Techniques for transparently registering non-memory resources used by a program with a garbage collector so that the non-memory resources can be freed when the program is finished using them. The techniques automatically determine from the program that the execution will use a resource and then automatically modify the program""s behavior so that the resource is registered. When the program is finished with the resource, it can be determined from the registry whether the resource must be freed. In one embodiment, the technique is employed in a garbage collector for doing resource garbage collection with legacy C and C++ programs. The garbage collector locates invocations that allocate such resources in the code and modifies the code so that when it is executed, the resources are registered. The techniques can also be used to ensure that finalizers associated with objects are executed before the object is freed. In this use, the invocation of the constructor for the object is modified so that the object and its finalizer are registered. When the object is no longer in use, the garbage collector uses the registry to obtain the object""s finalizer, which it executes before it frees the object. Where the object represents a resource, execution of the finalizer will free the resource.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to the management of the resources used by a computer program in the course of its execution and more specifically to the prevention of resource leaks. A resource leak occurs when a program is finished using a resource but does not free it for use by other programs.
2. Description of the Prior Art: FIGS. 1 and 2
A program that is executing on a computer system uses resources provided by the computer system. The resources include memory and non-memory resources such as files and input-output devices. In many cases, access to these non-memory resources is provided by the operating system, which itself maintains data structures representing these resources
Leaks may occur with any of these resources. Memory leaks have long been dealt with by garbage collectors, that is, programs which check for memory which was allocated by a program but is no longer being used by the program and may therefore be freed for use by other programs. A successful commercial example of a garbage collector is the Great Circle(trademark) garbage collector, manufactured by Geodesic Systems, Inc. An overview of this garbage collector was available on Feb. 22, 1999 at http://www.geodesic.com/greatcircle/overview.html. The Great Circle garbage collector works not only with programs specifically coded to be run with it, but also with programs that were not coded to be run with it, and can thus be used with legacy programs, that is, programs that are still useful but cannot be economically reimplemented to take advantage of innovations such as garbage collectors.
Non-memory resources pose a problem for garbage collectors. FIG. 1 shows why. The figure shows a program that is written in an object-oriented programming language such as C++ as the program is being executed in a computer system. In object-oriented programming languages, the program manipulates objects, that is, entities which belong to classes. The class to which an object belongs defines a fixed set of operations that may be performed on the class. FIG. 1 shows how such programs are typically implemented. Code 107 for the program consists of code 111 for a main program and code 113 for the operations for the classes of objects which are used by main program code 111 and code 113. One set of code for objects of class N is shown at 115. Included in the operations defined for a class are a constructor operation 117, which performs the actions necessary to construct an object of the class, and a destructor operation 119, which performs any actions that need be done before the storage for an object of the class is freed. The destructor operation is an example of a finalizer operation, namely an operation that a garbage collector must perform before it reclaims an object""s storage.
A single object of class N is shown at 121. The object has two parts: specifiers 123 for the operations defined for its class, and the data 125 upon which these operations are performed. In the case of objects of class N, the data includes a font descriptor, a value provided by the operating system to specify a font used by the program. Font descriptor 127 is used by operations of class N that involve functions provided by an operating system font engine, shown at 129. When given a character code, a size specification, and a font descriptor 121, font engine 129 can generate a representation of the character of the specified size in the specified font. In order to accelerate generation of these representations, font engine 129 makes a rendering 131 of the font which it stores in its address space 105. Once the rendering is made, font engine 129 can find the representation by looking it up in the rendering. The font descriptor and its related rendering are examples of non-memory resources. The rendering in particular is large, and efficient operation of the operating system requires that renderings 131 be released when they are no longer required by a program. The following discussion primarily concerns non-memory resources, and unless otherwise indicated, a reference to a xe2x80x9cresourcexe2x80x9d will be understood to be a reference to a non-memory resource.
One of the functions of a class""s destructor is to ensure that all resources used by the object are released when the object is destroyed. Thus, destructor 119 for objects of class N 115 includes a call to the operating system which indicates to font engine 129 that font descriptor 127 and its associated rendering 131 may be released for use by other programs. Of course, if the programmer forgets to expressly free object 121, its destructor will never be executed and not only object 121, but also font descriptor 127 and rendering 131 will have leaked.
As can be seen from FIG. 1, having a garbage collector detect that object 121 is no longer in use and freeing object 121 will not by itself solve the problem of the leaked non-memory resources. The garbage collector can free object 121""s memory, but since the garbage collector is in general not in a position to know anything about object 121""s class or about the contents of its memory, it will not execute destructor 119 when it frees object 121 ""s memory, and as far as font engine 129 can determine, both font descriptor 127 and rendering 131 are still in use.
In prior art garbage collectors, this problem has been solved by providing registration functions that explicitly indicate to the garbage collector that a destructor is to be executed when an object is freed. When the programmer writes a program that allocates an object for which a destructor must be executed when the object is freed, the code that allocates the object includes the registration function. FIG. 2 shows two examples of such code. The first example, at 201, is written in C; the programmer has written a noisyCleanup function 203 which is to be executed when certain objects are freed. At 205, an object ip is allocated using the malloc function; immediately following this function call, at 207, the programmer has made a call to the gcDeclareFinalizer registration function. This function, which takes the object and the cleanup function as arguments, registers the cleanup function with the garbage collector (in this case, a Great Circle garbage collector).
The result of registration is the creation of an entry for the object in a registration table 209 maintained by the garbage collector. Each registration entry (RTE) 211 in the table specifies two items of information: an object pointer 213, which points to the object whose allocation resulted in creation of the entry, and finalizer pointer 215, which points to the destructor 119 for the object""s class. Before freeing an object, the garbage collector searches registration table 209 for a RTE 211 that contains a pointer 213 to the object; if it finds one, it executes the code specified by finalizer pointer 215 in the entry before it frees the object.
Continuing with FIG. 2, 217 shows how a C++ programmer would specify that an object be registered. Because C++ is an object-oriented language, the programmer must specify an object""s finalizer as part of its class definition. The #include compiler directive at 219 specifies that the file xe2x80x9cgct.hxe2x80x9d that contains the class information for the registration operation gcCleanup be included in this file, making the name gcCleanup visible here. The statement at 221 adds gcCleanup to the definition of the class A and defines it for that class. For class A, inheriting from gcCleanup defines the finalizer for class A as the destructor for class A, namely xcx9cA ( ), which is in turn defined to be whatever code is written where cleanup action appears. As a result of this code, every time an object of class A is allocated in a program execution, the object is registered in registration table 209, with finalizer pointer 215 pointing to the code that does the action defined for xcx9cA.
While registration solves the problem of ensuring that a garbage collector not only prevents memory leaks, but also prevents leaks of non-memory resources, registration as presently practiced has two problems:
Since the code specifying registration must be in the program when the program is written, garbage collectors that are used with legacy programs to collect garbage cannot register objects and therefore cannot execute finalization code for the objects.
Even where the programmer is writing new code for execution with a garbage collector, the programmer must still remember to include registration code in the class definition for every object that requires finalization before the object is freed.
What is needed is a technique for making garbage collection of non-memory resources as automatic from the programmer""s viewpoint as garbage collection of memory already is. Such a technique would not only make garbage collection of non-memory resources possible with legacy code, but would also relieve the programmer of the burden of concerning him or herself with it when writing new programs. It is an object of the invention to provide such a technique.
The technique of the invention automatically determines by examining a program that the program will use the resource and then automatically modifies the program""s behavior such that the program""s execution makes an entry for the resource in a registry. When it is determined that the execution no longer requires the resource, the entry in the registry indicates that the resource is to be released.
The technique of the invention may also be employed to ensure that finalizers associated with objects are executed. The technique automatically determines from the program being executed that the program will use an object and then automatically modifies the program""s behavior such that the program""s execution makes an entry for the finalizer in the registry. When it is determined that the execution no longer requires the object, the entry indicates that the finalizer that is to be executed in conjunction with freeing the object. One frequent use of a finalizer is to free a resource associated with the object.
Modification of the behavior of the program may be done at any time up through the execution of the program. One way of modifying the program""s behavior is to replace a call to a function whose execution entails allocating an object or a resource with a call to a registration function that makes the entry in the registry and then calls the originally-intended function.
The technique may be particularly advantageously employed in conjunction with a garbage collector. The garbage collector performs the actions necessary to modify the behavior of the program and whenever the garbage collector frees an object that is no longer used by the program, the garbage collector executes the object""s finalizer if there is an entry for the object in the registry.

Transparent garbage collection of resources


Systems and methods for efficiently verifying identities and for generating and signing digital certificates associated with those identities are disclosed. Generation of a digital certificate of an entity may begin by receiving a certificate signing request from the entity at a certification authority, the certificate signing request including verification information. The certificate signing request may be transmitted to a registration authority and the information of the certificate signing request may be processed. Whether to approve the certificate signing request may be determined, based on a result of the processing, and an approval may be granted when the certificate signing request is approved. A certificate associated with the entity may be generated when the approval is received, and the certificate may be transmitted to the entity.

Encryption is commonly used to protect communication information by rendering it unreadable to a recipient lacking the resources necessary to decrypt it. Modern digital encryption methods include symmetric key algorithms ("private-key" algorithms) and asymmetric key algorithms ("public-key" algorithms).
In a private-key algorithm, a sender of communication information and a recipient of that information must each use a common, shared key that has been agreed upon in advance and kept secret from all other parties. The sender uses this key for encryption of the information, and the receiver uses the same key for decryption of the received information.
In contrast, in a public-key encryption system two separate keys, commonly called a "key pair," are utilized for communicating information: a public key and a private key. The public key is published and freely distributed to other entities, and enables any sender to encrypt information to the public key's owner. A corresponding private key is maintained in secret by the receiver, and enables only the receiver to decrypt and read information that has been encrypted with the public key. Therefore the public-key method allows the sender and receiver to communicate securely without having prior access to a common, shared secret key.
A key is a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptographic algorithm by specifying the particular transformation of unencrypted information into encrypted information, and vice-versa during decryption. The public and private keys are mathematically related, for instance each may be created through the use of a key pair generation function utilizing a random number as an input. In a robust and effective cryptographic system, derivation of the private key from the public key should be computationally infeasible.
Public-key cryptography may be used for several purposes, such as keeping a confidential message secret from any entity that does not possess a specific private key, as a message encrypted using the receiver's public key can only be decrypted by the receiver's corresponding private key. Public-key cryptography may also allow for a key agreement between two entities without an initially shared secret key to agree on one. Furthermore, a public key digital signature may be used to allow any entity to verify that a message was created with a specific private key.
Public-key digital signature algorithms may also be used for sender authentication and non-repudiation. For instance, a first entity may encrypt a message with its private key and send it. If a second entity can successfully decrypt it using the corresponding public key, this provides assurance that the first entity, in fact, sent it.
One crucial element of public-key cryptography is the accurate and dependable association of entity identities with the public keys distributed to other entities. However, securely exchanging keys directly amongst a large number of entities who do not know each other is cumbersome and impractical. Therefore, large-scale public-key systems utilize certificates as a way to efficiently associate public keys and entities.
Digital signatures may be used in public key infrastructure ("PKI") systems in which a public key is associated with an entity by a digital identity certificate issued by a certificate authority ("CA"). Such a system enables multiple communicating parties to establish confidentiality, message integrity, and user authentication without having to exchange any secret information prior to the communication.
A conventional certificate may include public key information, entity identification information, information describing a period of validity of the certificate, and the digital signature of the certificate. The entity identification information may include, for example, name information, address information, location information, phone number information, and the like. The identification information may be associated with a natural person, or with a computer, organization, or other entity. In addition, the certificate may include information identifying a location of a revocation center, for instance in the form of a uniform resource locator ("URL").
As an example of the use of certificates, in a public-key system, an entity ("entity A") need only publish a public key ("public key A") to allow any other party possessing public key A ("entity B") to send information to entity A securely, as described above. However, a malicious entity ("entity M") is also able to publish a public key and falsely identify it as belonging to entity A. Such an action would allow entity M to at least receive and read some information sent to entity A under the erroneous belief that public key M actually belongs to entity A.
Therefore, to defend against such a malicious scheme, entity A may embed public key A into a certificate, and have that certificate digitally signed by a trusted third party. Any entity that trusts the trusted third party can therefore check the certificate to see whether the trusted third party asserts that the embedded public key belongs to entity A. In a conventional PKI system, the trusted third party may correspond to a CA that is tasked with verifying relationships between entities and their public keys, and that is trusted by all entities within the system. Multiple CAs may be utilized, and the multiple CAs may be organized into a hierarchy whereby different CAs possess differing quantities of authority.
For instance, conventional enterprise-scale PKI systems may rely on certificate chains to establish a party's identity, as a certificate may have been issued by a CA whose legitimacy is established for such purposes by a certificate issued by a higher-level CA. Therefore the certificate hierarchy may include several CAs and/or several organizations, and may require cooperation and communication between several different interoperating software applications.
The CA may also be responsible for revoking certificates when the private key corresponding to the certificate's public key is compromised, or when the relationship between an entity and the entity's public key embedded in the certificate is discovered to be incorrect or changes. Validity of certificates may be checked by an entity by comparing it against a certificate revocation list ("CRL") that contains identification information of revoked and/or cancelled certificates.
PKI systems therefore enable users to be authenticated to one another, and to use the public keys embedded in identity certificates to encrypt and decrypt messages traveling between them. A conventional PKI system may include client software, server software such as a certificate authority, hardware, and operational procedures. PKI systems may be operable for several functions, including providing and managing public keys and bindings to entity identities used for encryption and/or sender authentication of electronic mail messages or other documents, authentication of users to applications, bootstrapping secure communication protocols, and the like.
The accurate association of public keys is crucial to the correct and secure operation of such a system. As described above, however, such association of identities may require a significant expenditure of resources and may involve a significant amount of subjective judgment on the part of the trusted third party. Accordingly, such association in a conventional PKI system is performed in accordance with highly sophisticated protocols and policies used to establish and verify the associations.
Updating and maintaining accuracy of the CRL is another crucial function in a conventional PKI system, and typically requires significant expenditure of resources and finances. To be effective, it must be readily available to an entity that requires it, and must be updated frequently. Additionally, since validity of keys is central to the proper function of the system, revocation authority over keys carries significant responsibility. Accordingly, the mechanism to maintain security of the revocation functions and for revocation of keys and maintenance of the revocation list requires significant labor, capital, and time resources.
In addition to maintenance of the hierarchical CA structure and of the revocation mechanism described above, validation of identity in a conventional PKI system may be time-consuming, expensive, and costly. For instance, identity verification may include performance of in-person interviews, analysis of subscriber enrollment forms, checking validity of notarization, signatures, and attestations, and archiving of evidence of the exercise of due diligence in validating certificate information. Procedures followed by CAs may be outlined in a document such as a Certification Practices Statement ("CPS"). A link to the CPS of a CA may be included in certificates signed by the CA.
As will be understood by one skilled in the art, performance of these activities and maintenance of adequate records and evidence trails may prove to be extremely resource-intensive and costly.
There are many applications for PKI systems where a very high level of trust in identity is not required. With respect to these applications, the high costs associated with identity verification and maintenance described above may outweigh the benefits available through the PKI system itself.
Accordingly, a need exists for systems and methods for efficiently and cost-effectively verifying identities to allow creation of certificates and the exchange of public keys in a PKI system, while avoiding the above-identified disadvantages.

Systems and methods for automating certification authority practices


A carpet mat assembly with shock absorbing properties includes a mat made of closed cell foam sections. The mat sections are sized to be readily portable, preferably 4 foot by 6 foot in size. The mat thickness is selected to conform to ASTM F1292-99. Preferably, the mat thickness is 1xe2x85x9xe2x80x3 thick. The mat section may be coated with a pressure sensitive adhesive covering on one side of the mat. The pressure sensitive adhesive is covered with a removable liner. The liner is removed to expose the pressure sensitive adhesive. Carpet is applied to the coated surface of the mat and the pressure sensitive adhesive bonds the carpet to the mat. The outer perimeters of each mat may be lined with a hook and pile fastener such as 3M Velcro(copyright) for attaching multiple sections of the carpet mat assembly securely together. On the outer perimeter of mat sections not joined to other mat sections, an edge molding preferably made from the same closed cell foam may be integral, or may be attached to the mat with a contact adhesive, or by other means. The completed assembly provides a floor or ground surface safe for playgrounds, schools, child care centers, martial arts, gymnasiums or other areas where shock absorbing surfaces are required.

In U.S. Pat. No. 5,658,430 issued to Drake and Herrin in 1997 there is illustrated new wall to wall carpeting applied directly over worn carpeting having a backing secured to a hard floor surface, by spraying an adhesive onto the top pile surface of the old carpet.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,484 issued to Higgins in 1983 there is illustrated an underlay for carpets having a scrim supported lower foam rubber portion and a Mylar(copyright) upper portion having adhesive on both sides to provide an attachment to the lower portion and an adhesive upper portion for attachment to a carpet tile. The upper portion is protected by a release paper, which is removed before installation.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,304,268 issued to Hoopengardner in 1994 there is illustrated a carpet pad having a pressure sensitive adhesive for retaining the carpet and pad in place on a floor.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,990,399 issued to Hoopengardner in 1991 there is illustrated a carpet cushion of compressible foam having a pressure sensitive adhesive applied for retaining the carpet and pad in place on a floor, and having a spacer element laid into the adhesive after the adhesive is applied.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,804,567 issued to Reuben in 1989 there is illustrated an automobile carpet having a carpet pad attaching means removably connected by a pressure sensitive adhesive.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,797,170 issued to Hoopengardner in 1989 there is illustrated a carpet and pad with a pressure sensitive adhesive on one surface.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,557,774 issued to Hoopengardner in 1989 there is illustrated a carpet and pad with a pressure sensitive adhesive on its upper and lower surface.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,770 issued to Hoopengardner in 1992 there is illustrated a carpet and pad with a sealed surface and pressure sensitive adhesive applied to one or both sealed surfaces of the pad. Also illustrated is application of a hot melt pressure sensitive adhesive onto an unsealed pad surface.
In the installation of carpeting, it is known to place a carpet mat made of urethane foam or other open cell compressible material between the carpet and the floor. It is also known to use a pressure sensitive adhesive to bond the carpet to the carpet mat, and/or to bond the carpet mat to the floor. These inventions have been applied to wall to wall carpet systems. Because of the permeability of conventional carpet mat materials, undesirable wicking of the adhesive material into the mat occurs. Additionally, conventional systems are designed for comfortable walking, but provide inadequate protection during a fall.
It is desirable to eliminate the problem of wicking of adhesive material into the compressible material of the carpet mat. It is also desirable to develop a shock absorbing carpet system that protects people from injury in the event of a fall, where activity is such that a fall is likely. Places where the likelihood of a fall exists often host a variety of different events, or the use of a space of multiple utility, with varying requirements for the size and design of the flooring. Accordingly, there is a need for a shock absorbing carpet mat assembly that is both portable and configurable, into a variety of shapes and sizes.
A carpet assembly with shock absorbing properties for preventing injury comprising a mat of closed cell foam composition having shock damping properties and having a top side and a bottom side and predetermined thickness and perimeter edges connecting the top side and the bottom side; a layer of adhesive which may be pressure sensitive adhesive covering the top side of the mat, a layer of carpet having a top side and a bottom side, the bottom side of the carpet being fastened in contact with the an adhesive which may be pressure sensitive adhesive for adherence thereto. Preferably, the mat is substantially 1xe2x85x9 inch thick. The present invention is directed to the problem of safety in the design of flooring where people are likely to fall down, such as, playgrounds, child care centers, gymnasiums, and the like. These areas often require portability of such flooring systems, size variation, and reconfiguration of the shape of the system, as the nature of the events may demand. The present invention may be installed wall to wall or as a portable system to cover only an area as required for an activity such as gymnastics. By incorporating a mat with an impact attenuation that satisfies ASTM F-1292-99, the present invention provides a safe flooring system for a variety of applications where people are likely to fall down. The present invention eliminates undesirable wicking of the adhesive and the need for intermediate sealing systems, by using a closed cell carpet mat, which allows direct application of the adhesive.


A stoma dilation device that includes a tubular support defining a continuous pathway through the device; an inflatable dilation balloon located on the tubular support, the inflatable dilation balloon including a dilation region forming a first portion of the device and a retention region forming a second portion of the device; and a balloon inflation lumen. The retention region of the balloon is configured to have a diameter upon full, unrestrained inflation that is greater than the diameter of the dilation region.

This disclosure relates to catheters such as feeding tubes and their placement in the body of a patient.
Numerous situations exist in which a body cavity needs to be catheterized to achieve a desired medical goal. One relatively common situation is to provide nutritional solutions or medicines directly into the stomach or intestines. A stoma is formed in the stomach or intestinal wall and a catheter is placed through the stoma. This surgical opening and/or the procedure to create the opening is commonly referred to as "gastrostomy". Feeding solutions can be injected through the catheter to provide nutrients directly to the stomach or intestines (known as enteral feeding). A variety of different catheters intended for enteral feeding have been developed over the years, including some having a "low profile" relative to the portion of the catheter which sits on a patient's skin, as well as those having the more traditional or non-low profile configuration. These percutaneous transconduit catheters (sometimes referred to as "percutaneous transconduit tubes") are frequently referred to as "gastrostomy catheters", "percutaneous gastrostomy catheters", "PEG catheters" or "enteral feeding catheters". U.S. Pat. No. 6,019,746 for a "Low Profile Balloon Feeding Device" issued to Picha et al. on Feb. 1, 2000, provides an example of one device.
These catheters are frequently placed in a procedure called percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (frequently referred to as PEG). Traditionally, a PEG tube is placed using endoscopic guidance or x-ray guidance. In a conventional PEG procedure that places a PEG tube into a patient's stomach, an endoscope is used to observe that the patient's esophagus is unobstructed and to inspect and inflate the stomach to see that the area selected for the gastrostomy can be distended.
If the location is suitable, this spot is selected. Prior to placement of any feeding tube, it has been found that it is useful to anchor the anterior wall of the gastric lumen (e.g., the stomach) to the abdominal wall as a step prior to creating the stoma tract through the two. Insufflation of the gastric lumen has also been found to be successful in maintaining the lumen in close proximity of the abdominal wall in some procedures. This procedure is also applicable to jejunostomy or gastro-jejunostomy as well as the gastrostomy procedure referred to above. Similar procedures may also be applicable or desirable for other catheter tubes such as peritoneal drainage tubes.
After the wall of the lumen is anchored, a needle is inserted into the patient in the area in the appropriate location. Additionally, a small incision may be made in the skin. An endoscopist will then typically watch through the endoscope as a needle pushes through the patient's skin, then through the abdominal wall, and enters the gastric lumen in the selected area to form a needle tract. A guide wire is passed through the needle into the gastric lumen (e.g., the stomach). The endoscopist will use an endoscopic snare to grasp the guide wire firmly. The snare, passed through the working channel of the endoscope, firmly grabs the guide wire. Both the endoscope and snare are then withdrawn together through the patient's mouth, pulling the guide wire with them. The end of the guide wire that extends out from the patient's mouth is subsequently attached to a PEG tube and the other end of the guide wire remains outside the patient's skin in the abdominal region.
The PEG tube is guided into the patient's mouth (while the endoscope is completely removed from the patient) and pulled into the patient's gastric lumen as the guide wire is pulled from the end that remains outside the patient's skin. Once the PEG tube is in the gastric lumen, it is pulled partially through the gastric and abdominal walls until a bumper of the PEG tube is snug against the gastric mucosa. However, in order for the PEG tube to be pulled partially through the gastric and abdominal walls and skin, the original needle tract must be dilated. This dilation is carried out with conventional dilation devices that employ a tapered dilator at the distal end of the PEG tube so that it dilates the opening as it is pulled through the gastric mucosa. During such dilation, the endoscope is again passed into the patient and subsequently used to visually observe that the bumper of the PEG tube is snug against the gastric mucosa.
In other conventional PEG tube placement procedures, endoscopy is not used at all. Instead, x-ray techniques are used to help select a particularly suitable location in the patient's body (e.g., the stomach) for the introduction of the PEG tube. X-ray is used for guiding the PEG tube placement and for inspecting the PEG tube's final position.
In yet another procedure, known as gastropexy, a needle is used to pierce a patient's abdominal wall to place one or more fasteners in a patient's gastric lumen. A fastener, such as a "T-bar" fastener, carried at or near the tip of the needle is desirably deployed by the needle so that it can be positioned against an inner wall of the gastric lumen. A tensioning suture is connected to the fastener and, at an opposite end of the suture on the outer surface of the patient's body, the suture is desirably also connected to a suture holder, which permits adjustment of the tension on the suture. In this manner, when the suture is tensioned a patient's gastric lumen wall is more closely positioned to the outer surface of the patient's body, and the gastric lumen is stabilized in a position. Usually, at least three and desirably four fasteners are placed in a triangular, square, or diamond-shaped configuration through a patient's skin and into the gastric lumen.
While there are some problems associated with these conventional procedures including an increased risk of esophageal trauma associated with multiple passes of an endoscope into and out of a patient or placement of the PEG in an improper location, one significant problem is related to the additional complications of anchoring the wall of the gastric lumen to the abdomen. It would be desirable to avoid the complications of the additional steps of such a procedure and/or the additional trauma caused by mechanically anchoring (even temporarily) the wall of the gastric lumen to the abdomen. While avoiding these complications may be desirable, suitable devices or procedures are lacking.
Accordingly, there is a need for a device, system and method for placing a non-vascular catheter tube such as a PEG tube in a patient that reduces these risks and trauma and is easy to perform.

Dilation device for placing catheter tubes


A wireless device accesses a shared spectrum equitably in a self-organizing manner by determining success indices and adjusting courtesy parameters. The wireless device transmits wireless transmissions in a frame subframe structure over a shared spectrum, each of the subframes bounded by subframe boundaries at predetermined time intervals. The success index represents a measure of success in transmitting wireless transmissions in the shared spectrum. The wireless device performs a clear channel assessment to determine whether the shared spectrum is available at the end of the clear channel assessment time interval. The wireless device determines a gap interval between the end of the clear channel assessment time interval and the next subframe boundary and transmits the success index during the gap interval.

Wi-Fi® equipment and Licensed-Assisted Access (LAA) of the Long Term Evolution (LTE) wireless standard are expected to share the same spectrum (5 GHz for example). To ensure fair co-existence in the same channel, LAA-LTE is expected to deploy some form of Listen-Before-Talk (LBT) and back-off mechanisms. Due to differences in defer and back-off mechanisms between LAA-LTE and Wi-Fi, there are challenges in defining a single unified rule in maintaining a fair co-existence without careful selection of fairness parameters.
Some LBT mechanisms may be required in certain regulatory domains (like the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), for instance). The sensing mechanism required is "energy-detect" in the operating channel. For example, Wi-Fi implements Clear Channel Assessment Energy Detect (CCA-ED) to detect non Wi-Fi sources in the operating channel. This threshold typically set to −62 dBm/20 MHz.
Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Release-13 LAA-LTE defines something similar to CCA-ED. However, in many deployment scenarios this will not be enough to avoid collisions between Wi-Fi and LAA-LTE. A Wi-Fi device and LTE device implementing LAA may not be able to detect each other based on energy detect thresholds, but a Wi-Fi receiver may indeed be interfered with by a LAA-LTE transmitter and vice versa. Specifically, if a Wi-Fi device and an LAA-LTE device were to transmit at the same time, there will be incidents of packet collisions. This is more likely to happen between Wi-Fi and LAA-LTE devices than between two different Wi-Fi devices because preamble detection will likely only be implemented between two Wi-Fi devices.
Additionally, LAA-LTE subframes in the unlicensed band, e.g., the shared spectrum, are likely to be aligned with the subframes in the licensed band. Further, the wireless transmission in the shared spectrum is likely to be forced to begin at the start of an LTE subframe. However, an idle medium may occur at any part of a subframe, and a requirement to begin the LAA-LTE transmission only at the beginning of the LTE subframe may cause the medium to remain idle for longer than necessary, wasting resources.

Preamble-based channel reservation and self-organized fairness mechanisms for long term evolution (LTE) over shared spectrum


A display panel includes a substrate, an electro-optical layer and a supporting layer. The substrate includes a display area and a peripheral area surrounding the display area. A thin-film transistor (TFT) part is formed in the display area. The electro-optical layer is disposed in the display area of the substrate. The supporting layer is disposed on the electro-optical layer and faces both the display area and the peripheral area, openings being formed through the supporting layer in the peripheral area. Accordingly, the supporting layer may prevent the substrate from sagging and may protect the gate circuit part.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a display panel and to a method of manufacturing the display panel. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a display panel capable of preventing a substrate from sagging and to a method of manufacturing the display panel.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a liquid crystal display ("LCD") apparatus includes an LCD panel and a backlight assembly providing light to the LCD panel. The LCD panel may include an array substrate having a first base substrate and a plurality of thin-film transistors ("TFTs") formed on the first base substrate, a color filter substrate having a second base substrate and a color filter formed on the second base substrate, and a liquid crystal layer interposed between the array substrate and the color filter substrate.
As the TFTs may be manufactured at a high temperature, a glass substrate having a low cost, heat resistance and low thermal expansion coefficient are used as the base substrate of the LCD panel. However, the glass substrate may be fragile and may be limited to decrease thickness, so that the characteristics of the glass substrate may present difficulties with regard to increasing the size of the LCD apparatus or decreasing the weight of the LCD apparatus.
To overcome the above-mentioned difficulties, a plastic LCD apparatus has been recently developed, in which the glass substrate used as the base substrate of the LCD apparatus is substituted with a plastic substrate. As the plastic LCD apparatus employs a plastic film having a thickness thinner than the glass substrate employed in a conventional LCD apparatus, the plastic LCD apparatus may have a light weight, thin thickness and superior flexibility so that the plastic LCD apparatus may not be easily broken. In addition, the cost for manufacturing the plastic LCD apparatus may be decreased compared to other conventional LCD apparatuses.
In a method of manufacturing the plastic LCD apparatus, the plastic film may be laminated to a carrier substrate, and then after a process for manufacturing the TFT is completed, the plastic film may be stripped off from the carrier substrate.
However, after the plastic film is stripped off from the carrier substrate, the plastic film may be sagged due to the thin thickness thereof, so that various defects may be generated in manufacturing the LCD panel. In addition, when a relatively thicker plastic film is used to control of the sagging of the plastic film, the cost for manufacturing may increase.

Display panel and method of manufacturing the same


Alkoxidation products are prepared from amines, fatty acids and oils, which are low in alkylene oxides and 1,4-dioxane by reacting an amine, fatty acid, ester or oil with an alkylene oxide in the presence of a catalyst of an alkali fatty alkoxide obtained by reaction of an alkali hydroxide with a fatty alcohol at elevated temperature.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of producing nonionic surfactants low in alkylene oxides and low in 1,4-dioxane, by a catalytic method employing an alkali metal fatty alkoxide and to a method of producing said alkali metal fatty alkoxide.
2. Description of the Background
Because products containing nonionic surfactants are used essentially on a daily basis, and in view of the possible toxicological hazard of appreciable impurities of alkylene oxides and 1,4-dioxane in these surfactants, it is necessary to have a supply of surfactant products having very low levels of alkylene oxides and 1,4-dioxane.
The customary production of nonionic surfactants employs catalysis with Na ions and/or K ions. These ions are added to the likes of such reactants as alkylphenols, fatty alcohols, glycols, amines, fatty acids, and oils. Preferably, the Na and/or K ions are added in the form of NaOH, KOH, sodium methoxide, or potassium methoxide. Water of solution and water of reaction are removed under an inert nitrogen atmosphere. Then the reaction with the alkylene oxide is carried out.
According to U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,023, barium alkoxide can also be used as a catalyst. Barium alkoxide is produced, according to the U.S. patent, by reaction of barium metal with ethanol, followed by reaction with, e.g., ethylhexanol. Vacuum distillation is used to remove ethanol from the barium ethylhexanoxide which is produced.
Eur. Pat. 0 026 547 describes a similar catalyst preparation procedure, according to which alkoxides of Ca, Sr, or Ba may be prepared by reacting Ca, Sr, or Ba metal with ethanol, followed by reaction with decanol. The regenerated ethanol is then removed by applying a vacuum to the reaction mixture.
There are several disadvantages associated with the method of producing nonionic surfactants as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,023, and with the use of catalysts in the production of nonionic surfactants, which catalysts are prepared by the two-step method in which an alkali metal is reacted with ethanol, followed by reaction of the metal ethoxide with a higher alcohol. These disadvantages entail very high costs, as well as high residual contents of alkylene oxides (c. 200 ppm) and 1,4-dioxane (c. 5000 ppm). Further, there are problems associated with the use of metals for producing alkoxides, because of the liberation of water. Further, the products produced with ethylhexanoxide catalysts have a strong odor of ethylhexanol.
Thus, a need continues to exist for a method of manufacturing nonionic ethoxylated surfactants low in alkylene oxides and low in 1,4-dioxane.

Method of manufacturing nonionic surfactants low in alkylene oxides and low in 1,4-dioxane, using alkali metal alkoxides as catalysts


This invention relates to plastoelastomeric polyolefinic compositions comprising an intimate mixture of the following components, in the indicated percentages by weight:. (A) 10-50% of non cross-linked polypropylene; PA1 (B) 2-10% of ethylene/propylene/(diene) non cross-linked elastomeric copolymer, PA1 (C) 30-40% of polymeric product which is insoluble in xylene at 135.degree. C., comprising polypropylene and ethylene/propylene/(diene) copolymer, and PA1 (D) 5-58% of an extender oil. PA1 (A) 20-80% of polypropylene; PA1 (B) 80-20% of ethylene/propylene/(diene) elastomeric copolymer, PA1 (C) 0.1-10%, referred to such copolymer, of a peroxide, PA1 (D) 5-60%, referred to such peroxide, of a furan derivative as a cross-linking coadjuvant.. This invention also relates to a process for preparing the above compositions, which consists in subjecting to vulcanization under dynamic conditions a mixture comprising, in % by weight;. and in adding, after vulcanization, the extender oil in an amount ranging from 6 to 100% calculated on the vulcanized product.

The preparation of compositions based on thermoplastic polymers and vulcanized rubbers using a dynamic vulcanization method is known in the art and is described in particular in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,578,643; 3,862,106; 3,037,954 and 3,806,558.
According to this method, vulcanization of the elastomeric component is made to occur during the step of mixing or mastication with a plastomeric polymer in the molten state, using cross-linking agents, which are usually of the conventional type, such as e.g. peroxides, azide compounds, mixtures of sulphur with zinc oxide, substituted ureas, thiocarbamates, etc. If in the so-treated mixture there is a sufficient amount of plastomeric polymer, the composition, on conclusion of the vulcanization of the elastomeric component, retains good processability characteristics in hot conditions also if it contains high proportions of vulcanized elastomer.
According to French patent No. 2,408,632, polyolefinic plastoelastomeric compositions are obtained using dynamic vulcanization methods. These utilize, as a cross-linking agent, a halogenated phenolic resin, or a phenolic resin which are not halogenated but are associated with halogen donors, in combination with a metal oxide (activator).
According to the patent, the mix of EPDM rubber and olefinic polymer, wherein the phenolic resin content ranges from 5 to 20% for the rubber, is subjected to mastication at a temperature sufficient to melt the olefinic polymer. Then the activator is added and mastication is continued at a temperature at which the elastomeric component cross-linking occurs. The metal oxide, in particular the zinc oxide, favors in this case the complete cross-linking of the elastomer, which is one of the objects of the process of the patent.
Generally, the products obtained according to the above-cited processes exhibit good elastomeric characteristics at room temperature. However, these characteristics, in particular the compression set values, decay as the temperature rises, which jeopardizes the practical utilization of the products above the melting point of the plastomer.
It is further known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,957,979 to prepare thermoplastic elastomers by subjecting a blend of an EPDM interpolymer with polypropylene and substantial amounts of polyethylene to a cross-linking reaction using free radical generating agents, while submitted to hot working.
According to the preparation, polyethylene is preferentially cross-linked and grafted to the EPDM interpolymer, thereby protecting polypropylene from radical attack, degradation and cross-linking or grafting reactions. The product thus obtained possesses improved molding characteristics, but exceedingly loose elastic properties such as elongation as break tension set and compression set, especially at high temperatures.
The above references are hereby incorporated by reference.

Plastoelastomeric polyolefinic compositions and process for preparing them according to dynamic vulcanizable methods


A rigid watercraft has a three-sectioned hull including a main hull portion and a pair of flotation-sealed outside sponsons at the starboard and port sides thereof. A double-hinge pivot is disposed between each sponson and the main hull portion of the watercraft. The double-hinge pivot has respective pivot axes which are parallel to each other. The watercraft has a first storage or transport position in which the pair of sponsons are folded within the main hull portion, and the watercraft has a second operational position in which the pair of sponsons are pivoted outwardly of the main hull portion of the watercraft, thereby forming a smooth continuation of the hull in the water. The watercraft has a releasable latch between each sponson and the main hull portion of the watercraft. The releasable latch automatically locks each sponson to the main hull portion of the watercraft as the respective sponson has been pivoted outwardly therefrom. The watercraft has a lip formed longitudinally on each sponson and a longitudinal edge on the main hull. The lip presses against the edge on the main hull when the watercraft is in the operational position.

A large variety of small watercraft exist in the market today primarily to satisfy consumer needs for easily transportable fishing boats and auxiliary service to larger vessels. This latter group serves a broad spectrum of applications including, but not limited to, emergency use (life boats), transport to and from a larger vessel, and typical recreational activities such as fishing, rowing, and swimming.
A common problem shared by many users of these craft is transport and storage. For those who carry a boat on board a larger vessel, the problem is one of sufficient deck space or space on a swim platform, and the ability to easily and safely launch or retrieve the smaller craft. A good example is trying to pull aboard and stow an eight foot by four foot fiberglass dinghy weighing as much as several hundred pounds. Even the latest high density polyethylene sheet molded dinghies still weigh eighty pounds or more which is difficult to handle in a bulky 4 feet by 8 feet sized package. Inflatable rubberized fabric boats solve the weight problem but do so by trading off reduced interior space, stability and durability. To capitalize on the compact storage capability of inflatable boats require the time consuming process of deflating and reinflating at each use. If left inflated, as is usually the case, especially for those boats with rigid fiberglass bottoms, they do not address the issue of storage space which not only takes up valuable deck space but is often unsightly as well; important considerations to the recreational boater.
Another problem, experienced mainly by fishermen who carry their boat in the back of a pick up truck, van, or station wagon, is the difficulty in fitting a suitable craft into such vehicles. With inflatables being a totally unacceptable option due to disadvantages cited above, the currently popular compromise is the aluminum "john boat". While its narrow beam (width) permits sliding between the wheel wells of a full size pick up, it sacrifices stability and useable interior space.
The applicant is aware of the following U.S. Letters Patents which disclose boats with foldable members which are designed to stabilize the boat and/or reduce the volume of the boat for storage or transport.
______________________________________ Inventor(s) U.S. Pat. No. ______________________________________ Besosa 289,208 Mulie et al 642,622 Banaszak 1,371,139 Dickerson 3,068,830 Levinson 3,530,519 Sisil 3,763,511 Schlagenhauf 4,024,592 Van Ulzen 4,337,543 Bleke 4,622,912 Selken 4,768,454 Lesly 5,052,324 ______________________________________
The applicant is not aware of any commercially significant implementation of these patents and it is believed that fragility and complexity of the boats and a high potential for water leakage have discouraged their use.
A class of collapsible boats which theoretically provides an acceptably strong and durable structure while giving some measure of reduced size for transport and storage are those which fold in half across the beam into half the length (but twice the height) are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,203,276 and 5,257,594 issued to Malven. These boats occupy the same volume when folded as when in the operating configuration and do not reduce the critical width dimension (beam) to facilitate transportation by the vehicles noted previously.
Another class of boats breaks down into separate pieces which can then be nested together as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,093,366 issued to Robinson and U.S. Pat. No. 2,427,772 issued to Farish. These boats require a complete and time consuming disassembly that is inconvenient on land and totally impractical on the water.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,126,558 issued to Nolan et al disclose a collapsible boat formed from a number of hull sections interconnected between bow and stern. Each section has a pair of sides and a pair of ends. A separate outrigger member is hingedly connected to each side of each section. Each outrigger member may be folded within the respective hull section. The boat is assembled before being placed in the water.
The present invention provides a structurally sound, unsinkable, rigid watercraft with the seaworthy characteristics of standard length to width ratio marine design while also folding into a transport/storage configuration of approximately one-half its normal volume. Additionally, it accomplishes this by reducing the important width dimension without any disassembly.


A firearm has a frame, a magazine fitted in the frame and holding a plurality of cartridges including a top cartridge, a slide displaceable longitudinally on the frame above the magazine and its top cartridge along a longitudinal slide axis between a front position and a rear position, and a barrel centered on a barrel axis, displaceable longitudinally on the frame between respective front and rear positions, and having a rear end formed with a rearwardly open cartridge-receiving firing chamber. Pivot structure engaged between the barrel and the frame pivots the barrel on the frame between a firing position with the barrel axis substantially parallel to the slide axis and with the firing chamber transversely offset above the top cartridge and a loading position with the barrel axis forming an acute angle with the slide axis and with the firing chamber aligned longitudinally with and open downwardly toward the top cartridge. Cam structure between the barrel, frame, and slide pivots the barrel from its firing position to its loading position on displacement of the barrel and slide rearward out of their front positions and returns the barrel to its firing position on displacement of the barrel and slide forward back into their front positions.

In a firearm of the automatic, semiautomatic or manual-repetition type having a magazine, when the cartridge moves from the magazine to the firing chamber it must execute a sort of jump entailing a change of position and orientation. The first cartridge of the magazine is aligned with an axis which is approximately parallel to the axis of the barrel, but somewhat lower. This allows a casing of a spent cartridge to be extracted from the firing chamber past the fresh cartridges below it in the clip. For this reason in the firearms of the known kind the cartridge following the spent and expelled one is pushed by the breech block or slide against an inclined surface whose purpose is to guide the fresh cartridge laterally to the firing chamber.
During this loading the cartridge is in effect almost wholly out of contact with the edges of the magazine and is not yet received and stabilized in the firing chamber. Thus this precariously held cartridge can get misaligned and jam the weapon with serious consequences for the user.


In a motor drive device of the present invention, a motor control unit is disposed on a first surface of an attaching unit, and a heat sink is disposed on a second surface opposite to the first surface. A first duct connects the second surface and the heat sink with each other. A second duct is disposed on the first surface, and a fan motor is disposed in the second duct. A space inside the first duct in communication with only a second opening of the attaching unit, and a space inside the second duct is in communication with both a first opening and the second opening of the attaching unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a motor drive device that is implemented in a control panel, such, for example, as a heavy electrical control panel of an NC machine tool. In particular, the present invention relates to a motor drive device including a motor control unit, a heat sink attached to the motor control unit, and a fan motor for cooling the heat sink, wherein the fan motor is removably mounted, and a control panel including such a device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a motor control unit of the motor drive device that is implemented in the control panel, there is mounted a heat sink for heat dissipation. The cooling effect of the heat sink is enhanced by disposing the fan motor adjacent to the heat sink.
Further, in order to prevent hot air from being filled in the control panel, sometimes a hole or notch is formed in a rear wall portion of the control panel, dispose the motor control unit of the motor drive device in the control panel, and let only the heat sink attached to the motor control unit via an attaching unit come out of the control panel through a hole or notch of the rear wall portion of the control panel. In such a case, generally, the fan motor for cooling the heat sink is also disposed outside the control panel. The hole or notch of the rear wall portion is closed by the attaching unit of the motor drive device.
In most cases, since the control panel is provided adjacent to a wall of a building other machinery or the like, there is almost no space through which a person can pass at the rear side of the control panel. Therefore, it is difficult to get access to the fan motor from the rear side of the control panel to exchange and inspect the fan motor.
Thus, it has been proposed to form a second hole through which the fan motor can be passed in the rear wall portion of the control panel, together with the first hole that permits passage of the heat sink (for example, refer to Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2009-27776). According to this proposal, it is possible move the fan motor existing at the rear side of the control panel to the front side (front face) of the control panel through the second hole, thereby inspecting and exchanging the fan motor. Alternatively, it is sometimes the case that a hole through which the heat sink and the air blower can be passed together is formed in the rear wall portion of the control panel and an additional hole through which the air blower can be passed is formed in the attaching unit of the motor drive device.
Furthermore, in Japanese Patent No. 5312012 and Japanese Patent No. 3404907, a structure has been proposed in which for the purpose of maintenance of the device, a duct provided between an air blowing fan and a heat generating component is made attachable and removable.
However, the above-described conventional technique has problems as follows. The problems of the conventional technique will now be described based on FIG. 6. FIG. 6 is a top view schematically illustrating a main portion of a conventional motor drive device which is implemented in a control panel.
According to FIG. 6, a motor control unit 102 of a motor drive device which is implemented in a control panel 101 is attached to a front face 103a of a rear wall portion 103 of the control panel 101. A hole or notch 103b is formed in the rear wall portion 103 of the control panel 101. A heat sink 104 attached to the motor control unit 102 is disposed outside the control panel 101 (particularly, at the rear side of the control panel 101) through the hole or notch 103b. A fan motor 105 is disposed on the upper end of the heat sink 104 disposed at the rear side of the control panel 101. With such a structure, in order to attach or remove the fan motor 105 from the front side (front face) of the control panel 101, it is required that the fan motor 105 be passed through the hole or notch 103b in the rear wall portion 103 of the control panel 101. Therefore, it is necessary to select, as the fan motor 105, a fan motor which is smaller than the notch 103b in the rear wall portion 103 of the control panel 101. In other words, as illustrated in FIG. 6, the size A of the fan motor 105 cannot be made larger than the size B of the notch 103b, so that usable fan motors are limited.

Motor drive device in which fan motor is exchangeable and control panel including same


A hydraulic damping device has a pair of supporting members to be secured to a vibrating body and a frame, respectively, and a rubber block disposed between the supporting members. A concave surface of the rubber block and a rubber sheet which is joined to the rubber block together define a liquid chamber filled with a damping liquid. A partition defines the liquid chamber into a main liquid chamber and an auxiliary liquid chamber. The partition has an opening which is closed with an elastic rubber wall. The partition is also provided with a throttle passageway which communicates with both the main liquid chamber and the auxiliary liquid chamber. The elastic rubber wall has a flat surface facing the main liquid chamber, and a concavely curved surface facing the auxiliary liquid chamber so as to have an arch-shaped cross-section. An inner periphery of the partition, which an outer periphery of the elastic rubber wall contacts, has an inclined surface so that the diameter of the opening of the partition decreases from the side of the main liquid chamber toward the auxiliary liquid chamber.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hydraulic damping device, and more particularly to a hydraulic damping device including a partition having a central opening which is closed by an elastic rubber wall for both restraining low-frequency vibrations of large amplitude and absorbing high-frequency vibrations of small amplitude.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional hydraulic damping devices are composed of a vessel-shaped thick rubber block which supports a vibrating body, and a deformable rubber sheet which closes an opening in the vessel-shaped thick rubber block. A main liquid chamber and an auxiliary liquid chamber are formed within the thick rubber black. The main liquid chamber is separated from the auxiliary liquid chamber by a partition which has a throttle passageway. The auxiliary liquid chamber is defined on its bottom side by the deformable rubber sheet. The hydraulic damping device damps vibration by forcing damping liquid enclosed within the main liquid chamber to flow into the auxiliary liquid chamber through the throttle passageway of the partition. Heretofore, various devices have been proposed to reduce high-frequency variations (Japanese unexamined patent publication Sho 60-121339, Japanese unexamined patent publication Sho 61-65934). These conventional devices are generally provided with an elastic rubber wall which closes an opening formed in the central portion of the partition.
When high-frequency vibrations of small amplitudes are input, the elastic rubber wall deforms and absorbs the build-up of the inner pressure of the main liquid chamber.
When low-frequency vibrations of large amplitudes are input to the hydraulic damping device, a higher pressure is built up in the main liquid chamber, as compared to high-frequency vibrations of small amplitude. This higher pressure is applied to the elastic rubber wall.
In order to resist that higher pressure in the above-described conventional devices, upper and lower surfaces of the elastic rubber wall have been formed into symmetric concave surfaces (see, for example, Japanese unexamined patent publication Sho 60-121339) or into parallel surfaces (see, for example, Japanese unexamined patent publication Sho 61-65934). Such elastic rubber walls which have concave or parallel surfaces, however, are likely to be fatigued as a result of the large shear stress generated in its peripheral portion, which is joined to the partition.


A flush toilet having a bowl portion including a bowl-shaped waste receiving surface and a rim portion wherein the rim portion includes a rim top inside corner portion, and a rim top outside corner portion, and in at least part of the entire perimeter of the rim portion, the rounding of the rim top inside corner portion is formed to be larger than the rounding of the rim top outside corner portion. This rim profile enables the rim portion top surface, the rim top inside corner portion, and the inside wall can be efficiently cleaned.

As disclosed in Patent Document 1 (Japan Patent No. 4941796), for example, a water conduit for spouting flush water supplied from a reservoir tank to the bowl portion is formed at the rear top portion of the toilet main body, and a rim portion is formed along the top edge portion of the bowl portion above this water conduit. In this rim portion, the radius of the inside corner portion formed on the inside of the toilet main body and the radius of the outside corner portion formed on the outside of the toilet main body are formed to have approximately the same size, and can be extremely small radii.


The invention features a method of diagnosing an iron disorder, e.g., hemochromatosis, or a genetic susceptibility to developing such a disorder in a mammal by determining the presence of a mutation in exon 2 or in an intron of an HFE nucleic acid.

Hemochromatosis is the most common progressive (and sometimes fatal) genetic disease in people of European descent. Hemochromatosis is a disease state characterized by an inappropriate increase in intestinal iron absorption. The increase can result in deposition of iron in organs such as the liver, pancreas, heart, and pituitary. Such iron deposition can lead to tissue damage and functional impairment of the organs.
In some populations, 60-100% of cases are attributable to homozygosity for a missense mutation at C282Y in the Histocompatibility iron (Fe) loading (HFE) gene, a major histocompatibility (MHC) non-classical class I gene located on chromosome 6p. Some patients are compound heterozygotes for C282Y and another mutation at H63D.

Mutations associated with iron disorders


A fastener assembly for use in locking relationship with an internally threaded member is disclosed which includes an expandable bolt having a cavity extending longitudinally therethrough which is cylindrically shaped on a first end segment thereof and frusto-conically shaped on a second adjoining end segment thereof. The assembly also includes an elongated draw rod having a cylindrically shaped end portion adapted for close fitting slidable engagement in the first end segment, and a frusto-conically shaped end portion or boss having a rate of taper which is greater than the rate of taper of the second cavity segment. The bolthead defines a first circularly shaped recess concentrically formed about an opening of the cavity and a larger diameter second circularly shaped recess essentrically formed around the first recess. A nut which engages a threaded end portion of the first segment of the draw rod is retained in the first recess and a split locking ring which is disposed about the nut is retained in the second recess such that the ring ends become jammed between the nut and a peripheral defining wall of the second recess as the ends of the locking ring are rotated into a narrow portion of the second recess as the nut is tightened on the spindle.

This invention relates to fastener assemblies of the type which employ an expandable screw body defining a cavity therethrough into which an elongated spindle having a cone shaped end portion is forced to expand an end portion of the cavity and screw body to lock the latter with the surrounding threads of a nut, tapped machinery mounting bracket, engine block bore or the like. This invention also relates to means for locking such a spindle at a desired position within the screw body to prevent accidental slippage of the spindle which might cause the screw body to unlock from an interiorly threaded member to which it is fastened.
Broadly speaking, such expandable fastener assemblies have long been known in the prior art. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 990,065 issued to A. L. Sargeant on Apr. 18, 1911; British Pat. No. 161,871 published Apr. 21, 1921; German Pat. No. 362413 published Jan. 27, 1923; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,042,094 issued to M. J. Liljeberg on Jul. 3, 1962. These reference patents all show expandable bolts or screw bodies which have slots formed in a threaded end portion thereof and define a cavity extending therethrough into which either a threaded expansion rod or smooth draw rod or spindle having a cone shaped end portion is inserted. In the German patent, the cavity is uniformly cylindrically shaped from one end to the other while, in each of the remaining patents, an end portion of the fastener cavity is frusto-conically shaped and tapered in conformity with the shape and taper of a cone shaped end portion or boss on a rod or spindle.
A problem which occurs in cases where the cone shaped boss on the spindle is of essentially the same size, shape and taper as the cone shaped end portion of the bolt cavity into which it is forced, is that an interior portion of the cavity is first to engage the boss. Thus, an interior annular portion of the cone shaped cavity portion begins to expand radially outwardly such that an annular gap or space occurs between an end of the cone shaped cavity at it's opening on the end of the threaded bolt body and an annular surface portion of the boss which lies in the plane containing the end of the bolt body. Such an annular gap or spacing permits a threaded end portion of the bolt body to wobble on the spindle which sets up stresses in the bolt body in a central region thereof surrounding an interior end portion of the boss which is tightly jammed against an interior end portion of the cone shaped cavity. Such stresses have been known to cause the expandable bolt body to fracture in this central region and thus fail. If the bolt is one used to secure an aircraft engine to an air frame, for example, it is obvious that such a failure can produce disastrous consequences.
Another problem that has been encountered using prior art expandable bolts to secure massive components together relates to the means used to lock the expansion rod or spindle at a desired position within the bolt cavity such that the spindle will not accidentally slip longitudinally to produce contraction of the surrounding bolt threads to thus decouple the bolt from the interiorly threaded member to which it is joined. Such slippage can occur in the reference devices due to vibration which is sufficient to loosen the spindle retaining nut which is engaged with a threaded end portion of the spindle on one end of the bolt body. To prevent such loosening, a cotter key has been used in the prior art which is inserted through a passage which extends through the side of the spindle retaining nut and through as aligned passage through the threaded end portion of the spindle. However, it is sometimes difficult to obtain the precisely desired position of the spindle in bolt cavity and securely tighten the spindle retaining nut against an end of bolt body and, at the same time, secure alignment of the passageways through the nut and spindle for insertion of the cotter key therethrough. Moreover, it is sometimes difficult to remove such a cotter key from the passageways when it is desired to remove the expandable bolt from the threaded member with which it is joined because of a slight misalignment in the nut and spindle passages which can occur due to vibration over a period of time after the assembly has been installed.
By means of our invention, these and other problems encountered using prior art expandable bolts and conventional locking means therefor are substantially reduced, if not altogether eliminated.

Expandable fastener and locking means therefor


The invention relates to a reducing gear (3), in particular for a starter device (1) of an internal combustion engine, for speed-reducing coupling of a drive shaft and a driven shaft (5, 7), said coupling accomplished by way of at least two toothed gears (11) that engage with one another. The toothed gears (11) comprise straight cogs, and the cogging (30) is extra deep cogging (31). The invention further relates to a starter device (1) of an internal combustion engine.

The invention relates to a reducing gear, in particular for a starter device of an internal combustion engine, for speed-reducing coupling of a drive shaft and a driven shaft, by means of at least two gearwheels which engage with one another. The invention also relates to a starter device of an internal combustion engine.
Reducing gears of the type mentioned at the beginning are known from the prior art. They are frequently used in starter devices of internal combustion engines to increase the torque, for example of an electric motor, as a result of which the overall size of the electric motor is kept small and its weight is kept low. If the internal combustion engine is to be started, the electric motor whose torque is reduced by means of the reducing gear—by reducing the speed and thereby setting the internal combustion engine in motion—is operated for this purpose. Starting from a speed which is dependent on the internal combustion engine used, the internal combustion engine can enter an independent operating mode. This procedure at the starting of the internal combustion engine is necessary since internal combustion engines are usually not capable of self-starting. Frequently, gearwheels with conventional toothing are used for the reducing gear, for example a planetary gear mechanism. This has the disadvantage that during the operation vibrations are excited, which results in poor acoustic properties of the reducing gear. The noises which are produced as a result can in certain cases be comparatively loud and therefore disruptive. In order to prevent the production of these vibrations, a helical toothing has now come to be provided for the reducing gear in some cases. This measure improves the engagement conditions and prevents the production of vibrations and the associated noise level. This means improved acoustic properties. However, the helical toothing also means that axial thrust forces act on the gearwheels which are equipped with the helical toothing. As a result of this, the corresponding bearing arrangement of the gearwheels or of the shafts associated with the gearwheels has to be provided depending on the thrust forces which are produced. The rigidity of the housing must also be configured taking into account the thrust forces. This gives rise to a complex design of the bearings and of the housing, which results in an increase in costs. Also, relatively high friction is present at the gearwheels with helical toothing, with the result that the efficiency of the reducing gear is worsened and therefore the power of the starter is reduced. This means that the starter capability of the starter device or of the electric motor is reduced. For this reason, the power of the electric motor must be increased in order to obtain the necessary starting capability. This in turn causes the wear of the electric motor to increase, in particular the wear of the commutation system, and therefore reduces the service life of the electric motor. Furthermore, there would be the possibility of providing the gearwheels with a double helical toothing. This prevents the occurrence of axial thrust forces acting on a bearing since said forces are taken up by the toothing itself. However, the double helical toothing results in the occurrence of further frictional forces and therefore in a further reduction in the efficiency. The fabrication is also complex and therefore expensive. The advantageous vibration behavior of the helical toothing or of the double helical toothing therefore entails a worsening of the efficiency and a more complex design.

Reducing gear and starter device of an internal combustion engine


A four-stroke cycle internal combustion engine comprises at least two inlet valves and a correspondingly branched intake line. In order to ensure that a high power and a more favorable specific fuel combustion will be achieved at high speeds and a reduced fuel consumption and a lower emission of exhaust gas will be achieved particularly at low speeds and under partial loads. A rotary valve, which has at least two passages, which are associated with respective intake branch lines and are as straight as possible and lead to respective inlet valves, is provided downstream of the junction where the intake line is branched. The internal combustion engine also comprises at least one additional pipe section, which in one position of the rotary valve is connected by the rotary valve between one intake branch line and one of the passages which is then open whereas the rotary valve then shuts off the other passage or passages.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a four-stroke cycle internal combustion engine comprising at least two inlet valves, a branched intake line, which is connected to both let valves, and a rotary valve, which is incorporated in the intake line downstream of the junction therein and has at least two valve passages, which are associated with respective branch intake lines.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A four-stroke cycle internal combustion engine of that kind has been disclosed in SU Abstracts, Section Q, Q52Q53). In that engine the rotary valve is used to supply a rich mixture at a controlled rate through the small valve passage to an auxiliary combustion chamber and the valve passages are not switched.

Four-stroke cycle internal combustion engine


Digital cameras and methods for using digital cameras incorporate or append authentication stamps in digital images. Each authentication stamp contains information that is useful in authenticating the source of a digital image, and thus an authentication process can use the authentication stamp to determine whether the digital image is authentic or was modified outside the camera.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to digital cameras. More particularly, improved digital camera architectures and components are described.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, digital cameras have become very popular. The digital camera converts an optical image to electronic image data and digitally records the image data on a storage medium. When the image is reproduced, the recorded digital data is retrieved from the storage medium and displayed on a display device or printed out as a hard copy image.
Referring initially to FIG. 1, conventional digital camera systems 100 typically include a digital camera 102 having an optical lens 104 for focusing light rays onto an imaging capture unit 106. The imaging capture unit 106 typically relies upon an array of light sensitive photo optic cells 108, capable of converting the light rays received from the optical lens 104 into representative analog signals. Most commonly, the photo optic cells take the form of charge-coupled devices (CCDs), although other devices such as CMOS receptors may be used as well. As is well known in the art, each CCD array 108 must have associated with it a specific color filter array (CFA). In most applications, the CFA is an empirically derived pattern of individual color filters each associated with a specific CCD cell in the CCD array. A color converter circuit 110 then uses a particular interpolation algorithm associated with the specific CFA to generate the analog signals representing the CCD manufacturer""s predetermined concept of the proper color scheme of the image. Manual input controls 103 (i.e., push-buttons, for example) provide manual inputs to a step controller 105 suitably disposed to provide control signals to the imaging capture unit 106. Such control signals are used to control such imaging parameters as f-stop, exposure, zoom, focus, and flash attachments, if appropriate.
The imaging capture unit 106 sends the analog signals representing the image first to an analog-to-digital (AID) converter unit 112. The A/D converter unit 112 converts the representative analog signals into digital signals representative of the image. The digital signals are then passed to a digital signal processor (DSP) 114 where they are converted to appropriate digital formats. An image compression circuit 116 as well as a memory 118 both receive the appropriately formatted digital signals. The image compression circuit 116 operates to digitally compress the received digital images in order to -reduce the amount of resources required to further process the digital signals. One such formatting scheme referred to as JPEG is commonly used, although there are a wide variety of suitable picture formats. Once the image has been digitally compressed, it is sent by way of a memory interface 120 to a memory slot 122 capable of receiving a memory card 124 suitable for storing the compressed digital signals. Such memory cards 124 include xe2x80x9cfloppyxe2x80x9d disks, flash EPROM cards, R/W compact disc (CD), SmartMedia and the like.
Unfortunately, conventional digital cameras have several important limitations. One such limitation is the fact that the conventional digital camera may only use the color filter array (CFA) and its associated color interpolation algorithms. Any subsequent improvements in CCD array technology cannot easily be incorporated into the conventional digital camera system.
Lack of integration also provides for expensive and cumbersome digital cameras. As can be readily seen, the conventional digital camera system 100 has many discrete functional blocks encompassing many different circuits. It is therefore relatively expensive for conventional digital cameras to provide image correction, color correction, image compression, as well as provide all appropriate control and timing signals in one unit.
In addition, each CCD or CMOS imager has different clocking requirements, resolution, etc. That requires dedicated ASICs, or other dedicated logic, to properly drive them. This results in higher manufacturing cost and an inflexible camera architecture.
It would be advantageous and therefore desirable to have available components that can be used by a variety of digital camera manufacturers, regardless of their specific image sensor, color interpolation scheme, etc.
Digital cameras and methods for using digital cameras that are capable of authenticity stamping captured images are disclosed. In one aspect, the digital camera includes an image capture unit arranged to output analog signals that represent a captured image. The digital camera also includes a converter unit for converting the analog representations of the captured image to a digital representation of the image and an image processor arranged to create an image file from the digital representations of the image. The digital camera further includes an authentication stamper for inserting authentication stamps in the image file.
In another aspect of the invention, a method of authentication stamping a digital image is disclosed. In this embodiment, an authentication stamper attaches to the captured image information useful in authenticating the source of the captured image. The captured image is authenticity stamped within the digital camera by attaching to the captured image information useful in authenticating the source of the captured image.
In one preferred embodiment, an image digest, which is a function of the captured image and identification information that is useful in authenticating the source of the captured image, is created. In some implementations, the image digest is formed using a one-way HASH algorithm, and the encrypting is done using a secure key that is a private key.
In yet another aspect of the invention, a method is disclosed for authenticating the source of a digital image that has an authentication stamp that has been attached to the image by a digital camera that originally captured the digital image. A first image digest is formed from the digital image being authenticated. A second image digest is created from the attached authentication stamp. Finally, the first image digest is compared to the second image digest to determine whether the first image digest and the second image digest are the same. When the first image digest and the second image digest are the same, the source of the digital image is considered to be authenticated.

Authentication stamping in a digital camera


A financial transaction network includes a customer network serviced by a host processor. The financial transaction network provides customers with a plurality of diverse and interchangeable financial products and financial services that customers may utilize to directly manage their financial assets. The host processor acts as a communications switch validating incoming transaction requests and routing them to specialized subsystems. The host processor maintains central records that can be accessed by network participants. The financial transaction network enables customers to continually interchange account values relating to any financial product, or financial service within the network. With its accessibility, speed and finality of settlement, the network permits these interchanges to be accomplished with maximum efficiency.

This invention relates to financial systems and to the management of assets by individual consumers. This system provides individual consumers with access to their financial assets 24 hours a day with speed and flexibility from hundreds of locations. The invention enables customers to immediately convert a selected portion of their financial assets into different forms of assets.
The contemporary typical consumer practice to maintain assets is by maintenance of bank checking accounts, separate credit card accounts, and unconnected store credit, debit and charge accounts in order to pay for purchases made and make payments for financial and other products and services. Although this current system is profitable for traditional banks, and credit card associations, in terms of transaction fees and interest collected, this fragmentation of mechanisms for managing personal financial assets is cumbersome and costly for consumers, retailers and other parties to financial payment transactions. Given recently developed hardware and software technology, sophisticated data processing services, secure access and identification technology and one or more FDIC-insured Banks ("Bank"), it is feasible to provide customers with a menu of financial and payment services through an integrated service provider and a single host processor.


An expansion washer structure comprises first and second washer elements having projected ramp members which engage. The ramp members have sloped ramp and level segments adjacent to one another which are disposed to progressively engage as the washer elements are rotated with respect to each other. An internal spring is connected between the washer elements to urge them in one rotational direction when normal compressive force on the washer elements is released. When the washer elements are rotated relative to each other, their ramp members move progressively to different positions, causing the washer structure to increase in thickness.

In certain wooden building structures, tie-down systems are utilized to provide increased strength and stability, particularly to counteract severe wind and earthquake loads. Examples of such systems are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,875,314 and 4,321,776. In order for such tie-down systems to function with maximum effectiveness, the tie rod connections must be kept snug and tight, so that there is no excess "play" or looseness. Wooden members have a natural tendency to shrink with age. Therefore, although a tie-rod hold down system may be tight and snug when installed, wood shrinkage may cause tie rod connections to loosen with the passage of time. It is impractical and expensive to provide access to all conventional fasteners of a tie-rod system so that they can be manually tightened at selected time intervals. Therefore, it is essential to counteract the looseness in such connections that tends to develop and to provide some means for automatically maintaining the snugness of tie-rod connections in a structural tie-down system during the life of the building for which the system is used. The present invention solves this problem.


A novel wood adsorbent for mercury ions is provided by the process of this invention. The process comprises xanthating an alkali wood meal, impregnating the xanthated wood meal with a solution of a peroxide, graft copolymerizing the product with acrolein in gas phase, and converting acrolein aldehyde groups on the resulting graft copolymer to thiosemicarbazone to obtain the novel wood adsorbent for mercury ion. The novel wood adsorbent has a great adsorbing capacity for mercury ion.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a process of producing an ion exchanger for adsorbing mercury ion and the like using wood materials. It is an object of this invention to provide processes for producing low-cost adsorbents which can remove mercury ion from waste water.
2. Summary of the Invention
According to this invention a process for producing an ion exchanger for adsorbing mercury ion includes the steps of impregnating a xanthated wood meal, which has been prepared by well-known methods with a peroxide polymerization initiator to produce active radicals thereon, graft copolymerizing said xanthated wood meal having active radicals with acrolein in gas phase under reduced, atmospheric or high pressure within an autoclave at a temperature of 20.degree. C. to 70.degree. C., preferably at 50.degree. C., to introduce aldehyde groups, and then converting said aldehyde groups to thiosemicarbazone groups at ordinary temperature under atmospheric pressure to generate radicals capable of ion exchange.
One feature of the process according to this invention is that the graft copolymerization of acrolein proceeds at a high rate of reaction, and can be performed without danger as the reaction takes place at a low temperature. Another feature of this invention is that unreacted monomers can be easily recovered. An important characteristic of the ion exchangers obtained by the process according to this invention is the fact that they adsorb selectively mercury ion to be separated from other metal ions and the recovery of mercury ion can be easily performed. In addition, the production cost of the ion exchangers is characteristically low.
The particle size of starting wood meal is preliminarily regulated to have a particle size of 40 to 60 mesh, and then the wood meal is purified by a pretreatment involving extractions with warm water, alcohol, benzene or the like. However, such pretreatment can be omitted when certain starting materials are employed.
Generally the wood material is capable of limited swelling, and this property is maintained by the xanthated wood material used as the starting material in the present invention. The limited swelling property means that the material will not be disintegrated into single fibers and will maintain the original textural structure.

Process for producing wood adsorbents for mercury ions by graft polymerization of acrolein onto xanthated wood meal followed by conversion to thiosemicarbazone

Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries


Systems and methods are provided that enable a vendor to utilize a digital wallet service to complete an online transaction with a user via a messaging channel (e.g., a chat channel), in a scenario where the vendor does not have a front end application running on the user's client device (i.e., there is no mechanism for the vendor's web-based application, such as a bot, to communicate with a digital wallet application running on the user's device). An online digital wallet service generates and caches a payment request (which can be rendered at a later time by the digital wallet service for interaction with the user) which is requested by the vendor, and provides the vendor with a reference to the cached payment request. The vendor provides the reference to the user such that the user can access the payment request via the link.

Digital wallets, also referred to as payment apps, such as Microsoft Wallet™, Apple Pay®, and Android Pay®, among others, are a convenient and commonly-used mechanism for submitting payments online. These types of payment methods may utilize protocols and application programming interfaces (APIs) developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C®). As an example, when a user desires to make a purchase on a website using a mobile device, a computer, and so forth, the user doesn't necessarily want to enter credit card information into the website. However, if the user has a digital wallet account that stores the user's credit card information, and the website provides a payment option for that particular digital wallet, then the user can utilize the digital wallet to provide the payment information for the purchase. When the user selects the digital wallet payment option (such as by clicking on an icon on the website), the vendor's application may utilize payment request API calls which generate a payment request object containing information such as payment method identifiers and details about the transaction. The vendor application may then utilize an API call to trigger display of the digital wallet. A digital wallet interface is launched on the user device, e.g., a window opens which presents the digital wallet user interface, providing the user the option to log in, or to continue if already logged in. The digital wallet user interface, which is an application running locally on the client device, communicates with the website' s application (e.g., a javascript application) that is also running locally on the client device. The digital wallet interface may display information such as the user's payment instruments and shipping addresses that are on file with digital wallet service. The wallet also displays the payment request, e.g., the vendor-supplied information from the payment request object, such as an identification of accepted payment methods, potential shipping methods, and so forth. The user can select a payment method, shipping method, and so forth, but the digital wallet does not have the ability to calculate a payment amount for the transaction. That functionality lies with the product provider's application. The wallet may utilize API calls to communicate the user's selections to the product provider's application, which determines the total amount of the purchase based on the selections (e.g., different shipping addresses or shipping methods may incur different shipping costs) and provides the total amount to the digital wallet service, which presents the amount to the user. When the user confirms the transaction with the digital wallet service, the digital wallet service provides a secure payment token to the product provider's application running locally on the client. The product provider's application then completes the transaction utilizing the payment token, notifying the product provider's back end of the details of the transaction so that processing of the user's order (or whatever type of transaction) can take place. A key portion of the above-described process is the communication that is required between the digital wallet application and the product provider's application. The required communication is possible because both applications are running locally on the client device.