The invention refers to a detector based on 3D geometry made from a hydrogenated amorphous silicon substrate. This detector finds application in the detection of ionizing radiation.

The first study on the hydrogenated amorphous silicon, hereinafter a-Si:H, was reported by Chittik et al. in 1969 J. Electrochem. Soc. 116 77-81 (1969). The material was obtained from growth by plasma vapor deposition (PECVD) of SiH.sub.4 (silane). The resulting material had a much lower defect density than the evaporated or sprayed amorphous silicon. Substantial progresses of the a-Si:H technology were made when Spear and Lecomber demonstrated that this material could be doped (both in types n and p) W. Spear and P G Lecomber. Electronic properties of substitutionally doped amorphous Si and Ge Phil. Mag. 33, 935-949 (1976); this has led to the realization of various types of devices such as transistors H C Tuan. Amorphous silicon thin film transistor and its applications to large area electronics Mater. Res. Soc. Proc. 33 247 (1984), solar cells D E Carlson D E and C R Wronski. Amorphous silicon solar cell Appl. Phys. Lett. 28 671-3 (1976) and memories A E Owen et al. Memory switching in amorphous silicon devices J. Non-Cryst. Solids 59-80 1273-80 (1983).
The a-Si:H is a disordered semiconductor; the irregular arrangement of the atoms has the consequence that not all Si—Si bonds can be saturated and this leads to the presence of free bonds (LL). Hydrogen is then introduced into the material for passivating those LLs that act as centers of defects and recombination. The minimum amount of hydrogen needed for passivating most LLs is about 1%.
The hydrogen content in the material has an influence on the bandwidth (by increasing the hydrogen content the band gap widens) and depends on the deposition conditions such as the temperature at which the material is deposited. The typical hydrogen content of the material deposited by PECVD is usually about 10%. The a-Si:H is generally deposited at temperatures of approx. 200° C. from the dissociation of the silane. Hydrogen is generally added to silane and improves the properties of the resulting material. The doping is obtained by adding PH3 to the process gas for a n-type doping or by adding B2H6 or TMB (Trimethylboron) for a p-type doping.
Due to the relatively large band gap and the disordered nature of the semiconductor which leads to a low mobility of the bearer of charge, a-Si:H is a semi-insulating material with resistivity values higher than 100 cm−1. This resistivity can be reduced by more than seven orders of magnitude with p- or n-doping [W. Spear and PG Lecomber. Electronic properties of substitutionally doped amorphous Si and Ge Phil. Mag. 33, 935-949 (1976)].
Particle detectors based on a-Si:H have been built since the mid-1980s [V. Perez-Mendez et al. Detection of charged particles in amorphous silicon layers. Nucl. Instr. Methods Phys. Res. 252 478-82 (1986); V. Perez-Mendez et al. Signal, recombination effects and noise in amorphous silicon detectors Nucl. Instr. Methods Phys. Res. A 260 195-200 (1987)] as pin structure or Schottky diodes; the thickness of these detectors ranged from 1 to 50 μm, however the signal-to-noise ratio was never completely satisfactory (the values of the s/n ratio ranges from 2 to 3) [J. Xi et al. Minimum ionizing particle detection using amorphous silicon diodes Nucl. Instr. Methods Phys. Res. A 301 219-222 (1991); R. Aleksan et al. Observation of single minimum ionizing particles with amorphous silicon diodes. Nucl. Instr. Methods Phys. Res. A 305 512-6 (1991)]. While thick planar detectors are desirable to generate the maximum number of electron-gap pairs (or electron-holes, e-h), the applied electric field generates a too large leakage current; if the electric field is lowered too much the emptying can be incomplete and the collection of charge is only partial. The formation of the signal is given by the drift of the e-h pairs in the intrinsic layer of the diode and therefore depends on the distance traveled. A complete collection is obtained when both the electron and the gap of a generated pair are collected on the diode contacts [B. Equer and A. Karar. 1988 Effect of primary ionization in amorphous silicon detectors Nucl. Instr. Methods Phys. Res. A 271 574-84 (1988)].
Planar a-Si:H detectors have also been used to detect other types of radiation in addition to minimally ionizing particles (MIP), namely: X-rays, neutrons and ions as well as low-energy protons and alpha. As for X-rays, for example, V. Perez-Mendez et al. [The application of thick hydrogenated amorphous silicon layers to charge particle and x-ray detection Mater. Res. Soc. Proc. 149 621-630 (1989)] describe the detection of X-rays of 20 keV by using a planar p-i-n diode. For X-ray energies of 100 keV a detector was developed based on a CsI layer that acts as a scintillator and the resulting light signal is detected by the a-Si:H p-i-n with an efficiency better than 70%. The same article also describes the detection of low-energy protons and alpha particles.
A neutron detection requires a conversion layer. Various types of detectors have been proposed with, for example, a combination of a-Si:H with Gd [A. Mireshghi et al. High efficiency neutron sensitive amorphous silicon pixel detectors. IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci. 41 915-921 (1994)] or with layers of 10B [F. Foulon et al. Neutron detectors made from chemically vapor deposited semiconductors Mater. Soc. Res. Proc. 487 591 (1998)]. Also a 10B-rich semiconductor could also be directly incorporated in an a-Si:H device. The results of the heavy ion (sulfur) detection test are shown in [C. Bacci et al. Detection of strongly ionizing particles with a hydrogenated amorphous silicon detector Nucl. Instr. Methods Phys. Res. A 306 182-6 (1991)].
The effect of particle radiation and subsequent annealing were studied by Wyrsch et al. in [N. Wyrsch et al. Radiation hardness of amorphous silicon particle sensors. J. Non-Cryst. Solids 352 1797-800 (2006)]; two planar a-Si:H diodes with a thickness of 32.6 and 1.1 microns respectively were irradiated and the results are reported in the article mentioned above.
The best results for the detection of MIP with a-Si:H sensors were obtained with a deposition of a p-i-n diode structure deposited on a reading chip [G. Anelli et al. A new concept of monolithic silicon pixel detectors: hydrogenated amorphous silicon on ASIC. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A 518 (2004) 366-372]. This approach, developed by Siegen University, has been called TFA (Thin Film on ASIC). FIG. 1 shows the layout of the detector.
Despite the advantages mentioned above, the construction of a minimally ionizing good quality radiation detector, in over thirty years of research, has always been difficult: see N. Wyrsch and C. Ballif, Review of amorphous silicon based particle detectors: the quest for single particle detection. Semicond. Sci. Technol. 31 (2016) 103005. The main problem of this detector, built on a planar geometry, is the bad signal/noise ratio determined by the following factors:
1. High emptying voltage. An empirical rule for the emptying voltage on a p-i-n diode (non-irradiated) is Vd≈0.45 d2 (microns), so to empty a 50 micron thick planar detector a polarization voltage of 1100 V is required.
2. Large leakage currents. The currents of these detectors in the emptying mode are of the order of 10−1-10−6 A/cm2.
3. Relatively low efficiency of charge collection. For detectors with a thickness less than 50 microns the collection efficiency is about 50% while the energy required to create an electron-gap pair is similar to that of crystalline silicon (3.4-4.4 eV).
Purpose of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks of the state of the art.


A self-contained chute includes a hood directed through a dwelling wall, with the hood including a first and second respective conduit aligned with a direction chute formed with a chute first and second conduit, with the direction chute fixedly mounted to the dwelling wall exterior surface terminating in a chute lower distal end spaced above a chute housing floor. The chute housing floor includes respective first and second doors receiving a vehicular cart for support of a respective first and second receptacle. The respective first and second receptacle is aligned with the respective first and second chute conduit permitting removal of the first and second receptacle by use of the vehicular cart for storage space within the associated dwelling.

1. Field of the Invention
The field of invention relates to recycling apparatus, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved recycling apparatus wherein the same is arranged for eliminating recycling storage within a dwelling.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Storage of various components by individuals requires the provision of a predetermined area for storage of such components. In an effort to minimize and eliminate the duplication of such storage within a dwelling, the instant invention attempts to overcome deficiencies of the prior art by providing a chute structure directed exteriorly of the associated dwelling in cooperation with removal apparatus with a transportable cart structure. While various chute structure is available in the prior art, such as exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,380 to Cramer, the chute structure is oriented towards the directional movement of material therethrough.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,722 to Jones sets forth a compartmented waste receptacle for segregating various recycling components such as glass and the like.
As such, it may be appreciated that there continues to be a need for a new and improved recycling apparatus as set forth by the instant invention which addresses both the problems of ease of use as well as effectiveness in construction in the directional removal of recycling components and their segregation relative to a dwelling and in this respect, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.


A water-proof lower cover is provided on a relay box proper with a fusible link mounted thereon. A guide member having a bottom wall and side walls is formed on the lower cover for guiding a ring terminal inserted by way of a terminal insertion hole of the lower cover. The ring terminal guided by the guide member is electrically connected to a bus bar and the terminal of the fusible link by fastening a bolt to a nut. As a result, the ring terminal inserted into the relay box proper at the portion thereof opposite to the fusible link can be mounted efficiently on the terminal of the fusible link.

The present invention relates to a terminal structure for connection to an electric connection box, in which the terminal of a fusible link mounted on the case proper of the electric connection box is fastened with the terminal of the mating conductor inserted from outside of the portion of the case proper far from the fusible link, by means of a screw member inserted from a side of the case proper, and a cover is applied to the portion of the case proper where the mating conductor is inserted.
A fusible link box interposed between a power supply and a load of an automobile contains a nut. The fusible link is inserted into the fusible link box from an insertion hole, the cover is opened and a bolt is fastened to the nut. Then, one of the terminals of the fusible link is electrically connected to a bus bar, and the other terminal thereof is electrically connected to a ring terminal at the forward end of the wire harness on the load side.
The fusible link box is formed with a connector housing into which a power connector is inserted. The power connector is electrically connected with one of the terminals of the fusible link through the bus bar. The portion of the fusible link box far from the fusible link insertion hole is closed by a protector, which is mounted after the bolt is fastened and the cover is applied.
Generally, the ring terminal is mounted on the automotive vehicle body assembly line of car manufacturers. The conventional structure described above, however, requires the protector to be removed and the cover to be opened and closed for mounting the ring terminal. The workability of the conventional structure therefore is low, and improvement thereof is desired.

Terminal structure for connection to electric connection box


A polymeric material may be prepared by reacting a composition that includes polyol, polyisocyanate, and polyorganosiloxane having functional groups capable of reacting with the polyisocyanate, wherein the polymeric material has a surface which includes raised microdomains.

Block copolymers containing poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) are well known. Typically, these are linear copolymers made up of long sequences of PDMS covalently coupled to another polymer. For example, diblock, triblock, and segmented/multiblock copolymers of PDMS with a variety of polymers have been prepared.
Block copolymers of PDMS with other polymers typically phase separate as a result of the immiscibility of the two different blocks. However, due to the covalent linkage between the blocks, the phase separation is restricted and only micro- or nano-scale phase separation occurs. In many PDMS block copolymer systems, PDMS has a significantly lower surface energy than the second block, and thus tends to predominate on the surface of the copolymer.
Block copolymers of PDMS with polyurethane are also known. In many cases, these may function as minimally adhesive surfaces. However, over time, the more hydrophilic polyurethane components may migrate to the surface resulting in a loss of the low surface energy. This is especially a problem when the copolymer is exposed to an aqueous environment (e.g., when used as a marine coating, etc.).
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an improved polymeric material, particularly one that is capable of forming stable surface microdomains when exposed to water. It would also be desirable to provide an improved polymeric material having a defined topography.

Polymeric material with surface microdomains


A tool member for a multitool which is configured to strip wire. The tool member has first and second members which in one form are pivotally attached at a common axis on the handle portion of a multitool where the tool member has an extended orientation and can be retracted into the channel region of the tool member.

Knives, particularly folding blade knives, have been utilized as a basic tool for numerous tasks that require any type of incising material. In fact, a knife is probably one of the most versatile tools available, where the conventional "pocket knife," as its name implies, indicates wide usage and availability to many people. However, a knife in its basic configuration does not restrict the amount of incision to material which is necessary in certain applications. People that work with insulated wire, such as electricians, farmers, handymen, construction workers, or individuals working with wire around the house or for their profession often require removing a portion of the insulation and leaving the underlying wire exposed, presumably for electrical conductivity such as insertion into a twist-on wire connector. However, this procedure generally requires a more surgical application of some form of incising device to cut through the outer insulation and leave the inner wire and not make substantial contact with the inner wire. Disclosed herein are various embodiments to provide the functionality and usefulness of a pocket knife while also providing wire stripping capabilities.


A low-profile Wireless Display Tag (WDT) fits within the confines of a retail store display shelf-edge C-channel. The WDT may also be used to tag high-value retail item units where it can simultaneously function as a price tag, and an anti-theft device. The invention provides for bidirectional communication between the WDT and a central database. The invention uses a low profile antenna that may be painted onto a surface within the WDT. The WDT is capable of displaying graphics or variable format alphanumeric characters and the placement of display items is user programmable. The WDT uses an RF integrated Circuit (RFIC) that combines the backscatter RF communications method, amplified backscatter RF communications method and the active RF communications method.

1. Field of the Invention
Generally, the present invention relates to electronic inventory systems. Further, the present invention relates to electronic shelf labels and electronic inventory tags. More specifically, the present invention relates to electronic shelf labels and tags adapted to communicate wirelessly.
2. Description of Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, retail stores typically display pricing information on paper labels located on shelf edges (shelf labels); FIG. 1 shows an example of a typical printed shelf label. Shelf labels are fitted into C-shaped channels at the edge of product display shelves. Typically, an in-store computer-based printing system downloads "Price Files" from a central location, such as a Retail Chain Headquarters. The information in Price Files is printed on shelf labels and these new shelf labels are manually inserted into the shelf C-channels, usually on a weekly basis. A typical large retail store must update thousands of shelf labels each week.
Referring now to FIG. 2, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, some Electronic Shelf Labels (ESL) 10 have been produced in an effort to automate the shelf labeling process. As shown in FIG. 4, ESLs 10 display basic price information on a segmented liquid crystal display (LCD).
Referring to FIG. 2, ESLs 10 may receive display information by infrared (IR) or radio frequency (RF) communication 12. Current ESLs 10 often use unidirectional communications techniques to transmit data from the in-store computer-based pricing system to the deployed ESLs 10. Some ESLs 10 are capable of bidirectional communication, allowing the deployed ESLs 10 to send information or requests to the in-store computer system 14. Communication between an in-store computer system 14 and the deployed ESLs 10 is facilitated by one or more access points 16. Access points 16 are often located in the ceilings of the store.
Referring to FIG. 3, current ESLs 10 tend to have large and bulky form factors. Form factors are affected by the quantity and type of electronic components required to implement the chosen form of communication. Current ESLs 10 have a large, high-profile form-factor because they incorporate some combination of batteries, electronic devices, large sheet metal RF antennae and bulky mounting attachments. As a result, ESLs 10 extend beyond the confines of the shelf C-channel 18 and hence prone to damage resulting from incidental contact or collision with shoppers, staff, shopping carts, etc.
Referring now to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the content and format of displayable information is limited in current ESLs 10. Because current ESLs 10 use segmented LCDs to display price and other information 102, display formats are rigidly constrained to alphanumeric, non-graphical data. Segmented LCDs 102 also restrict the placement of displayable characters to predetermined positions on the display surface. These constraints and restrictions result in poor display readability and limited versatility of information displayed. Also, the limitations of LCD content, format and placement necessitate the use of printed labels 104 to augment the ESL 10, as shown in FIG. 4. The printed labels 104 carry store operations information, including stocking numbers, barcodes, and other static information.
Finally, current ESLs have limited functionality, and are generally capable of performing only basic functions. In-store computer systems control all device functionality. For example, devices must be commanded to disable or resume display operations or to otherwise reduce power consumption to conserve battery life. Problems occur if the commands from the central controller are not received or acknowledged by an ESL, or if the ESL is limited to unidirectional communications and is incapable of acknowledging commands and reporting status. Such problems may lead to failure of the electronic shelf labeling system, incorrect pricing or outdated information displays.


A water-cooled cylinder head for a multicylinder internal-combustion engine, has a cylinder head housing which has charge cycle ducts, passage bores for receiving cylinder head screws, valve stem guides for inlet and outlet valves controlling the charge cycle ducts, and part-spherical combustion chamber caps which are bounded by a water cooling jacket on a side facing away from the combustion chamber. One spark plug dome respectively has an opening leading to the combustion chamber of the respective cylinder. For reinforcing the cylinder head housing and/or for supporting the part-spherical combustion chamber caps, a rib structure is integrated in the cylinder head housing.

Preferred embodiments of the invention relate to a water-cooled cylinder head for a multicylinder internal-combustion engine having a cylinder head housing comprising charge cycle ducts, passage bores for receiving cylinder head screws, valve stem guides for inlet and outlet valves, part-spherical combustion chamber caps which are bounded by a water cooling jacket on a side facing away from a respective combustion chamber, and one spark plug dome respectively whose opening leads to the combustion chamber of the respective cylinder.
A water-cooled cylinder head of the above-mentioned type is known, for example, from German Patent Document DE 199 55 431 A1.
In the case of motor vehicles, it is generally endeavored to reduce the overall weight of the vehicle, among other things, for saving fuel. For this purpose, light-metal alloys are increasingly used, for example, for the crankcase and cylinder head housing for engines. However, particularly in the case of high-performance engines, temperature peaks occur because of the high specific performance in the cylinder head, particularly in the area between the outlet valves or between the outlet valve and the spark plug. This results in temperature stress in the material and, in connection with external loads, may lead to permanent deformations in the seat ring area and thus to valve leakiness.
It is therefore an object of the invention to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantages.
This object is achieved by providing water-cooled cylinder head for a multicylinder internal-combustion engine, having a cylinder head housing comprising charge cycle ducts, passage bores for receiving cylinder head screws, valve stem guides for inlet and outlet valves, part-spherical combustion chamber caps which are bounded by a water cooling jacket on a side facing away from a respective combustion chamber, and one spark plug dome respectively whose opening leads to the combustion chamber of the respective cylinder, wherein, for reinforcing the cylinder head housing and/or for supporting the part-spherical combustion chamber caps, a rib structure is integrated in the cylinder head housing.
As a result of the fact that a rib structure is integrated in the cylinder head housing, the cylinder head housing constructed of light metal can be reinforced and the highly temperature-stressed part-spherical combustion chamber caps can be effectively anchored in the cylinder head housing. By means of these structural measures, it is ensured that, despite a high temperature stress, the cylinder head remains dimensionally stable, particularly in the area of the part-spherical combustion chamber caps.
Additional characteristics further developing the invention are indicated herein and in the claims.
According to certain preferred embodiments of the invention, for the optimal support or structural reinforcement of the part-spherical combustion chamber caps, the rib structure has a longitudinal rib penetrating the water cooling jacket.
According to certain preferred embodiments of the invention, so that, despite the longitudinal rib penetrating the water cooling jacket, an unhindered coolant flow can take place from the valve outlet side to the valve inlet side, corresponding passage openings are constructed in the longitudinal rib.
According to certain preferred embodiments of the invention, a particularly effective support or suspension of the part-spherical combustion chamber caps is ensured when the longitudinal rib is provided centrally between the valve inlet side and the valve outlet wide and is linked to the individual spark plug domes.
According to certain preferred embodiments of the invention, for the further reinforcement of the cylinder head housing, the rib structure has diagonal ribs which are linked to the domes for the cylinder head screws, the spark plug domes as well as the valve stem guides.
A particularly effective rib structure is obtained according to certain preferred embodiments of the invention, when, in addition to the longitudinal and diagonal ribs, transverse ribs are provided which mutually connect the domes for the cylinder head screws, which domes are placed in the cylinder head housing on the inlet side and the outlet side.
The drawing illustrates an embodiment of the invention which will be described in detail in the following.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Water-cooled cylinder head for a multicylinder internal-combustion engine

Dr. Ing. h.c.F. Porsche Aktiengesellschaft


A safety valve locking device is disclosed and includes a collar adapted to fit over a valve rim. A slide member is provided for selectively preventing and permitting the depression of an actuator head arranged on a valve stem to actuate a valve assembly of a pressurized container. The slide member includes a leading end and a trailing end and an aperture arranged therebetween through which the valve stem extends. The slide member is movable when pressure is applied or released from the trailing end thereof, between an occluding position at which the actuator head on a valve stem is misaligned with the aperture so that the valve stem cannot be depressed downwardly therethrough and a nonoccluding position at which the actuator head is aligned with the aperture so that the valve assembly can be actuated upon depression of the valve stem. A plurality of resilient members for urging the slide member to the occluding position are arranged within the inner perimeter of the collar and are connected between the first surface of the collar and the slide member.

Pressurized containers, such as aerosol cans, are commonly used to store and dispense a wide variety of household products such as cleaners, insecticides, paints, cosmetic aids, and the like. These products are generally used by spraying them directly onto their intended target. As can be appreciated, the use of aerosol cans for dispensing such products is desirable in many ways since these products can be used quickly and effortlessly. However, frequently the products dispensed from aerosol cans are toxic especially if ingested or applied to eyes, lungs, or other sensitive areas of anatomy.
The chances of someone being injured because of coming into contact with products dispensed from aerosol cans are greatly enhanced if the aerosol can is used by children.
It is common knowledge that children tend to be inquisitive and if given the opportunity, they will explore or play with various household items left within their reach. Accordingly, hundreds of serious, unnecessary accidents occur every year as a result of unattended children who inadvertently spray a dangerous product from a pressurized container. Thus, a great need exists for effective childproof safety locking devices to solve the problem of inadvertent actuation of pressurized containers.
Safety locking devices to prevent or reduce the likelihood of a child spraying the contents of an aerosol can are known. In fact, considerable effort has been devoted to development of an economical and effective safety valve locking device. Notwithstanding the effort expended to develop such a device, the structure and operation of prior childproof safety locking devices adapted to selectively permit or prohibit depression of an actuator head on a movable valve stem for pressurized containers have shortcomings which have been surmounted by the present invention.
For example, efforts have been made prior to this invention to develop a safety cap for placement over the dispensing mechanism of pressurized cans. However, these safety caps have proven to be undesirable for use as a childproof device. This is due in part to the fact that users of spray products often forget to replace the caps after the product has been used. Thus, if a user inadvertently forgets to replace the cap, the safety caps are rendered entirely ineffective for their intended purpose.
Other past attempts have resulted in childproof safety locking devices arranged to selectively prevent dispensing the contents of an aerosol can. However, attempts also contain several shortcomings. For example, many of these devices include intricate designs which are expensive to manufacture are difficult to assemble or, lend themselves to defective design or have parts that are easily susceptible to fatigue and breakdown of their elastic memory. Other significant shortcomings of prior art devices include structures that are so simple that a young child can figure out how to operate the supposedly childproof safety locking device or actuate the valve that dispenses the spray merely by "playing" with the can and the safety locking devices thereon. Thus, these devices are also completely defective for their intended purpose. Still other prior art locking devices are defective because they contain the serious drawback of not automatically reverting to their locking position once the user has finished spraying the contents from the associated pressurized can. Thus, if the user forgets to place the locking device in its locking position after using the desired product, a young child can actuate the valve assembly thereof. This drawback also renders these locking devices entire ineffective. Examples of prior art devices having some of the foregoing drawbacks can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,828,982 to Steigerwald; 3,940,023 to Umstead; 3,837,537 to Baldwin; and 3,894,665 to Swenson.
Plainly, despite the great effort expended by prior art designers and manufacturers of safety locking devices for valve assemblies in the pressurized can art, many drawbacks still exist. It is evident from the existence of such drawbacks that there has been a considerable need for an improved safety locking device valve assemblies used for dispensing the contents of pressurized containers which is effective, inexpensive to manufacture and will automatically revert to the locked position when use of the pressurized container is complete. Furthermore, there is also a longstanding but unsolved need for a locking device comprising an adaptable collar for use with any pressurized container.
The present invention solves the aforementioned problems by using a safety locking device having a new and unobvious structure and operation. Accordingly, the use of the present safety locking device will benefit all individuals who are concerned that young children may injure themselves by dispensing the contents of pressurized containers in an undesirable manner.


The present invention relates to a method for producing heterologous glycosylated proteins in non-animal eukaryotic cells such as in transformed bryophyte, yeast, ciliate or algae cells. In particular, the method relates to a method for producing glycosylated proteins comprising animal glycosylation patterns—comprising sialic acid residues—, such as pharmaceutical proteins for use in mammals, e.g. humans, in bryophyte cells such as those of Physcomitrella patens, the genetic material required therefore, such as DNA and RNA, vectors, host cells, methods of introducing genetic material there into, and uses thereof. Furthermore, the present invention relates to novel polypeptides and proteins obtained by the method according to the invention. Moreover, the present invention provides a method of producing sialic acid or CMP-sialic acid in a transformed non-mammalian eukaryotic cell, tissue or organism.

The present invention relates to a method for producing heterologous glycosylated proteins in non-animal eukaryotic cells such as in transformed bryophyte, yeast, ciliate or algae cells. In particular, the method relates to a method for producing glycosylated proteins comprising animal glycosylation patterns—comprising sialic acid residues—, such as pharmaceutical proteins for use in mammals, e.g. humans, in bryophyte cells such as those of Physcomitrella patens, the genetic material required therefore, such as DNA and RNA, vectors, host cells, methods of introducing genetic material there into, and uses thereof. Furthermore, the present invention relates to novel polypeptides and proteins obtained by the method according to the invention. Moreover, the present invention provides a method of producing sialic acid or CMP-sialic acid in a transformed non-mammalian eukaryotic cell, tissue or organism.
Plants are appropriate organisms for the production of a wide range of recombinant proteins (Ma et al. (2003) Nat Gen 4, 794-805). In terms of pharmaceutical proteins for use in mammals, including humans, post-translational modifications, such as glycosylation, are often required. However, a problem encountered in eukaryotic cell systems which have been transformed with heterologous genes suitable for the production of protein sequences destined for use, for example, as pharmaceuticals in humans, is that the glycosylation pattern on such proteins often acquires a native pattern, that is, of the eukaryotic cell system into which the protein has been introduced: glycosylated proteins are produced that comprise non-animal, that is to say, for example, non-mammalian glycosylation patterns and these in turn may be immunogenic and/or allergenic if applied in animals, such as mammals, e.g. humans.
Compared to mammalian-derived glycoproteins, plant-specific glycoproteins contain two additional residues. In the past, the use of recombinant glycoproteins produced by plants was limited by the plant-specific N-glycosylation that is acquired on such proteins. In the case of bryophytes Koprivova et al. ((2004), Plant Biotechnol J 2, 517-523) and in the case of seed plants Strasser et al. ((2004) FEBS Lett. 561, 132-136)) succeeded in overcoming this limitation using different approaches. The plants generated in the two studies showed complex N-glycosylation lacking the above mentioned two plant-specific sugar residues.
Moreover, in plants glycoprotein terminal beta 1,4-galactose residues are not found, indicating that a beta 1,4-galactosyltransferase is not present in plants. Stable integration and expression of this enzyme in tobacco plants (Bakker et al. (2001) Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 98, 2899-2904), in tobacco BY2 cells (Palacpac et al. (1999) Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 96, 4692-4697) as well as in gametophytic haploid bryophytes (Huether et al. (2005) Plant Biol 7, 292-299) has been described. The recombinant human beta 1,4-galactosyltransferase was functional and proteins isolated from transgenic material exhibited terminal beta 1,4-galactose residues.
The present invention is concerned with the further improvement of existing methods in order to ensure that polypeptides and proteins with still further improved functionality in animals, such as mammals, are produced.
The most complex N-glycan structures present on mammalian proteins, including human proteins, contain sialic acids as terminal sugar residues. Although the presence of sialylated glycoconjugates in non-transgenic suspension cultured cells of Arabidopsis thaliana was described recently by Shah et al. ((2003) Nat Biotechnol 21, 1470-1471), these results are under discussion (Seveno et al. (2004) Nat Biotechnol 11, 1351-1353).
However, the prior art does not provide any information on whether sialylation also takes place in bryophytes and may enable recombinant expression of heterologous glyco-proteins having the desired N-glycan characteristics. In addition, no data are available in the prior art as to the pure existence of sialic acid in any bryophyte.
A pre-requisite for sialylation on N-glycans is the presence of activated neuraminic acid (CMP NeuAc). In mammals different enzymes are involved in the synthesis of NeuAc (sialic acid)—the precursor of CMP NeuAc. UDP-N-acetylglucosamine-2-epimerase/N-acetylmannosamine-6-kinase (genbank accession number: AF155663) is responsible for generating ManNAc-6P which is processed by N-acetylneuraminic acid phosphate synthase (genbank accession number: NM—018946) to NeuAc-9P. The enzyme responsible for processing NeuAc-9P into NeuAc is not described up to now. Activation of NeuAc takes place in the nucleus of mammalian cells. Responsible for generation of the activated sialic acid (CMP NeuAc) is the enzyme CMP-N-acetylneuraminic acid synthase (genbank accession number: NM—018686). The activated product has to be translocated from the nucleus into the Golgi apparatus—in this process the CMP-sialic acid transporter (genbank accession number: NM—006416) is involved. Finally, sialylation on N-glycans takes place by the transfer of CMP NeuAc on terminal sugar residues—e.g. 1,4 linked—galactose residues. For this purpose, expression of a sialyltransferase (e.g. alpha-2,6 sialyltransferase; accession number NM—003032, gene bank) has to be ensured. The bryophyte, Physcomitrella patens, a haploid non-vascular land plant, is able to be used for the production of recombinant proteins (WO 01/25456).
The life cycle of bryophytes is dominated by photoautotrophic gametophytic generation. The life cycle is completely different to that of higher plants wherein the sporophyte is the dominant generation and there are notably many differences to be observed between higher plants and bryophytes.
The gametophyte of bryophytes is characterised by two distinct developmental stages. The protonema which develops via apical growth, grows into a filamentous network of only two cell types (chloronemal and caulonemal cells). The second stage, called the gametophore, differentiates by caulinary growth from a simple apical system. Both stages are photoautotrophically active. Cultivation of protonema without differentiation into the more complex gametophore has been shown for suspension cultures in flasks as well as for bioreactor cultures (WO 01/25456). Cultivation of fully differentiated and photoautrophically active multicellular tissue containing only a few cell types is not described for higher plants. The genetic stability of the bryophyte cell system provides an important advantage over plant cell cultures. In cell cultures of higher plants the secondary metabolism is more differentiated and this results in differences in secondary metabolite profiles.
In addition, there are some important differences between bryophytes and higher plants on the biochemical level. Sulfate assimilation in Physcomitrella patens differs significantly from that in higher plants. The key enzyme of sulfate assimilation in higher plants is adenosine 5′-phosphosulfate reductase. In Physcomitrella patens an alternative pathway via phosphor-adenosine 5′-phosphosulfate reductase co-exists (Koprivova et al. (2002) J. Biol. Chem. 277, 32195-32201). This pathway has not been characterised in higher plants.
Further differences are reflected in the regeneration of the cell wall. Protoplasts derived from higher plants regenerate new cell walls in a rapid manner, independently of the culture medium. Direct transfer of DNA via polyethylene glycol (PEG) into protoplasts of higher plants requires pre-incubation at 4 to 10° C. to slow down the process of cell wall regeneration (U.S. Pat. No. 5,508,184). In contrast, cell wall regeneration of protoplasts derived from protonema of Physcomitrella is dependent on culture medium. Protoplasts can be cultivated without regeneration of the cell wall over long periods. Without the intention of being bound by theory, it appears that the secretion machinery of the protoplast, essential for cell wall regeneration and protein glycosylation, differs from that of higher plants. Moreover, Physcomitrella patens shows highly efficient homologous recombination in its nuclear DNA, a unique feature for plants, which enables directed gene disruption (Girke et al. (1998) Plant J 15, 39-48; Strepp et al. (1998) Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 95, 4368-4373; Koprivova (2002) J Biol Chem 277, 32195-32201; reviewed by Reski (1999) Planta 208, 301-309; Schaefer and Zryd (2001) Plant Phys 127, 1430-1438; Schaefer (2002) Annu. Rev. Plant Biol. 53, 477-501) further illustrating fundamental differences to higher plants.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a more efficient method of producing animal proteins comprising animal glycosylation patterns, and in particular, glycosylated human proteins comprising human glycosylation patterns thereon—containing sialic acid residues. It is a further object to provide an efficient process for the production of heterologous animal proteins comprising animal glycosylation patterns, particularly human proteins comprising human glycosylation patterns—containing sialic acid residues—in bryophytes, such as Physcomitrella patens.
These and other objects will become apparent from the following description and examples provided herein.

Transformed plant cell expressing five mammalian proteins involved in sialylation and a protein involved in galactosylation


Embodiments of the present disclosure describe a method and an apparatus for testing an optical network, which may be applicable to an integrated OTDR and the field of optical network technologies. The method includes obtaining a maximum test time of a single group test; dividing a total test time into at least two groups of single group test time that is not greater than the maximum test time when the total test time is greater than the maximum test time of the single group test; performing the single group tests in sequence according to each single group test time; and instructing optical network equipment to restore to a normal working state when the single group test time corresponding to each single group test ends.

At present, an OTDR (Optical Time Domain Reflectometer, optical time domain reflectometer) is test equipment widely applied in optical fiber networks. A basic principle of the OTDR is sending probe light to an optical fiber, and receiving a reflected/scattered optical signal on an optical fiber link. Through analyzing and processing a transmitted signal and the received reflected/scattered signal, a real state of the optical fiber link including line attenuation and a type and position of an event point (bending, connector or fusion splice point) may be reflected. The OTDR is capable of implementing recognition and location of various events on the optical fiber link in a single-end test manner; therefore, the OTDR plays an important role in test, fault location and troubleshooting of an ODN (Optical Distribution Network, optical distribution network) in a PON (Passive Optical Network, passive optical network) system. In order to decrease cost, simplify a network structure and reduce the influence of a test signal on data communication, it is brought forward in the industry to integrate the OTDR to an optical module of an OLT (Optical Line Terminal, optical line terminal), to generally reuse a data transmitter in the optical module of the OLT as a transmitter of the OTDR, and to insert the test signal into a data signal or bear the test signal after modulation on the data signal, that is, using a wavelength for data transmission as a test wavelength to bear the test signal. In one implementation solution, reusing a LD (Laser Diode, laser diode) in the optical module as an OTDR LD, and reusing a MPD (Monitor Photo Diode, monitor photo diode) in the optical module as an OTDR PD is adopted as a hardware implementation manner; while for software control, the following manner is adopted: the OLT first sends an OMCI (ONT Management Control Interface, ONT management control interface) message to notify an ONU (Optical Network Unit, optical network unit) or an ONT (Optical Network Terminal, optical network terminal) to perform OTDR test setting; the ONU needs to perform clock locking, and sets a test start time and a test end time, and then the OLT inserts test data to downlink data for test through a specific identifier; the ONU does not perform clock extraction during the test; and the ONU quickly performs clock recovery when the test ends. However, the ONU is easily disconnected during the test, thereby causing service interruption.

Method, apparatus and system for testing an optical network


A shielded modular jack is provided for interfacing a modular plug with a printed circuit board. The plug has an external conductive shield, and the jack includes a dielectric housing having a plug-receiving cavity. A plurality of terminals are mounted on the housing with resilient cantilevered contact arms extending into the cavity for engaging respective contacts of the plug when the plug is inserted into the cavity. An electrically conductive shield includes a pair of electrically isolated shield portions each having a board contact projecting beyond the housing for contacting a circuit trace on the printed circuit board, along with a shield wall disposed in the plug-receiving cavity for electrically contacting the shield on the plug when the plug is inserted into the cavity. The inserted plug electrically couples the shield portions and, thereby, establishes electrical continuity between the circuit traces on the printed circuit board. A shunt module is inserted into a second cavity part in the jack housing. The shunt module includes a dielectric housing mounting at least a pair of normally closed shunt terminals each including a board contact projecting beyond the housing for contacting a circuit trace on the printed circuit board. One of the shunt terminals has an actuating portion projecting into the plug-receiving cavity for engagement by the plug to open the normally closed shunt terminals when the plug is inserted into the plug-receiving cavity.

Modular jacks are used in a variety of applications, such as telephone jacks for interfacing a modular telephone plug with a printed circuit board. Most modular jacks are fairly conventional in that they include a housing molded from an insulating material, with a plug receiving cavity opening at a front mating face of the housing, and with a row of cantilevered spring contact arms anchored in the housing and projecting into the cavity such that the contact arms are resiliently engaged by respective contacts of a complementary plug when it is inserted through the opening into the cavity. In many electronic environments, the jack typically is mounted to a printed circuit board, panel or the like, with the spring contact arms being portions of terminals which are electrically connected to conductive areas or circuit traces on the circuit board or panel.
In some applications, it is necessary to shield the interfacing circuits to avoid generating electromagnetic interference, and/or to avoid being impacted by ambient electromagnetic interference. For instance, the cables leading to the plug may include an electrically conductive shield, such as a braid or a foil, extending around the conductors of the cable. The plug itself will include an electrically conductive shield extending thereabout and in electrical contact with the shield of the cable. The jack, itself, will include its own shield which will be grounded to the board on which the jack is mounted. The jack shield typically is mounted on the outside or on the inside of the housing, and solder tails or other board contact means are provided for connecting the shield to grounds on the printed circuit board.
In other modular jack applications, it is necessary to detect the introduction of a plug into the cavity of the modular jack. Heretofore, such detection often has been accomplished by using one of the resilient contact arms or terminals of the modular jack. However, with such a system, that particular terminal is not available for any other use.
In still further applications, the modular jack may be coupled to a "shared line", whereby an additional, normally closed, circuit is required so that the circuit can be opened by the insertion of a plug into the jack to prevent use of the shared line by other jack and plug interfaces. Heretofore, such systems have required additional jack components, integrally molded cams or the like for effecting opening or breaking of the normally closed circuit.
This invention is directed to providing a modular shielded jack system which performs all of the above functions for the various stated applications in a very simply manner, without losing any of the jack circuits (i.e. to detect insertion of a plug) and without requiring extra components, cams and the like on the jack housing for opening normally closed circuits.


A method and apparatus for positioning a patient for the diagnosis of herniated lumbar disc disease permits the generation of increased intra-disc pressure which may serve to stimulate or accentuate abnormalities which can be diagnosed through MRI imaging. The apparatus consists of a frame in which a patient lies in a supine position. The frame allows the generation of muscular forces which are transmitted to the lumbar spine area. The patient is then positioned within an MRI imaging apparatus and subjected to MRI imaging while the muscular forces are maintained. The frame may preferably include a footboard and shoulder restraints positioned as to require the patient to slightly bend the knees. Extension of the legs generates the required forces.

The human spinal or vertebral column consists of a plurality of separate vertebrae joined to each other to permit forward, backward and sideways movement of the column. At the lower end of the spinal column are the lumbar vertebrae which support the small of the back. Above the lumbar vertebrae are the thoracic vertebrae, which lie behind the thoracic or chest cavity. The uppermost cervical vertebrae define the skeletal framework of the neck. The vertebrae are separated and supported against each other by cartilaginous elements or discs, and are held together by ligaments. The discs are subject to deterioration and disease, often creating significant pain.
Studies have shown that the intra-disc pressure in the lumbar spine while in a supine position is in the neighborhood of 50 Kpa, while pressures while in the sitting position average between 150 and 200 Kpa. These correspond roughly to pressures of 7.5 and 30 psi. The observation that patients with herniated lumbar disc disease are often least comfortable in the sitting position may be at least partially due to such pressure differences.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques are often used in the diagnosis of lumbar disc disease. Experience has shown, however, that it is not uncommon to find a disassociation between the severity of the patient's clinical symptoms and evidence of disease shown through MRI findings. This disassociation can be in part explained by the general inability of conventional MRI diagnosis systems to allow the patient to be imaged when placed into a variety of positions, including the sitting position, to vary the intra-discal pressures and alignment of the vertebrae. The supine position, in which all MRIs of the lumbosacral spine are performed, is associated with the lowest (50 Kpa) intradiscal pressure, and is thus not a good position to provoke disc herniation, and is thus far from the optimal position for effective disc herniation diagnosis. It has been shown, for example, that an L5-S1 protrusion was noticeably augmented when the patient was in the sitting position.
It is accordingly a purpose of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for the positioning of a patient for MRI imaging in conjunction with conventional MRI imaging units which allows the spine to be placed in an orientation which may assist in the identification of diseased areas by increasing intradiscal pressure to approximate that generated in the sitting position.
It is a further purpose of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus to allow a patient to be oriented for MRI imaging in a manner which increases the intra-discal pressure in the lumbar spinal region during the imaging process.
It is still a further purpose of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus which may be utilized in connection with MRI imaging devices of conventional construction for enhanced spinal imaging procedures and which do not compromise or affect the accuracy or operation of the MRI imaging device.

Method and device for positioning a patient for the diagnosis of herniated lumbar disc disease


A high voltage transient surge suppression system which provides an improved fusing to greatly reduce or eliminate the chance of secondary combustion during an excess power situation. The invention discloses a fuse link system which places one or more fuse links between a first electrical potential and a second electrical potential, and which uses air to insulate or isolate electrical potentials so that products of combustion from an excess power surge do not form a conductive path between electrical potentials on a printed circuit board.

The present invention relates to a fuse link system for Transient Voltage Surge Suppression (TVSS) devices, namely one which utilizes a fuse link system to provide the effective removal of electrical potential across a circuit component after a component failure.
Transient Voltage Surge Suppression (TVSS) systems are placed between a power line or source of power, and electrical equipment receiving power from the source of power, to protect the equipment in the event of a transient over-voltage condition. TVSS systems typically utilize Metal Oxide Varistors (MOV""s) or Silicon Avalanche Diodes (SAD""s) between an Alternating Current (AC) power or phase line and a neutral or ground line, to suppress a voltage transient. A plurality of MOV""s are typically mounted on a printed circuit board and the MOV""s become conductive when a transient voltage is experienced. During the temporary over-voltage condition, the MOV, in its conductive state, discharges the potentially damaging transient to the neutral or ground line.
There will typically be a column and row configuration wherein one or more MOV""s for example are wired in series, are electrically connected in parallel with a second plurality of MOV""s wired in series. When a transient voltage is experienced, the combination of MOV""s may participate in the discharge of the transient voltage to the neutral or ground line.
Fuses are typically electrically connected in series with the MOV""s to provide a cutout or fuse mechanism in the event that an MOV""s limits are exceeded and the MOV fails, and in order to prevent significant damage to all of the MOV""s when only some are affected. Such fuses are designed or intended to prevent heating of the surge suppression device and the printed circuit board, and ignition thereof. Typical off-the-shelf fuses will not work adequately with heavy duty surge suppression circuits because of the high transient currents that surge components are capable of diverting. A typical twenty millimeter (20 mm) diameter MOV is capable for instance of diverting approximately twelve thousand (12,000) amperes during an industry (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers xe2x80x9cIEEExe2x80x9d) standard 8/20 microsecond pulse.
In high energy operating environments, the limits of MOV""s may be exceeded or far exceeded, causing some MOV""s to fail short and burn. Since the failure mode for typical TVSS surge suppression components is low impedance and they are typically placed across the line (from phase or power to neutral or ground), high fault currents and arcing will result.
If the TVSS system is designed with fuses to take full advantage of the current capabilities of the surge suppression devices, the fuses will have to survive the same large current transient pulse that the surge suppression devices are designed to survive. A fuse sized to accomplish this task will have a high steady state current rating that may not open in time during a fault condition to keep upstream breakers from tripping.
If the fuses are sized to keep any upstream breakers from tripping they will open during transient conditions which have less magnitude than what the suppression devices are designed to withstand. This type of fuse coordination will take surge suppression devices off line that are not damaged therefore reducing the overall capabilities of the system. Since the fuse as well as the surge suppression device will be the limiting factor in the overall energy rating of the device many fuses will be required and therefore the size and cost of the fuses will be prohibitive.
The high fault currents or arcing cause high temperatures, which in turn cause most material in the vicinity of the fault (including the MOV""s) to combust.
A high transient current therefore creates unusual environmental conditions and concerns that typical electrical fuses are not sufficient to handle. Further contributing to the difficult operating and performance environment for higher energy TVSS systems is that such TVSS systems are typically placed or contained in a housing, so that products of combustion are contained or substantially contained within the housing. The needs of customers is driving the size requirements of the TVSS system to smaller and smaller sizes, which further contributes to the problem.
While circuit boards provide insulating functions during many applications and conditions, they do not reliably provide sufficient and 5 reliable insulating capabilities in the unique situation presented by high energy TVSS systems during a failure condition, at least in the proximity near the fuses and/or near the surge suppression devices or components. Circuit boards which inherently have a potential from one section of the circuit board to another, provide a surface or platform for the products of combustion to create a conductive path leading to unwanted additional damage to the TVSS system.
A fuse system is required to allow the components to survive a significant transient current, typically at lease 8,000 ampere (in the 8/20 industry standard test), but which will clear or open in the even of a is fault without tripping any feeding breakers or causing a fire/smoke/heat hazard. Since each system is typically comprised of multiple high current components, there will preferably be multiple fuses.
There have been prior fusing methods attempted, such as small traces which feed suppression elements. However, the products of combustion deposited on the printed circuit board during the clearing of the fuse trace may create a path on the printed circuit board through which current will continue to travel due to the close proximity of the fuse traces to or on the surface.
Embodiments of this high voltage transient voltage surge suppression fuse link system are therefore intended to provide an improved surge suppression fuse system which greatly reduces or eliminates some of the forenamed problems in fusing systems which provide fusing across a potential which is all located on a single circuit.
There is also a need to provide an alarm to the operator of said systems if the system becomes partially inoperable or if some or all of the surge suppression devices have become inoperable or destroyed.
When a fault condition is encountered in a TVSS system, after one or more of the fuses or fuse links opens, it is desirable that the surge suppression system signal to the user or operator that a reduced suppression condition is present, so that corrective action may be taken or planned. The signalling of a condition is typically accomplished by a switch which is either energized or de-energized when the one or more fuse links is lost. The switch output is typically a Form C type of switch which will change state when the alarm system is energized or de-energized.
Any one of a number of known remote monitoring systems may be used to access the Form C switch via a three pole terminal block located on the surge suppression circuit.
The surge suppression industry is moving toward smaller and smaller surge suppression systems and the amount of space required by each component, including the switch, is becoming more and more critical.
It is also a design criteria or goal that said switch minimize the heat contributed to the surge suppression system during normal operations. For this and other reasons, a lower power miniature relay is usually the design choice for surge suppression systems, because larger relays result in unnecessary heat.
Low power miniature relays typically employ a small permanent magnet internal to the relay, the use of which creates issues and problems since the relays are expected to operate in magnetic fields of varying intensity, including some very strong magnetic fields. For example, a larger magnitude transient may be ten thousand (10,000) amperes or greater. A strong magnetic field may weaken the internal magnet in the relay and under certain conditions, may render it inoperable.
The elimination of the magnets from the alarm system makes the alarm and signaling system more reliable and eliminates the effect of magnetic fields on the system.

High voltage transient voltage surge suppression fuse link system


A semiconductor device applicable to/an SRAM and the like provided with a flip-flop having a pair of transistors and a pair of high resistance loads and a Vcc line connected to the pair of high resistance loads of the flip-flop and holding a power supply voltage is described. The high resistance loads and the Vcc line have a common semiconductor layer which has an concentration of impurities at a portion forming the Vcc line higher than an concentration of impurities of a portion forming the high resistance loads. Furthermore, by forming a conductive layer such as tungsten on the portion of the semiconductor layer where the impurity concentration is high, the Vcc line is formed by the conductive layer or a cooperation of the conductive layer and the semiconductor layer disposed under the conductive layer. By means of such a structure, the Vcc line is surely made low in resistance, and the data access speed is made faster.

As a structure suitable for speeding up the data access time of an SRAM, are examples in which a power supply line is formed in a two-layer structure of a semiconductor layer and a conductive layer, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication JP-A-(HEI)02-26067 (published on Jan. 29, 1990). According to this reference, a power supply line is formed in a two-layer structure using polycrystalline silicon for the semiconductor layer and tungsten silicide for the conductive layer.
In the structure disclosed in above-mentioned publication, however, there is a possibility that a value of a resistance layer exceeds a designed value and that characteristics do not satisfy desired values since a high resistance semiconductor layer forming a resistance layer extends to a power supply layer. Furthermore, since the conductive layer is formed directly on the high resistance semiconductor layer, there is a possibility that the value of the high resistance layer greatly contributes to the resistance of the power supply layer, in case there is no good contact between both layers is not good. Further, a power supply line is formed by patterning of the conductive layer after the conductive layer is formed on the semiconductor layer in the manufacturing method thereof. Thus, it involves a problem that the resistance value is apt to vary depending on a quantity of etching of the conductive layer on the resistance layer, and it is very difficult to obtain a desired resistance value of the resistance layer.

Semiconductor SRAM with low resistance power line


A method of sharing a load of incoming calls to a first automatic call distribution (ACD) system with a second ACD system, comprising: establishing at each of the first and second ACD systems divert start service levels each comprising an average wait time of incoming calls before being answered of a predetermined number of incoming calls during a sample period, monitoring a local service level at each of the ACD systems, and diverting incoming calls from one of the ACD systems to the other of the ACD systems for answering thereof in the event the local service level of the one of the ACD systems is longer than its local divert start service level.

ACD systems are systems used in conjunction with a telephone switching system for routing incoming calls to any of a group of agents. Such systems are typically used to handle incoming calls to airline reservation offices, telephone company order desks, customer service departments for department stores, cable, telephone or credit card companies, etc. Telephones used by agents are typically grouped in hunt groups, and an ACD supervisor system distributes incoming calls equally among the agents of the group. If there are more incoming calls than available agents, the calls are routed to recordings, and are queued. Calls that are queued are routed to an agent as soon as one becomes available.
It has been found that sometimes the volume of calls is so high that the waiting time for a call to be answered is excessive, and callers become frustrated. This can cause callers to hang up, and create bad customer relations, which can ultimately result in lost sales.

Method of dynamic load sharing between systems with automatic telephone call distributors


Disclosed is a rechargeable lithium battery comprising a negative electrode and a positive electrode capable of intercalating and deintercalating lithium, and an electrolyte, wherein the electrolyte comprises a polyacrylate compound having three or more acrylic groups.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a rechargeable lithium battery and a method of fabricating the same.
(b) Description of the Related Art
The demand for rechargeable lithium batteries having a high energy density is increasing as the use of portable electronic instruments such as portable phones, camcorders, and notebook computers is increasing. Particularly, when a negative electrode has low potential on charging a battery, it tends to decompose the electrolyte, so that battery performance factors such as capacity, capacity retention, cycle-life characteristics, and low temperature performance deteriorate. Accordingly, it is important to prevent the negative electrode from reacting with the electrolyte in order to improve battery performance in a rechargeable lithium battery having an electrolytic organic solution or a polymer electrolyte.
Reactivity with the negative electrode should be considered when choosing a material for an electrolyte. Many solvents and mixtures for the electrolyte have been proposed to be non-reactive with the negative electrode. In addition to non-reactivity, solubility of supporting salt, reactivity with the positive electrode, ion-conductivity, and cost are considered when choosing the solvent for an electrolyte.
Examples of non-aqueous solvents for a rechargeable lithium battery that have been proposed include ethylene carbonate, butylene carbonate, dimethyl carbonate, methyl ethyl carbonate, diethyl carbonate, γ-butyrolactone, methyl propionic acid, butyl propionic acid, ethyl propionic acid, and mixtures thereof.
Another approach that has been attempted is inhibiting the reaction between the negative electrode and the electrolyte by adding a certain compound to the electrolyte, so that the battery performance improves. However, the compound adversely affects the charge and discharge reaction, and it is hard to provide the desired voltage and current in the battery.
Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. 1996-96852 discloses a battery including a negative electrode having a material for doping and dedoping lithium or metallic lithium, in which a non-aqueous solvent is composed of vinylene carbonate. It is not expected to improve the battery performance in a battery having a negative electrode of carbonaceous material, however, since the vinylene carbonate insufficiently coats the negative electrode.
When vinylene carbonate is added, excessive gas is generated and the battery deforms. It is believed that the gas generation is caused by the decomposition of electrolyte during formation of the coating layer at the first charge. The electrolyte is thereby denatured by the gas generation, resulting in impairment of the battery performance.

Rechargeable lithium battery and method of fabricating same


A substrate cleaning apparatus configured to clean a surface of a substrate having a circular shape by bringing a cleaning member into contact with the surface of the substrate and rotating the substrate and the cleaning member relatively is provided. A contact region of the cleaning member which comes into contact with the surface of the substrate is widened in a radial shape from a center side of the substrate toward a peripheral side thereof.

Patent Document 1 describes a spinner cleaning apparatus equipped with a spinner table capable of spinning at a high speed while holding a wafer; a cleaning water supply device configured to supply cleaning water to the wafer; a first brush member selectively set at an operation position or a non-operation position; and a second brush member selectively set at an operation position or a non-operation position while facing the first brush member. At the operation position of the first brush member, the first brush member is disposed around the spinner table such that a top surface of the first brush member is substantially on a level with a top surface of the spinner table. At the operation position of the second brush member, a surface of the second brush member is in contact with a top surface of the wafer.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2000-260740

Substrate cleaning apparatus and substrate cleaning method


In a recovery type steam-cooled gas turbine, a steam passage leading to a moving blade is provided on a central side of a rotor for reducing leakage of the steam. Cooling steam 70 of a low temperature and high pressure is led into moving blades 1, 2 through supply side steam passages 12, 13 and steam passages 15, 16. After being used for cooling, it flows into a cavity 22 through steam passages 16, 17 to be recovered as recovery steam 71 of a high temperature and low pressure at a rotor end 20 through recovery side steam passages 19, 21. The cooling steam 70 of low temperature and high pressure passes on an inner side of the recovery steam 71 in the rotor, hence there are fewer places from where the high pressure steam leaks outside as compared with the prior art, in which the high pressure steam is supplied from the outer side in the rotor, and the leakage amount of steam is reduced.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recovery type steam-cooled gas turbine in which supply steam for cooling is prevented from leaking.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of a gas turbine which employs a representative steam-cooled system in the prior art. In FIG. 3, numeral 50 designates a compressor and numeral 51 designates a gas turbine. In the gas turbine 51, there are provided moving blades 21, 22, 23 on a periphery of a rotor 30. A high temperature combustion gas is led into a combustion gas passage 52 to flow therethrough to rotate the moving blades 21, 22, 23 between stationary blades 43, 44, 45 on a stationary side and to thereby rotate the rotor 30.
In a rotor disc 31, there are provided steam passages 33, 32, which connect to each other and pass through the rotor disc 31 in an axial direction thereof. The steam passages 33, 32 are provided in plural pieces along a circumferential direction of the rotor 30. Cooling steam 80 is led into the steam passage 33 via a steam inlet 35 of a shaft 34 to flow through the steam passage 32 and to enter a cavity 36. It then enters the moving blade 22 of the second stage via a supply side passage 37 for cooling of the blade and, after having cooled the blade, the steam flows into a cavity 39 via a recovery side passage 38. On the other hand, the steam flowing in the steam passage 32 enters a supply side passage 41 via a cavity 40 to flow therefrom into the moving blade 21 of the first stage for cooling the blade and, after having cooled the blade, the steam flows into the cavity 39 via a recovery side passage 42 to be joined with the recovery steam which has come out of the moving blade 22 of the second stage. The steam, so joined, flows out into a cavity 60 to flow through a central portion of the rotor 30 and to be recovered in the shaft 34 portion. Also, a portion of the steam in the steam passage 32 flows through a cavity 61 to be supplied into the compressor 50 for cooling thereof.
As many combined cycle power plants are now being constructed with a need for a high temperature and high efficiency, a gas turbine using a steam-cooled system as mentioned above is being eagerly studied to be employed in place of an air-cooled system as a leading cooling system of the gas turbine. Especially in the combined cycle power plant, a portion of the steam generated at a steam turbine is extracted to be led into the gas turbine for cooling thereof. The steam, used for cooling and being temperature-elevated, is recovered to be further returned to the steam turbine side. Hence an effective use of heat is carried out so as to contribute to a higher efficiency of the power plant. Great attention is being paid thereto recently.
In the gas turbine using the representative steam-cooled system in the prior art as mentioned above, the steam extracted from the steam turbine side is led into the moving blade for cooling thereof via the plurality of the steam passages provided in the periphery of the rotor and via the disc. The steam which has been used for cooling which is temperature-elevated is led into the central portion of the rotor via the cavity to be recovered through the rotor central portion, and then the steam is returned to the steam turbine side to be made use of effectively.
In the above-mentioned prior art steam-cooled system, however, because a low temperature high pressure steam is supplied through the rotor periphery, there are many places from where the steam, while being supplied, leaks to the outside low pressure side through joint portions etc. Hence it is necessary to provide a lot of seal portions. Thus, it has been a large problem in the steam-cooled system as to how the supply steam on the high pressure side is prevented from leaking to the low pressure side.


Various embodiments of making an investment casting mold are disclosed. The method includes coating a sacrificial pattern with a prime layer that includes a first refractory slurry and a first refractory stucco; at least partially hardening the prime layer; and coating the prime layer with an intermediate layer that includes a second refractory slurry and a second refractory stucco. The method further includes at least partially hardening the intermediate layer; coating the intermediate layer with a first backup layer that includes a first thixotropic agent, the first thixotropic agent including a first polymer emulsion; coating the first backup layer with a second backup layer that includes a second thixotropic agent, the second thixotropic agent including a second polymer emulsion; and at least partially hardening the first backup layer and the second backup layer.

Investment casting, sometimes referred to as a "lost wax" process, is a well-known method of manufacturing components having intricate and complex shapes. This process is used in diverse large- and small-scale applications, ranging from the manufacture of superalloy gas turbine engine components to tiny customized orthodontic appliances.
An investment casting process typically begins with the preparation of a sacrificial wax pattern having a size and shape similar to that of the device to be manufactured. This wax pattern can be made by molding, a rapid prototyping process, or any other method. The pattern then undergoes a shelling process in which it is sequentially dipped into tanks containing coating materials, typically ceramic slurries. Each layer of coating material is given time to dry before the next dip. Additionally, dry refractory granules, or stucco, can be applied between dips to enhance the structural integrity of the shell. This process is repeated over and over to gradually build up a shell having multiple ceramic layers.
After the shell is thus formed, the pattern is then heated, typically using a flash furnace or steam autoclave, to melt the wax and allow it to be extracted from the mold. The end result is a mold with a hollow cavity faithfully reproducing the shape of the pattern. At this point, the mold can be further strengthened by firing. A molten metal alloy can then be introduced into the mold cavity to cast the desired part. Finally, after the alloy has been sufficiently cooled, the mold can be mechanically or chemically disintegrated to separate the cast part from the mold.
In conventional investment casting methods, the finished shell contains six or more layers, each of which could include two or more sub-layers of slurry or stucco. The first layer, known as a prime coat, is applied directly to the wax pattern. The prime coat often includes both a refractory slurry and a refractory stucco. The next layer, known as the intermediate coat, is applied over the prime coat and also includes a refractory slurry and a refractory stucco. Following application of the prime and intermediate coats, three or more backup coats are generally applied to build up the thickness of the shell. Each backup coat also commonly includes a refractory slurry and a refractory stucco. In many cases, a final seal coat is then applied over the final backup coat to prevent stucco from coming loose from the shell during further processing of the shell.

Method of making investment casting mold


A composite part defining a button shaped protrusion and including fibers reinforcing a resin matrix throughout the part. The fibers may be in the form of a woven mat or in the form of loose fibers that are deposited in a mold. Methods of making the composite part with a woven mat or loose fibers being provided in the button shaped recess that defines a void in the fiber reinforced composite part at a predetermined location where a self-piercing rivet is to be inserted.

As the automotive industry continues to focus on reducing the weight of vehicles to meet customer expectations on fuel economy and CAFE requirements, interest in alternative materials including carbon fiber composite applications has increased. In body-in-white structures, joining methods have traditionally relied on resistance-spot welding (e.g., in steel structures).
In the case of aluminum intensive vehicles and other mixed metal joining applications, self-piercing rivet technology prevails. One advantage of self-piercing rivet technology is that it is a high production volume assembly process. Self-piercing rivet technology is compatible with adhesive and both methods can be used together. The challenge often faced with self-piercing rivet technology, however, is that the substrate material must be ductile enough to form a "button", i.e., protrusion, which is the result of creating the joint and the necessary deformation to provide mechanical interlock. When composite parts do not have sufficient ductility to form a button on the obverse side, fibers may be exposed through cracks in this surface. Surface cracking and fiber displacement are undesirable, as they may reduce the durability of the joint and result in premature failure. With a self-piercing rivet, fibers in the area where the rivet is inserted may result in surface cracking or fiber displacement.
Composite materials, such as carbon fiber, glass fiber or natural fiber composites, can be limited in application due to challenges relating to joining parts together. Frequently, these composites have limited ductility and are not well adapted to large displacements and deformation required to join parts together with self-piercing rivets.
Adhesives are used extensively to join composite parts together. Adhesive joining is a lower volume production method when used in isolation and is susceptible to displacement (i.e., movement between the parts to be joined) until the glue is cured.
Other methods, such as blind rivets, may be used to fasten parts to a composite component but it is necessary to first drill or pre-form a hole through the parts to insert the blind rivet. Assembly operations for drilling holes, aligning the holes, inserting the blind rivet and affixing the rivet add to the cost of assembly and the cost of tooling. A joining solution is needed that meets high volume production requirements and enables joining in a low ductility material.
This disclosure is directed to overcoming the above problems and other problems associated with the use of composite parts in applications where other parts are joined to a composite part.

Assembly including a reinforced composite part with a pre-formed rivet receiving button


A tray positioning mechanism S contacts one of a paper feed tray 2 and a main apparatus body as the paper feed tray 2 is attached to a tray receiver 52, to restrict movement in an attaching direction of the paper feed tray 2. The tray positioning mechanism S is attached to the other of the paper feed tray 2 and the main apparatus body. The tray positioning mechanism S includes a fixed member Sf fixed to the other of the paper feed tray 2 and the main apparatus body, and a contact member St having a contact portion Sh. The fixed member Sf and contact member St are relatively movably connected to each other. At least one of the fixed member Sf and the contact member St has a plurality of reaction force receiving surfaces Ss formed continuously for receiving a contact reaction force of the tray positioning mechanism S when the fixed member Sf and the contact member St are in contact with each other. The reaction force receiving surfaces Ss are switchable to an operative state to vary and adjust the position in the tray moving direction of the contact portion Sh. As a result, a paper feeder for an image forming apparatus is provided, which can prevent a deviation of an adjusted position by a simple operation to adjust an optical of an image.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a paper feeder or an image forming apparatus comprising:
a paper feed tray attachable to a tray receiver of a main apparatus body by moving in a tray moving direction perpendicular to a direction of feeding paper loaded in the feed tray; and
a tray positioning mechanism for contacting one of the paper feed tray and the main apparatus body as the paper feed tray is attached to the tray receiver, to restrict movement in an attaching direction of the paper fixed tray, the tray positioning mechanism being attached to the other of the paper feed tray and the main apparatus body;
the tray positioning mechanism having a contact portion for contacting one of the paper feed tray and the main apparatus body, a position of the contact portion being adjustable in the tray moving direction;
2. Prior Art
Such a paper feeder for an image forming apparatus (which may be referred to simply as a paper feeder hereinafter) is used in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, printer or facsimile machine for feeding paper one sheet at a time for forming images at an image forming station.
To describe this further, a tray positioning mechanism is allowed to contact one of a paper feed tray and a main apparatus body as the paper feed tray is moved toward a tray receiver along a tray moving direction perpendicular to a direction of feeding paper loaded in the feed tray. The tray positioning mechanism is attached to the other of the paper feed tray and the main apparatus body. This restricts movement in the attaching direction of the paper feed tray is regulated, whereby the paper feed tray is loaded into the tray receiver as positioned in the tray moving direction.
Paper is fed from the paper feed tray loaded into the tray receiver in this way, and transported to the image formation station. However, the loading position of the paper feed tray in the tray receiver is variable in the tray moving direction due to a manufacture error of the tray receiver in the main apparatus body, a manufacture error of the paper feed tray, and so on Consequently, at the image forming station, a paper setting position where the paper from the paper feed tray is placed deviates from an image forming position in a direction extending along the tray moving direction.
Then, the position of a contact portion of the tray positioning mechanism that contacts the main apparatus body or the paper feed tray is made adjustable in the tray moving direction. The position of the contact portion is adjusted along the tray moving direction to adjust the loading position of the paper feed tray to the tray receiver in the tray moving direction. By doing so, what is called optical aids adjustment is effected to adjust the paper setting position to the image forming position in the direction along the tray moving direction.
In such a paper feeder, conventionally, the tray positioning mechanism includes a bent plate-like contact member having a position adjusting plate portion extending in the tray moving direction, and a contact plate-like portion extending in the paper feed direction. The position adjusting plate portion defines a linear slot extending in the tray moving direction. The tray positioning mechanism further includes a bolt-like object passed through the slot and screwed to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body, to attach the bent plate-like contact member to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body.
The bolt-like object is loosened to allow the bent plate-like contact member to move along the tray moving direction. The bent plate-like contact member is moved along the tray moving direction, to move the contact portion provided in the contact plate-like portion in the tray moving direction and set the contact portion to a target position. Thereafter the bolt-like object is tightened to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body, to attach the bent plate-like contact-member to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body. In this way, the position of the contact portion is varied and adjusted in the tray moving direction, to adjust the optical axis of the image.
In a different conventional construction, the tray positioning mechanism includes a bent plate-like contact member having a position adjusting plate portion extending in the tray moving direction, and a contact plate-like portion extending in the paper feed direction, in which the position adjusting plate portion defines a plurality of bolt receiving bores arranged in the tray moving direction. The tray positioning mechanism further includes a bolt-like object passed through one of the bolt receiving bores and screwed to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body, to attach the bent plate-like contact member to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body.
The bolt-like object is removed from the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body, and is passed through a desired one of the bolt receiving bores and tightened to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body, to attach the bent plate-like contact member to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body. In this way, the position of the contact portion is varied and adjusted in the tray moving direction, to adjust the optical axis of the image (see Japanese Patent Application "Kokai" No. 2001-287840, for example).
The conventional paper feeders have the following drawbacks in the optical axis adjustment for an image, and improvement has been desired.
In the construction in which the position adjusting plate portion of the bent plate-like contact member defines a linear slot extending in the tray moving direction, and the bolt-like object is passed through the slot and screwed to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body to attach the bent plate-like contact member to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body, the bolt-like object is loosened to allow the bent plate-like contact member to move along the tray moving direction without being removed from the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body. This allows the position of the contact portion to be adjusted in the tray moving direction, and the optical axis of an image may be carried out relatively easily.
However, with the bolt-like object passed through an intermediate position with respect to the tray moving direction of the slot, and screwed to the paper feed tray or main apparatus body, when the tray positioning mechanism contacts one of the paper feed tray and the main apparatus body, a force applied to the tray positioning mechanism counter to the tray loading direction (which may be called contact reaction force herein after) is received by a frictional force produced by tightening the bolt-like object to the paper feed tray or main apparatus body. When the tray positioning mechanism is strongly pressed on the paper feed tray or main apparatus body to apply a strong contact reaction force, or when the bolt-like object is tightened only insufficiently, the position of the bent plate-like contact member attached to the paper feed tray or main apparatus body tends to shift in the tray moving direction, and therefore the position of the contact portion also tends to shift. This results in a problem that the adjusted paper setting position tends to deviate from the image forming position.
In the construction in which the position adjusting plate portion of the bent plate-like contact member defines a plurality of bolt receiving bores arranged in the tray moving direction, and a bolt-like object is passed through one of the bolt receiving bores and screwed to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body to attach the bent plate-like contact member to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body, a contact reaction force will be received in the state of the bolt-like object contacting the inner peripheral surface of the bolt receiving bore. It is then possible to prevent the position of the bent plate-like contact member attached to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body from shifting in the tray moving direction. As a result, the optical axis of an image may be adjusted in a way to avoid a deviation the adjusted position of the paper setting position (which may be called simply the adjusted position hereafter) from the image forming position.
However, an operation for adjusting the optic axis of an image must be carried out by once removing the bolt-like object from the paper bed tray or the main apparatus body, passing the bolt-like object through a desired one of the bolt receiving bores and tightening the bolt-like object to the paper feed tray or the main apparatus body. Thus, the optical axis adjusting operation of an image is complicated and troublesome.
This invention has been made having regard to the state of the art noted above, and its object is to provide a paper feeder for an image forming apparatus which can prevent a deviation of an adjusted position by a simple operation to adjust an optical axis of an image.

Paper feeder for an image forming apparatus