A method of preparing a certification project plan for certifying compliance for a mobile platform project with pre-defined regulations is provided. The method includes defining the project in a software system and defining a certification plan for the project in the software system. The method also includes selecting authorized representatives based on their delegated authorities from a database to carry out the certification plan. The method can include verifying the completion of the certification plan and generating at least one document to indicate that the mobile platform is in compliance based on the completed certification plan.

The FAA defines the many requirements for achieving FAA certification of a new or modified aircraft. As defined in FAA Order 8110.4 and additional related writings, an aircraft can be "Type Certified" when there is proof that the aircraft is compliant with every applicable rule during every condition for which the aircraft is designed to operate. The process required to identify the applicable rules and document design compliance is called "Type Certification" and is governed by federal law.
The first difficulty with certification can be the complexity of the process required to identify the applicable rules in a situation where each design detail can be affected by several specific rules. Under FAA Order 8110.4, the FAA requires the applicant to submit a certification plan that identifies all of the rules that apply to each part of the design. Without expert involvement, the applicability of specific rules can be difficult to ascertain due to the large number of rules (some with several amendments), the requirements for compliance with an individual rule may not be obvious, and the interactions between different rules are often affected by the versions of the rules applicable to a particular aircraft.
Although the FAA exclusively reserves the right to determine if a particular configuration is compliant with the applicable rules, they use a system of delegations defined under FAA Order 8100.9 and additional related writings to designate Authorized Representatives (AR). Those ARs are delegated authority in specific functional areas to complete findings of compliance on behalf of the FAA.
Certification plan development can also be limited by the level of detail included in the design proposal. The rules that "belong" in the certification plan may change as the design matures, so the certification plan must have some flexibility to document changes in the requirements (and the compliance plan) as the product definition is completed. This can be a significant limitation with traditional planning tools.
Typically, the certification plan can be developed on paper. The paper plan does not reflect the dynamic nature of the engineering environment, can be cumbersome to develop and distribute, can be difficult to revise and coordinate, and can be especially hindered when there are wide geographic separations between the engineering team and the FAA approvers. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a software system for managing all these aspects of the FAA certification process.


Disclosed is a clamping device including a collar having at least one pair of projecting lugs and tightening means co-operating with said lugs. Each lug of a pair is equipped with reinforcement means suitable for opposing deformation of said lugs under the action of the tightening means. Each lug has a connection portion via which it is connected to a belt portion of the collar, which connection portion is upstanding relative to said belt portion, and a tightening wall, with which the tightening means come into engagement and which is folded back towards the belt portion. A space is formed between the connection portion and the tightening wall.

The present invention relates to a clamping device comprising a collar, suitable for being disposed around objects to be clamped, and having at least one pair of projecting lugs, the device further comprising tightening means suitable for co-operating with lugs of said pair to move them relative to each other in a manner such as to clause the diameter of the collar to decrease.
In particular, the tightening means are of the nut and bolt type. Collars of this type, e.g. for clamping together two smooth tubes disposed end-to-end, are known from Patent Application EP 1 181 477. Conventionally, the collar includes a belt portion relative to which the two lugs serving for tightening are upstanding. The belt portion is disposed around the object(s) to be clamped, and the lugs, which for raised lips, are disposed facing each other to define a slot between them of width that is decreased during tightening.
In the collar described in the above-mentioned patent, the lugs formed by said lips are situated in the immediate vicinity of the edges of the above-mentioned slot. Even though such collars are generally satisfactory, it has been observed that, for certain demanding applications, the tightening might lose some of its effectiveness because, firstly, the co-operation between the tightening means, in particular means having bolts, might not take place in the desired manner, in particular due to the bolts not being guided properly, and, secondly, the lugs might bend under the effect of the tightening forces.

Clamping device with reinforced clamping lugs


A signal transmission circuit and method thereof are provided. The signal transmission circuit may include a plurality of signal transmission lines, each of the plurality of signal transmission lines configured to transfer data via signal currents and a reference transmission plane configured to transfer return currents corresponding to the signal currents, the reference transmission plane separated from each of the plurality of signal transmission lines by an insulating layer, the reference transmission plane including at least one separation slot.

1. Field of the Invention
Example embodiments of the present invention relate generally to a signal transmission circuit and method thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
A micro strip line pattern or a strip line pattern may be provided to control transmission characteristics of a signal transmission circuit. In conventional micro strip line structures, a reference transmission plane having a ground voltage or a power voltage may be located under a signal transmission line. In conventional strip line structures, a plurality of reference transmission planes may be respectively arranged on and under a plurality of signal transmission lines. The signal transmission lines and the reference transmission planes of the strip line structures may be electrically separated from each other by a plurality of insulating layers. The transmission characteristics of the signal transmission circuits may be adjusted via the pattern of the signal transmission lines or the reference transmission planes.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional signal transmission circuit. The signal transmission circuit of FIG. 1 may include a plurality of first through fifth signal transmission lines SL1, SL2, SL3, SL4 and SL5 and a plurality of reference transmission planes RP1 and RP2, and a plurality of insulating layers D1, D2 and D3. The plurality of first through fifth signal transmission lines SL1, SL2, SL3, SL4 and SL5 may be formed from a plurality of metal layers, the plurality of reference transmission planes RP1 and RP2 may be formed from a plurality of metal layers.
FIG. 2 illustrates a portion of the first and second signal transmission lines SL1 and SL2 and the reference transmission plane RP1 of FIG. 1. Interference (e.g., cross-talk) between neighboring signal transmission lines will now be explained with reference to FIG. 2.
Referring to FIG. 2, the first signal transmission line SL1 may transmit a first signal current Is1 and the second signal transmission line SL2 may transmit a second signal current Is2. The reference transmission plane RP1 may transmit a return current Ir1 corresponding to the first signal current Is1 and a return current Ir2 corresponding to the second signal current Ir2.
Referring to FIG. 2, in the reference transmission plane RP1, electromagnetic wave noise Nw accompanying the return current Ir1 may affect the second signal current Is2 and electromagnetic wave noise Nw accompanying the return current Ir2 may affect the first signal current Is1, thereby resulting in cross-talk between the first and second signal transmission lines SL1 and SL2. Further, if a higher-frequency signal is transmitted through the signal transmission lines, the cross-talk may increase, which may further degrade system performance.

Plural signal transmission line circuits having a reference plane with separation slots therein corresponding to the plural signal transmission lines


A tape dispensing device is comprised of a means for rotatably supporting a roll of tape. A means for adhering to the tape and pulling the tape forwardly is positioned forwardly of the supporting means. The adhering means and pulling means is rotatably supported. A motor means is provided for imparting rotation to said adhering and pulling means. Means for cutting the tape means is positioned forwardly of said adhering and pulling means. A switch means is provided for actuating the motor continuously while said actuating means is engaged. Also a shaping means is positioned above the path of travel of the tape to urge the tape against the adhering and pulling means, the adhering and pulling means including a set of feed rollers. The shaping means is positioned between a pair of adjacent feed rollers, the lowermost edge of the shaping means being positioned below the uppermost edge of said pair of adjacent feed rollers forming a structural indentation in said tape. A handle means is formed in the housing means for gripping said housing means and directing the dispensing means to dispense tape to a selected location.

I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to tape dispensing devices, and more particularly, to battery-powered devices for automatically dispensing a length of pressure-sensitive, adhesive tape.
II. Background
Tape dispensers are well known in the prior art. Very basic tape dispensers are comprised of a simple support frame for a tape roll in which the roll of tape can rotate, for pulling tape manually over a serrated cutting bar. Other devices provide mechanically-driven, ratchet-type means for dispensing tape from a roll.
Recently, motorized tape dispensers are provided for automatically dispensing tape. These devices are generally stationary, desktop-mounted devices that require the user to handle the dispensed tape to manually apply the tape to a package, envelope, or other object. Existing tape dispensing devices are typically open-cradle support frames for the tape roll, for removing or replacing the tape roll. These motorized devices are not easily portable, as they are designed to be set upon a desktop or some other stationary surface.


A pixel driving circuit (400) receives a signal voltage VA from a column bus (403) and generates therefrom, a back plate electrode voltage VB which is approximately twice that of a signal voltage VA. Included in the pixel driving circuit (400) are three transistors (402, 407 and 408) and a storage capacitor (404). During a first time period, two of the three transistors turn on to charge up or discharge the storage capacitor to the signal voltage VA, while the third transistor (407) is turned off, and during a second time, the third transistor (407) is turned on to effectively double the voltage provided to the back plate electrode, while the other two of the three transistors are turned off.

An especially popular type of active matrix display is an active matrix liquid crystal display ("AMLCD") formed by confining a thin layer of liquid crystal material between a front plate having a front electrode, and a back plate having a matrix of back electrodes. The front plate typically comprises a transparent material such as glass, and the back plate typically comprises a glass substrate with processed thin-film or amorphous silicon transistors for transmissive type AMLCDs, or a silicon substrate with processed MOS transistors for reflective type AMLCDs. Pixels are defined by the front and back electrodes so as to be optically responsive to voltages applied across liquid crystal material residing between the front and back electrodes.
In conventional AMLCDs, although the voltage applied to the front electrode is not necessarily restricted in magnitude since it may readily be generated as an analog signal, the voltages applied to the back electrodes commonly are restricted for convenience in their generation, to logic level voltages such as the 5.0 volts commonly used by digital circuitry. In certain applications, however, such a restricted voltage may result in compromising the performance of the AMLCD. For examples, it may preclude the use of certain liquid crystal materials such as electroclinic liquid crystal materials, which require high voltages for proper operation, or it may limit the range or application of certain other liquid crystal materials such as nematic liquid crystal material, wherein a high voltage range is desirable for high resolution gray scale applications.

Active matrix display having pixel driving circuits with integrated charge pumps


A radio and antenna combination with 4×N MIMO on the downlink path, with antenna arrays spaced 1 wavelength apart, and N×4 MIMO (or SIMO) on the uplink path, with 3 to 10 wavelengths or more separation of the antenna arrays.

Mobile wireless communications often rely on Base Station Antennas having phased arrays of multiple radiating elements to achieve desired beam shape, angle, and polarization. For example, a common Base Station Antenna may have a single column of dual-polarized radiating elements. This would be considered a two-port antenna. Other antennas may have additional arrays of radiating elements for additional bands to increase capacity. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,659,859 which is incorporated by reference.
Also, in mobile wireless systems there are two different radio frequency paths that may be optimized. The first is the Radio Frequency ("RF") path from the Base Station Antenna (BSA) to the user equipment (UE), and is referred to as the "downlink" path. The second is the RF path from the UE back to the BSA, and is referred to as the "uplink" path. For LTE applications, the downlink must typically support much higher data rates than the uplink. The reason for this is customer demand for features like streaming video and live TV.
The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Standards Body has defined Long Term Evolution (LTE) as the latest modulation scheme that the cellular industry can use, with the promise of much faster data speeds compared to legacy systems. In order to accomplish this, 3GPP has introduced a number of new concepts that are just beginning to be implemented. For example, with the E-UTRAN LTE 3GPP specifications, Multiple Input, Multiple Output (MIMO) transmission modes are defined.
MIMO transmission modes may be used in different ways. In one mode, transmit diversity may be achieved. In this example, each antenna array transmits the same information, and an increase in received power may be achieved. In other examples, different antenna arrays may transmit different streams of information. In this example, throughput is increased.
There are various MIMO configurations, typically delineated by the number of transmit antennas and by the number of receive antennas. For example, where a Base Station Antenna has four columns available for transmitting, and the User Equipment (UE) has two antennas for reception, the path from the path from the BSA to the UE is said to have 4×2 MIMO. One example of an antenna family suited to 4×N transmit MIMO is the CommScope SBNHH family, which has two columns of cross-polarized radiating elements for high-band signals, resulting in a four-port antenna for high band signals. The radiating elements are wide-band elements, configured to operate in a band of 1710-2360 MHz. The columns are spaced apart one wavelength or less.


Provided are probiotic compositions that have enhanced stability under various storage conditions. The stability of the probiotic compositions is enhanced through the addition of various agents and excipients. Examples of agents and excipients that may be used to enhance the stability of probiotic compositions include prebiotics, such as the sugar alcohols mannitol, sorbitol, and lactitol, and/or phytonutrients such as oligomeric proanthocyanidins (OPCs). The probiotic compositions may be formulated into oral dosage forms such as tablets, caplets, and capsules, or manufactured as a chewing gum or as a powder formulation that may be dissolved in a liquid such as water, milk, juice, or yogurt.

The gastrointestinal ("GI") tract is a complex micro-ecosystem in which the mucosal lining of the host coexists with billions of microorganisms that live on or are attached to the lining. Among the microorganisms that inhabit the GI tract are "probiotic" bacteria, which help to maintain the health of the GI tract of the host organism. Within the GI tract of the host, probiotic bacteria are provided with shelter and support, and copious amounts of food substrates and in return, they offer the host a variety of potential therapeutic uses including replacing intestinal bacteria destroyed by antibiotics; aiding digestion and suppressing disease-causing bacteria; preventing and treating diarrhea, including infectious diarrhea, particularly from rotavirus (a virus that commonly causes diarrhea in children); treating overgrowth of "bad" organisms in the gastrointestinal tract (a condition that tends to cause diarrhea and may occur from use of antibiotics); alleviating symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome and, possibly, inflammatory bowel disease (such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis); preventing and/or reducing the recurrence of vaginal yeast infections, urinary tract infections, and cystitis (bladder inflammation); improving lactose absorption digestion in people who are lactose intolerant; and enhancing the immune response. Because probiotics have many beneficial uses, there is a need in the art for probiotic supplements.
Among the probiotics that may be included in a supplement, are Lactobacillus acidophilus, L. bulgaricus, L. casei, L. fermentum, L. paracasei, L. plantarum, L. rhamnosus, L. salivarius, Bifidobacterium bifidum, B. infantis, B. animalis subsp. lactis, B. longum, Streptococcus thermophilis, Enterococcus faecalis, and E. faecium, all of which are found in the GI and vaginal tracts of humans. The lactobacillus species are gram-positive lactic acid bacteria that absorb lactose and other monosaccharides in the intestinal tract to produce lactic acid, which has the beneficial effect of lowering the pH of the organs making the environment of the organs hostile for the growth of harmful bacterial. The bifidobacterium species are the first species of microorganisms to colonize the sterile colon of a newborn baby that is nursed by its mother. Bifidobacteria use the mechanism of crowding to digest the nutrients that otherwise harmful bacteria would use for reproduction. Probiotic supplements may have up to approximately 10 billion colony forming units per supplement.
L. acidophilus in particular has the additional beneficial effect of producing the anti-microbial substances (i.e., natural antibiotics) acidolin, acidolphilin, lactocidin, and bacteriocin, which increase the immune system's resistance against fungus, such as Candida albican, and the harmful bacterial species Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and salmonella.
L. bulgaricus enhances the digestibility of proteins and milk products, aids in the production of natural antibiotics, and has been used to treat gastrointestinal disorders such as enterocolitis.
L. casei has been found to have protective activity against pathogenic listeria bacteria.
L. fermentum has been found to prevent human immunodeficiency virus ("HIV") from infecting immune cells in infants (From Reuters Health, May 25, 2004, author Karla Gale, available at http://pronutrition.org/archive/200406/msg00002.php).
L. plantarum helps produce lactolin, a natural antibiotic, and synthesizes L-lysine.
L. salivarius is a facultative bacterium (i.e., a bacterial species that survives and grows in both anaerobic and aerobic environments) that is most abundant in the mouth and gums. L. salivarius has several advantages as a probiotic: it has the ability to break down undigested protein and disengage the toxins produced by protein putrefactions; it is useful to prevent and fight Helicobacter pylori, which is known to be a cause of ulcers); and because its population doubles every 20 minutes, smaller amounts of the probiotic may be administered to a patient thus lending an economic advantage to the use of the probiotic.
L. rhamnosus has excellent stability over a wide range of temperatures and pH levels; it relieves hypersensitivity reactions and intestinal inflammation in individuals with eczema and food allergies.
B. animalis is a probiotic bacterium that plays a role in intestinal mucosal defense. B. animalis has two subspecies: B. animalis subsp. animalis and B. animalis subsp. lactis, both of which prior to 2004 were referred to as B. animalis and B. animalis subsp. lactis. Masco et al., INT'L J SYST EVOL BIOL 54:1137-1143 (2004). Because B. animalis subsp. animalis only grows in anaerobic environments and is incapable of growth in milk cultures, it is not useful as a probiotic. By contrast, B. animalis subsp. lactis, which is a lactic acid bacterium characterized by its high oxygen resistance and production of considerable amounts of formate, grows well in milk cultures and thus, is a useful probiotic. B. animalis subsp. lactis is added to infant formulas to ensure that newborn babies not being nursed have sufficient colonization of bifidobacteria and is the only bifidobacterium species that is found in yogurt cultures.
B. bifidum inhibits the growth of the harmful bacterial species salmonella, listeria, shigella, E. coli, and Clostridium perfringens by consuming their nutrients, such as for example, ferrous ions, which many harmful bacterial species require for growth. B. bifidum also synthesizes some vitamins and aids in the absorption of minerals such as calcium, magnesium, and zinc.
B. infantis is the first probiotic to colonize the sterile digestive tract of an infant that is nursed by its mother. For infants that are formula fed, this probiotic may be administered in supplemental form in order to ensure that the newborn has the proper intestinal flora.
B. longum biovar longum (referred to as B. longum) has been found to be able to eliminate nitrates from the intestinal tract.
S. thermophilis generates lactase activity, facilitating the digestion of lactose in milk.
E. faecalis and E. faecium are both lactic acid bacteria that have inhibitory effects against enteropathogens such as E. coli, salmonellae, shigellae and clostridia.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,518,696 to Gehrman et al. teaches the use of sunflower oil as a liquid suspending medium for preparing dry viable lactobacillus cells that are stable at room temperature.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,466,463 to Ford teaches a vaginal suppository containing an antimicrobial agent and a viable colony of microencapsulated lactobacilli bacteria; the bacteria are microencapsulated to protect them from the action of the antimicrobial agent.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,614,209; 5,633,012; 5,635,202; and 5,733,568 all to Ford teach microencapsulated lactobacilli bacteria for oral and topical administration to mammals that have 103 viable microencapsulated lactobacilli in each unit dose.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,706,287 to Ranganathan et al. teaches microencapsulated and/or enteric-coated probiotics, such as lactobacillus and bifidium bacteria species, that are capable of metabolizing urea and ammonia to amino acids.
A disadvantage of many of the probiotic formulations on the market is the poor shelf life of the formulations; accordingly, there is a need in the art for improved shelf life of probiotic formulations having live colonies of probiotic bacteria, such as for example, lactobacillus and bifidobacterium.

Probiotic oral dosage forms and method of enhancing the stability, thereof


An apparatus and a method for generating a unique user identification code for a user of a biometric security system are presented. No biometric information is stored either within the security system or on a device, and the method enables a unique user identification code to be generated to allow multi-system identification of the same user.

Security systems control access to places and data by requiring those desiring access to be identified and authenticated. Biometric security systems use biometric data, such as a fingerprint, thumbprint, or retina scan, for identification and authentication. Initially the security system registers the user by storing his biometric information. Subsequently, to gain access to the system, the user must present his biometric information to be identified and authorized by the system. The biometric information can be presented, for example, by scanning a finger or thumb or retina, or by presenting a device on which the information has been stored. A variety of products exist which capture fingerprint biometric information and compare it to previously captured biometric information stored in the security system. The stored information resides either in a database on the system's network, or on a mobile biometric device, such as a smart card, that is carried by the user. Additionally, there are mobile biometric devices that capture the fingerprint biometric information and compare it to biometric information residing on the device, and then transmit a predefined credential identifier to the system in lieu of the biometric information.
One problem with the above approaches is that, since a user's biometric information must be stored either within a database in the security system or on a device the user carries, the stored information could be stolen or altered. Another problem is that the information can only be accessed by the specific system that stores the information or the credential identifier, so that the user's biometric information cannot be shared among various systems to authenticate the user.

Abstract: The method includes receiving a public key from the system, obtaining a characteristic from the user, generating a biometric value from the characteristic, creating the identification code by combining and encrypting the generated biometric value and the system supplied public key, and transmitting the identification code to the system for authentication.


The disclosure relates to a tamper-proof transparency mount which includes a zipper tab permitting easy access and removal of the transparency from its mount when sealed without doing any damage to the transparency under authorized conditions. Several embodiments are disclosed which provide different locations as well as different style tabs. The transparency mount provides an indication of unauthorized entry and also easy access for authorized entry to the transparency.

The subject application relates to transparency mounts and more specifically, it relates to a commercial photography mount for the stock photography market.
Historically, commercial photographers have used commercially available mounts for presentation of their work in portfolios and for presentation of their selected best shots to clients who have given them photographic shooting assignments. "Large size" or "portfolio size" products are loosely defined as products having a finished outside dimension of eight inches by ten inches or eleven inches by fourteen inches and any one of many possible inside single or multiple windows commonly referred to as the "image area". A traditional method of obtaining a photograph of a "girl in bikini" or "woman in a business suit" for use in a print ad, brochure or billboard is to give a commercial photographer a shooting assignment. As is known in the industry, these assignments can be "location" or "studio" shoots. Depending on the assignment, the location photographer alone or travelling with an entourage of assistants, art/creative director(s), model(s), prop people, etc. travel across town or around the world to do the shoot.
Studio photography can also be very involved. Assignments may require the services of some or all of the types mentioned above. In addition, either may need the support of some very expensive equipment such as cranes, helicopters, fire control and the like.
It can readily be seen from the above discussion that both studio photography and location photography can be very, very expensive.
The aforementioned type of commercial photography and its associated expense has served as a catalyst for the "stock photography house". A stock photography house serves as a photography library. The larger stock photography houses maintain "in stock" thousands and in some cases, millions of photographs. With the entry of stock photography houses on the commercial photography scene, a publisher of a magazine needing a photograph of a girl in a bikini on Waikiki beach with only palm trees and Diamond Head in the background need only call the stock photography house and state their requirements.
The stock photography house will research their files and send the publisher several dozen different photographs which will meet the requirements of the publisher. The publisher will then select the particular photograph or photographs which he will use. The main advantage stock photography houses offer is price. The photographs which they supply to the publisher or any other client are rented for a particular usage, i.e. for a particular number of pieces that will be printed or posted on billboards, for a certain period of time of a particular ad campaign. The cost of "renting" these photographs can be as low as $150.00 per image, i.e. shots, photos, transparencies, pictures, and up to tens of thousands of dollars for a particularly excellent image or one used in an extensive print run or ad campaign. Compared to the cost of assignment or studio photography, this can prove to be a real bargain as well being much faster.
For the purposes of providing a complete background in the instant application, it is important to know that the photographs in a stock house are usually kept and presented in a "transparency" form. A 35 mm slide is an example of a common transparency. It is transparent and by holding it up to the light, one can see the images thereon. In addition, it is a film positive, that when projected, held to the light or laid on a light box, it shows a "right reading" image, i.e. not a "wrong reading" image as in a film negative where the light images are dark and the dark images are light.
When a transparency leaves a stock house, the images are packed in a variety of ways depending upon the procedures and policies of the particular stock house. The most common packaging is as follows:
(1) The transparency is placed into a clear plastic sleeve (such as acetate) to protect it from scratches and dust since the transparency is a film material and is quite fragile. Frequently, the lab that develops the film will place the transparency in such a sleeve when it is returned after developing.
(2) The transparency while in the clear plastic sleeve, is then positioned in the window and affixed to the inside of a transparency mount with tape. Transparency mounts are normally made of a paper stock. The mount is then closed and usually sealed with some type of adhesive seal that prevents the removal of the transparency without the seal being broken. These seals often carry warnings to the effect that, "if this seal is broken, you've bought the rental price of the image".
Once the package is received by the client, the images are examined and hopefully one or more will be suitable for the project at hand. The client then contacts the stock house, a price is negotiated, an agreement struck and permission is given to the client to reproduce the image or images in accordance with the terms of the agreement.
At this time, the paper transparency mount is opened by the client, removed from the sleeve and reproduced for use in printing. The bought and unbought images are then returned to the stock house, refiled and stored for future use.
As one can readily recognize, the transparency must be removed from the mount and acetate sleeve to provide the greatest quality print. However, as a means of preventing the unauthorized removal of the transparency from its mount, i.e. the removal, printing and returning to the stock house without paying the required rental fee, some stock houses, photo labs and photographers have required their mount supplier to provide a mount which when sealed after the insertion of the transparency, will literally require the destruction of the mount which would require the client to pay for the mounts returned in the destructed condition.

Tamperproof transparency mount with tear strip


An artificially produced feline milk substitute position is provided. The composition comprises, as expressed a dry matter basis, from about 30 to about 50 percent protein, from about 25 to about 50 percent fat, and from about 10 to about 25 percent carbohydrates. The preferred source of protein in the composition comprises casein and whey in a weight ratio of about

This invention relates to a queen's milk replacer, also referred to as a feline milk substitute, which substantially supplies the nutrient needs of nursing kittens.
According to recent studies, the domestic cat has become the most popular house pet in the United States. This increased popularity has focused attention on the nutritional requirements of adult cats and growing kittens. Although much research has been performed on weaned kittens and adult cats, very little information has been acquired on the composition of cat milk and how it may meet any unusual metabolic demands of the suckling kitten.
It is generally accepted that optimal nutrition of the suckling neonate is provided by milk from the lactating mother. Therefore, milk replacers have been formulated to reflect the nutrient composition of that species' milk. In the case of the orphaned kitten, most of the commercial and home-made formulations are based on studies that concentrated on total protein and fat percentages. The resultant rearing of orphan kittens with current milk replacers has met with several complications including cataracts, diarrhea, poor weight gain, and intolerance of the diet. Apparently, these defects are the result of inadequate nourishment of the suckling kitten.
Current queen's milk replacers have been formulated using upon a limited information base. Knowledge of total protein and fat concentrations in milk is not sufficient to allow the construction of an ingredient matrix sufficient to ensure provision of adequate nutrients to the nursing kitten. Therefore, a need still exists for a queen's milk replacer which duplicates feline milk more closely than currently available products and which substantially supplies the nutrient needs of nursing kittens.


The present invention provides a highly doped semiconductor layer. More specifically, the present invention provides a semiconductor layer that includes at least two impurities. Each impurity is introduced at a level below its respective degradation concentration. In this manner, the two or more impurities provide an additive conductivity to the semiconductor layer at a level above the conductivity possible with any one of the impurities alone, due to the detrimental effects that would be created by increasing the concentration of any one impurity beyond its degradation concentration.

Semiconductors, either single element or compound (e.g., III-V) semiconductors, are widely used in integrated circuits. For example, Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) semiconductors are widely used in low-noise, high-gain, weak-signal amplifying devices. The useful properties of semiconductors depend not only on the particular semiconductor that forms the crystal, but also on the dopants that are incorporated into the crystal lattice.
Semiconductor devices require the use of highly conductive layers. The use of impurities or dopants contributes to the hole and electron charge carriers that are responsible for the electronic properties of the crystals. When excess electrons are generated, the impurity is considered a "donor" or "n-type" dopant. When excess holes are generated, the impurity is considered an "acceptor" or "p-type" dopant.
More specifically, depending on the valence of the impurity and the lattice site, the conductivity of a semiconductor layer depends upon (i) the number of electrons (or holes); (ii) the electron (or hole) mobility; and (iii) the charge of the electron. Thus, there is a direct correlation between the level of impurity and the conductivity of the semiconductor layer. Thus, in order to create a highly conductive layer, the density of the impurity must also be very high.
Importantly, however, when any single impurity is added in very high concentrations in an attempt to maximize conductivity, degradation problems occur. Such problems depend on the particular dopant used, and include but are not limited to auto compensation, diffusion, strain, and other defects. For example, when a Beryllium (Be) dopant is used above a particular concentration, diffusion may occur that degrades device performance. As another example, excessive use of a Carbon (C) dopant likely causes auto-compensation that degrades device performance. Throughout this specification, the term "degradation concentration" is used to describe the concentration at which a particular impurity begins to create detrimental effects or degrade semiconductor performance. In other words, each impurity currently used to create conducting layers has some maximum acceptable concentration before the layer is degraded in some manner. See, for example, Doping in Semiconductors, E. F. Schubert, University Press, 1993, herein incorporated by reference.
To date, attempts to reach beyond the accepted degradation concentration for particular dopants have focused on manufacturing techniques to reduce the detrimental effects. For example, attempts to overcome the degradation concentration for Be have focused on reducing the layer temperature during manufacture. As another example, to reduce auto-compensation, strict control is maintained on the ratio of the semiconductor elements. Such techniques often add to the manufacturing time and costs, while providing only marginal gains in the conductivity of the semiconductor layer. Furthermore, such techniques focus on minimizing rather than avoiding or eliminating the potential detrimental effects.
There is a need in the art for a highly conductive semiconductor without the aforementioned degradation problems.


A power amplifier (PA) circuit includes a circuit for generating a supply voltage at an upper voltage rail for a power amplifier (PA). The circuit includes a DC-to-DC converter for generating a voltage from which the supply voltage is generated; a linear amplifier for sourcing or sinking current to or from the upper voltage rail via a capacitor for performing fine adjustment of the supply voltage; a first switching device coupled between an output of the linear amplifier and a lower voltage rail to selectively assist the linear amplifier sink current through the capacitor to deal with actual or anticipated transient response of the supply voltage; and a second switching device coupled between the upper voltage rail and the lower voltage rail to selectively discharge the capacitor in response to actual or anticipated transient response of the supply voltage.

A power amplifier (PA) is typically employed in a transmitter to amplify an input radio frequency (RF) signal to generate an output RF signal for transmission into free space via an antenna. Many power amplifiers (PAs) are employed in small formfactor devices, such as smart phones. Because such formfactor devices use batteries as their primary power source, it is often desirable to operate power amplifiers (PAs) in a power efficient manner.
To this end, such devices employ power amplifier (PA) circuits that use average power tracking (APT) and envelope tracking (ET) for generating a supply voltage for a power amplifier (PA) such that the operation of the power amplifier (PA) is performed in a power efficient manner. Accordingly, the disclosure relates to improvements in this regard.

Apparatus and method for assisting envelope tracking with transient response in supply voltage for power amplifier


A simple and robust variable coaxial capacitive sensor and detection method for monitoring the position of a rapidly reciprocating member such as a piston or displacer in a free piston Stirling engine. The coaxial capacitor of the present invention in a preferred embodiment thereof is configured to modulate capacitive electrode area rather than inter-electrode spacing and as a result a highly linear transfer function can be achieved. Also disclosed are detection methods which derive and process signals in connection with applications which have small sensor capacitance variations while suppressing stray capacitance error.

Various applications call for the sensing and resultant determination of position with respect to rapidly reciprocating members. Exemplary classes of such reciprocating members include pistons in free piston internal combustion engines, hydraulic and pneumatic cylinders and pistons and displacers in free piston Stirling engines (FPSEs) or compressors.
Although traditional internal combustion engines are in widespread use and have many advantages, the exhaust emissions associated with these engines can often exceed acceptable levels. In addition, these engines can be overly noisy and require frequent maintenance. Stirling engines represent improvements in these areas since they are extremely efficient and quiet in operation and they may be configured to generate virtually no emissions whatsoever.
A common application associated with Stirling engines is to generate electrical energy from heat energy by means of a free piston Stirling engine (FPSE) driving a linear alternator. In practical application of these types of arrangements, the power demand of the electrical load varies substantially during normal operation due to variations in load impedance and connection and disconnection of some or all of the loads. In addition, operating temperature and other variables may change during operation so as to result in small and not so small changes in power demand over time.
Attainment of optimal free piston engine alternator plant efficiency over a broad range of electrical power demand and engine temperature conditions requires control of power piston displacement. Not only is it desirable to maintain optimal plant efficiency by continuous adjustment of power piston displacement according to electrical load and engine temperature conditions, but it is also critical to maintain the stroke amplitude of the Stirling engine within safe limits. If the load imposed on an FPSE is suddenly reduced by a substantial amount, the stroke amplitude of the engine will be suddenly correspondingly increased. If the increase in amplitude is great enough, the piston can strike the end of its cylinder resulting in unrecoverable engine failure due to deformation of the piston and possibly the cylinder. On the other hand, if the load is substantially and suddenly increased, the stroke amplitude may be suddenly decreased to the point where the engine can no longer oscillate.
To date, there have been two primary solutions to these potential problems. In the first case, the piston stroke is caused to be essentially self-limiting. According to one approach, the displacer is mechanically driven by the oscillating motion of a linear electric motor. In this way, drive parameters such as displacer stroke amplitude are controlled in order to indirectly control piston stroke amplitude and alternator output voltage. While this approach is generally effective, it does suffer from a number of drawbacks. First, it requires additional electromechanical devices and control circuitry which adds to cost and complexity. Additionally, response time to load variations can be slow due to the inertia of the mechanical parts.
In a second class of solutions to the problem of piston and displacer amplitude control, an active approach may be employed wherein piston and/or displacer position is measured and system control is accomplished based thereon. In the case where an FPSE is driving a linear alternator, the voltage induced in the armature of the alternator may be used to ultimately determine piston position. Typically, this is achieved by obtaining stroke amplitude through armature induced voltage.
This class of solutions also suffers from drawbacks. In particular, there exists a load current dependent voltage drop due to resistance and inductance in the armature windings. Moreover, the strength of the alternator field magnets which directly impacts the induced armature voltage will change with temperature and over time. Resistance and inductance voltage drops must be accounted for in terms of the position calculation since load current is flowing during the actual measurement of the observable alternator terminal voltage. While recoverable magnet strength variation with temperature might also be compensated for if magnet temperature can be estimated, it is difficult to account for variation due to magnet aging. Further, if magnets reach a temperature at which there is a pronounced "knee" in their operating B-H characteristic they may be subject an unrecoverable loss of strength when exposed to a strong armature reaction field. Such weakening is not readily detected and can cause a significant understatement of piston excursion leading to damaging impacts. Unfortunately, in many prior art solutions, the voltage drop and field magnet strength variation is not accounted for and inaccurate data results. Alternatively, in order to account for the voltage drop, additional control circuitry and calculations must be performed.
Many prior art methods for monitoring the position of reciprocating members employ magnetic, electromagnetic and optical sensing technologies. Piston position monitoring solutions employing these prior art methods, which are adequately robust and stable with time and temperature fluctuations may be too costly to implement. In general terms, capacitive sensors are known and it is further known that these sensors may be used to determine lateral positioning including in connection with position sensing for reciprocating members. For example, Moser, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,587,850 discloses an apparatus for detecting and measuring the motion of a piston in a cylinder through the use of a variable impedance comprising a dielectric moving between the fixed electrodes of a capacitive structure. The use of a variable capacitive structure in determining position is based upon the premise that capacitance changes based upon the positional relationship of the electrodes. In most cases, capacitive change is based upon a change in the distance between the two electrodes which is inversely proportionally to the resulting capacitance.
Unfortunately, because the relationship between inter-electrode distance and capacitance is non-linear, difficulties may arise in connection with sensors based upon this relationship. In particular, capacitances may be extremely small in practical application and simultaneous accommodation of such a small variation at one position extreme and a much larger one at the other, due to the inverse non-linear position-capacitance relationship, may result in troublesome inaccuracies in sensor measurement and resulting control operations. As a result, these types of sensors may require costly and complex additional corrective signal processing.
In addition to problems that arise in connection with sensing itself, other difficulties in prior art solutions have arisen with respect to signal processing once sensing has been completed. For instance, small sensor capacitance variations on the order of, for example, plus or minus 25 pF which can result from inter-electrode spacing changes ranging from, for example 1-20 millimeters, can be difficult to transmit and process. This is due to many factors, including, for example, the capacitance error introduced by the fact that the transmitting cables themselves have a baseline capacitance which may vary with cable flexing. Additionally, stray capacitance error is easily introduced and can be very troublesome in connection with signal processing when operational variance is small.

Capacitive position sensor and sensing methodology


Fastener products and related methods are disclosed. In some embodiments, the fastener products include an elongate strap defining an aperture and a row of projections extending from the elongate strap. A portion of the elongate strap including one or more of the projections can be passed through the aperture to retain the fastener product in a fastened state.

Elongate fastener strips can be used to retain articles in a bundle. For example, fastener strips can be wrapped around groupings of wires, tubes, or other objects to hold them in an ordered bundle. In some cases, a structural element is attached to the fastener strip. For example, a D-ring can be attached to one end of the fastener strip so that the opposite free end of the fastener strip may be looped through the D-ring and fastened to a more central region of the fastener strip.
Another type of fastener that can be used to retain articles is a zip tie. Zip ties are devices that typically include a strap and a head element. Multiple projections extend from the strap, and the head element defines a hole. The projections can be arranged along the strap such that they allow the strap to be pulled through the hole in one direction but not in the opposite direction. The projections can, for example, engage the head element to prevent movement of the strap in the opposite direction.


A method for transmission of data for two or three dimensional geometrical entities uses a computer system, for modeling and/or manipulation of geometrical entities. The computer system comprises at least one program for modeling and/or manipulation and at least one display program, the at least one modeling and/or manipulation program transmits the data associated with the geometrical entities for display to the at least one display program, by calling up display functions located within the at least one display program. An exporting program for data associated with geometrical entities is substituted in at least one of the at least one display programs, the exporting program having the same display functions as the at least one display program.

This invention generally concerns the exportation of computer data, and more specifically the exportation of data associated with geometric entities from a computer program such as a computer-assisted design (CAD) program or a videogame.
The technique and systems for modeling and/or manipulation of geometric entities such as CAD and videogames are now quite widespread in all fields of the industry, from computer-assisted design of products such as automobiles or aircraft to 3D virtual reality action games, and including simulation programs such as flight simulators.
In particular, although the CAD technique is relatively young, under twenty years old, the need for upward compatibility by the prior CAD systems led to the retention of existing data structures that only partially used the possibilities of the modern computer systems, despite the rapid evolution of information technologies.
Additionally, whether in the field of CAD or videogames, the format of these data structures used is universally proprietary, meaning it is specific to the software involved or, as a minimum, to the software publisher involved. However, at least in the CAD field, these graphic programs generally have the functionalities to import various data formats associated with geometric entities.
On the other hand, clearly for customer retention purposes, the publishers of these programs, whoever they may be, are not inclined to publish the specifications for the data formats they use, and, in the same vein, they are generally rather reticent to offer utilities making it possible to export all of the data from their programs to a competitor's program.
This situation means that it is very difficult to transfer all of the data used by these programs from a computer system for modeling and/or manipulation of geometric entities to a similar computer system. However, this transfer is frequently made necessary, for example, to transfer data among different CAD systems as they exist at the various subcontractors of a single customer, even within one company, as happens in particular for reasons that generally relate to backward compatibility in the major companies having used CAD for a long time.
It can be expected that the evolution of videogame technology will ultimately make it possible to import characters or objects into a videogame, which will then raise the problem again of exporting this type of entity from another videogame.
This need to transfer data between different systems for modeling and/or manipulation of data associated with geometric entities means that there are quite significant development costs on the conversion utilities for these data, due to the absence of precise specifications concerning the format of the databases involved, and it also means that these utilities should be rewritten partially or in full at the time of upgrades or modifications made to the structure of the databases of the systems involved. Also, this conversion is generally incomplete, due to the absence of precise specifications for the format of the data to be converted.
Furthermore, there is a need in companies using CAD systems for an open data structure and format, widespread and well-defined, as a means of exchange among different CAD systems as well as to ensure minimal independence regarding the publishers of the CAD programs they use, to allow CAD data capture from one program to another in the event the publisher of the CAD program used goes out of business.
In view of the foregoing, it is clear there is a need for a process and a system to make it possible, in an affordable and reliable manner, to export data associated with geometric entities from any program for modeling and/or manipulation of data associated with geometric entities, with no knowledge of the data structures used by this program, without any modification of this program in any way and without development of a specific interface to the program involved.
There are known utilities such as glTrace or glAnalysePro that make it possible to intercept and store the graphic primitives or function calls made by a graphic application. However, the function of these utilities is only to debug the graphic application involved, and not to allow the exportation of data associated with geometric entities to other systems of the same kind.

Conversion of data for two or three dimensional geometric entities


[Problem]

VAP-1 is an amine oxidase (semicarbazide-sensitive amine oxidase, SSAO) which is abundant in human plasma (Non-Patent Document 1), and shows remarkably increased expression in vascular endothelium and vascular smooth muscle of inflammatory regions. While the physiological role of VAP-1 has not been clarified until recently, VAP-1 gene was cloned in 1998, and VAP-1 has been reported to be a membrane protein that regulates rolling and migration of lymphocytes and NK cells as an adhesion molecule under regulation of expression by inflammatory cytokines. Although the amine acting as a substrate is unknown, it is considered to be methylamine generated in any part of a living body. It is also known that hydrogen peroxide and aldehydes produced due to the amine oxidase activity in the molecule are important factors of adhesion activity.
A recent report has demonstrated that the VAP-1 enzyme activity in plasma increases in patients with diabetes mellitus, whether type I or type II, and the increase is particularly remarkable in patients with diabetes mellitus suffering from retinopathy complications (Non-Patent Documents 2 and 3).
In addition, it has been reported that VAP-1 is related to the following diseases:
(1) cirrhosis, essential stabilized hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and arthrosis (Patent Documents 1 and 2);
(2) endothelium damage (in diabetes mellitus, arterosclerosis, and hypertension), cardiovascular diseases related to diabetes mellitus and uremia, pain related to gout and arthritis, and retinopathy (in diabetes mellitus patients) (Patent Document 3);
(3) inflammatory diseases or conditions (of connective tissue) (rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis and osteoarthritis or degenerative joint disease, Reiter's syndrome, Sjogren's syndrome, Behcet's syndrome, relapsing polychondritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, discoid lupus erythematosus, systemic sclerosis, eosinophilic fasciitis, polymyositis, dermatomyositis, polymyalgia rheumatica, vasculitis, temporal arteritis, polyarteritis nodosa, Wegener's granulomatosis, mixed connective tissue disease, and juvenile rheumatoid arthritis); gastrointestinal inflammatory diseases or conditions [Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome (spastic colon), fibrotic conditions of the liver, inflammation of the oral mucosa (stomatitis), and recurrent aphtous stomatitis]; central nervous system inflammatory diseases or conditions (multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, and ischemia-reperfusion injury related to ischemic stroke); pulmonary inflammatory diseases or conditions (asthma, adult respiratory distress syndrome, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease); (chronic) skin inflammatory diseases or conditions (psoriasis, allergic lesions, lichen planus, pityriasis rosea, contact dermatitis, atopic dermatitis, and pityriasis rubra pilaris); diseases related to carbohydrate metabolism (diabetes mellitus and complications from diabetes mellitus) including microvascular and macrovascular diseases (arterosclerosis, vascular retinopathies, retinopathy, nephropathy, nephrotic syndrome and neuropathy (polyneuropathy, mononeuropathies and autonomic neuropathy), foot ulcers, joint problems, and increased risk of infection); diseases related to aberrations in adipocyte differentiation or function or smooth muscle cell function (arterosclerosis and obesity); vascular diseases [atheromatous arterosclerosis, nonatheromatous arterosclerosis, ischemic heart disease including myocardial infarction and peripheral arterial occlusion, Raynaud's disease and phenomenon, and thromboangiitis obliterans (Buerger's disease)]; chronic arthritis; inflammatory bowel diseases; and skin dermatoses (Patent Documents 4, 5, and 6, and Non-Patent Documents 4 and 5);
(4) diabetes mellitus (Patent Document 7);
(5) SSAO-mediated complications [diabetes mellitus (insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) and non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM)) and vascular complications (heart attack, angina, strokes, amputations, blindness, and renal insufficiency)], and macular edema (for example, diabetic and non-diabetic macular edema) (Patent Documents 8 and 9); and
(6) hepatitis, transplantation, and the like.
Accordingly, the compounds acting on a VAP-1 enzyme may be used as an agent for preventing and/or treating the above-described diseases.
On the other hand, in Patent Document 9, it is disclosed that a compound represented by the formula (A) has a VAP-1 inhibitory activity.

(wherein Z represents

For the other symbols in the formula, refer to the corresponding patent publications)
Further, in Patent Document 10, it is disclosed that a compound represented by the formula (B) has a VAP-1 inhibitory activity.

(For the symbols in the formula, refer to the corresponding patent publications)
In Patent Document 11, it is disclosed that a compound represented by the formula (C) has a VAP-1 inhibitory activity and is effective in applications for treatment of VAP-1-related diseases, in particular, macular edema.

(wherein Z represents

For the other symbols in the formula, refer to the corresponding patent publications)
In addition, in Patent Document 12, it is disclosed that a compound represented by the formula (D) has a VAP-1 inhibitory activity.

(wherein
D represents —NR3 and E represents amino which may be substituted (optionally substituted amino), for the other symbols, refer to the corresponding patent publications)
In Patent Document 13, it is disclosed that a compound represented by the formula (E) has a VAP-1 inhibitory activity.

(wherein
X represents a divalent residue derived from thiazole which may be substituted (divalent residue derived from optionally substituted thiazole),
Z represents A-B-D-E, A represents a divalent residue derived from benzene which may be substituted (divalent residue derived from optionally substituted benzene) or a divalent residue derived from thiophene which may be substituted (divalent residue derived from optionally substituted thiophene), B represents —(CH2)l—NR2—CO—, D represents —NR3, and E represents amino which may be substituted (optionally substituted amino), for the other symbols, refer to the corresponding patent publications)
In Patent Document 14, it is disclosed that a compound represented by the formula (F) has a GPR119 agonistic activity, and is thus useful for, for example, treatment of diabetes mellitus or the like.

(For the symbols in the formula, refer to the corresponding patent publications)
In Patent Document 15, it is disclosed that a compound represented by the formula (G) has a GPR119 agonistic activity, and is thus useful for, for example, treatment of diabetes mellitus or the like.

(For the symbols in the formula, refer to the corresponding patent publications)
In Patent Document 16, which is a patent application published after the filing date of the application which forms the basis of the priority of the present application, it is disclosed that a compound represented by the formula (H) has a VAP-1 activity.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Abstract: [Problem]

Abstract: The present invention provides a compound which is useful as an active ingredient of a pharmaceutical composition, in particular, a pharmaceutical composition for preventing and/or treating VAP-1-related diseases.

Abstract: [Means for Solution]

Abstract: The present inventors have conducted intensive studies on a compound having a VAP-1 inhibitory activity, and as a result, they have found that the compound or a salt thereof of the present invention exhibits an excellent VAP-1 inhibitory activity and is useful for preventing and/or treating VAP-1-related diseases, in particular, diabetic nephropathy or diabetic macular edema, thereby completing the present invention. In addition, the present invention relates to a pharmaceutical composition, in particular, a pharmaceutical composition for preventing and/or treating VAP-1-related diseases, which comprises the compound or a salt thereof of the present invention, and an excipient.


At least one set of revocation information for identifying electronic appliances that should be revoked for content protection and master revocation information for identifying electronic appliances that have special permission to update the revocation information are recorded in advance into a special storage region on a storage medium. When the storage medium is loaded into an electronic appliance indicated by the master revocation information, the revocation information can be updated. However, when the storage medium is loaded into an electronic appliance indicated by the revocation information, the electronic appliance is revoked and so the protection of contents is improved.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for recording digital contents such as digitized documents, audio, images and programs onto a storage medium and for reproducing such contents using a compatible electronic appliance. In particular, the invention relates to a method for updating revocation information that is used to prevent unauthorized electronic appliances from recording and reproducing digital contents.
2. Description of the Related Art
As computer technology has advanced in recent years, great variety of electronic appliances with multimedia functions have been developed. Examples of such are personal computers, set-top boxes, reproduction devices and game consoles. In addition to reproducing image data, audio data and other types of digital contents from recording media, such devices can also download digital contents from networks like the Internet.
Digital contents are generally copyrighted material that has digitally encoded according to a technique such as MPEG 2 (Moving Pictures Experts Group 2) or MP3 (Moving Pictures Experts Group—Audio Layer 3). Such contents can be copied and transmitted on networks with no loss in quality, so that there is a growing need for technologies to stop copyright violations.
Current electronic appliances such as personal computers, set-top boxes, and reproduction devices tend to use "reversible" recording media that are not player-dependent and whose specifications are generally made public. This means that users are free to transfer or copy digital contents onto other media, so that there is no effective way of protecting a digital content recorded on a recording medium.
Memory cards, where a recording medium and a controller are integrated, have recently appeared on the market. Such cards can be provided with a secret region (a "concealed region) that can be accessed by an access control function of the controller according to a special procedure, but otherwise cannot be accessed by users. It is believed that digital contents can be protected by recording important information (such as copy control information and transfer control information) that relates to the way in which digital contents can be used in such a concealed region.
The following describes one conceivable way to protect the copyright of a digital content. Whenever a digital content is transferred between any of the electronic devices mentioned above and a recording medium, both devices first perform mutual authentication whereby each device checks that the other is an authentic device which is equipped with the same copyright (content) protection mechanism (i.e., a predetermined content protection function). When both devices are authentic, they then exchange keys according to a key generation algorithm provided in both devices. Both devices thus obtain an authentication key, and use this key to respectively encrypt and decrypt either a content key (a different key used to encrypt the digital content), or the digital content itself.
The above technique has the following problem. The content protection mechanism (such as the information used for mutual authentication and the program used) has to be set in the electrical appliance before it is shipped from the factory. After purchase, the electrical appliance (or more specifically the programs that run on an electrical appliance) may be subjected to tampering which renders the content protection mechanism inoperative. Such a modified electrical appliance cannot be detected and stopped by mutual authentication alone.
Digital contents could conceivably be afforded better protection by pre-recording revocation information, which enables invalid electrical appliances to be detected, in special region on a recording medium. When the recording medium is loaded into an electrical appliance indicated by the revocation information, the contents on the recording medium could be protected by invalidating the electronic appliance.
However, it would still be necessary to set such revocation information before the recording medium is shipped from the factory. There would still be no way for the recording medium to detect and stop electrical appliances (or programs of such appliances) that have been modified if such modification technique was not known when the recording medium was produced.

Revocation information updating method, revocation information updating apparatus and storage medium

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A solid-state image device for outputting the charges transferred in one direction by a transfer clock is disclosed. It has a detection port for collecting signal charges, a first active region of a first conductivity for receiving the transferred charges, a second active region of a second conductivity formed in the first active region which is connected to the detection port, and a third active region of second conductivity formed beneath the first active region which is connected to a ground voltage terminal, whereby only the transferred signal charges are amplified to produce stable output signals with large gain. The first, second and third active regions together constitute amplifying means. The second active region is supplied with current by the charging operation of a reset transistor.

The present invention relates to an output device of a solid-state image device, particularly to an output terminal thereof.
The solid-state image device comprises a directional array of charge coupled devices (CCDs) horizontally or vertically arranged in series, whereby transferred signal charges are detected. Signals to be transferred are received by photodetectors such as photodiode. Exited electric charges by light energy are transferred through the directional array of CCDs, and an output signal is generated with amplification therefrom.
In the CCD, the charges are transferred from a potential well to adjacently potential well that is formed in a semiconductor region or channel region by applying a transfer clock to gates formed of polysilicon, isolated from the semiconductor region by insulating layer thereon, and having a given interval each other or one another.
Recently, a buried channel CCD (BCCD) is widely used, wherein the charge transfer region is formed in a semiconductor region covered with an insulating layer thereon and beneath gate electrodes. The BCCD can serve as a wide variety of electronic devices such as an image sensor, signal delay line, and in electronic apparatus using shift registers such as television cameras.
Such a BCCD has many problems to be solved in order to improve the charge transmission speed. The reliability thereof is based on the stability of the signal detected at the final output terminal. The circuit and construction concerning the output terminal of a BCCD is disclosed in "SOLID-STATE IMAGE DEVICE" published on March 26, Japan Sho Whoa 61-9975, "IEEE TRANSACTION ON ELECTRON DEVICE" VOL. 36, NO2, PP 360-366, FIGS. 1 and 8, published in February, 1989.
The above two prior construction employ reset transistors at the output terminal. FIGS. 1, 2A and 2B attached to this specification respectively represent a cross sectional view of the prior constructions, equivalent circuit thereof, and the output waveforms thereof.
Referring to FIGS. 1, 2A and 2B, there is formed in a P well 2 on a substrate an N-type layer 3 which embeds a potential forming N- diffusion region 4 formed under a transfer gate 8, and N+ diffusion regions 5 and 6 constituting the source and drain of a field effect transistor. Namely, the N+ diffusion regions 5 and 6 and a reset gate 11 all together constitute an N-type reset transistor 576. Between the reset gate 11 and transfer gates 8 and 9 is arranged a pass gate 10 connected to pass voltage V.sub.OG.
The N+ diffusion region 5 that is the source of the N- type reset transistor 576 serves the output terminal of the BCCD, whose signal is amplified through a source follower amplifier 20 to produce final output V.sub.out. The P-type well 2 and the N-type layer 3 of channel transfer region constitute a PN junction diode 25, of which cathode (N-type layer) is connected to the source 5 of the N-type reset transistor 576 and anode (P--type well) to ground voltage, as shown in FIG. 2A.
Also there exists a resistance 12 between the diode 25 and ground voltage. A detection port 53 is between the source 5 of the N-type reset transistor 576 and the cathode 3 of the diode 25. The input current I.sub.IN introduced to the detection port 53 is determined by the potential V.sub.IN of the transferred charges, and the signal applied from the detection port 53 to the source follower amplifier 20 varies with the clamping characteristic of the diode 25 and the on/off operation of the N-type reset transistor 576. The source follower amplifier 20 is a current-mirror-type amplifier comprised of two NMOS transistors 21 and 22 connected to internal voltage terminal V.sub.DD, and of two ground connected transistors 23 and 24. The above described BCCD detection circuit having the diode 25 between the detection port 53 and ground voltage terminal is called a floating-diode amplifier (FDA).
Referring to FIG. 2B, if a transfer clock .phi..sub.H become "high" at time t.sub.1, the transferred charges type layer (channel region) time t.sub.2 if high level of a reset pulse .phi..sub.RG (about 8-15 V is applied to the reset gate 11, the reset transistor 576 is turned on so that the output voltage V.sub.OUT of about V.sub.DD is produced through the source follower amplifier 20. Thereafter, at time t.sub.3 if the reset pulse .phi..sub.RG become "low" the electrons formed in the channel region 7 between the N+ diffusion regions 5 and 6 return to the N+ diffusion regions 5 and 6 so that the output voltage V.sub.OUT is dropped. This is called "feedthrough", and the output level is called "feed-through level".
Assuming that the quantity of the signal charges is Q.sub.o, the capacitance between the detection port 53 and P-type well 2 (or PN junction capacitance) C, the voltage gain of the source follower amplifier A.sub.v, and the transfer conductance of the amplifying MOS transistor in the source follower amplifier gm, the output voltage gain .DELTA.V is expressed as follows: EQU .DELTA.V=A.sub.v .multidot..DELTA.V.sub.A =(Q.sub.o /C).multidot.gmR/(1+gm R) . . . (1)
wherein .DELTA.V.sub.A indicates the feedthrough level shown in FIG. 2B, and R the value of the resistance 12 shown in FIG. 2A. As a result, that the output voltage V.sub.OUT is dropped due to the feedthrough is caused by the fact that the charges formed in the channel 7 are partly distributed to the parasitic capacitor of the PN junction. Namely, as the PN junction capacitance C is increased, the output voltage gain .DELTA.V is decreased. Moreover, it is advantageous that the quantity Q.sub.o of the signal charges applied to the detection port 53 is great, for the source follower amplifier may critically respond to the general frequency noises if the quantity is small.
Further, in the above circuit, kTC noises (reset noises) are mixed with the output signal because of the switching operation of the reset transistor. The kTC noises are caused by the electron energy fluctuation that is in turn caused by the fact that when the reset pulse kept to be in the high voltage of about 15V for a brief time is dropped to 0V they are switched with a large swing width so that the electrons in the channel 7 return to the N+ diffusion regions 5 and 6 (or source and drain regions). The kTC noises are small in magnitude, but considerably influence the transferred signal of insufficient quantity. Description concerning the kTC noises (reset noises) are disclosed in the above "SOLID-STATE IMAGE DEVICE", pp 140-145.

Output terminal of a solid-state image device


A transmission comprises a rotary input member, a rotary output member and a housing. Disposed in the housing is at least one rolling member such as a ball for transmitting a rotary movement between the rotary input and output member. The rolling member is arranged between at least first and second substantially circular tracks forming a gap that decreases in the peripheral direction. The rolling member is held in contact at a drive rolling radius with the one track and at a driven rolling radius with the other track, in the decreasing gap, by a positive-action guide.

Transmissions comprising a rotary input member, a rotary output member and a housing are known in different forms, comprising for example gear wheels or friction wheels. However, in the case of a gear wheel transmission, the level of efficiency thereof cannot be enhanced to a material degree, as a result of the friction which occurs between the meshing teeth of the gear wheels. In the case of friction wheel transmissions of conventional design configuration on the other hand, high pressure forces as between the co-operating friction wheels are required.

Steplessly adjustable rotary transmission


A protective case for use with a personal electronic device includes a backing shaped to securely attach to a back side of the device and an articulated cover configured to extend over a front side of the device. The backing includes end portions configured to secure opposite edges of the device, and a first coupling component spaced apart from the end portions of the backing. The cover includes a plurality of panels and a second coupling component releasably securable to the first coupling component. The cover is movable into a configuration in which the first and second coupling components are attached to one another and the plurality of panels form a support structure that supports the device at an angle relative to a horizontal support surface. The support structure is adjustable to change the angle without detaching the first and second coupling components from one another.

Many personal electronic devices (e.g., tablet computers, laptop computers, and mobile telephones) are relatively compact and streamlined in form. A typical example of such devices is slab-shaped with expansive front and back surfaces and a relatively narrow edge extending between respective perimeters of the front and back surfaces. A touchscreen may occupy nearly all of the front surface. Although devices of this form are often rectangular and flat with rounded or non-rounded corners, other shapes are also possible. In general, the form of these devices may facilitate mobility, such as by allowing the devices to be conveniently stowed in briefcases, purses, pockets, and other locations closely associated with a user. The same form, however, may also tend to exclude certain features that occupy space, such as features that serve protective and ergonomic functions. For example, many slab-shaped personal electronic devices lack even rudimentary features to protect the devices from impact damage. As another example, these and other devices may be designed to be used in different positions respectively corresponding to different viewing angles, but the devices may include few, if any, features that allow the devices to be self-supporting in these positions. Accessories, such as retrofitted after-market accessories, may be used to compensate for these and other deficiencies.

Protective case including cover deployable as an adjustable support structure and related devices, systems and methods


A snap-on support has a body and a pair of spaced-apart arms supported by the body and adapted for snap-fit connection with a geomatics target device. The arms are moveable between an operative position wherein the arms extend outward from the body for securing the support to the geomatics target device and a stowed position wherein the arms are retracted generally adjacent to the body for storage of the support.

During a typical land survey, multiple and various measurements are often taken. For example, measurements of property boundaries and measurements of other locations (e.g., the position of fire hydrants) may be performed in the same survey using the same geomatics target device (e.g., a survey rod, a prism pole). During the survey, the geomatics target device is moved between each location from where measurements are to be taken. For some measurements, the geomatics target device may be handheld in vertical collimation over the location. Positioning the geomatics target device by hand provides a fast and convenient method of taking measurements. However, for the measurement to be accurate, the geomatics target device must be vertically collimated before the measurement can be taken.
A level with a bubble vial is commonly supported at a point along the length of the geomatics target device to facilitate vertical collimation of the device over the location in a process known as plumbing. One known type of level is held against the geomatics target device by the surveyor using the same hand that is used to support the geomatics target device. This type of level must be carried by the surveyor to each of the survey locations independently of the geomatics target device. Since surveyors typically carry numerous items (e.g., a radio, survey stakes or other markers, a hammer, a chisel), the handheld levels can be easily misplaced.
Another known type of level has a snap-fit with the geomatics target device. This type of level can be selectively secured and removed from the geomatics target device. As a result, the level and geomatics target device can be carried to each location as a single unit thereby lessening the potential of misplacing the level. However, arms of the level make the level somewhat difficult to store in that they extend outward from a body of the level making the size of the level too large to fit into some pockets. In addition, the arms protrude from the rest of the level thereby making them susceptible to breakage when the level is not in use. Moreover, the configuration of the engagement surface (i.e., the surface that contacts the geomatics target device) of these levels does not substantially conform to the shape of the geomatics target device to which they are attached. As a result, the level can potentially be canted with respect to the geomatics target device thereby compromising the accuracy of the measurement. Canting of the level may result in the geomatics target device not being vertically collimated when the measurement is taken and thereby result in inaccurate measurements.


The present invention has non-contact communication means (3a) configured to read a card identifier ID stored in a memory of an IC card, a barcode generation unit (22) configured to generate a two-dimensional barcode of a bonus data associated with the card identifier ID read by the non-contact communication means (3a), and a display unit (13) configured to display the two-dimensional barcode of the bonus data generated by the barcode generation unit (22). And, the bonus data displayed on a display unit 13 in the two-dimensional barcode is read by a barcode reader (2a) of a POS terminal (2).

Conventionally, a following method is known for getting a discount at the time of payment by use of electronic coupons accumulated in an IC card. First, a terminal on which contents of an electronic coupon can be displayed is prepared, the contents are looked at by a cashier for confirmation, and discounting is executed. Second, a device by which a paper printed with discount contents of an electronic coupon is outputted is prepared, this paper is read by a cashier through a barcode reader of a POS (Point Of Sale) terminal, and discounting is executed. Third, a device for reading an electronic coupon is connected to a POS terminal to interlocking and discounting is executed.
However, the first method requires human confirmation, thereby making it possible to cause discounting in an illegal manner. The second method allows illegal discounting by copying paper. The third method requires a major change in POS systems.
Also, patent documents similar hereto include Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2006-23864. However, this patent document has no idea of using existing POS systems.

Display device, data processing method and data processing system using the display device


Firing containers for firing an electrode active material include one or more through openings, and protrusions protruding from an outer surface of sidewalls of each of the firing containers. The protrusions allow adjacent firing containers to be spaced apart from each other and guide the adjacent firing containers during alignment.

Field of the Invention
An aspect of the present invention relates to firing containers, and more particularly, to firing containers capable of efficiently firing a large amount of an electrode active material.
Description of the Related Art
Firing containers can be used in various fields. Among the various fields, the firing containers are used in firing of an electrode active material used in secondary batteries.
In general, the electrode active material is a major factor that influences the reliability and safety of secondary batteries in the charging/discharging of the secondary batteries. In producing an electrode, the electrode active material is modified to be suitable for the secondary batteries through a firing process. However, when a problem occurs in the firing process, the resultant electrode active material may have bad influence on the reliability and safety of the secondary batteries. Particularly in case of safety, the electrode active material may cause fire, an explosion or the like when the secondary batteries are used.


‘Kakegawa S68’ is a new Calibrachoa cultivar particularly distinguished by having a light rose flower color with rose veins and a semi-creeping growth habit.

The present invention comprises a new and distinct cultivar of Calibrachoa, botanically known as Calibrachoa sp., and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name 'Kakegawa S68'. It is characterized by having a light rose flower color and a semi-creeping growth habit. The new cultivar originated from a hybridization made in Kakegawa, Japan in 1999. A proprietary Calibrachoa breeding line with red flowers and a semi-creeping growth habit (female) was crossed with a proprietary Calibrachoa breeding line with rose flowers and a mounding growth habit (male).
In February 2000, F1 seed from the above hybridization was sown in the greenhouse. Five single-plant selections were made based on their red flower color and erect growth habit and intercrossed to produce F2 seed. In August 2000, F2 seed was sown and 120 total plants were evaluated. One single-plant selection was made based on its light rose vein flower color and semi-creeping growth habit. 'Kakegawa S68' was then asexually propagated through rooted plant cuttings in both Kakegawa, Japan and Salinas, Calif. 'Kakegawa S68' has been shown to reproduce true to type in successive generations of asexual propagation.


An LED display includes a substrate on which an LED device including an LED element is mounted. The display also includes a light exit surface through which light emitted from the LED device exits. The light exit surface is spaced from the LED device mounting surface of the substrate in the substrate's thickness direction. The LED device is provided at a position which does not overlap the position of the light exit surface in the in-plane direction of the substrate. The LED display further includes a reflection region for reflecting light traveling from the LED device between the light exit surface and the substrate toward the light exit surface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an LED display and particularly to a 7-segment LED display used for displaying a numeral, for example.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIGS. 10 and 11 show a conventional LED display disclosed in JP-A-H09-97928. The illustrated LED display X includes a case 91, a lead frame 92, an LED element 93 and a transparent resin package 94. The display includes seven light exit surfaces 94a constituting seven segments, whereby a numeral selected from 0 through 9 or an alphabetical letter can be displayed. The LED element 93 is mounted on the lead frame 92 and accommodated in a recess 91a of the case 91. The transparent resin package 94 is so formed as to fill recess 91a. The case 91 is made of e.g. white resin having a relatively high light reflectivity so that inclined surfaces 91b surrounding the recess 91a serve as light reflective surfaces. When current is caused to flow through the LED element 93 in accordance with the character to be displayed, light is emitted from the LED element 93 in an upward and a lateral directions in FIG. 2. The light traveled in a lateral direction is reflected by the inclined surfaces 91b and then travels upward in the figure. These rays of light exit through the light exit surface 94a, whereby the intended character is displayed.
To cause a large amount of light emitted from the LED element 93 to travel upward in the figure, the size of the inclined surfaces 91b needs to be increased. However, when the size of the inclined surfaces 91b is increased, the height of the case 91 increases correspondingly, which hinders reduction in size and thickness of e.g. an electronic device to which the LED display X is mounted.
Further, generally, an LED display X is mounted in an electronic device to be seen from the outside. In the case where the LED display X is mounted on a circuit board, the dimension between the circuit board and the housing of the electronic device needs to be determined in view of the height of the LED display X, which limits the design options of the electronic device. Alternatively, the idea of arranging the LED display X at a location which can be seen constantly may need to be given up, and the LED display X cannot help being mounted at a location which can be seen by opening a lid of the housing, for example.


The present invention provides an improved mesa vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL), in which a first distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) mesa of semiconductor material is disposed on a top surface of an active layer. A contact annulus is disposed on a contact region of a top surface of the first DBR mesa, such that an inner circumference of the contact annulus defines a window region of the top surface of the first DBR mesa. A second DBR mesa of dielectric material is disposed on the window region. Whereas the first DBR mesa has a first reflectance at a lasing wavelength that is insufficient to sustain lasing in the active layer, the first DBR mesa and the second DBR mesa together have a total reflectance at the lasing wavelength that is sufficient to sustain lasing in the active layer under the window region.

VCSELs are commonly used as light sources in optical transceivers for local area networks (LANs) and storage area networks (SANs). Oxide-apertured VCSELs are currently the dominant technology for such applications. However, a mesa VCSEL was recently developed that includes a mesa, rather than an oxide aperture, for current confinement, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,095,768, issued on Aug. 22, 2006 to Jiang, et al., which is owned by the assignee of the present invention and is incorporated herein by reference. Advantageously, the mesa VCSEL is both more reliable and more easily manufactured than oxide-apertured VCSELs. Unfortunately, the mesa VCSEL has the disadvantage of a somewhat higher level of relative-intensity noise (RIN) in relation to oxide-apertured VCSELs. At data rates above 4 Gbit/s, the RIN of the mesa VCSEL can reach an unacceptable level.
With reference to FIG. 1, such a prior-art mesa VCSEL 100 includes a contact layer 110 of metallic material, a substrate 120 of semiconductor material, a distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) layer 130 of semiconductor material, an active layer 140 of semiconductor material, a DBR mesa 150 of semiconductor material, a planarization layer 160 of dielectric material, and a contact annulus 170 of metallic material. In particular, the active layer 140 is disposed on a top surface of the DBR layer 130, and the DBR mesa 150 is disposed on a mesa region 141 of a top surface of the active layer 140. The contact annulus 170 is disposed on a contact region 151 of a top surface of the DBR mesa 150, such that an inner circumference of the contact annulus 170 defines a window region 152 of the top surface of the DBR mesa 150.
According to experiments, the level of RIN of the mesa VCSEL 100 increases as the inner circumference of the contact annulus 170 decreases, for a constant outer circumference of the contact annulus 170. Thus, the somewhat higher level of RIN of the mesa VCSEL 100 may be a result of lasing sustained in the active layer 140 under the contact annulus 170. As indicated by arrows in FIG. 1, light resonates in the active layer 140 under the DBR mesa 150, but is only emitted from the window region 152 of the top surface of the DBR mesa 150. As the mesa VCSEL 100 lases in several transverse modes which have different fractions of their optical power under the contact annulus 170, the optical power emitted from the mesa VCSEL 100 varies slightly, but randomly, over time, owing to competition between the transverse modes.
An object of the present invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior-art mesa VCSEL 100 by providing an improved mesa VCSEL, in which lasing is sustained in the active layer mainly under the window region.

Mesa vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser