The engine ECU executes the program including the step of starting a timer that counts the time elapsed from a start request, the step of detecting a temperature of the engine, and the step of calculating a DI ratio r such that the fuel is injected from the in-cylinder injector as well, when the engine is in the very cold or cold state, when there is no abnormality in the fuel system, and when starting of the engine is not yet detected even after a lapse of a predetermined period of time from the start request, only if the fuel pressure in the high-pressure system is not lower than a fuel pressure threshold value.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a control apparatus for an internal combustion engine having first fuel injection means (an in-cylinder injector) for injecting fuel into a cylinder and second fuel injection means (an intake manifold injector) for injecting fuel into an intake manifold or an intake port, and particularly relates to a technique for starting the internal combustion engine using the fuel injected from the first fuel injection means.
2. Description of the Background Art
An internal combustion engine having a first fuel injection valve (in-cylinder injector) for injecting fuel into a combustion chamber of an engine and a second fuel injection valve (intake manifold injector) for injecting fuel into an intake manifold of the engine, and configured to stop fuel injection from the second fuel injection valve (intake manifold injector) when the engine load is lower than a preset load and to allow fuel injection from the second fuel injection valve (intake manifold injector) when the engine load is higher than the preset load, is known. In this internal combustion engine, the total injection quantity, i.e., a total quantity of the fuel injected from the fuel injection valves, is preset as a function of the engine load. The total injection quantity increases with the increase of the engine load.
The first fuel injection valve (in-cylinder injector) is arranged to open directly to the combustion chamber of the internal combustion engine, and injects the fuel pressurized by a fuel pump directly into the cylinder. The in-cylinder injector injecting the fuel directly into the cylinder of the internal combustion engine is used to improve the fuel efficiency and the like, by accurately controlling the mixed state of the air-fuel mixture within the cylinder by injecting the fuel during the latter stage of the compression stroke.
Since the in-cylinder injector is thus configured to directly inject the fuel into the cylinder, the following inconvenience may arise particularly during the cold start of the internal combustion engine. At the start of the internal combustion engine, it is often the case that the pressure of the fuel in a high-pressure fuel system supplying the fuel into the in-cylinder injector is lower than a prescribed pressure because of insufficient pressurization of the fuel by the high-pressure pump, since the high-pressure pump is driven by the driving force of the internal combustion engine. Thus, at the start of the internal combustion engine, if the fuel is supplied via the intake manifold injector and the in-cylinder injector at a fuel injection ratio therebetween that is set not taking the above-described point into consideration, the in-cylinder injector would inject fuel under the condition where the pressure in the high-pressure fuel system is extremely low immediately after cranking, in which case the fuel injected would be quite inadequate in atomization (or, too large in particulate size).
Such insufficient atomization of the fuel at the start of the internal combustion engine means that, when a prescribed quantity of fuel is supplied, mixing of the fuel with the air would not be conducted efficiently, which may lead to a decrease in concentration of the combustible air-fuel mixture in the vicinity of the spark plug, and thus, lead to failure in startup. If the quantity of the fuel supplied is increased for compensation, the lubricant oil may be diluted with the fuel, or black smoke (particulate matter) may be generated by combustion of the air-fuel mixture that is too rich locally as well as combustion of droplets, leading to deterioration of exhaust gas emission (particularly, HC and CO will increase).
Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2001-336439 discloses a fuel injection control apparatus for an in-cylinder fuel injection engine that enables appropriate setting of a ratio between the quantity of the fuel injected into a cylinder and the quantity of the fuel injected into an intake port taking account of the particulate state of the fuel injected into the cylinder at the start of the engine, to thereby improve the engine starting capability as well as the exhaust gas emission. The fuel injection control apparatus for an in-cylinder fuel injection engine disclosed in this publication includes an in-cylinder injector for injecting fuel into a cylinder, and an out-cylinder injector for injecting fuel into an intake pipe, and supplies the fuel at engine start using both injectors. The control apparatus includes fuel injection ratio setting means for setting a fuel injection ratio between the in-cylinder injector and the out-cylinder injector in a variable manner to obtain the total quantity of the fuel required at engine start, using the fuel pressure in the high-pressure fuel system supplying the fuel to the in-cylinder injector as a primary parameter. More preferably, the fuel injection ratio setting means uses the temperature condition upon fuel injection into the cylinder as another parameter, in addition to the fuel pressure in the high-pressure fuel system, and changes the fuel injection ratio such that the quantity of the fuel injected via the out-cylinder injector increases as the fuel pressure in the high-pressure fuel system is lower and the temperature is also lower.
According to this fuel injection control apparatus for an in-cylinder fuel injection engine, the quantity of the fuel injected from the out-cylinder injector is increased as the fuel pressure in the high-pressure fuel system is lower and the temperature is lower as well, to thereby restrict the quantity of the fuel supplied via the in-cylinder injector during the cold start of the engine. This can quickly increase the fuel pressure in the high-pressure fuel system, and accordingly, it is possible to realize atomization of the fuel injected via the in-cylinder injector in a short time.
During the cold start of the engine, it is common practice to decrease the quantity of the fuel injected via the in-cylinder and increase the quantity of the fuel injected via the intake manifold injector, as described in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2001-336439. In doing so, however, the fuel injected via the intake manifold injector in the very cold state would adhere to the wall of the intake pipe or to the intake port of a low temperature, leading to a lean air-fuel ratio of the air-fuel mixture in the combustion chamber. The state where the air-fuel ratio of the air-fuel mixture in the combustion chamber does not become rich continues until adhesion of the fuel on the intake side is saturated, which results in a long time required for starting the engine. Meanwhile, simply causing the in-cylinder injector to inject the fuel as well would not solve the conventional problem as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2001-336439.
The condition to increase the quantity of the fuel injected via the out-cylinder injector in the state where the fuel pressure in the high-pressure fuel system is low and the temperature is low, as in the fuel injection control apparatus for an in-cylinder fuel injection engine disclosed in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2001-336439, merely defines that the fuel is injected in a greater quantity from the intake manifold injector. That is, since the condition to increase the quantity of the fuel injected from the in-cylinder injector is not taken into consideration, it is still difficult to make the air-fuel mixture in the combustion chamber rich, resulting in a long starting time.

Control apparatus for internal combustion engine


An athletic training system includes a personal electronic device having a processor, a memory, and a GPS sensor. The processor runs an application that calculates at least one of distance traveled, elevation change, and speed, of the user carrying the personal electronic device, and based upon location information obtained from the GPS sensor provides a training-related message to the user based upon at least one of the calculated distance traveled, elevation change, and speed.

This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
There is an increasing emphasis on living healthy lifestyles and a large segment of the population is participating in activities that support such lifestyles. This includes a growing trend of participation in endurance sports. Healthy lifestyles, the training behind endurance sports, and athletic lifestyles all center on proper nutrition, hydration and an appropriate exercise regimen. However, misinformation abounds, but even well informed individuals have difficulty achieving optimal training.

Harman International Industries, Incorporated


A policy server determines and explicitly provides a source host with a multipath access policy. The policy server obtains a notification that the source host is connected to an access network. The notification includes authentication credentials of a user of the source computing device. The policy server determines a multipath policy based on the authentication credentials. The multipath policy determines whether data flows from the source host are transmitted over multiple network connections. The policy server determines a set of one or more multipath proxy devices based on the authentication credentials, and provides an access policy to the source host. The access policy includes the multipath policy and network addresses associated with the multipath proxy devices.

Enterprises now have the option to expand and increase coverage density of wireless networks by integrating various radio technologies, such as IEEE 802.11, Long Term Evolution-Unlicensed (LTE-U), and small cell, into wireless connectivity services provided by the enterprises. With the creation of Citizen's Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), approximately 150 MHz of allocated spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band can be used by the enterprises for wireless access under certain sharing regulations. With the availability of multiple radio technologies, enterprises can provide multi-access support for mobile devices.
Multipath network connections open up issues with network services provided in the network, such as firewalls or deep packet inspection functions, which may not be able to perform distributed correlation of flows being routed through different access paths. As a result of inadequate visibility and control into the subflows of a multipath data flow, enterprise firewalls are often configured to drop all multipath subflows as a default policy.

Multipath subflow anchoring for security policy enforcement


A cascade conveyor for sorting and conveying container closures, such as for conveying and sorting screw closures in a drinks filling installation, comprising at least one sorting bar which can be moved in a conveying direction and which is orientated transversely relative to the conveying direction for conveying the container closures from a collection receptacle which receives unsorted container closures to a closure unloading zone. There may also be provided in the closure unloading zone a conveyor belt which extends when viewed in the gravitational direction below the sorting bar in order to laterally discharge container closures conveyed by the sorting bar.

In drinks filling installations, it is generally known to close filled containers with container closures in order to prepare them for further processing and for transport to the consumer. Different container closures are known, such as, for example, screw closures, which are provided as a plastics material moulded component and which are screwed onto an outer thread in the opening region of the filled container. There are further known crown corks which are formed on the filled container. There are further also known so-called roll-on closures in which a closure sleeve is placed on a thread formed on the outer side of a container opening and then by means of a roll-on closure mechanism the closure sleeve is formed on the thread.
In all closure types, the container closures are supplied to a closure device or a closure mechanism for closing the filled containers with the container closures. In order to ensure that container closures produced in a separate device or installation always reach the closure device with the correct orientation, it is known to sort the container closures beforehand.
It is, for example, known to convey and sort the container closures by means of a so-called cascade conveyor. In this instance, unsorted container closures are conveyed from a collection receptacle, for example, in the form of a vessel, by means of a bar chain having a large number of sorting bars to a closure transfer unit located higher with respect to the collection receptacle. On the conveying path between the collection receptacle and the closure transfer unit, the container closures located on the sorting bars are sorted in a sorting region in which the sorting bars are inclined in such a manner that only container closures which face in the direction of the sorting bars with their base, remain in the sorting bars as a result of their centre of gravity. Container closures with a different orientation fall, as a result of their centre of gravity located outside the sorting bar, back into the collection receptacle and can be received and conveyed again by one of the sorting bars. The container closures sorted in this manner are after passing through the sorting region transferred from the closure transfer unit with the predetermined orientation to another processing device of the drinks filling installation, for example, another transport device or directly to a closure device.
In order to laterally push out the container closures from the sorting bars at the closure transfer unit, it is known to provide one or more compressed air nozzles and to laterally blow out the container closures by means of compressed air or compressed air pulses. Such a cascade conveyor can be seen, for example, in DE 10 2004 030 667 A1. The use of compressed air for pushing out, as a result of the compressed air flowing out of the nozzles, results in a high level of background noise. In addition, the compressed air has to be provided by a device provided separately for this purpose. This is complex and expensive.
There is further known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,924,732 A a cascade sorter in which closure caps are conveyed in a position-orientated manner with respect to a transversely conveying conveyor belt. In this instance, the container closures are transferred by the sorting bars from the trajectory thereof to the conveyor belt arranged beside the cascade conveyor. Defective container closures, for example, bent closures, may in this instance remain suspended in the cover rail at the transfer location and thus cause a stoppage. Furthermore, defective closures may become jammed at the slot between the cascade conveyor and the adjacent conveyor belt, by means of which the conveyor chain is redirected, and thus also cause a stoppage of the installation.

Cascade conveyor and method for sorting and conveying container closures


A device, method, and computer program product for identifying and communicating with digital communication devices within a communication range that includes a transmitter configured to transmit a control signal and a voice signal, a receiver configured to receive the control signal and the voice signal, a user interface unit having a display area, and a computational unit configured to control the transmitter to periodically transmit identifying information as the control signal. The control signal is received as remote identifying information by the other digital communication devices within the communication range. The remote identifying information is displayed on the display area of each of the digital communication devices receiving the control signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a two-way digital communication device and more specifically to a digital communication and identification device, method, and computer program using two-way radio-based technology to communicate with other digital communication devices and to show a list of other known digital communication devices that are available for communication.
2. Discussion of the Background
Two-way radios have become popular communication tools where land-based telephone or other communication methods are not well-suited. These two-way radios generally allow users to communicate with each other over known radio frequencies within the radio range of the two-way radios. Early two-way radios systems relied on the voice of the user of the two-way radio to alert another two-way radio user. As improvements were made to these systems, other call notification methods became available such as providing an audible tone to a particular two-way radio user. In many instances, these notification methods are ineffective because the sender of the call notification does not receive notification of whether the recipient is within the communication range of the two-way radio.
Thus, there exists an unmet need in the art for a two-way radio that notifies the user when another two-way radio is within or outside the radio range of the two-way radio.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Walkie-talkie with screen to show a list of other walkie-talkies within communication range


Methods and compositions which are useful in the treatment of amyloidosis. In particular, methods and compositions are provided for inhibiting, preventing and treating amyloid deposition, e.g., in pancreatic islets, wherein the amyloidotic deposits are islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP)-associated amyloid deposition or deposits. The methods of the invention involve administering to a subject a therapeutic compound which inhibits IAPP-associated amyloid deposits. Accordingly, the compositions and methods of the invention are useful for inhibiting IAPP-associated amyloidosis in disorders in which such amyloid deposition occurs, such as diabetes.

Amyloidosis refers to a pathological condition characterized by the presence of amyloid. Amyloid is a generic term referring to a group of diverse but specific intra- and extracellular protein deposits which are associated with a number of different diseases. Though diverse in their occurrence, all amyloid deposits have common morphologic properties, including that they stain with specific dyes (e.g., Congo red), and have a characteristic birefringent appearance (sometimes characterized as "red-green") in polarized light after staining. They also share common ultrastructural features and common x-ray diffraction and infrared spectra.
Amyloidosis can be classified clinically as primary, secondary, familial and/or isolated. Isolated forms of amyloidosis are those that tend to involve a single organ system. Different amyloids are also characterized by the type of protein present in the deposit. For example, neurodegenerative diseases such as scrapie, bovine spongiform encephalitis, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and the like are characterized by the appearance and accumulation of a protease-resistant form of a prion protein (referred to as AScr or PrP-27) in the central nervous system. Similarly, Alzheimer's disease, another neurodegenerative disorder, is characterized by congophilic angiopathy, neuritic plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, all of which have the characteristics of amyloids. In this case, the plaque and blood vessel amyloid is formed by the beta protein. Other diseases, such as juvenile and adult-onset diabetes, complications of long-term hemodialysis and sequelae of long-standing inflammation or plasma cell dyscrasias are characterized by the accumulation of amyloids systemically. In each of these cases, a different amyloidogenic protein is involved in amyloid deposition.
Islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP) is known to be capable of forming fibrils which are deposited in the pancreas of patients with Type II diabetes, forming deposits. Once these amyloid deposits have formed, there is no known therapy or treatment which significantly reduces or clears the deposits in situ.

Methods and compounds for inhibiting amyloid deposits


A plug for connecting capillaries includes at least one capillary tube, at least one sealing, and at least one pressure piece. The capillary tube includes a first inner diameter and an open end section. The sealing includes a second inner diameter, a first end section and a shape adapted to seal the open end section of the capillary tube when connected. The pressure piece is adapted to exert at least axial pressure and/or force to at least a part of the sealing. The pressure piece is also adapted to host the first end section of the sealing in abutment with the open end section of the capillary tube so that the capillary tube and the sealing are aligned.

In chromatography systems, liquids or gases are fed through suitable connection lines between the components of a system. These connection lines can be made, e.g., from stainless steel, have available at their ends suitable connection systems, also called fittings, in order to be able to create a tight connection with the connections of the components.
Such a connection system was already described in 1975 in U.S. Pat. No. 3,880,452. A capillary tube forming the connection line between two components is pushed into the capillary tube receptacle opening of a bushing unit or connection unit and fixed in the bushing by means of an attachment screw that has a central borehole for guiding the capillary tube. For sealing, one or more sealing elements that surround the capillary tube in their front end region are pressed into the capillary tube receptacle opening that runs conically inward by means of the attachment screw when the capillary tube and bushing unit are connected. However, the sealing position cannot be realized in the plane of the end surface perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the capillary tube, but is instead offset to a certain rearward distance from the end surface in the axial direction. In this way, a dead volume is produced that has a disadvantageous effect, especially in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).
In the case of the extremely high pressures used in high-performance liquid chromatography and in order to be able to guarantee the tightness of such connections, sealing elements are often used like those described, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,619,473. This document involves annular sealing elements that are, for a major part, likewise made from stainless steel and that have, in the longitudinal section, a conical profile of the outer diameter. Such a sealing element interacts with a conical receptacle opening in the bushing unit, wherein the conical receptacle opening has a larger angle than the sealing element relative to the longitudinal axis of the capillary tube. When in this configuration the sealing element is pressed into the receptacle opening, an extremely high, radially inward pressure is exerted by means of an attachment screw onto the front region of the sealing element, so that the sealing position is realized. Through the high pressure deformation of the sealing element and the capillary tube can be generated, wherein the sealing element is pressed with its front edge in an annular shape into the outer periphery of the capillary tube. Such a deformation is unwanted, especially because the sealing element here is connected to the capillary tube with a positive-fit and non-positive-fit connection. The sealing element can no longer be easily shifted in the axial direction onto the capillary tube. If the sealing connection is released and should such a plug element be screwed into another bushing unit, e.g., because a component of the chromatography system must be replaced, then, a tight connection can be produced, However, due to tolerances or manufacturing-dependent differences in the depth of the receptacle opening, it cannot be taken for granted that the capillary tube applies a force again with its end surface on the end surface of the line to be connected. If the receptacle opening of the bushing unit of the exchanged component is longer in the axial direction than the previously used component, then an undesired dead volume is created. If the receptacle opening for the capillary tube in the exchanged component is shorter in the axial direction than the previously used component, then the capillary tube is even deformed, possibly damaged, by the pressure of the attachment screw, and a tight connection is no longer possible in certain circumstances. This is because the sealing element mounted on the capillary tube with a positive-fit and non-positive-fit connection cannot move in the axial direction. However, in the case of such a fitting, a small dead volume also can be hardly avoided, if the end surfaces of the capillary tube and the line to be collected are directly opposite each other or contact each other, because the sealing position is not located in the region of the end surface of the capillary tube or the line to be connected.
In order to be able to compensate for such tolerances or in order to be able to use connection systems of different batches or manufacturers with one and the sample plug unit, a self-adjusting plug for high-performance liquid chromatography is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,494,500 in which the capillary tube is biased axially in the direction toward the capillary tube receptacle openings of the bushing unit by means of a spring provided in the attachment screw. For the seal, an exchangeable ferrule is used that, however, has a conical construction again in its front region and interacts, for forming the seal, with an inner wall of the ferrule receptacle opening that has a more pronounced conical construction. Here, there is the risk again that the ferrule is "crimped tight" onto the capillary tube, especially when the sealing element is made from a metal, for example, stainless steel.
In addition, in this plug unit it is disadvantageous that a support element for the screw spring must be mounted on the capillary tube, wherein this support element makes the production of such a plug unit more complicated.
For avoiding a dead volume, a unit is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,083,702 for connecting capillary tubes for gas chromatography in which the capillary tubes are similarly connected to each other with their end surfaces abutting. The capillary tubes are fixed by means of annular elements that are wedge shaped in the longitudinal section and that interact with corresponding conical recesses in the connection housing. In this case, however, the seal is simpler relative to a connection that is compatible with high-performance liquid chromatography, because, in the case of gas chromatography, the pressures that are used are significantly lower, for example, by up to 6 bar. There is no flexibility with respect to the use of the limit for different depths of the capillary tube receptacle borehole.
In addition to the already mentioned disadvantages, the known connection systems feature the disadvantage that the risk arises that the sealing element remains in place in the relevant receptacle opening of the bushing unit when the plug unit is dismounted and the capillary tube is pulled out from the bushing unit.
In addition, the trend in high-performance liquid chromatography is toward using thinner capillary tubes, because these can be more easily bent to better adapt them to the current installation conditions. Due to the production process, thinner capillary tubes also feature smaller tolerances in the inner diameter and smaller eccentricity of the inner diameter.
For using capillary tubes with smaller outer diameters in connection with conventional bushing units or connection units, these are provided at the ends with a sleeve for adapting the outer diameter to the diameter of the thicker conventional capillary tubes. However, this represents an additional expense and increases the dead volume of a connection. In addition, in the case of an unfavorable tolerance position, an additional dead volume between the sleeve and capillary tube could also be created.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,134,283 B2, incorporated herein by reference, describes a plug unit and system for connecting capillary tubes, especially for high-performance liquid chromatography, with a plug capillary tube projecting through a hole of a plug housing, which is detachably connectable to a bushing unit. The plug capillary tube front end projects into a capillary tube receptacle in the bushing unit with its end face essentially aligned opposite a front end of a bushing capillary tube or a bushing capillary passage opening of the bushing limit, the end face of which is butted against. The plug housing applies a force, with its end face facing the plug capillary tube end, directly or indirectly on an annular sealing element surrounding the plug capillary tube in the region of the front end of the plug capillary tube such that the front end of the plug capillary tube is sealed through deformation of the sealing element against the capillary tube receptacle opening.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,091,693 B3, incorporated herein by reference, describes a plug unit for connecting capillary tubes that includes a plug housing that has an axial borehole, a plug capillary tube that projects through the axial borehole, and a sealing element that surrounds the plug capillary tube. The front end of the plug capillary tube is sealed by an elastic and/or plastic deformation of the sealing element against the capillary tube receptacle opening of a bushing unit. A hollow cylindrical pressure piece is provided that surrounds the sealing element in an axial region facing away from the end surface of the plug capillary tube, and the pressure piece has a rearward end side that faces away from the end surface of the plug capillary tube and that can be loaded by the plug housing with an axial pressure force when the plug unit and bushing unit are connected.
The present invention is directed to a capillary tube connection for connecting capillary tubes, further advantageously for high-performance liquid chromatography, which can be used in a simple way for capillary tubes with different outer diameters in connection with bushing units with conventional diameters of receptacle openings. It can simultaneously offer the possibility of compensating different axial tolerances of receptacle openings in bushing units. In addition, when the plug unit is dismounted, it can be avoided that the sealing element detaches from the capillary tube and remains in the bushing unit. The present invention is also directed to a plug for such connection and a method for connecting capillary tubes


Disclosed is an imaging system and method for the non-pure positron emission tomography (NPET). The NPET comprises a PET subsystem to detect the annihilated photons, and a SPECT subsystem to detect the associated gamma. These two subsystems are connected by a triple coincidence circuit. The source position can be determined through detection of the three photons using the triple coincidence circuit. As long as these three photons are simultaneously detected and their energies are right, the source position is directly calculated and located on the intersection of an associated line and an annihilated line. The present invention provides good temporal resolution and quantitative analysis. It immunes to scatter and random events and achieves a high signal-to-noise ratio. Real imaging is also possible in the NPET system.

Because of its high sensitivity and specificity for detecting a wide range of cancers in oncology, the positron emission tomography (PET) system is becoming very popular for diagnostic study. Coincident detection in the PET system provides the projection sampling which can be reconstructed to yield tomographic images. The primary advantage of PET is its ability to quantify the metabolism activity inside the body.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional PET system with the coincidence circuitry. The PET system utilizes coincident detection of a pair of photons generated by the annihilation of the positron and electron. It includes hundreds of detectors arranged in a ring shape and positioned around an object being tested. Every two detectors are connected by the coincidence circuitry. When two photons are detected at the same time (<12 ns), it is called a coincidence event. The incident direction of photons is the line that connects these two detectors. Many coincidence events can be obtained after scanning for a long time. The whole distribution of emitting sources can be computed and obtained by image reconstruction methods, such as filter backprojection (FBP) and maximum likelihood expectation maximization (MLEM).
Currently, the spatial resolution of a PET system is limited by the high 511-keV photon energy, non-colinearity of the annihilation photons, positron range, and detector technology. A typical small animal PET system provides an absolute sensitivity of approximately 4% and an intrinsic resolution of approximately 1.6 to 1.8 mm (Tsui and Wang 2005).
High-resolution small animal single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging is possible through the use of pinhole collimation at a much lower cost than small animal PET. There is no theoretic limit of the achievable spatial resolution, it is possible to achieve approximately 1 mm of spatial resolution. The pinhole SPECT requires a heavy collimated detector to rotate around the object and a small misalignment in the setup can generate artifact. Note that to improve the sensitivity, multiple pinholes collimator can be employed. Artefacts can be arisen from overlapping projections in multi-pinhole reconstruction for such a conventional SPECT.
So far 18FDG (fluoro-deoxyglucose) is the most commonly used pharmaceutical for PET study. However, the absorption of FDG is mainly due to the absorption of glucose for the metabolic process and is not organ specific. Furthermore, the short half-life of 18F limits its usage when a long observation is needed.
In recent years, there is a growing interest in the use of non-pure positron emitters. The use of non-pure positron emitters as an alternate to 18F for PET study is gaining popularity in diagnostic or therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals due to their longer half-lives and target specific properties (Herzog et al 2002). The long half-life is advantageous for developing radiochemical syntheses and allows the tracing of slow biochemical processes.
Of particular interest are 38K, 52m Mn, 60Cu, 94 mTc, and 124I. These isotopes are not pure positron emitters; high energy gamma rays (called associated gamma rays) are emitted simultaneously with the positron that can be scattered down to the primary energy window and give rise to random coincidence events. These detected photons are not angularly correlated and therefore contain no information regarding the location of their events. This downgrades the PET performance. The isotropic property of the associated gamma rays causes the events to be evenly distributed across the entire sinogram and contributes only a low frequency background to the reconstructed image.
Robinson et al (2004) claimed that non-pure emitters are not suitable for 3D mode due to the potentially large increase in the observed scatter fraction expected, in "Performance of a block detector PET scanner in imaging non-pure positron emitters—modelling and experimental validation with 124I", Phys. Med. Biol. 49 5505-28. Schueller et al (2003) investigated the problem of third gamma in PET and concluded that no benefit comes from the third gamma, in "Addressing the third gamma problem in PET", IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci. 50 50-2.
Guerra et al (2000) invented a PET-SPECT system. The PET-SPECT system is not stationary, but requires 180° rotations of gantry to collect all the data. In the disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 6,303,935, John C. Engdahl et al invented a combination PET/single photon (SPECT or planar) nuclear imaging system. As shown in FIG. 2, the system utilizes a pair of dedicated PET detectors 212a-212b and at least one dedicated single photon detectors 214a-214b mounted on a single gantry 210. The PET detectors 212a-212b perform only high energy PET imaging, while single photon detectors 214a-214b perform only low single photon imaging. Simultaneous PET/single photon imaging studies can be carried by the single system. The photon detectors also may be removable and mountable on a separate, dedicated single photon imaging gantry.
Kacperski et al (2004) also proposed a PET system utilizing the coincident detection of 3γ decays from positron annihilation. By the law of energy and momentum conservation, the source position can be determined. However, the accuracy of source positioning is greatly dependent upon the energy resolution of the detectors and the 3γ decay is a rare event which is about 2 orders less than regular 2γ decays.
There are some examples of the important non-pure positron emitters. 76Br (bromine-76) is used for the investigation in molecular imaging (Beattie et al 2003). 86Y (yttrium-86) is used for dose estimation in patient therapies with 90Y-labeled radiopharmaceuticals (Buchholz et al 2003). 82Rb allows the assessment of absolute myocardial perfusion as well as coronary flow reserve (Fakhri et al 2005). The positron emitter 94mTc can be used to improve quantification of tracers currently labeled with 99mTc (Barker et al 2001). 124I PET is utilized in comparative studies in which diagnostic or therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals labeled with the 123I or 131I (Herzog et al 2002). The long half-life of these non-pure positron emitters is advantageous for developing radiochemical syntheses that allows the tracing of slow biochemical processes which cannot be adequately examined by the commonly used short-lived positron emitters.

Imaging system and method for the non-pure positron emission tomography


A battery separator comprising an ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene microporous membrane radiation grafted with a monomer, the separator having the following properties:. (a) a porosity ranging from about 50% to about 95%, PA1 (b) an average pore size ranging from about 0.1 to about 20 microns, PA1 (c) an electrolytic resistance ranging from about 1 to about 50 m.OMEGA.-in.sup.2, PA1 (d) a maximum weight loss of 1% and a change in electrolytic resistance of no greater than 25% after immersion in an aqueous solution of 35% KOH and 5% KMnO.sub.4 at 50.degree. C. for 1 hour, PA1 (e) a tensile strength of from about 3.5 to about 5.5 lb/in in both length and width directions, PA1 (f) a KOH absorption ratio of from about 5 to about 30, PA1 (g) a Gurley air permeability of about 1 to 300 sec/10 ml, and PA1 (h) a thickness from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil.. Further provided is a battery comprising at least one pair of electrodes of opposite polarity, an electrolyte, and a separator of the present invention located between the electrodes of opposite polarity.

Batteries exist in many different physical forms, using various combinations of electrodes. With the advent of electric vehicles and other machinery, the demand for high energy density batteries has increased. This demand has impacted upon battery design. For such applications, it is desirable to manufacture batteries that have electrodes in close proximity to one another. However, when such batteries are constructed, there is an increased risk of the battery developing an internal short-circuit due to electrode proximity.
As one example of the aforementioned problem, reference is made to alkaline nickel-cadmium batteries. Traditionally, such batteries used a sintered negative electrode. Today, that type of electrode has been replaced by a plastic bonded electrode to increase storage capacity. However, when repeatedly charged and discharged, a battery having a such an electrode is more likely to internally short-circuit earlier than such a battery having a sintered negative electrode. This internal short-circuit problem is caused by a phenomenon known as "migration," in which cadmium active material grows and transfers from the negative electrode to the positive electrode.
One method of overcoming the aforementioned problem has been through the use of microporous separators. The growth of cadmium active material is retarded through a microporous separator, and, therefore, this method can substantially completely prevent internal short-circuits caused by the growth of cadmium active material. One problem with such separators, however, is that they have low gas permeation coefficients, creating the potential for undesirable rupturing or venting of the battery. A second problem arises from the inclusion of surfactants in such separators for the purpose of achieving adequate membrane wettability. Such surfactants eventually leach out of the separator, contaminate the battery environment, and cause premature failure and degradation of the battery.
Wettable battery separators are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,219, and these separators are made of filaments and fibers of ultrahigh molecular weight polyolefins that are formed as a web, having a void volume of at least twenty percent. Wettability is imparted by incorporating a finely divided, hygroscopic filler material into the polyolefin extrusion mixture prior to extrusion. Such a formulation imparts a more permanent wettability to the material than is provided by simple coating, but still presents problems in actual practice.
There are numerous battery systems in existence which require the use of a separator. Unfortunately, each system has its own specific requirements with regard to separator properties. However, certain properties of separators are considered to be desirable regardless of the particular battery system in which they are employed:
(a) thin and reliable separation between positive and negative electrodes, PA1 (b) very low electrolytic resistance in the electrolyte, PA1 (c) long term chemical stability upon exposure to the electrolyte and oxidants, even at elevated temperatures, PA1 (d) ability to absorb and retain a large amount of electrolyte, PA1 (e) good gas permeability, and PA1 (f) high mechanical strength in machine and transverse directions. PA1 (a) a porosity ranging from about 50% to about 95%, PA1 (b) an average pore size ranging from about 0.1 to about 20 microns, PA1 (c) an electrolytic resistance ranging from about 1 to about 50 m.OMEGA.-in.sup.2, PA1 (d) a maximum weight loss of 1% and a change in electrolytic resistance of no greater than 25% after immersion in an aqueous solution of 35% KOH and 5% KMnO.sub.4 at 50.degree. C. for 1 hour, PA1 (e) a tensile strength of from about 3.5 to about 5.5 lb/in in both length and width directions, PA1 (f) a KOH absorption ratio of from about 5 to about 30, and PA1 (g) a Gurley air permeability of about 1 to 300 sec/10 ml.
No commercially available separators meet all of these criteria.
Thus, there remains a need for such a battery separator, which concurrently possesses a variety of desirable properties. It is an object of the present invention to provide such a battery separator, as well as a battery incorporating such a separator.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention, as well as additional inventive features, will be apparent from the description of the invention provided herein.


A method for configuring a multiviewer of at least one service having at least one sensor providing a sensor signal, comprising: specifying at least one characteristic feature, extracting for each of the at least one sensor signals at least one characteristic feature vector representing at least the at least one characteristic feature of the sensor signal, and arranging the sensors signals in a two-dimensional matrix in such a manner that a distance is minimized, the distance being the distance between at least one characteristic feature vector of one of the sensor signals and the corresponding characteristic feature vector of at least one neighboring sensor signal, the at least one neighboring sensor signal being an adjacent neighbor to the one sensor signal in the matrix. Further, a multiviewer is shown.

Multiviewers are known in the art and are used to visualize simultaneously the information or signals provided by a plurality of services and/or a plurality of sensors.
For example, a broadcasting service may have different sensors in form of different cameras, for example when broadcasting a sports event. Each of the cameras provides a video signal or video stream that has to be monitored by the director of the transmission to choose the best video for broadcasting. Multiviewers also have application in monitoring services.
In order to operate a multiviewer efficiently and easily, the visualized signals of the sensors, e.g. the different pictures of the video transmission, have to be grouped and arranged in such a manner that sensor signals having similar properties are close to one another.
This configuration has to be done manually by the user of the multiviewer and is a tedious and time-consuming task.

Method for configuring a multiviewer as well as multiviewer


Embodiments of the present invention relate to an injection devices that inject a specified reagent with cells into lesions and other areas of body tissue. Particular embodiments comprise a main tube with a projection hole on its exterior, an axially-moveable needle tube with a needle at its tip, a reagent supplier configured to supply a specified reagent into the needle tube, and axially-moveable guide wires.

The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to Japanese Patent Application No. 2003-059868, filed on Mar. 6, 2003, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to reagent injection devices. More particularly, this invention relates to an injection device that injects a specified reagent (which need not but may contain cells, chemicals, etc.) into lesions and other areas of body tissue.
2. Description of the Related Art
In various medical procedures, catheters and other medical apparatuses have traditionally been inserted into components of the cardiovascular system, the gastrointestinal tract, the urinal tract, and other tubular organs of the human body. Recently, as illustrated in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Nos. 2001-104487 and 2001-299927, reagent injection catheters have been used to inject specific reagents into lesions of body tissues.
Reagent injection catheters of the prior art typically consist of a tubular catheter body, a needle tube, and a needle. The needle usually projects out of the catheter body and pierces various areas of body tissue. However, conventional reagent injection devices are generally equipped with a long, flexible needle tube, which can become bent or retracted upon contact with the relatively hard lesions of body tissue. Consequently, it can be difficult to insert the needle to a desired depth or to a specific position in lesions of body tissues.


A method of forming a spin torque assisted magnetic recording writer is disclosed wherein a spin flipping (STO) device is recessed from an air bearing surface. The STO device has a middle flux guiding layer with a magnetization that flips to a direction anti-parallel to the write gap field when a current of sufficient magnitude is applied from the trailing shield towards the main pole (MP) thereby increasing reluctance in the write gap to enhance writability. A STO stack is deposited and patterned to define a cross-track width on the MP tapered trailing side. Thereafter, the STO stack is patterned to define a STO device with a front side recessed from the air bearing surface, and a backside. A write gap is deposited surrounding the STO device, and has a thickness greater than or ≤ to STO thickness to enable design flexibility. Then, first and second trailing shields are formed.

As the data areal density in hard disk drive (HDD) writing increases, write heads and media bits are both required to be made in smaller sizes. However, as the write head size shrinks, its writability degrades. To improve writability, new technology is being developed that assists writing to a media bit. One approach that is currently being investigated is microwave assisted magnetic recording (MAMR), which is described by J-G. Zhu et al. in "Microwave Assisted Magnetic Recording", IEEE Trans. Magn., vol. 44, pp. 125-131 (2008).
In a MAMR writer, the main pole generates a large local magnetic field to change the magnetization direction of the medium in proximity to the writer. By switching the direction of the field using a switching current that drives the writer, one can write a plurality of media bits on a magnetic recording medium. In MAMR, a spin torque oscillator (STO) is inserted in the WG, and when a critical current is applied, a STO oscillation layer is driven into a precessional state to apply a RF field on a magnetic medium bit to lower the coercivity therein and thereby lower the switching current necessary to provide a MP field for a write process. Magnetic flux in the main pole proceeds through the ABS and into a medium bit layer and soft underlayer (SUL). In some common designs, the flux returns to the write head through a trailing side loop comprised of a trailing shield structure, and through a leading side loop that includes a leading shield and back gap connection. There is also a gap field that exits the main pole through the write gap, side gaps, and leading gap, and is not directly responsible for writing.
Although MAMR has been in development for a number of years, it is not shown enough promise to be introduced into any products yet because of several technical problems. One problem is a fringing growth when the spin torque oscillator (STO) bias is turned on. Thus, when a current of sufficient magnitude is applied across the STO device, the oscillation (flux generation) layer may flip to be anti-parallel to the write gap. As a result, the reluctance in the write gap is increased thereby boosting the MP write field and the return field to the trailing shield.
Spin transfer (spin torque) devices are based on a spin-transfer effect that arises from the spin dependent electron transport properties of ferromagnetic-non-magnetic spacer-ferromagnetic multilayers. When a spin-polarized current passes through a magnetic multilayer in a CPP (current perpendicular to plane) configuration, the magnetic moment of electrons incident on a ferromagnetic layer interacts with magnetic moments of the ferromagnetic layer near the interface between the ferromagnetic and non-magnetic spacer. Through this interaction, the electrons transfer a portion of their angular momentum to the ferromagnetic layer. As a result, spin-polarized current can switch the magnetization direction of the ferromagnetic layer such as the STO flux generation layer (FGL) if the current density is sufficiently high.
The insertion of a thin STO device in the write gap adds extra steps and dimensional control requirements for the fabrication process. Therefore, a straightforward process that readily integrates the STO device with existing features in the MAMR writer is desired for lower cost and higher device yield. Preferably, an improved process will enable greater flexibility in STO design.

Process of forming a recessed spin flipping element in the write gap


Calcined ceramic powder is made by blending a precursor powder with a form of carbon such as carbon black and heating the blend in an oxygenated atmosphere. The carbon acts as a separator, preventing coalescence of the percursor powder during the calcining process. The blend is characterized by the presence of interstitial spacing between the particles of the carbon powder and the precursor powder. The carbon is eventually oxidized to carbon dioxide and/or carbon monoxide and volatilizes as such, leaving behind the calcined ceramic powder. In a preferred embodiment, the heating is effected by microwave radiation. The carbon absorbs the microwave radiation, heating up the precursor powder and calcining it to form the ceramic powder. Once all the carbon has been oxidized, no more microwave radiation is absorbed, and the heating stops, making the process self-limiting.

This invention relates to a method of preparing calcined ceramic powders, in particular a method using microwave radiation as the energy source.
Powdered ceramics have a large number of applications. Varistor powder is added to polymers to make stress-grading materials for high voltage products. See, e.g., WO 97/26693 (1997); FR 2,547,451 (1984) and EP 0,005,387 (1979). Powdered lithium manganese oxide (LiMn.sub.2 O.sub.4) is used in rechargeable batteries. Powdered phosphors are used in fluorescent lights. Powdered clays find various uses, such as fillers for polymers and thickeners for pastes.
Ceramics are generally prepared by heating (firing) a green body made of a precursor material at a high temperature, between 600.degree. and 1,400.degree. C. One method of obtaining a powdered ceramic is to prepare the ceramic in bulk by firing and then crushing it. This approach is disadvantageous because an extra step is introduced and because crushing may destroy or damage important microstructural characteristics of the ceramic. For instance, the non-linear resistivity of varistor material is attributed to grain boundary effects. Crushing has been found to damage these boundaries, so that the crushed powder does not have the same non-linear resistivity as the bulk material. Bulk heating is energy-inefficient, as heating through a thick body is required.
An alternative is to calcine a precursor powder in a kiln. However, the precursor material may coalesce or fuse together--i.e., sinter--if the process is not performed properly. Processes in which a flux-containing precursor powder is fired, as occurs in the preparation of varistors and phosphors, are especially prone to fusing.
Thus, it is desirable to develop another method of preparing calcined ceramic powders which is more efficient, in terms of energy consumption, capital equipment requirements, and the number of steps required.


Methods operable in a SCSI RAID subsystem to enable improved portability in host based RAID management programs. RAID management programs which provide an administrative user interface for managing the operation and configuration of a RAID subsystem have traditionally communicated with the RAID system using control function calls (ioctl) through the operating system's device driver. Ioctl function calls are notoriously non-standardized among different operating systems and even among different versions of certain operating systems. The methods of the present invention are operable within a RAID subsystem to enable use of standardized read and write system function calls to the device driver for communication with a control port within the RAID subsystem. A special LUN is reserved for such read and write administrative calls. The special control port LUN processes the read and write calls to perform the desired RAID management functions on behalf of the management program on an attached host computer. Tag field values are used as logical block numbers in the read and write commands directed to the control port LUN to identify which of several management programs issued the command. The control port LUN within the SCSI RAID subsystem enables the host management program to utilize standardized read and write system function calls. Use of these standardized system function calls significantly enhances the portability of RAID management programs between a plurality of computing environments.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to control methods operable within a disk array subsystem (RAID) and in particular to methods operable within a disk array subsystem to simplify host computer RAID management and control software integration.
2. Background of the Invention
Modern mass storage subsystems are continuing to provide increasing storage capacities to fulfill user demands from host computer system applications. Due to this critical reliance on large capacity mass storage, demands for enhanced reliability are also high. Various storage device configurations and geometries are commonly applied to meet the demands for higher storage capacity while maintaining or enhancing reliability of the mass storage subsystems.
A popular solution to these mass storage demands for increased capacity and reliability is the use of multiple smaller storage modules configured in geometries that permit redundancy of stored data to assure data integrity in case of various failures. In many such redundant subsystems, recovery from many common failures is automated within the storage subsystem itself due to the use of data redundancy, error codes, and so-called "hot spares" (extra storage modules which may be activated to replace a failed, previously active storage module). These subsystems are typically referred to as redundant arrays of inexpensive (or independent) disks (or more commonly by the acronym RAID). The 1987 publication by David A. Patterson, et al., from University of California at Berkeley entitled A Case for Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive Disks (RAID), reviews the fundamental concepts of RAID technology.
There are five "levels" of standard geometries defined in the Patterson publication. The simplest array, a RAID level 1 system, comprises one or more disks for storing data and an equal number of additional "mirror" disks for storing copies of the information written to the data disks. The remaining RAID levels, identified as RAID level 2,3,4 and 5 systems, segment the data into portions for storage across several data disks. One of more additional disks are utilized to store error check or parity information.
RAID storage subsystems typically utilize a control module that shields the user or host system from the details of managing the redundant array. The controller makes the subsystem appear to the host computer as a single, highly reliable, high capacity disk drive. In fact, the RAID controller may distribute the host computer system supplied data across a plurality of the small independent drives with redundancy and error checking information so as to improve subsystem reliability. Frequently RAID subsystems provide large cache memory structures to further improve the performance of the RAID subsystem. The cache memory is associated with the control module such that the storage blocks on the disk array are mapped to blocks in the cache. This mapping is also transparent to the host system. The host system simply requests blocks of data to be read or written and the RAID controller manipulates the disk array and cache memory as required.
To further improve reliability, it is known in the art to provide redundant control modules to reduce the failure rate of the subsystem due to control electronics failures. In some redundant architectures, pairs of control modules are configured such that they control the same physical array of disk drives. A cache memory module is associated with each of the redundant pair of control modules. The redundant control modules communicate with one another to assure that the cache modules are synchronized. In prior designs, the redundant pair of control modules would communicate at their power-on initialization (or after a reset operation). While the redundant control modules completed their communications to assure synchronization of the cache modules, the RAID storage subsystem would be unavailable with respect to completing host computer requests. If the cache modules were found to be "out of sync" the time required to restore synchronization could be significant. In addition, a failure of one of the redundant pair of control modules would further extend the time during which the RAID storage subsystem would be unavailable. Manual (operator) intervention could be required to replace a detective redundant control module in order for the RAID subsystem to begin processing of host computer requests.
Control and administrative functions to manage the various geometries and configuration options of such RAID subsystems are often embodied in programs operable in host computer systems attached to the RAID subsystem. Such host computer programs communicate with the RAID subsystem via standard I/O functions provided by the underlying subsystem. Standard I/O read and write operations are typically used to exchange data with the storage array subsystem. I/O control functions are most frequently used to control and administer the subsystem geometries and configuration parameters. I/O control function calls provide an "out of band" communication channel to the storage array subsystem to clearly distinguish the data exchange functions from the I/O control administration functions.
Use of "standard" I/O control functions raises problems in the portability of the administrative programs operable on attached host computer systems. I/O control functions in operating systems are not well standardized. There exists significant variability between operating systems as to the features available in, and the restrictions imposed on, the I/O control functions. As applied, for example, to the administration of SCSI storage array devices, I/O control functions (e.g., ioctl) in some systems are incapable of returning SCSI sense data from the device while other systems can return such sense data. Some systems impose restrictions on I/O control function calls such as the inability to utilize the function call in a multi-threaded (multi-tasking) manner in conjunction with a single storage array device. Or, for example, other system may preclude use of I/O control functions in conjunction with other standard file oriented I/O function calls. Additionally, perhaps due in part to the lack of standardization, I/O control functions tend to be less thoroughly tested by systems vendors than other I/O related library functions.
In view of the above it is clear that a need exists for an improved method for communicating administrative information and configuration parameters to a storage array subsystem. In particular, a need exists for methods operable within a RAID storage system which serve to simplify and standardize the host based computer programs which manage attached RAID subsystems.

Methods for simplified integration of host based storage array control functions using read and write operations on a storage array control port


A memory in-pixel (MIP) circuit, a driving method of the MIP circuit, and an LCD panel fabricated using the MIP circuit. The MIP circuit comprising an input circuit, a control circuit and an output circuit. The input circuit brings the first input terminal and the second input terminal into conduction with a first node and a second node respectively in response to the first control signal of the first control terminal being active. The control circuit is configured to set and maintain the potential of a third node or a fourth node active based on the potential of the first node and the second node. The output circuit is configured to bring the output terminal into conduction with the first or second input terminal according to the potential of the third and the fourth node in response to the second control signal of the second control terminal being active.

At present, with the constant development of display technologies, people have set higher requirements for the ultra-low power consumption of LCD display technologies. As a new type of low-power consumption LCD display technology, the MIP display technology has a very broad development prospect due to its advantages of e.g. no change of the structure of LCDs, no need of developing new materials and simple structure.
MIP circuitry disclosed in the prior art is, however, composed of a CMOS circuit so that the manufacturing process of MIPs is complicated, which increases the manufacturing difficulty and cost of MIPs.

Memory-in-pixel circuit and driving method thereof, and liquid crystal display panel including the same

BEIJING BOE OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.


A fiber optic optical osmometer (50) includes a fiber optic probe (20) inserted into a chamber (24) including a filter member (10 ) and a diaphragm (14) responsive to a pressure change in the chamber. The filter member transmits a fluid including an analyte into the chamber. A reagent within the chamber reacts with the analyte to form a reaction product. The filter member retains the reaction product in the chamber creating a pressure change. The diaphragm is illuminated by light directed to it from the fiber optic probe. Light reflected from the diaphragm is returned via the fiber optic probe to a detector and measurement electronics. As the diaphragm responds to pressure changes in the chamber, light returned to the detector is modulated proportional to the pressure change. The pressure change may be interpreted as a measure of the concentration of the analyte in the fluid.

Advances in fiber optic technology have stimulated interest in fiber optic chemical sensors (FOCS). In such devices, the presence of a chemical analyte induces a chemical reaction with a reagent. The reaction is detected as a change in an optical signal. In well known fluorescent methods the change in optical signal may be due to fluorescent material resulting from or being stimulated by the chemical reaction.
FOCS, in general, offer the well known advantages of optical fibers, i.e., small size and freedom from electromagnetic interference. For medical applications they offer the advantage of stability and potential for compatibility with a medical environment, either in a laboratory or "in vivo".
Although fluorescence FOCS has been demonstrated for a number of analytes, they exhibit a limited lifetime in certain environments. Dyes, for example, which are often used as sensors are susceptible to photochemical degradation. Additionally, fluorescence sensors require the use of relatively complex signal detection equipment capable of distinguishing a fluorescence signal induced by an analyte from background fluorescence. Concern about background fluorescence limits the use of plastic fibers which may be safer and more economical in many applications such as medical applications. Further, it is difficult to find a reaction for each possible analyte which leads to a fluorescent product, since only about ten percent of all molecules fluoresce.
A paper "An Intravascular Protein Osmometer", J. Hansen and R. Brace, Am. Journal of Physiology, 244 (5) pp H726-729 (1983), describes a device for measuring the concentration of protein in circulating blood, using osmotic pressure. In the Hansen and Brace device, two identical capillary tubes are placed in a sample. One of the tubes is open to sample pressure, while the other is terminated with an osmotic membrane, formed by a dialysis fiber. Osmotic pressure is determined by the difference in pressure in the two capillary tubes. A significant disadvantage of the Hansen and Brace device was that several minutes were required for the pressure to reach equilibrium. The equilibration time could be reduced by increasing the area of the osmotic membrane, but about half of the response time was attributed to the equilibration time within a capillary.
Although osmotic pressure has been used to measure concentrations of analytes of biological and medical interest, well-known methods of measuring osmotic pressure, using a device generally termed an osmometer are, in general, not satisfactory for this purpose, primarily because of shortcomings in common osmometric methods. For example, a review of osmometry by Schaeffer, "Modern Aspects of Membrane Osmometer Design", Colloid and Polymer Science, 257, pp 1007-1108, (1979) identifies the desirability of improvements in osmometric methods such as shorter response time, eliminating a free boundary between a solvent and a solution, a capability to externally modify pressure difference and temperature compensation. Such improvements are indeed required if osmotic pressure measurement is to be commercially useful as a method of chemical detection.

Optical osmometer for chemical detection


A device for contacting a circuit board having one or more contact elements, an intake into which at least one section of the circuit board can be inserted, an actuator for moving the circuit board relative to the contact elements until the contact elements are contacted, and at least one securing component for fixing the circuit board in the position in which the contact elements are contacted.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device for contacting a circuit board which is to be connected, at least temporarily, with, for example, a measuring device or a circuit of any kind.
2. Description of Related Art
At present it is known for such circuit boards to be contacted by plugging on one or more connector heads, which, however, is generally associated with the disadvantage of requiring a relatively large plugging force, which substantially results from the mechanical locking of the connector heads by means of spring elements. A contacting by means of connector heads is therefore unsuitable, at least in the case of circuit boards with flexible carrier plates. Moreover, connection errors can result from the plugging of the individual connector heads which can lead to damage to the circuit board or to the electrical system connected to it.
This problem is solved through a device according to, and described in, the following description of the invention and the associated claims.

Rosenberger Hochfrequenztechnik GmbH & Co. KG


A tire noise reduction device includes a sound absorbing member made of a porous material; and a band member disposed between the sound absorbing member and the tire inner surface and provided for attaching the sound absorbing member to a tire inner surface, the band member including chamfered portions on both surface sides at both ends in a width direction of the band member.

Cavernous resonance, which is caused by vibration of air inflating a tire cavity portion, is one cause of tire noise. The cavernous resonance occurs as a result of a tread portion of a tire, which is in contact with a road surface when a vehicle is driven, vibrating due to unevenness of the road surface, and the vibration causing the air inside the tire cavity portion to vibrate. Of the cavernous resonance, there is a frequency band that is perceived as noise, and it is thus important to reduce the noise level of this frequency band in order to reduce the tire noise.
As a method for reducing the noise caused by the cavernous resonance phenomenon described above, a technology has been proposed in which a sound absorbing member made of a porous material, such as a sponge, is attached to a tire inner surface, namely, on an inner circumferential surface of a tread portion using an elastic fixing band (see Japan Patent No. 4281874, for example).
However, when the elastic fixing band has a rectangular cross-section, the sound absorbing member is caused to warp due to the centrifugal force when the vehicle is driven for a long time in a high-speed region. As a result, friction occurs between edge portions of the elastic fixing band and the sound absorbing member and between edge portions of the sound absorbing member and the tire inner surface, and breakage of the sound absorbing member and damage to the tire inner surface may occur.

Tire noise reduction device and pneumatic tire provided with same


An acceleration tube for use in a hydro-cutting system. A flexible, tapered tube is mounted in a rigid cylindrical housing. Flanges formed at opposite ends of the flexible tube mount adjacent ends of the rigid housing, forming an annular chamber radially between the tube and the housing, and longitudinally between the flanges. A centralizing ring maintains the outlet end of the tube aligned coaxially with the cutting assembly of the hydro-cutting system, but is difficult to bypass during insertion of the tube into the housing. A fluid valve is used to inject fluid into the chamber to force the outlet end flange past the centralizing ring during installation of the tube in the housing.

The invention relates generally to hydraulically fed food cutting ("hydro-cutting") apparatuses, and more particularly to a tube assembly used in a hydro-cutting apparatus to cut food products into a plurality of smaller pieces.
Many food products, particularly vegetables and fruits, are processed prior to sale to preserve the food so it is safe and appealing at the time of consumption. The processing can be by canning or freezing, among others. Furthermore, unless it is an edible size before processing, most food products must be sliced or otherwise shaped into an edible size prior to the preservation process. Slicing and shaping operations have been accomplished traditionally with sharpened blades. Such blades can be hand-held, but hand-held knives are relatively slow and dangerous to the person using them. Other blades are machine-driven and other machines for cutting drive the food products at high speed into a stationary or machine-driven blade. Food cutting machines increase the rate and consistency of slicing, and provide a higher degree of safety in the food slicing industry.
Recent advances in food product cutting technologies have resulted in the hydraulically fed cutting apparatus. The driving force used in this system is moving water, and thus the process is called "hydraulic cutting", which is referred to by the shorthand term "hydro-cutting". Hydro-cutting involves the propulsion of water and food products, typically at very high speed, through a path that includes a stationary cutting blade. In the vegetable and fruit cutting industry, food products are sliced along the longitudinal axis (e.g., French fries) and along the transverse axis (e.g., potato chips). Production cutting systems and related knife fixtures are generally well known in the art of hydro-cutting vegetable products. Typical hydro-cutting systems have a knife fixture that is mounted at a position along the path of the food product to slice parallel to the flow of water. Such parallel cutters usually cut or slice into strips or into a helical shape. In such a system, the food products are conveyed one-at-a-time in single file succession into the stationary cutting blades with enough kinetic energy to carry the product through the stationary knife fixture.
Hydraulic food cutters are used to cut a wide variety of food products, including potatoes, beets, zucchini, cucumbers, and others. Cutting potatoes has been the most common application of hydro-cutting machines. However, it should be understood that these hydraulic food cutters are capable of cutting, and are used to cut, a wide variety of food products.
The basic configuration of a prior art system is shown, in schematic format, in FIG. 1. In such a typical prior art hydraulic cutting apparatus, where potatoes are to be cut, the potatoes are dropped into a tank 10 filled with water and then pumped through conduit into an alignment chute or tube 12 wherein the potatoes are aligned and accelerated to high speed before impinging upon a fixed array of cutter blades where the potato is cut into a plurality of smaller pieces.
The tank filled with water, which is one of the components of a prior art hydraulic cutting apparatus for use in cutting potatoes, is referred to as a receiving tank 10. Peeled or unpeeled potatoes are dropped into the receiving tank and a food pump 13, typically a single impeller centrifugal pump, is provided to drive the potatoes through the system. The pump draws water from the receiving tank and pumps the water and the suspended potatoes from the tank into the accelerating tube 12, which functions as the converging portion of a venturi. The accelerator tube is used to accelerate and align the potatoes immediately prior to impinging upon the stationary knife blades of the cutter blade assembly 14.
The use of an accelerator tube is required in order to perform two functions. First, the accelerator tube accelerates the water and food product to the velocity required in order for it to pass cleanly through the knife blade assembly. Secondly, the accelerator tube aligns and centers the food products prior to impingement upon the knife blade assembly. In the case of potatoes, a common velocity range is from about 40 to about 60 feet per second. The hydro tube is a tapered bore pipe that accomplishes this alignment. Prior art machines that use hydro tubes commonly have rigid tubes lined with flexible material.
Each whole potato impinging upon the knife blade assembly passes through the cutting blade array and is thereby cut into a plurality of food pieces, for example French fry pieces. These pieces pass with the water into the second half of the venturi which is a diverging tube 15 in which the water and the cut food pieces are decelerated back to a slower velocity. The water and cut food pieces are then deposited onto a dewatering conveyer chain 16. The water passes through the dewatering conveyor chain and is collected and recycled back to the receiving tank. The cut food pieces remain on the conveyor chain and are carried off for further processing.
During the cutting process, as the potato approaches the cutting knives, the potato needs to be aligned with the central axis of the knife set. This alignment maximizes finished product yield. In the past, significant effort has been directed toward the development of good alignment or acceleration tubes that can properly align and accelerate the whole food product so that each whole food product is properly centered relative to the cutter blade array prior to impinging upon it. An example of these efforts can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,614,141, which teaches an alignment tube assembly used to accelerate and align whole potatoes immediately prior to impinging upon a cutter head array. Other patents of interest include U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,568,755 and 5,806,397, both of which, along with U.S. Pat. No. 4,614,141, are hereby incorporated by reference.
In the prior art, the alignment (accelerator) tube is usually a two-part assembly consisting of a converging, conically-shaped metal or other rigid material housing, into which is inserted a more resilient liner, which liner is usually formed of reinforced food grade rubber that seats against the inner surface of the rigid housing. In the prior art, the larger inlet end of the tapered housing is hard-plumbed to the discharge line of the centrifugal pump. Usually this is a bolted connection between a flange on the discharge line and a flange formed integrally to the input end of the tapered housing.
At the outlet end of the tapered accelerator housing, the resilient liner usually extends out a few inches and this protruding portion is inserted into the inlet hole of the cutter blade housing. In some prior art designs the outlet of the accelerator tube liner (the tip of the protruding portion) ends immediately in front of the knife blade array. A water seal between the cutter blade housing and the accelerator tube assembly can be made by hard-plumbing the accelerator tube housing to the cutter blade housing. However, this hard plumbing is not done in all designs because it is too difficult and time-consuming to remove the housing for repair and maintenance.
Since the interface region between the accelerator tube assembly and the cutter blade housing is the narrowest part of the venturi, the hydraulic pressure at that point in the system is greatly increased from that found at the discharge of the pump, usually in the range of two to ten pounds per square inch. Instead of hard plumbing the outlet of the accelerator tube assembly to the inlet of the cutter blade housing, multiple packing rings are used. This is done to reduce the time required to disassemble and remove the accelerator tube assembly from the system. Each time the outlet end of the accelerator tube liner is removed from the inlet of the cutter blade housing, the packing rings should be replaced.
Accelerator tube assemblies must be periodically disassembled for many reasons that include cleaning, replacement of worn out liners, replacement of the liner with a different size liner, and cleaning out a "plug" of uncut food product. All but the last are usually handled as scheduled maintenance items, and the time requirements, while significant, are not critical. The unscheduled and unwanted plug-up of the system is a problem because it often results in a complete shutdown of a production line without prior notice.
In the case of potatoes, production rates for hydraulic cutting systems are typically between 20,000 pounds to 35,000 pounds per hour. At a cutting rate of 20,000 pounds per hour, and assuming an average potato weight of ten ounces, the number of potatoes passing through the cutter blade assembly is approximately 32,000 potatoes per hour, or approximately 8.8 potatoes per second. If one potato plugs the cutter blade assembly, in 10 seconds there will be 88 potatoes backed up behind the cutter housing in the accelerator tube assembly; in 20 seconds, 176 potatoes. At 35,000 pounds per hour the problem is further aggravated. In practice, if a prior art hydraulic cutting apparatus plugs while unattended, it is not uncommon for the plug to include potatoes backed up into the food pump. A plug such as this can take hours to clean out since it requires substantial disassembly of the machine and its attendant piping. As a result, it is common practice in food processing plants to provide operating personnel to continuously monitor the operation of the hydro-cutting system.
The need exists for an acceleration tube that accommodates food products that vary in size without plugging.

Acceleration tube for hydraulic cutting system


Insulated bags having at least three unitary layers of durable material are provided. In one embodiment, a first set of unitary layers of durable material forms a front wall, a bottom wall, and a rear wall. Two additional sets of unitary layers of durable material form side-walls. Edges of the two additional sets are joined to side and bottom edges of the first set by adding webbing and stitching together the joined edges and webbing. Disposed within the two inner most layers of the first set and the two additional sets is at least one layer of insulation. The first set and the second set are sealed at their top edge to secure the insulation. Horizontal webbing is attached to the bag via stitching through the horizontal webbing, each of the layers of the first set and the second set, and the at least one layer of insulation. Vertical straps are integrated into the bag between the horizontal webbing and the outer most layer of durable material of the first set. On the top of the bag is a mini-flap. Hook/loop fasteners are strategically positioned on the bag to secure access points on the bag. Optional features can be incorporated into the bag (e.g., side handles, a top handle, a durable bottom, a grommet, and a liner). Other embodiments of insulated bags are described herein (e.g., a bag that has the outer layer of the first set and the second set sandwiched between two layers of horizontal webbing).

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments herein generally relate to apparatuses for portable insulated fluid bags. In particular, the present invention relates to novel apparatuses for portable insulated bags for a jerry can.
2. Description of the Related Art
War-fighters, for extended periods of time (e.g., from 6 hours to 48 hours), are in extreme temperatures. During these extended periods war-fighters often need to carry water. The water can be unpalatable due to extremely low and extremely high ambient temperatures. For example, water can become warm due to extremely high ambient temperatures, solar radiation, and/or from vehicles that are used to transport the water. Neither warm nor hot water is palatable; thereby reducing the voluntary intake of water.
A lack of water intake can initiate heat induced ailments such as heat syncope, heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and dehydration. These factors can reduce the combat effectiveness of the war-fighter, which can be detrimental to mission requirements. Drinking cold water ˜70° F. can drastically thwart heat related ailments, as well as improve cognitive function and endurance. When compared to drinking warm water, water at palatable temperatures can increase exercise endurance capacity by 23±16% as well as reduce heart rate and psychological strain.
Implementing an advanced insulated bag in conjunction with a system which would allow war-fighters to cool their drinking water via any military vehicle in a reasonable time and then keep it cooler for longer periods would improve the war-fighter's physical stamina, health, and morale. It would also save money by reducing the quantity of bottled water used by allowing the war-fighters to more effectively utilize and cool on-site purified drinking water at any time during a mission. Keeping the water cool for longer periods via an insulated bag would also reduce of frequency of having to cool the water. In addition, the war-fighters would discard less water because more water would be consumed before it reaches an unpalatable temperature.
War-fighters often carry water in a five gallon jerry can. Providing insulation for the jerry can would help keep the water contained therein at palatable temperatures. Prior art insulative bags for the jerry cans contain a single strap to carry the jerry can on the war-fighter's side. Carrying the jerry can using the single strap causes the war-fighter to carry the jerry can off the war-fighter's center of gravity, is uncomfortable, and causes undue back strain/pain. For durability, the prior art insulative bags utilize a wooden bottom which adds significant weight to the insulative bag and the war-fighter's carry load. The prior art insulative bags use a fiberglass based insulation which can absorb moisture. After the fiberglass based insulation has absorbed moisture, the moisture become stagnant and allows bacteria to grow.
There are prior art bags that act as part of a hydration system. These systems have very specific designs to strap the system to a user's back. Some of these systems adjust a water level as water is removed from the hydration system. However, none of these systems are designed and constructed in a manner described in greater detail below.
Some prior art systems merely include an outer insulative material sandwiched between an outer layer and inner layer. However, these systems are not designed and constructed as described below.
Available prior hydration systems (also known as "coolers") are hard/rigid and occupy space when not in use. In addition, it is extremely difficult to keep these hydration systems safely restrained to an object when the object sustains an impact. As a result of the impact, these coolers (and the contents therein (e.g., water bottles)) can become dangerous projectiles.
Thus there is a need in the art for insulative bag that increases the time that water remains at palatable temperatures, reduces weight, is easier to carry, reduces the likelihood of bacterial growth, is less expensive than the prior art insulative systems, has greater structural integrity than prior art systems, and is designed to remain secured to a structure when the structure is impacted.

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army


A portable ink-jet printer and sheet feeder which can be battery powered. The printer may be manually fed paper for operation independent of the sheet feeder. The printer and sheet feeder are mounted on a base and locked at 90 degrees to one another. They may then be rotated into two operating modes in which automatic sheet feeding occurs, one of which provides a straight paper feed path for relatively stiff print media and/or printing relatively dense graphics. A paper output system includes a pair of wings and a deflector which place various arches in the paper as it emerges from the printer to maintain it over the previously printed sheet to permit it to dry. The printer may be configured by driving a print carriage having an arrow thereon to different positions adjacent a menu. When the arrow is opposite a desired configuration option, the option is selected by pressing a button.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to portable printers and sheet feeders and more particularly to such printers and feeders which are relatively small, light weight and which may be battery powered.
2. Description of the Related Art
A typical printer receives data from a computer for printing text and/or graphic images on print media such as paper. Often, printers have automatic sheet-feeding capability. A stack of paper is inserted into a tray in the printer which thereafter moves the paper, one sheet at a time, past a printing device, such as an ink-jet print cartridge. Generally the printer and paper feeder are integrally formed and have power requirements which make battery power impractical. Printers which are driven by desk-top computers and the like typically must be configured into different operating modes. To do so, information must be provided to the printer concerning different aspects of the printing. For example, there are commonly printer settings for paper size, high-quality versus high-speed (draft) printing, text size, character set selection and other variables which affect the manner in which a document is printed.
Prior art printers utilize DIP switches, keys and/or light emitting diodes to select various configuration options. Such prior art printers are somewhat cryptic in that the user typically needs a manual to interpret the meaning of a particular switch position.
It would be desirable to provide a method and apparatus for configuring a printer which is simple, easy to operate and intuitive. It would also be desirable to provide such a method and apparatus which is relatively inexpensive to implement in a printer design.
In liquid ink printing systems, such as ink jet printers, the ink or other liquid printing solution is wet immediately after the ink is applied to the paper (or other media such as an overhead transparency). The ink must dry before a subsequently printed sheet contacts the printed paper surface in order to avoid smudging the previously applied ink. Known methods of drying the ink include a heated platen. In that arrangement, a flat surface over which the paper glides after it has been printed on is heated. By heat conduction through the paper itself, drying of the ink is hastened so that the ink is sufficiently dried to prevent smudging when a newly printed page comes into contact with it.
Another known method of addressing the wet paper problem is by means of a pair of active wings, as is employed for example in the Hewlett-Packard Desk Jet.TM. printers. The wings are called "active" because they are moveable, driven by an electro-mechanical assembly. The wings initially hold a newly printed page spaced apart from a previous printed sheet. After printing is complete, the wings move to a second position to allow the printed page to drop onto the previously printed sheet. Therefore, there is a delay equivalent to the time of printing an entire page before the printed page comes into contact with a previously printed page. In general, the object is to provide an adequate delay time before a newly printed page comes into contact with the last previously printed page so that the ink is sufficiently dry.
Known methods of addressing the wet paper path problem are inadequate, especially in the context of a portable ink jet printing system. In a portable ink jet printing system, size, weight and power requirements are critical. Size and weight considerations obviously are important to providing portability. Power requirements must be minimized to allow operation of the printing system using battery power. The heated platen method, in addition to requiring multiple components, draws substantial power from the power source in order to heat the platen. The "active wings," approach also is undesirable because of its complexity and power consumption for powering the electro-mechanical assemblies necessary for actuating the active wings. What is needed is a way to dry ink in a manner that minimizes size, weight and power requirements for use in a portable liquid ink printing system.
It would be desirable to provide a printer which delays depositing a printed sheet on top of a previously printed sheet until after a time elapses sufficient to allow the ink to dry on the previously printed sheet. It would also be desirable to provide such a printer which does not use excessive power and which neatly stacks printed pages as they exit the printer without smudging the newly printed ink.

Printer sheet feeder having a retractable sheet stack support


There is provided an information processing device including a selection unit configured to, on the basis of first identification information included in a processing instruction and corresponding to a service, and first association information in which the first identification information is associated with second identification information for identifying an application, select an application to perform the service corresponding to the processing instruction, and an execution unit configured to cause the selected application to perform a process in accordance with the processing instruction.

The present disclosure relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program.
In recent years, an information processing device capable of performing contactless communication with a reader/writer (or an information processing device having reader/writer functions, hereinafter the same), such as a contactless IC (Integrated Circuit) card or a portable phone having a contactless IC chip mounted thereon, for example, has come into widespread use. The reader/writer and the information processing device such as an IC card or a portable phone use a magnetic field (carrier wave) with a predetermined frequency such as 13.56 MHz, for example, for communication. Specifically, the reader/writer and the information processing device such as an IC card communicate with each other in such a way that the reader/writer transmits a carrier wave having a carrier signal superimposed thereon, and the information processing device, which has received the carrier wave using an antenna, returns a response signal in response to the received carrier signal through load modulation.
Herein, examples of NFC (Near Field Communication) in which communication is performed using a carrier wave with a predetermined frequency such as 13.56 MHz as described above include various communication methods such as "ISO/IEC 18092 Type F," "ISO/IEC 14443 Type A," and "ISO/IEC 14443 Type B." In addition, examples of the information processing device include a device that supports a plurality of communication methods or communication standards by having an operating system (hereinafter also referred to as an "OS") supporting each communication method, like a dual card, for example.
Against such a background, there has been developed a technology for performing a process, which supports each of a plurality of communication methods or standards, normally. For example, as a technology that can perform a process supporting the structure of a received message even when the structure of a message when contact communication is performed with an external device and the structure of a message when contactless communication is performed with an external device differ, there is known a technology disclosed in JP 2005-242445A, for example. In addition, as a technology for causing an application, which simulates an OS run on an execution environment different from usual, to execute an instruction from an external device without changing the specifications of the instruction from the external device, there is known a technology disclosed in JP 2011-118837A, for example.

Information processing device for performing contactless communication with an external device using multiple communication standards