A pallet container (10). having a thin-walled rigid internal container (12) including a thermoplastic plastics material, a tubular lattice frame (14), as a supporting jacket tightly enclosing the plastics-material internal container (12), and a rectangular base pallet (16) on which the plastics-material internal container (12) bears and to which the tubular lattice frame (14) is fixedly connected. cuboid plastics-material internal container (12) has a protective-housing-shaped molding (26 and a cuboidal flexible inliner (28) including a plastics-material film is inserted in the rigid plastics-material internal container (12), the inliner at the top being connected to the filling connector (30) and at the bottom being connected to the removal connector (32) with removal fitting (24) of the rigid plastics-material internal container (12). The cuboid-shaped flexible inliner (28) in the lower removal region has a corresponding wall recess (34)—having a flexible removal connector (42) molded thereon.

Pallet containers, or IBCs, respectively, are extensively used in the chemical industry, mainly for transporting liquid chemicals. The majority of these chemical products is classified as hazardous liquid filling material because they are a risk to the health of humans and animals and to the environment in a concentrated form. During storage and transportation in IBCs, the chemicals may stress, such as discolour, contaminate, or damage, the HDPE material of the plastics-material internal containers in such a manner that the used internal containers cannot simply be washed and reused. In the case of a usual multiple use of used IBCs, the only remaining option is the replacement of the damaged plastics-material internal container with a new internal container. Considering that a plastics-material internal container, depending on the list of requirements, may weigh approx. 14 kg to 18 kg, this however represents a costly solution involving a not insignificant waste of plastics material. Another more cost-effective solution lies in protecting the plastics-material internal container by means of an inserted thin inliner, or film bag, respectively, against any contamination by the respective filling material, and on account thereof enabling multiple reuse or repeated use, respectively, of the internal container. In this instance, only the contaminated inliner needs to be disposed of, said inliner for a 1000 liter IBC, depending on the film thickness, merely having a weight of approx. 0.7 to 1.3 kg in terms of the plastics-material mass thereof, and a new inliner has to be inserted in order for the IBC to be reused.
Inserting thin-walled film bags, or inliners, respectively, into rigid box-shaped external containers, such as large rigid cardboard boxes or cardboard sleeves (referred to as bag in box) is a measure that has been usual for years. However, only cylindrical, cuboid, or cushion-shaped inliners of simple construction have always been available for square-shaped or rectangular-shaped external containers. Said inliners may be used without problems for containers that have an externally located removal system. Said simple inliners cannot readily be used for pallet containers, or IBCs, respectively, having blow-molded stiff or rigid plastics-material internal containers, respectively, having a protective housing that is molded inwardly into the internal container for a recessed removal fitting that is protected from external influences, because they during handling in the case of installation, filling, removal, and removal from the rigid IBC internal container consistently lead to problems. There is in particular inevitably a formation of creases in the region about the lower removal connector.
The use of a thin film-like inliner in a rigid plastics-material internal container having a molded protective hosing for the removal fitting of a usual pallet container is known from publication EP 2 090 528 A1 (Pro/Sch). The focus herein, inter alia, is on securely fixing the thin-walled inliner removal connector in the rigid removal connector of the plastics-material internal container with the aid of the screwed-on removal fitting. In this case, the front periphery of the thin tubular film, using a sealing flange and a sealing lip, is jammed at the end side by an annular shoulder in the housing screw nut of the removal fitting on the threaded sleeve (having an external thread) that is welded to the bottle removal fitting. However, when the housing screw nut is placed ready for screwing, the periphery of the thin tubular film that is folded over can no longer be tightly held and no longer be seen; said folded-over periphery may easily slide out of place herein or even be imparted creases. Small pimples on the film periphery and respective depressions in the end wall of the threaded sleeve are intended to counteract this. In any case, fixing and securing the inliner removal connector against rotation is performed only by clamping, once the thread of the housing screw nut has been completely tightened. It has to be ensured at the same time that the opening lever of the removal fitting is exactly in the vertical position.
In the case of another large container that is known from U.S. Pat. No. 6,55,657 B1 (Var), the undesirable formation of creases in the region of the protective housing of the removal fitting within the plastics-material internal container has been identified as disadvantageous, and the thin-walled removal connector of the inliner as a supposedly suitable countermeasure has not been positioned in the base-side proximity of the inliner front wall but rather close to the front-side periphery of the lower base of the cuboid-shaped inliner. Upon insertion of the inliner into the rigid internal container of the IBC, the front-side periphery of the lower base is then folded up in a rectangular manner, and the thin-walled removal connector of the inliner is guided through the rigid removal connector of the internal container and fixed. On account thereof however, the inliner cannot bear on the front wall of the internal container in a fully planar manner, and free spaces or cavities, respectively, remain below the inliner, laterally next to the protective housing of the internal container. As the filling of the IBC is increased, the inliner is of course pressed onto the protective housing and, laterally next thereto, onto the base of the rigid internal container. Herein, the inliner is here too inevitably withdrawn from the lateral corner regions of the rigid internal container, and the formation of creases by the thin-walled inliner arises here too, even if this arises rather toward either side and no longer directly in front of the outlet opening of the removal connector. The problem of the formation of creases is thus also not completely solved here either.
In the case of all known IBCs, the thin-walled inliners by way of the lower flexible removal connector thereof are fastened to the lower rigid removal connector and at the top by way of the flexible filling connector of the former to the upper rigid filling connector of the plastics-material internal container, otherwise being freely suspended from top to bottom. When filling the pallet container, irrespective of this being from the top or from below in the case of a so-called "base filling", the liquid filling material is most often filled into the inliner at still increased process temperatures under pressure, or by way of a sharp jet. Intense fluttering of the film material often arises herein. The inliner base is withdrawn from the container corners, forming creases which later may block the base-side removal opening during a removal of filling material. Depending on the filling level, the inliner together with the liquid content thereof by virtue of the external transportation rocking motions acting thereon wobbles back and forth in the plastics-material internal container such that tensile stresses that are often variable act on the upper filling connector of the inliner, the film material potentially ripping. In order to obviate this phenomenon, expensive stress-resistant film materials have to be used in the production of the inliner. Composite films having advanced barrier properties unfortunately have only a very poor resistance to stress, and cannot be employed in many applications.


A method for extending markup supported by a browser can include a step of identifying a browser that presents information written in a markup language. An extender can be identified that includes at least one extension to the markup language that the browser does not normally support. The extender can be loaded resulting in the markup language supported by the browser being extended to include the extension.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of browser design and, more particularly, to a browser that uses a plug-in framework to extend a supported markup language.
2. Description of the Related Art
A browser is a program that audibly or visually renders documents based upon a markup language. A common type of browser is a Web browser that renders hypertext-markup language (HTML) based documents. HTML documents are often served by a Web server to clients over a network utilizing a packet based protocol. As used herein, the term HTML based document is used generally to refer to any document based on markup languages derived from HTML, such as an Extensible Markup Language (XML) document, a Voice extensible Markup Language (VoiceXML) document, a WML document, and the like.
Conventional Web browsers are able to utilize Web plug-ins, which are small pieces of code that extend a Web browser. Conventional plug-ins allow users of the Web browser to view media types other than HTML and images. There are hundreds of plug-ins that enable Web users to use a plethora of multimedia formats, including audio and video. Common examples of Web plug-ins include flash plug-ins for enabling MACROMEDIA FLASH objects, JAVA plug-ins, and portable document format (PDF) plug-ins for permitting browser users to view and manipulate PDF based documents within a browser.
Conventional browsers and browser plug-ins fail to extend the markup language supported by the markup browser. Instead, conventional markup plug-ins are based upon standard HTML documents and standard markup language constraints. Consequently, plug-in designers often construct complex scripts, JAVA applets, or use the <object> markup tag in an attempt to compensate for a lack of a desired markup language extension. Because every mainstream browser has browser specific idiosyncrasies, designers must conduct exhaustive script testing against different browsers. It is typical for a plug-in to first identify a browser that the plug-in is executing within and then to execute different code depending on the browser being used.
Another alternative that is used by developers to extend a markup language is to require users to use a proprietary browser, specifically designed to include a markup extension. Constructing a proprietary browser is a complex and costly task, especially when the desired feature or language extension is for a relatively minor, yet significant, feature. Additionally, reliance upon proprietary browsers greatly limits the marketability of a product. Consumers want to use a Web browser with which they are familiar that has been customized to their preferences and are reluctant to adopt a proprietary browser, especially when that browser is only used to access information from a single content source.
What is needed is a mechanism for extending a markup language so that new tags, language features, and the like can be specified and used without requiring browser source code to be modified. Such a mechanism would allow developers to more easily construct markup applications. For instance, designers could extend the markup language using the proposed mechanism instead of relying upon "work arounds" based upon language constrained scripts.
The proposed mechanism could also be used to enhance a user's browsing experience. For instance, using the mechanism to extend a browser's supported markup language would result in integrated extensions that more closely conform to user perceived "standards."
To illustrate, users commonly are confused when viewing PDF documents within a browser because buttons and features specific to the "PDF" plug-in must be used instead of standard browser buttons and features. For example, the find, copy, cut, and paste features of the browser are not enabled for a PDF document contained within a browser that uses a standard PDF plug-in. Instead, plug-in specific buttons and functions must be used/selected by a user wanted to perform functions, such as find, copy, cut, and paste. Implementing plug-ins in a fashion that prevents users from using browser buttons/functions results in user confusion and frustration. No known solutions permit developers to extend a browser's supported markup language at runtime.

Extending markup of a browser using a plug-in framework

International Business Machines Corporation


A medical image processing apparatus, comprises a landmark identification unit configured to process a medical image data set to identify a landmark corresponding to a part of a branching structure according to a stored anatomical representation, and a spatial analysis unit configured to process the image data set to determine a spatial configuration of at least part of the branching structure.

Vascular analysis is a common clinical application of image analysis technology. For example, it is known to use image analysis technology for the analysis of three-dimensional (3D) image data of a vascular structure acquired using Computed Tomography (CT) or Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques. According to known techniques, identification of different branches of the vascular structure can be performed manually, for example by manually identifying the extremities of each branch. Subsequently, an algorithm is implemented, which determines the path of each branch from the 3D image data to provide quantitative 3D information for each branch. It is also known to manually label the different branches of the vascular structure.
However, manual identification and labelling of different branches of a vascular can be time-consuming and can, in particular, prevent the provision of quantitative spatial information in real-time or near real-time as may be required when performing an invasive diagnostic procedure such as a CT Angiogram (CTA) or a Magnetic Resonance Angiogram (MRA) or when performing a percutaneous intervention, for example, when performing angioplasty or when deploying a stent.
Detecting, tracking, labelling and segmentation of vascular structures and other branching structures is difficult. Known methods for automatically identifying a vascular structure in a patient generally rely upon a comparison of 3D image data of the vascular structure with 3D image data of corresponding vascular structures in other patients or upon registering a 3D image data set with a typical 3D image data set from an anatomical atlas. Some known methods of labelling a vascular structure rely upon specific tree labelling algorithms, for example based upon determining a topology of the vascular structure and then comparing the determined topology of the vascular structure with a typical topology of the vascular structure.
Tracking of vascular structures, or other branching structures can present particular difficulties when the part of the branching structure is distal from the root of the branching structure, for example terminal vessels arising from remote branching points. Such distal parts of the branching structure are usually narrower than main parts of the branching structure nearer the root, making them harder to detect and track.
The tracking and identification of such sub-branches can, nevertheless, be important, for example for inspection of vessels for pathology (for example, artherosclerosis, stenoses, aneurysms), measurement of pathology (for example, vessel diameter in the cases of stenosis) and treatment planning (for example, stent insertion, catheter access).

Vascular tree from anatomical landmarks and a clinical ontology


A hair treatment composition comprising from 0.00001 to 0.01 % by weight of a perfluoropolyether material.

The present invention relates to hair-treatment compositions, and more particularly to shampoos or conditioning compositions which comprise a perfluoropolyether material.
It is known that oils can provide conditioning benefits such as ease of combing of wet or dry hair, soft feel and improved shine. Generally, however, these materials are only effective at high levels.
The use of perfluoropolyethers of the formula EQU F(C.sub.3 F.sub.6 O--).sub.n --C.sub.2 F.sub.5
where n is from 4 to 500, in cosmetics is disclosed in JP 63 10 79 11 (Shiseido).
EP 360 292 (AUSIMONT) relates to the use of 0.01 to 20% by weight of perfluoropolyethers having perfluoroalkyl end groups in foam baths, cleansing milks, bath oils and liquid soaps for the treatment of seborrhea.

Chesebrough-Pond's USA Co., Division of Conopco, Inc.


Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method, an apparatus and a system for controlling access points. The method includes: receiving load information on working APs in a coverage area; judging a current overall capacity of the coverage area according to the load information; and controlling APs in the coverage area according to a judgment result. A network management server includes a first receiving module, a first judgment module, and a first control module. The system includes the network management server, working APs, and non-working APs. The embodiments of the present invention also provide another method for controlling APs, a primary working AP, and a system for controlling APs. In the embodiments of the present invention, APs in the same coverage area are automatically controlled to turn on or off according to the service traffic; resources are utilized rationally; labor costs are saved; and the work efficiency is improved.

With the rapid development of a wireless network technology, a Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) technology, as a short distance wireless communication technology, has been widely favored by users based on its advantages such as high transmission speed and long effective distance. An AP, as a bridge for connecting a wireless network and a wired network, is the core of the wireless network, and its main function is to connect wireless network clients together and then to connect the wireless network to the wired network, for example, the Ethernet. Currently, the AP has become one of the main approaches to wireless Internet access for users, and APs are configured in many public places such as airport lounges and cafes.
Currently, a bandwidth for wireless Internet access using the AP may be up to 54 Mbps. The coverage of the AP is usually 100 meters, and this range may accommodate thousands of people and even ten thousand people. However, if 1000 users access Internet through one AP at the same time, the bandwidth assigned to each user is only 54 Kbps. As a result, the users access Internet at a very low speed and even cannot enjoy multimedia services. Meanwhile, if the number of users within the same coverage area is relatively small, and when multiple APs covering the area is turned on at the same time, superfluous APs inevitably cause unnecessary power consumption. Therefore, it is required to implement control over APs according to actual situations. When service traffic is relatively large, it is required to turn on other APs to provide sufficient bandwidth for each user; and when service traffic is relatively small, it is required to turn off a certain AP or some APs, so as to save the unnecessary power consumption caused by the superfluous APs. In the prior art, the APs are controlled to be turned on or off manually, so that the APs in the same coverage area can be controlled. However, such a manner needs to make real-time statistics on the number of users and the working condition of the APs in the area manually, and APs cannot be controlled to be turned on or off automatically, resulting in higher labor costs and affecting the work efficiency.

Method, apparatus and system for controlling access points


Lock comprising a rotary latch and a pawl for retaining the latch; external opening control rod and internal opening control rod for acting on the pawl by way of an intermediate lever and an electric drive. The intermediate lever has one end connected to the pawl. The lever being articulated in such a way as to be able to pivot at least about two different axes forming an angle between them. A pivoting of the lever about a first direction permits the locking function to be performed, a pivoting of the lever about the second direction permits the child safety function to be performed, and a combined pivoting of the lever about the first and second directions permits the double-locking function to be performed, so that the electric drive has only to control two movements in order to execute the three functions: locking, child safety and double-locking.

The invention relates to an electric lock for a vehicle door, of the type comprising:
a rotary latch, able to engage with a striker, and a pawl for retaining the latch in the closed position; PA1 external opening control means and internal opening control means for acting on the pawl, by way of connection means, and releasing the latch for opening; PA1 and electric drive means for inhibiting: either the external opening control means alone (locking function); or the internal opening control means alone (child safety function); or both the external opening control means and the internal opening control means (double-locking function). PA1 electric drive means able to rotate a plate; PA1 and a link rod pivoted at one of its ends on the plate and equipped, at its other end, with an actuator actuating means able to bring the latch into the complete closed position in response to the rotation of the plate.
In brief, the locking function makes it possible to prevent opening of the lock from outside the vehicle; the child safety function makes it possible to prevent opening of the lock from inside the vehicle, while the double-locking function makes it possible to prevent opening of the lock both from outside and from inside the vehicle, so that even by smashing the window of the door, it is not possible to open this door.
The electric locks known to date use a different electric motor for each function mentioned above; three electric motors are therefore needed to perform the three functions.


A body frame for mounting to a base frame of a vehicle includes a body mount assembly including an aluminum, tubular cross member having an inner passage and an aluminum collar support received in the inner passage for supporting the tubular cross member once it is coupled to the base frame of the vehicle. The collar support member has a multi-hollows design including an inner and outer, cylindrically-shaped portions and a plurality of equi-angularly spaced, radially extending walls interconnecting the inner and outer portions for providing the body mount the required flexibility during assembly and the required structural support and performance during vehicle use.

The present disclosure generally relates to vehicles and, more particularly, relates to an aluminum body mount support for an aluminum frame that better accommodates build variation and meets the required strength and performance requirements while being more cost and mass efficient.
Generally, it is known to use a vehicle body mount structure for coupling a body of the vehicle to a frame. It is generally known to use a connecting structure including a hollow member or a half-hollow member for coupling or mounting a vehicle body to a frame. In one example of a known vehicle body mount, a bolt and a nut are used for fixing or coupling the hollow member to a cross frame member to form a vehicle body mount. In one generally known construction of such a vehicle body mount formed using steel materials, a generally round tubular collar is located within a generally hollow, square cross-section, tubular cross member including holes aligned with the collar for receiving the bolt there through and forming the vehicle body mount. The collar of the vehicle body mount is used to transfer forces between the sides of the hollow, square tubular cross-section cross member. While such a steel material vehicle body mount or coupling is known, an attempt to use the same construction in an aluminum material has proven not possible as the vehicle body mount fails to perform its required functions and to meet required testing performance criteria.


A tri-ball trailer hitch coupler lock has three differently sized ball substitute members. A lanyard extends in two directions off a portion which adjoins the ball substitute members, with mating portions of a lock permanently attached to each free end of the lanyard. One portion of the lock terminates in a pin sized to fit in the latch pin opening of the coupler, and the other portion of the lock is matably lockable onto the pin after the pin has been extended through the coupler pin opening. The lanyard preferably passes through an opening in the adjoinment portion offset from the center.

The present application relates locks for trailer hitches and similar equipment towable by a ball hitch. Trailers and many similar and other products are commonly towable by a towing vehicle using a ball hitch. The trailer commonly includes a coupler which extends around and/or over the ball mounted off the back of the towing vehicle. When the trailer or other equipment is not being towed, it is decoupled from the ball.
With ball hitches being so common, if left otherwise unlocked, it is relatively easy for a thief to couple his or her own towing vehicle with ball hitch to any unattended trailer. Thus, locks for trailer hitch couplers are common. Examples of such locks are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,233,913, 5,222,755, 6,644,071, D488,110 6,722,686, 7,107,799, 7,121,121, 7,543,838 and 7,469,919, 8,020,885, 8,151,605 and 9,352,625, all incorporated by reference for their teachings of trailer tongues and couplers used with towing balls. However, these various locks are expensive and lacking to various degrees.
One particular disadvantage—not readily apparent to many users until after the problem occurs—is that the hitch locks are usually sized for a single size of coupler, and thus cannot be used to lock any of several differently sized couplers which may be owned by the user. For instance, different hitch ball diameters of 1⅞ inch, 2 inch and 2 5/16 inch are all commonly used in the U.S., with couplers appropriately sized for the intended ball diameter. If a hitch lock is sized for a single size of coupler, then the user must know which size of hitch lock to purchase, increasing the rate of return of purchased hitch locks. And the user cannot later use the hitch lock for a different size should the user later change to a differently sized hitch ball. Another particular disadvantage of many of these solutions is that they are provided as multiple separate parts or used with a separate padlock, requiring the user to keep all the separate parts stored when not in use without losing any. The multiple parts then require the user to hold and assemble the multiple parts together for usage. Better trailer hitch coupler locks are needed.


Methods and compositions for determining the duration of a cell cycle phase of a mammalian cell, as well as identification of the cell cycle stage of fixed mammalian cells, are provided. In practicing the subject methods, at least one biosensor polypeptide that monitors a cell-cycle phase in a mammalian cell, such as mitosis, G1, S, or G2 phase, is used to determine the duration of a cell-cycle phase of a mammalian cell. Also provided are methods for identifying an agent (e.g., a gene product or small molecule compound) that modulates the duration of a cell-cycle phase of a mammalian cell, as well as kits and systems for practicing the subject methods.

Progression through the cell cycle is the result of a highly regulated series of events in four defined phases. In the DNA synthesis phase (the S phase) the cell duplicates its DNA, which is followed by a gap phase (the G2 phase) in which the cell grows and prepares itself for mitosis. During mitosis (M phase) the cell divides its DNA and all of its contents into two separate daughter cells. Another gap phase (the G1 phase) follows mitosis and precedes the S phase. During the G1 phase cellular components are checked for repair, including DNA, prior to progressing into S phase. The majority of variability in the timing of the cell cycle is accounted for by differences in the rate of passage through G1. Progression though G1 is primarily dependent upon receiving and processing external and internal signals, as well as monitoring of cellular activity. The other cell cycle phases are generally autonomously programmed events, which while normally insulated from extracellular growth signals, are still susceptible to the misregulation of proteins disrupting the checkpoints within the cell cycle phase.
Since cell duplication relies on accurate chromosome separation, mitosis is thought to be one of the most tightly regulated cellular processes. Cells have solved the fidelity problem in part by relying on a sequential processing strategy that involves timing of individual cell cycle steps and on checkpoints that monitor the completion of different cell cycle phases (Ekholm et al., Mol. Cell. Biol. 21, 3256-65 (2001); Elledge et al., Science 274, 1664-72 (1996)). For example, during mitosis, the spindle checkpoint ensures the correct alignment and spindle attachment of sister chromatids (Musacchio et al., Nature Rev. Mol. Cell Biol. 3, 731-41 (2002); Yu, Curr. Opin. Cell Biol. 14, 706-714 (2002)). Failures at this critical checkpoint lead to genetic instability, which is a hallmark of cancer and is correlated with aggressive tumor behavior (e.g., unregulated cellular proliferation).
Techniques such as immunohistochemistry and FACS analysis have provided valuable information for understanding cell-cycle events. However, since these methods provide snapshots of single cells that are usually synchronized (e.g., arrested at the same cell cycle phase prior to analysis), temporal resolution of specific cell cycle phases (e.g., mitosis) at the single cell level is difficult. Phase contrast, differential interference contrast (DIC) or fluorescence imaging of live mitotic cells eliminates some of these problems, and has been used to measure mitotic times of individual cells. Nevertheless, observing mitotic timing in statistically significant cell numbers remains a challenge.
Accordingly, there remains a need in this art for systems and methods for monitoring cell cycle events, including methods for screening agents for use in treating cell cycle associated diseases, such as cancer. The present invention addresses this need.

Live-cell biosensor polypeptides and methods of use

The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University


A visual server system (10) includes a visual server (12) that provides graphics images through execution of a graphics application (20). The graphics images are compressed by a compression unit (63) according to compression modules (28). The server can detect an event associated with any of the graphics images. Upon detecting the event, the server generates a message that controls the compression unit (63) and the compression modules (28) in compressing the graphics images. Compression of the graphics images is adjusted according to the message generated by the server (12). The message is also provided to the appropriate decompression unit (72) and decompression modules (42) in order to control decompression of the graphics images. In this manner, dynamic control of compression and decompression of an image stream are achieved.

Interframe compression poses some structural difficulties in a visual serving environment. Visual serving usually involves providing multiple visuals through one interframe compressor and decompressor implementation. However, the different visuals may have different compression/decompression ratios. Conventional visual serving systems cannot handle such a situation in a single compressor/decompressor implementation. Interframe calculations may also be affected by resizing of a visual. Conventional visual serving systems do not have a capability to handle visual resizing in an interframe compression implementation. Moreover, termination of a visual may cause problems with respect to the interframe compression. There are many other classes of problems related to visual compression that are not addressed by conventional visual serving systems. Therefore, it is desirable to provide an ability to handle interframe compression issues with respect to the serving of multiple visuals.

System and method for providing dynamic control of a graphics session


Circuits, methods, and apparatus that provide bootstrapped switches having improved reliability. One example improves the reliability of a discharge transistor connected to discharge the gate of a switch transistor by decreasing its operating voltage during the discharge. This example provides a discharge transistor having a first source-drain region connected to a gate of a switch transistor. Since the gate of the switch transistor can reach high voltages, if the discharge transistor's second source-drain region is instantaneously tied to ground when the switch's gate is discharged, the discharge transistor's reliability can be degraded due to hot-electron effects. Accordingly, instead of being connected to ground—or an intermediate node that quickly reaches the ground potential during gate discharge—the second source-drain region of the discharge transistor is coupled to an intermediate node that discharges to ground at a slower rate.

Switches are a useful building block that finds applications in many types of integrated circuits. When combined with a capacitor to form a switched capacitor they can be used to provide a circuit having resistive electrical characteristics. Common uses for switched capacitors include switched capacitor filters, integrators, sigma-delta modulators for analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converters, and others.
Switched capacitors are efficiently implemented using MOSFET transistors. In fact, switched capacitor circuits have become much more popular with the increasing use of MOSFETs in analog and mixed signal applications.
Switches formed using one device typically have a first source-drain region connected to the input, a second source-drain region connected to the output, and a gate that is selectively tied to one of two voltage levels, for example, it may be grounded or connected to a supply voltage. In this configuration, the gate-to-source voltage of the transistor forming the switch is dependent on the input voltage. When the switch is an n-channel transistor and is conducting, the gate-to-source voltage decreases with increasing input voltage.
This change in gate-to-source voltage changes the series resistance of the switch, that is, the resistance of the switch is dependent on the input voltage begin switched. This nonlinearity can limit circuit performance in many applications. Accordingly, bootstrapped switches are used, where the gate voltage for the switch increases with input voltage such that the switch's gate-to-source voltage is maintained.
This configuration requires that a transistor used to discharge the switch's gate voltage to ground sustain a very high drain-to-source voltage. This can create hot-electron problems, which can reduce the discharging transistor's lifetime. For example, hot carriers can be injected into a gate of a transistor thereby changing the transistor's threshold voltage over time.
Accordingly, what is needed are circuits, methods, and apparatus that provide bootstrapped switches having improved reliability.

Highly linear bootstrapped switch with improved reliability


A suspension lift mechanism is described for use with sport utility vehicles. Such sport utility vehicles have a pair of frame rails which have a plurality of suspension attachments positioned thereon. The elements of a suspension system are usually mounted on said suspension attachments. The suspension lift mechanism includes a pair of rear brackets consisting of a rear frame extension which has an upper surface adapted to mate with the lower surface of the frame rail. The rear frame extension has a plurality of suspension attachments positioned thereon and is mounted to a frame rail. A pair of front brackets consists of a front frame extension which has an upper surface of the front frame extension adapted to mate with the lower surface of the frame rail. The front frame extension has a plurality of suspension attachments positioned thereon and is mounted to the frame rail.

Lift brackets are used to install suspension parts in a lower position on a vehicle's frame to provide a higher ground clearance for said vehicle. The use of lift brackets allows a vehicle to clear higher obstacles thereby enhancing off road driving capabilities. Further, the use of lift brackets is considered to increase the aesthetics of the vehicle employing the lift brackets.
However, due to the unique nature of the suspension system of an off-road vehicle, no such lift brackets are available for those brands of vehicles. Thus, there is a need for a lift bracket suitable for use on off-road vehicles.


A catalyst filling method in a micro channel and a reformer manufactured by the method. The catalyst is filled in the micro channel using water, and unidirectional pressure is applied to the catalyst in the micro channel to fill the micro channel with high density. The catalyst in the micro channel is dried. The method according to the present invention allows uniformly filling the catalyst particles in the micro channel of the reformer with high density, increasing the reactive surface area of the catalyst particles with the fuel, thereby allowing highly efficient reforming effect.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a catalyst filling method in a micro channel and a reforming apparatus manufactured by the method. More particularly, the invention relates to a catalyst filling method in a micro channel, which fills the catalyst for reforming fuel in a microchannel more effectively, uniformly and densely using water and gravity, thereby obtaining a highly efficient reforming effect and achieving miniaturization of a fuel cell, and to a reforming apparatus manufactured by the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, there have been increased uses of portable small-sized electronic devices including mobile phones, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), digital cameras, notebook computers and the like. In particular, since the launch of Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) through the mobile phones, the portable small-sized terminals are required to have increased power capacity. Lithium ion secondary batteries used in general to date, which have capacity for two-hour viewing of DMB, are undergoing efforts to improve their capacity, but there have been growing expectations on small-sized fuel cells for a more fundamental solution.
In order to realize such a small-sized fuel cell, either direct methanol type in which methanol is directly supplied to a fuel electrode or reformed hydrogen fuel cell (RHFC) type in which hydrogen is extracted from methanol and supplied to a fuel electrode can be adopted. The RHFC type uses hydrogen as fuel as in Polymer Electrode Membrane (PEM) type, thus having advantages in terms of output, power capacity per volume and in that it requires no reactants besides water. However, the method requires a reformer, thus having a disadvantage for miniaturization.
In order for the fuel cell system to achieve high power output density, a reformer is required to convert liquid fuel into gaseous fuel such as hydrogen gas. The reformer includes an evaporating part for gasifying methanol and a reforming part for converting methanol into hydrogen via catalytic reaction at a temperature ranging from 250° C. to 290° C.
In the reforming part, heat absorption reaction takes place and the temperature should be maintained from 250° C. to 290° C.
As a conventional example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-048701 discloses are forming apparatus 350 as shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, such a conventional micro reforming apparatus 350 has an inner cavity 354 in an evaporating chamber 352 and a heater 356 disposed in the cavity 354 for evaporating fuel. The cavity 354 has a fuel spray 358 installed therein to spray a mixed liquid 360 of methyl alcohol and water, which is the fuel. The sprayed mixed liquid fuel 360 is heated and evaporated by the heater 356.
The gas produced by gasifying the mixed liquid 360 flows through a micro channel 362 and is reformed into hydrogen and carbon dioxide by a reforming catalyst 364 formed in the micro channel 362. In such a reformer 350, reforming catalyst 364 is coated inside the micro-channel 362.
FIG. 2 illustrates the process of coating the reforming catalysts inside the micro channel of the above-described reforming apparatus.
The most representative way of implementing such a process is dip coating, which entails as shown in FIG. 2(a) forming Ta—Si—O—N to form a thin film heater 402 and sputtering Au to form an electrode layer 404, sequentially on a silicon wafer 400.
In addition, as shown in FIG. 2(b), patterns are formed on the thin film heater 402 and the electrode layer 404, respectively, by photolithography. Then, an insulation film 406 is formed as shown in FIG. 2(c), and a photoresist is formed on an opposite side of the silicon wafer 400 by photolithography.
In addition, as shown in FIG. 2(d), channels 410 are formed by sand blasting in an undersurface of the silicon wafer 400, and the silicon wafer 400 is diced into several pieces as shown in FIG. 2(e).
Then, as shown in FIG. 2(f), a Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst layer 412 is coated in the channel 410. In this step, in order for a selective catalyst coating in the channel 410, a dry film photoresist 414 is applied on portions of the wafer excluding the portions of the channel 410. Then, using dip coating, an Al2O3 Boehmite layer 411 is formed in the channel. This is to increase the adhesive strength between the catalyst and the wall of the channel.
Then, the Al2O3 Boehmite layer 411 is dried at 100° C. and then the Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst layer 412 is formed as shown in FIG. 2(g) by dip coating. After the coating is completed, the resultant structure is anodic-bonded with a pyrex glass substrate 420 to complete a reformer 440 as shown in FIG. 2(h).
However, the conventional reforming apparatuses 350 and 440 have inefficiency in the process of reforming the fuel gas. That is, the fuel gas is reformed as it passes through the channels 362 and 410 of the reforming apparatus, but in the conventional reforming apparatuses 350 and 440, the fuel gas reacts with limited areas of the catalyst layers 364 and 412, thus lowering the conversion rate of the fuel gas into hydrogen.

Catalyst filling method in micro-channels and reforming apparatus manufactured by the method


An activated cannabinoid controlled release compound tablet and method of forming the same. In one embodiment, the tablet includes a cannabinoid and a hosting compound mixed with the cannabinoid to form a cannabinoid controlled release compound. The tablet may also include a surfactant mixed with the cannabinoid controlled release compound to form an activated cannabinoid controlled release compound.

Various cannabinoids are often purified or otherwise isolated from a cannabis plant, particularly from its leaves, to produce a material with certain desired pharmacological properties. An objective is to produce a readily consumable tablet that retains the desired pharmacological properties. A challenge occurs because the cannabinoids in a cannabis plant generally have different isoforms, not all of which are amenable for easy formation into a tablet. What is lacking in the art is a process that enables a combination of a suite of different cannabinoids, from granular to amorphous solids, to produce a free-flowing powder that can be readily formed into a tablet.
The result at the present time is reliance on directly utilizing the leaves of a cannabis plant, which involves extraction or consumption of an oil with an uncontrolled level of an active ingredient that deteriorates over time, and which leaves an unpleasant aftertaste in the mouth of a user. Accordingly, what is needed in the art is a system and method for producing a tablet with an identified quantity of an active cannabinoid ingredient that can be consumed by a user, with a predictable pharmaceutical result, and that retains its pharmacological properties over a period of time.

Activated cannabinoid controlled release compound tablet and method of forming the same


On processing an input picture into a processed picture in compliance with an input concatenated-command, a command editing unit edits the input concatenated-command into an edited concatenated-command which is equivalent in function to the input concatenated-command and is less in length than the input concatenated-command. A command executing unit executes the edited concatenated-command for the input picture to produce the processed picture. Preferably, the command editing unit has a dividing unit which processes the input concatenated-command into a succession of elementary commands. A combining unit combines the elementary commands into the edited concatenated-command by deleting, from the succession of the elementary commands, a succession of a particular elementary command and an inverse elementary command which immediately succeeds the particular elementary command and is inverse in function to the particular elementary command. Alternatively, the combining unit may produce the edited concatenated-command by substituting an equivalent elementary command for a succession of a specific elementary command and a succeeding elementary command which immediately succeeds the specific elementary command and is equivalent in function to the succession of the specific and the succeeding elementary commands. The input concatenated-command is typically a concatenation of input commands, each of which is greater in length than each elementary command.

This invention relates to a picture or image processing device.
A picture processing device of the type described, is supplied with an input picture or image and supplied with an input concatenated-command for the input picture. The picture processing device processes the input picture into a processed picture in compliance with the input concatenated-command. The input concatenated-command is typically a concatenation of input commands or input processing commands.
A conventional picture processing device comprises a command executing unit. Supplied with the input picture and with the input concatenated-command, the command executing unit executes the input concatenated-command for the input picture to produce the processed picture. That is, the command executing unit executes the input commands one by one for the input picture.
Inasmuch as the input picture comprises a great number of picture elements, the picture processing device is generally implemented by the use of a plurality of picture processing LSI's (large scale integration circuits) in order to process the input picture at a high speed. However, the picture processing device can not process the input picture at a short time when the input concatenated-command comprises an increased number of input commands and is therefore large in length.
The input concatenated-command is formed in a host device by a user to be supplied to the picture processing device. Likewise, the input picture is prepared by the user in the host device to be supplied to the picture possessing device.
Inasmuch as the input concatenated-command is directly supplied from the host device to the executing unit of the conventional picture processing device as it is, the user is compelled to form the input concatenated-command of a reduced length in order to make the picture processing device process the input picture for a short time. Obtaining the input concatenated-command of a reduced length compels the user to have high competence and to consume much time and a great deal of labor.

Picture processing device having an editing function of input concatenated-command


A portable electronic apparatus comprises one or more protrusion structures on a surface of the portable electronic apparatus. The protrusion structure comprises a plurality of facets, and one or more peaks are formed on the junctions of the facets. The facets are preferably in the form of triangles or quadrangles, and the protrusion structure is in the form of a pyramid of a triangular base or a quadrangular base. In an embodiment, the protrusion structure is formed on the back housing of the portable electronic apparatus, so that an electronic device, e.g., a digital camera module, embedded in the back housing can be protected to minimize the likelihood of damage.

(A) Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a portable electronic apparatus and housing thereof, and more specifically, to a portable electronic apparatus and housing thereof with high rigidity.
(B) Description of the Related Art
Recently, portable electronic apparatuses, such as portable computers, cellular phones, smart phones and personal digital assistants (PDA), have been developed with multiple functions and a compact size. Further, display panels and keypads have been made with a very thin structure in order to enhance the compact size of portable electronic apparatuses, and a camera module installed in a portable electronic apparatus has become popular.
Generally, such a portable electronic apparatus includes a flat housing body. However, if the user drops the portable electronic apparatus, the flat housing body may be broken and the embedded electronic device such as a camera module and the camera lens thereof would be damaged.
An electronic apparatus of superior rigidity can minimize the hazardous impact that could damage the internal components. Therefore, there is a need to increase the mechanical properties such as rigidity and strength of a portable electronic apparatus, especially the housing body thereof, so as to prevent the embedded electronic devices from being damaged.

Portable electronic apparatus and housing thereof


Provided are a mixed-fiber nonwoven fabric suitable for air filters and a filter medium using the mixed-fiber nonwoven fabric. The nonwoven fabric includes at least two types of fibers having different melting points, which fibers are low melting point fibers made of a polyolefin resin component A, and high melting point fibers made of a high melting point resin component B having a higher melting point than that of the polyolefin resin component A. The number average fiber diameter of the high melting point fibers is larger than that of the low melting point fibers. At least one high melting point fiber having a fiber diameter of 20 μm to 100 μm is present per 1.00 mm of the length of the cross section of the nonwoven fabric. The number average fiber diameter of all fibers constituting the nonwoven fabric falls within the range of 0.3 μm to 10 μm.

Increasing health consciousness, due to recent issues of air pollution and infectious disease epidemic, has spurred demands for air cleaners, automotive cabin filters, and the like. These devices employ a common technique, which uses an air filter medium composed of a nonwoven fabric or the like to remove air dust. Such an air filter medium is required to have a high collection efficiency.
A high collection efficiency of a filter medium composed of a nonwoven fabric is known to be achieved via a technique of reducing the diameter of fibers constituting the nonwoven fabric (see Patent Literature 1). However, in this method, as the filtration performance is improved, the pressure drop of the filter medium increases. When the pressure drop increases, energy requirements for air cleaning and filtration increases.
The above problem is widely known to be solved by subjecting the fibers to charge treatment. The charge treatment, also called electret treatment, is an extremely effective means for increasing collection efficiency for microparticles in the air (see Patent Literature 2, 3 and 4). This technique can greatly improve the collection efficiency. However, there has been an increasing need for further reduction of pressure drop of filters and therefore there has been a demand for a technique for achieving a much lower pressure drop.
As such a technique for achieving a much lower pressure drop, proposed are methods using, as a filter medium, a nonwoven fabric comprising a mixture of two or more types of charged fibers having different fiber diameters (see Patent Literature 5, 6 and 7). In addition to the methods using charged fibers, proposed are methods using a combination of fibers having different fiber diameters to improve the filtration performance (see Patent Literature 8 and 9). Among them, Patent Literature 7 describes that a meltblown nonwoven fabric comprising a mixture of microfibers having a fiber diameter of 10 μm or less and larger size fibers having a fiber diameter of more than 10 μm has appropriate sheet formability and breathability for applying to masks or filters.
There are various methods for producing a mixed-fiber meltblown nonwoven fabric comprising a plurality of materials. An example of such a production method of a nonwoven fabric for filters is a method comprising melting one type of fibers to increase the durability of a resulting nonwoven fabric (see Patent Literature 10). Another example of a similar production method, whose main purpose is not the production of a nonwoven fabric for filters, is a method comprising mixing different fibers, at least one type of which is made of an elastomer, to improve the elasticity and feel of a resulting nonwoven fabric (see Patent Literature 11, 12 and 13).

Mixed-fiber nonwoven fabric, laminated sheet and filter, and process for producing mixed-fiber nonwoven fabric


An electrophoresis device having a separation chamber that is provided with at least one sample inlet on the inlet side and outlets (9) for the electrophoretically treated sample species on the outlet side. The separation chamber is divided into two chamber parts (7, 8) by at least one separation element (2) which is selectively permeable for specific sample species and has a continuous inner space extending longitudinally, especially a hollow fiber, from the inlet to the outlet side. Electrodes (4) are disposed parallel to the separation element on both sides of the separation chamber.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an electrophoresis device, an electrophoresis method using an electrophoresis device and the use of the electrophoresis device.
2. Description of Related Art
Electrophoresis devices and electrophoretic separation methods are known in which sample substances are fractionated, at the interface between the liquid phase and the solid phase, into the individual sample species.
An analogous separation method, namely pressure filtration, has already been used in industry on a broad scale and is widely used to separate biopolymers. In comparison, electrophoretic separation, i.e., the so-called electrophoretic filtration process or, in short, electrofiltration is used rarely on the whole, although this process appears to be particularly advantageous. In contrast to pressure filtration, it is not the entire sample volume but only the ionic species and not the entire volume of the solvent which need to be transported during the electrophoretic transfer via the separation membrane provided in the separation chambers of the corresponding electrophoresis device. The reason for the rare application of the electrofiltration process is based on the fact that problems occur in particular during the separation of biopolymers according to this process. These problems appear to reside, inter alia, in the irreversible sorption and denaturisation of the biopolymers. The restriction imposed on electrofiltration by technical problems in the optimum dissipation of the heat, which arises during the electrophoretic process and in the changes in the separation characteristics of the material of the solid phase, i.e., the separation membrane.
Irreversible sorption at the interface between the liquid phase and the solid phase, i.e., the separation membrane, can be largely minimized by using biocompatible synthetic resin membranes. However, it has so far not been possible to prevent the change in the separating characteristics of the membrane after a prolonged period of contact with the biopolymers to be separated, which is referred to as "fouling."
The problems which occur during the use of electrofiltration as a result of the heat development inherent in this separation process decisively restrict, in practice, both the application range of this process and the quantitative throughput in comparison with pressure filtration. In the case of an unfavourable increased development of heat in the material of the separation membrane, the characteristic separation properties can be significantly altered and, as a result, the material can even be destroyed as a result of overheating.
Moreover, electrophoretic separation methods for separating bioparticles in aqueous solution, which are referred to as carrierless electrophoresis or free flow electrophoresis (FFE), and corresponding electrophoretic separation devices are known. During this electrophoretic separation of bioparticles in aqueous solution, media with a high conductivity need to be used in order to maintain the vitality of the bioparticles during and after separation. For this purpose, it is necessary inter alia to solve the problem of the optimum removal of heat from the separation chamber since rising temperatures in the separation chamber cause a substantial deterioration in the separation performance. This means that, for an optimization to be achieved, the temperature gradients at every point in the separation chamber gap as well as the temperature differences at the different points in the separation space need to be minimized. In order to improve the separation performance of FFE, the separation of the bioparticles must also take place with the electrical field strengths being as high as possible which, as a result of the high conductivity of the media, leads to a more than proportional increase in the process heat evolved during the separation process.
The electrophoresis devices available on the market for separating bioparticles, which operate according to the FFE process, have therefore been optimized insofar as, on the one hand, an electrical field strength necessary for the desired separation performance was used and, simultaneously, an optimum elimination of the process heat was achieved by selecting as small a separation chamber gap as possible. In European Patent EP 0 443 024 B1, an electrophoresis device with longitudinal hollow fibres is used to pass through a cooling medium.

Electrophoresis device, electrophoresis method using an electrophoresis device and use of the electrophoresis device


The present invention is directed to a microfluidic biochip based on an agglutination reaction that is frequently used in qualitative typing in the diagnostic medicine field by realizing a specimen inlet, a reagent inlet, a split microchannel, transfer microchannels, a chaos micromixer, a reaction microchamber, a microfilter, a passive microvalve, and an outlet on a plastic microchip. Particularly, the biochip of the present invention is characterized in that portability thereof is superior and a small amount (about 1 μl) of each of a specimen and a reagent is used. In addition, the biochip of the present invention can be cheaply made through conventional photolithography, electroplating, injection molding, and bonding. Therefore, by utilizing the microfluidic biochip for blood typing according to the present invention, a point-of-care diagnosis for performing blood typing based on an agglutination reaction at any place becomes possible.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a point-of-care microfluidic biochip that can be used to directly perform blood typing at any place, and to a method of manufacturing the point-of-care microfluidic biochip.
2. Description of the Related Art
When a blood transfusion is necessary, blood typing for both a blood recipient and a blood donor is absolutely necessary to prevent a transfusion-caused accident. Blood typing before a blood transfusion involves performing ABO blood typing and Rh(D) blood typing, after which crossmatching is performed. Particularly, agglutinins present in serums of the ABO blood system among a variety of blood types induce hemolysis in a blood vessel by fixing unfitted red blood cells. This may result in death of a patient (blood recipient). Therefore, accurate blood typing is absolutely necessary.
Blood typing is generally performed by identifying an agglutination reaction of a red blood cell and a serum and determining that the agglutinogen corresponding to an agglutinin of the serum exists in the red blood cell. That is, when the red blood cell of a specimen reacts with an Anti-A serum to induce agglutination but does not react with an Anti-B serum, it can be determined that the red blood cell of the specimen has only agglutinogen for type-A and thus the red blood cell of the specimen can be determined as type-A. In order to perform more accurate blood typing, red cell typing (i.e., forward typing) and serum typing (i.e., backward typing) are performed. By simultaneously performing these two forms of typing, the typing results can be compared with each other and thus the reliability of the blood typing increases and a weak antigen blood type that may exist in the specimen can be detected.
Weak antigen blood types (e.g., A2, A3, Aint, and the like) exist in type-A blood and weak antigen blood types (e.g., B3, Bint, and the like) exist in type-B blood. Since the weak antigen blood types tend to be weak in agglutination reaction with the corresponding serum, the chance of mis-blood typing to type-O is high. Therefore, in order to more accurately perform blood typing, it is absolutely necessary to effectively mix red blood cells with serum. In order to improve the reliability of blood typing, it is also absolutely necessary to simultaneously perform red cell typing and serum typing.
The following conventional blood typing methods and systems are well known: plate typing, gel card typing, automatic blood typing systems, a recently represented micro-blood-typing system (S.-J. Lee, H.-W. Kang, Y. Kim, G.-W. Lee, G. Lim and D.-W. Cho, "Development of a Micro-Blood-Typing System Using Micro-Stereolithography," Sensors and Materials, Vol. 17, pp. 113-123, 2005), and a blood typing system using a microchannel and a microfilter (Korean Patent No. 0520896).
In the case of plate typing, a specimen and a reagent are put on a plate, such as a slide glass, and mixed with each other, and after a predetermined reaction time has elapsed, it is determined if agglutination occurs. Most of the processes for plate typing are manually performed. However, due to such manual performing of the processes for plate typing, the determination of whether agglutination occurs is dependent upon a tester's subjective assessment. Thus, the typing result lacks objectivity. Further, since the specimen is manually manipulated, the tester may be at risk of infection from the specimen.
Recently, with the push toward greater automation in all aspects of diagnostic medicine, a variety of automation systems for diagnostic tests have been developed and proposed. Among these systems, the gel card typing method is known as a semiautomatic typing method that gives accurate typing results. However, the gel card typing method requires expensive supplies and testers who can manipulate a machine such as a centrifuge. In addition, since the sinking of blood takes a lot of time, the gel card typing method is time-consuming, thereby making it difficult to apply this method in an emergency.
The automatic blood typing system actually provides for fully automatic blood typing. However, the automatic blood typing system is very expensive and large in its equipment size. Hence, only large hospitals such as blood banks can utilize the automatic blood typing system.
Accordingly, Lee et al. have proposed a down-sized blood typing system in which a flow split channel, a chaos micro-mixer, and a reaction chamber are integrated through micro-stereolithography. The down-sized blood typing system splits injected blood through a flow split channel and, at the same time, mixes the blood with a reagent, after which it is determined if blood cell agglutination occurs in a reaction chamber. The down-sized blood typing system is easy to carry and may be used in dealing with emergency situations. However, a drawback of the system is that it is time-consuming to manufacture the same using the micro-stereolithography. Also, the cost of manufacturing the system is high.
Finally, all of the conventional semiautomatic or fully automatic blood typing methods need about 20 μl of the specimen for blood typing. When compared with the manual bloody typing method, there is no difference in the amount of required specimen between the manual blood typing method and the fully automatic (or semiautomatic) blood typing method. In addition, there still remains the inconvenience with respect to the need to perform repeated collection of specimens.
Korean Patent No. 0520896 discloses a blood typing system using a microchannel and a microfilter. This blood typing system uses a method in which a specimen is split through the microchannel and reacts with a reagent in a reagent storing chamber, and agglutinated blood is filtered off through the microfilter. Further, this blood typing system uses a relatively small amount (10 μl or less) of the specimen. However, this blood typing system is configured to induce natural mixing and reaction between the specimen and the reagent in the micro-chamber. As described above, effective mixing of the specimen and the reagent is essential in order to detect an unexpected antibody that may exist in the blood cell. With the use of such a fine channel or micro channel, however, only a mixing effect by diffusion can be expected due to a reduction in a characteristic length, while a mixing effect by turbulence cannot be expected. Therefore, mixing performance is significantly deteriorated. For example, several hours are necessary for the natural mixture by diffusion in a microchannel having a width of 100 μm. Therefore, the micro blood typing system not having a mixing apparatus is limited in performance. Furthermore, in this blood typing system, the microfilter is formed in a cylindrical shape having a uniform thickness in a lengthwise direction. However, the thickness of the microfilter is too small to be mass-produced through, for example, an injection molding process. Finally, the blood typing system disclosed in Korean Patent No. 0520896 uses specific, preset reagents and is designed to perform a blood cell test. Thus, this blood typing system has limitations with respect to accurately performing blood typing.
Therefore, there is a need to develop an agglutination test system for diagnostic medicine, that, in a single apparatus, can perform a reaction between a specimen and a reagent and read if agglutination occurs while using a relatively small amount of each of the specimen and the reagent, thereby enabling (i) an objective diagnosis of the agglutination test for blood typing, (ii) preservation of the agglutination test result, (iii) cheap manufacture, and (iv) point-of-care resulting from easy portability.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Microfluidic biochip for blood typing based on agglutination reaction


A lubricant reservoir system includes a lubricant reservoir having an interior wall and an inlet for receiving lubricant from a supply. A follower device in the reservoir contacts the interior wall of the reservoir in a sliding and sealing manner, and the follower device is movable up and down in the reservoir from a first position to a second position in response to a changing lubricant level. A valve is in fluid communication with the inlet and is configured to selectively prevent a flow of the lubricant through the inlet. A connector operatively connects the follower device to the valve unit such that the flow of the lubricant through the inlet is prevented when the follower device is in the second position. The connector is configured such that the valve is positionable independently of the reservoir.

Pumps, such as those described in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,187,684; 2,636,441; 2,787,225; 3,469,532; 3,502,029; 3,945,772; 4,487,340; 4,762,474; and 6,102,676, function to pump lubricant from a reservoir. When the quantity of lubricant in the reservoir has been depleted, the reservoir must be refilled with lubricant. The reservoir is typically filled via hoses, which are connected to a lubricant supply. The supply is often located remote from the reservoir. For example, the reservoir can be located in a truck outside a building. In order to avoid overfilling the reservoir, a user must stop pumping lubricant from the supply when the quantity of lubricant in the reservoir reaches a certain level. In some systems the user only becomes aware that the reservoir is full when the lubricant starts to run out from the reservoir through an overflow outlet. In other systems the user is notified by a light on the reservoir, which can in some instances be difficult to see due to the distance between the reservoir and the pump. Other systems include a costly and complex electrical shut-off system.
In DE 11 2013 001 703 T5 a lubricant reservoir system is disclosed that comprises a reservoir for receiving lubricant that includes a top side, a base, a circumferential wall, and an inlet for supplying lubricant into the reservoir from a supply. Furthermore a follower device is provided in the reservoir, which is in contact with the circumferential wall of the reservoir in a sliding and sealing manner, wherein the follower device in the reservoir moves up and down in response to a changing lubricant level in the reservoir. Furthermore a stop valve is provided that is in fluid communication with the inlet in order to selectively prevent the lubricant flow through the inlet, wherein the valve is operatively connected to the follower device in order to close the valve and prevent lubricant flow through the inlet when the lubricant in the reservoir reaches a predetermined level. The valve is disposed on the top side outside of the container. Once the follower device is in an upper position it actuates a lever mechanism, which in turn moves a rod upward and presses a valve element against a valve seat, whereby a lubricant flow through a lubricant channel in the valve body is prevented. An accidental overfilling of the reservoir is thus reliably prevented. The valve sits laterally to the center on the upper container edge, which requires a relatively high constructional expense. It is also absolutely necessary to lay the lubricant line over the upper edge of the container, traversing the valve housing. The lubricant line is configured as a hose and connected to the valve, and opens in the vicinity of the base through the circumferential wall in the reservoir.


A fluid handling device having a support frame and a plurality of filter frames attached thereto. Each of the filter frames has an outer frame member that removably secures a filter; the filters being either a planar filter, pocket filter, or multiple pocket filter. The various filters can be arranged to correlate the change-out schedule of all of the filters across the fluid flow area. The filters with the highest particulate capacity can be arranged to be in the zone of the fluid flow area with the highest particulate concentration. The filters are easily constructed from a single piece of filtration media and collapsible to save space when storing or shipping.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to disposable filters for fluid streams, and more particularly to extended surface area filters or pocket filters. The invention further relates to a pocket filter having a reusable frame and replaceable filtration media. The invention additionally relates to a pocket filter that is easily constructed from a single piece of filtration media. Moreover, this invention relates to a method of using the pocket filters of this invention in combination with planar filters to: (a) control the air flow or holding capacity over the fluid flow area of the fluid handling device; and (b) adjust the type and variety of filters which extend across the fluid flow area to control the change-out schedule of the individual filters. The filters of this invention and the described method of use may be used in association with a spray paint booth, a heating system, a ventilating system, an air handling system, an air conditioning system, or any other area which needs filtration.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many materials and combinations of materials have been used as filtration media to remove solid or liquid particulate from fluid (i.e. liquid or gaseous) streams. The capabilities of such filter media are judged according to three main criteria: (1) the particulate removal efficiency (i.e. the ability of the filter media to capture and retain particulate); (2) the pressure drop for a given flow rate of fluid through the media (which is utilized as a measure of the power required to move the fluid stream through the media); and (3) the holding capacity or the total amount of particulate which can be retained by the media before the pressure drop becomes so great that the media must be cleaned or replaced.
One solution to improving the performance of a filter system known commonly in the prior art is to arrange filter media into extended surface area configurations commonly known as pocket filters. By increasing the amount of filter media presented to a given fluid stream, the fluid flow through a unit area of the media is reduced, consequently lowering the total pressure drop through the filter arrangement (i.e., lowering the power required to move the fluid stream). Furthermore, by using an extended surface area configuration to increase the area of filter media present to a given flow area, greater amounts of particulate can be accumulated before the resultant pressure drop increase requires the filter media to be cleaned or replaced. Moreover, it is known in the prior art that the greater the number of pockets in a pocket filter, the greater the effect because more filter media is possible with more pockets. These capability improvements are achieved for any given filter media and as such the particulate removal efficiency remains relatively unchanged in a pocket filter as compared to the same filter media used in a flat or planar filter. Consequently, for a given filter media, the use of a pocket filter can create a filter system with nearly the same efficiency as a planar filter yet, as a system, requires less power for the movement of the fluid stream, and has a longer life.
It is also known in the prior art that, generally speaking, more efficient filter medias have higher per unit pressure drops. Therefore, by arranging more efficient filter medias in extended surface area configurations yields filters having increased efficiencies with no more pressure drop than their lesser efficiency planar filter counterparts.
In order to achieve the advantages of a pocket filter, filter media must be arranged, supported, retained and sealed in place by frames and/or other structural systems. In the prior art, such structural systems include: (1) wire frames around which the edges of the pocket filter media are wrapped and then sewn, glued, heat sealed, stapled or otherwise permanently attached to the frame; and (2) metal or plastic channel-type frames that clamp or otherwise mechanically attach around the edges of the media pockets to form a pocket filter assembly. In the prior art, much effort has been put to improving the structural systems for extended surface area filters. One such improvement is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,300,927 which describes a frame for a pocket filter. Another such improvement in pocket filter frames is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,325,718. Yet another improvement for pocket filter frames is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,298,044.
Further, prior art pocket filters have been constructed with a single V-shaped pocket, multiple V-shaped pockets, or cube shaped pockets. In those cases, the filter media is permanently attached to the frame around the perimeter of the filter entrance plane with the pocket or pockets hanging from the frame on the downstream side of the frame. In the case of multiple V-shaped pocket filters, the filter media pockets are also supported in the filter entrance plane by an interior portion of the frame located at the peaks between adjacent pockets. In all prior art pocket filters known to the inventor, the filter media tapers away from the frame components such that all parts of the media are directly exposed to the straight-line fluid flow.
The prior art described above demonstrates the current state of the art of extended surface area pocket filters and the complexity and cost associated with the products. The cost of these items is of particular interest when the prior art pocket filters are designed to be disposable (i.e., non-cleanable) because the frame is an integral part of the filter assembly and must be disposed of with, and when, the dirty media is disposed, thereby increasing the cost of each replacement filter unit. Disposal is further complicated and costly in that the frames are generally of a different material than the filter media (e.g., metal frames vs. fibrous medias). Solid waste disposal (verses incineration for example) is generally the only option available when multiple materials are present.
Another problem with the prior art filters is that the frame is permanently attached to the filter media at the factory meaning that the frame dictates shipping size and shipping cost. Larger filter units become cost prohibitive in shipping size due to the large frame size. Frame dimensions are generally limited to smaller parcel package sizes. Typically these frame dimensions are found to be 20″×20″, 24″×24″ and occasionally, 24″×48″. As can be appreciated, the complexity and cost to manufacture many smaller pocket filters is greater than the cost to manufacture fewer larger pocket filters. A further consequence of the smaller filter unit sizes is the greater time and therefore the greater cost associated with the change-out of many smaller pocket filters (as required by the increased pressure drop resulting from the accumulation of captured particulate) in a large filter bank as compared to fewer larger pocket filters. As an example, the filter bank in a typical spray booth measuring ten feet high by twenty feet wide would require fifty 24″×24″ pocket filter units to be changed. Furthermore, by comparison, the same ten foot high by twenty foot wide spray booth would easily require ten or less pocket filters of the current invention. It must also be understood that for the pocket filters to perform the required function of filtering particulate from the fluid stream the pocket filters must be properly installed in the filter bank. It is certainly easier and therefore more dependable to install fewer larger pocket filters than it is to install a greater number of smaller pocket filters.
It is a further problem with prior art disposable pocket filters that in order to keep costs down, the strength and durability of the frame must be minimized. It is very common in the prior art that, unless carefully handled, the frames within a disposable pocket filter will be damaged or deformed during shipping and installation. If such damage occurs, the functionality and the dependability of the pocket filter are compromised.

Disposable filter for a fluid handling device and a method for using the same


Canopy structures and methods for erecting the same include a main support that is attached to a foot at a first pinned hinge point. A hub is attached to the main support at a second pinned hinge point. One or more arms are attached to the hub. One or more purlins are attached to the one or more arms. An upper surface mounted on the one or more purlins.

The present invention generally relates to solar-integrated structures and, and more particularly, to easy-to-assemble structures that provide shade and local solar power generation.
As city population density increases and cities themselves expand to occupy additional land area, the impact of cities on the environment increases. In particular, the effect of city space on land albedo, green spaces, and heat entrapment can be significant. As a result, a sustainable architecture movement has arisen that seeks to minimize the negative environmental impact of buildings.
One prominent feature of sustainable architecture is to maximize the utility of parking lots. Parking lots occupy large amounts of real estate and often have a dark albedo, absorbing light energy and converting large amounts of it to heat. However, large-scale construction of structures on existing parking lots is challenging.


A system for managing communications between a first node and a second node in a telecommunication network. Communication normally flows between the first node and the second node via a first communication link in the network. The flow can be re-routed, under a user's control, via a second communication link that may be less expensive or have a lower QoS. A user sends a control signal into the network that indicates the second communication link between the first node and the second node should be used for a subsequent telecommunication connection. In response to the control signal and an address signal that indicates a called station, the system establishes the telecommunication connection between the calling station and the called station via the second communication link.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to telecommunications and, more particularly, to the routing of calls over a telecommunication network.
2. General Background
Unspecialized data networks, such as the Internet, have grown in size and scope to the point where they can provide a viable alternative transport system to legacy communications transport media, such as the public switched telephone network (PSTN). Even voice communications, which lead to the development of the PSTN, can now be carried over data networks. Such use of data networks to carry voice is generally known as voice-over-packet service, because it involves using a packet-switched data network for at least a portion of a telephone call connection. In typical carrier-class voice-over-packet systems, the transport media used for any given communication link of a call is transparent to users, especially where the users have not willingly selected an inexpensive alternative to legacy, end-to-end telephone service (for example, when users have made an IP call with a non-standard telephone and expect delays, jitter, and reduced voice quality).
In a typical telecommunications system, calls or telecommunication connections are routed strictly as dictated by the network entities that handle the connection, such as switches and gateways. Regardless of the medium used, if the call is "typical", in that the caller expects the call to be indistinguishable from a circuit-switched end-to-end connection, the quality of service (QoS) of the call should be relatively high. A high QoS, relatively speaking, is one that has bandwidth, latency, and jitter specifications that provide connection quality equivalent to point-to-point digital private lines. A telecommunication system that operates this way can be unnecessarily expensive, however, and can place a higher than necessary load on system resources if the system's users would be content with lower QoS (such as the QoS that corresponds to Class of Service 2, 3, or 4 for example) for certain types of calls, such as for text messaging applications or short-duration voice calls, and others.

System for caller control over call routing paths


A method, system, and media provide audio services for mobile users. The system includes a mobile computing device, a content management server and a network over which the mobile device and server communicate. The method includes receiving a voice-based and/or gesture-based request for playback of content from the user of a mobile device and searching a local data store on the mobile device for the requested content. If the requested content is contained in the local data store, the method renders the requested content in a format for audible reception at the mobile device for the mobile user. If the requested content is not contained in the local data store, then the method queries a remote data service for the requested content. Upon receiving the requested content from the remote data service, the method audibly plays back the requested content at the mobile device for the mobile user.

Computer users have become increasingly mobile in recent years. Using devices such as laptop computers, cell phones and PDAs (personal digital assistants), mobile computer users can now receive data feeds (or web feeds) and access public and private networks from almost any location. However, mobile users are often engaged in activities that prevent them from interacting effectively with conventional computing devices. For example, a user cannot safely type a message, read an email or browse the Internet while driving a vehicle or walking on a crowded sidewalk. Rather, the mobile user must decide whether to interrupt their current activity by diverting attention to their computing device, or whether to delay their computing activity until a later time.
Typically, audio content can be safely consumed while a mobile user is engaged in activities that would not allow for typing on a keypad or viewing a display screen. For example, it is common for mobile users to listen to music or other audio content while driving, exercising or mowing the lawn. However, such users are typically either not connected to a network at all, or their network access is limited to a dedicated network connection to a single data source. Even if connected to a network, mobile users often experience spotty connectivity to network resources, thereby degrading the user experience. In either case, the mobile users' choice of audio content is usually quite limited (e.g., locally stored and/or portable audio content, radio broadcasts, podcasts).
In addition to user mobility, there are a number of other factors, including accessibility and efficiency, that have contributed to advancements in user interface technologies that do not require a visual display and/or a keypad. For example, audio-to-text interfaces allow users to create text documents in response to voice commands, and text-to-audio applications enable interactive voice response (IVR) units to provide text data to a user in an audio form. Further examples of alternative user selection mechanisms include voice-activated dialing and accelerometer-based gesture recognition devices (e.g., worn on the user's wrist).


A first dielectric layer including a first opening is provided on a first surface of a semiconductor layer. A second dielectric layer is provided on top of the first dielectric layer in the first opening. A first portion of the second dielectric layer is then removed, such that a second portion of the second dielectric layer remains in the first opening. The first dielectric layer is then removed, leaving only the second portion of the second dielectric layer on the surface of the semiconductor layer. An epitaxial layer or a base dielectric layer is grown on the exposed portions of the first surface of the semiconductor layer not covered by the second portion of the second dielectric layer. The second portion of the second dielectric layer is then removed to define one or more contact windows, and a contact metal is deposited in the one or more contact windows.

A Schottky barrier device is a type of semiconductor device that utilizes the properties of a potential barrier formed between a metal-semiconductor junction to perform one or more functions. A typical Schottky barrier device may include a wide band-gap semiconductor layer, on which one or more metal contacts are placed to form a Schottky interface. Some exemplary Schottky barrier devices include Schottky diodes, high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs), and metal-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MESFETs). A HEMT incorporates a junction between one or more HEMT epilayers having a first band-gap and a semiconductor layer having a second band-gap (i.e., a heterojunction), at which a two-dimensional electron gas is formed, allowing electrons to flow between a drain contact and a source contact. The potential barrier formed by a Schottky interface between a gate contact metal and the semiconductor layer is used to control the flow of electrons through the channel. Similarly, a MESFET uses a doped channel located in a semiconductor layer to allow electrons to flow between a drain contact and a source contact. Again, the potential barrier formed by a Schottky interface between a gate contact metal and the semiconductor layer is used to control the flow of electrons through the doped channel.
The geometry of the contact metal that forms the Schottky interface with the semiconductor layer may dictate several performance characteristics of the Schottky barrier device. For example, the speed of the Schottky barrier device may be directly related to the geometry of the contact metal. Generally, the smaller the area of the contact metal at the surface of the semiconductor layer where the Schottky interface is formed, the faster the Schottky barrier device can operate. Accordingly, many methods for forming contacts for a Schottky barrier device have focused on reducing the area of the contact metal at the surface of the semiconductor layer.
FIGS. 1A-1C and the accompanying flow chart shown in FIG. 2 show a conventional process for creating a Schottky contact in a Schottky barrier device. To begin, a first dielectric layer 10 is provided on a first surface of a semiconductor layer 12 (FIG. 1A and step 100). The first dielectric layer 10 is then etched to form a contact window 14, through which a portion of the first surface of the semiconductor layer 12 is exposed (FIG. 1B and step 102). Notably, the etching process is a conventional photo-resist etching process, in which a photo-resistive mask is applied on top of the first dielectric layer 10 and patterned, and the portions of the first dielectric layer 10 exposed through the photo-resistive mask are etched away. As will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, conventional photo-resist etching processes lack the precision required to create features below a certain size. Accordingly, the lower limit of the area of the contact window 14 is constrained by the photo-resist etching process. Finally, a contact metal 16 is deposited on the portion of the first surface of the semiconductor layer 12 exposed through the contact window 14 (FIG. 1C and step 104). As shown in FIG. 1C, a length 18 of the contact metal 16 at the first surface of the semiconductor layer 12 corresponds with the dimensions of the contact window 14, and is therefore constrained by the precision of the photo-resist etching process.
FIGS. 3A-3E and the accompanying flow chart shown in FIG. 4 show a process for creating a Schottky contact for a Schottky barrier device with improved precision, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,357,571, which is incorporate herein by reference in its entirety. To begin, a first dielectric layer 20 is provided on a first surface of a semiconductor layer 22 (FIG. 3A and step 200). The first dielectric layer 20 is then etched to form a first opening 24, through which a portion of the first surface of the semiconductor layer 22 is exposed (FIG. 3B and step 202). Notably, the etching process is a conventional photo-resist etching process, as described above. Accordingly, the lower limit of the area of the first opening 24 is constrained by the photo-resist etching process used to generate the opening. In an attempt to control the area of the first opening 24 with additional precision, a second dielectric layer 26 is provided on a surface of the first dielectric layer 20 opposite the semiconductor layer 22 and in the first opening 24 (FIG. 3C and step 204). A first portion of the second dielectric layer 26 is then etched away, leaving a second portion of the second dielectric layer 26 on the sidewalls of the first opening 24 (FIG. 3D and step 206). The second portion of the second dielectric layer 26 defines a contact window 28, which is smaller than the area of the first opening 24, and through which a portion of the first surface of the semiconductor layer 22 is exposed. A contact metal 30 is then deposited on the portion of the first surface of the semiconductor layer 22 exposed through the first opening 24, as modified by the second dielectric layer 26 (FIG. 3E and step 208). Using the second dielectric layer 26 to modify the first opening 24 allows the area of the contact window 28 to be controlled to a greater degree of precision, thereby decreasing a length 32 of the contact metal. However, the process described above may still have difficulty creating contacts below a certain size. Accordingly, there is a need for a process for precisely manufacturing contacts for semiconductor devices with precise geometries.

Method of manufacturing precise semiconductor contacts


A system for preventing attacks on at least one computer via its USB port, the system comprising at least one processor configured to monitor at least one aspect of a connection between a peripheral and a computer's USB port, to identify aspects which match pre-configured criteria and responsively, to take action.

All computer systems, and many related products such as communication devices, printers, storage appliances and more, use a USB (Universal Serial Bus) as the main interface for connecting peripheral hardware.
The following http www link: beyondlogic.org/usbnutshell/presents USB in a nutshell for peripheral designers.
A typical server, desktop computer, or laptop will usually have 4 to 6 USB ports that are mostly used for connecting HID products (Human Interface Device) such as a mouse and keyboard, removable media/storage (Disk on Key for example), and other local peripheral hardware devices such as printers, audio input/output/record/playback devices, cameras, scanners etc.
PowerShell is a task automation and configuration management framework from Microsoft, consisting of a command-line shell and associated scripting language. Initially a Windows component only, known as Windows PowerShell, it was made open-source and cross-platform on 18 Aug. 2016 with the introduction of PowerShell Core.
A device driver (e.g. in Microsoft systems) is hardware dependent operating-system-specific software that runs in the operating system kernel hence has access to kernel resources. the driver provides an interface via which operating systems and other computer programs communicate with peripherals e.g. through the computer bus. a calling program invokes a routine in the driver, the driver issues commands to the peripheral or device, the peripheral sends data back to the driver, and the driver may then invoke routines in the calling program.
A system and method, using hardware, for protecting a computer system from USB related vulnerabilities, is described in co-pending WO2017158593A1, entitled "A System, Method and Computer Program Product for Protecting a Computer System From Attacks".
The disclosures of all publications and patent documents mentioned in the specification, and of the publications and patent documents cited therein directly or indirectly, and of the USB standard literature, are hereby incorporated by reference. Materiality of such publications and patent documents to patentability is not conceded.

System and method for securing a computer system from threats introduced by USB devices