Provided herein are amyloid-binding assays that simulate in situ brain conditions by combining binders with various A-beta species on mammalian brain tissue. In general the amyloid-binding assays comprise the steps of (a) contacting a mammalian brain tissue sample with at least one A-beta species; (b) applying a putative binder to the brain tissue sample; and (c) determining whether the putative binder binds to the A-beta species.

The main histopathological characteristics of Alzheimer's disease ("AD") are the presence of neuritic plaques and tangles combined with associated inflammation in the brain. It is known that plaques are composed mainly of deposited (or insoluble in aqueous solution) fibrillar forms of the A-beta ("A-beta") peptide. The formation of fully fibrillar aggregated A-beta peptide is a complex process that is initiated by the cleavage of the amyloid precursor protein ("APP"). After cleavage of APP, the monomeric form of A-beta can associate with other monomers, presumably through hydrophobic interactions and/or domain swapping, to form dimers, trimers and higher order oligomers. Oligomers of A-beta can further associate to form protofibrils and eventual fibrils, which is the main constituent of neuritic plaques.
Soluble A-beta oligomers have also been implicated in neuronal dysfunction associated with AD. In fact, animal models suggest that simply lowering the amount of soluble A-beta peptide, without affecting the levels of A-beta in plaques, may be sufficient to improve cognitive function.
Presently, the only definitive method of AD diagnosis is postmortem examination of the brain or tissue for the presence of plaques and tangles. Currently, AD diagnosis is achieved using simple cognitive tests designed to test a patient's mental capacity such as, for example, the ADAS-cog (Alzheimer's disease assessment scale—cognitive subscale) or MMSE (Mini-mental state examination). The subjective nature and inherent patient variability is a major shortcoming of diagnosing AD by such means. The inability to diagnose AD in a living patient presents a formidable challenge for pharmaceutical companies that aim to test putative therapeutics to slow or halt AD pathogenesis by acting on one or more species of A-beta. Because A-beta binders are needed for diagnostic and/or therapeutic applications, significant needs exist for methods of assaying the ability of agents to bind to various species of A-beta.


A tool for retrieving metal debris from a wellbore has a plurality of magnet assemblies spaced longitudinally along a tool body. Each magnet assembly has a magnet member, which forms a primary debris settling area. Each magnet member is protected by a magnet protector. A secondary debris settling area is formed between a magnet and an adjacent magnet protector to allow utilization of the residual magnetic force created by the magnet members. The secondary debris settling area occupies at least half of the surface area of the primary settling area.

The present invention relates to well bore tools and, more particularly, to an apparatus for retrieval of metal debris, such as cuttings, shavings, and other foreign objects that accumulate in the process of perforating or milling over bridge plugs and other down hole obstructions from a well bore.
The oil and gas industry uses various types of bridge plugs that are installed in the annulus and often are covered in cement when the well is completed. Removal of these plugs often poses a problem for the industry. Conventionally, a rotary bit drills the cement and the plugs out, while some of the cuttings of the plugs are carried to the surface by circulating liquids.
Sometimes, a production packer needs to be removed together with a metal pipe that it surrounds. In those cases, milling tools with gravity fed boot baskets are used for retrieving pieces of metal debris from the well bore. After retrieval of the production packer, it may become necessary to run a conventional fishing magnet to retrieve additional junk and cuttings from down hole.
A conventional fishing magnet is mounted inside a housing that is lowered into a well bore. It is limited in the ability to retrieve cuttings in that its magnetization is restricted to the extreme bottom surface of the magnet. The fact that circulating fluids lift the cuttings away from the bottom surface of the magnet renders such conventional fishing magnets useless in this particular case.
Oftentimes, a boot basket is used for collecting cuttings that did not attach themselves to conventional magnets. A boot basket has small openings for catching these particles. Consequently, many large size pieces or very small pieces suspended in the circulating fluid are not trapped in the basket and remain in the well bore, hindering the production of oil.
Another solution for retrieving debris from a well bore is to lower a magnet to a down hole location in an effort to attract metal waste material from the well bore. One such example is shown in U. S. Pat. No. 3,637,033 issued on Jan. 25, 1972 to Mayall, entitled xe2x80x9cDrilling Apparatus.xe2x80x9d In the ""033 patent, the tool for collecting magnetic waste material has an inner and outer coaxial tubular members made of non-magnetic material. A plurality of magnets is located between the tubular members, with the axes of the magnets being parallel to the common longitudinal axis of the tubular member. The magnets are secured on the tubular member, and recesses are formed between the magnets parallel to the longitudinal axis. Each recess occupies the space between the adjacent sides of two magnets.
The outer tubular member in the ""033 patent is made of stainless steel, and strips of non-magnetic material are welded to the outer tubular member at the base of each recess. The magnets are enclosed by the outer tubular member to protect the magnets against forceful contact with shavings attracted by the magnets when the tubular member is rotated.
While this design works in many cases, it has been observed that the outer sleeve somewhat obstructs the magnetic flux of the magnets and reduces the amount of magnetic waste that is retrieved by the tool.
The present invention contemplates elimination of drawbacks associated with the prior art and provision of a well bore apparatus for removal of metal debris, such as cuttings, shavings and other foreign particles from a well bore.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for retrieval of metal cuttings and other debris from a well bore.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for retrieval of metal debris with increased xe2x80x9ccatchingxe2x80x9d capacity of the tool.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for retrieval of metal debris from a well bore that protects the magnets, while creating additional areas where the cuttings can accumulate for retrieval to the surface.
These and other objects of the present invention are achieved through a provision of a metal debris retrieval tool that comprises a cylindrical tubular body with a through opening and a plurality of recesses formed on the tool body. Each recess receives a magnet assembly therein. Each magnet assembly comprises a magnet liner fitted into the recess and a magnet member placed on the liner and detachably secured on the tool body.
The magnet members are protected against direct impact with the metal particles by a magnet protector formed by an outwardly extending portion of the tool body. To take advantage of the residual magnetic force created by the magnets, a plurality of secondary debris settling areas are created on the tool body between a magnet member and a magnet protector of an adjacent magnet member.

Apparatus for retrieving metal debris from a well bore


A device for determining deterioration of a catalyst having an O.sub.2 storage capability and disposed in an exhaust passage of an engine comprises: upstream and downstream air-fuel ratio sensors disposed in the exhaust passage upstream and downstream of the catalyst respectively for detecting air-fuel ratios of exhaust gas upstream and downstream of the catalyst. The air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the catalyst is controlled on the basis of the output of the upstream air-fuel ratio sensor to make the air-fuel ratio flowing into the catalyst a target air-fuel ratio. A ratio of the length of the response curve of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor to the length of the response curve of the output of the upstream air-fuel ratio sensor is calculated. A ratio of the frequency of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor to the frequency of the output of the upstream air-fuel ratio sensor is calculated. It is determined that the catalyst has deteriorated when the length ratio is greater than a first predetermined ratio, or when the length ratio is greater than a second predetermined ratio which is smaller than the first predetermined ratio and the frequency ratio is greater than a third predetermined ratio.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for determining deterioration of a catalyst for an engine. More specifically, the present invention relates to a device which feedback controls the air-fuel ratio of the engine in such a manner that the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the catalyst changes between lean and rich, compared to the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio, alternately and detects deterioration of the catalyst on the basis of the outputs of air-fuel ratio sensors disposed in the exhaust passage upstream and downstream of the catalyst.
2. Description of the Related Art
A method for determining deterioration of a catalyst on the basis of the output signals of air-fuel ratio sensors disposed in an exhaust gas upstream and downstream of a catalyst of an engine is known. In this method, usually, deterioration of the catalyst is determined on the basis of at least the output signal of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the catalyst is feedback controlled to a stoichiometric mixture on the basis of at least the output signal of the upstream air-fuel ratio sensor.
A three-way catalyst usually has an O.sub.2 storage capability, i.e., a capability for absorbing oxygen in the exhaust gas when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the catalyst is lean compared to the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio and for releasing the absorbed oxygen when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the catalyst is rich compared to the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio. Due to this O.sub.2 storage capability, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing out from the catalyst is kept near the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio even when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the catalyst fluctuates between a rich air-fuel ratio and a lean air-fuel ratio in a relatively short cycle period. Therefore, if the catalyst does not deteriorate, the fluctuation of the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas upstream of the catalyst is smoothed by the catalyst and, thereby, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas downstream of the catalyst fluctuates in a relatively small amplitude and at a relatively low frequency.
However, the O.sub.2 storage capability of the catalyst decreases as the degree of deterioration of the catalyst becomes large, and the amount of oxygen absorbed and released by the catalyst becomes small when the catalyst deteriorates. Therefore, if the catalyst deteriorates, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas downstream of the catalyst fluctuates in the manner similar to that of the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas upstream of the catalyst, i.e., when the catalyst deteriorates, the amplitude of the fluctuation of the air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas downstream of the catalyst becomes larger, and the frequency thereof becomes higher. The conventional method utilizes this phenomena for determining the deterioration of the catalyst. Namely, in the conventional method, it is determined that the catalyst deteriorates when the length per unit time of the response curve of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor becomes longer.
An example of the device which determines deterioration of the catalyst on the basis of the length per unit time of the response curve of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 5-98948.
The device in the '948 publication monitors the length per unit time of the response curve of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor when the air-fuel ratio of the engine is feedback controlled on the basis of the output of the upstream air-fuel ratio sensor in such a manner that the air-fuel ratio of the engine fluctuates regularly around the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio. If the length per unit time of the response curve of the output of the downstream air-fuel sensor becomes longer, the device determines that the catalyst is deteriorated.
If it is determined that the catalyst deteriorates on the basis of the length per unit time of the response curve of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor, a catalyst which is partially broken may be incorrectly determined as being deteriorated. In this case, the exhaust gas flows through the broken area of the catalyst so that the exhaust gas may not be purified. Therefore, the amplitude of the fluctuation of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor becomes larger. However, the amplitude of the fluctuation of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor is not increased to the degree that the catalyst is determined as being deteriorated if the degree of the breakage of the catalyst relative to the entire catalyst is small. Therefore, according to the above device for determining the deterioration of the catalyst on the basis of the length per unit time of the response curve of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor, a catalyst which is partially broken may not be determined as being deteriorated.
Further, if the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor deteriorates, the amplitude of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor becomes smaller. Therefore, although the catalyst deteriorates, the amplitude of the fluctuation of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor is not increased to the degree that the catalyst is determined as being deteriorated. Thus, according to the above device for determining the deterioration of the catalyst on the basis of the length per unit time of the response curve of the output of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor, a catalyst which is partially broken may not be determined as being deteriorated.

Device for determining deterioration of a catalyst for an engine


Processing of images for displaying on a display for displaying images on a liquid crystal display.

The present invention relates to the processing of images for displaying on a display, and in particular to the processing of images for displaying images on a liquid crystal display.
Video images are displayed on various display devices such as Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs) and Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs). Typically such display devices are capable of displaying on a display screen images consisting of a plurality of picture elements (e.g., pixels) which are refreshed at a refresh rate generally greater than 25 Hertz. Such images may be monochromatic, multicolor, full-color, or combinations thereof.
The light of the successive frames which are displayed on the display screen of such a CRT or LCD display device are integrated by the human eye. If the number of displayed frames per second, typically referred to as the frame rate, is sufficiently high an illusion of the images being displayed in a continuous manner is created and therefore an illusion of motion may be created.
The technique in which images are formed on the display screen of a CRT display is fundamentally different from the way in which images are formed on the display screen of a LCD display. On a CRT display device the luminance of a picture element is produced by an area of a phosphor layer in the display screen where the area is struck by a writing electron beam. On a LCD display device, the luminance of a picture element is determined by the light transmittance state of one or more liquid crystal elements in the display screen of the LCD display device at the location of the picture element, whereby the light itself originates from ambient light or a light source. For accurate reproduction of moving images or moving parts of an image, the luminance response of the used display device is important.
The luminance responses and the luminance response times of CRT and LCD display screens are different. The luminance response time, being the time needed to reach the correct luminance on the display screen in response to an immediate change in a corresponding drive signal, is shorter than a frame period for a CRT display device but up to several frame periods for a typical LCD display device.
For LCD display device, the luminance responses and the luminance response times are different for a darker-to-brighter luminance transition as compared to the responses and response times for a similar brighter-to-darker luminance transition. Further, the luminance responses and luminance response times are temperature dependent, drive voltage range dependent, and, due to production tolerances, unequal over the LCD screen area (location dependent).
One existing technique to change the luminance response times with LCD display devices is to attempt to shorten the overall luminance response times by over-driving all the signals of the display for the slower of the transition of darker-to-brighter and brighter-to-darker. While of some benefit in increasing the temporal response of the display, the resulting image still includes some flickering. Flickering may be observed, in many cases, as apparent flickering of an image as the image is moved around on the display. Flickering tends to be most pronounced when an image is viewed on a shaded background with a dotted pattern as well as vector art often used in computer aided drawings.
Another existing technique to change the luminance response times with LCD display devices is to slow down the transition of all pixels of the display from the darker-to-brighter transition and the brighter-to-darker transition to the slowest transition within the display. This slowing down of the transition may be performed by modification of the driver waveform to achieve the slower temporal response. While slowing down the transition of all the pixels of the display results in a decrease in apparent flicker, unfortunately, the slowing down of the temporal response of the entire display result in objectionable motion blur because of the insufficient effective refresh rate.
EP 0 951 007 B1 disclose a de-flickering technique in which the video signal is modified so that the asymmetry of luminance rise and decay time is compensated. EP0 951 007 B1 is incorporated by reference herein. Referring to FIG. 1, FR which is representative of the present luminance output as it was predicted one frame before (previous frame) is subtracted from the input video signal. This difference and the present luminance output FR are the two inputs to the processing unit. The outputs of the processing unit are ΔC and ΔR, where ΔC is the new correction value to be added to the present predicted luminance FR, and ΔR is the new prediction of luminance change after the next frame.
K. Sekiya and H. Nakamura (IBM), in a paper entitled "Overdrive Method for TN-mode LCDs—Recursive System with Capacitance Prediction," SID'01, pp114-117; H. Nakamura and K. Sekiya (IBM), in a paper entitled "Overdrive Method for Reducing Response Times of Liquid Crystal Displays," SID'01, pp. 1256-1259; and H. Nakamura, J. Crain, and K. Sekiya (IBM), in a paper entitled "Computational Optimization of Active-Matrix Drives for Liquid Crystal Displays," IDW'00, pp.81-84; address some fundamental issues in overdrive technologies. These papers collectively suggest that while reducing the temporal response time of LCDs is the single goal in many overdrive technologies, the generally accepted definition of temporal response time is inappropriate,tresponse=tarrival−tstart where tarrival is the time of the arrival point. The arrival point is defined asvarrival=vstart+90%×(vtarget−vstart)where vstart is a starting brightness value and vtarget is a target brightness value. By this definition, the arrival point of the same target values varies by different starting values. Accordingly these papers suggest that if the difference between a starting and a target values is large, the arrival point is too offset from the target value.
These papers further suggest that the current overdrive technologies are ineffective because the overdrive technologies make the assumption that LC molecules in pixels always successfully transit from an equilibrium state to another equilibrium state within a driving cycle, and consequently ignore the fact that although an overdrive value is only applied to a pixel for one driving cycle, the overshot effect on that pixel lasts for several driving cycles. The current overdrive technologies typically store the brightness of a frame, and use a brightness-based lookup table.
To reduce these two problems, the papers proposed a new definition of temporal response time by re-defining the arrival point as a constant tolerance from a target value (gamma correction is considered), and a recursive overdrive scheme that stores internal capacitance of a frame. The papers suggest that the internal capacitance of a pixel plays a critical role in determining the brightness of the pixel, and therefore, internal capacitance of every pixel, but not the brightness of every pixel, should be stored. Because internal capacitance can not be obtained directly, it is estimated. Specifically, the estimation of a pixel's internal capacitance at time n is based on the previous estimation at time n−1 and the driving value at time n, resulting in a recursive implementation structure.
The papers further suggest phenomena in LCDs driven by most existing brightness-based overdrive technologies is that although an overdrive value applied to a pixel in one driving cycle makes the pixel reach a desired target value, if the normal driving value that is associated with that desired target value is applied to that pixel in the following driving cycles, the pixel surprisingly cannot sustain the target value that it achieved in the overdriving cycle, resulting in overshooting/undershooting effects in the following driving cycles. Brightness-based non-recursive overdrive schemes cannot solve this problem because they assume that an actual display value of a pixel can reach a target value and the LC molecules of that pixel reach an equilibrium state in an overdriving cycle, and this assumption is not true in reality. Although a pixel may achieve the desired target value in an overdriving cycle, the LC molecules of that pixel have not reached the corresponding equilibrium state.
According to the papers, the internal capacitance-based recursive overdrive scheme overcomes this problem. The scheme more precisely describes the intrinsic properties of TFT LCD by tracking the internal capacitance change, so it can better deal with the overshooting/undershooting effects in the brightness-based non-recursive overdrive schemes as follows:                Overshooting effect after an overdriving cycle: Upon the value of the estimated internal capacitance after an overdriving cycle, the new scheme has the capability of applying another overdrive in the reverse direction in the next driving cycle.        Undershooting effect after an overdriving cycle: Upon the value of the estimated internal capacitance after an overdriving cycle, the new scheme has the capability of applying another overdrive in the same direction in the next driving cycle.
As it may be observed, these papers use one-frame overdrive technologies based upon a model that assumes that transitions are always finished within a driving cycles, starting from an equilibrium state and finally ending at an equilibrium state. The recursive nature of the technique is internal to a single frame.
Furthermore, these papers are premised on the following theory. Charge (O) is injected into the display during a short time interval by applying a voltage and then the charge is held in the display by open-circuiting the charge source. Accordingly, the amount of charge Q is fixed during a frame. However, the applied voltage is changed to zero during the rest of the frame upon open-circuiting the source. Thus the capacitance of the pixel changes during the rest of the frame, namely Capacitance=Qinjected (which is fixed)/Vapplied (which is changing toward zero). The voltage maintained across the pixel changes with the changing capacitance, the luminance output then varies as related to the injected charge, which is dependent on the particular drive scheme being used to inject the charge. Accordingly, the capacitance model proposed above does not have an inherent 1 to 1 mapping between capacitance parameters and luminance values (e.g., a capacitance value can be related to multiple luminance values), which makes determining the appropriate values problematic.
K. Kawabe, T. Furuhashi, and Y. Tanaka (Hitachi), in a paper entitled "New TFT-LCD Driving Method for Improved Moving Picture Quality," SID'01, pp 998-1001, suggest that the existing ways to determine overdrive values, as to make actual display values and desired values as close as possible, cannot fully eliminate motion blur, because it fails to consider the effect of long transitions before reaching the desired values. In order to compensate for visual effects of long transitions, Kawabe et al. propose a dynamic contrast compensation (DCC) method with stronger overdrive values that make actual display values surpass the desired values, as illustrated in FIG. 2. In effect, to compensate for the inability of the display to achieve the desired values they suggest using a modified overdrive waveform.
Rho, Yang, Lee, and Kim (Korea), in a paper entitled "A New Driving Method For Faster Response of TFT LCD on the Basis of Equilibrium Charge Injection," IDW '00, pp. 1155-1156, suggest a theoretical description of the overdrive voltage as:
      V    overdrive    =            (                                    C                          LC              -              target                                +                      C            s                                                C                          LC              -              current                                +                      C            s                              )                  V      target      where CLC-target is the equilibrium capacitance of the next frame, CLC-current is the current capacitance, Cs is the storage capacitance, and Vtarget is the target voltage. If correct, this representation quantifies in some manner the value in using pixel capacitance.
Okumura, Baba, Taira, Kinno (Korea) in a paper entitled, "Advanced Level Adaptive Overdrive (ALAO) Method Applicable to Full HD-LCTVs," SID '02, model the LCD by a one-tap IIR filter. Then overdriving circuitry, as the inverse of the LCD response, is a one-tap FIR filter. Okumura, et al. suggest using the signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio by not applying the overdrive if the S/N of an input frame is too low (below a certain threshold). Okumura, et al. also propose the concept of dynamic resolution as an evaluation measure replacing widely used "temporal response time." It is noted that in K. Sekiya and H. Nakamura (IBM), in the paper entitled "Overdrive Method for TN-mode LCDs—Recursive System with Capacitance Prediction," SID'01, pp114-117, discussed above, address the same issue and propose a different solution, namely, re-defining the "temporal response time."
B-W Lee et. al., in a paper entitled "Reducing Gray-Level Response to One Frame: Dynamic Capacitance Compensation," SID '01, and B-W Lee et al., "LCDs: How fast is enough?" SID '01, pp1106-1109, subjectively tested motion artifacts and showed that: (1) even 0-response time LCDs can still have certain motion blur due to the hold-type display scheme; (2) when the response time of LCDs is reduced by less than half a frame, the quality of moving objects is almost as good as that of 0-response time LCDs. Specifically, "since the fastest change in today's video sources is 1/30 sec, the LCD's response needs to be within 1/60 sec."; (3) variation of operational temperature of LCD cells affects overdrive. "Since switching speed and dynamic capacitance change as a function of temperature, a set of compensation values measured at a certain temperature will yield different results at other temperatures."; and (4) over-compensated overshoot is similar to the edge enhancement technique. Accordingly, inaccurate overdrive voltages are not terribly accurate, due to many factors, such as the temperature.
JP 64-10299 disclose a LCD control circuit that compares the input data with the data written in the frame memory from the previous frame. Only in the event that the input data is larger than the stored data is corrective data determined. The corrective data is applied to the LCD control circuit to provide overdrive. JP 64-10299 specifically teach that in the event that the input data is smaller than the stored data, then the corrective data is not determined, but rather, the input data is provided directly to the LCD control circuit. The corrective data or the input data, depending on the comparison is provided to the frame memory. The JP 64-10299 reference tends to exhibit uneven edges in the image, a higher than expected contrast in different regions of the display, a lower than expected contrast in other regions of the display, a higher than expected increase in sharpness in some regions of the display, a lower than expected decrease in sharpness in other regions of the display, and a blurring of other portions of the display.

System for displaying images on a display


Embodiments relate to a dangerous expression based on a particular theme. An aspect includes acquiring, by an electronic apparatus, from text data for learning, a subset of the text data associated with the particular theme and with particular time period information. Another aspect includes extracting text data containing negative information from the acquired subset of the text data. Another aspect includes extracting a word or phrase having a high correlation with the extracted text data or a word or phrase having a high appearance frequency in the extracted text data from the extracted text data. Yet another aspect includes determining that the extracted word or phrase is the dangerous expression based on the particular theme.

The present disclosure relates to a technique for detecting an expression that can be a dangerous expression based on a particular theme. Various embodiments also relates to a technique for detecting an expression that can be a dangerous expression based on a particular theme and a particular period.
The popularization of smartphones and tablets is allowing individual persons to easily send information through, for example, social networking services (SNS) (for example, Facebook®, or Twitter®. Such information includes various types of information ranging from information in an everyday conversation level to information having serious influences once scattered on the Internet. Examples of the information having serious influences include uncertain information, incorrect information, confidential information, such information that maliciously slanders third parties, corporations, or nations, such information that hinders corporate activities or election campaigns, and such information that evokes a sign of foul play.
It is almost impossible to delete information once it has been scattered on the Internet. Accordingly, how to manage that information having serious influences is published on the Internet is becoming an issue.

Detecting dangerous expressions based on a theme

International Business Machines Corporation


The present invention is directed to a method of etching a multi-layer structure formed from a layer of a first material and a layer of a second material differing from the first material to obtain a desired degree of planarization. To that end, the method includes creating a first set of process conditions to etch the first material, generating a second set of process conditions to etch the second material; and establishing an additional set of process conditions to concurrently etch the first and second materials at substantially the same etch rate.

This invention relates to spin-on coating of substrates. Specifically, the present invention is directed to a method to coat a substrate employing spin-on techniques in furtherance of lithographic patterning.
Spin-coating is a well known technique employed to form a layer of material upon a substrate. Often the material is deposited upon a surface having anisotropic topography in furtherance of producing a film having a planar surface disposed opposite to the substrate surface. The planarity of the material surface is highly desirable for several processes, e.g., deposition of resist material in furtherance of patterning. As a result, studies have been undertaken to understand the behavior of films formed during spin-coating. Peurrung and Graves in Film Thickness Profiles over Topography in Spin Coating, Journal of the Electrochemical Society, Vol. 138 No. 7 (1991), set forth a theoretical analysis of spin-coating wet films over anisotropic surfaces. Peurrung and Graves conclude that the presence of anisotropicity of the substrate surface makes problematic production of a planar material surface. Many attempts have been undertaken to obtain a planar material surface from material spin-coated on an anisotropic surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,038,110 discloses a technique to planarize an anisotropic substrate surface that involves forming a photoresist pattern in registration with a pattern of unelevated areas present on the substrate. The photoresist pattern has narrower lateral dimensions than an elevated pattern whereby registration is facilitated. The photoresist pattern is flowed to laterally expand the photoresist and mask the unelevated areas.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,741,926, one manner in which to overcome the drawbacks with multi-layer resists involves spreading a resin material over an anisotropic surface employing a dual spin cycle. The resin material is spread at a speed of approximately not less than 4000 revolutions per minute (rpm), preferably from 6000 to 8000 rpm, until build-up of the coating is detectable on a side wall of a topographical feature facing the centrifugal center of the spinning substrate. The spin speed is immediately reduced to less than 4000 rpm, preferably from about 1000 to 3500 rpm, and spinning is continued for a time sufficient to dry the coating.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,794,021 discloses a method of forming a planarized layer on a substrate by spin-coating a polymer over the substrate. Before the layer dries the substrate is heated in a pressure-controlled environment to control solvent loss while maintaining the polymer in a liquid state. After a predetermined interval of time, the substrate is cured in a standard conventional bake oven.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,736,424 discloses a method that includes contacting a material having a predetermined viscosity with an object having a flat surface. The material has a viscosity less than 1000 cp, and a flat surface is placed into contact with the material in such a manner that the material is planarized to a desired degree. The material is cured while in contact with the flat surface. The object is then separated from the material. The planarity of the planarizing material is then transferred into the underlying layer using conventional techniques.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,893,750 discloses a method of forming a planarized interlevel dielectric layer over interconnects formed upon a frontside surface of an upper topography of a silicon wafer. An anisotropic silicon dioxide (oxide) layer is first deposited over the interconnects. A spin-on glass (SOG) layer is then formed over the anisotropic oxide layer. The liquid SOG material flows over the upper surface, filling narrow spaces without creating voids and producing a surface smoothing effect at isolated vertical edges. After curing of the SOG layer, a chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP) process is applied to the frontside surface. The CMP process increases the planarity of the frontside surface by reducing surface heights of elevated features more so than surface heights in recessed areas. A need exists, however, to provide improved planarization techniques.

Etching technique to planarize a multi-layer structure


A medical device crimping system comprises a crimper and a plurality of protective strips. The crimper defines a crimping iris, which has an open state and a closed state. In the open state the cross-sectional area of the crimping iris is greater than in the closed state. The plurality of protective strips extend longitudinally through the crimping iris. Each of the strips is radially offset from one another. The strips protect the stent from direct contact with the crimping blades of the crimper.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to stents, stent loading, stent contracting and stent delivery systems and their respective methods of use. Some embodiments of the invention are more specifically directed to stent loading and crimping systems which are configured to minimize cross-contamination.
2. Description of Related Art
A stent is a generally tubular device that is used to support a bodily lumen. A stent is typically delivered to a desired bodily location via a catheter. Often the stent is loaded onto a portion of the catheter, such as a balloon or other region of the catheter shaft. In some stent delivery systems the stent is crimped to the catheter in order to minimize the profile of the stent on the catheter and to prevent undesired movement of the stent relative to the catheter shaft.
A number of techniques for loading and contracting a stent to a catheter shaft or balloon are used. One such technique that is commonly used involves hand crimping the stent to the balloon. A stent is placed over an uninflated balloon and then squeezed with the fingers until the stent is in intimate contact with the uninflated balloon. The technique is highly operator dependent and can affect stent profile and stent placement with respect to the balloon and radiopaque markers. It can also affect the dilatation length of the stent and lead to pinching of the balloon.
Other techniques for crimping stents involve the use of mechanical devices for crimping stents. Mechanical stent crimpers have been disclosed in a number of patents including U.S. Pat. No. 6,387,118; U.S. Pat. No. 6,108,886; U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,273; U.S. Pat. No. 6,082,990; U.S. Pat. No. 6,074,381; U.S. Pat. No. 6,063,102 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,992,000. Mechanical stent crimpers have also been disclosed in a number of copending, commonly assigned patent applications including U.S. application Ser. Nos. 09/401467, 09/401213, 09/404986 and 09/401218. The entire content of each of the above patents and applications is incorporated herein by reference.
In many current stent loading operations particularly those involving self-expanding nitinol or shape memory stents the stent is dipped or sprayed with liquid nitrogen or other cooling agent in order for the stent to achieve a martensitic state. While in the martensitic state the stent is constrained via a crimper or other reducing device. In some cases the crimper comprises an adjustable iris through which the stent is advanced in order to uniformly reduce or compress the stent about its circumference. An example of an iris type stent crimper is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,360,577, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference. Typically, a mandrel or push rod is utilized to drive the stent through the closed iris into a stent delivery mechanism such as a catheter.
Many current stent designs, including balloon expandable, self-expanding and hybrid expandable stents, are configured for the delivery of one or more therapeutic agents or drugs to a location within a body lumen or vessel. In many instances the drug or drugs are carried by the stent in the form of one or more coatings on the stent's surface. Stent loading and/or crimping systems which apply a radially constrictive force directly to the stent through one or more teeth, blades, etc. may adversely affect the drug coating of a stent during the crimping and/or loading process. Furthermore, contact between the crimping blades and the stent may result in some amount of the drug coating being removed from the stent and deposited on the crimping head. This residual amount of drugs may inadvertently be deposited on other stents subsequently crimped resulting in cross-contamination of the stent systems.
In light of the above there is a need to provide stent reducing/loading systems with the capability to reduce the diameter of a stent, particularly a drug coated stent, without direct contact of the stent by the crimping head.
All U.S. patents, applications and all other published documents mentioned anywhere in this application are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Without limiting the scope of the invention a brief summary of some of the claimed embodiments of the invention is set forth below. Additional details of the summarized embodiments of the invention and/or additional embodiments of the invention may be found in the Detailed Description of the Invention below.
A brief abstract of the technical disclosure in the specification is provided as well only for the purposes of complying with 37 C.F.R. 1.72. The abstract is not intended to be used for interpreting the scope of the claims.

Method and apparatus for reducing a stent


This invention relates to radiolabeled peptides and methods for producing such peptides. Specifically, the invention relates to specific binding peptides, methods and kits for making such peptides, and methods for using such peptides labeled with technetium-99m via a radiolabel-binding moiety covalently linked to the peptide to image thrombus sites in a mammalian body.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to radiodiagnostic reagents and peptides, and methods for producing labeled radiodiagnostic agents. Specifically, the invention relates to peptides that can be labeled with technetium-99m (Tc-99m), methods and kits for making and radiolabeling such peptides, and methods for using such peptides to image sites of thrombus formation in a mammalian body.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Thrombosis and thromboembolism, in particular deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), are common clinical conditions that are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. It has been estimated that in the U.S. approximately 5 million patients experience one or more episodes of DVT per year and that over 500,000 cases of pulmonary embolism occur, resulting in 100,000 deaths (J. Seabold, Society of Nuclear Medicine Annual Meeting 1990). It has also been estimated that over 90% of all pulmonary emboli arise from DVT in the lower extremities. Anticoagulant therapy can effectively treat these conditions if applied early enough. However, such treatment is associated with risks (e.g. internal bleeding) that prevent unnecessary prophylactic application. More advanced techniques of thrombolytic intervention (such as the administration of recombinant tissue plasminogen activator or streptokinase) can be used in acute cases, but these techniques carry even greater risk. Moreover, effective clinical application of these techniques requires that the site of the offending thrombus be identified so as to monitor the effect of treatment.
For these reasons, a rapid means of localizing thrombi in vivo, most preferably using non-invasive methods, is highly desirable. Methods currently utilized for the identification of thrombolytic sites are contrast venography and compression B-mode ultrasound; the choice of which technique is used depends on the expected location of the thrombus. However the former technique is invasive and both techniques are uncomfortable for the patient. In addition, these methods are in many cases either unsuitable or yield inaccurate results.
In the field of nuclear medicine, certain pathological conditions are localized, or their extent is assessed, by detecting the distribution of small quantities of internally-administered radioactively labeled tracer compounds (called radiotracers or radiopharmaceuticals). Methods for detecting these radiopharmaceuticals are known generally as imaging or radioimaging methods.
In radioimaging, the radiolabel is a gamma-radiation emitting radionuclide and the radiotracer is located using a gamma-radiation detecting camera (this process is often referred to as gamma scinitigraphy). The imaged site is detectable because the radiotracer is chosen either to localize at a pathological site (termed positive contrast) or, alternatively, the radiotracer is chosen specifically not to localize at such pathological sites (termed negative contrast).
A number of factors must be considered for optimal radioimaging in humans. To maximize the efficiency of detection, a radionuclide that emits gamma energy in the 100 to 200 keV range is preferred. To minimize the absorbed radiation dose to the patient, the physical half-life of the radionuclide should be as short as the imaging procedure will allow. To allow for examinations to be performed on any day and at any time of the day, it is advantageous to have a source of the radionuclide always available at the clinical site.
A variety of radionuclides are known to be useful for radioimaging, including .sup.67 Ga, .sup.99m Tc (Tc-99m), .sup.111 In, .sup.123 I, .sup.125 I, .sup.169 Yb or .sup.186 Re. Tc-99m is a preferred radionuclide because it emits gamma radiation at 140 keV, it has a physical half-life of 6 hours, and it is readily available on-site using a molybdenum-99/technetium-99m generator.
A gamma-emitting radiotracer that binds specifically to a component of a thrombus in preference to other tissue when administered in vivo can provide an external scinitigraphy image which defines the location of the thrombus-bound radiotracer and hence the thrombus. There are several potential radiotracer targets in thrombi. Thrombi are constructs of blood cells, largely platelets, enmeshed in cross-linked fibrin. Venous thrombi are fibrin-rich, whereas arterial thrombi are platelet-rich. Fibrin and platelets are thus obvious targets for designing radiopharmaceuticals for imaging thrombi, each having multiple possible target sites.
Activated platelets and fibrin have been used as targets in radioimaging thrombi because neither are normally found in circulating blood; circulating blood contains unactivated platelets and fibrinogen, a fibrin precursor. Thrombus formation involves the proteolytic conversion of fibrinogen to fibrin and the physiological conversion of unactivated platelets to an activated state. Since little fibrin circulates in the blood stream (in contrast to its precursor, fibrinogen) and since most circulating platelets are unactivated, fibrin and activated platelets are excellent and specific targets for imaging thrombi because they will not be found to any substantial extent anywhere in vivo other than in the thrombus.
The use of radiolabeled fibrinogen and radiolabeled platelets for radioimaging has a number of disadvantages, however. Blood and background tissue clearance of radiolabeled fibrinogen and platelets are slow, which necessitates a long delay between injection and imaging. Also, as thrombi age radiolabeled platelets become less efficient imaging agents, although fibrin and platelets already in an existing thrombus remain targets even in aged thrombi.
Attempts to provide radiotracers for imaging thrombi are known in the prior art. These include autologous platelets, labeled with either .sup.111 In or .sup.99m Tc (Tc-99m), and .sup.123 I- and .sup.125 I-labeled fibrinogen (the latter detected with a gamma scintillation probe as opposed to a gamma camera). In addition, other thrombus-associated components of the coagulation system, such as enzymes (e.g. thrombin), proenzymes and other factors may be useful as thrombus-associated targets for radiotracers. Additional radiolabeled compounds used to label thrombi include plasmin, plasminogen activators, heparin, fibronectin, fibrin Fragment E.sub.1 and anti-fibrin and anti-platelet monoclonal antibodies [see Knight, 1990, Sem. Nucl. Med. 20: 52-67 for review].
Of the methods of radiolabeling thrombi known in the prior art, the methods that have shown the most promise are radiolabeled platelets, radiolabeled antibodies and radiolabeled fibrin Fragment E.sub.1. All of these have serious drawbacks with regard to their routing use.
The use of radiolabeled autologous platelets to image thrombi requires that autologous blood be drawn, the platelets then separated and radiolabeled under sterile conditions [in addition, radiolabeling must be performed so as to avoid activating the platelets], and in radiolabeled platelets then be readministered to the patient. Such radiolabeled platelets have a long circulating time, resulting in poor target to non-target ratios at early times, thereby requiring that radioimaging be performed only after a delay of 24 to 72 hours. Moreover, aged thrombi are poorly visualized since such thrombi do not efficiently incorporate fresh platelets.
Radiolabeled antifibrin and antiplatelet monoclonal antibodies have also been used in the prior art (typically to image DVT). The disadvantage to using such reagents is that antibodies (and even antibody fragments) have slow blood and general tissue clearance characteristics and require a delay of at least several hours for optimum imaging. In addition, immunological reagents have the capacity to induce an immune response in the patient. Further, such reagents must be prepared from mammalian cell lines (hybridomas) and thus carry the risk of contamination by infectious human viruses.
Methods for using large radiolabeled peptides for imaging thrombi have been described in the prior art. For example, Fragment E.sub.1 is a peptide derived from coagulated, cross-linked fibrin. It has bee labeled with .sup.123 I and Tc-99m to provide high quality images in humans.
Olexa et al., 1982, European Patent Application No. 823017009 disclose a pharmaceutically acceptable radiolabeled peptide selected from Fragment E.sub.1 isolated from cross-linked fibrin. Fragment E.sub.2 isolated from cross-linked fibrin, and peptides having an amino acid sequence intermediate between Fragments E.sub.1 and E.sub.2. Unfortunately, this protein fragment must be laboriously prepared from human fibrinogen, making it unsuitable for routine manufacture.
Hadley et al., 1988, PCT/US88/03318 disclose a method for detecting a fibrin-platelet clot in vivo comprising the steps of (a) administering to a patient a labeled attenuated thrombolytic protein, wherein the label is selectively attached to a portion of the thrombolytic protein other than the fibrin binding domain; and (b) detecting the pattern of distribution of the labeled thrombolytic protein in the patient.
Sobel, 1989, PCT/US89/02656 discloses a method to locate the position of one or more thrombi in an animal using radiolabeled, enzymatically inactive tissue plasminogen activator.
Peptides having the ability to bind to thrombi are known in the prior art.
Ruoslahti & Pierschbacher, U.S. Pat. No. 4,578,079 describe peptides of sequence X-Arg-Gly-Asp-R-Y, where X and Y are either H or an amino acid, and R is Thr or Cys, the peptides capable of binding to thrombi in vivo.
Ruoslahti & Pierschbacher, U.S. Pat. No. 4,792,525 describe peptides of sequence Arg-Gly-Asp-X, wherein X is Ser, Thr or Cys, the peptides capable of binding to thrombi in vivo.
Hawiger et al., 1989, PCT/US89/01742 relates to peptides comprising sequences for two binding sites of a protein.
Barker et al., 1991, PCT/US90/03788 disclose cyclic peptides for inhibiting platelet aggregation.
Radiolabeled peptides useful for radioimaging thrombi have been reported in the prior art.
Ranby et al., 1988, PCT/US88/02276 disclose a method for detecting fibrin deposits in an animal comprising covalently binding a radiolabeled compound to fibrin.
Stuttle, 1990, PCT/GB90/00933 discloses radioactively labeled peptides containing from 3 to 10 amino acids comprising the sequence arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD), capable of binding to an RGD binding site in vivo.
Rodwell et al., 1991, PCT/US91/03116 disclose conjugates of "molecular recognition units" with "effector domains".
Maraganore et al., 1991, PCT/US90/04642 disclose a radiolabeled thrombus inhibitor comprising (a) a inhibitor moiety; (b) a linker moiety; and (c) and an "anion binding exosite (ABE)" binding site moiety.
The use of chelating agents for radiolabeling polypeptides, and methods for labeling peptides and polypeptides with Tc-99m are known in the prior art and are disclosed in copending U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 07/653,012, 07/807,062, and 07/851,074 which are hereby incorporated by reference.
There remains a need for a small (to enhance blood and background tissue clearance), synthetic (to make routing manufacture practicable and to ease regulatory acceptance) molecules radiolabeled with Tc-99m for use in imaging thrombi in vivo. Small synthetic peptides radiolabeled with Tc-99m that bind specifically to components of thrombi fulfill this need and are provided by this invention.

Technetium-99m labeled peptides for thrombus imaging


A positive-negative-positive-positive four group zoom lens system capable of achieving about 30 times variable magnification, the positive-negative-positive-positive four group zoom lens system including, sequentially from an object side to an image side: a first lens group having positive refractive power; a second lens group having negative refractive power; a third lens group having positive refractive power; and a fourth lens group having positive refractive power, wherein the first lens group includes one negative lens, the second lens group includes one positive lens, the third lens group includes a positive lens, the fourth lens group includes at least one positive lens, and a first condition, 0.03<|f2/ft|<0.08, is satisfied, wherein f2 denotes a focal length of the second lens group and ft denotes a focal length of the zoom lens system in a telephoto position.

1. Field
Apparatuses consistent with exemplary embodiments relate to a zoom lens system and a photographing apparatus using the same, and more particularly, to a zoom lens system applicable to a camera such as a surveillance camera, a video camera, a digital still camera, or a broadcasting camera, and a photographing apparatus, not being limited thereto, using the zoom lens system.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the related art, a positive-negative-positive-positive four group zoom lens system is known as an example of a zoom lens system having high image quality and high magnification, and suitable to a surveillance camera, a video camera, a digital still camera, or a broadcasting camera. The positive-negative-positive-positive four group zoom lens system includes a first lens group having positive refractive power, a second lens group having negative refractive power, a third lens group having positive refractive power, and fourth lens group having positive refractive power, sequentially from an object side. During variable magnification (also known as "zooming") from a wide-angle position to a telephoto position, the first and third lens groups are fixed in an optical axis direction, the second lens group move from an object side to an image side, and the fourth lens group moves in the optical axis direction so as to compensate for an image plane change generated as the second lens group move from an object side to an image side while performing a focusing function, i.e., focusing.
Recently, it has been required to obtain an optical performance corresponding to a high pixel photographing apparatus and maintain a satisfactory performance even during short distance focusing. JP 2010-139724 (hereinafter, referred to as "a patent reference 1") discloses a method of distributing positive refractive power by disposing three negative lenses and three positive lenses in a first lens group, as a method of obtaining an optical performance of the telephoto position. Also, JP 2010-102096 (hereinafter, referred to as "a patent reference 2") discloses a positive-negative-positive-positive four group zoom lens system, wherein a second lens group includes at least two negative lenses.
However, the zoom lens systems disclosed in the patent references 1 and 2 do not show optical performances corresponding to a high pixel photographing apparatus while having a small size and variable magnification. For example, in the patent reference 1, only 20 times variable magnification is obtained. Also in the patent reference 1, a high performance is promoted by including a negative lens, a meniscus negative lens, and a cemented lens of a negative lens and a positive lens in a second lens group sequentially from an object side to an image side to distribute negative refractive power, and by compensating for comma aberration generated according to a viewing angle change at the wide-angle position. However, an optical performance is not satisfactory in the patent reference 1 since chromatic aberration is not sufficiently compensated for due to unsuitable location of a positive lens. Also, in the patent reference 2, a zoom lens system having 30 times variable magnification cannot be obtained.

Zoom lens system and photographing apparatus


A method of mounting an electronic part on a board, in which an electronic part and a mounting board on which the electronic part is to be mounted are placed in a vacuum or inert atmosphere, and the electronic part is mounted on the board by bringing the bonding members of the electronic part and the board into contact with each other at normal temperature to thereby mount the electronic part on the board, the method comprising forming the bonding members of at least one of the electronic part and the board out of a solder material, and bringing the bonding members of the electronic part and the board into contact with each other without preprocessing the bonding surfaces of the bonding members.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of mounting an electronic part such as a semiconductor chip or a package.
2. Description of the Related Art
The bonding methods for mounting an electronic part, such as a semiconductor chip on a board, are currently divided, roughly, into a method using heat, such as solder reflow or resin cure, and an ultrasonic bonding method. Though different depending on the type of bumps used for bonding, both bonding methods use heat and load (hereinafter referred to "normal bonding"). Taking the effects on a chip into consideration, the conditions for an ideal bonding method include normal temperature, normal pressure and no load. Such a method, however, has not yet been realized.
An almost ideal bonding method has been proposed as a normal-temperature bonding method (hereinafter referred to as "normal-temperature bonding") using surface activation by Professor Tadatomo Suga, Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo. According to this bonding method, the bonding surfaces are activated and thus can be bonded to each other simply by bringing them into contact with each other under a load. As a result, the bonding at normal temperature becomes possible under almost no load. Various inorganic and organic substances are under study as materials adapted to be bonded at normal temperature.
The normal-temperature bonding, however, requires preprocessing of the bonding surfaces, to make possible the bonding under a light load, by controlling the variations of roughness and height of the bonding surfaces to less than a predetermined level and thus increasing the chance of contact between the bonding surfaces. In an application of the normal-temperature bonding to the bonding of a semiconductor chip to a board, the bonding surfaces are currently preprocessed by CMP (chemical mechanical polishing) or electropolishing of the bumps on a chip, which are made of Au, Cu or the like material. This preprocessing increases both a burden on the chip, and the number of steps, as compared with the preprocessing for the normal bonding. The burden on the chip and the number of steps could both be reduced if the normal-temperature bonding is feasible even without using such severe preprocessing of the bonding surfaces.
Even in the case where the variations of bump roughness and height can be suppressed by the preprocessing of the bonding surfaces, the variations of the surface roughness and height of the board surface terminals still depend on the condition of the board to which the chip is to be bonded. Even bump deformation under a predetermined load, therefore, may not be able to absorb the variations of the gap between the bump bonding surface of the chip and the board surface, and the bonding may end in a failure. Applying an unnecessary heavy pressure to absorb the variations would damage the chip and the board. A similar problem may be posed also in the case where a package is mounted on a board.
The conventional method in which a semiconductor chip and a board are bonded to each other by normal-temperature bonding is described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publications No. 2002-50861 and No. 2002-373913 (JP 2002-50861 A and JP 2002-373913 A). JP 2002-50861 A discloses a method of bonding an electronic part such as a semiconductor chip to a circuit-forming member such as a board by normal-temperature bonding using Au, Cu, Al, In or Sn as a material of a connector between the electronic part and the circuit-forming member. JP 2002-373913 A discloses a technique in which one electronic part having bonding sites provided with an indium layer and the other electronic part having connection terminals formed of a metal such as gold or copper at corresponding bonding sites are bonded to each other at the bonding sites at normal temperature in an electrolytic solution or a reducing solution.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A tire puncture sealant including a rubber latex and/or a resin emulsion, and an acetylene alcohol and/or a derivative thereof.

1. Technical Field
The present technology relates to a tire puncture sealant.
2. Related Art
Automobile manufacturers are more frequently providing puncture repair kits as standard or optional equipment. Such puncture repair kits include a tire puncture sealant as an essential component, but can also include a compressor as an optional component. Actual products are generally compact packages that combine the tire puncture sealant, known as an "emergency tire puncture repairing agent" or the like, and a low capacity compressor that draws power via a cigarette lighter socket.
Tire puncture sealants like those described above are typically introduced into a tire. After the tire is filled with air to a desired air pressure, the tire puncture sealant reaches a puncture hole as a result of the vehicle running a specific distance. Moreover, aggregates of rubber particles or resin particles in the tire puncture sealant form due to compressive forces and shear forces exerted on the tire as it rotates and contacts the ground, thereby sealing the puncture holes. As a result, the vehicle on which the tire is mounted can be driven to an automotive repair shop or gas station where the tire can be replaced.
To date, a variety of such tire puncture sealants (puncture sealants) has been proposed. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H09-118779A describes "a puncture sealant for sealing a punctured tire, comprising a natural rubber latex." Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-224231A describes "a tire puncture sealant comprising a chloroprene emulsion and an antifreezing agent, wherein a hydrogen ion exponent is less than 9.0." Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-224232A describes "a tire puncture sealant comprising a urethane emulsion and an antifreezing agent." Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-224245A describes "a tire puncture sealant comprising a polyolefin emulsion and an antifreezing agent." Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-224246A describes "a tire puncture sealant comprising a synthetic resin emulsion and an antifreezing agent, wherein a hydrogen ion exponent is from 5.5 to 8.5." Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-224248A describes "a tire puncture sealant comprising an acrylic emulsion and an antifreezing agent." Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-43155A describes "a tire puncture sealant comprising a natural rubber latex, a synthetic resin emulsion, a tackifier, and an antifreezing agent, wherein a solid content compounding ratio (natural rubber latex/synthetic resin emulsion) of the natural rubber latex to the synthetic resin emulsion is from 80/20 to 30/70."
On the other hand, there are two usage forms of the puncture repair kit. One is "hand-squeezing" where the valve core is removed from the rim valve and then the tire puncture sealant is squeezed into the tire by hand. The other is "pressure injection" where compressed air of a compressor is used to inject the tire puncture sealant without removing the valve core from the rim valve.
Through diligent research into conventional tire puncture sealants, the present inventors discovered that while sealing performance and storage performance was excellent, when using compressed air of a compressor to inject a tire puncture sealant that has been heated to 70° C. as would be expected in the summer season, a large amount of aggregates are deposited on the valve core, leading to a decline in air inflation efficiency.


A method of forming a bend in a wire loop is provided. The method includes the steps of: (1) forming a first bend in the wire loop at a predetermined portion of the wire loop; (2) paying out a length of wire after step (1); and (3) forming a second bend in the wire loop at the predetermined portion after step (2).

In the processing and packaging of semiconductor devices, wire bonding continues to be the primary method of providing electrical interconnection between two locations within a package (e.g., between a die pad of a semiconductor die and a lead of a leadframe). More specifically, using a wire bonder (also known as a wire bonding machine) wire loops are formed between respective locations to be electrically interconnected.
An exemplary conventional wire bonding sequence includes: (1) forming a free air ball on an end of a wire extending from a bonding tool; (2) forming a first bond on a die pad of a semiconductor die using the free air ball; (3) extending a length of wire in a desired shape between the die pad and a lead of a leadframe; (4) stitch bonding the wire to the lead of the leadframe; and (5) severing the wire. In forming the bonds between (a) the ends of the wire loop and (b) the bond site (e.g., a die pad, a lead, etc.) varying types of bonding energy may be used including, for example, ultrasonic energy, thermosonic energy, thermocompressive energy, amongst others.
The complexity of devices that utilize wire bonding techniques continues to increase, and the complexity of the techniques used to form wire loops also continues to increase. Unfortunately, in certain wire loop shapes, conventional wire looping techniques result in problems such as (a) wire sway, (b) low number of units per hour processed (i.e., UPH), (c) sagging wire loops, particularly adjacent both sides of the last kink of the wire loop, and (d) loops with high "humps."
Thus, it would be desirable to provide improved methods of forming wire loops.


A fluid dispenser member comprising a dispenser wall (23) defining an outside surface (231) and an inside surface (232), said wall (23) having a dispenser orifice (24) passing therethrough, connecting the inside surface to the outside surface, the inside surface (232) forming a sealing slide-cylinder (233) for a piston (3) that is suitable for being displaced, from a rest position, along an axis X in said cylinder and with leaktight contact, so as to open an outlet valve (25, 35), said piston (3) forming a portion of a fluid chamber (20) in which fluid is selectively put under pressure and flows through the open outlet valve towards the dispenser orifice, the piston forming a closure wall (34) that is suitable for closing the dispenser orifice (24) in the rest position, the closure wall (34) being positioned, in the rest position, over the dispenser orifice (24) beside its inside surface (232), the closure wall (34) coming into leaktight contact with the inside surface (232),                the dispenser member being characterized in that, at the dispenser orifice (24), the inside surface (232) slopes relative to the displacement axis X of the piston (3), and the closure wall (34) of the piston (3) slopes in a manner that substantially corresponds to the inside surface (232), so as to create a cone-on-cone contact.

The present invention relates more particularly, but not exclusively, to a type of dispenser member that is commonly known as a "pusher-pump". Such a term is explained by the fact that the dispenser member includes a pusher that forms not only a dispenser orifice, but also defines a portion of a fluid chamber in which the fluid is put under pressure in selective manner. For a pump, said portion is a pump chamber. A distinctive feature of that pusher-pump resides in the fact that an inside surface of the pusher, of generally substantially cylindrical shape, serves as a sealing slide-cylinder for a piston that moves with leaktight contact inside the cylinder, thereby opening and closing an outlet valve. In general, the piston is a piston of the differential type that moves in response to a variation in the pressure of the fluid inside the chamber.
Such a fluid dispenser member of the pusher-pump type is known in particular from document WO 2005/084820. The dispenser member is specially adapted to fluids that are not very viscous, such as perfumes, and that are desirably dispensed in the form of a spray. The dispenser member in that document is not adapted in any way to dispensing viscous fluids such as creams or gels that are generally dispensed in the form of streams or knobs. The piston of the differential type includes a first valve lip that slides in leaktight manner in a cylinder formed by the pusher, and a second lip that is engaged in another cylinder, referred to as a "main" cylinder, formed by the body of the dispenser member. The lip in sliding contact in the pusher can be referred to by the term "differential lip" or "outlet valve", whereas the lip that slides in leaktight manner in the main cylinder of the body can be referred to by the term "main lip". In addition, the pusher includes a dispenser orifice upstream from which there is formed a swirl system that is provided in the form of tangential channels that connect to a central swirl chamber that is centered on the dispenser orifice. The outlet valve is not formed directly by the valve lip, but by a small ring that extends the valve lip, and that is for coming into leaktight bearing contact against an outlet-valve seat of frustoconical shape. By displacing the differential piston relative to the pusher, the leaktight contact between the valve ring and its frustoconical seat is broken, and the fluid that has been put under pressure in the pump chamber of the dispenser member can thus escape towards the swirl system and the dispenser orifice. The fluid is prevented from escaping, or, more precisely, is constrained to be dispensed through the dispenser orifice as a result of the presence of the leaktight contact between the valve lip and the inside of the pusher forming the slide cylinder.
As explained, the above-mentioned document is particularly adapted to dispensing perfume. When it is desired to dispense viscous fluids such as creams, pastes, or gels, it is necessary to reduce, as much as possible, the degree to which the fluid to be dispensed comes into contact with the outside air, which can deteriorate the fluid by oxidization or by drying out. In the above-mentioned prior-art dispenser member, the fluid that is downstream from the outlet valve communicates with the outside through the dispenser orifice. This applies in particular for the fluid that is stored in the swirl system, namely in the tangential channels and in the central chamber. This is not acceptable for a dispenser member for dispensing fluids such as creams, pastes, or gels.
It is for example known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,511,064 a pump comprising a piston sliding against an inside surface of a dispenser wall forming a dispensing spout extending laterally. The spout forms an inner duct ending with a dispensing orifice. The piston closes at rest the inlet of the inner duct. The inside surface is cylindrical, so that the piston has to move on a determined distance before opening the inlet of the duct. This provides a precompression of the fluid product, which is thus expelled through the inner duct with a great pressure. This is no desired when dispensing viscous products, such as creams, pastes or gels. In fact, the product must not be projected out of the dispensing orifice. On the contrary, it must form a nut or a large droplet which is easily collectable by the user.


An image processing parameter is determined by moving an image displayed on a map representing a color space to an arbitrary position on the map, and an image process corresponding to the arbitrary position is performed on the image at the position after the movement. The map representing the color space is displayed, and an image processing parameter is determined by relatively moving on the map an image in regard to the map. By virtue of these features, operability and sensuous usability in color adjustment are improved.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing method by which operability and sensuous usability in color adjustment are improved, an image processing apparatus to which the image processing method is applied, a program which is used to execute the image processing method, and a storage medium which stores the program.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, in a color image process, image adjustment is performed in regard to each of R (red), G (green) and B (blue) components by using a controller such as sliders, spin boxes or the like, as shown in FIG. 8.
However, in such a conventional method, a user has to infer a color adjustment result from parameter values set in regard to each of the R, G and B components, whereby it is difficult for the user to perform a sensuous operation. Incidentally, as shown in FIG. 8, there is a method of accessorily displaying a preview image, in which the parameter values of the R, G and B components have been reflected, together with the controller for adjusting the R, G and B components. However, even in this method, the user has to compare the setting of the controllers with a change of the preview image displayed in parallel with the controllers with his eyes to perform the color adjustment, whereby there is room for improvement in the point of usability or user-friendliness.

Image processing method, image processing apparatus, storage medium and program


A spindle motor as a heating element and a spindle head having a spindle that is driven by the spindle motor are coupled to each other by a cooling flange. The cooling flange is provided with a cooling passage, the cross-sectional area of which gradually increases with distance from its gas inlet toward its gas outlet. When a high-pressure gas is injected into the cooling passage through the gas inlet, it is adiabatically expanded and cooled by the cooling passage having the gradually increasing cross-sectional area. Thus, the cooling flange restrains heat generated from the spindle motor from being transmitted to the spindle head.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a machine tool provided with a cooling mechanism for restraining its thermal deformation.
2. Description of the Related Art
For a spindle head, column, and other structures that constitute a machine tool, thermal distortion by heat from a heating element, such as a spindle motor, is a serious problem that results in lowering of machining accuracy. A change in attitude of the spindle head or the column for guiding the movement of the head, among other undesirable results of thermal distortion, involves tilting, in particular, so that it cannot be corrected by a thermal displacement correction program with which a displacement in a direction parallel to a coordinate axis is corrected. If the spindle head or the column is tilted by heat from the spindle motor or any other heating element, the axis of the spindle tilts, and a tool that is attached to the spindle also tilts. In consequence, the machining accuracy lowers.
In a conventional method to prevent the change in attitude, the heating element is directly cooled or heat conduction from the heating element to its surrounding structures is restrained.
For example, the spindle is driven by a built-in motor, and a large number of air passages with a large cross-sectional area are formed at spaces in the axial direction, substantially entirely covering the outer periphery of a stator of the built-in motor. Compressed air is injected into the air passages through jets with a small cross-sectional area, whereupon the built-in motor, a source of heat generation, is cooled taking advantage of a temperature drop that is attributable to adiabatic expansion of the compressed air. Thermal distortion of a column head can be avoided by preventing heat from the source of heat generation from being transmitted to the spindle head, column, or any other structures of the machine tool (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 5-138493).
In another known arrangement, a headstock that is located between a spindle head having a spindle motor built-in and a column for guiding the movement of the spindle head is provided with a cooling fluid passage through which a cooled cooling fluid is circulated. In this case, change in attitude of a spindle and the like is restrained by using the cooling fluid to prevent heat generated from the spindle motor from being transmitted to other members (see Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-open No. 5-74749).
In still another known arrangement, a cooling flange is mounted between a spindle motor and a headstock that is fitted with a spindle, whereby cooling oil can be circulated in the cooling flange to prevent heat generated in the spindle motor from being transmitted to the headstock (Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-open No. 63-179048)
In the case where the spindle motor or other heating element is cooled directly, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 5-138493, a cooling apparatus is shaped so as to enclose the heating element and tends to be large-sized. Since heat as much as the heat generated from the heating element must be removed, moreover, there may be a demand for peripheral equipment, such as a temperature controller, for preventing the temperature of a refrigerant from excessively increasing, in some cases.
In the case where the heat conduction from the heating element to its surrounding structures is restrained by means of a cooling mechanism that is provided in the middle of a path of conduction, as described in Japanese Utility Model Applications Laid-open Nos. 5-74749 and 63-179048, on the other hand, heat conduction in only a limited direction is expected to be restrained, so that the quantity of heat to be removed is small. However, the method in which a refrigerant is simply run in the course of the heat conduction cannot produce a high cooling effect.

Machine tool provided with cooling mechanism


A seal assembly includes a stator attached to a housing and a rotor attached to a shaft. A static sealing member is attached to the stator presenting a contact with the rotor at stand-still. An electromagnetic is attached to the stator at a distance from an end of the static sealing member. The static sealing member is activated and moved away from the rotor by the magnetic force exerted by the electromagnet as the shaft rotates. The electromagnet is controlled by a control system for controlling the equipment in which the bearing isolator is used. To deactivate the static sealing member during shaft rotation, the bearing isolator may have its own control system with a sensor to indicate if the shaft is rotating. As the shaft rotates, contaminants are expelled through gaps between the stator and the rotor.

Bearings and mechanical seals have been used in various industrial applications for years. A bearing isolator is one of the components of these bearings and mechanical seals. There is a close relationship between the life of these two critical components. The failure of a mechanical seal may cause the bearings to fail and poor bearing conditions can reduce seal life. The failure of the mechanical seal results typically because of rain, product leakage, debris, and wash-down water entering the bearing housing thereby resulting in contamination of bearing lubricant, which negatively impacts lifespan of the bearings and mechanical seals.
Elastomeric lips and O-rings are used in the mechanical seals to prevent rain, product leakage, debris, and wash-down water from entering into the bearing housing of these mechanical seals thereby avoiding quick wear and tear of these elastomeric lips and the O-rings. In reality, it is very hard and almost impossible to prevent dust and exterior contaminants from entering into the interior of the bearing housing. To prevent the ingress of corruption and the egress of lubricating fluids, a number of auxiliary or improved primary sealing arrangements and devices have been provided and used in prior art sealing applications.
One such type of a seal assembly, commonly referred to as an expeller seal assembly, includes two annular, elastomeric sealing members disposed within separate annular cavities of a rotor mounted on a shaft. A stator is partially disposed between the two rotor cavities and has a central bore which defines a clearance space about the shaft. At a static sealing position, each sealing member is disposed generally against a rotor outer circumferential surface and against an adjacent radial surface on each axial end of the stator, such that the clearance space is substantially sealed at each end. When the shaft rotates, the two sealing members are pulled by frictional engagement with the rotor surface to rotate with the shaft, until centrifugal forces cause each sealing member to deflect radially outwardly from the rotor outer surface and from the stator surface. At this point, sealing in the clearance space is accomplished by a pressure differential generated by the rotation of the rotor, and the disengagement of the seal from the stator both reduces wear on the sealing members and reduces friction in the seal assembly.
However, until the rotor and sealing members reach a rotational speed sufficient to deflect the sealing members into contact with an inner circumferential surface of the rotor, such that the sealing members are again rotationally coupled with the rotor, the sealing members will lose angular momentum and deflect inwardly due to the diminished centrifugal force and return to the inner, static sealing position.
Thus, the sealing members will oscillate between the inner, static sealing position and a non-contact position until reaching a sufficient "hold-off" speed at which the sealing members remain rotationally coupled with the rotor. Also, whenever the shaft speed decreases below the hold-off speed, the sealing members will again begin to oscillate into and out of contact with the stator. As such, this oscillatory motion of the sealing members tends to increase wear and increase friction within the seal assembly.
Another type of seal is a labyrinth device which contains a tortuous path that makes it difficult for contaminants to enter the bearing housing to degrade lubricant effectiveness. The advantages of labyrinths are their non-wearing and self-venting features. Some of these commercially successful seal devices do not require any actual physical inter engagement of the sealing member parts. The disadvantages of labyrinth seal devices include higher initial costs than lip seals, and the existence of an open path to the atmosphere that can allow the contamination of the lubricant by atmospheric condensate as the housing chamber breathes during temperature fluctuations in humid environments when the equipment cycles on and off.
Therefore, an opportunity exists for improved bearing isolators having a seal member with improved life span and a unique design that will allow smaller particles or contaminants and fluids to be expelled from gaps defined between the rotor member and the stator member the same way as they entered by the expelling function of the pumping action in dynamic operations but are stopped by the sealing member when the bearing isolator is in a static condition.
Still another opportunity exists for improved bearing isolators having a seal member wherein the function and shape of the seal member can be controlled whether the rotor member and the stator member are rotatable relative one another or not.

Pressure resistant static and dynamic seal assembly and method


A method of cutting a web structure that is utilized in the manufacture of an absorbent article. The method of cutting the web structure can employ a laser having a pulse mode of operation. In various embodiments, the frequency of the beam of radiation pulsed from the laser can be patterned to correspond to the material of the web structure. In various embodiments, the frequency of the beam of radiation pulsed from the laser can be patterned to correspond to the speed at which the web structure is moving and can change with any change in speed of the web structure movement.

Personal care absorbent articles are manufactured using a variety of components, including web structures, which can provide various benefits to the wearer of the absorbent article. An example of a web structure can be a liquid permeable nonwoven web or film which can be used as a body contacting layer, such as a topsheet layer, of the absorbent article. Another example of a web structure can be a liquid impermeable nonwoven web or film which can be used as a garment contacting layer, such as a backsheet layer, of the absorbent article.
Personal care absorbent articles can be manufactured in a variety of shapes such as, for example, rectangular or hourglass, and a variety of sizes which can be sized to fit a range of wearers from infant to adult. The web structures which form some of the components of an absorbent article are cut from larger sheets of web structures into the smaller, appropriately sized web structures to be incorporated into the resultant absorbent article.
The cutting of the larger sheet of web structures into the smaller, appropriately sized web structures can employ a laser which can emit a beam of radiation at the web structure. The energy output from the beam of radiation can be absorbed by the web structure in the area which is the focus of the beam of radiation. The absorption of the energy from the beam of radiation can result in the vaporization of the web structure in the area of focus. The vaporization of the web structure can result in a rough edge to the remaining web structure due to the melting of the material of the web structure which abuts the area where vaporization occurred.
As these web structures will be utilized in personal care absorbent articles and may potentially come into contact with the skin of the wearer, there is a need for a method of cutting a web structure which will result in a softer edge to the cut web structure.


A manufacturing method for an electrode for an electrochemical capacitor according to the present invention comprises a first process (steps S1-S3) for forming a polarizable electrode layer on a current collector, a second process (step S4) for subjecting the front surface of the polarizable electrode layer formed on the current collector, to an embossment work, and a third process (step S5) for flattening the front surface of the polarizable electrode layer as has undergone the embossment work. In this manner, in the invention, the front surface of the polarizable electrode layer undergoes the embossment work, so that the polarizable electrode layer is effectively compressed, and it is consequently permitted to achieve a high volume capacitance of at least 17 F/cm3. Moreover, after the embossment work, the resulting embossment is flattened, so that porous grains contained in the polarizable electrode layer are prevented from falling off, and it is permitted to ensure a high reliability.

Since electrochemical capacitors including an electric double-layer capacitor can be easily made small in size and light in weight, they are expected as, for example, backup power sources for the power sources of portable equipment (small-sized electronic equipment) etc., and auxiliary power sources for an electric automobile and a hybrid vehicle, and various studies have been made for enhancing the performances of the electrochemical capacitors. Especially in a case where a large capacity is required as in the power source for the electric automobile, it has been desired to develop an electrochemical capacitor in which a capacitance per unit volume of electrodes (hereinbelow, termed "volume capacitance") is high.
Each electrode for use in such an electrochemical capacitor has a laminated structure which includes a current collector and a polarizable electrode layer, and it can be fabricated by coating the front surface of the sheet-like current collector with a solution which is to become the material of the polarizable electrode layer, and which is subjected to drying (refer to Patent Document 1). Since, however, the density of the polarizable electrode layer to be formed is low merely by coating the front surface of the current collector with such a solution and then drying the solution, a sufficient volume capacitance cannot be attained. In order to attain a higher volume capacitance, therefore, the polarizable electrode layer needs to be compressed by roll press or the like after the formation thereof by the coating.
[Patent Document 1] JP-A-2000-106332

Electrode for electric chemical capacitor, manufacturing method and apparatus thereof


A fluid transfer system that combines a vortex diode with a jet ejector to transfer liquid from one tank to a second tank by a gas pressurization method having no moving mechanical parts in the fluid system. The vortex diode is a device that has a high resistance to flow in one direction and a low resistance to flow in the other.

In the nuclear industry it is very desirable to have transfer systems that do not have any moving parts, i.e., pumps, valves, check valves, etc. The radiation fields and chemistry of the solutions quickly destroy any plastics, seals, and moving parts. Technologies that meet this criteria are jets, air lifts and fluidics. Fluidics is the technology dealing with the use of a flowing liquid or gas in various devices for controls, and fluid transfers.
In this industry it is also very desirable to produce unbiased samples and to transfer solution without dilution or concentration. Typically, air lifts and/or jet ejectors are used for sampling and solution transfers. A third option is fluidic pumping of the solution. Unlike gas jets, steam jets, or gas lift transfers, the fluidic transfer has the advantage that it does not concentrate or dilute the solution being transferred. Other fluidic transfer and fluidic sampling advantages are: (a) very high lift capability, (b) low sample scatter, (c) lower off-gas production with the attendant reduction in high-efficiency particulate HEPA filter consumption and environmental emissions, (d) dependability, and (e) very low maintenance.
Although, existing fluidic technology transfers fluids in one direction at approximately the same rate as air lifts and jets, the use of a vortex diode or reverse flow diverter (RFD) and jet ejector combination in bidirectional flow systems produces significantly higher transfer rates, i.e., 1.5 times faster than the base jet fluidic transfer rate and retains the fluidic system advantages.
Referring to FIG. 1, the basic prior art fluidic transfer systems use gas pressure 8 to transfer solution out of a pumping chamber 10, forcing the solution from the pumping chamber 10 into the feed tank, and the rest into a receiving tank 12 by operation of valves 14 (FIG. 1). The pumping chamber 10 is refilled with solution from the atmospheric-pressure feed tank 16 by gravity and the line to the receiving tank 12 as the air in the pumping chamber is vented to the feed tank through an orifice 18 in vent line 19.
A major improvement on the fluidic transfer system is accomplished by the installation of a vortex diode or reverse flow diverter 20 (RFD) in the outlet line of the feed tank 16 as in FIG. 2. An RFD consists of a tangential entry into a cylinder with the exit port 22 located in the center of the cylinder. RFDs are designed to have a higher resistance to flow in one direction (spiral entry) than in the opposite direction (elbow-like flow path). This means the pressure drop flowing through a RFD at the same flow rate in one direction, is much less than the pressure drop of the fluid flowing through the RFD in the opposite direction. With the RFD, most of the solution is pumped to the receiving tank 12, the rest goes to the feed tank 16. The refill resistance of a RFD is essentially equivalent to a tee of the same inlet and outlet diameter. As the RFD has a low refill resistance, the pumping chamber 10 refills almost as fast as the basic system, hence the overall pumping rate is greatly increased.
Another transfer system improvement is accomplished by the use of a jet as in FIG. 3. The solution from the pumping chamber 10 passes through a jet ejector 24, entraining the solution from the feed tank 16, then transferring the combined solution streams to the receiver tank 12. Since the air is not used to pump solution from the feed tank 16 by the air passing through the jet 24, this fluidic system essentially uses the solution to be transferred to pump itself. This combination (FIG. 3) refills very slowly but pumps much faster, therefore the overall pumping rate for the jet system is better than the RFD (FIG. 2) only. The fluidic jet transfer also has a much greater lift capability than air lifts or RFDS. other combinations of RFDs and jets have produced small increases in the overall pumping rate. The major limiting factor on the pumping rate of these jet fluidic systems is the refill rate of the pumping chamber 10. The pumping jet is essentially the entire resistance in this reverse flow path and reduction in the refill time can be accomplished by reducing the refill resistance of the pumping jet.

The United States of America as represented by the United States Department of Energy