The present invention relates to a solid form, particularly to a 3D-printed immediate release solid dosage form (e.g. based on a pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, or food supplement composition). To overcome some of the solubility and disintegration problems inherited by 3D-printed solid dosage forms, the solid form comprises one or more channels, generally in the form of tubular passages or grooves, through the body of the solid form or the surface thereof.

The production and consumption of medicines, nutraceuticals, and food supplements (collectively referred to herein as "healthcare dosage forms"), in solid dosage form (e.g. tablets, implants, etc.) is ever increasing, not least due to an increased reliance on such products by national health services and the like in an increasingly health-conscious society. Where possible, solid dosage forms tend to be most preferred, relative to other formulations (e.g. injectable liquid formulations), due to their ease of administration (i.e. usually orally) which gives rise to better patient compliance, storability and transportability (low space requirements and ease of packaging), high stability (longer lifetimes—less degradation). However, despite the significant advantages of solid dosage forms over other dosage forms, they are often more onerous to manufacture (in terms of the number of both ingredients and processing steps) and are generally only cost effective to produce on large scale, meaning large manufacturing facilities with sophisticated equipment is usually required. These manufacturing limitations have a detrimental impact on consumer choice and/or the customisability of healthcare dosage forms since, for example, it is impractical and non-cost effective to mass produce a wide variety of different dosages for a given medicament via conventional manufacturing techniques. Consumers (e.g. patients) and healthcare professionals (e.g. doctors, pharmacists) must therefore make the best of the limited variety of dosages available, as dictated by the suppliers rather than a consumer's need.
Since the advent of 3-dimensional (3D) printing in the early 1980s, a number of researchers have attempted to make viable use of 3D printing technology to fabricate healthcare solid dosage forms. For instance, for well over a decade, MIT and Therics, Inc. have collaborated in the development of viable pill printing machines which utilise 3D printers to print solid pharmaceutical dosage forms in situ. The technology forms pills via a multi-layered 3D printing process involving precise printing of doses of a liquid drug solution onto thin layers of fine powder before further layers are then applied (e.g. further powder, binder, etc.). Examples of such processes are disclosed in earlier publications, such as WO95/11007 (MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY) and WO03/092633 (THERICS, INC.), which describe inter alia the production of solid dosage forms having various structures and drug release profiles. However, regulatory approval (e.g. by the FDA or MHRA) for such 3D drug printing systems still remains elusive, and for the time being they are suitable only for low dose drug products, partly owing to the limited solubility of many drugs within the relevant ink solutions. As such, patient choice would still be very limited, as would the options of a doctor or pharmacist in providing specially-tailored treatments. Furthermore, resolution and shape of the solid dosage form still remains an issue. However, a particular issue with prior art 3D printing systems such as these is that the large number of different ingredients (and thus different printing cartridges etc.) needed to produce viable dosage forms imparts a high degree of complexity, user-unfriendliness, which in turn increases the likelihood of manufacturing errors, machine breakdown and malfunction, quality control variation, and regulatory viability (i.e. the FDA is less likely to approve drug printing systems which are prone to too many variables that may impact on the quality of the drug product). A further issue is the poor stability of some drug substances in liquid ink formulations. This can severely limit the shelf-life of the drug source, thus posing large regulatory and cost issues.
The present applicant has developed 3D-printing technologies, more specifically fused filament fabrication (FFF) technologies, to address one or more of the aforementioned problems inherent in the prior art, as illustrated in co-pending application PCT/GB2015/052595 (filed 8 Sep. 2015), which is hereby incorporated by reference. In addressing such problems, the applicant deploys 3D-printable filaments in the 3D-printing of solid dosage forms. Such filaments generally contain carrier materials which, for instance, serve as a vehicle for carrying active ingredients during both the printing process itself and within the solid dosage forms produced thereby. Such carrier materials are generally polymers with characteristics (e.g. molecular weight) complementary for filaments and their formation methods, the 3D printing process, and the desired solid dosage form. However, the applicants have found that in some cases, characteristics that are advantageous in terms of the filament and printing process can be sub-optimal for disintegration and/or dissolution of the final solid dosage form. For certain dosage forms, such as immediate release formulations, disintegration and/or dissolution profiles are important for inter alia regulatory compliance.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to solve at least one or more of the aforementioned problems. It is a particular object of the invention to provide a solution to the problem of sub-optimal disintegration and/or dissolution of 3D-printed solid forms.

Solid forms and methods of preparing the same


The artery clamp of the invention includes a base which has an elongate rod mounted normal thereto. An elongate sleeve having a central bore is carried on the rod. The sleeve includes a channel which extends the length thereof, which channel has an axially extending slot along at least a portion of its length. The rod is received in the central bore to allow rotation of the sleeve relative to the base of the artery clamp. An arm structure extends laterally outwardly from the sleeve and includes an extensible portion which is laterally adjustable relative to the sleeve and which includes a mechanism for carrying a pressure pad thereon.

Catheterization procedures require that a large blood vessel, generally the femoral artery in a patient's groin area, be punctured and a catheter introduced therein. Such a catheter may be used as part of an angioplasty procedure, or for other procedures in which blood vessels have instruments directed therein. The artery clamp of the invention comes into use at the end of the catheterization procedure when the catheter and associated components are removed from the blood vessel when it is necessary to stop the flow of blood from a relatively large puncture of the blood vessel.
A variety of artery clamps are known. One such artery clamp is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,779,249 to Semler for ARTERY CLAMP. The early artery clamp allows only vertical movement of an arm carrying a pressure pad thereon. It is therefore necessary to shift the base of the artery clamp in order to laterally position the pressure pad over the puncture site created during the catheterization procedure. An important feature of the Semler Artery Clamp is the provision of pressure feedback to a medical technician positioning the clamp. As the pressure pad is brought into contact with the patient's body over the puncture site, the technician has a feel for how much pressure is being applied as a result of manually lowering the arm of the artery clamp into place. Quite simply, the greater the downward pressure needed to move the arm, the greater the pressure that is exerted on the patient.
Another form of artery clamp is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,233,980 to McCray et al. This clamp provides for three dimensional movement of the pressure pad relative to the base while relying on a rubber sleeve carried inside the arm to maintain the vertical position of the arm.
Another artery clamp is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,742,825 to Freund et al., which provides three dimensional movement of a pad-bearing arm and which provides a threaded pad mount for exerting pressure on a pad.
As the occurrence of catheterization procedures becomes more frequent, the use of artery clamps becomes more commonplace. It is desired that such clamps be of simple construction and that they not have an excessive number of exposed parts which will collect serum and tissue from the patient's on which they are used.


Improved glaucoma filtration device materials comprise at least one monomer having the formula: ##STR1## wherein: X is H or CH.sub.3 ;. m is 0-10; PA1 Y is nothing, O, or S; PA1 R is nothing, H, or an aliphatic, aromatic or aliphatic/aromatic combination of up to twelve carbon atoms, which can be unsubstituted or substituted with Cl, F, Br, or an alkoxy of up to four carbon atoms; and. a cross-linking monomer having two or more ethylenically unsaturated groups.

The underlying causes of glaucoma are not fully understood. However, it is known that elevated intraocular pressure is one of the symptoms associated with the development of glaucoma. Elevations of intraocular pressure can ultimately lead to impairment or loss of normal visual function due to damage to the optic nerve. It is also known that the elevated intraocular pressure is caused by an excess of fluid (i.e., aqueous humor) within the eye. The excess intraocular fluid is believed to result from blockage or impairment of the normal drainage of fluid from the eye via the trabecular meshwork.
The current drug therapies for treating glaucoma attempt to control intraocular pressure by means of increasing the drainage or "outflow" of aqueous humor from the eye or decreasing the production or "inflow" of aqueous humor by the ciliary processes of the eye. In some cases, patients become refractory to drug therapy. In other cases, the use of drug therapy alone is not sufficient to adequately control intraocular pressure, particularly if there is a severe blockage of the normal passages for the outflow of aqueous humor. Thus, some patients require surgical intervention to correct the impaired outflow of aqueous humor and thereby normalize or at least control their intraocular pressure. The outflow of aqueous humor can be improved by means of intraocular surgical procedures known to those skilled in the art as trabeculectomy procedures. These procedures are collectively referred to herein as "glaucoma filtration surgery."
The procedures utilized in glaucoma filtration surgery generally involve the creation of a fistula to promote the drainage of aqueous humor into a surgically prepared filtration bleb. Alternatively, filtration devices have been used to shunt aqueous humor via a cannula from the anterior chamber into a dispersing device implanted beneath a surgically created bleb. A number of designs for filtration implants are known. See, for example, Prata et al., Ophthalmol. 102:894-904 (1995) which reviews a variety of available filtration implants made from polypropylene, polymethylmethacrylate or silicone materials. See also, Hoskins et al., Ophthalmic Surgery 23:702-707 (1992).
Wound fibroplasia is a common cause of failure for glaucoma filtration devices. The fibroplasia results in encapsulation of the device, limiting aqueous humor outflow. There is a need for an improved glaucoma filtration device material which exhibits flexibility, is resistant to bioerosion and tissue adhesion, and does not elicit a significant immune response.

Materials for use in glaucoma filtration devices


Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method, device, and computer program product for error evaluation. A method for error evaluation comprises in accordance with a determination that an error occurs in a data protection system, obtaining context information related to an operation of the data protection system; determining, based on the context information and using a trained deep learning model, a type of the error in the data protection system from a plurality of predetermined types, the deep learning model being trained based on training context information and a label on a ground-truth type of an error associated with the training context information; and providing the determined type of the error in the data protection system. In this way, it is possible to achieve automatic classification of errors in the data protection system, thereby improving the efficiency in error classification and saving the operation costs. Therefore, more rapid and more accurate measures can be taken to handle the errors.

Computer data are important to the today's organization and the attention is mainly paid to data protection from the disaster. With the development of solid-state memory, the costs of the memories are not an important issue and the organization can afford a system with storage and processing in megabyte. Consequently, there are growing demands on data storage and data protection.
Data protection is critical to ensure data safety, integrity, and/or consistency, which is of great importance in an environment such as a data center. The common data protection solution includes, for example, data duplication, backup, dump, and the like. A data protection system may be built for storing protected data. The data protection system may use data duplication by creating a backup for production site data of the organization on a backup storage system and updating the backup as it changes. Typically, a data protection system is complicated in which errors often occur. Therefore, corresponding measures are required when the errors occur.

Method, device, and computer program product for error evaluation


A semiconductor MOS device includes a semiconductor substrate; a gate oxide layer disposed on the semiconductor substrate; a fully silicided gate electrode disposed on the gate oxide layer; a composite thin film interposed between the fully silicided gate electrode and the gate oxide layer; a spacer on sidewall of the fully silicided gate electrode; and a source/drain region implanted into the semiconductor substrate next to the spacer. A method for forming the semiconductor MOS device is disclosed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to semiconductor processing. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method for forming fully silicided gate electrodes in a semiconductor device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As semiconductor technology advances, semiconductor devices are becoming increasingly smaller. However, this scaling down of devices may cause problems. For example, as gate oxides are scaled down, gate capacitance due to polysilicon depletion issues becomes more problematic, adversely affecting device performance.
One solution to this problem is the use of different metal gates for both NMOS and PMOS field effect transistors to serve as a replacement to polysilicon gates. However, the formation and integration of these dual metal gates are complex tasks as compared to form traditional doped polysilicon gates.
Instead of the formation of dual metal gates, one type of technology known today is to form a fully silicided (FUSI) gate electrode by using radiated heat during a rapid thermal annealing process to fully silicide a silicon layer.
FUSI gate electrode has attracted much attention recently as a promising metal gate candidate and has been studied widely for its simplified integration and tunable work function. However, it is still an issue to achieve real band-edge work function modulation.

Method for forming fully silicided gate electrode in a semiconductor device


The pump has a number of cylinders arranged with their respective axes at a predetermined angular distance about a drive shaft; and a number of piss, each sliding inside a respective cylinder. The inner radial end of each piston is fitted with a pad engaging a respective flat portion of a cam rotating on an eccentric portion of the drive shaft; and, to ensure against seizure, each pad has a cavity inside which is fitted a shoe having at least one layer of self-lubricating material engaging the respective flat portion of the cam.

The present invention relates to a perfected piston pump, in particular a radial-piston pump for internal combustion engine fuel.
As is known, in internal combustion engines, and particularly diesel engines, pumps of the above type operate at high pressure of even over 1300 bar, and at high speed of about 3000 rpm.
The cylinders of a piston pump of the above type are arranged radially about a drive shaft comprising an eccentric portion on which rotates a cam for operating the cylinders, each of which comprises a pad engaging a respective flat portion of the cam. In use, the eccentric portion moves the cam, parallel to itself at all times, along a circular trajectory, so that each pad slides on the respective flat portion with no angular oscillation of the axis of the respective piston.
The shaft, eccentric portion, cam and pads of the pump are housed inside a closed chamber into which part of the fuel supplied to the pump is fed to lubricate the surface of the pad contacting the flat portion of the cam; and sliding bearings, also lubricated by the fuel circulating in the chamber, are provided between the shaft and respective seats, and between the cam and the eccentric portion.
Over and above a given pressure on the movable contacting surfaces and/or over and above a given speed of the pump, however, lubrication by the fuel or any type of lubricating oil is insufficient to lubricate the pad surfaces and respective flat portions of the cam. Such pressure, in fact, compresses the film of fuel or oil between the contacting surfaces, so that it is expelled from the respective gap, thus resulting in possible seizure of the two surfaces.

Perfected piston pump in particular a radial-piston pump for internal combustion engine fuel

Elasis Sistema Ricerca Fiat Nel Mezzogiorno Societa Consortile Per Azioni


A method for fabricating an electrode for electrochemical reactor is provided, wherein the electrode includes a porous carbon diffusion layer and a catalyst layer. The method includes a step of depositing the catalyst layer on the diffusion layer by a DLI-MOCVD process.

The material constituting the electrodes of a fuel cell operating at low temperature (PEMFC, DMFC, alkaline solid membrane battery) is produced on a carbon support based on fabric, paper or felt, which plays the role of support for the diffusion layer and ensures the mechanical strength of the electrode.
The electron conducting properties of the electrode material and of the gas diffusion material derive from this support material and from the carbon inks or pastes introduced mechanically or sprayed on the surface of the support of the diffusion layer to form the charge percolation network.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of an assembly of an electrode of the type in question of the prior art. Microporous carbon 1 is generally sprayed on one of the faces of the diffusion layer to support the catalyst layer and to ensure good gas diffusion.
The catalyst layer is a fundamental element of the membrane-electrode assembly. Due to the presence of the catalyst particles 2 (platinum or other noble metals), the hydrogen oxidation and oxygen reduction reactions implemented in the fuel cells occur on either side of the proton conducting separating membrane 3 and thereby permit the generation of electrons.
The formulation of the catalyst layer with low loads of noble metals is one of the key factors in the development of PEMFC type fuel cell. In fact, several economic studies conducted in the early 2000 s have demonstrated that the platinum introduced in the catalyst layers and the forming thereof constituted the second most costly component in the cell. A knowledge of physicochemical and electrochemical transfers occurring in the electrode materials shows that the catalyst particle content in the cell can only be reduced by optimising the morphology of the catalyst zone.
The active layer forming methods most commonly reported in the literature are based on the principle of deposition, on the diffusion layer, of a spray of C/Pt particles placed in suspension in a light solvent, such as alcohol, and incorporating a polymer binder, the latter ensuring the mechanical strength and the water management. Over the last twenty years, a sharp decrease in platinum loads in the electrode material has been achieved.
This decrease was associated with the combination of platinum nanoparticles immobilised on carbon 5 and the use of a proton conducting impregnating film 4. Thus, the catalytic site becomes active as it integrates the proton conduction network and the electron charge percolation network directly in contact with the particle. This zone is active to the extent of the accessibility of the fuel or the oxidising gas, that is, it is limited by the material input.
In present embodiments, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the morphology of the active layer is unfortunately not optimal. In fact, only 50 to 75% of the platinum introduced into these active layers is recognised as electroactive. This loss of electroactivity is associated with the poor distribution of the catalyst. The various limitations have the following causes:                non-optimal electron charge transfer, the carbon percolation network then not being continuous from the C/Pt particle to the diffusion layer and through the diffusion layer to the bipolar plates;        or by limiting material transport, the catalyst particle no longer being reached by the gas (if for example the platinum is located opposite the carbon particle);        or by a proton conduction network (obtained by impregnation with a proton conducting solution or by contact of the electrode with the membrane) preventing access to the catalyst particle.
Optimal formulations of active layers on diffusion layer support have been described. More particularly, the formulation of E-Tek electrodes, sold by DeNora, is reported in documents EP-A-0 872 906 and EP-A-0 928 036.
The literature reports the possibility of improving the performance of the cells by adjusting the methods of incorporation of the proton conductor. By optimising the Nafion content incorporated in the active layer, the kinetic operating range of the fuel cell (low current density range) can be improved. However, for very low platinum loads, this improvement occurs to the detriment of the high current density range, with a limitation by mass transfer being reached more rapidly and an increase in electrode-membrane interface resistance.
The active layers have been the subject of several modelings aimed to determine their optimal organisation, by increasing the geometric surface area of the platinum developed and by minimising the resistance effects associated with the proton conductor and the carbon. Based on these modelings, new structures have been tested, either introducing multilayer structures (alternating catalyst layer and proton conducting film), or fibres impregnated with proton conductor, or porophores. The most satisfactory results were obtained by the introduction of porophoric systems into the active layers, as described in document US 2001/0031389. The mass transfer is improved, thereby serving to meet the demand for operating applications of the cells in air.
In conjunction with the idea of a more open active layer to avoid limiting material transport and to reinforce the electron charge percolation network, the possibility has been developed of directly immobilising the catalyst particles on the diffusion layer support.
This type of operation is reported in the literature with various techniques: pulsed electrodeposition, microemulsion, spray coating, vacuum deposition (EBPVD in document U.S. Pat. No. 6,610,436, CCVD described in document WO 03/015199). However, these various techniques have non-negligible drawbacks.
Microemulsion processes are not suitable for obtaining a controlled particle distribution if directly deposited on the diffusion layer.
In the case of deposits by electrodeposition, the particle size obtained is generally higher than 50 nm and therefore has low electroactivity.
For deposits by PVD, the limitation to this type of process resides in the difficulty of obtaining nanodispersions of catalyst nanoparticles and of locating the catalysts close to the membrane, without losing some depth in order to respond to a higher catalytic activity during power draws.
The ion-beam processes, as described in document U.S. Pat. No. 6,673,127, do not allow a dispersion in depth, in more than 5 nm of the thickness of the diffusion layer.
The standard CVD deposition process has a particle growth yield that is too low for the deposition temperatures required by electrode supports (T<350° C.), or requires the use of alycyclic platinum precursors (see document U.S. Pat. No. 6,162,712) which are unfortunately very unstable at high temperature and in air.
It therefore clearly appears that the catalyst layers currently present in PEMFC type fuel cells, shown in FIG. 1, have the drawback of immobilising a high catalyst load which remains inaccessible to the proton conduction and gas diffusion network, or blocks the electron conduction.
An obvious need therefore exists to obtain novel catalyst layer structures not having all the above drawbacks and hence to identify a deposition technology suitable for producing such structures.

DLI-MOCVD process for making electrodes for electrochemical reactors


Systems and methods for monitoring a state of a battery system based on information related to a measured pressure within the battery system are presented. In certain embodiments, the disclosed systems and methods may utilize a pressure-sensitive smart foam material in connection with measuring a pressure within the battery system. Based on the measured pressure information, a variety of information relating to the battery system may be determined. For example, information relating to a state of a battery system, certain events occurring within the battery system, and/or battery lifecycle information may be determined based on the measured pressure information.

Passenger vehicles often include electric batteries for operating features of a vehicle's electrical and drivetrain systems. For example, vehicles commonly include a 12V lead-acid automotive battery configured to supply electric energy to vehicle starter systems (e.g., a starter motor), lighting systems, and/or ignition systems. In electric, fuel cell ("FC"), and/or hybrid vehicles, a high voltage ("HV") battery system (e.g., a 360V HV battery system) may be used to power electric drivetrain components of the vehicle (e.g., electric drive motors and the like). For example, an HV rechargeable energy storage system ("RESS") included in a vehicle may be used to power electric drivetrain components of the vehicle.
Due to vehicle impact events (e.g., vehicle collisions), certain electronics configured to control and/or monitor battery operations in a vehicle may be damaged and/or limited in their ability to detect certain battery state information. For example, electronic communication and/or power lines may become damaged and/or disconnected in a vehicle collision, thereby limiting the functionality of associated battery monitoring electronics. Moreover, conventional battery monitoring systems may be limited in their ability to utilize information associated within an internal pressure of a battery system in connection with determining state information of the battery system (e.g., battery system state of health ("SOH") and/or other battery system performance information, information regarding compromised and/or damaged battery cells, etc.).

Systems and methods for determining battery state information based on internal battery pressure


A code placement technique that organizes code units to at least reduce layout conflicts among caller/callee code units. A code preparation environment determines those code units of a code representation that have overlapping memory mappings with their counterpart caller/callee code units. To at least reduce the layout conflicts, or overlapping memory mappings, the code preparation environment arranges the caller/callee code units to eliminate the layout conflicts among the caller/callee code units.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to storing code into memory. More specifically, the present invention relates to structuring code to reduce layout conflicts between code units with a caller-callee relationship.
2. Description of the Related Art
Attempts to address the increasing gap between processors and memory have typically leaned towards reducing or tolerating latency. Techniques for reducing or tolerating latency include prefetching, dynamic instruction scheduling, and speculative execution. The tendency for application to be dominated by memory accesses limits the effectiveness of such techniques.
A more recent approach attempts to improve software reference locality. Software reference locality is improved by engineering code layout organization, referred to as code placement, during compile-time. Such techniques organize code in accordance with gathered profile information that indicates "hotness," of code blocks, or execution frequency, to reduce cache conflicts. The code-placement techniques reorganize an application at various levels of granularity based on a weighted graph. The weighted graph is constructed from profile information that indicates how often a code block is called. Although execution frequency is helpful, no code placement technique utilizes information indicating caller-callee relationships. Accordingly, a technique is desired that utilizes information pertaining to procedures that reference each other.

Reducing layout conflicts among code units with caller-callee relationships


The present invention relates to digital pathology. In order to improve uniformity at microscopic level and to enhance stability in time for color calibration, a calibration slide (10) is provided for a digital pathology scanning microscope. The calibration slide comprises a substrate (12) and a pixel layout (14) comprising a plurality of spaced apart metal nanostructures (16) arranged on a surface (18) of the substrate. The substrate is optically transparent. The metal nanostructures are arranged to produce plasmon resonances for generating a color image under a bright-field illumination. The color image comprises a plurality of calibration color values that are provided for calibrating a digital pathology imaging system.

In digital pathology, images of pathological slides are captured and stored in a digital form, which can be viewed, managed, and analyzed on a computer monitor. It is thus important that colors from the pathology slides are displayed in a constant and reliable fashion. However, the color responses between different digital pathology scanners may be different. Even for the same digital pathology scanner, the color response may vary along with time.
Hence, calibration slides have been developed to calibrate color response of digital pathology scanner in order to establish a known relationship to a standard color space. For example, in "Color accuracy and reproducibility in whole slide imaging scanners", in Medical Imaging 2014: Digital Pathology, vol. 9041 of Proceedings of SPIE, 2014, by P. Shrestha and B. Hulsken, color calibration slide has been developed based on synthetic targets such as photographic transparency of the Macbeth color target. Such film based methods involve imaging the target with imaging device and then using the resulting image to develop a color correction profile specific to that device. However, such method is limited by the fact that the colors are produced by combinations of cyan, magenta, and yellow film dyes which have substantially different spectra from those of histopathology stains.
To address these limitations, in "Color correction in whole slide digital pathology," Proc. 20th IS&T Color and Imaging conference, November, 2012, by Y. Murakami, H. Gunji, F. Kimura, A. Saito, T. Abe, M. Sakamoto, P. Bautista, and Y. Yagi, a calibration slide is described that comprises nine miniature color films, which are selected especially for hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stains.
In order to accurately represent the target material to be imaged, in "Color standardization in whole slide imaging using a color calibration slide", Journal of Pathology Informatics, vol. 5, no. 1, article 4, 2014, by P. Bautista, N. Hashimoto, and Y. Yagi, tissue based color targets have been proposed such as a section of mouse embryo stained in a standard way.
Although efforts have been made towards improving the accuracy of color calibration by adapting colors to the target material to be imaged, a problem common to many of these methods is that at microscopic level, calibration slides may have a grain structure that may affect image quality. Even for the same calibration slide, colors, such as colors generated by stained polymer films, may not be stable, which may fade out over time.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


The invention in one implementation encompasses a computer having an operating system and a power ON/OFF pushbutton switch. A microcontroller is coupled to receive ON/OFF information generated by the pushbutton switch. Responsive to receiving the ON/OFF information, the microcontroller generates a command causing the operating system to cause the computer to toggle between sleep and awake states.

This invention generally relates to computers and more specifically relates to multiple functionality associated with an ON/OFF pushbutton switch of a computer.
Computers typically utilize an ON/OFF pushbutton switch to initiate a power up sequence from a powered down (OFF) state and to power down from a powered up (ON) state. Depressing and releasing the pushbutton when the computer is OFF causes a power up sequence to be initiated. After the computer has successfully booted and reached an operational state, depressing the pushbutton for 4 seconds will cause the computer to power down regardless of the condition of a software application that may be running. Using the pushbutton to power down the computer may be necessary in the event of an irrecoverable error by the application software or the operating system. Such ON/OFF pushbutton operation satisfies requirements of the Advanced Configuration and Power Management Interface (ACPI) standard.
Laptop computers, in addition to having an ON/OFF button, are typically provided with a sleep/wakeup button. After the laptop computer has successfully booted, the user may employ the sleep/wakeup button to cycle the computer between a sleep state that conserves battery power and an active (awake) state in which application programs are made available to the user. There exists a need as will be more filly described in the Detailed Description section below.

Multiple functionality associated with a computer ON/OFF pushbutton switch

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


Methods for detecting a seizure, by use of a wavelet transform maximum modulus (WTMM) algorithm applied to body data. A non-transitive, computer-readable storage device for storing data that when executed by a processor, perform such a method.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of epileptic event detection. More particularly, it concerns epileptic event detection by use of a wavelet transform maximum modulus (WTMM) algorithm on a time series of patient body signal data.
2. Description of Related Art
There have been various advancements in the area of seizure detection, which remains a fairly subjective endeavor. The task of automated detection of epileptic seizures is intimately related to and dependent on the definition of what is a seizure, definition which to date is subjective and thus inconsistent within and among experts. The lack of an objective and universal definition not only complicates the task of validation and comparison of detection algorithms, but possibly more importantly, the characterization of the spatio-temporal behavior of seizures and of other dynamical features required to formulate a comprehensive epilepsy theory.
The current state of automated seizure detection is, by extension, a faithful reflection of the power and limitations of visual analysis, upon which it rests. The subjectivity intrinsic to expert visual analysis of seizures and its incompleteness (it cannot quantify or estimate certain signal features, such as power spectrum) confound the objectivity and reproducibility of results of signal processing tools used for their automated detection. What is more, several of the factors, that enter into the determination of whether or not certain grapho-elements should be classified as a seizure, are non-explicit ("gestalt-based") and thus difficult to articulate, formalize and program into algorithms.
Most, if not all, existing seizure detection algorithms are structured to operate as expert electroencephalographers. Thus, seizure detection algorithms that apply expert-based rules are at once useful and deficient; useful as they are based on a certain fund of irreplaceable clinical knowledge and deficient as human analysis biases propagate into their architecture. These cognitive biases which pervade human decision processes and which have been the subject of formal inquiry are rooted in common practice behaviors such as: a) The tendency to rely too heavily on one feature when making decisions (e.g., if onset is not sudden, it is unlikely to be a seizure because these are paroxysmal events); b) To declare objects as equal if they have the same external properties (e.g., this is a seizure because it is just as rhythmical as those we score as seizures) or c) Classify phenomena by relying on the ease with which associations come to mind (e.g., this pattern looks just like the seizures we reviewed yesterday).
Seizure detection algorithms' discrepant results make attainment of a unitary or universal seizure definition ostensibly difficult; the notion that expert cognitive biases are the main if not only obstacle on the path to "objectivity" is rendered tenuous by these results. These divergences in objective and reproducible results may be attributable in part, but not solely, to the distinctiveness in the architecture and parameters of each algorithm. The fractal or multi-fractal structures of seizures accounts at least in part for the differences in results and draws attention to the so-called "Richardson effect." Richardson demonstrated that the length of borders between countries (a natural fractal) is a function of the size of the measurement tool, increasing without limit as the tool's size is reduced. Mandelbrot, in his seminal contribution "How long is the coast of Britain," stressed the complexities inherent to the Richardson effect, due to the dependency of particular measurements on the scale of the tool used to perform them. Although defining seizures as a function of a detection tool would be acceptable, this approach may be impracticable when comparisons between, for example, clinical trials or algorithms are warranted. Another strategy to bring unification of definitions is to universally adopt the use of one method, but this would be to the detriment of knowledge mining from seizure-time series and by extension to clinical epileptology.
To date, meaningful performance comparisons among myriad existing algorithms have not been feasible due to lack of a common and adequate database. However, even if adequate databases were available, the value of such "comparisons" would be limited by the absence of a universally accepted definition of what is a "seizure." The previously noted cognitive biases and architectural/parametric distinctions among algorithms impede achievement of consensus and in certain cases even of majority agreement in classifying particular events as seizures or non-seizures. Because expert visual analysis provides the benchmarks (seizure onset and termination times) from which key metrics (detection latency in reference to electrographic and clinical onset time ("speed of detection"), sensitivity, specificity and positive predictive value) are derived, the effects of cognitive biases propagate beyond the seizure/non-seizure question into other aspects of the effectiveness of a particular seizure detection algorithm.

Seizure detection methods, apparatus, and systems using a wavelet transform maximum modulus algorithm


An exemplary integrated nuclear quadrupole resonance-based detection system comprises a front-end device having a hand-held form factor, wherein the front-end device is configured to scan a sample in or near a sample coil using inbuild electronics and acquire a nuclear quadrupole resonance measurement. The system further includes a swappable sample coil that is attached to an opening at a face of the front-end device and is tuned to a resonant frequency of the sample; and a swappable impedance matching network that is attached to the opening at the face of the front-end device and is configured to tune the resonant frequency of the sample coil. The inbuild electronics comprises a wireless transfer module that is configured to communicate the acquired nuclear quadrupole resonance measurement with a back-end device of the integrated nuclear quadrupole resonance-based detection system. Other systems and methods are also provided.

Consumers and law enforcement are equally concerned about the increase in adulterated consumables that are present in the market. In addition to counterfeited substances, authorities also have to deal with new illegal drugs. These drugs are imported into the country in various ways. Often, these substances are available in small quantities and require rapid detection in the field.

System and method for hand-held NQR-based in-field screening of substances

University of Florida Research Foundation, Inc.


The present invention features improved Compounds, especially (I) methods of identifying patients having Cancer using biomarkers (e.g., PDE3A, SLFN12 and/or CREB3L1) that correlate with drug sensitivity and consequently treating a stratified patient population with an agent of the invention (e.g., Compounds 1-6 disclosed herein).

Cancer kills over 550,000 people in the United States and over 8 million people world-wide each year. New agents, including small molecules, molecules that impact tissue-specific growth requirements, and immunomodulatory agents, have been shown to benefit a subset of patients whose cancers have unique genomic mutations or other characteristics. Unfortunately, many cancer patients are still left without effective therapeutic options.
One approach to identify new anti-cancer agents is phenotypic screening to discover novel small molecules displaying strong selectivity between cancer cell lines, followed by predictive chemogenomics to identify the cell features associated with drug response. In the 1990s, Weinstein and colleagues demonstrated that the cytotoxic profile of a compound can be used to identify cellular characteristics, such as gene-expression profiles and DNA copy number, that correlate with drug sensitivity. The ability to identify the features of cancer cell lines that mediate their response to small molecules has strongly increased in recent years with automated high-throughput chemosensitivity testing of large panels of cell lines coupled with comprehensive genomic and phenotypic characterization of the cell lines. Phenotypic observations of small molecule sensitivity can be linked to expression patterns or somatic alterations, as in the case of trastuzumab-sensitive HER2-amplified breast cancer or erlotinib-sensitive EGFR-mutant lung cancer.
Savai et al (Expert Opinion on investigational Drugs, Vol. 19, issue 1, 2010, p. 117-131) stated that targeting cancer with phosphodiesterase inhibitors might be a promising approach for the treatment of cancer. However several phosphodiesterase inhibitors have been approved for clinical treatment, including PDE3 inhibitors milrinone, cilostazol, and levosimendan for cardiovascular indications and inhibition of platelet coagulation, as well as the PDE3 inhibitor anagrelide for thrombocythemia but for no cancer indication. The most recent quality review of PDE inhibitors (Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 13, 290-314, (2014)) barely mentions cancer. From WO 2014/164704 some new PDE3 inhibitors for the treatment of cancer are known.
Methods of characterizing malignancies at a molecular level are useful for stratifying patients, thereby quickly directing them to effective therapies. Improved methods for predicting the responsiveness of subjects having cancer are urgently required.

Compounds, compositions and methods for cancer patient stratification and cancer treatment


Data is written to one of two frame buffers in write access cycles having write and non-write sub-periods. Data is read out to a display device from the other of the two frame buffers in read access cycles having read and non-read sub-periods. The writing of data and the reading of data are switched to a respective opposite frame buffer during a switching opportunity, a switching opportunity occurring when a read access cycle is in a non-read sub-period and a write access cycle is in a non-write sub-period. A count of the number of times a switching opportunity is not executed because a read access cycle is in a non-read sub-period while a write access cycle is in a write sub-period is incremented. If the count exceeds a particular threshold, a write access cycle subsequent to the count exceeding the threshold is masked. When a write access cycle is a masked data is not written into a buffer.

A video image is formed from a sequence of frames displayed in rapid succession. A video source, such as a camera, may capture individual frames for storage in a memory at an input frame rate. The frames are read out from the memory and transmitted to a display device at an output frame rate for display. An artifact known as "image tearing" can occur when a new frame is stored in the memory at the same time that a previously stored frame is being read out for transmission to the display. If the storing of the new frame overtakes the reading of the previous frame, the displayed image will be a composite of the new and previous frames, and objects that appear in different locations in the two frames will be inaccurately rendered.
To prevent image tearing, a double-buffer technique may be used. The technique requires that the memory be divided into two equally sized buffers, each of sufficient size to store one frame. Generally, the video source writes successive frames to alternate buffers. A frame is read out for display from the buffer last completely updated by the video source. While the video source is writing a frame to a first buffer, a previously stored frame is read out of a second buffer and written to the display device.
A problem sometimes arises, however, when the double-buffer technique is used. The problem is that instead of displaying normal video, the video image freezes on the display device for an abnormally long period of time. This problem is quite objectionable to viewers.
Accordingly, there is a need for methods and apparatus for double-buffering video data in a manner which makes the undesirable image freezing effect inconspicuous.


A fiber optic connector includes a ferrule assembly having a fiber within a The ferrule is received within a hub held in a barrel. An inner spring urges the ferrule and hub outwardly from the barrel. A nut is movably attached to the barrel. An outer spring biases the barrel toward a connector end of a housing.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to fiber optic connectors for use in optical fiber signal transmission systems.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Optical fiber connectors are used to couple optically one optical fiber to another optical fiber or to an optical device. Such connectors are an important part of any optical fiber transmission system and the industry has expended substantial effort in their development.
A commonly available optical connector is referred to as an ST connector (ST is a registered trademark of AT&T). An example of a type of an ST connector is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,812,009 dated Mar. 14, 1989.
In installation, an optical fiber connector experiences disruptive forces from time to time. For example, axial loads may be applied to a connector. The axial load may result from a person inadvertently pulling on a cable which is attached to a connector.
If axial loads result in the connector ferrule moving away from an optically coupled opposing ferrule, the optical circuit may be disrupted or disconnected. Accordingly, fiber optic connectors should provide means for preventing disruption of the circuit in response to an axial load applied to the connector.
It is also desirable to provide an optical connector system which can be used interchangeably with an adapter. For example, it is known to use two optical fiber connectors which are joined in optical coupling at an adapter. With certain types of connectors, such as versions of the AT&T ST connector, identical connectors are not utilized on both sides of the adapter. Instead, different connector configurations are used on opposite sides of the adapter with the two configurations cooperating to ensure satisfactory optical coupling.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical fiber connector which reduces risk of signal loss in response to axial loads on the connector. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a connector which is symmetrical (i.e., the same connector designed can be used on opposite sides of an adapter coupling).


A powder compacting apparatus (1) has a top plate (3), a die plate (9) and a bottom plate (12), combined with each other as follows. The top plate (3) holds upper punches (4) in place by punch holders (5), and the die plate (9) firmly grips a die holder (8) holding dies (7). The bottom plate (12) keeps lower punches (11) in place gripped by clamps (32) so that an amount of powder fed into each die (7) is compacted to give a consolidated powder piece. The die plate (9) is composed of an upper part (9a) and a lower part (9b) so that the die holder (8) is sandwiched by and between the parts (9a, 9b), in such a manner that these parts cooperate with each other to secure each die (7) in position.

In general, powder compacting apparatuses are used for instance in the conventional metallurgy industries in which a basic iron powder is blended with a copper powder, a graphite powder or the like alloy element to prepare a composition. Usually added to this composition is a lubricant such as zinc stearate, lead stearate or the like, to provide a mixed powder that will then be compacted in a press mold. Powder metallurgy is a process for producing for example such an iron-based compacted powder pieces, and in the atomic power industries the mold is disposed in a glove box so as to produce such pieces as nuclear fuel pellets.
Presses widely used in this field comprise each two or more punches for a mold.
One of the prior art powder compacting apparatuses is disclosed in the Japan Patent Laying-Open Gazette No. H.9-253896 and shown in "FIG. 1" thereof (—FIG. 7—herein). This apparatus comprises a punch holder for attaching an upper punch to a top plate, a die plate for holding a die, and a bottom plate to which a lower punch is secured. The upper and lower punches are strongly urged towards each other to compress a powder mixture and compact it into a consolidated piece.
Now, FIG. 7 will be referred to in detail for description of the prior art type of powder compacting apparatuses.
This prior art proposes a die device for incorporation into a powder compacting apparatus. The die device comprises an upper punch 113 held in place by an upper holder 112, that is bolted to the lower face of a top plate 110. A die 121 fitted downwards in a die plate 123 is fixed therein by a die retainer 122 bolted thereto. A die plate supporter 126 is disposed below and adjacent to the lower face of die plate 123. A pair of guide posts 114 depend from opposite side ends of the top plate 110. These posts are loosely extend through corresponding holes formed in the die plate 123. Beatings secured in the supporter 126 hold the lower end portions of such guide posts 114 in a freely rotating engagement with said supporter. The die 121 has a central bore fitting on the top end of a lower punch 131, that can reciprocate up and down relative to this die 121. A lower holder 132 is bolted to a base plate 140 so as to retain thereon the lower punch 131. A pair of upright guide rods 160 penetrate the opposite side regions of said base plate 140.
In operation, an amount of powder will be placed in the die 121, and then the top plate 110 will be lowered along the guide posts 114 so that the upper punch 113 descends towards the die 121. On the other hand, the base plate 140 will be raised along the guide rods 160, thus driving the lower punch 131 upwardly towards the die 121. Those upper and lower punches 113 and 131 cooperate with each other to press the powder between them, thereby compacting it into a consolidated piece.
When setting this apparatus ready to operate, the upper end of lower punch 131 will be positioned at first to fit in the die 121. This die will then engage the die plate 123, before the retainer 122 is placed onto the die and bolted downwards to this die plate. The lower holder 132 restraining the lower punch 131 from sideways movement will be bolted downwards to the base plate 140 so as to fix thereon the lower punch. Subsequently, the lower end of upper punch 113 will be fitted in die 121, before temporarily lowering the top plate 110. Next, the upper holder 112 will be positioned correct relative to this plate by upwardly screwing some bolts. As the final step, the top plate 110 will be retracted upwards in order to tightly fasten those bolts for firmly fixing the upper punch 113.
In the powder compacting apparatus summarized above, many bolts are used around the die 121 in order that the retainer 122 urges downwards this die within the die plate 123. Thus, very intricate and time-consuming works are necessary when mounting and dismounting the die 121.
As also noted above, the upper punch 113 has to preliminarily fit in the die 121 to be aligned therewith. Thus, many further bolts inserted upwards through the upper holder 112 will be allowed to loosely engage with the top plate 110. Subsequently, the top plate will be lifted to tightly fasten the bolts and firmly secure the upper punch 113 in position. Due to almost impossible visual inspection of the positions of those bolts and bolt holes receiving them, the upper holder 112 is not easy to fix. All the works to bolt this holder 112 may alternatively be done after having raised the top plate 110. In this case, it will however be more difficult to precisely align the upper punch 113 with the die 121, also failing to smoothly attach and quickly fasten those bolts.
The upper punch 113 should be protected from damage when it is driven into a smooth alignment with the die 121. For this purpose, a manually operable mold changer may be necessary for slowly raising and lowering the upper punch. Such a mold changer will be located apart from the main body of a powder compacting apparatus. Therefore, a set of dies and relevant members therefor must move fore and aft between such a changer and the apparatus.

Japan Nuclear Cycle Development Institute


A glow-in-the-dark plastic dental appliance typically for pediatric dental patients, and method of constructing the appliance. According to a preferred method of the invention, the dental appliance is constructed by first forming an impression of a patient""s upper or lower dentition and constructing a cast from the impression. The appliance is thermoformed over the cast, typically using a vacuum or pressure thermoforming machine and a sheet, plate or disc of thermoformable plastic impregnated or coated with a phosphorescent material. The appliance is capable of glowing in the dark for a limited period of time after exposure to a light source and as the appliance is worn on the patient""s dentition, and is capable of repeated phosphorescence throughout the dental treatment period.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to dental retainers or appliances for straightening and retaining teeth and more particularly, to a phosphorescent or glow-in-the-dark plastic dental appliance and method of construction, which appliance is particularly suitable for children. Using a vacuum or pressure thermoforming machine and a sheet, plate or disc of thermoformable plastic which is typically impregnated or coated with a phosphorescent material, the glow-in-the-dark appliance is vacuum-thermoformed over the dental impression cast and allowed to set on the cast. After removal from the cast, the appliance is capable of glowing in the dark for a limited period of time after exposure to a light source and as the appliance is worn on the patient""s dentition. The appliance is capable of repeated phosphorescence throughout the dental treatment period.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A xe2x80x9cThermoformed Plastic Dental Retainer and Method of Constructionxe2x80x9d is described in my U.S. Pat. No. 5,692,894, dated Dec. 2, 1997. The dental retainer is constructed by first forming an impression of a patient""s upper or lower dentition and constructing a cast from the impression. The retainer is vacuum thermoformed over the cast using a sheet, plate or disc of thermoformable plastic and a vacuum or pressure thermoforming machine. A protrusion or divot is formed in the retainer on the labial or lingual side of each tooth which is to be repositioned lingually or labially, respectively, and a gap, opening or window is formed in the retainer on the opposite side of the divot to accommodate unhindered tooth repositioning movement. As the retainer is worn on the patient""s dentition over a period of days or weeks, the projecting divots apply pressure to the respective teeth and push the teeth into the gap or window of the retainer to a straightened position. By appropriately positioning the divots in the retainer with respect to the patient""s malpositioned teeth, the teeth can be moved labially, lingually or rotated, as needed, for straightening.
My application Ser. No. 09/568,727 describes a xe2x80x9cThermoformed Plastic Dental Retainer and Method of Constructionxe2x80x9d. The dental retainer is constructed by first forming an impression of a patient""s upper or lower dentition and constructing a cast from the impression. The retainer is vacuum-thermoformed over the cast using a sheet, plate or disc of thermoformable plastic and a vacuum or pressure thermoforming machine. As the thermoformed plastic retainer sets on the cast, the retainer is rapidly cooled typically by spraying a refrigerant coolant on the retainer. This step causes the retainer to thermally contract against and precisely conform to the configuration and texture of the cast for an accurate and tight fit of the retainer on the patient""s dentition.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,095,146, dated Aug. 1, 2000, to Knauer, et al., discloses xe2x80x9cGlow-In-The-Dark Hearing Protective Devicesxe2x80x9d, each including a semi-aural device, an earplug or an earmuff. A glow-in-the-dark material is incorporated into at least a part of the device such that the device emits light for an extended period of time in the dark after exposure to light. The glow-in-the-dark material can be disposed on a surface of the device or dispersed throughout the material which forms the device.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a glow-in-the-dark dental appliance and method of constructing the appliance.
Another object of the invention is to provide a glow-in-the-dark, thermoformed plastic dental appliance which is particularly suitable for children.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a thermoformed phosphorescent dental appliance and method of construction of the appliance including typically vacuum-thermoforming a sheet, plate or disc of phosphorescent plastic on a dental impression cast constructed from an impression of a typically pediatric patient""s upper or lower dentition, and allowing the thermoformed appliance to set on the cast.
Yet another object of this invention is to provide a thermoformed plastic dental appliance and method of construction of the appliance, including initially forming an impression of a patient""s upper or lower dentition and constructing a cast from the impression; vacuum or pressure-thermoforming the appliance over the cast using a vacuum or pressure thermoforming machine and a sheet, plate or disc of thermoformable plastic which is typically impregnated or coated with a phosphorescent material; and allowing the thermoformed plastic appliance to set on the cast, whereby the appliance is capable of glowing in the dark for a limited period of time after exposure to a light source and as the appliance is worn on the patient""s dentition.
These and other objects of the invention are provided in a glow-in-the-dark thermoformed plastic dental appliance and method of construction. The dental appliance is constructed by first forming an impression of a typically pediatric patient""s upper or lower dentition and constructing a cast from the impression. The appliance is thermoformed over the cast using a vacuum or pressure thermoforming machine and a sheet, plate or disc of thermoformable plastic impregnated or coated with a phosphorescent material. After the thermoformed plastic appliance sets on the cast, the appliance is removed from the cast and is capable of glowing in the dark for a limited period of time after exposure to visible light and as the appliance is worn on the patient""s dentition, and is capable of repeated phosphorescence throughout the dental treatment period.

Phosphorescent dental appliance and method of construction


A method to preserve packed wood by expiration controlling consists of following steps: to clean/smooth surface of packed wood by a cleaner/by sanding said wood surface; to dry moisture of clean packed wood by heating in a high temperature oven; to assemble/manufacture a packed wood according to designed/required shape; to immunize wood preservatives by dipping in pool contains preservation liquid in certain dosage; to dry by draining the preservatives of packed wood that dipped in said preservation liquid pool; and to put security symbols on packed wood before shipping/distribution.

International Standard Phytosanitary Measure 15 (ISPM #15) has been stipulated by International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) to packed wood in international trade. ISPM #15 regulation is meant to avoid pest transfer or migration from a place to another or from a country to another country. Besides, ISPM #15 avoids one party side of each country releases a regulation of packed wood exportation and importation. Some target of pest according to ISPM #15 are anobidae, bostrichidae, buprestidae, curculionidae, isoptera, lictidae, oedemeridae, scolytidae, siricidae, and nematodes.
Further ISPM #15 discloses a packed wood shall meet requirement to be free of fungus, pest or living insects, wood crevices by insects, bark, clean, conform with treatment standard of Badan Karantina Pertanian [BARANTAN] or Plant Quarantine Agency, and anti-weathered/fungus.
Wood may be applied widely, as industry material, home furniture, writing utensils even a structural frame etc. Otherwise, wood is highly difficult to use and apply in a long term, particularly outdoor application, due to it will be destroyed by the weather such as obsolescent (fungus) and Organisme Pengganggu Tumbuhan (OPT) or Plant Disturber Organisms. According to present invention, the wood used as packed wood is applied domestic and overseas. Exporting packed wood shall conform ISPM #15. One kind of wood preservation, particularly to manufacturing wood package, is giving a copper compound which is water-soluble. A problem occurs by said water-soluble copper compound that impregnate into wood then press and make said copper compound enter into wood's pores. Even if said packed wood is exposed by rain drops, the copper compound exits packed wood's pores then create environmental damage due to outdoor usage.
Oxalic acid as a simple carboxylic acid has been found in almost organisms including plant, animal and fungus. Basidiomycetes class of fungus as main agent in wood degradation (lignoselulosa) produces a number of oxalic acid during wood colonization. Said oxalic acid known having crucial role in wood components degradation. Oxalic acid of fungus functions as protein source in wood cellulose hydrolysis, whether enzyme or non-enzyme, by reducing pH of said wood and accelerate cellulose de-polymerization thus eliminate wood's strength. From wood preservation view, fungus produces oxalic is harmful to wood's strength, in packed wood manufacturing. Property of strong binder to metal of oxalic acid according to previous invention is copper-chrome-arsenat (CCA), which is used commonly in wood preservation. The CCA becomes less effective to avoid fungus attack, thus achievement in finding specific inhibitor to oxalic acid biosynthesize into fungus meets inventive step aspect.
It has been applied in long period to produce a packed wood by small entities, traditional craftsmen and medium industries. Disclosed that method to preserve a packed wood by providing the copper (Cu) substance which has derivatives such as copper-chrome-arsenat (CCA) dan copper-citrate (CC). Using any one of said substance without mixing said substances causes inactivation of packed wood preservation.
Another disclosed method to preserve wood according to existent standard is fumigation and heat treatment. Current heat treatment is to heat at least 56° C. for 30 minutes. This requires lot of energy, big consumption of energy creates global warming. Current fumigation uses Methyl Bromide (CH3Br) gas for 24 hours and temperature at least 10° C. with 48 gr/m3 dosage. Note that Methyl Bromide (CH3Br) is one of ozone destroyer. Nevertheless, Methyl Bromide (CH3Br) is kept to be used in quarantine operation, especially in plant quarantine (with tight supervision and conform to law). Meanwhile, Methyl Bromide (CH3Br) replacement may be used, for example Cold Treatment, Heat Treatment, fumigasi with fospin, Sulfur Flouride, Ethylene Oxide other alternative eco-friendly substances.
From above disclosure, resuming that methods to preserve wood, particularly packed wood, have some weaknesses or obstacles that destroy environment by using such dangerous chemical substances (pesticides) uncontrollably and immeasurably. Besides, inactivation, ozone destruction, and oxalic acid decrease wood's strength.
Based on said problems, weaknesses, obstacles of current invention, inventors propose a method to preserve packed wood by a novel method combining heat treatment and immunization using preservatives in measurable dosage for one month since dipping in thus re-immunization in next months of expiration phase.

Method of wood preservation using expiration control


A heterogeneous mix of traffic having one or more protocol formats and supplied by one or more users or sub-networks is transported in a communication network by using digital containers that are routed and processed in network nodes interconnecting the users or sub-networks. A digital container includes a frame structure comprising a header section and a payload section, the header section including information for routing the digital container and for identifying the type of payload being carried. The payload section is capable of carrying one or more different types of traffic formatted according to one or more protocols, e.g., IP, ATM, and so on. Processing of the individual payload remains a user or sub-network responsibility while the less processor-intensive routing and processing of digital containers occurs at the network node level.

Communication networks must be capable of transporting extremely large amounts of information having different formats (e.g., voice, video, data, and so on) and at the highest speeds possible. As a result, flexible bandwidth management and efficient transmission protocols are essential elements in any network solution. Recent advances in communication technologies have assisted service providers in meeting the increasing demands being placed on today's networks. For example, optical fiber is fast becoming a transmission medium of choice for many communication networks because of the speed and bandwidth advantages associated with optical transmission. In addition, wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) is being used to obtain even more bandwidth and speed in today's optical transmission systems. In its simplest form, WDM is a technique whereby parallel data streams modulating light at different wavelengths are coupled simultaneously into the same optical fiber. By using optical transmission and WDM in the backbone networks, the communications industry has made great strides in terms of solving the bandwidth and speed problems.
However, an efficient transport protocol for carrying the various types of traffic across these optical communication networks continues to be an elusive problem. Although the type of traffic being transported or being planned for transport over these networks continues to evolve, one constant is that future networks need to be capable of carrying a mix of several traffic types in an efficient, flexible, and scalable manner. In general, the type of traffic transported in the networks can be characterized in two categories, mono-media whereby only one type of session is supported, and multimedia, whereby a session can be composed of multiple mono-media sessions. The former case is comparable to traditional circuit or packet networks where voice, data, or video sessions are established and traffic is carried. In the current Internet, early versions of multimedia sessions are observed. For example, upon gaining access to a server, an end user is permitted to access video and audio clips, exchange data, as well as establish real-time connections such as voice and video. Presently, two of the most common types of transport protocols are Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) and Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), referred hereinafter as IP. To capitalize on the benefits offered by ATM and IP, coupled with the many advantages associated with optical transmission, a great deal of effort is being applied to develop the most efficient manner for transporting ATM and IP traffic across today's optical communication networks.
Most existing optical transmission networks are based on the well-known Synchronous Optical Network (SONET)/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) standard. Because the differences and similarities between SONET and SDH are well known, examples described hereinafter will only refer to SONET for simplicity of explanation. A common approach in today's networks is to use a SONET-based system for transporting the different types of traffic. For example, in SONET-based transport, information is formatted according to specified byte and frame structures in the electronic domain and then converted to optical format for transport as a serial bit stream over a lightwave communication system. In WDM, each wavelength channel therefore may carry such formatted traffic, but in parallel so that capacity significantly increases. One proposed approach for supporting the different traffic types) e.g., ATM and IP, is to use the standard SONET frame structure for carrying the ATM cells or IP packets. Although SONET transport has many advantages, SONET is not viewed as a long-term solution to optical communication networks which must support a mix of traffic types.
For example, SONET does not provide an explicit routing process at the cross-connects and/or switches/routers. SONET also does not provide a signaling capability for path setup between source/destination end devices for which communications should take place, e.g., application layer. Furthermore, in order to extract information from SONET payload, complex processing using embedded pointers in its path and section headers is required. With respect to carrying multiple traffic types, the SONET frame structure was not originally designed to handle ATM cells and IP packets and, as such, is not optimized for transmission of such formats.
Cost is also a significant factor in terms of supporting the addition of future services. In particular, a solution for transporting multiple traffic types should not require revamping the existing infrastructure. Future networks need to be transparent to the type of traffic being carried and new traffic types should be accommodated with, at most, minor modifications at the interface to the network infrastructure. Furthermore, capacity should be capable of being managed based on actual traffic demand, e.g., incrementally add or remove capacity.

Systems and method for transporting multiple protocol formats in a lightwave communication network


Exemplary semiconductor processing chambers may include a chamber body including sidewalls and a base. The chambers may include a substrate support extending through the base of the chamber body. The substrate support may include a support platen configured to support a semiconductor substrate. The substrate support may include a shaft coupled with the support platen. The substrate support may include a shield coupled with the shaft of the substrate support. The shield may include a plurality of apertures defined through the shield. The substrate support may include a block seated in an aperture of the shield.

Integrated circuits are made possible by processes which produce intricately patterned material layers on substrate surfaces. Producing patterned material on a substrate requires controlled methods for forming and removing material. Precursors are often delivered to a processing region and distributed to uniformly deposit or etch material on the substrate. Many aspects of a processing chamber may impact process uniformity, such as uniformity of process conditions within a chamber, uniformity of flow through components, as well as other process and component parameters. Even minor discrepancies across a substrate may impact the formation or removal process.
Thus, there is a need for improved systems and methods that can be used to produce high quality devices and structures. These and other needs are addressed by the present technology.


A splitter apparatus for a gas turbine engine includes: a splitter including: an annular outer wall which defines a convex-curved leading edge at a forward end thereof; an annular floorplate positioned radially inboard of the outer wall; and an annular first bulkhead spanning between the outer wall and the floorplate. The outer wall, the floorplate, and the bulkhead collectively define an annular splitter plenum positioned adjacent the leading edge of the outer wall. At least one exhaust passage formed in the outer wall extends past the floorplate and communicates with the exterior of the splitter. At least one jumper tube assembly passes through the first bulkhead, each configured to pass air flow from the exterior of the splitter into the plenum.

This invention relates generally to turbine engine structures and more particularly to materials and designs for improving anti-icing characteristics from such structures.
One common type of aircraft powerplant is a turbofan engine, which includes a turbomachinery core having a high pressure compressor, combustor, and high pressure turbine in serial flow relationship. The core is operable in a known manner to generate a flow of propulsive gas. A low pressure turbine driven by the core exhaust gases drives a fan through a shaft to generate a propulsive bypass flow. The low pressure turbine also drives a low pressure compressor or "booster" which supercharges the inlet flow to the high pressure compressor.
Certain flight conditions allow for ice build up on the leading edge structures, and in particular, the fan and booster flowpath areas of the engine. One specific leading edge structure of interest is the engine's booster splitter. The splitter is an annular ring with an airfoil leading edge that is positioned immediately aft of the fan blades. Its function is to separate the airflow for combustion (via the booster) from the bypass airflow.
It is desired to minimize ice build up and shed volume from the splitter during an icing event. This in turn minimizes risk of compressor stall and compressor mechanical damage from the ingested ice.
It is known to heat engine structures for anti-icing. However, because the splitter is exposed to fan by-pass air, injection of hot air directly into the splitter would lead to insufficient heating at the nose due to heat loss to the fan air.
Accordingly, there is a need for a splitter which is efficiently heated so as to be resistant to ice buildup.


Compositions and methods are provided that relate to a modified DNA cleaving enzyme having at least 35% amino acid sequence identity with T7 Endo I. The modified enzyme includes two catalytic centers separated by a β-bridge where the β-bridge contains at least one mutation having an effect of altering enzyme cleavage activity compared to the unmodified enzyme. Activities associated with the modified DNA cleaving enzyme that can be modulated in different reaction conditions include at least one of: (a) non-sequence specific nicking activity; (b) cleaving the second strand of a duplex DNA at a preexisting nick site to produce a linear duplex with a single strand overhang; (c) non-sequence specific DNA cleavage; (d) cleaving DNA flanking a mismatch; and (e) cleavage at a cruciform structure in a DNA duplex.

Recombination between sequences on two distinct duplex DNAs, or between sequences, which are separated by an intervening sequence on the same DNA duplex, occurs in all cells capable of self-replication. Four-way Holliday junctions in DNA are a feature of recombination reactions and are generated in both homologous and site-specific recombination reactions (Lilley, D. M. J. PNAS 94, 9513-9515 (1997)). The penultimate stage of recombination involves resolution of the four-way junction by catalysis. The catalysis is achieved by structure-specific nucleases identified as resolvases (Aravind, L., et al. Nuc. Acid Res. 28:3417-3432 (2000)). Resolvases are widespread in cells and additionally are expressed by viruses. Resolvases have diverse properties. The crystal structures of a number of resolvases have been reported, including that of T7 Endonuclease I (T7 Endo I) (Hadden, J. M., et al. Nat. Struct. Biol. 8:62-67 (2001)).
T7 Endo I has two catalytic centers that are juxtaposed in a way that prevents the enzyme from forming a productive complex with regular linear DNA but enables it to specifically bind and cleave branched, perturbed or flexible DNA. The three-dimensional structure of T7 Endo I shows that the two catalytic domains are well separated and connected only by the β-sheet bridge (Hadden, J. M., et al. Nat. Struct. Biol. 8:62-67 (2001)). The bridge forms part of an extended and tightly associated anti-parallel β-sheet (β2).
T7 Endo I is a stable homodimer of 149 amino acid subunits (Parkinson, M. J. and Lilley, D. M. J. J. Mol. Biol. 270:169-178 (1997)). It is very basic (pI calc 9.5) and binds tightly (Kd 2nM) to four-way junctions in dimeric form. T7 Endo I resolves four-way junctions by simultaneously introducing two nicks on the two continuous strands, at sites 5′ to the junction (Déclais, A., et al. EMBO J. 22:1398-1409 (2003)). This structural analysis shows that T7 Endo I forms an intimately associated symmetrical homodimer comprising two catalytic domains connected by a bridge. Each catalytic domain is composed of residues 17-44 from one subunit and residues 50-145 from the other.
Resolvases including T7 Endo I are structure-specific endonucleases capable of cleaving a broad range of DNA molecules with a variety of structures such as branched structures and single-base mismatched heteroduplexes (Mashal, R. D., et al. Nat. Genet. 9:177-183 (1995)). This broad substrate specificity makes it difficult to identify the common structural features of the substrate that the enzyme selectively recognizes and cleaves (White, M. F., et al. J. Mol. Biol 269:647-664 (1997)). The broad substrate specificity may also contribute to the toxicity of the resolvase in host cells.
It would be desirable to reduce the toxicity of the enzymes having a similar structure to T7 Endo I to facilitate their overproduction for use as reagents in molecular biology. It would also be desirable to selectively favor specific enzyme activities.

Polynucleotides encoding modified DNA cleavage enzymes and host cells therefor


A transformer (FIG. 1) optimized for surface-mount vacuum-pickup automated circuit assembly eliminates the expense of a transformer housing. The transformer has a ferrite body (100) that defines a pair of wells (208, 209) each opening onto an opposite face (108, 109) of the ferrite body. Transformer primary and secondary windings are wound in a coil (103) through slots (210, 211) around a transformer core (204) at the bottom of the wells. The windings do not protrude from the wells beyond the faces, resulting in flat faces. A first plurality of conductive vias (104-106), one pair for each winding, are completely embedded in the ferrite body and extend to both of the faces. Each pair of vias serves at one face to attach to the winding and at the other face to attach to solder pods of a PC board. The embedded vias also serve as EMI filters. A plate (107) covers the one face and provides a surface for vacuum pickup and for labeling of the transformer. The ferrite body (500) of a first transformer (FIG. 5) adapted for stacked mounting of transformers dispenses with the flat plate and further defines a second plurality of pairs of conductive vias (104-106). These vias are not connected to the first transformer's windings, but rather are positioned for connection to the winding-connected first pairs of vias of a second transformer that is positioned orthogonally to and mounted on the first transformer at the one of the faces.

An electrical transformer typically comprises two "E"-shaped ferrite structures and a set of coiled wires (e.g., one primary coil and at least one secondary coil). The sets of coils are wound around the center leg of one of the E-shaped structures, after which the two E-shaped ferrite structures are bonded together to form the transformer. For use on printed circuit boards, the transformer primary and secondary coils are accessed from the printed circuit board by having their leads soldered onto metallic pins that are molded into a plastic housing. The plastic housing is then attached to the completed ferrite structure by some type of adhesive to form the final component package. Presently, the housing costs incurred in order to make the transformer surface-mountable is more than twice the cost of the two E-shaped ferrite cores comprising the transformer itself. A technological challenge is to configure the transformer such that the packaging costs are minimized while maintaining the PC-mountability of the transformer itself.

Stackable and cost-reduced transformer with embedded EMI filters


Methods, systems, and apparatus for enabling a power path between a power source and a host device via an accessory. A host device may send, to an accessory arranged within the power path, via a first data pin arranged in the host device, a request for an accessory identifier. The accessory identifier identifies the accessory. The host device may then determine whether the accessory identifier is received from the accessory within a specified period of time or whether a received accessory identifier is valid. If the accessory identifier is not received from the accessory within the specified period of time, or a received accessory identifier is not valid, the host device sends a new request for the accessory identifier to the accessory via a second data pin different than the first data pin.

Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to host devices and accessories. More particularly, embodiments of the present invention relate to techniques for enabling a power path between a power source and a host device via an accessory.
Cables are one type of accessory that are often used to connect a host device, such as a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant, a mobile computer, etc. to a power source. The cable may then operate to transfer power from the power source to the host device so as to charge the host device, provide operating power to the host device, and the like. Other types of accessories, such as docking stations, similarly operate to transfer power from a power source to the host device by way of connecting the host device to the accessory. This may be done, for example, by connecting a connector of the host device to a connector of the accessory.
As a result of their power transferring functionality, such cables and other accessories inherently provide a risk of injury to users by, for example, electric shock. Such risks may increase due to particular connector designs (e.g., where the cable or other accessories have a connector with exposed leads for connecting to the host device), due to increased voltages and currents which may be desired to, e.g., increase a charging speed of the host device, and/or due to sub-par quality of manufacturing of the accessories. Such cables and accessories may similarly provide a risk of damage to devices connected thereto. In many instances, these risks also exist due to cables or other accessories maintaining a voltage potential even after being disconnected from the host device.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide systems, methods, and apparatus that reduce the likelihood of electrical shock resulting from use of such accessories.

Enable power from an accessory to a host device based on whether the accessory is able to alter an electrical characteristic of the power path


An image pickup apparatus includes a display unit configured to display a setting item screen for displaying setting items and a setting value screen for displaying setting values regarding a setting item selected on the setting item screen; an operation unit configured to select one of the setting items on the setting item screen and to select one of the setting values on the setting value screen; wherein, in a case where a state of the image display apparatus is changed from a first state in which the selected setting item is active to a second state in which the selected setting item is non-active, the display unit displays an image indicating that a setting value regarding a setting item selected before changing the state of the image display apparatus from the first state to the second state cannot be selected by the operation unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image pickup apparatus including a display unit, such as a digital camera. More specifically, the present invention relates to the display of setting items on the display unit during photographing.
2. Description of the Related Art
Photographing under various conditions has been performed using digital cameras or film cameras, such as photographing with natural light in daytime, photographing with flash light in which a flash of light is emitted to illuminate an object in the dark, and daylight synchronization in which photographing with both natural light and flash light is performed.
Besides normal photographing with appropriate exposure (hereinafter referred to as "correct exposure") under the above-described conditions, for example, a photographer may expose an object for a time shorter than the correct exposure time, i.e., underexposure, in order to achieve high-quality photographic effects. Inversely, a photographer may expose an object for a time longer than the correct exposure time, i.e., overexposure. In view of such various photographic situations, image pickup apparatuses and external flash devices capable of performing exposure control according to photographers' intentions have been proposed and are now widely used.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-043559 discloses an image pickup apparatus including an operation member capable of appropriately setting an amount of correction for a fixed amount of light emission or calculated light-control value of an external flash device (hereinafter referred to as light-control correction value). According to a technique employed in the image pickup apparatus, even if the external flash device does not have a function of setting the fixed amount of light emission, the fixed amount of light emission can be appropriately set by operating the image pickup apparatus.
It is assumed that an external flash device is connected to a camera to set a light-control correction value of the external flash device using the camera. If the external flash device has been powered on, the camera is operated to display, on a display unit of the camera, a menu for setting the light-control correction value of the external flash device to change a set value.
FIG. 8 shows an example of a display screen of a display unit disposed on a rear surface of a camera for displaying a window for setting a light-control correction value of an external flash device. A specific button of the camera is operated to display a list of icons indicating frequently used functions on the display unit disposed on the rear surface of the camera where an image of an object is displayed. Examples of the frequently used functions include a white balance setting, a photometric setting, and a light-control correction setting. In FIG. 8, the icons are vertically arranged side-by-side along the left edge of the screen of the display unit. The icon corresponding to the light-control correction setting is placed in the fourth row from the top. When an indicator moving over the icons is moved and the icon corresponding to the light-control correction setting is selected, specific setting values are displayed on a lower portion of the screen of the display unit so that a user can select a desired value.
Some cameras are capable of switching the operating state of an external flash device attached to the cameras between a power-on state and a power-off state to determine whether to emit light from the external flash device during photographing.
Similarly to FIG. 8, FIG. 9A shows a screen of a display unit for allowing a user to set, using a camera, a light-control correction value of an external flash device attached to the camera after the user powers on the external flash device. If the external flash device is powered off in this state, the setting of the light-control correction value using the camera is disabled.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-054006 discloses a technique in which, as shown in FIG. 9B, the display of an icon corresponding to a function that is not available for selection is changed from highlighted to grayed out to change the state of the icon to a non-active state so that a user can easily recognize an item that is not available for selection. In accordance with the change of the display, the indicator located on the icon indicating the light-control correction setting in the manner shown in FIG. 9A is moved to the below icon indicating another function (in this example, the photometric setting) in the manner shown in FIG. 9B.
In the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-054006, even if the external flash device is powered on again to perform flash light photographing, the indicator is still located on the icon indicating the photometric setting, which is displayed below the icon indicating the light-control correction setting. That is, in order to set a light-control correction value, it is necessary to power on the external flash device and to move the indicator located on the icon indicating the photometric setting to the icon indicating the light-control correction setting.
Accordingly, due to the bothersome procedure of selecting a menu for setting a light-control correction value, it is difficult to smoothly perform photographing under varying photographic conditions using the determination of whether to emit light from an external flash device and using light-control correction during flash light photographing.
Further, regardless of whether an external flash device is used, if an indicator is moved from a selected setting item due to a change of the photographic conditions, a time-consuming operation of moving the indicator to the selected setting item again is required.

Image display apparatus and control method for displaying setting items thereon


A detection system is provided for easily detecting information about respective objects seated on a plurality of vehicle seats. An occupant information detection apparatus for a vehicle is disclosed which, in one form, comprises a single photographing section capable of detecting image, a projector lens and a mirror which have viewing angles wider than that of the single photographing section and can independently project the objects seated to the single photographing section to correspond to respective vehicle seats, and a control section for detecting information about objects seated on the respective vehicle seats.

Conventionally, various technologies for detecting information about an object seated on a vehicle seat by using a photographing device such as a camera are known. For example, disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 2003-294855 is a configuration of an occupant detecting apparatus in which a single camera arranged in front of a vehicle occupant is used to detect the position of the vehicle occupant.
With the technology for detecting information about a vehicle occupant by using a single camera such as the occupant detecting apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 2003-294855, however, it is difficult to address the request for detecting about a plurality of vehicle occupants because the camera has a limitation on its viewing angle. To address the request, the technique using a wide-angle lens or a fish-eye lens has been proposed as a technology for detecting information about a plurality of vehicle occupants. With this technique, however, it is required to compensate distortion in image due to the wide angle. Accordingly, there is a problem of increasing the complexity and size of the apparatus.

Detection system, informing system, actuation system and vehicle


An assembly of links and motorized joint unit of a mechanism comprises one or more pairs of links, each said link having a tubular body, at least one end of each of the tubular body being an open end having at least one connector. A motorized joint unit has a first portion received in the open end of the tubular body of a first of the links, the motorized joint unit secured to the at least one connector of the first of the links, a second portion rotatable relative to the first portion by actuation of the motorized joint unit, the second portion received in the open end of the tubular body of a second of the links, the motorized joint unit secured to the at least one connector of the second of the links. A protective sleeve has a tubular body rotatably mounted over the at least one connector of each of the first and the second link, the protective sleeve concealing the connectors and a joint between the pair of links.

Robotic arms are increasingly used in a number of different applications, from manufacturing, to servicing, and assistive robotics, among numerous possibilities. In some applications, the robot arms are exposed to their environments, whereby the robot arms must be configured in such a way that their components are shielded from liquids and debris. The challenge is to shield joints between robot arm links. However, such shielding must nonetheless be esthetically pleasing, as opposed to being bulky and cumbersome.

Articulated mechanism with protective sleeve at joint