A management server 201 transmits information representing a list of additional applications installable on an image forming apparatus 202 to the image forming apparatus 202 (S410). When an application is selected from the list and an instruction to execute the application is issued, a request for installation is issued to the management server 201 if the application has not been installed. The management server 201 installs the requested application on the image forming apparatus if the management server 201 has a license for the requested application and the application can be installed (M470). On the other hand, if the application cannot be installed because of insufficient resources, a resource is freed up by flushing and then the application is installed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus to which functions can be added and from which functions can be removed and, in particular, to a program management apparatus and method that manage applications for implementing additive functions and their licenses.
2. Description of the Related Art
Some sophisticated image forming apparatuses provide a platform for adding functions and allowing a new function to be added by installing an application program (hereinafter simply referred to as an application) running on the platform. The application is installed or executed after being licensed in order to prevent unauthorized use and illegal copying. Installation of an application on an image forming apparatus may be performed by a device management apparatus that is connected to a network and manages the image forming apparatus. In that case, an administrator installs the application on the image forming apparatus of interest through the device management apparatus, rather than installing the application in each image forming apparatus. Uninstallation of an application is performed in a similar manner. Management of licenses can be performed through the device management apparatus.
In either way, it is desirable that an unused application be uninstalled because resources available to an application on the image forming apparatus are typically limited. Therefore, methods have been proposed in which installation, use, and uninstallation of an application are performed as a process sequence in order to ensure resource management (see for example Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-208935).
On the other hand, there is a license management method called floating license management for applications for personal computers. In floating license management, a license server is provided and a client computer that uses an application is granted a license from the license server. The client communicates with the license server at all times while using the application. Once the communication is discontinued, the license is canceled and the client is prevented from using the application. The license server is able to put restrictions on the number of licenses that can be granted at a time and grant licenses to limited clients.
For floating license management, a license management system has been proposed in which a license for an application can be granted for each function of an operation function executing unit and a licensing agreement can be entered into according to the frequency of uses of the application (see for example Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-122537). Another license management system has been proposed in which if there is not a license that can be issued upon a license request from a client, another license is initialized to obtain a deliverable license (see for example Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-126996).
In these floating license management methods, a license is granted when the application is executed and the application can be installed without the license. Therefore, a license is dynamically granted by a server to a user who executes the application and license management can be automated.
However, in the floating license management, an application to be licensed remains installed on an apparatus (for example a computer) of interest while there is the possibility that the application will be licensed to the apparatus. Accordingly, the floating license management is not suitable for peripheral devices such as image forming apparatuses which have limited resources. Therefore, it is desirable that an application for adding a function to an image forming apparatus be installed each time an additive function is used and be uninstalled after the function is used, as described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-208935.
However, such an application management method (hereinafter referred to as an individual license management method) has the following problems.
(1) The user is unable to know of the presence of an application that has not been installed. In the floating license management method, an application that is not licensed is also installed on an apparatus, and therefore the user can know of the presence of the application (that is, the presence of an additive function) via the apparatus, although the user is not allowed to execute the application. In contrast, in the individual license management method, the apparatus does not allow the user to know of the presence of an application that has not been installed.
(2) License management by an administrator is troublesome. The number of applications that can be installed on an image forming apparatus is limited by resources. Accordingly, the administrator needs to install applications that are in high demand by users or to change a combination of installed applications upon request from a user. Furthermore, the administrator needs to optimize an application to be installed on an image forming apparatus when users are transferred or the office is relocated, for example. This is because an image forming apparatus is typically located at a place nearest the user who uses the image forming apparatus.
(3) Continuity of work using an additive function is lost. In the individual license management method, continuity of work can be lost due to uninstallation of an application because context (state, namely settings and data of the application) is lost. For example, in the case of the function of transmitting e-mail, when an address list is uninstalled along with the application, addresses on the list need to be re-input the next time the e-mail transmission function is used.
(4) The application management method described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-208935 is based on the premise that the apparatus has at least the resources required for initially installing and running the application. The method does not consider cases where resources are insufficient when installing an application and the application cannot be installed if resources are insufficient.


A semiconductor device includes a gate pad, a first source pad and a second source pad insulated from each other, a drain pad, a main region, and a sense region for detecting a forward current and a reverse current. The main region and the sense region each include a plurality of unit cells which are in parallel connection, the number of unit cells in the sense region being smaller than the number of unit cells in the main region. A source electrode of any unit cell in the main region is connected to the first source pad, and a source electrode of any unit cell in the sense region is connected to the second source pad.

In recent years, vigorous development has been directed to power devices in which a silicon carbide semiconductor. Silicon carbide (SiC) is a semiconductor material with a high hardness, having a larger band gap than that of silicon (Si). Silicon carbide has dielectric breakdown field which is one order of magnitude higher than that of silicon. Therefore, use of silicon carbide makes it possible to produce a semiconductor device which has the same breakdown voltage as, but a smaller volume than, in the case of using silicon. Use of silicon carbide allows those constituent elements which serve as resistance components to be reduced as compared to using silicon, thereby making it possible to reduce the ON resistance of the semiconductor device and decrease its power loss. A silicon carbide semiconductor device also has an advantage of being able to operate at a higher temperature than is possible with silicon. A silicon carbide semiconductor device is used as a switching element composing a switching circuit, for example.
Some attempts at reducing losses in switching circuits have been made, which involve control of switching element operations (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Patent Document 1 discloses a technique of, in a switching circuit composed of a half bridge circuit in which metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) are used as switching elements, providing a transistor current detection means to detect a current flowing in a low-side MOSFET and a diode current detection means to detect a current flowing in the body diode of the low-side MOSFET functioning as a free-wheel diode, to thereby reduce recovery losses while suppressing the through-current.
Specifically, according to Patent Document 1, in a vertical MOSFET, a diode electrode is provided so as to achieve ohmic contact with the body region but without contact with the source region, the diode electrode being deployed in an electrically insulated state from the source electrode. Thus, by detecting a current flowing between the source electrode and the drain electrode, a current flowing through the MOSFET is detected, and by detecting a current flowing between the diode electrode and the drain electrode, a current flowing through the body diode can be detected. Among a plurality of unit cells, some unit cells have a means that detects a current between the source electrode and the drain electrode and a means that detects a current between the diode electrode and the drain electrode, which respectively function as the transistor current detection means and the diode current detection means. Patent Document 1 states that recovery losses can be reduced while suppressing the through-current, by setting a dead time so that the through-current which is detected by the transistor current detection means and the recovery current which is detected by the diode current detection means are both small.
On the other hand, Patent Document 2 discloses, in such an inverter as drives a motor, a construction including a transistor bridge circuit which is composed of a plurality of transistors and a diode bridge circuit which is composed of a plurality of diodes that are free-wheel diodes, where a first current detector is disposed across a plus line and a minus line between the transistor bridge circuit and the diode bridge circuit, and a second current detector is disposed between the transistor bridge circuit and diode bridge circuit and a DC power source. Patent Document 2 states that a driving current which flows during usual driving a reverse current which flows in a backflow operation, and a regenerative current which flows in a regeneration operation can be detected by using the first current detector and the second current detector, whereby an overcurrent occurring in each operation can be detected.

Semiconductor device and inverter using same

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.


Provided is an image forming method, including: applying a treatment liquid to a recording medium; and applying a recording ink to the recording medium. The treatment liquid is free from a colorant, and contains an organic acid salt or a cationic resin or both thereof, a water-soluble organic solvent, and water. The water-soluble organic solvent contains one or more selected from sodium poly-γ-glutamate, N-acyl fatty acid-sodium L-glutamate, sodium N-lauroyl-L-aspartate, and a compound represented by General Formula 1 below. The recording ink contains a colorant, a water-soluble organic solvent, a surfactant, a carboxyl group-containing resin, and water.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming method and an image forming apparatus using a treatment liquid and a recording ink.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an inkjet recording system, means for improving image density by pre-coating a recording medium with a treatment liquid and bringing a water-based recording ink into contact with the treatment liquid to thereby agglutinate the colorant is commonly known. As a component for agglutinating the colorant in the water-based recording ink, polyvalent metal salts and cationic resins are known. However, problems remain in the conventional art as to storage stability and various safety properties of the treatment liquid itself.
For example, there are proposals for adding an amino acid such as glycine and alanine to the treatment liquid (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2012-187771 and Japanese Patent (JP-B) Nos. 4194531 and 3799253). However, according to these proposals, there are problems in storage stability of the treatment liquid, when the treatment liquid is used in a system configured to apply the treatment liquid under open air.
A water-soluble organic solvent such as glycerin is generally used as a humectant of the treatment liquid. However, although no particular significant problem arises under hermetical conditions of a certain degree such as in a head, water evaporation is heavy in a system in which coating of the treatment liquid is performed under open air, which causes great changes in the properties of the treatment liquid. Further, a highly hydrophilic organic solvent is generally used in order to be dissolved in water, which is the main component. This consequently fosters curling of a recording medium.

Image forming method and image forming apparatus

Abstract: where in General Formula 1 above, Ac represents an acetyl group, and R1 and R2 each represent a fatty acid residue having 8 to 14 carbon atoms.


A digital system of measuring parameters of the signal (phase, frequency and frequency derivative) received in additive mixture with Gaussian noise. The system is based on the use of variables of a PLL for calculating preliminary estimates of parameters and calculating the corrections for these estimates when there is a spurt frequency caused by a receiver motion with a jerk. A jerk is determined if the low pass filtered signal of the discriminator exceeds a certain threshold. The jerk-correction decreases the dynamic errors. Another embodiment includes a tracking filter for obtaining preliminary estimates of parameters to reduce the fluctuation errors. Estimates are taken from the tracking filter when there is no jerk and from the block of jerk-corrections when there is a jerk.

Phase, frequency and frequency derivative are parameters independent of energy of the input signal (i.e., non-energy parameters). There are known methods of estimating signal non-energy parameters based on processing of variables received from a phase-lock loop (PLL).
U.S. Pat. No. 7,869,554, entitled "Phase/frequency estimator-based phase locked loop", discloses an apparatus and methods described in use a PLL and provided a phase estimation of the input signal from which signal frequency is estimated by a derivative function and low pass filtering.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,294, entitled "Phase change measuring circuit", discloses a device for measuring the phase change of an input signal over a specified period comprising a phase-locked tracking filter including a high frequency voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO), a frequency divider to give local oscillator signal at the same frequency as the input signal and a counter counting cycles of the VCO whose phase change in any period is N times the input phase change to allow 1/N period resolution, N being an arbitrary integer. The phase change measuring circuit thus allows phase measurement with a resolution within a small fraction of one cycle.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,222,035, entitled "Method and apparatus for determining changing signal frequency", discloses a method and apparatus which include a PLL having a numerically controlled oscillator (NCO) and a filter of frequency estimates (FFE). The PLL tracks the changing signal frequency and outputs non-smoothed frequency estimates into the FFE. The FFE then smoothes noise in the signal to produce a more accurate smoothed frequency estimate of the input signal.
US Patent Publication No. 20140072084, entitled "Digital system and method of estimating quasi-harmonic signal non-energy parameters using a digital Phase Locked Loop", discloses a digital system and method of measuring (estimating) non-energy parameters of the signal (phase, frequency and frequency rate) received in additive mixture with Gaussian noise. The first embodiment of the measuring system consists of a PLL system tracking variable signal frequency, a block of NCO full phase computation (OFPC), a block of signal phase preliminary estimation (SPPE) and a first type adaptive filter filtering the signal from the output of SPPE. The second embodiment of the invention has no block SPPE, and NCO full phase is fed to the input of a second type adaptive filter.
A DPLL described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,771,250 generates signal phase which is an approximation of the phase of the received signal with a linear estimator. The effect of a complication associated with non-zero transport delays related to the DPLL is then compensated by a predictor. The estimator provides recursive estimates of phase, frequency, and higher order derivatives, while the predictor compensates for transport lag inherent in the loop.
However, the above references, as well as other conventional methods of measuring non-energy signal parameters using PLL are not adaptive to the jerking motion (when, for example, the acceleration varies linearly in time) of the receiver, or adapt to it by expanding the bandwidths of PLL or using smoothing filters. It is not possible to completely eliminate the dynamic measurement errors using conventional methods.
Unlike the methods above, the present invention enables to obtain accurate phase estimates of the input signal and its derivatives by correcting the preliminary estimates at sites with jerking motion and by an additional filtering of phase estimates at sites without such jerking motion.
The present invention can be used in receivers of various navigation systems, such as GPS, GLONASS and GALILEO, which provide precise measurements of signal phase at different rates of frequency change, as well as systems using digital PLLs for speed measurements.

Digital system for estimating signal non-energy parameters using a digital phase locked loop


A spray system allows operation of two spray guns from a single two-component spray system. The system includes a fluid block defining a first chemical fluid passageway which connects a first chemical inlet, a first chemical spool valve, and two first chemical outlets, and second chemical fluid passageway which connects a second chemical inlet, a second chemical spool valve and two second chemical outlets.

Spray foam insulation has long been used commercially and is increasingly being used in residential construction and renovation projects. It is thought to be much more efficient and effective insulation than fiberglass batts or other similar insulating material.
Spray foam is typically a polyurethane foam produced by reacting an isocyanate containing two or more isocyanate groups per molecule with a polyol containing on average two or more hydroxyl groups per molecule, in the presence of a catalyst or by activation with ultraviolet light. It is applied by delivering the two components in precise ratios and at an elevated temperature to a spray gun under pressure, where the components are mixed in a mixing chamber and immediately expelled in a relatively fine spray. A spray gun system includes two storage tanks for the two chemical components, a pump for each chemical component, and a heater.
If applied incorrectly, the spray foam will fail to cure properly, and may crack, off-gas or cause other problems. Off-gassing produces fumes that are at the very least noxious and potentially toxic. Correct application requires the two components be mixed in the correct ratio and/or at the correct temperature, otherwise these problems can occur. For that reason, it has not been possible to drive two or more spray guns from the same system. The on/off cycling of one gun has invariably caused pressure imbalances and fluctuating flow rates for the other gun.


Described is a system, method, and data structure that enables an executable assembly associated with a subclass to be generated from a subclass definition within a markup document. In accordance with the invention, the subclass definition is written based on a schema. The schema may be XML-based. The schema includes a subclass tag for defining a name for the subclass. The name is associated with a type for an object that is instantiated when the executable assembly executes. The schema further includes one or more hints, such as for specifying a programming language to compile the subclass definition, for specifying a superclass from which the subclass derives, for specifying actions to perform when the object becomes instantiated, for creating an event definition and event handler for the subclass, and for specifying a property that becomes a member within the object when the object is instantiated.

Today, software development tools allow software developers the ability to build executable components using one or more programming languages, such as C, C++, C#, and the like. One advantage for building executable components is that the components, once built, may be re-used by other software programs. Another advantage for building executable components is that new components may be easily extended from existing components.
Generally, components are extended by subclassing, which means deriving a new class from an existing class. These classes and subclasses are written using one of the programming languages. The code that is written is commonly referred to as source code. For traditional runtime environments, the software development tools compile the source code into object code and then link multiple object codes together to create an executable. However, one of the problems with these traditional runtime environments is that each programming language and each version of the programming language require a different runtime environment.
To overcome this problem, a new type of runtime environment has been designed that effectively eliminates many of the cross-language interface and language version problems of the traditional runtime environments. In this new type of runtime environment, development tools compile the source code into an intermediate language. During runtime, the runtime environment compiles the intermediate language into native binary executable code. Thus, the new runtime environment performs the "linking-type" process during runtime. In order to perform this "linking-type" process, the runtime environment reads information (e.g., metadata) and accesses IL assemblies for the components associated with the program that is being run. The metadata includes descriptions for types, versions, resources, and the like. The IL assemblies may be a single dynamic link library (DLL), or numerous DLLs and resources.
For both the traditional and the new type of runtime environment, the source code is written using a programming language. Each programming language has its own unique syntax and set of application programming interfaces (API) specific to the runtime environment. In order for a software developer to write source code, the developer must learn the syntax of the programming language and the APIs associated with the runtime environment. Learning the syntax and APIs is very time consuming and challenging. In addition, if a developer wishes to program using multiple programming languages and/or different runtime environments, the developer must remember the similarities and the subtle differences between each of the programming language's syntax and the APIs for the various runtime environments.
Given the advantages of using components, there is a need for a better mechanism for building, extending, and using components.

System and method for defining and using subclasses declaratively within markup


A merchant system structures communications among merchants, partners, and customers. The merchant system may include a messaging component that organizes messages so that a manager can quickly navigate and understand the content of incoming messages. The messaging system also may categorize a user's profile so that a user may share profile information established at a first merchant with a second merchant.

Computer systems and communication networks, such as the Internet, enable merchants to offer and sell products and services to consumers. Electronic commerce companies facilitate interaction between merchants and consumers by providing websites, web-based applications, and online services to support various processes and transactions involved with the buying and selling of products and services.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A program circuit activates a pass signal when a first program unit is programmed. The first program unit is programmed when a test of an internal circuit is passed. A mode setting circuit switches an operation mode to a normal operation mode or a test mode by external control. A state machine allows a partial circuit of the internal circuit to perform an unusual operation different from a normal operation when the pass signal is inactivated during the normal operation mode. By recognizing the unusual operation during the normal operation mode, it can be easily recognized that a semiconductor integrated circuit is bad. Since a failure can be recognized without shifting to the test mode, for example, a user who purchases the semiconductor integrated circuit can also easily recognize the failure.

1. Field
The present invention relates to a semiconductor integrated circuit including a program circuit of a fuse or the like and a testing method of the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, after being manufactured, a semiconductor integrated circuit (hereinafter also referred to a chip) is tested and classified as a good chip or a bad chip. A technique of programming a fuse of a bad chip to electrically identify the good chip or the bad chip in a manufacturing process is proposed (for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. Hei 7-30068, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. Hei 11-243124, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. Hei 3-225850). Further, a technique of programming a fuse of the good chip to make it possible to electrically identify the good chip or the bad chip in a test mode is proposed (for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. Hei 10-125742).
Recently, not only the shipment of a packaged chip but also the shipment of chips in a wafer state tends to increase. In this case, a wafer on which good and bad chips are mixed is shipped. In wafer shipment, for example, the surface of the bad chip is marked with ink. Alternatively, a failure map file indicating the position of the bad chip on the wafer is created.
However, if the position of the ink mark is shifted by one chip, the ink mark becomes faint, or a wrong failure map file is created due to a problem in the manufacturing process, a user who has purchased the wafer may be unable to identify the good and bad chips. Further, when a chip which caused the above problem is returned from the user to a semiconductor maker, a long time is sometimes needed to analyze a failure.
Programming the fuse of the bad chip or the good chip is performed to identify the good chip or the bad chip in the manufacturing process of the semiconductor integrated circuit, but does not give consideration to the user who purchases the semiconductor integrated circuit. In order for the user to investigate a program state of the fuse and identify the good chip or the bad chip, the user needs to apply a voltage to a special test terminal (pad) or shift the chip to the test mode.
Further, for example, if only one memory cell is bad in the bad chip, most circuits in the bad chip normally operate. Therefore, it is difficult for the user to identify the good and bad chips in the state where the wrong ink mark is put or the wrong failure map file is created. In particular, in the wafer shipment in which the bad chip is mixed, after a product in which the chip is mounted is assembled by the user, the failure in the chip is sometimes revealed in a test process of the product. After the product is assembled, the ink mark and the failure map file cannot be referred to. Hence, it is difficult for the user to identify whether the chip is shipped as the good chip.

Semiconductor integrated circuit and testing method of same


The present application relates to an Internet access method, a terminal and a storage medium. The method comprises transmitting a first webpage access-request to a second server via a first server; packaging address information of a webpage to be accessed into a second webpage access-request whose destination address is an address of a proxy server when the terminal confirms the first webpage access has failed and transmitting the second webpage access-request to the second server via the first server and the proxy server; and receiving a by the second server via the proxy server and the first server and presenting the returned webpage content. The present application can increases the reliability of accessing the Internet so as to improve the user experience of using the service.

With the development of the communication technique and the wireless Internet technique, applications supporting mobile traffic through a terminal such as a mobile terminal are getting more and more popular. A user may access the Internet such as the mobile Internet, for example, through a mobile terminal, to search for information, publish and download songs, initiate instant messaging communication, and play Internet game or the like.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a conventional system for accessing the mobile Internet. As shown in FIG. 1, the system includes a mobile terminal, a first server such as a mobile server (cluster), a second server such as a telecom server (cluster), and a third server such as a wireless application protocol (WAP) server. At first, the mobile terminal generates a webpage access-request based on a webpage to be accessed, and transmits the generated webpage access-request to the mobile server. The mobile server receives the webpage access-request from the mobile terminal and then performs a predetermined process on the webpage access-request according to an access policy set in advance. The predetermined process includes, For example, determining whether or not the mobile terminal is allowed to access the webpage and transmitting the webpage access-request to a corresponding telecom server if such webpage access-request is allowed. The telecom server transmits the received webpage access-request to the WAP server. In response to the received webpage access-request, the WAP server attaches corresponding webpage information (WAP webpage content) to the response to the webpage access-request and transmits the response to the mobile terminal via the telecom server and the mobile server.    After receiving the response to the webpage access-request, the mobile terminal parses the response to obtain the WAP webpage content and then present the obtained webpage content to the user.
In the system above, the mobile terminal communicates with the mobile server wirelessly. The mobile server serves as a gateway to filter the received webpage access-requests. There are wired or wireless connections between the mobile server, the telecom server and the WAP server.
In the conventional mobile Internet accessing system, the mobile server connects to the telecom server through a wireless or wired channel. If a network failure, such as network congestion between operators, connection interruption, the mobile server entering maintenance or being overloaded, or the mobile server blocking the mobile terminal from accessing the network according to a predefined access policy, occurs between the mobile server and the telecom server, the access-request may be failed and a message indicating that the network service is currently not available (503) and including a possible reason for the failure may be returned. The reason may be, for example, a temporary failure to connect to the target website temporarily failing to be connected to, the server entering maintenance or being overloaded, and the server unable to support the function being requested, and so on. Even if the mobile terminal retransmits a webpage access-request is ted, the same message that the service is currently not available (503) may be received. This not only reduces the operating reliability of the mobile Internet access system but also takes more time for the user to access the Internet, thereby deteriorating user experience of accessing mobile Internet.

Internet access method, terminal and storage medium

TENCENT TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) COMPANY LIMITED


A method, system and computer program product for processing metrics data with graph data context analysis. Graph data representing one or more devices or sensors is stored into a first database, and metrics data generated by the devices or sensors is stored in a second database. The metrics data is then applied to the graph data for the context analysis, wherein the context analysis reflects the relationships of the devices or sensors in the graph data to the metrics data generated by the devices or sensors. The graph data comprises nodes for representing the devices or sensors, edges for representing a topology of the devices or sensors, and properties for storing the metrics data associated with the nodes and edges; and the metrics data comprises time-series data that is logged by the devices and sensors.

The present invention relates generally to processing metrics data with graph data context analysis.
For many processes, such as industrial and commercial processes, there is a need to actively consume metrics data logged from the processes to generate various reports, with a knowledge of the relationship among devices or sensors generating the metrics data.
One traditional way is to use database tables to identify the devices or sensors, as well as the relationships between the devices and sensors, and to log the metrics data generated by the devices or sensors. However, it is hard to maintain the complexity of relationships between the devices and sensors in the database tables, and there is often a high redundancy rate for the metrics data the database tables.
Moreover, there are problems when attempting to combine the two kinds of data for reporting purposes. Specifically, there are problems in many scenarios when attempting to produce meaningful results from both kinds of data. Often, results are produced from each kind of data separately, and an end-user must consider these results separately.
There is a need in the art, then, for systems and methods for processing such data in order to produce meaningful results. The present invention satisfies this need.

Processing metrics data with graph data context analysis

International Business Machines Corporation


A method for quantizing signal values of a signal received or to be transmitted via a radio interface including quantizing signal values that lie within a first value range according to a first quantization having a multiplicity of quantization steps wherein the quantization step width between two quantization steps differs from a linear quantization with the same number of quantization steps at most by the step width of the linear quantization with the same number of quantization steps; and quantizing signal values that lie within a second value range according to a second quantization having a multiplicity of quantization steps wherein the quantization step width between two quantization steps is larger than the quantization step width between two quantization steps of the first quantization.

In radio communication systems, analog to digital and digital to analog conversions are carried out. Inherent to these conversions, a quantization of signal values is performed. The type and design of a quantization that is used affects the quantization error (and thus the signal to noise ratio) and the power consumption of the circuitry performing the quantization. Since a low power consumption and a low quantization error is desired, there is a need for improved quantization methods.

Method for quantizing of signal values and quantizer


This invention provides methods for synthesizing phentolamine mesylate from phentolamine and methanesulfonic acid in the presence of acetone and water. The methods of the present invention provide highly pure phentolamine mesylate. The invention also provides highly pure phentolamine mesylate.

Phentolamine mesylate is a nonselective alpha adrenergic receptor antagonist approved for use by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for reversing soft-tissue anesthesia. Phentolamine mesylate was also approved by the FDA for use in preventing or controlling hypertensive episodes in patients with pheochromocytoma and for treatment of dermal necrosis following intravenous administration or extravasation of norepinephrine.
Phentolamine mesylate continues to be studied for new indications. Thus, an improved synthesis of phentolamine to produce highly pure product is desired.

Highly pure phentolamine mesylate and methods for making same


A paper feeding apparatus, of a printing machine which includes a cassette for receiving paper that is detachably coupled with a body of the printing device, guide members for supporting side portions of the received paper, slidingly installed in the cassette, and a pair of pick-up rollers for drawing the paper out from the cassette. The pick-up rollers are positioned for tight contact with the top of the received papers and are movably installed on a rotating shaft so as to be capable of moving along the shaft. The paper feeding apparatus also includes a moving mechanism, interlocking with the guide member, for moving the pick-up roller along the shaft.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a paper feeding apparatus of a printing device, and more particularly, to a paper feeding apparatus having an improved structure for supplying paper from a cassette to the inside of the printing device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a typical printing device such as a printer or a copying machine, a paper feeding apparatus receives a multitude of paper sheets and supplies that paper into the body of the printing device in sequence.
As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional paper feeding apparatus includes a cassette 20 capable of moving along guide rails 11 and 12 provided in the body 10 of the printing device and for receiving papers therein. The feeding apparatus also includes a pickup roller 13, rotatably installed in the body 10, for drawing out the paper received in the cassette 20.
The cassette 20 includes side guide members 21 and 22 and a rear guide member 23 slidably installed, for supporting both sides and the rear end portion of the received paper, respectively. The cassette also includes finger members 25 and 26 for pressing and supporting corner portions of a fore end of the received paper, extended from the side guide members 21 and 22, and a receiving plate 24 for receiving paper and lifting the fore end portion of the received paper toward the finger members 25 and 26.
Reference numeral 13a denotes a rotation shaft of the pick-up roller 13, whereas arrow `A` indicates the direction in which the cassette 20 is connected to the body 10 of the printing device, and arrow `B` indicates the supply direction of the paper.
As shown in FIG. 2, the paper received in the cassette 20 is supplied by rotating the shaft 13a. The pick-up roller 13 rotates, and thus an uppermost paper 100 tightly contacting the pick-up roller 13 is fed in the direction indicated by arrow `B`. At this time, the fore end corner portion of the paper 100 is caught by the finger members 25 and 26, so that the fore end portion of the paper is partially folded, which causes a curled portion `C` indicated by dotted lines. When the pick-up roller 13 continues to rotate, the paper 100 is transferred in the direction indicated by arrow `B`, the fore end corner portion of the paper 100 slips out from the finger members 25 and 26 and is supplied to the inside of the body 10.
The curled portion `C` facilitates drawing and supplying only the uppermost paper sheet from the cassette 20 to the inside of the body 10. That is, the curled portion suppresses the multitude of remaining supply sheets of paper at once. Thus, the curled portion must be appropriately formed in order to smoothly and repeatedly supply individual sheets of paper. A distance `D` between the pick-up roller 13 and the finger members 25 and 26 is set considering the appropriate forming of the curled portion. That is, when the distance `D` is too long or short, the curled portion is inappropriately formed, thus crumpling or tearing the paper.
However, by the above-described paper feeding apparatus, when the size of the received paper is changed, for example A4 to A3, the finger members 25 and 26 together with the side guide members 22 and 21 move to correspond to the size of the changed paper. However, the pick-up roller 13 is fixed in a predetermined position. Thus, the distance `D` is changed, so that the curled portion may not be appropriately formed according to the change in the paper size.

Paper feeding apparatus of printing device


The present invention is directed to a method to clean up or keep clean the fuel system of a direct injection spark-ignited engine by operating the engine with a fuel composition that includes a liquid fuel and a fuel additive composition. The fuel additive composition useful in the present invention has at least one nitrogen-containing dispersant and optionally a fluidizer where the dispersant has a specific lipophilic parameter and the dispersant or the dispersant and the fluidizer have a specific hydrophilic-lipophilic parameter, the dispersant provides about 0.15 to about 50 ppm by weight nitrogen in the fuel composition, and the fluidizer and/or the dispersant provide about 10 to about 10,000 ppm by weight active components in the fuel composition. The method of the present invention is effective in controlling deposits in fuel injectors and combustion chambers of a direct injection spark-ignited engine.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention involves a method of operating a direct injection spark-ignited engine (DISE) using a fuel composition comprising a liquid fuel and a fuel additive composition. The method provides for the cleanliness of the fuel system of the DISE.
2. Description of the Related Art
The direct injection spark-ignited engine is a new technology that has been commercially introduced in Japan and Europe by manufacturers Mitsubishi, Nissan and Toyota. The DISE offers significant performance benefits relative to a conventional port fuel injection gasoline engine (PFIGE). The specific power output of a DISE relative to a PFIGE is increased, which results in better fuel economy and driveability in terms of throttle response and acceleration. The DISE, when coupled with current catalyst systems for reducing exhaust emissions, also meets exhaust emission standards. The overall performance of a DISE is directly related to the cleanliness of the fuel system. Consequently, methods that provide for the cleanliness of the fuel system of a DISE are very desirable and useful.
International publication WO 00/20537, Haji et al., published Apr. 13, 2000, discloses a gasoline additive comprising at least one nitrogenous compound selected from a nitrogen-containing ether compound and a polybutenylamine compound. The gasoline additive is suitable for use in a gasoline composition for direct injection gasoline engines.
International publication WO 01/42399, Aradi et al., published Jun. 14, 2001, discloses that deposits in a direct injection gasoline engine are reduced by fueling the engine with a fuel composition comprising a Mannich detergent.
A number of technical presentations involve studies done on direct injection gasoline or spark ignition engines that generically disclose nitrogen-containing compounds and polyether fluidizers as fuel additives in these engines:
1. "A Comparison of Gasoline Direct Injection and Port Fuel Injection Vehicles, Part 1: Fuel System Deposits," Arters et al., 5th Annual Fuels & Lubes Asia Conference, 1999;
2. "A Comparison of Fuel System Deposits and Lubricant Performance in Gasoline Direct Injection and Port Fuel Injection Vehicles," Macduff et al., 2nd International Fuels Colloquium, Jan. 20-21, 1999;
3. "A Comparison of Gasoline Direct Injection and Port Fuel Injection Vehicles; Part 1—Fuel System Deposits and Vehicle Performance," Arters et al., SAE Paper No. 1999-01-1498 presented at International Spring Fuels and Lubricants Meeting and Exposition, May 3-6, 1999;
4. "A Study of Fuel Additives for Direct Injection Gasoline (DIG) Injector Deposit Control," Aradi et al., SAE, Spec. Publ., VSP-1551, Diesel and Gasoline Performance and Additives, p 283-293;
5. "Deposit Formation and Control in Direct Injection Spark Ignition Engines," Ohkubo et al., 6th Annual Fuels & Lubes Asia Conference, Jan. 25-28, 2000;
6. "The Effect on Vehicle Performance of Injector Deposits in a Direct Injection Gasoline Engine," Arters et al., SAE Paper No. 2000-01-2021.
Japanese Patent Publication JP 11-35952, Nippon Oil Company, published Feb. 9, 1999, discloses an alcoholic compound as a gasoline additive for in-cylinder direct injection type gasoline engines.
The method of the present invention effectively provides for the cleanliness of a fuel system of a DISE by operating the engine with a fuel composition comprising a liquid fuel and a fuel additive composition. The present invention controls deposits in fuel injectors and combustion chambers of a DISE that contributes to vehicle performance in the areas of fuel economy, driveability and exhaust emissions.

Method of operating a direct injection spark-ignited engine with a fuel composition


A semiconductor integrated circuit includes a multi-mode control signal generating unit configured to control an activation of a up/down mat I/O switch control signal, which controls I/O switches in a up/down mat, according to a multi-test mode signal and a read/write discriminating signal, a multi-mode decoder configured to output multi-mat select signals to simultaneously activate a plurality of mats according to a multi-test mode active write signal, and a mat controller configured to enable word lines and the I/O switches according to the up/down mat I/O switch control signal and the multi-mat select signals.

1. Technical Field
The embodiments described herein relate to a semiconductor integrated circuit and, more particularly, to a semiconductor integrated circuit capable of reducing test time.
2. Related Art
Generally, in semiconductor integrated circuits, one mat is selected when a burn-in test (or normal test) is carried out. Word lines which are correspondent to the selected mat are enabled and then a read or write test is carried out.
Recently, in the semiconductor integrated circuits, the test is carried out by enabling row and column address signals independently for all the cells. Therefore, the test time is increased so that the cost is also increased.
Accordingly, in order to reduce the test time, it is required to provide a test circuit that is capable of simultaneously carrying out an active-related test (for example, a test to activate a plurality of word lines) and a read/write-related test (for example, a test to activate a plurality of sense amplifiers) with activating a plurality of mats.

Semiconductor integrated circuit with multi test


A cyclically-operated hydraulic device includes: an air-liquid chamber which, during a first part of each cycle is partially filled with a liquid while air in the chamber is compressed, and during a second part of each cycle discharges under pressure a portion of said liquid from the chamber; and an air-replenishing device which inlets a small quantity of air into the air-liquid chamber during each cycle to replenish air contained in the liquid discharged under pressure.

The present invention relates to cyclically-operated hydraulic devices, and also to a method of operating such devices. The invention is particularly useful in liquid pulsators, such as now finding widespread use in water irrigation systems, and is therefore described below with respect to this application, but it will be appreciated that the invention could also be used in other cyclically-operated hydraulic device, such as externally-driven liquid pumps.
Pulsator devices, such as described in my Israel patents No. 74332, 88014 and 92886 (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,781,217, 4,949,747 and 5,201,342, respectively) generally include an air-liquid chamber, an inlet having a flow-reducer for inletting the liquid into the chamber in a continuous manner at a low rate, and an outlet formed with a large orifice controlled by an outlet valve which opens at a relatively high pressure and closes at a relatively low pressure. Thus, the liquid may be continuously introduced into the air-liquid chamber at a low rate thereby increasing the pressure within the chamber, until the outlet valve opens, at which time the outlet valve discharges the liquid in the form of a pulse until the outlet valve recloses. Such pulsator devices are used in water irrigation systems to enable irrigation devices to be fed with water continuously at a relatively low rate but to discharge the water periodically in the form of pulses each pulse being at a relatively high rate.
During the operation of such pulsator devices, a small quantity of air from the air-liquid chamber is dissolved in the liquid pulse discharge from the chamber. As a result, after a relatively short period of continuous operation (e.g. about 12 hours), it is necessary to discontinue operating the pulsator device, permit it to drain, and then to be refilled with air, before resuming the continuous operation of the pulsator device.
The foregoing drawback is also present in other types of cyclically-operated hydraulic devices, such as externally-driven liquid pumps which include air-liquid chambers periodically discharging pulses of the liquid.

Cyclically-operated hydraulic device particularly useful as a liquid pulsators, and method of operating same


A power storage device including: a secondary battery; an acquisition unit that acquires charging period information for charging the secondary battery; and a charge control unit that calculates a charging power on the basis of the charging period information and controls charging power used for charging the secondary battery so that of the charging power is equal to the calculated charging power.

The present disclosure relates to power storage devices, power storage methods, and programs.
In recent years, secondary batteries that can be used many times after being repeatedly recharged have been widely used as power sources for mobile terminal devices such as cellular phones and laptop computers. On the other hand, electric power generation from renewable energy sources, that is, natural energy sources such as sunlight, wind power, and geothermal heat have been attracting attention from the viewpoint of global environmental conservation and CO2 emission reduction. It is not easy to supply stable electric power using these natural energy sources because the amount of energy obtainable from these natural energy sources constantly varies depending on natural conditions such as the amount of sunlight and the force of wind. Therefore, some effort has been made to supply stable electric power by outputting uniform electric power with the use of a combination of secondary batteries and natural energy sources.
In addition to the above-mentioned usage, a secondary battery is expected to be widely used in various other applications. However, there is a problem in that a secondary battery deteriorates after repeated charge-discharge operations, with the result that the voltage and electric energy of the secondary battery decrease.
A power storage system that prevents a secondary battery from being charged with an excessively high charging current and increases the life of the secondary battery is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-41883. To put it concretely, according to the power storage system described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-41883, a period during which an amount of charge electric energy in the power storage system increases is determined, as a restrictive period during which a charging current value has to be limited, on the basis of remaining amount of electric energy of a battery, consumption patterns of power consumed by loads, and power generation prediction patterns, and the charging current value during the restrictive period is calculated. Therefore, the battery is prevented from being charged with an excessively high charging current and the life of the battery can be prolonged.
In addition, a method in which an optimization plan that optimizes a charged state of a secondary battery on the basis of a user's schedule is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2004-94607. To put it concretely, a method in which the deterioration of a secondary battery owing to continuous charging of the secondary battery can be suppressed is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2004-94607. The suppression of the deterioration is achieved by keeping the secondary battery in a full-charge state only at the time near to a period during which the secondary battery is supposed to be continuously used for a long time, and by keeping the secondary battery in a charged state that is lower than the full-charge state during a period in which the secondary battery and an external power source are used in parallel for a long time.

Power storage device, power storage method, and program


The invention in its various embodiments is directed to methods and equipment for generating an activated sorbent from a sorbent precursor with the addition of certain chemicals that enhance the effectiveness of the activated sorbent. The invention in its various embodiments is also directed to the methods and equipment for generating some of the chemicals that are added to the raw carbonaceous material or activated sorbent to enhance its effectiveness. The invention in its various embodiments is also directed to methods and equipment for generating certain chemicals that can be added to a gas stream to convert a given gaseous pollutant to a form that is more easily removed from the gas stream.

Background of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the production of an activated sorbent for use in the removal of gaseous pollutants from a gas stream. In one embodiment, this invention relates to methods and apparatuses for the on-site production of an activated sorbent, such as activated carbon, in combination with the addition of certain chemicals that enhance the activity or effectiveness of the activated sorbent to produce a chemically-enhanced activated sorbent. Further, this invention relates to methods and apparatuses for the use of the chemically-enhanced activated sorbent in the removal of gaseous pollutants from a gas stream. In another embodiment, this invention relates to methods and apparatuses for the addition of certain chemicals that convert certain gaseous pollutants in a gas stream to a form that is more easily removed from the gas stream, for example, by a sorbent, including a chemically-enhanced activated sorbent.
Description of Related Art
Controlling emissions of certain gaseous pollutants, such acid gases and air toxics, in flue gases generated from combustion devices, such as coal-fired power plants, is an important concern. In such flue gases, certain air toxics and other species can be distributed in both the vapor phase and the solid phase, thereby requiring the removal of both solid matter, such as particulate matter, as well as vapor phase species. Further, certain air toxics (e.g., mercury), certain acid gases (e.g., SO3, HCl), and other air toxics (e.g., arsenic, selenium, nickel, lead, organics, etc.) that are present in the vapor phase of such gases are typically found in very low concentrations making removal difficult.
Sorbents are sometimes used to remove certain pollutants from gas streams. For example, sorbents may be injected into a gas stream and collected downstream after adsorbing a targeted vapor phase contaminant. Alternatively, a packed bed, an entrained bed, or fluidized bed may use a sorbent to adsorb a given vapor phase pollutant from a gas stream.
Calcium-based sorbents such as limestone, dolomite, lime, hydrated lime, calcium acetate, and calcium magnesium acetate are used, for example, in the removal of sulfur-based vaporous pollutants, such as SO2 and SO3, from coal-fired power plant flue gases. These sorbents can also be effective in removing other acid gases, such as HCl and H2S, as well as vaporous air toxic species including metal compounds such as selenium, arsenic, nickel, lead, and others found in trace amounts in coal-fired power plant flue gases. However, the process by which hydrated lime or lime, in particular, is produced is energy intensive, making these sorbents relatively expensive.
Regarding the removal of mercury, activated carbon is a sorbent used for sorption of mercury species from coal combustion flue gases and other industrial gas streams. The results from pilot and full-scale field demonstration tests have revealed that at a carbon loading of less than 5 lb/MMft3, mercury removal greater than 90% is achievable for flue gases generated from burning low-sulfur coals. However, mercury removal efficiency for flue gases generated from burning high-sulfur coals, which commonly contain greater than 10 ppm SO3, a level significantly higher than that in flue gases generated from lower sulfur coals, have been reported to be less than 50% at comparable activated carbon loadings.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for an improved, low-cost method for generating a sorbent for use in removing certain gaseous pollutants from gas streams. Further, there is a need for generating a sorbent that has sufficient activity or effectiveness in adsorbing such gaseous pollutants.

Chemically-enhanced sorbent activation process and method of using same


A voltage supply system with a plurality of voltage outputs is supplied by at least two constant-voltage sources. One voltage output can be supplied alternatively by one or the other voltage source. The alternate supply of voltage output is affected by means of control signals which control a switching arrangement. The control signals are extended to provide a period of overlap such that one voltage supply is connected to the output before another voltage supply is disconnected. As a result, a power loss due to the switching operation is reduced, and substantially compatible voltage levels are produced.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to a constant-voltage supply system having at least two constant-voltage sources, and more particularly, to such a system in which output voltage is supplied alternatively from one or another constant-voltage source.
2. Prior Art
A constant-voltage supply system in which output voltage is supplied alternatively from one or another constant-voltage source via a switched connection, is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,492,875. In the event of failure of one voltage source, the system will automatically supply the voltage output from another source, and in this manner assures an uninterrupted supply of voltage. Such a system may be used to supply voltage to expensive high quality electronic systems such as computer systems or security equipment.
In the prior art, the state of the switched connection is controlled by control signals which are generated as a function of the operating state of the particular voltage source. For example, if the voltage of a first voltage source starts to drop below a given value, a control signal is generated which causes one switch to cut off the feeding of the voltage output from that voltage source. Furthermore, a second control signal is generated which drives another switch into the conducting state to establish a conducting path from a second voltage source to the voltage output. However, the first switch is completely turned off before the other switch is driven to the conducting state. In order to guarantee an uninterrupted voltage supply to the systems connected to the alternatively fed voltage output, a capacitor is provided which delivers the energy required to feed the voltage output during the switching interval. The size of the capacitor is determined by the maximum load connected to the voltage output, and can assume very high values. Such capacitors may be physically large and add to the expense and space requirements of the total system.
The switching operation does not occur abruptly, but over an extended switching time, since too steep a voltage rise at the voltage source can result in a current surge which overloads the voltage source. As a result of the extended switching time, a soft switching on or switching off of the voltage sources takes place. Switching time is to be understood as the transition time from the cutoff to the conducting state, and vice versa, of the switch.
It is the object of the invention to provide a voltage supply system which generates a largely uniform voltage level upon switch-over, and at the same time is independent of load.

Constant-voltage supply system with several constant-voltage sources


Apparatus and method for cushioning the impact when placing a web roll on a belt let-off has pneumatic cylinders (A) operating bell crank arms (B) for raising a roll carried on one end (C) while lowering a roll (D) carried on an opposite end of the bell crank for tightening the belt (F) ejecting an empty core roll preparatory to receiving a web roll (W) which is supported by the arms (B) while being lowered and cushioned by the air cylinders until it is received and supported for rotation in a cradle formed by the belt (F) for unwinding.

This invention relates to let-off apparatus for positioning a support for receiving a web roll, for cushioning the impact of the web roll when being placed upon the let-off, and thereafter for carrying the web roll for rotation during unwinding.
Several kinds of let-offs are provided for use in unwinding the web from a web roll including center wound and surface wound let-offs as well as belt let-offs illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,209,418. The apparatus of the invention may be used to greatest advantage upon the belt let-off but may be useful in connection with other let-offs as well.
A major problem in connection with the placing of a web roll upon a belt let-off results from the force with which extremely large web rolls, which may weigh on the order of about 6,000 pounds, are rolled into a cradle formed by the belt provided for supporting and rotating the web roll during unwinding. The impact exerted by a full web roll being placed upon a belt let-off may cause damage to the web or to the apparatus involved in placing and receiving the web roll. Moreover, the placement of the web rolls is very noisy disrupting the activities of personnel engaged in the web handling operations.
When doffing an empty roll core, after completion of the unwinding of a web roll, the belt of a belt let-off may be pulled as by moving one of the cradle support rolls outwardly and downwardly causing the empty roll core to roll off the belt. When in this position a full web roll is rolled upon the belt causing the belt to be snapped into its cradle configuration because at this point in the operating sequence of the let-off minimal support for the web roll is offered by the belt until it is pulled taught in its cradle configuration for supporting the web roll during unwinding.
It would conserve time and simplify the operation of the belt let-off if, instead of creating a problem, such positioning of the belt for discharging the empty roll core could thereafter be utilized to facilitate the placement of a full roll core as well as to cushion the impact thereof as it is rolled into operating position on the belt.

Cushioning apparatus for web roll let-off and method


A foldable retainer device includes a pair of clamping members pivotably connected to distal ends of an elongate base frame, and a folding mechanism for retaining the pair of clamping members either perpendicular or parallel to the base frame.

1. Field of The Invention
The present invention relates to a foldable retainer device, and particularly to a foldable retainer device installed on a mother board for retaining components such as a modularized CPU card, and for conserving space during transport before configuration with the CPU card.
2. The Prior Art
A modularized PC board or CPU card has become a trend in the PC industry. Traditionally, the CPU is connected to a mother board either via a connector or direct soldering. However, an advanced manufacturing technique has replaced this by firstly soldering the CPU onto a printed circuit board and then inserting the printed circuit board into a connector mounted on the mother board. Alternatively, the CPU is firstly combined with the PC board as a modularized unit and is then inserted into a connector mounted on the mother board. However, either the PC board or the modularized card is elevated above the connector, therefore, the PC board or the modularized card is apt to vibrate and adversely affect signal transmission. Normally, a retainer device is configured beside the connector in order to further fix the PC board or the modularized card. The related U.S. Pat. Nos. are 3,993,390; 4,057,879; 5,207,598; 5,259,793; 5,429,523; 2,825,037; and 3,829,741. However, the retainer devices as disclosed in the above patents have a U-shaped clamping structure including two upright arms for retaining the modularized card. Since the two upright arms respectively extend upright at two opposite ends of the elongated base of the retainer, thus resulting in occupying relatively huge space itself, the transport thereof becomes inconvenient. Therefore, an improved retainer device with less dimension which is adapted to be stacked one by one during shipping while still providing the standard dimension for retaining the modularized card during operation, is earnestly requested.


The invention relates to novel compounds with the ability to link an immune response to a defined therapeutic target, to the use of said compounds in treating cancer and a disease or disorder mediated and/or caused by an infective agent, to compositions containing said compounds, processes for their preparation and to novel intermediates used in said process.

There is a need to find novel ways to recruit an individual's immune system to fight disease. The human immune system continually surveys the body seeking foreign signals to identify potentially harmful pathogens or mutated human cells (that could become a cause of cancerous growth) and target them for elimination. Natural antibodies exist that can be recruited to said pathogens or mutated human cells to drive the immune system to eliminate the threat.
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. In 2012, cancer occurred in about 14.1 million people. It caused about 8.2 million deaths or 14.6% of all human deaths. The most common types of cancer in males are lung cancer, prostate cancer, colorectal cancer and stomach cancer. In females the most common types are breast cancer, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, and cervical cancer. It is well established that the immune response plays a vital role in the identification and elimination of cancerous cells. Drugs exist that fight cancer by boosting an individual's immune system to help fight the cancer. There is a need to be able to better target the immune response specifically to the cancer cell and to generate a broader range of the patient's own tumour associated antigens. Targeting pre-existing natural antibodies to the patient's own tumour could meet this need. There is an urgent need to identify novel ways of treating bacterial, viral and fungal infections. Anti-microbial drug resistance is becoming a major global health threat. For example, it is estimated that more than 2 million people in the US are infected with bacteria resistant to one class of antibiotics every year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013).
An innovative approach to the treatment of infectious disease or cancer was disclosed in WO 2005/079423 which describes an immunity linker which contains two binding moieties. The first binding moiety is capable of binding to an immune response component of an individual. The second binding moiety is capable of binding to any compound or foreign material such as antigens, pathogens, chemicals, or endogenous materials such as altered cells found in cancer. The resultant effect of said immunity linker molecule is that the pre-existing immune response of the individual is diverted towards the target, i.e. the cancer cell or specific pathogen. Examples of said first binding moieties include compounds or agents which are recognised by the immune system of said individual as foreign and which would therefore trigger an immune response. One example of a first binding moiety is a carbohydrate molecule capable of binding to a human serum antibody anti-alpha-galactosyl (i.e. galactosyl-alpha-1,3-galactosyl-beta-1,4-N-acetylglucosamine). Examples of said second binding moieties include antibodies and nucleic acid aptamer molecules that bind to a specific target molecule. The principle of the method disclosed in WO 2005/079423 is that the second binding moiety (e.g. nucleic acid aptamer) of the linker molecule will bind to a cancer cell and the presence of the first binding moiety (i.e. the carbohydrate molecule capable of binding to a human anti-alpha-galactosyl antibody) on the linker molecule will divert an immune response to the cancer cell resulting in effective destruction of the cancer cell. A similar approach may be used in the treatment of diseases or disorders mediated and/or caused by an infective agent wherein the second binding moiety (i.e. nucleic acid aptamer) of the linker molecule will bind to the infective agent.
There is therefore a great need for linker molecules which contain spacer groups which have been optimised to control the number and position of first binding moieties (i.e. the carbohydrate molecule capable of binding to a human anti-alpha-galactosyl antibody) relative to the position of the second binding moiety (i.e. the nucleic acid aptamer). Such linker molecules are designed to attract natural antibodies in such a way as to be able to maximise the efficacy of immune recruitment while minimising potential side effects and therefore have great utility in the provision of effective anti-cancer therapies and therapies against infective agents.


The present invention relates to a capsule comprising a core and at least one envelope comprising at least one film-forming polymer, characterized in that it exhibits a total solubilization time for its envelope of less than or equal to 85 s, according to a test A, preferably less than or equal to 80 s, more preferably less than or equal to 70 s.

In the fields in particular of food products and of oral care, the intention is to administer to an individual a compound such as an active principle or an aromatic product. Various methods of administration have been developed, depending on the applications: powders, granules, capsules, microcapsules, liposomes, microspheres, etc. These various means generally all exhibit characteristics relating to the protection and/or to the release of the compound administered, suitable for the finished product. They may in particular be physical (mechanical, temperature, etc.), chemical, (pH, water, ionic strength, etc.) or enzyme resistance, or properties of insolubility or of gradual solubility (compounds which must be swallowed, gastro-resistant compounds, etc.).
Interest will be focused more particularly here on capsules or microcapsules. Schematically, a capsule or microcapsule comprises a core containing the compound(s) to be vehicled [the content], and one or more envelopes, often based on gelatin. The difference between a capsule and a microcapsule is the size, which is more or less larger. In the present patent application, the term "capsule" will be used to denote capsules and microcapsules.
The capsules known in the prior art can exhibit certain problems of stability and leaktightness of the envelope, with in particular migration of core constituents to the outside or migration of envelope constituents to the inside. Other problems encountered relate to the incorporation of one or more of the components into the core or the envelope of the capsule, or further the method of production.
The capsules encountered are generally swallowed so as to release an active agent in the stomach for example, or, on the contrary, must be kept in the mouth for a certain amount of time in order to allow the active agent or the flavour to be released.
Mention is made herein of U.S. Pat. No. 5,300,305, which describes a microcapsule for oral hygiene comprising a core surrounded by an envelope which contains the active ingredients difficult to solubilize in the core. U.S. Pat. No. 5,370,864 describes a capsule for oral hygiene comprising a particular component in the core. U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,496 describes a microcapsule for oral hygiene in which the core and the envelope comprise active agents.
Certain patents refer to a capsule with several layers. Document EP 1 020 177 describes a soft capsule comprising a first capsule in a second capsule, the second capsule dissolving in the stomach. U.S. Pat. No. 6,200,603 describes a capsule comprising a core and an envelope provided with an additional coating, which stabilizes the capsule and prevents migration of certain compounds between the layers.
The problem of the rate at which a capsule breaks up has been studied. Specifically, for some applications, it is preferable for the capsule to break up rapidly, in order for the compound(s) transported to be rapidly available.
Mention is in particular made herein of U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,707, which describes small hard capsules suitable for flavoring a beverage, presented as dissolving rapidly in the beverage. Capsules produced according to this patent are mentioned hereinafter, by way of a comparative example.
However, in addition to the rate of breaking up, the solubilization of the capsule and more particularly of the envelope of the capsule should be taken into account. The question raised is therefore what becomes of the envelope once it has broken up and released its contents. In fact, in many cases, the capsule envelope is slowly or incompletely insolubilized due to the internal or external crosslinking of the gelatin which it comprises. This effect prevents or slows down the rapid release of the content of the capsule and may, in addition, cause an unpleasant feeling in the mouth due to the nonsolubilized envelope residues, which will be referred to here as the "skin effect".
Now, it is important, for certain applications, to be free of this skin effect, which causes an unpleasant feeling in the mouth.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,238,690 mentions this problem. In the description of the prior art of this patent, it is specified that capsules are conventionally formed using, for the envelope, film-forming materials of the gelatin type which have the drawback, besides the need to use a complex method of production, of dissolving slowly while leaving an unpleasant residue in the mouth. In this patent, the solution provided is to use, as envelope material, not a film-forming material, but a carbohydrate in the glass state.
However, the problem remains for capsules in which the envelope comprises a film-forming material.

Capsule with fast content solubilization and release

Abstract: The invention also relates to the method of producing said capsule, and also to the products comprising said capsule, such as the food, pharmaceutical, oral hygiene or cosmetic products.


This invention relates to improved porous solid supports for chromatography and catalysis. The supports are prepared by covalently binding a tether polymer to a solid support, and then blocking the remainder of the support surface with a blocking reagent. The tethered polymer ligands are then covalently bound to the support by graft polymerization reactions.

General Considerations
The general purpose of chromatographic and ion exchange separations is to isolate a molecule or ion from solution and from other species. Chromatographic and ion exchange separations occur by contacting a solution with a solid support that has a surface with defined chemical characteristics. The separation occurs by partitioning of the solutes between the solution and the solid phase, which occurs because the surface of the support interacts selectively with a desired solute molecule or class of solute molecules, and the desired solutes are adsorbed. Passage of a solution through a bed or column of the solid support results in retardation of the adsorbed molecules and, thereby, separation of the desired compounds from others. The effectiveness and selectivity of the separation process is a function of several factors. These factors include the relative affinities of the solutes for the surface and the extent to which equilibration of a solute between solution and the solid phase reaches equilibrium.
The technology and science of chromatographic supports is imperfect, and existing products are a result of trade offs of a support design parameters. The capacity of a solid support is a function of the surface area of the support particles. The surface area of porous particles is inversely related to the pore size of the particles. Small pore diameters relate to increased surface area, and the number of functional groups available to interact with the desired solute molecules. This is referred to as capacity. Unfortunately, porous particles with small pore sizes and large surface areas are not very permeable to the flow of solutes in and out of the pores, where the adsorption occurs. Recognition of this fact has stimulated development of particles with larger pore diameters that are more permeable to solution flow. More importantly, the larger pores permitted the chromatography of macromolecules, such a proteins. The tradeoff suffered with the increased pore diameters is reduced surface area, and proportionately lower capacity. In addition to the pore size, surface area, and capacity issues that require compromises in support design, all conventional chromatographic supports and catalysts suffer from sluggish adsorption-desorption kinetics that result from slow diffusion of solute molecules through the stagnant boundary layer at the solid-liquid interface.
Previous Efforts of Solid Support Improvement
Girot and Boschetti (U.S. Pat. No. 5,559,453) disclose modified porous supports for chromatography biomolecules. The support is prepared by use of a passivation mixture, comprising a main monomer, a passivating monomer, and a cross linking agent, which mixture upon polymerization results in the substantial elimination of the undesirable nonspecific interaction with biomolecules. The matrix is prepared by first adsorption of various bifunctional compounds to the support surface. The bifunctional molecules, called the passivating monomers, adsorb by virtue of charge interactions and/or hydrogen binding to the silanol surface of the porous support. The passivating monomers include diethylaminoethyl methacrylamide and methacrylamidopropyl trimethyl ammonium chloride, which are cationic at pH>7.0, and will form ion pairs with the deprotonated silanol surface. The result of adsorbing the passivating monomer, is that the surface becomes coated with the passivating monomer and the copolymerizable vinyl group of the molecule is oriented toward the solution in contact with the surface. The polymerization mixture, containing a functional monomer, a crosslinking agent, an initiator, and a porogen is then permitted to polymerize in the pore of the support to form a highly crosslinked gel structure, or the so-called gel in a shell. It is probable that the passivating monomer copolymerizes with the other monomers provided, resulting covalent bonds between the passivating layer and the support. The porogen is necessary to provide pores or channels for solution and analyte molecules to flow through the gel at an acceptable pressure differential and velocity. After completion of the polymerization, the support is washed to remove unreacted monomers and porogen.
Although the passivated porous supports have good properties and have achieved commercial acceptance, there are some underlying design flaws in these materials that limit their performance. The first problem is the noncovalent association of the passivating monomer with the porous support. It is highly unlikely that all of the passivating monomers are incorporated in the polymer formed inside the pores. The result of this is that the passivating monomer is subject to leaching under changes in mobile phase pH changes. Leaching of the passivating surface coating can lead to patches of silanol surface that have no protective coating. This in turn will cause nonspecific binding with proteins that are well know to interact with silanol surfaces. The second design flaw of the passivated porous supports is the crosslinking density of the gel inside the pores. The highly crosslinked copolymer does not permit facile flow of solution through the pores, and it is necessary to use porogens to create micro channels that permit fluid exchange to occur. Such a gel structure will not have the optimal flow characteristics and exchange kinetics.


A storage device and method enable processing of un-map commands. In one aspect, the method includes (1) determining whether a size of an un-map command satisfies (e.g., is greater than or equal to) a size threshold, (2) if the size of the un-map command satisfies the size threshold, performing one or more operations of a first un-map process, wherein the first un-map process forgoes (does not include) saving a mapping table to non-volatile memory of a storage device, and (3) if the size of the un-map command does not satisfy the size threshold, performing one or more operations of a second un-map process, wherein the second un-map process forgoes (does not include) saving the mapping table to non-volatile memory of the storage device and forgoes (does not include) flushing a write cache to non-volatile memory of the storage device.

Semiconductor memory devices, including flash memory, typically utilize memory cells to store data as an electrical value, such as an electrical charge or voltage. A flash memory cell, for example, includes a single transistor with a floating gate that is used to store a charge representative of a data value. Flash memory is a non-volatile data storage device that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. More generally, non-volatile memory (e.g., flash memory, as well as other types of non-volatile memory implemented using any of a variety of technologies) retains stored information even when not powered, as opposed to volatile memory, which requires power to maintain the stored information.
Since flash memory can only be programmed and erased a limited number of times and further, some memory commands need to be completed in a predefined amount of time (e.g., to meet qualification requirements), it is important to optimize memory management processes (e.g., command processing) to enhance performance and endurance of memory devices.

Processing of un-map commands to enhance performance and endurance of a storage device


A system that generates a per user abstraction of a store from a connection point. Filtering a view set of a hierarchically secured containment hierarchy based on the access permissions of the principal is one of the novel features of the invention. The invention can offer a collection of primitives that can operate on this aggregation that span multiple container hierarchies with potentially heterogeneous security descriptors. The model can reduce the necessity to traverse the container hierarchy to discover all the accessible items in a domain.

Storage systems traditionally use a containment hierarchy to organize units of storage. In accordance with these systems, a container and therefore, inherently the units of data maintained within the container, are independently securable to facilitate the provisioning of access to the principals. Conventional systems offer discoverability through traversal that could limit access to data upon encountering a container that is not accessible to the principal.
These systems suffer from at least the following limitations. One limitation is that a principal cannot visualize the global set of data for which they have access. In other words, upon rendering a global set of data, if a container is encountered whereby a user does not have access, the contents (e.g., units of data) of this container could not be rendered. Consider a situation where a sub-folder or sub-container exists within a container with access restrictions placed upon the principal. In this scenario, the principal could not visualize (e.g., discover) or access the contents of the sub-folder even if adequate permissions are in place. This restrictive discoverablity is due to lack of adequate permissions to access the parent folder.
Another limitation of traditional systems is that a principal cannot operate on all the data at once. For example, a restriction for an operation such as "grant access to FABRIKAM\alice for all data in the tree-like structure rooted at a given node" would not be possible as restrictions may be in place that would limit access to some of the data in the tree-like structure. In some traditional systems, such operation is effected in the user context and rather than a system context.
Yet another limitation of some conventional systems is that accessing data requires adequate permissions in place for all of the containers from the point of connection to the immediate parent of the unit of data in addition to access permissions on the unit of storage. In other words, in some systems, even if the direct file path of the data is known, permission to access the data may be restricted if access permissions do not exist from the point of connection to the immediate parent where the data is stored.
Still another limitation is that, for effective enumeration on the existing file system model, traditional storage systems distinguish between data and metadata. For rich end-user types, this separation creates difficulty to recognize the distinction between metadata and data.

Discoverability and enumeration mechanisms in a hierarchically secure storage system


A readjusting device is provided for compensating wear of a brake pad or multiple brake pads and/or a brake disc of a pneumatically actuatable disc brake for a vehicle. The readjusting device has a mechanical actuator, and the mechanical actuator converts a rotational movement of a brake lever into a rotational movement of a shaft. The shaft rotates at least one threaded spindle which acts on one of the brake pads. The readjusting device can carry out an advancing movement and a return movement of the threaded spindle, and the advancing movement and the return movement of the threaded spindle can be terminated by switching one or more couplings.

The present invention relates to a readjustment device for a pneumatically actuable disc brake for compensating for the wear of a brake pad or a plurality of brake pads and/or a brake disc of the pneumatically actuable disc brake, wherein the readjustment device has a mechanical actuator. The mechanical actuator converts a rotational movement of a brake lever into a rotational movement of a shaft, wherein the shaft sets at least one threaded spindle, which acts on one of the brake pads, into a rotatory movement.
Mechanically driven and mechanically acting readjustment devices which are provided for readjusting brake pads of pneumatically actuable disc brakes for a vehicle to compensate for the wear of the brake pads and brake discs are known from the prior art. They are driven during actuation of the brakes.
The term "air clearance" is repeatedly used below.
"Air clearance" means the spacing between brake pad and brake disc. A spacing between brake pad and brake disc is necessary so that in the "brake released" state, the brake disc can move completely freely and therefore unbraked.
A distinction is made here between the "design air clearance", that is to say the nominal, theoretical air clearance which is defined during the course of the structural design of a disc brake, and the "actual air clearance", the magnitude of which can be measured on a cold disc brake between brake pad and brake disc and is subject to tolerances, such that the magnitude thereof deviates from the magnitude of the design air clearance.
If only the term "air clearance" is used, this means the "actual air clearance". If the "design air clearance" is meant below, this term is also used.
Examples of mechanically driven and mechanically acting combined readjustment and resetting devices which can increase and reduce the air clearance in steps during actuations of the brakes are described by DE 10 2012 012 473 and DE 10 2012 102 577, for example.
Other mechanically driven and mechanically acting readjustment devices can reduce an enlarged air clearance during actuations of the brakes only synchronously with respect to the braking operation. In the case of an unwanted reduction in the air clearance below a desired value, they exploit existing reverse rotary effects on the threaded spindles, which act on the brake pads of the disc brake, in order to increase the air clearance in very small steps. When a desired air clearance value is reached, a further reverse rotary movement is stopped by a locking effect of the readjuster. This effect is potentially included in all known mechanically acting readjustment systems but is generally suppressed by high holding friction torques at the readjuster and/or at the spindle system in order to avoid unwanted changes in the air clearance, for example due to the effect of vibration in the driving mode.
In contrast to the bidirectional concepts described above for readjustment devices, reductions in the air clearance occurring spontaneously in the last example can be eliminated only with a very large number of actuations of the brakes. Such spontaneously occurring reductions in the air clearance can be brought about, for example, by severe vibrational stress occurring between two braking operations, incorrect air clearance adjustment, high-energy braking operations with a large increase in thickness of the brake disc and the brake pads.
DE 10 2013 006 863 A1 describes a disc brake with a bidirectional wear readjustment device, and a bidirectional wear readjustment device. The disc brake in DE 10 2013 006 863 A1 with a bidirectional wear readjustment device is designed in such a manner that an increased resetting speed of the bidirectional wear readjustment device and improved resistance in relation to the effect of wear and vibration is provided. However, the disadvantage of the active principle on the basis of holding friction torques at the readjuster and/or at the spindle system remains.
The invention is therefore based on the object of providing a mechanical readjustment device for a disc brake that avoids the aforementioned disadvantages of the prior art.
The invention achieves the object by providing a readjustment device for compensating for the wear of a brake pad or a plurality of brake pads and/or a brake disc of the pneumatically actuable disc brake, wherein the readjustment device has a mechanical actuator. The mechanical actuator converts a rotational movement of a brake lever into a rotational movement of a shaft, wherein the shaft sets at least one threaded spindle, which acts on one of the brake pads, into a rotatory movement. The readjustment device can carry out an advancing stroke and a reverse rotary stroke of the threaded spindle, wherein the advancing stroke and the reverse rotary stroke of the threaded spindle can be terminated by switching of one or more couplings.
According to the invention, it is provided that the readjustment device can carry out an advancing stroke and a reverse rotary stroke of the threaded spindle, wherein the advancing stroke and the reverse rotary stroke of the threaded spindle can be terminated by switching of one or more couplings.
As a result, the readjustment device is advantageously capable of, in addition to an advancing stroke with a defined magnitude, also carrying out a resetting stroke with a defined magnitude.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the magnitude of the reverse rotary stroke of the readjustment device is defined by a defined spacing h between a ramp starting point and a ramp end point or ramp switching point in the vertical direction, wherein the spacing h is defined in a defined operating state of the readjustment device.
As a result, the magnitude of the design air clearance of the readjustment device or of the disc brake is defined in an advantageous manner by a spacing—that is to say a directly measurable component variable—of a component that must be manufacturable with high precision, or on geometry formations of said component, which can likewise be manufactured with high precision.
As a result, the tolerance-increasing influence of only indirectly measurable component characteristic variables, such as, for example, coefficients of stiction or sliding friction or stiction torques, on the resetting stroke and thus on the magnitude of the air clearance of the readjustment device is particularly advantageously avoided.
Such a definition of the resetting stroke and thus of the design air clearance of the readjustment device has a particularly advantageous effect if the spacing is defined in an operating state of the readjustment device that is simple to define, as is the case in the present invention. Such an operating state is simply and thus advantageously defined in that, in said operating state, the brake pads of the disc brake are caused by the readjustment device to just make contact with the brake disc.
In a further advantageous variant embodiment, the readjustment device has a transmission with a stepped gearwheel, where the stepped gearwheel has a switchable coupling. By means of the switchable coupling, the readjustment device can simply and advantageously be brought into a basic position after the exchange of worn brake pads and/or a worn brake disc.
In a further advantageous variant embodiment, the readjustment device has a shaft which forms a spline toothing section. The spline toothing section is operatively connected to a spline toothing hub in a drive disc. In this way, a positively locking shaft-hub connection which is of structural-space-saving design and which is thus advantageously axially displaceable under load is formed.
In a further advantageous variant embodiment, the readjustment device has a sleeve or a spring sleeve, by means of which the introduced torque of the quick-acting threaded shaft is transmitted to output elements via transmission elements, to an internal profile of an output wheel. In this way, a rotationally conjoint coupling of the sleeve to the output wheel is formed. In addition, this type of coupling forms a cardanic joint, as a result of which it is advantageously possible for possible tilting or precession movements of a threaded spindle, which converts the torque into a translationally acting force, to be compensated for.
In a further advantageous variant embodiment, the readjustment device has a first ball ramp coupling and a second ball ramp coupling. Through the use of ball ramp couplings, it is possible for different torque paths, as required for the functioning of the readjustment device, to be switched in a simple and structural-space-saving and thus advantageous manner.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of one or more preferred embodiments when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

KNORR-BREMSE Systeme fuer Nutzfahrzeuge GmbH