments 12 and 14 of beam 16. Although segments 12 and 14 are electrically isolated, they are mechanically coupled via isolation joint 16.
According to one prior art technique, isolation joint 16 is formed by etching a trench in a silicon wafer and then oxidizing the silicon at high temperatures in an oxygen-rich environment. The oxidation process causes the silicon surface to form silicon dioxide. Silicon dioxide grows from the trench walls towards the center of the trench, called the nit line. Eventually the silicon dioxide growing from the two opposing side walls of the trench meets at the nit line, closing the trench opening. Beam 10 is formed by a silicon etch. Silicon dioxide is deposited on the sidewalls of beam 10 and isolation joint 16.
Sometimes degraded electrical isolation can occur with prior art trench isolation. FIG. 2A shows a cross section of silicon dioxide isolation joint 16 with silicon dioxide sidewalls 19A and 19B. Isolation joint 16 tapers near the top, shown as a slight bow shape in cross section. When the silicon wafer is etched, thick "stringers" of silicon 21A and 21B can result because of the shadowing affect of the oxide above the bowed region of isolation joint 16. Before releasing silicon beams from the substrate with an isotropic etch, sidewall oxide layers 19A and 19B are deposited. The sidewall oxide layers on isolation joint 16 protect the underlying structures from being destroyed during a release etch, but also shield the stringers from being etched. The stringers of silicon sometimes wrap around the sides of isolation joint 16. The stringers of silicon are conductive, so they can form a parasitic conductive path around isolation joint 16.
Any exposed silicon on the oxide isolation joint 16 away from the oxide sidewalls is etched during the release etch. Therefore, silicon stringers sometimes go around the sides of isolation joint 16, but generally not under the bottom of isolation joint 16.
FIG. 2B shows a variation of the problem, with thin stringers of silicon 23A and 23B on isolation joint 16. Stringers 23A and 23B are generated from an inductively coupled plasma ("ICP") etch process. Because of alternating deposition-etch procedures, small silicon scallops 23A and 23B can result, each one being a stringer.
Because of the stringer problem, when voltages above 50 volts are used with certain prior art trench isolation, the electrical isolation can degrade and allow currents on the order of microamps. When trench isolation is used on a gimbaled MEMS mirror that is part of an array of MEMS mirrors in an optical telecommunications switch, that level of electrical conduction can be sufficient to disrupt the operation of the mirror array. Degraded electrical isolation can be especially problematic at voltages above 100 volts for a MEMS mirror array.

Boundary isolation for microelectromechanical devices


A system for providing pictures responding to users' remote control is an system for providing digital picture signals of respective programs specified by operation signals from external communication lines. The system comprises a line control equipment for connecting each communication line to its corresponding internal signal line among plural internal signal lines, and plural picture providing equipments connected to the plural internal signal lines, respectively.. Each picture providing equipment comprises plural picture storing/reproducing equipments, an operation signal analysis equipment for analyzing the operation signals, and a picture output equipment for making the picture storing/reproducing equipment storing the pictures of specified program output the picture signals of the program, to the line control equipment through the internal signal line.

The present invention relates to a system for providing pictures responding to users' remote control, and more particularly a system for transmitting digital picture data of pictures of one or plural items to external communication lines individually, according to operation signals inputted by users and transmitted to the system through the communication lines, as command signal for specifying the pictures and setting the operation mode of picture reproducing equipments storing picture signals of the pictures.
Television and cable television have been put to practical use as systems capable of providing various kinds of moving pictures to distant areas through the communication lines.
Since the television broadcasting stations only provide their programs uniformly over the country, users can not watch pictures of their desirous category, such as movies, sports, news, etc., whenever they want. On the other hand, the cable television has been widely spreading, particularly in U.S.A. Since there are provided many cable television broadcasting channels, each of which provides a program of a specific category, users can select their desirous program. However, to enjoy watching the cable television program, users have to run a communication cable, and pay its expensive subscription and service fee. In addition, in the early stage a few cable television channels are available, the users can not watch their desirous program whenever they want, much less their favorite pictures of one or more items. (for example, movies, sports, news, etc.)

System for providing pictures responding to users' remote control


A liquid ejecting system includes a liquid ejecting device, a liquid storing container, a tube, and a rotation section. The liquid ejecting device is configured and arranged to eject liquid. The liquid storing container is configured and arranged to store the liquid that is supplied to the liquid ejecting device. The tube has flexibility, is provided between the liquid storing container and the liquid ejecting device, and is configured and arranged to supply the liquid, which is in the liquid storing container, to a side of the liquid ejecting device. The rotation section rotatably supports the liquid storing container with respect to the liquid ejecting device. The tube extends toward the side of the liquid ejecting device from a side of the liquid storing container through a passage provided in the rotation section.

Technical Field
The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting system.
Related Art
Conventionally, an ink-jet printer is well-known as an example of a liquid ejecting device. In the ink-jet printer, a printing can be performed to a print medium such as a paper by ejecting the ink, which is an example of liquid, from an ejecting head. In such ink-jet printer, conventionally, a structure that the ink stored in a tank, which is an example of a liquid storing container, is supplied to an ejecting head is well-known (see Japanese Laid-open Patent Application Publication No. 2012-51328 as an example). In this tank, an ink inlet is provided. The user can refill the ink from the ink inlet to the tank. Hereinafter, the structure that the liquid storing container such as a tank, etc. is mounted in the liquid ejecting device such as the ink-jet printer, etc. is represented as a liquid ejecting system.
In the ink-jet printer described in the aforementioned Japanese Laid-open Patent Application Publication No. 2012-51328, it is convenient if the mechanism that changes a position of a tank case, which stores a plurality of tanks, is provided. When such mechanism is provided, it is possible to reduce the inconvenience such that the posture or the position of the tank case is changed by removing the tank case from the ink-jet printer.
In the aforementioned ink-jet printer, when the position of the tank case is changed in the refill position, a connecting tube for connecting between the tank and the ejecting head is exposed. In the structure that the connecting tube is exposed, for example, when the position of the tank case is changed, there is a possibility for an occurrence that the connecting tube is pinched between the tank case and the ink-jet printer. When such problem occurs, it may be considered that the supply of the ink from the tank to the ejecting head is interfered, or the connecting tube is broken and the ink leaks.
When such problem occurs, the function of the ink-jet printer cannot be demonstrated, and the reliability of the ink-jet printer is deteriorated. For this reason, there is a problem that it is difficult to improve the reliability of the conventional liquid ejecting system.