The present invention disclose a method for fabricating planar reference electrodes. Particularly, the present invention relates to the planar reference electrode comprising plate (4); electrode connection (1); electrode (3); insulating membrane (2); inner reference solution (5); junction (7 or 9); and protecting membrane (6, 8 or 9), and processes for fabrication thereof, in which the junction is composed of porous material such as cotton thread, glass fiber, cellulose nitrate, cellulose acetate, filter paper and any material that can produce capillary action; porous polymer membrane; or a capillary either directly printed on the substrate or inserted with a thin film. The planar reference electrode of the present invention exhibit stable electric potential and short activation period, and may be used in both potentiometry and voltammetry. The planar reference electrodes of the present invention can be easily miniaturized and mass produced.

Electrochemical methods such as potentiometry or voltammetry have been commonly applied in the analytical laboratories to determine specific chemical components contained in clinical, environmental or industrial samples. However, the samples collected from remote sampling sites often require special pretreatment to prevent them from contamination or degradation during transportation to the laboratories. The laboratory-based instruments is expensive to operate, and should be managed by the technicians specially trained in the area. In addition to the aforementioned problems, some clinical samples, e.g., blood for in vitro tests, would be collected in smaller volume in order to reduce the patient's uncomfortable feelings and shock. For these reasons, on-spot-monitoring or point-of-care-testing (POCT) with convenient and economic hand-held devices is becoming popular to expedite the analytical tasks, while reducing the laboratory operational costs and errors by non-specialists.
To design portable electroanalytical devices, miniaturization of the electrochemical sensor system including reference and working electrodes should be attained. Numerous schemes have been proposed to accomplish miniaturized working electrodes, and many of them are now commercially available, while reference electrodes have not been extensively developed for miniaturization thereof.
An ideal miniaturized reference electrode requires several characteristics, such as insensitive response to the sample's composition change, providing a constant potential which is characteristic of a reversible redox couple reaction within the half cell. The reversibility of a fast redox reaction ensures the recovery of the same potential even after the passage of electric currents through the reference cell. The reference cell including insoluble metal salt (e.g., Ag/AgCl) provides constant potential by exchanging a cation or anion which is normally contained in a high concentration of reference electrolyte, either in aqueous solution or in a hydrogel medium, which is in contact with the sample solution through a junction. Accordingly, when such a reference system is miniaturized, it is necessary to implement a micro junction, easily activated reference electrolyte, and stable insoluble metal salt on a chip. To use the miniaturized reference electrode for an electrochemical POCT system, fast stabilization of the potential and reproducibility are prerequisite.
Several types of miniaturized reference electrodes have been proposed previously. A reference electrode comprising a screen printed silver/silver chloride electrode, a layer of low temperature melting glass paste or a silicone polymer paste containing potassium chloride, and a hydrophobic polymer membrane that can form micro junctions by hydration has been reported (Cranny, A. W. J.; Atkinson, J. K., Meas. Sci. Technol. 1998, 9, 1557-1565). Unfortunately, the presoaking time for this reference system takes more than an hour and the potential is unstable, although it provides long operational lifetime. Another example of small reference electrode was prepared by the following steps: placing an inner reference electrolyte in the form of hydrogel on a silver/silver chloride electrode; and covering the hydrogel layer with a hydrophobic polymer membrane with a small opening (Lauks, I. R., U.S. Pat. No. 4,993,048). This reference electrode system provides a constant potential only for a short period of time (a few minute) as the small volume of inner reference electrolyte depletes into the sample solution through the junction, and changes the inner salt concentration. However, the formation of a small exposure, which is typically a few micrometers, in the process of mounting an outer membrane is not easy and often results in malfunction of the reference electrode system due to the sealed pore. In addition, there is a possibility that large particulates contained in sample may block the junction. Such an abnormality can not be predicted in advance and lowers the reliability of the measurement. Miniaturized reference electrodes based on field effect transistor (FET) were also proposed (Potter, W.; Dumschat, C.; Cammann, K., Anal. Chem., 1995, 67, 4586-4588): the top of the ion-selective layer is coated with another layer containing solid potassium perchlorate. Since potassium perchlorate is not readily soluble in aqueous solutions, the perchlorate activity in the aqueous surface layer is equal to that of a saturated solution and leads to a constant potential. However, to deposit the potassium perchlorate layer, this system requires a well (diameter 2 mm, and height 1.5 mm) affixed on the chip and is not suitable for mass fabrication.
In order to develop planar reference electrodes that are suitable for mass fabrication with stable reference potential for an elongated period of time, porous material such as cotton thread, glass fiber, cellulose nitrate, cellulose acetate, filter paper and any material that can induce capillary action; porous polymer membrane; or viscous inner reference solution enclosed in a well formed with a punched film layer has been provided as the junction of the reference electrode. The present invention discloses that the aforementioned reference electrodes maintain stable potentials and provide a relatively short activation period. Hence, it can be employed both in potentiometry and voltammetry. The reference electrodes proposed in this invention can be easily miniaturized in planar structure and appropriate for mass fabrication.


An insert detachably attached to an indexable rotary cutting tool, having an upper surface having cutting edges along the ridgeline, a lower surface, side surfaces, and a center hole for a fastening screw; each cutting edge having a corner cutting edge formed in each acute corner portion, and a bottom cutting edge and a peripheral cutting edge formed along the ridgelines on both sides of the corner cutting edge; the bottom cutting edge and the peripheral cutting edge having different clearance angles; a flank of the corner cutting edge having an angle-changing surface portion having a clearance angle continuously changing in a region from the bottom cutting edge to the peripheral cutting edge; and the length of the peripheral cutting edge being restricted by a receding portion adjacent to an upper end of the peripheral cutting edge.

An indexable rotary cutting tool having pluralities of inserts each having cutting edges detachably attached to a tool holder can cut a work with high efficiency. However, when an indexable rotary cutting tool comprising small inserts is used for accurate finishing, chipping and breakage are likely to occur in cutting edges because of insufficient rigidity to stress generated by cutting. Chipping and breakage not only reduce the life of cutting edges, but also deteriorate finished surface quality. Accordingly, various inserts having such shapes as to avoid the chipping and breakage of cutting edges have been proposed.
One means for preventing chipping and breakage is to reduce the vibration of cutting edges. An insert for a cutting tool using such means is disclosed in JP 2003-19617 A. As shown in FIGS. 24(a) and 24(b), this cutting tool insert 201 has a substantially polygonal plate shape comprising a seat-contacting surface 211, an upper surface 212 having a rake face 221A, and flanks 213 between the upper surface 212 and the seat-contacting surface 211; a main cutting edge 216A extending from one corner cutting edge 214A comprising a first main cutting edge 217A, and a second main cutting edge 218A connected to the first main cutting edge 217A with an obtuse angle α; the first main cutting edge 217A being inclined toward the seat-contacting surface 211 with an obtuse angle β to the second main cutting edge 218A; and the first main cutting edge 217A being shorter than the second main cutting edge 218A; the flank 213 comprising a first flank 223A and a second flank 224A; an auxiliary cutting edge 219A extending from the corner cutting edge 214A on the opposite side to the main cutting edge 216A; and the auxiliary cutting edge 219A being connected to the ridgeline 228A with an obtuse angle θ. This shape provides a cutting edge with a large axial rake angle Ax to reduce cutting resistance, thereby reducing vibration. However, JP 2003-19617 A cannot sufficiently prevent chipping and breakage in the corner cutting edge 214A and the first main cutting edge 217A, because (a) a flank of the corner cutting edge 214A is not provided with an angle-changing surface portion having a clearance angle continuously changing along the corner cutting edge 214A, and because (b) the first main cutting edge 217A does not have a receding portion at its end.
JP 8-66815 A discloses, as shown in FIGS. 25(a) to 25(c), a cutting insert 303 for a rotary cutting tool, which comprises a pair of parallel main cutting edges 304a, 304b, a pair of auxiliary cutting edges 305a, 305b laterally extending relative to the main cutting edges 304a, 304b, corner cutting edges 306a, 306b each connecting each main cutting edge 304a, 304b to each auxiliary cutting edge 305a, 305b, rake faces 313, and flanks 321, 322, the cutting edge angle θ of each corner cutting edge 306a, 306b being 50-70°. When the cross-sectional view [FIG. 25(b)] of the main cutting edge is compared with the cross-sectional view [FIG. 25(c)] of the auxiliary cutting edge, the main cutting edge and the auxiliary cutting edge seem to have different clearance angles. However, JP 8-66815 A describes that the clearance angle is substantially constant along the cutting edge, failing to describe a technical idea of making the clearance angle of the auxiliary cutting edge (bottom edge) larger than that of the main cutting edge (peripheral cutting edge). Accordingly, the cutting insert 303 of JP 8-66815 A cannot improve the cutting performance of the peripheral cutting edge while preventing the chipping and breakage of the bottom cutting edge, failing to improve a finished surface condition of a work. Of course, JP 8-66815 A neither discloses nor suggests that the corner cutting edges 306a, 306b are provided with angle-changing surface portions each having a clearance angle continuously changing in a region from the bottom cutting edge to the peripheral cutting edge, to prevent the chipping and breakage of the corner cutting edges 306a, 306b.

Indexable rotary cutting tool and insert used therein

Mitsubishi Hitachi Tool Engineering, Ltd.


Orthodontic force modules and assemblies for use in correcting class II and/or class III malocclusions include an elongate hollow outer body extending between proximal and distal ends, a plunger, spring, and push rod. The plunger and push rod are slidably received within different ends of the hollow outer body. The spring is positioned within the hollow outer body and provides an expansion force which provides a desired corrective force. The outer body, plunger, spring, and push rod can be configured in a telescoping relationship in order for the components to be telescopically compressed and expanded during use. The distal end can include a bendable pin or latch mechanism for attachment to a buccal tube. The push rod can include a hook, hole, or slot for attachment to an archwire. Various connectors for coupling an orthodontic force module to a buccal tube portion of a molar bracket are also disclosed.

1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of orthodontics, more particularly in the field of devices for correction of class II and/or class III malocclusions.
2. the Relevant Technology
Orthodontics is a specialized field of dentistry that involves the application of mechanical forces to urge poorly positioned or crooked teeth into correct alignment and orientation. Orthodontic procedures can be used for cosmetic enhancement of teeth, as well as medically necessary movement of teeth to correct overjets and/or overbites. For example, orthodontic treatment can improve the patient's occlusion, or enhanced spatial matching, of corresponding upper and lower teeth.
The most common form of orthodontic treatment involves the use of orthodontic brackets and wires, which together are commonly referred to as "braces." Orthodontic brackets are small slotted bodies configured for direct attachment to the patient's teeth or, alternatively, for attachment to bands which are, in turn, cemented or otherwise secured around the teeth. Once the brackets are affixed to the patient's teeth, such as by means of glue or cement, a curved arch wire is inserted into the bracket slots.
The brackets and the arch wire cooperate to guide corrective movement of the teeth into proper alignment. Typical corrective movements provided by orthodontic treatment can include lateral migration, torque, rotation, angulation, leveling, and other movements needed to correct the spacing and alignment of misaligned teeth.
The orthodontic treatment of some patients includes correction of the alignment of the upper dental arch relative to the lower dental arch. Certain patients have a condition referred to as a Class II malocclusion, which is a condition involving the posterior relationship of the mandible to the maxillae and in which the mesiobuccal cusp of the permanent maxillary first molar occludes mesial to the buccal groove of the permanent mandibular first molar (also known as retrognathia, or overjet). Other patients may have an opposite condition referred to as a Class III malocclusion wherein the lower dental arch is located forward of the upper dental arch when the jaws are closed (prognathia, or negative overjet).
Class II and Class III malocclusions may be corrected with the use of a force-applying system such as headgear, elastic, or an intraoral force module. Headgear is generally disfavored because it is bulky and often a source of embarrassment for the patient. Intraoral force modules have gained increasing acceptance as they can remain fixed in place over the course of treatment so as to typically not be removable by the patient, and are less aesthetically objectionable compared to traditional headgear.
Examples of intraoral force modules are disclosed in PCT Publication No. WO 2012/018648 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,828,875; 5,738,514; 5,711,667; 5,562,445; 6,358,046; 6,162,051; 5,964,588; and 5,944,518, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Although existing intraoral force modules represent an improvement over headgear, they still have deficiencies that provide opportunities for substantial improvement.

Force module for class II and class III correction and releasable distal connector for force module


Label sheets are formed from a continuous web of laminated stock material comprising a face stock layer and a liner layer secured together by an adhesive layer. The stock material is delaminated and an adhesive deactivating material is applied to the adhesive layer in longitudinal strips to create active and inactive adhesive portions. Label sheets are formed by cutting the web of stock material transversely. Individual labels are formed on the label sheets by kiss-cutting the face stock layer. Each individual label includes an attachment end with active adhesive and a free/unattached end with inactive adhesive. A method of manufacturing partially-secured labels includes the steps of delaminating a stock material, deactivating strips of an adhesive layer, and relaminating the stock material. The method also includes the steps of cutting the stock material into individual label sheets and kiss-cutting the label sheets to form individual, partially-secured labels.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to adhesive labels, and in particular to a partially-secured label and a method of manufacturing same utilizing an adhesive deadening agent.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Labels are well known and various types have been proposed to meet the requirements of a wide variety of label applications. For example, labels are extensively used in retail businesses for communicating product information to customers. Examples of labels used in retail merchandising include product labeling, preprinted packaging, and point-of-purchase display labels.
Point-of-purchase displays typically place merchandise within easy reach of consumers. Exemplary applications include self-service grocery, department, discount, and specialty stores and shops. Many of the merchandise items in such establishments lend themselves to shelf displays. For example, product containers such as boxes, bottles, jars, cans, and the like are typically well-suited for shelf displays. Such self-service retail marketing arrangements are popular with merchants because customers typically make their own selections. Labor costs can thus be minimized. However, personnel are needed for labeling the shelves adjacent to the merchandise stocked and displayed thereon.
Shelf-mounted labels commonly identify products and include such information as quantities and pricing. Certain types of retail businesses, such as grocery stores and discount merchandisers, experience frequent price changes. Consequently the point-of-purchase displays are frequently relabeled in many such establishments.
A common type of shelf label has an outer surface with the aforementioned information printed thereon and an inner surface with adhesive and non-adhesive portions. The adhesive portion of the inner surface is designed for adhering the label to the front, or outer, edge of a shelf. Such labels are commonly manufactured in sheets, each of which includes a number of labels. The label face stock layer is precut into a plurality of discrete labels. The backs of the label sheets are typically perforated or otherwise precut to separate the adhesive portions from the non-adhesive portions. For example, the entire back of the face stock layer can be coated with adhesive, which can mount a liner. In forming the prior art labels, portions of the liner are removed to expose the label adhesive portions. Removing a portion of the back liner from each such prior art label thus provides both adhesive and non-adhesive portions of the label inner surface.
Although such prior art shelf labels are in widespread use and can be manufactured with existing equipment, they are subject to several disadvantages. For example, such prior art labeling operations tend to be relatively labor intensive. More specifically, the label sheets must be separated into discrete labels and the liner portions which are designed for removal must be removed. The store personnel can then mount the labels by pressing the adhesive portions of the inner surfaces against the shelf edges whereby messages printed on the label outer surfaces are visible. Such messages can be preprinted when the labels are manufactured in xe2x80x9cservice bureauxe2x80x9d operations. Alternatively, blank label sheets can be provided for printing and marking by the customers. The labels can be partly printed during manufacture. Additional message information, such as pricing, can be applied to the labels at the point-of-purchase.
Heretofore, there has not been available a partially-secured label, label sheet and method of manufacturing same with the advantages and features of the present invention.
A label sheet includes a vinyl face stock layer and a liner. The face stock layer has a layer of adhesive applied thereto. The adhesive includes alternating strips of active and inactive adhesive portions. The inactive adhesive portions are rendered inactive by applying an adhesive deadening material thereto. Labels are formed in the vinyl face stock layer by kiss-cutting same. Each label includes an attached end with a portion of an active adhesive strip. Each label also includes a free, unattached end with a portion of an inactive adhesive strip. A labeling method includes the steps of delaminating a laminated material, applying strips of an adhesive deadening material, relaminating the vinyl face stock and the liner. The vinyl face stock is kiss-cut to form a plurality of discreet labels. Each label includes an attached end with active adhesive thereon and a free, unattached end with inactive adhesive thereon.
The principal objects and advantages of the present invention include: providing a partially-secured label; providing sheets of such labels; providing such labels which utilize a deadening agent for forming adhesive and non-adhesive portions; providing such a label which minimizes the labor involved in removing same from a sheet and placing same on a shelf display; providing such a label which is efficient in operation, economical to manufacture and particularly well adapted for the proposed use thereof; providing a label sheet which is adapted for both service bureau preprinting during manufacture and customer printing; providing a method of manufacturing partially-secured labels; providing such a method which is efficient in material and labor costs; and providing such a label which is resistant to distortion from freezer curl and other causes.
Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example, certain embodiments of this invention.

Partially-secured label, label sheet and manufacturing method


The present invention relates to a system for detecting intrusion in advance using an SMS notification service and a system and a method for notifying a rescue signal, and more particularly, to a system for detecting intrusion in advance using an SMS notification service capable of promptly notifying a situation by transmitting an SMS notification message to a user terminal of a pre-registered recipient while promptly displaying a warning light and propagating an alarm sound to the outside in an emergency situation, and a system and a method for notifying a rescue signal.

As the industrial society develops and the importance of the developed technologies increases, the security of storage places of the technologies and data are kept is getting more and more emphasized and the interest in personal security to notify others of urgent situations of individuals is growing.
In consideration of the recent situations,
Various types of alarm devices to only authorized persons into a specific place have been developed and used.
However, the typical alarm device is configured so that the victim recognizing the intruder is required to operate the alarm device to express the emergency situation to the outside in the situation where each abnormal situation occurs. However, in the intruder's intrusion situation or in the condition in which the victim's reorganization ability is insufficient or is in the urgent situation, the victim is not able to operate the alarm device and therefore is still a target of crime.
Korean Laid-Open Patent Application No. 10-2010-97849 discloses a crisis management system that enables a person in a dangerous situation to generate alarms and notify a dangerous situation to surrounding people by a simple operation and enables the surrounding people to be actively involved in relief activities and take countermeasures against the dangerous situation. The crisis management system just provides a notification function to a computer via the Internet and thus is difficult to apply to currently available user terminals.
In addition, CCTV related industry and advanced science equipment for post-management is being continuously developed around the world, but systems for preventing crime signs and distress accidents have not yet been developed.
Accordingly, there is a need to complement and construct a system capable of promptly notifying external management authority servers or user terminals of pre-registered emergency notification recipients of the situations via an SMS notification message while promptly and simply propagating a warning light, an alarm sound, a rescue announcement voice.

System for detecting intrusion in advance using SMS notification service and system and method for notifying rescue signal


A varactor includes a first PTC region, which comprises a ceramic material with a positive temperature coefficient with respect to the resistance. The varactor also includes a capacitor region that includes a first electrode, a second electrode, and a first dielectric layer arranged between the first electrode and the second electrode. The first PTC region and the capacitor region are connected thermally conductively to one another. The capacitance of the capacitor region can be changed by applying a bias to the first PTC region, the capacitor region or to the first PTC region and the capacitor region.

A widespread problem of varactors is that of obtaining a good tunability with regard to the dielectricity.
Varactors are voltage-tunable capacitors in which the capacitance is dependent on a voltage applied thereto, or the capacitance can be altered by a change in the applied voltage. Varactors are employed for example in radiofrequency circuits in which electrical tuning takes place, such as, for example, in filters or phase shifters. Varactors can be used as frequency filters, for example, for radio and radio frequencies which can be electrically tuned. Semiconductor diode varactors have only a low quality factor, a low loading capacity and a limited capacitance range. By contrast, a ferroelectric varactor, in which the capacitance is tuned for example by varying the dielectric constant of a ferroelectric material by means of changing the bias voltage, has a high quality factor, a high loading capacity and at the same time a large capacitance range.

Varactor and method for producing a varactor


The present invention is directed to a trigger mechanism of an electronic weapon. The trigger mechanism eliminates the need of a shooter having to master the pulling of the trigger of a rifle with the tip of his index finger and also minimizes the importance of proper breathing techniques when firing the rifle.

One of the most difficult things to do when shooting a rifle for marksmanship is maintaining the body still when pressing the trigger of a rifle. One of the most frequent complications of firing a rifle is the pulling of the rifle in a horizontal direction when pressing the trigger. An un-experienced shooter will usually miss the target either to the left or the right of the mark, depending on whether the shooter shoots from the right or the left side. The reason for the complication is the positioning of the index finger on the trigger. An expert will tell a shooter to only place the tip of the index finger on the trigger so that when the trigger is pulled only a minimal sideways pull will be exerted on the rifle. The above concept seems simple, but if you ask any soldier taught to fire a rifle, this is easier said than done. The reason that the above concept is difficult is because the shooter also has to exhale prior to pulling the trigger to obtain optimum results.
The invention overcomes the above problem by eliminating the need to pull the trigger with an index finger, thereby eliminating the sideways pull of the rifle. This invention simply requires the shooter to aim the rifle at a mark and once the mark is realized, the shooter will bite a mouth trigger that will fire the rifle.
The concept of having an electronically fired weapon is not new in the art. Information relevant to attempts of reducing the movement of a rifle when firing the rifle can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,337,145, 2,780,882, 4,718,187, and 4,727,670. However, each one of these references does not solve the problem of the pull of the weapon or the time that it takes the brain to send the finger the message to pull the trigger.
An object of this invention is to it eliminate the need of using an index finger when firing a rifle, thereby eliminating the sideways pull of the rifle when firing the rifle.
Another object of this invention is to allow a shooter not to have to master two functions when shooting a mark, the pulling of the trigger with the tip of an index finger and the exhaling of the air in ones lungs prior to the pulling of the trigger, thereby minimizing the shooter's movements and maximizing the chances of the shooter hitting his mark. With the current invention, the shooter simply marks the mark and then bites the mouth trigger when firing.

Abstract: The trigger mechanism of the electronic weapon has two major components. The first is a mouth operated switch that facilitates the firing of the electronic rifle. The second piece is the electronic rifle. The two pieces might be connected using an electrical cord or a radio frequency.


A method and apparatus for inspecting a bonded joint between components. A cross-sectional image of the joint is analyzed by determining the location of a first characteristic of the joint, the centroid of the joint in the cross-sectional image; and then measuring a second characteristic of the joint in reference to the location of the centroid. This measurement may be used by comparing it with a predetermined specification expected for the measurement for the purpose of determining the quality of the joint. The invention is particularly advantageous for studying cross-sectional X-ray images of solder joints between electronic components and substrata upon which they are mounted and can be implemented for analyzing the images produced in cross-sectional X-ray inspection machines such as scanned beam X-ray laminography systems or digital tomosynthesis systems.

Since the introduction of Integrated-Circuit (IC) chips, the conventional technique for mounting them on Printed-Circuit Boards (PCBs) has been the Pin-Through-Hole (PTH) technology. However, continual increases in IC-chip complexity, performance, and placement density are placing demands on the density and functionality of package interconnections influencing the development of various Surface-Mount-Technology (SMT) package-interconnection techniques to satisfy the needs, such as the Ball-Grid-Array (BGA) interconnection technique. These techniques are documented in an article by F. F. Cappo, et al. entitled "Highly Manufacturable Multi-layered Ceramic Surface-Mounted Package," IEEE/CHMT IEMT Symposium 1991, pp. 424-428, September 1991. Ball-Grid-Array is an area-array interconnection that can achieve a density of 400 interconnections per square inch. Because of the complexity or density of interconnections, a number of techniques have been developed to monitor interconnection quality.
Various automated solder-inspection systems are commercially available for monitoring solder-joint quality. The techniques used in these systems can be characterized by the radiation employed (either infrared, visible light, X-ray, or acoustic), the way in which the radiation interacts with the object being inspected, and the means used to detect the response of the radiation. The types of radiation can be subdivided into two broad categories, namely, non-penetrating and penetrating, depending on whether the radiation can penetrate the intervening chip-package material to image the Ball-Grid-Array joints. Techniques using penetrating radiation, such as acoustic and X-ray, can potentially inspect all Ball-Grid-Array joints within an area array including both peripheral joints and joints hidden under the chip-package material. The image generated by transmission systems (as opposed to cross-sectional systems) are due to the combined attenuation of the beam by every feature along its path. Therefore, the individual contribution to the attenuation of the beam by distinct features along the same beam path cannot be singularly isolated. For example, with respect to Ball-Grid-Array joints, the supporting solder ball with its high-lead content would entirely obscure the eutectic-solder fillets in a transmission image. For these reasons transmission systems tend not to be effective for the inspection of Ball-Grid-Array joints. However, cross-sectional inspection techniques have proven to be effective, as disclosed in the following patents:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,097,492 issued Mar. 17, 1992 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,926,452, issued May 15, 1990, both to Bruce D. Baker, et al., describe an inspection system using cross-sectional imaging to inspect microelectronic devices. U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,308 issued Feb. 28, 1989 to John Adams, et al. describes a transmission X-Ray inspection system.
Although cross-sectional imaging described above is useful for inspection, a number of interconnection or soldering defects are not reliably detected by these systems.
These references fail to disclose the use of the centroid of a cross-sectional image of an interconnection as a reference (location) for the measurement of a characteristic of the interconnection to determine the quality of the interconnection. The use of the image centroid of the interconnection has been determined to dramatically improve measurement accuracy in inspection so that defects and good joints can be more reliably distinguished, especially in the Ball-Grid-Array joint environment.
While Ball-Grid-Array (BGA) is compatible with existing assembly processes, and is functionally superior to Pin Through Hole (PTH), Ball-Grid-Array cannot successfully replace PTH unless it can also provide the same long-term reliability. The solder-joint volume and ball/pad alignment are the most critical characteristics that the assembly process for Ball-Grid-Array must consistently produce to ensure long-term reliability. Furthermore, the assembly process must be controlled to minimize such process defects as pad nonwets and solder bridges. To develop and control such a robust assembly process requires the use of an inspection technique to characterize the process by quantitatively measuring the critical characteristics of Ball-Grid-Array joints, such as the solder-joint volume and the ball/pad alignment. To this end, the overriding emphasis of inspection is to provide data on the assembly process that can be used to improve it in a closed-loop manner and not simply to screen the assembly-process output for defects. However, the Ball-Grid-Array technology poses a significant challenge to developing a satisfactory inspection process because the eutectic solder fillets that require inspection are obscured by the high-lead-content solder balls and a highly-metallized ceramic substrate. Thus, in order to reliably inspect the solder fillets, the inspection system must be able to isolate the solder fillets from the solder balls and the ceramic substrate. The method invention provides a suitable inspection system for these purposes.

Inspection system for cross-sectional imaging

International Business Machines Corporation


In a sailing vessel having a gunwale, a cockpit located in a rear portion of the vessel having a floor below the level of the gunwale and a companionway hood adjacent a front end of the cockpit having a height at least as high as the level of the gunwale, the improvement wherein the cockpit has three longitudinally extending sections, the central section having a height at its front end adjacent the companionway hood similar to that of said hood, the height decreasing toward the rear of the vessel, while the two side sections on either side of the central section of the cockpit have a floor which is approximately horizontal and below the level of the gunwale. Openings are provided in the front part of each of the side sections of the cockpit permitting access to the interior of the vessel.

The present invention relates to a sailing vessel, which may have auxiliary engine, and, more particularly, to a novel deck structure for the sailing vessel or craft which makes it possible to obtain a larger interior cabin space.
Sailing craft usually have an open cockpit which, at its front end, has an access way to the interior of the central part of the craft. Some designs have two accesses or hatchways which connect the cockpit to the inside of the craft, one on each side of the craft.
However, because the cockpit usually has a floor of uniform height lower than the remaining deck of the vessel, the inner height of the interior part of the vessel in the area under the cockpit may not be high enough to enable a person to stand upright. This is particularly the case in craft of up to 12 meters in length, while, in larger craft, the height may be sufficient.


An air-fuel ratio control system of an automotive internal combustion engine comprises a surge detecting device for detecting the surge level of the engine under a lean combustion operation; a lean combustion limit detecting device which issues a first signal when the detected surge level exceeds a given allowable limit and a second signal when the detected surge level fails to exceed the given allowable limit; and an air-fuel mixture diluting device which, when the leans combustion limit detecting device issues the second signal, dilutes the air-fuel mixture in such a manner that a surge level of the engine given by the diluted air-fuel mixture closely approaches the given allowable limit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to air-fuel ratio control systems of an internal combustion engine, and more particularly to air-fuel ratio control systems of a type in which the air-fuel mixture fed to the engine can be controlled to a very lean side in accordance with the surrounding conditions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hitherto, in order to improve the fuel consumption, a so-called "lean combustion engine" has been proposed in which the combustion of the engine is carried out with a very lean air-fuel mixture, such as a mixture having an air-fuel ratio of about 20 to 25. In the engines of this type, under low speed and low load condition, the engine operates on such a very lean mixture for the improvement of fuel consumption, while upon requirement of quick acceleration and high torque, a somewhat richer-than-normal mixture is fed to the engine. One of the engines of this type is disclosed in Japanese Patent First Provisional Publication No. 1-187338.
However, due to the inherent construction, even the engines of the above-mentioned lean combustion type have a misfire threshold level in the lean combustion side. That is, when the engine is fed with a lean air-fuel mixture exceeding the misfire threshold level, normal operation of the engine is not obtained. Furthermore, even when the lean air-fuel mixture is somewhat richer than the misfire lean level, the surrounding condition of the engine, such as, the nature of fuel, temperature of surrounding air or the like, tends to cause an unstable combustion of the engine.
Accordingly, hitherto, as is seen from the graph of FIG. 6, the actual lean air-fuel ratio has been set to a level which is considerably richer than the misfire threshold level considering the zone inducing the unstable engine combustion. This means that the lean air-fuel ratio set in the engines of the above-mentioned type fails to provide the engine with a satisfied fuel saving or fuel consumption. Furthermore, the enrichment of the lean air-fuel mixture brings about undesired increase of NOx in the exhaust gas.

Air-fuel ratio control system of internal combustion engine

Japan Electronic Control Systems Co., Ltd.


Provided is a semiconductor device including a semiconductor substrate; a dummy trench that is formed on a front surface side of the semiconductor substrate; an emitter electrode that is formed above a front surface of the semiconductor substrate and includes a recessed portion that is a recess in an outer periphery thereof, as seen in a planar view; a dummy pad that is electrically connected to the dummy trench and has at least a portion thereof formed within the recessed portion, as seen in the planar view; and a dummy wire that electrically connects the emitter electrode and the dummy pad.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device.
2. Related Art
Conventional art is known that includes screening a device by applying a suitable electric field to a semiconductor device having a trench structure after the device has been completed, as shown in Patent Documents 1 and 2, for example.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2014-053552
Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2010-050211
However, if a semiconductor device has a dummy trench structure with a fixed potential, it is impossible to apply a suitable electric field for screening to a region where the dummy trench structure is formed.


A method that includes identifying an inaccessible portion of a first disk drive. The method also includes regenerating data corresponding to the inaccessible portion of the first disk drive and storing the regenerated data to a second disk drive. The method also includes copying data from an accessible portion of the first disk drive to the second disk drive.

A redundant array of independent disks (RAID) is a storage technology that controls multiple disk drives and provides fault tolerance by storing data with redundancy. A failure to access data stored in a disk drive will cause the RAID controller to fail the disk drive and initiate a rebuild process that regenerates the lost data from the other disk drives in the RAID. During this rebuild process, the RAID is in a degraded state and may not be fault tolerant, depending on the particular RAID configuration used. If another failure occurs, the entire volume of data from the failed disk drive can be lost.

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


The present disclosure is directed to a framed canvas. The framed canvas includes a frame including at least two sides, each of the at least two sides including a front surface and a rear surface, the rear surface of at least one of the at least two sides including a cavity, a canvas sheet contacting each of the at least two sides, and at least one support, the at least one support including a first end and a second end, the first end configured to extend into the cavity, the second end configured to contact a base.

The set up and use of various canvases typically requires the use of an external support or frame, such as an easel, to maintain the canvas in a particular position and location. Since typical canvases cannot support themselves in a preferred position, the presence and use of external supports or frames becomes necessary.
What is desired is a device and method for using a canvas that can provide its own support. Embodiments of the present disclosure provide methods that address the above and other issues.


A security document includes a first ink layer and a second ink layer. The first ink layer includes a first color in a first color zone and a second color in a second color zone offset from the first color zone in a first direction, and a first blended color including a mixture of the first and second colors in a first blended color zone between the first color zone and the second color zone. The second ink layer includes a third color in a third color zone and a fourth color in a fourth color zone offset from the third color zone in a second direction, and a second blended color including a mixture of the third and fourth colors in a second blended color zone between the third color zone and the fourth color zone. The first direction is different than the second direction.

Security printing is the field of the printing industry that deals with the printing of security documents such as banknotes, cheques, passports, tamper-evident labels, product authentication, stock certificates, postage stamps, identity cards, among other examples. A goal of security printing is to prevent forgery, tampering, or counterfeiting. Security printing can be done on commercial printers like traditional offset and flexographic presses, as well as using newer digital platforms. One security printing technique is sometimes referred to as split ink fountain or sometimes rainbow printing, by which security documents are produced, at least in part, by printing with more than one ink in a printing fountain to achieve a unique blended color/color pattern that is difficult to reproduce.

Security printing and security documents produced thereby


Tri-spacer for centering and holding drop pipe and electric wires in the center of a well casing. The tri-spacer consists of a one-piece triangular member with flexible ends providing a centering action with very little constriction, binding, or drag on the well casing when the drop pipe and electric wires are lowered or raised in the well, and at the same time keeping the drop pipe and electric wires centered. The tri-spacer includes an insert wedge for locking action to the well casing and a sharp annular ridge on the inner diameter of the tri-spacer making an impression in the drop pipe.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to well pipes and, more particularly, pertains to a tri-spacer for spacing a drop pipe and associated electric control wires in the center of a well casing.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art devices consist of circular members that caused considerable constriction during raising and lowering in the well casing. The device had no means of fastening to the drop pipe, and had to be held in place by using friction tape which is quite expensive and cumbersome. Also, the electric wires had to be fed through a hole of each unit which is very laborious. The prior art devices left much to be desired, especially since the drop pipe could rub against the well casing and subsequently leak, and electric control wires could rub and subsequently short out.
The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art by providing a tri-spacer to space a drop pipe from a well casing.


Methods and related systems are configured to treat a drilling fluid to cause water droplets to coalesce. One or more phases are thereafter separated from the treated drilling fluid. The oil and/or solids separated from the treated drilling fluid may be added to a base fluid.

Oil-based muds form a general class of materials that minimally comprise a mixture of particulate solids in a hydrocarbon fluid. A subset of oil-based muds is oil-based drilling muds that contain functional additives used to improve drilling operations in several ways. These fluids are circulated through and around the drill bit to lubricate and cool the bit, provide suspension to help support the weight of the drill pipe and casing, coat the wellbore surface to prevent caving in and weight to balance against undesirable fluid flow from the formation, and to carry drill cuttings away from the bit to the surface. Such oil-based drilling fluids are oil-continuous compositions that may also contain an water solution (e.g. calcium chloride brine) as a discontinuous phase (making the fluids water-in-oil invert emulsions), emulsifiers to stabilize the invert emulsion, rheology modifying agents (e.g. oleophilic clays), weighting agents (e.g. barium sulfate), fluid loss control agents (e.g. lignins), and other additives (e.g. lime). Oil-based muds are water-in-oil macroemulsions, which are also called invert emulsions. Used oil-based drilling muds will contain, in addition to the above components, drill cuttings and other dissolved or dispersed materials derived from the drilled medium or from other sources of contamination such as process and environmental waters. With high levels of contamination, oil-based drilling muds lose their desirable fluid properties and performance. As a consequence, contaminated oil-based muds must be discarded or reconditioned.
The present disclosure addresses the reclamation and recycling of such fluids.

Oil-based drilling fluid recovery and reuse


Supplemental data is embedded in an information signal such as a sigma-delta modulated audio signal. The encoded signal includes two or more channels, e.g. a left channel bit stream and a right channel bit stream. The same supplemental data is accommodated at corresponding predetermined bit positions, e.g. every Mth bit position, of the bit streams. This allows detection and extraction of the supplemental data without the need for accommodating a sync pattern in the signal. At the receiving end, a sequence of Mth bits from the first channel is compared with a corresponding sequence of Mth bits from the second channel. If they are identical, the sequence is a candidate supplemental data sequence. This is done for different sequence positions until the supplemental data has been found.

The invention relates to a method and arrangement for embedding supplemental data in an information signal, comprising the step of embedding supplemental data samples at predetermined positions of said information signal. The invention also relates to a method and arrangement for extracting the supplemental data from such an information signal.
There is a growing need to accommodate watermarks in audio and video signals. Watermarks are supplemental data messages embedded in multimedia assets, preferably in a perceptually invisible manner. They comprise information, for example, about the source or copyright status of documents and audiovisual programs. They can be used to provide legal proof of the copyright owner, and allow tracing of piracy and support the protection of intellectual property.
A known method of embedding supplemental data in an information signal as defined in the opening paragraph is disclosed, inter alia, in International Patent Application WO-A-98/33324. In this prior-art method, a watermark pattern is embedded in a (sigma-)delta-modulated audio signal. The watermark is embedded in the encoded audio signal by modifying selected bits thereof. For example, every 100th bit is replaced by a bit of the watermark pattern. The step of modifying the encoded audio signal is carried out inside the feedback loop of the encoder so as to compensate the effect of the modification in subsequent encoding steps.
The prior-art method is envisaged for recording high-quality audio on the audio version of the Digital Versatile Disk (DVD). A sampling frequency of 2,822,400 Hz (64*44,100) will be used to yield a signal-to-noise ratio of 115 dB. Replacing every 100th bit of the sigma-delta-modulated audio signal by a watermark bit at the expense of only 1 dB increases the quantization noise. This corresponds to watermark bit rate of about 28000 bits per second.
The above-mentioned patent application WO-A-98/33324 also discloses an arrangement for extracting the watermark. A synchronization bit pattern (hereinafter sync pattern for short) is accommodated in the bit stream to identify the supplemental data bit positions. The arrangement comprises a divider stage and a sync detector. The divider stage divides the bit rate by the number of bits by which the watermark bits are spaced apart (e.g. 100 if every 100th bit of the signal is a supplemental data bit). The sync detector changes the phase of the divider stage until the sync pattern is found. Such a sync detector includes a relatively long shift register or serial-to-parallel converter to store a portion of the bit stream. If every Mth bit of the signal is a supplemental data bit and the sync pattern comprises N bits, the sync detector must necessarily store (Nxe2x88x921)xc2x7M+1 bits.
German Patent Application DE-A-37 17 315 discloses such a known sync detector in more detail. In this publication, every 15th bit of a signal is a supplemental bit and the sync pattern is a 4-bit word. In accordance therewith, the shift register (serial-to-parallel converter 5 in FIG. 2 of DE-A-37 17 315) holds 46 bits.
In order to reduce the length of the shift register, it is proposed in Applicant""s non-published co-pending patent application PHN 17.148 to make the spacing between the sync pattern bits considerably smaller than the spacing between the watermark bits. However, this solution affects the coding performance and increases the signal-to-noise ratio of the sigma-delta modulator.
It is an object of the invention to provide a method of embedding supplemental data in an information signal, which allows the supplemental data bit positions to be detected in an alternative manner.
To this end, the method in accordance with the invention is characterized in that the information signal comprises at least two signal channels, the method including the step of embedding the same supplemental data samples at corresponding positions of said channels. The transmission of a sync pattern can now be omitted because the position of the embedded watermark bits can easily be found by searching the positions in which the at least two channel samples are identical.
The corresponding method of extracting the supplemental data from the information signal comprises the steps of comparing a first sequence of predetermined first channel signal samples with a corresponding second sequence of second channel signal samples, displacing said first and second sequence by one sample position, and repeating said comparison step for said displaced first and second sequence as long as the sequences are not identical.

Embedding and extracting supplemental data in an information signal


Apparatus and methods of near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM) are described. A sensing technique is used, in which a light source having an optical cavity is reflectively coupled to the sample surface. Changes in the surface properties of the sample at the sensed location alter the optical feedback in the light source. This leads to detectable changes in the output characteristics of the light source.

Recent advances have brought near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM) to the point where it can be applied routinely to a variety of samples. For example, the design and applications of a probe based on a metal-coated, tapered optical fiber are described in E. Betzig, J. K. Trautman, T. D. Harris, J. S. Weiner, and R. L. Kostelak, Science 25 1, 1468 (1991); E. Betzig, P. L. Finn, and J. S. Weiner, Appl, Phys. Lett. 60, 2484 (1992); and E. Betzig and J. K. Trautman, Science 257, 189 (1992). Nevertheless, further refinement of near-field probes remains an area of active interest. For example, the quantity and diversity of applications would be enhanced through the development of probes having increased photon flux. In the above-mentioned tapered fiber probe, the flux is limited, in large part, because the transmitted energy is exponentially attenuated in evanescent modes within the probe as the probe diameter tapers to dimensions substantially smaller than the wavelength. However, rather than imaging the sample directly via this comparatively weak emitted light, it is possible, in principle, to measure local properties of the sample by their influence on the boundary conditions at the emissive aperture of the probe and their consequent effect on the electromagnetic field within the probe itself. The problem then becomes one of measuring these field changes with sufficient speed and sensitivity to permit high bandwidth NSOM reflection-mode detection.
Reflective feedback probes have, in fact, been demonstrated for operation at heights greater than one wavelength above the sample surface. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,860,276, issued to H. Ukita, et al. on Aug. 22, 1989, describes an optical head which can be used for reading or writing digital data. This head, which is carded on a flying slider, includes a self-coupled semiconductor laser situated within several micrometers of the recording surface. The resulting spot size is about 1 .mu.m in diameter, which, however,is not substantially smaller than spot sizes attainable using conventional focusing optics. Thus, the Ukita probe fails to combine the high resolution of near-field detection with the relatively high signal-to-noise ratios achievable by reflective feedback.

Method and apparatus for near-field, scanning, optical microscopy by reflective, optical feedback


A rotary cutting tool having the general form of a circular disk with cutting inserts secured tangentially to the circumference of the tool's body, for metal machining in general and for machining cam lobes. The cutting inserts have concave side surfaces and concave cutting edges.

This invention relates to rotary cutting tools having a tool body the general form of a circular disk with cutting inserts secured tangentially to the circumference of the tool body, for metal machining in general and for machining cam lobes of camshafts of internal combustion engines in particular. Such cutting tools normally employ groups of two or more cutting inserts arranged in a circumferentially staggered formation. The individual cutting edges of the cutting inserts in each group are generally oriented at non-zero lead angles. Consequently, each cutting insert has a non-zero axial component cutting force acting on it. Since the cutting inserts are staggered, the cutting tool is unbalanced with respect to the axial component cutting forces.


An improved method for producing Factor VIII:c is disclosed. The method involves culturing mammalian cells which contain DNA encoding Factor VIII:c and which are capable of expressing Factor VIII:c. In accordance with this invention the cells are cultured in a medium containing an effective amount of a Factor VIII:c-stabilizing substance comprising (a) von Willebrand Factor (VWF), (b) a phospholipid or phospholipid mixture, or a mixture of (a) and (b).

The Factor VIII complex has two distinct biologic functions coagulant activity and a role in primary hemostatis. The analysis of Factor VIII deficiency diseases, classic hemophilia and von Willebrand's disease, have contributed to the understanding that Factor VIII is a complex of two components. The Factor VIII:c procoagulant protein (antihemophilic factor) and the Factor VIII related antigen (von Willebrand factor, VWF) are under separate genetic control, have distinct biochemical and immunologic properties, and have unique and essential physiologic functions.
The Factor VIII:c molecule is an important regulatory protein in the blood coagulation cascade. After activation by thrombin, it accelerates the rate of Factor X activation by Factor IXa, eventually leading to the formation of the fibrin clot. Deficiency of Factor VIII:c (classic hemophilia) is an X-linked chromosomal disorder that has been a major source of hemorrhagic morbidity and mortality in affected males. Treatment usually consists of frequent transfusions with blood products. The latter has resulted in a high incidence of infectious complications (such as various forms of hepatitis and acquired immunodeficiency disease) in the hemophiliac population.
The VWF molecule is an adhesive glycoprotein that plays a central role in platelet agglutination. It serves as a carrier for Factor VIII:c in plasma and facilitates platelet-vessel wall interactions. Discrete domains of VWF which bind to platelet receptor sites on glycoprotein 1b and on the glycoprotein IIb-IIIa complex, as well as binding sites on collagen have been noted. VWF is made up of multiple, probably identical, subunits each of 230,000 daltons. VWF is synthesized in endothelial cells and megakaryocytes. In the plasma it exists as high molecular weight multimers ranging from 5.times.10.sup.5 to 10.sup.7 daltons. The Von Willebrand factor contains 5-6% complex carbohydrate, which appears important in the molecules ability to bind platelets. A variety of abnormalities in VWF activity can result in Von Willebrand's disease. The disorder is generally inherited in autosomal dominant fashion and may affect as many as one in 2000 individuals. Mild forms of the disease frequently go undiagnosed, whereas severely affected patients may require frequent blood product support with its associated risks.
Recently, the isolation of the genes for both factor VIII:c and Von Willebrand factor have made feasible the production of recombinant factor VIII:c and VWF preparations which are essentially free of contaminating viruses (Toole et al. 1984, Wood et al. 1984, Lynch et al. Cell 41:49-56 1985, Ginsberg et al. Science 228:1401-1406 1985). The production of Factor VIII:c through recombinant DNA technology has been achieved utilizing mammalian cells as a recipient of DNA encoding Factor VIII:c contained in appropriate expression sectors. One primary concern for the synthesis of a recombinant Factor VIII:c is its stability in the absence of the associated VWF protein Evidence to date indicates either that the VWF may have a stabilizing effect on the Factor VIII:c in plasma, or that the VWF can ellicit the release from storage depots or stimulate the synthesis and/or secretion of Factor VIII:c (Weiss, H. J. et al. 1977, J. Clin. Invest. 60: 390-404).
It has now been surprisingly discovered that suitably engineered mammalian cells produce significant levels of stable Factor VIII only in the presence of media containing a hydrophobic substance such as certain phospholipids or VWF, as is the case when the cell culture media contains serum. The Factor VIII:c synthesized in the absence of VWF or suitable phospholipids exhibits dramatic instability. VWF has been identified as one of the stabilizing components in serum. The gene for VWF has been expressed in a mammalian host cell to derive a protein which has the capability to stabilize Factor VIII:c expresssed in cells which are grown in the absence of serum. The expression of both Factor VIII:c (or analogs thereof) and VWF in mammalian cells allows for the production in improved yield of stable recombinant Factor VIII (or analogs thereof) in cells propagated in the substantial absence of serum.

Method for producing factor VIII:C and analogs


The present invention provides Salmonella non-coding RNA and the identification and application thereof. In particular, the present invention proves through experiments that a Salmonella bacterium delivers non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) encoded by the bacterium itself into a host cell, generates milRNAs similar to microRNAs by means of a microRNA splicing system in the cell, regulates the immune system with the milRNAs, and further protects the Salmonella bacterium from being cleared by the host. Adsorbing milRNAs using milRNA inhibitors can effectively inhibit the survival ability of the bacterium in the cell, leading to a reduced vitality of the bacterium. The present invention further provides relevant reagents and methods for effective detection of, treatment to and study on Salmonella bacteria or Salmonella infectious diseases.

Microorganism is a general term of tiny organisms which are widely distributed in nature, are not visible to the naked eyes but can be observed only after being magnified at hundreds of times, thousands of times or even tens of thousands of times under an optical microscope or an electron microscope. Their characteristics include a tiny size, a simple structure, rapid reproduction, easy variation and strong adaptive capacity to environment.
Microorganisms are of wide varieties, and are extremely widely distributed in nature. A variety of microorganisms are also present on body surfaces and cavities communicated with exterior of human, animals and plants.
One of the most important influences of microorganisms on human is to cause some diseases, especially infectious diseases. Although the human has made great progress in the prevention and treatment of diseases, newly occurring and recurring microbial infections continue to occur, and many diseases are lack of effective therapeutic drugs all the time. Furthermore, the wide abuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics causes a strong selection pressure, so that many strains mutate, resulting in more dangerous drug-resistant strains.
All microorganisms growing on or in a living body are called parasitic microorganisms, and the microorganisms in parasitic make a living through depriving nutrition of other organisms, even depending on some parts of the bodies of other organisms as nutrients. Microorganisms can enter a human or animal body through the mouth, skin or respiratory tract, and grow and reproduce by using the nutrition of the human or animal body. If these bacteria produce toxins, the host will fall ill, such as of cholera, typhoid and pneumonia. Diseases such as AIDS and common cold are caused by viruses. Viruses are comparatively more specific parasitic microorganisms; because they cannot live outside of living cells, they are called strictly parasitic microorganisms.
Microbial infections are common clinical diseases caused by microorganisms. For the diagnosis of most of bacterial diseases, bacteriological diagnosis is required in order to determine the causes of diseases. However, isolating bacteria from a specimen does not necessarily mean that this bacterial species is the pathogen of the disease, and thus a comprehensive analysis shall be performed according to the clinical situation of the patient, the specimen collection site, and the species of the acquired bacteria. Sometimes virulence, cell and animal tests shall be made to determine pathogenicity of the strain.
Since bacteria and their metabolites have antigenicity, bacterial infections can also be diagnosed by detecting antibodies. Furthermore, gene diagnosis, a new method for diagnosing bacteria by detecting genetic materials of bacteria, is developed in recent years. However, the detection method mentioned above requires tedious operation and strict sample collection and preservation conditions, but also has a high false positive rate in the test results and a long detection period, which could easily lead to delay of the patient's treatment.
An infectious disease, especially a chronic persistent infection, is one of global stubborn diseases harmful to the human health and life. Intracellular pathogens that pose significant impact on human include Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Salmonella, Brucella, Legionella pneumophila, Listeria, and Mycobacterium leprea. Seven diseases, including tuberculosis, AIDS and hepatitis, form global threats, and the reason why they are difficult to treat is closely related to the intracellular parasitism of pathogens.
It is a difficult problem to treat intracellular microbial infections. The main reason includes: when the pathogens invade and lie dormant in the cells, it is difficult to deliver a conventional antibiotic to the cells where the pathogens hide, and even if delivered, it is difficult to achieve an effective microbicidal effect at the concentration of antibiotic; antibodies could hardly enter the cells to play a role; and after the intracellular bacteria are successfully living in cells, they could not only escape from the immune phagocytosis, killing and clearance, but also exist for a long time in the cells and lead to disease of the body at the appropriate time (e.g., when immunity of the body decreases).
Salmonella is a large group of Gram-negative bacilli which live in the human and animal intestinal tracts and have similar biochemical reactions and antigen structures, of which some are specifically pathogenic to humans, some are only pathogenic to animals, and some are pathogenic to both humans and animals, which are collectively referred to as Salmonella. Not less than 1800 kinds of Salmonella have now been found, and are divided into A, B, C, D, E and other basic bacterial types depending on the antigen constituents. The strains relevant to human diseases mainly include paratyphoid A bacilli in group A, paratyphoid B bacilli and Salmonella typhimurium in group B, paratyphoid C bacilli and Salmonella cholerae in group C, and Salmonella typhi and Salmonella enteritidis in group D. The bacteria may cause fowl typhoid, pullorum disease, cholera hog, Salmonella typhimurium disease, swine paratyphoid, Equi salmonellosis disease and other diseases. Salmonella cholerae has the strongest pathogenicity, and then are Salmonella typhimurium and Salmonella enteritidis. Salmonella infections or eating foods contaminated with faeces of carriers may induce food poisoning.
Therefore, in order to control microbial infectious diseases, there is an urgent need to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic techniques with simple operation and accurate results so as to improve the laboratory diagnosis and clinical treatment of such diseases to avoid delays of the patient's condition and reduce the physical and economic burden of patients.


A protective frame structure includes: a lower frame; an intermediate frame that is interlinked with the lower frame and is situated above the lower frame; and an upper frame that is interlinked with the intermediate frame and is situated abobe the intermediate frame, wherein a mounting space in which a battery module is configured to be mounted is formed between the lower frame and the intermediate frame, an upper space is formed between the intermediate frame and the upper frame, and the intermediate frame is deformed upward when an external load has been applied to the protective frame structure.

The present invention relates to a protective frame structure that is used to mount a power supply such as a battery module on a vehicle, and protects the power supply from an external load when an external load has been applied to the vehicle.
In the fields of an electric vehicle and a hybrid vehicle, a battery referred to as "battery module" or "battery pack" (hereinafter referred to as "battery module") is provided as a drive source. Since the output voltage is as high as 200 V or more, it is necessary to protect the battery module from an impact and the like when an external load has been applied to the vehicle.
JP-A-2003-45392 discloses a mounting structure in which an impact-absorbing part is provided adjacent to a battery housing, the impact-absorbing part having a breaking strength lower than that of the battery housing.
Since the structure disclosed in JP-A-2003-45392 is designed so that the impact-absorbing part breaks when an impact has been applied to the rear side of the vehicle, and the battery housing relatively moves to overlap an area above or below the impact-absorbing part, the impact-absorbing part is a dead space that cannot be used by the user.
Since the mounting structure disclosed in JP-A-2003-45392 is designed so that the rear seats are situated on the front side with respect to the battery housing, it is necessary to provide an additional protective structure taking account of collision with the rear seats.


A device can display content on a page associated with a dimension. A user can adjust an orientation of the device to adjust a displayed orientation of the page, enabling pages for additional dimensions to be displayed. A user can select one of these dimensions, and adjust an orientation of the device to enable the user to access content for the selected dimension. The change in orientation can be a tilt or flick of the device in a first direction to select a dimension, and then a user could tilt or flick the device in another direction to view pages, sub-dimensions, or other groupings of content among that dimension. Such an approach can enable a user to quickly locate content corresponding to a sub-dimension without having to scroll down a long page of content or otherwise manually navigate to specific content.

Users are increasingly relying upon various electronic and computing devices to store, track, and update various types of information and handle various types of tasks. For example, many users rely upon computing devices to store contact information, user schedules, task lists, and other such information. Unfortunately, the data is often not organized or presented in a way that is intuitive for many users. Further, for portable computing devices such as smart phones or tablet computers, the screen size can be limited such that it can be difficult for a user to locate information due to the size of the various icons or elements with respect to the size of a user's finger.