Graft copolymers having improved phase binding between the graft base and the grafted-on polymer, are prepared from:. a) a grafted-on polymer phase containing one or more monomers from the group consisting of (meth)acrylates of alcohols having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, vinyl esters of saturated aliphatic carboxylic acids having 2 to 10 carbon atoms, olefins, vinyl halides, styrene and styrene derivatives, and PA0 b) a peroxy group-containing copolymer phase containing from 0.01 to 20% by weight of an olefinically unsaturated peroxy compound of the general formula I or II ##STR1## where R.sup.1 is a chemical bond or a linear or branched alkyl chain having 1 to 10 carbon atoms or a cycloalkyl group having 3 to 10 carbon atoms, R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 are an alkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms, R.sup.4 is an alkyl group or an alkyl-substituted phenyl group having 3 to 12 carbon atoms, and R.sup.5 is a cycloalkyl group having 3 to 12 carbon atoms, and from 80 to 99.9% by weight of one or more comonomers from the group consisting of the (meth)acrylates of alcohols having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, vinyl esters of saturated aliphatic carboxylic acids having 2 to 10 carbon atoms, olefins, vinylaromatic compounds, vinyl halides and/or vinyl ethers.. The graft copolymers are useful as binders in the textile industry as heat stable binders, as adhesives in plasters and as binders in emulsion paints.

1) Field of the Invention
The invention relates to graft copolymers having improved phase binding between the graft base and the grafted-on polymer phase, to the peroxy group-containing copolymers on which these are based, and to copolymerizable peroxy monovinyl esters. The invention furthermore relates to processes for the preparation of said polymers and peroxy compounds.
2) Background Art
Copolymerizable initiators offer interesting opportunities in the preparation of novel polymeric materials. By means of such initiators, potential free-radical functions which function as defined anchor groups in the preparation of graft and block copolymers, are introduced into polymer chains. One area of application is, for example, the phase coupling of incompatible polymers in core/shell latices during the preparation thereof by the emulsion polymerization process.
Peroxy carbonates containing an allylic double bond and the use thereof as comonomers in copolymerization with further ethylenically unsaturated monomers are described in DE-A 2726008. German Patent 3420048 relates to copolymers of vinyl acetate and peroxyallyl carbonates and the use thereof as sizing agents for glass fibers. It is disadvantageous that these allyl-functional peroxy carbonates only copolymerize very slowly, if at all, with other vinyl monomers.
EP-A 277608 (U.S. Pat. No. 4,879,347) and EP-A 279430 (U.S. Pat. No. 4,839,432) describe copolymerizable peroxy carbonates containing (meth) acrylate and allyl ether functions as comonomers for improving the phase binding in the preparation of polymer blends. The peroxy carbonate is polymerized here with vinyl monomers in the presence of an ethylene copolymer by the suspension polymerization process. On heating of the mixture, coupling of the two polymer phases takes place via the peroxy functions. U.S. Pat. No. 4,923,956 describes a procedure which is analogous to EP-A 279430, with the difference that propylene polymers are employed instead of the ethylene polymers. EP-A 307802 relates to mixtures of polypropylene, a further polymer and copolymer made from a vinyl monomer and a peroxy carbonate containing an allyl ether or (meth) acrylate function; the phase binding thereof being improved by heating to temperatures of from 200.degree. to 300.degree. C. EP-B 225091 describes allyl ether-substituted peroxy dicarbonates used as initiators for the preparation of high-molecular-weight, branched VC polymers. The above-mentioned copolymerizable peroxy esters, in particular the allyl compounds, have the disadvantage of low reactivity on copolymerization with other vinyl monomers. Further more, said peroxy esters can only initiate further free-radical reactions from temperature.gtoreq.130.degree. C. and are thus of no interest for emulsion polymerization.
The known methylstyrene-based peroxy compound discussed by W. C. Endstra in Kautschuk und Gummi, Kunststoffe 42(5), 414 (1989) has the disadvantage that it cannot be copolymerized with many vinyl monomers, and further free-radical reactions are only initiated thermally from temperatures.gtoreq.160.degree. C. The same applies to tert.-butyl-peroxy (p-(vinylbenzoyl) benzoates (I. Gupta, S. N. Gupta, D. C. neckers, J. Polym. Sci.: Polym. Chem Ed. 20, 147 (1982), which only thermally initiate further free-radical reactions from T.gtoreq.100.degree. C. and thus cannot be employed for copolymerization by the emulsion polymerization process.
The object was therefore to provide olefinically unsaturated peroxy compounds which are copolymerizable with ethylenically unsaturated monomers whose peroxy group is retained during the copolymerization and whose peroxy groups, after incorporation into the copolymer, are able to initiate further free-radical polymerization reactions at temperatures.ltoreq.100.degree.. A further object was to provide these peroxy compound-containing copolymers and the graft copolymers based on the peroxy group-containing copolymers.
Surprisingly, we have found that this object is achieved by means of peroxy monovinyl esters of aliphatic dicarboxylic acids and copolymers or graft copolymers containing these peroxy compounds.

Graft copolymers having improved phase binding between the graft base and the grafted-on polymer phase


At a machine learning service, a data structure generated during the training phase of a machine learning model, as well as an input records associated with a result of the model, are analyzed. A first informational data set pertaining to the result, which indicates an alternative result, is generated. The first informational data set is transmitted to a presentation device with a directive to display a visual representation of the data set. In response to an exploration request pertaining to the first informational data set, a second informational data set indicating one or more observations of a training data set used for the model is transmitted to the presentation device.

In recent years, as the costs of collecting and storing data has decreased, machine learning algorithms that analyze collected data sets for various types of predictions are being increasingly employed to increase the effectiveness of various services and applications. Large amounts of data with respect to user interactions with network-accessible applications (such as e-retail applications) may be collected, for example using logs generated at the applications' web servers and other components, and used to enhance usability or customize user experiences with the applications. Similarly, data collected from numerous sensors may be analyzed to improve the functionality of various devices and algorithms, including algorithms for enhancing security, predicting failures, and so on.
Supervised learning is a common approach used for many types of machine learning problems. In supervised learning, features derived from a set of labeled input observations are used to train a model, and the trained model is then used to generate predicted labels for new unlabeled observations. For example, in a medical application, an individual patient's medical data record, comprising entries collected from various instruments, medical scanning/imaging devices and the like may be labeled to indicate whether the patient suffers from a particular illness or not. Feature sets derived from a large numbers of such labeled records may then be used as a training data set for a machine learning model, with the objective of subsequently using the trained model to predict the probability that a given patient (whose medical record was not part of the training data set and is thus unlabeled) suffers from the same illness.
In many cases, the mathematics and statistics involved in the prediction methodologies used by machine learning models may not be easily understandable to at least some of the individuals affected by the predictions, or to individuals responsible for taking actions based on the predictions. Depending on the possible consequences of the actions which may have to be taken based on machine learning results, some model users may be reluctant to initiate the actions if they do not find the results intuitive, or are not provided at least some level of explanations for the results. Providing insights into machine learning model results in a user-friendly manner may represent a non-trivial technical challenge.
While embodiments are described herein by way of example for several embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that embodiments are not limited to the embodiments or drawings described. It should be understood, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit embodiments to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope as defined by the appended claims. The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used throughout this application, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words "include," "including," and "includes" mean including, but not limited to. When used in the claims, the term "or" is used as an inclusive or and not as an exclusive or. For example, the phrase "at least one of x, y, or z" means any one of x, y, and z, as well as any combination thereof.

Network-accessible service for exploration of machine learning models and results


A peptide having any one of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO: 1 or 13, preferably a peptide having any one of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NOS: 2 to 9 or a peptide having any one of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NOS: 10 and 15 to 17, is used as an active ingredient of an agent for promoting growth or differentiation of cells such as osteoblasts, chondroblasts, cementoblasts, bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells and periodontal ligament-derived cells.

Sheathlin is a protein that exists in the enamel matrix and is also referred to as ameloblastin or amelin. Amino acid sequences of sheathlins in swine, human, bovine, mouse and rat are already known (ameloblastin derived from the rat incisor: Krebsbach P H, Lee S K, Matsuki Y, Kozack C A, Yamada K and Yamada Y, Full-length sequence, localization, and chromosomal mapping of ameloblastin. A novel tooth specific gene., J. Biol. Chem., 271: 4431-4435, 1996; amelin derived from the rat molar: Cerny R, Slaby I, Hammarstrm L and Wuitz T: A novel gene expressed in rat ameloblasts codes for proteins with cell binding domains., J. Bone Miner. Res., 11: 883-891, 1996; sheathlin derived from swine: Hu C C, Fukae M, Uchida T, Qian Q, Zhang C H, Ryu O H, Tanabe T, Yamakoshi Y, Murakami C, Dohi N, Shimizu M and Simmer J P: Sheathlin: Cloning, cDNA/polypeptide sequences, and immunolocalozation of porcine enamel sheath proteins., J. Dent. Res., 76: 648-657, 1997; sheathlins derived from human, bovine and mouse: Toyosawa S, Fujiwara T, Ooshima T, Shintani S, Sato A, Ogawa Y, Sobue S and Ijuhin N: Cloning and characterization of the human ameloblastin gene., Gene, 256: 1-11, 2000).
Further, an antibody that recognizes the sequence of the 27th to 47th amino acid residues of sheathlin (derived from rat, corresponding to SEQ ID NO: 6) has been disclosed (The Journal of Histochemistry & Cytochemistry, 45(10), 1329-1340 (1997)). However, this publication only discloses that a certain particular antibody recognizes such an amino acid sequence and does not disclose nor suggest production of a peptide having such an amino acid sequence or use of the peptide for pharmaceutical purposes and so forth.
Further, various pharmaceutical uses of a tetrapeptide derived from amelin and various pharmaceutical uses of amelin (therapeutic and prophylactic treatments of periodontal diseases, repair of tooth lesions, bonding of bone elements, promotion or induction of mineralization of hard tissues, effective uptake of an implant into the bone, improvement of biocompatibility of implant instruments etc.) have been reported (International Patent Application Unexamined Publication in Japanese (Kohyo) No. 11-510377). However, the peptide of the present invention described later, pharmaceutical use thereof and so forth have not been disclosed nor suggested.

Biologically active peptide and agent containing the same


A device for use in assessing a flow condition of a fluid, or a fluid in a flow path, is provided. The device comprises at least one electrochemical cell, comprising a working electrode and at least one other electrode, sufficient for communication with the fluid, or sufficient for communication with a flow path, such that when sufficient fluid is in the flow path, the cell is in communication with the fluid. The fluid comprises a component sufficient to affect a mass-transport limited electrochemical reaction at the working electrode. The device also comprises at least one microcontroller operably connected to the at least one electrochemical cell for providing a potential or a current to the working electrode and for assessing the electrochemical reaction. A method of assessing a flow condition of a fluid, or a fluid in a flow path, is also provided. The device and the method of the present invention may be used in connection with the delivery of a fluid-borne or fluidized drug or medicament to a subject.

A wide variety of fluid delivery devices have been developed for various applications, such as the delivery of medicine or drugs. By way of example, automated infusion devices that can deliver a fluidized or fluid-borne drug to a subject with extremely high precision have been developed. (See, for example, the above-referenced U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0115067 A1 and the above-referenced U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0238503 A1 of Benjamin Rush et al, concurrently filed herewith.) If these devices fail to deliver a drug to a subject at an acceptable or intended rate, the consequences can be anywhere from relatively minor to relatively major, even deadly. Thus, some means of verifying that a drug is being delivered or has been delivered at an acceptable or intended rate is typically incorporated into automated drug infusion devices.
Drug delivery verification means may allow for the detection of insufficient and/or excessive drug delivery or fluid flow. Traditional means or methods for measuring fluid flow include hot-wire anemometry, generation and detection of a heat pulse, injection and detection of a tracer component, and electromagnetic flow measurement, such as via passage of an ion-containing liquid through a loop and detection of an associated current.
Other means for measuring fluid flow have been developed for specific devices, as well. For example, means for detecting a build-up of pressure within a drug delivery path, such as that caused by a blockage in the path, have been incorporated into portable insulin pumps. These means, which include a pressure transducer, can detect insufficient fluid flow from the insulin pump, such as insufficient flow caused by a blockage in the delivery tubing or in the cannula, but cannot detect excessive fluid flow from the pump. The pressure transducer adds to the cost and complexity of this portable insulin pump.
Another method of detecting insufficient fluid flow from a fluid delivery device, such as a drug delivery device, has been disclosed. (See U.S. Pat. No. 6,692,457.) According to this method, the fluid flows past a resilient chamber, such as a balloon or a bubble, in the flow path. If the flow path is blocked at a point downstream from the bubble, for example, the pressure in the flow path increases, such that the bubble expands and a surface of the expanded bubble activates a sensor to indicate a blockage condition.
Methods of monitoring the rate of fluid delivery from a drug delivery device have also been disclosed. (See U.S. Pat. No. 6,582,393 and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0019321 A1.) According to one such method, a small amount of fluid is heated via a heating element, such as a laser, and the presence of this heated amount of fluid is detected downstream via a heat sensor, such as another laser, and a rate of fluid flow is determined and evaluated. According to another such method, the flowing fluid is subjected to a magnetic field, such that ions in the fluid produce a directional current, which is then detected and associated with the volumetric flow rate. Compensating adjustments to the flow rate may then be made accordingly.
Devices for measuring fluid flow have also been developed for applications unrelated to drug delivery. By way of example, a device for measuring the very slow flow associated with hydrothermal systems, such as hydrothermal systems on the seafloor or dilute hydrothermal systems, has been described at http://gore.ocean.washington.edu/ research/slow_flow_meter.html. In the case of seawater, the seawater fluid enters the tubular device and generates a "puff" of chlorine gas at a platinum electrode of an electrode pair within the device, via the electrochemical reaction, 2Cl−→Cl2+2e31 . The puff is confined within the device, where it is detected via two sensing electrodes placed at fixed distances from the platinum electrode along the tubular device. The times required for the puff to travel known distances along the device provide a measure of the flow velocity of the seawater.
Devices for measuring various parameters of a moving fluid have also been developed for various applications. By way of example, a rotating disk electrode has been developed as a means of producing a very regular and reproducible liquid flow profile when immersed in a liquid. If the liquid contains a dilute species that can react at the electrode, the rate of reaction will depend on the speed of rotation associated with the rotating disk electrode. This phenomenon may be used to determine the concentration of the dilute species in the liquid. (See, for example, A. J. Bard and L. R. Faulkner, Electrochemical Methods, 2nd Ed., John Wiley (2001).)
Further development of fluid flow measurement devices, and associated systems, devices and methods, is desirable.

Methods for use in assessing a flow condition of a fluid


A permissioned blockchain can be a decentralized data store that maintains information indicating whether user equipment (UE) is SIM locked and/or should be disabled. A UE can access the blockchain during boot up to determine if it should be disabled and not booted into a normal operating environment, and/or whether it is SIM locked to a particular carrier. Authorized entities, such as carriers and UE manufacturers, can update the blockchain to indicate that certain UEs should be disabled, are SIM locked, are not SIM locked, and/or whether it is permissible to remove SIM locks from those UEs.

User equipment (UE) is often SIM locked by a carrier such that the UE cannot access another carrier's telecommunication network by using a subscriber identity module (SIM) associated with another carrier. UEs are often SIM locked if they have been purchased on an installment basis or are provided on a subsidized basis tied to a service contract, such that a subscriber cannot move the UE to another network before the UE is paid off or the contract term expires.
However, although a UE may be initially SIM locked, unlocking procedures can be performed to remove a SIM lock from a UE so that it can access other telecommunication networks. For example, a user who purchased a SIM locked UE from a first carrier can ask the first carrier to remove the SIM lock after the user has fully paid off the UE. After the UE has been SIM unlocked, the user can then use a SIM associated with a second carrier to access the second carrier's telecommunication network with the UE.

Remote SIM unlock (RSU) implementation using blockchain


A vehicle discharge system for a vehicle (1) provided with a rearwardly tippable bed (2) which includes a tailgate (3) is constituted by a housing (5) mounted at the rear of the bed (2) adjacent to the tailgate (3), a discharge auger (4) rotatably supported within the housing (5) and arranged to receive material which passes the tailgate (3) when the bed is tipped, an auger drive (9) to drive the auger and discharge material carried within the vehicle bed (2) to the side of the vehicle (1) as the bed is tipped and flow control structure (1) capable of differentially exposing material held within the vehicle bed (2) to the discharge auger (4). The flow control structure is constituted by a flow control gate (1) which is capable of being moved in a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane of the base of the vehicle bed (2) and tilted to form a tapered and adjustable opening which exposes material within the vehicle bed to the auger as the bed is tipped. The nature of an auger is to preferentially pick up material from one end remote from that at which material is discharged and so the flow control gate is tilted to expose less of the auger to the material at that end. The combination of varying the opening height and degree of tilt of the flow control gate ensures that material is discharged evenly and controllably across the width of the vehicle bed.

Typically, in the building or maintenance of roads, a vehicle containing materials such as sand, gravel, tarmac or road stone is driven to a site and the vehicle bed is tipped either to one side or to the rear to dump the material. The material must then be manually spread evenly over the site as required. Often, when the bed is tipped to the side, the vehicle will become trapped by the tipped material and can only be freed once the work force has cleared the material away from the vehicle's wheels. Whilst it is possible to drive the vehicle forwards while tipping to the rear this operation can be dangerous as the vehicle bed may unload unevenly. This may occur when some of the material freezes overnight and becomes stuck to the bottom of the bed, which in extreme circumstances can cause the vehicle to overturn whilst tipping.
Other systems exist in which one or more conveyors are mounted in the floor of a vehicle bed which allows the material to be discharged whilst the vehicle is driven forward. However, the costs of fitting such a system to a vehicle are prohibitive. Such systems are especially susceptible to mechanical breakdown when larger pieces of material jam the conveyor which can result in the bed unloading unevenly and so adversely affecting the stability of the whole vehicle.


There is provided a packet-rate control method for a packet network, in which a declaration of parameters indicating the rate of fixed-length packets is so made to a call control system by a subscriber terminal device prior to communication as to be associated with a logical channel number. The rate of packets inputted to the network is so measured as to be associated with a logical channel number. While the degree of violation is low, packets transmitted in violation of user-declaring parameters are provided with a violation mark and taken in the network. If the degree of violation is high, the packets transmitted in violation of user-declaring parameters are discarded on the input side of the network. When there appears a possibility of congestion in the network, the marked packets are discarded. As a result, it is possible to prevent violation packets and marked packets from affecting the quality of service using normal packets.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of and an apparatus for packet-rate control of arrival packets in packet networks, and in particular to rate control intended for packets (violation packets) transmitted excessively from a subscriber terminal device in violation of a contract closed between a network provider and a subscriber or user in packet networks using an ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode).
2. Description of the Related Art
As a promising communication method of the next generation, ATM networks for transferring information in the form of fixed-length packets (hereafter referred to simply as "cells") are now being studied in various research institutions. In ATM networks, communication of information (such as speech, image or data) generated from various kinds of media and having various transfer speeds is performed.
In general, there is a limit in communication capacity which can be provided by a network. When a terminal device requests a call, therefore, the network provider makes the subscriber (or the terminal device) declare parameters such as bit rate and determines whether the quantity of cells passing through the network exceeds the communication capacity as a result of cells newly generated when that call request is admitted. If the quantity of the cells passing through the network is judged not to exceed the communication capacity, the above described call request is admitted. If the subscriber transmits cells excessively in violation of the user-declaring parameters, however, the quantity of cells passing through the network exceeds the communication capacity, resulting in degradation of quality of service such as loss of some cells caused by discarding excess cells or an increase of delay time in cell transfer and exchange.
In ATM networks, a plurality of subscribers performs communication by sharing the same resources (such as transfer nodes and links). If some subscriber transmits a large number of cells in violation of user-declaring parameters, therefore, it influences other subscribers which do not violate user-declaring parameters as degradation in quality of service. Therefore, it becomes necessary to exercise packet-rate control for regulating cells transmitted in violation of user-declaring parameters (hereafter referred to as "violation cells".)
As the above described packet-rate control method for violation packets, there are heretofore known
(1) a method of discarding all violation cells, and
(2) a method of adding a special mark indicating violation to violation cells and discarding cells having the above described mark added thereto (hereafter referred to as "marked cells") when congestion has occurred in the network. These packet-rate control techniques are described in Toshio Suzuki et al., "Configuration of the Broadband Subscriber Interface Unit", The Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers Technical Report SSE89-148, pp. 13-18 for example.
In the conventional method (1) of discarding all violation cells, however, violation cells are immediately discarded even if the quantity of cells passing through the network is sufficiently smaller than the communication capacity. In such a period that there is a margin of communication capacity, communication resources are not used efficiently, resulting in a problem.
In the conventional method (2) of discarding marked cells, violation cells are received in the network without any restriction, and regulation for marked cells is not performed unless congestion has actually occurred. In case a large quantity of violation cells are sent into the network as a result of disorders in some subscriber terminals, for example, therefore, congestion is generated in the network by these violation cells (marked cells) and a bad influence is exerted upon the quality of service of other subscribers maintaining communication while obeying the user-declared parameters, resulting in a problem.
In these conventional control methods, means for notifying the subscriber of terminal disorder is not provided. Until the subscriber notices the terminal disorder by itself, therefore, the disordered terminal continues to transmit violation cells for a relatively long term, resulting in a problem.

Method of and system for controlling packet-rate in communication network


A thermally and electrically conductive (TEC) pad is disposed between a PCB and a heat sink in a cellular telephone base station. The TEC pad includes at least one aperture that overlies one or more signal vias on a ground plane of the PCB. The TEC pad apertures are larger than any underlying signal vias in order to electrically isolate the signal vias from the conductive material of the pad and the heat sink. The TEC pad allows ground vias on a PCB ground plane to ground to the heat sink.

Cellular radiotelephone communications systems are commonly employed to provide voice and data communications to mobile units or subscribers. Cellular communications systems allocate frequencies in geographic regions referred to as cells. Cells containing equivalent groups of frequencies are geographically separated to allow different cells to simultaneously use the same frequency without interfering with each other.
Capacity limitations have been addressed by using microcells which are low power cellular transmissions that provide coverage over a smaller area. A particular application of microcell technology is an indoor cellular radiotelephone service. An indoor cellular communication system typically includes one or more mobile stations or units, one or more wall-mounted base stations, a radio control interface, and a mobile switching center. A typical indoor cellular network may have several cells with each cell being serviced by one or more wall-mounted base stations.
A typical wall-mounted base station includes a radio link interface, a power supply, and one or more communication channel transceiver printed circuit boards (PCBs) for effectuating radio communications with mobile units. Because of the microelectronic components attached thereto, these PCBs generate a large amount of heat which must be dissipated to prevent damage to the PCB and to other components within the base station. The heat-dissipation method of choice for cellular base stations utilizes a metal heat sink and relies on direct contact of the PCB with the heat sink to conduct heat away from the PCB. Fans and other cooling systems are typically not utilized because of concerns about reliability and because of the increased costs that would be added thereby.
Typically, a PCB has a copper ground plane on the face of the PCB directly contacting the heat sink to facilitate the transfer of heat to the heat sink. Blind vias are used in the PCB to connect signal traces on various layers of the PCB. Blind vias prevent the traces from contacting the ground plane and consequently shorting out with the heat sink. Because these vias do not extend to the ground plane face, the ground plane can be in direct contact with the heat sink to facilitate conducting heat from the PCB. Unfortunately, producing numerous blind vias within a PCB for cellular base stations may be expensive. Furthermore, unacceptable board warpage may occur when numerous blind vias are utilized.
PCBs with though-hole vias therein have been mounted to heat sinks with a thermal pad of electrically insulating material placed therebetween. Because the pad is thermally conductive, heat transfer to the heat sink is facilitated. However, the electrical insulation between the PCB ground plane and the heat sink can cause grounding problems for the PCB. Furthermore, the thermal pad typically does not provide adequate EMI shielding which may result in malfunctions.

Microelectronic packages and packaging methods including thermally and electrically conductive pad


The boot (1) comprises a device (35) for front-to-back immobilization of the upper (2), which acts on an oscillating lever (11) capable of being supported against a stop (13) on the shell base (5). The device is constituted by a rectilinear-motion control mechanism (10) incorporating an external control device (18), of which an inner part (19) actuates, via a cam (19a), a sensing device (49) associated with the oscillating lever (11) so as to impart to the latter an angular rotating movement around its pin (12) toward a locked or released position in relation to the stop (13) formed on the shell base (5).

Proposals have been made, in particular, for means for manual locking of the aforementioned bascule, which are capable of immobilizing the latter in a stable position corresponding to the release of the boot upper, as disclosed in FR-A 2 648 327. According to the latter, the manual locking means are constituted by a piece which is movable in vertical translational motion at the upper end of an arm of the bascule and which can be manually operated in an upward sliding movement, in order to extend this upper end of the bascule and to cooperate with a notch provided in the upper part of a recess in the upper, so as to hold the bascule in the released position. Downward slide control of this mobile piece frees the latter from the upper notch and allows it to pivot under the action of an elastic device, to ensure that the lower end of this bascule is stopped, on the aforementioned stop set on the rear part of the shell base, for an operative position.
To allow operation of the mobile piece in translational motion in either direction, this piece has a projecting part forming an outer gripping element, without which any control would be impossible.
These locking means have a number of disadvantages, since it is necessary to provide, first, a relatively thick bascule, since the latter supports the mobile part and the gripping element attached to it, and second, an upper notch to be cut in the upper.
Finally, as regards use, this system still involves two operations to produce a stable release of the boot upper, i.e., a substantially rectilinear thrusting movement perpendicular to the upper, in order to cause the bascule to pivot in a movement freeing its lower end from the stop, and a thrusting movement, also rectilinear and substantially parallel to the upper, so as to engage the mobile component beneath the upper notch.
This last disadvantage does not inhere in other conventional devices for immobilization of the upper of a boot, in which the means for locking, and indeed for control, of the bascule are independent from the latter. As an example, in the ski boot described in the French Patent Application FR 2 619 317, the upper-immobilization device comprises a stop means which is subjected to the continuous action generated by an elastic force which pushes it into its closed position, and can be maneuvered into an open position in opposition to this force, by means of a control device located in the upper.
As illustrated, the stop means is housed in a recess in the upper and is shaped like a dual-arm lever pivoting around a pin mounted in the upper, while the control device is mounted so as to pivot on the outside of the upper and in proximity to the end of one of the arms of the stop lever.
In this kind of construction, the upper is released by virtue of an outward swivelling movement of the control mechanism which, by exerting pressure on the corresponding arm of the stop lever, produces the release of this arm from its stop on the shell base. To relock the upper in the skiing position, it then becomes necessary to bring the control device back against the upper in order to permit the stop lever, subjected to the elastic return force, to be placed in the engaged position in relation to its stop on the shell base.
This immobilization device has the disadvantage of protruding in a very pronounced fashion on the rear part of the upper, and of requiring voluntary manipulation of the control mechanism in order to return to a locked position of the upper for the purpose of skiing.
As a further example, mention may be made of the device for immobilization of a ski boot upper described in German Utility Model GM of Utility Gm 80 20 898 which shows an immobilization device incorporating a lever attached to the upper and capable of being stopped on an element of the boot shell. The lever is controlled by an outer traveller that can be moved linearly and can affect angularly the position of the lever beginning at an end, or central, point of articulation.
As in the preceding case, this device has the disadvantage of protruding from the rear part of the upper in permanent and variable fashion, since the traveller can be moved in translational motion. Furthermore, it always requires a voluntary operation performed by the skier to move from the released position to the locked skiing position. In addition, the momentary-release maneuver, with the potential for automatic relocking, is not possible.


Disclosed is a complex bench press which can be switched into a flat bench press, a decline bench press, or an incline bench press to achieve improved space utilization in a narrow space, and which enables users to switch the bench press into the bench press for a specific function in a significantly simple and quick manner to achieve improved convenience of use, and which enables users to always assume a posture appropriate for exercising even when the bench press is switched into the bench press for a specific function, to thereby protect users from injury during exercise.

In general, bench presses have three functions of a flat bench press for developing the muscle of the middle portion of the chest, a decline press for developing the muscle of the lower portion of the chest, and an incline press for developing the muscle of the upper portion of the chest, and individual bench presses having one function and complex bench presses having the three functions have been known,
First, the individual bench presses have no problem to be used for developing the muscles of the middle portion, the lower portion, and the upper portion of the chest, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, but the purchase cost increases because it is required to purchase a flat bench 2a (see FIG. 1), a decline bench 2b (see FIG. 2), and an incline bench 2C (see FIG. 3), other than barbell presses 1. Further, considering the dimensions, generally, a width of 30, a length of 110, and a height of 40, of each of the benches 2a, 2b, 2c, too large space is required to install all of the benches 2a, 2b, 2c in a common home,
A complex bench press, as shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6, one bench 3 is switched to a flat (see FIG. 4), a decline (see FIG. 5), or an incline bench press (see FIG. 6), such that it is advantageous in efficiently using a space; however, as shown in FIG. 5, when it is switched to a decline bench press, the user's waist too bends and may foe injured, when it is used as an incline bench press, as shown in FIG. 6, the distance between a bar 4 and a bench 3 is so small that the user have to lift the barbell from barbell supports 5 in an uncomfortable position or the arms turns not perpendicular to the ground when taking down the barbell on the barbell supports 5 after exercising; therefore, force is unnecessarily applied to the shoulders and arras of the user, such that the shoulders and arms may be injured.
Further, it is trouble and takes long time to switch the complex bench press to the flat, decline, or incline bench press, as compared with the individual bench presses. This is because eight steps, that is, removing the barbell from the barbell supports 5, loosening the bolts for adjusting the height of the barbell supports 5, lifting the bench 3, removing and installing bench support bars 5a, adjusting the position of the barbell supports 5, tightening the bolts for adjusting the height of the barbell supports 5, placing the bench 3 on the support bar 5a, and placing the barbell on the barbell supports 5, are required no switch a bench press having a predetermined function to a bench press having another function.
As a result, there are two problems that the purchase cost is increased by purchasing benches and a relatively large space is required in comparison to the complex bench press, when individual bench presses of the related art are used to achieve the three functions of flat, decline, and incline bench presses, while there are two problems that the exerciser is easily injured and takes unnecessary time to switch the positions, when the complex bench press is used.


A method and an apparatus (1) serve to place tablets (2) into pockets (3) of thermoformed bottom foil (4). The tablets (2) are accumulated as they are located in their flat position. The tablets (2) are rotated in an erecting station (9) such that they reach an approximately upright position. A plurality of lines of approximately upright tablets (2) is formed. The approximately upright tablets (2) are rotated back into their flat position by a transfer unit (24) including a plurality of channels (28). The tablets (2) are then placed into the pockets (3) of the bottom foil (4) by the transfer unit (24).

A method and an apparatus for placing tablets into pockets of thermoformed bottom foil are known from U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,462 B2. The tablets are produced by pressing them in a tablet press in a quick way. A great numbers of tablets reach an upwardly declined slide. In the following, the tablets located in their flat position are received on a conveying belt. Side walls having a special design are arranged above the conveying belt to store the tablets. Storing of the tablets also serves to distribute the tablets in a direction transverse to the working direction in front of a line forming element in which the tablets are arranged as lines of tablets, meaning such that the tablets are arranged one after the other in a line in a way that two adjacent flat tablets only contact one another at one location of their edges. For this purpose, the line forming element includes channels in which the lines of tablets are stored. The exit of the line forming element is closed by a stop bar such that the tablets are stored in the line forming element. A transfer unit includes sucking elements. The transfer unit is lowered from above the lines of tablets (which are located in the line forming element) such that the foremost tablets which are retained by the stop bar are received in their flat position by sucking, and they are moved in the direction of the bottom foil and separately placed into a pocket located in the bottom foil. The sucking elements of the transfer unit also engage damaged tablets in case these are comparatively big. Smaller pieces of tablets cannot be received by the sucking elements. Thus, not only undamaged tablets, but also damaged tablets are placed into the pockets located in the bottom foil, and there are empty pockets containing no tablet at all. The stop bar is designed to be moved in an upward direction such that dust and smaller broken tablet pieces located in the line forming element can be removed. As soon as new tablets in the line forming element have followed, the stop bar has to be relocated into its effective position. It is also possible to manually open the stop bar to commonly remove tablet pieces and undamaged tablets as trash for a controllable period of time, and to thus clean portions of the line forming element. It is to be understood that the working velocities of the separate stations are coordinated in a way that there are as few as possible empty pockets.
A drawback of the known method and apparatus is the fact that the stress acting upon the tablets on their from the tablet press into the pockets of the bottom foil is comparatively great such that there is a respectively great proportion of broken pieces and dust, especially when processing tablets which are comparatively soft. Broken pieces and dust result in operation failures which have to be remedied, one the one hand, and in incorrect packages including pockets containing partly broken tablets and/or no tablets. This operation cannot be prevented although sucking off units are arranged at different locations, the sucking off units serving to suck off tablet dust and smaller broken tablet pieces.

Method and apparatus for placing tablets into pockets of thermoformed bottom foil


A universal inner diameter mounting ring contains an annular groove within its inner circumference, the ring being integral with a microscope drape. A microscope adapter housing having a universal outer diameter with a protruding annular ring around its circumference engages the groove on the mounting ring. The adapter engages the inner mounting threads of a microscope body at a first end and the threads of an objective lens housing at a second end.

1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to microscope drapes. More particularly, it refers to an operating room microscope objective lens adapter with a fixed outer diameter and shaped circumference engaging a cooperating snap on ring integral with a microscope drape.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Operating room microscope drapes are in common usage on microscopes in many surgical procedures to insure that the operating area is free from contamination caused by the microscope or its support arm. A single mounting ring housing enclosing a plastic lens is integral with the drape. The mounting ring housing is usually friction fitted to the outer diameter of the microscope objective lens housing. Problems with this procedure have arisen for two reasons. First, the outer diameter and thickness of the objective lens housing differs depending on the manufacture and style of the microscope and its corresponding lens. This requires an inventory of several different drapes containing mounting rings of varying diameters and depths to accommodate the different microscope objective lens housings. This multiple inventory requirement can be quite confusing in the operating room. As an example, it is estimated that at least 70% of all U.S. hospitals have multiple brands of operating room microscopes currently in use. Pulling the incorrect drape for a procedure could result in a serious delay during microsurgery. Secondly, several surgical microscopes have objective lens housings which are quite close in diameter. If the incorrect drape is pulled and the friction fit is not perfect, sudden slippage of the mounting ring into the surgical field could occur during an operation which could result in serious complications to the patient. A universal mounting ring is needed that can be fitted to all operating room microscopes without any fear of slippage.


Disclosed is an organic light emitting display device. The organic light emitting display device includes a substrate, a pixel electrode disposed on the substrate, an organic emission layer disposed on the pixel electrode, a common electrode including a metal layer disposed on the organic emission layer, a conductive organic layer disposed on the metal layer, and a first metal oxide layer disposed on the conductive organic layer, and an insulating part formed in a part of an area of a surface of the metal layer which is exposed to a foreign material. The insulating part insulates the pixel electrode from the common electrode.

Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to an organic light emitting display device and a method of manufacturing the same, and more particularly, to an active matrix (AM) organic light emitting display device and a method of manufacturing the same.
Discussion of the Related Art
Flat panel display devices, which are light and thin, are being actively developed. Representative examples of the flat panel display devices include liquid crystal display (LCD) devices and organic light emitting display devices.
The organic light emitting display devices do not use a separate light source such as a backlight applied to the LCD devices, and thus are thinner, have lower power consumption, and good color reproducibility. Accordingly, the organic light emitting display devices provide a relatively sharper image.
In an active matrix organic light emitting display device that is a type of the organic light emitting display device, a pixel is independently driven, and includes three sub-pixels of red, green, and blue.
Each of the three sub-pixels is defined by intersection between a gate line and a data line, and is independently driven by a driving circuit including a separate thin film transistor (TFT).
Each sub-pixel includes an organic light emitting diode (OLED) which is driven by the driving circuit. The OLED includes a pixel electrode, a common electrode, and an organic emission layer formed between two the electrodes. Foreign materials, such as a particle having a diameter greater than a thickness of the pixel electrode, the common electrode, or the organic emission layer, can occur in a process of forming the OLED.
The pixel electrode may be patterned and formed by a photolithography process. After the pixel electrode is formed, the foreign materials can remain.
There is a high possibility that the foreign materials occur in a process of forming thin layers which are formed on a substrate in common. Representative examples of the thin layers, which are formed on the substrate in common, include the organic emission layer and the common electrode.
In particular, the organic emission layer may be formed by a vacuum deposition process using a shadow mask, a laser transfer process, a thermal transfer process, or a screen printing process. Residual materials can remain after a process. Also, in a top emission type organic light emitting display device, light is output through the common electrode, and a luminance of a central portion of a screen can be reduced due to an increase in a resistance. Therefore, an auxiliary electrode connected to the common electrode may be formed in plurality at the central portion of the screen, for preventing luminance from being reduced due to an increase in a resistance of the central portion of the screen.
A metal oxide layer having a large step coverage may be used for connecting the common electrode to the auxiliary electrode. In this case, the metal oxide layer penetrates into a gap between foreign materials, and for this reason, a possibility that short circuit between the pixel electrode and the common electrode can more increase.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an organic light emitting display device in which a defect occurs due to a foreign material. In FIG. 1, the foreign material is illustrated as a particle P.
Referring to FIG. 1, the particle P can occur in a process of forming a pixel electrode 120, an organic emission layer 150, and a common electrode 160 which are formed on a substrate 110. When a diameter of the particle P is greater than a thickness of each of the pixel electrode 120, the organic emission layer 150, and the common electrode 160, the pixel electrode 120 is connected to the common electrode 160, causing short circuit. Here, the common electrode 160 may include a metal layer 161 and a conductive organic layer 162. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 121 refers to an auxiliary electrode, reference numeral 130 refers to a bank layer, and reference numeral 140 refers to a partition layer.
When short circuit occurs between the pixel electrode 120 and the common electrode 160, a current does not flow in the organic emission layer 150, and for this reason, a whole pixel cannot emit light. Therefore, a pixel in which short circuit occurs between the pixel electrode 120 and the common electrode 160 may be a defective pixel which cannot emit light.

Organic light emitting display device with insulating part and method of manufacturing the same


The present disclosure provides a training apparatus for developing fundamental skill for the game of football which comprises a base pad having at least one of a hand grip and a shoulder pad, and an outer pad mounted and securely stitched to a front of the base pad. The outer pad includes a torso region and a shoulder region shaped to mimic shoulder pads of a football player. In some embodiments, the outer pad is covered with a grippable mesh material adapted to mimic a texture and form of a football jersey. The outer pad may be smaller than and fit within a perimeter of the front of the base pad, and during training, the outer pad is adapted to draw attention to the center of the training apparatus to draw hands of a training player inside the perimeter of the base pad.

Football training involves the use of various training equipment for developing different types of skills required in the game. However, the rules and style of play of football have changed over time, requiring advances in training techniques and equipment. A good example of such a change is in blocking and tackling. Now, football players are taught to upwardly drive their hands into the opposing lineman's armpits and to grab hold of their opponent in order to restrain the opposing lineman's motion, such as to avoid opening a hole in the defender's line, and to hopefully create a hole in the opposing line. As such, the skills of the lineman are absolutely critical to the success of a team. Applicant has found that the available training devices are not effective in training for blocking and tackling for the modern game.


A current sensing circuit including a shunt resistor coupled, at one end, to the low-side transistor of a half bridge circuit and, at its other end, to a load. The voltage sensed across the shunt resistor is proportional to the current delivered to the load. A level shifting circuit is provided to transpose the sensed voltage to a low voltage signal which can be fed back to control commutation of the transistors in the half bridge circuit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a circuit for sensing current in a motor controller, an uninterruptable power supply or any system that uses a half bridge circuit and, more specifically, to a circuit for sensing load current by sensing a shunt voltage and transmitting that information to ground level.
2. Description of the Related Art
Resistive shunts are widely used as inexpensive circuit elements for sensing the current passing through a device. The shunt is placed in series with the device for which current is to be sensed. Thus, the voltage drop across the shunt is proportional to current flowing through the shunt and the device.
FIG. 1 shows a typical prior art circuit using a resistive shunt for sensing current through a motor driven by a three phase motor controller. The total current of the three phase currents, i.sub.a, i.sub.b, and i.sub.c, is sensed by sensing the voltage across a common shunt resistor R. This single voltage level is then "decomposed" into the three motor currents of i.sub.a, i.sub.b, and i.sub.c using mathematical techniques in the microprocessor 10 using information such as when each switch in the motor controller is ON.
The disadvantage of the above-described method for sensing load current is that it fails under certain load and speed conditions, and thus is not a robust method.
Another method of sensing load current is to use Hall effect devices to sense the current flow in each phase, as shown in FIG. 2. In this method, each of the Hall effect devices 20, 22 and 24 measures the flux created by the motor current in its respective phase. The disadvantage of using Hall effect devices is that such devices are expensive.
Another scheme that can be adopted to sense load current in a motor controller circuit (shown in FIG. 3 for one of the three phases) is to add a resistor 30 in series between the low side switch and ground. The voltage across resistor 30 is sensed and a sample and hold (S/H) element 32 is used to reconstruct the waveform.
The disadvantages of the scheme shown in FIG. 3 are as follows:
1. the resistor 30 has a parasitic inductance 34 (shown in series with the resistance) which causes a large voltage spike at each turn-on and turn-off instant of the waveform (FIG. 3A). The amplitude of this spike can be as high as 100 times the signal value;
2. the waveform is inherently "choppy;"
3. the voltage spike caused by inductance 34 of resistor 30 can destroy the driver 36 if there is a short circuit on the high side switch; and
4. although the above problems may be minimized using a resistor, R, having a low parasitic inductance, such resistors are very expensive.


Disclosed is a fault isolation and measurement system that provides multiple near-field scanning isolation techniques on a common platform. The system incorporates the use of a specialized holder to supply electrical bias to internal circuit structures located within an area of a device or material. The system further uses a multi-probe assembly. Each probe is mounted to a support structure around a common reference point and is a component of a different measurement or fault isolation tool. The assembly moves such that each probe can obtain measurements from the same fixed location on the device or material. The relative positioning of the support structure and/or the holder can be changed in order to obtain measurements from multiple same fixed locations within the area. Additionally, the system uses a processor for providing layered images associated with each signal and for precisely aligning those images with design data in order to characterize, or isolate fault locations within the device or material.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to a system and method for measuring and testing nanoscale devices or materials. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system that allows for near-field scanning with various sensors or energy sources on a common platform to make nanoscale electrical and physical measurements or isolate nanoscale faults.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various electrical and physical measurement techniques can be used to analyze an object having electrical properties (e.g., a chip, a die, an integrated circuit, a device or a material) and to possibly provide information about its operation and/or its condition. For example, various integrated circuit (IC) physical fault isolation tools include laser scanning tools (e.g., Laser Scanning Microscopy (LSM) or Laser Assisted Device Alteration, (LADA)), thermal imaging tools (e.g., Thermal Induced Voltage Alteration (TIVA)), light emission tools (e.g., Light Induced Voltage Alteration (LIVA)), and tools that measure electrical activity in operating integrated circuits (e.g., electron beam probing or Electron Beam Test (EBT), Laser Voltage Probing (LVP), magnetic field or magnetic force microscopy, Photon Emission Microscopy (PEM), Time Resolved Emission (TRE), Picosecond Imaging Circuit Analysis (PICA), etc.). However, the technology associated with these various physical fault isolation tools has generally reached fixed limits in sensitivity and spatial resolution. Specifically, such physical fault isolation tools are rapidly becoming obsolete for one hundred nanometer IC devices or materials and smaller.
Scanning probe systems are also used to make measurements on a variety of devices or materials. However, when an external electrical energy or bias is required such scanning probe systems are limited to use on objects that have connection points that are large enough to be soldered or wire-bonded. They are also limited to use on objects that have connection points that are far enough from the area of interest so as not to physically obstruct a probe that must be scanned very near the surface of the object. Further, such scanning probe systems are limited to acquisition with one such scanned probe at a time, or on one separate instrument at a time, such that data acquired with a first probe or instrument is not spatially registered and aligned with data acquired from subsequent probes or instruments, such that features contained within a signal from one sensor cannot be exactly correlated with features contained within signals from other sensors. Thus, there is a need for an improved nanoscale fault isolation and measurement system having a number of scanning probes capable of different electrical and physical measurements. The improved system should be capable of being electrically connected to nanoscale circuit nodes and have high sensitivity and nanoscale spatial resolution. Lastly, the improved system should allow for a variety of different measurements to be taken from a common platform so that data acquired by any probe is automatically exactly spatially registered and aligned with data from any other probe.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Nanoscale fault isolation and measurement system

International Business Machines Corporation


A clock signal generator provides a gated clock signal GCLK to trigger operation of dual-edge triggered circuits. A first detector generates, while a clock gating signal /EN is asserted, a first detector output signal that is asserted or de-asserted as a function of disjunction or conjunction respectively of the values that an input clock signal CLK and the gated clock signal GCLK had when the clock gating signal /EN transitioned. A second detector generates, while the clock gating signal /EN is de-asserted, as the value of the gated clock signal GCLK, the value CLK or its complement /CLK as a function of the first detector output signal. When the clock gating signal /EN is asserted, the second detector maintains the value that the gated clock signal GCLK had when the clock gating signal /EN transitioned from de-asserted to asserted.

The present invention is directed to a clock signal generator for an integrated circuit and, more particularly, to a gated clock signal generator for use with dual-edge triggered circuits.
Conventional clocked circuits, such as flip flops or edge triggered gates, are triggered by a single edge of the clock signal. The triggering edge of the clock signal may be either the positive or negative edge, more generally the asserting or de-asserting edge. However, clocked circuits can alternatively be triggered by both clock signal edges (asserting and de-asserting). The clocking rate for dual-edge triggered circuits is nearly double the clocking rate for a conventional single-edge triggered circuit clocked by the same clock signal.
Power consumed by the clock trees, which is a function of clock frequency, is a substantial proportion of the total power of certain integrated circuits (ICs), even as high as 40% in some cases. The power consumed by the clock trees can be maintained for faster clocking rates of the dual-edge clocked circuits, or can be reduced for similar clocking rates when the clocked circuits are triggered by both edges. Savings can also be achieved in the clocked circuits themselves compared to equivalent single edge triggered modules.
An issue arises with gating the clock signals for dual-edge triggered circuits. If a conventional gated single-edge clock signal generator is used with dual-edge triggered circuits, functional limitations appear. For example, a transition of the gate signal risks resulting in loss of clock signal edges, or in additional, unwanted clock signal edges. Efforts made to avoid these risks may lead to undue complication of the dual-edge clock signal generator with consequent additional cost and operational difficulties.


A seat belt cutter for automotive vehicles includes a blade and a hammer which are provided on a grip member. The blade member has an arcuate end portion and a serrated edge portion and is pivotally mounted to the grip member. The hammer can include a pair of sharply pointed head portions or a single hammer member and this hammer is provided at an end of the grip member.

When a vehicle collision has occurred, a seat belt is rapidly locked due to shock of the collision. This makes a driver sitting on a driver s seat and a passenger sitting on an assistant driver's seat with a seat belt around their bodies unable to move. As a consequence, the driver and the passenger sitting next to the driver are unable to escape from the vehicle.
In order to cope with such a critical situation as mentioned above, a seat belt cutter or scissors are, in some cases, kept nearby the driver's seat. However, since a blade portion of such a cutter is usually exposed outside, there is a risk that the user accidentally cuts the finger during the handling of the cutter. Moreover, since no exclusive-use scissors are available, the seat belt cannot be rapidly and completely cut by one action. Thus, those conventional cutter and scissors greatly lack practicality.
It is therefore a first object of the present invention to provide an emergency seat belt cutter in which the above-mentioned inconveniences are fully obviated, handling is not dangerous and cutting operation can rapidly be made in an emergency.
Heretofore, no special consideration is given at all, on the side of a provider of a seat belt cutter, to an idea that the seat belt cutter should be- kept in a suitable place nearby the driver's seat as seat belt attaching means. Accordingly, there was no other way for the driver but to select a desired place for keeping the seat belt cutter.
It is therefore a second object of the present invention to provide a method for attaching a seat belt cutter in which a seat belt cutter is fixedly kept in a most convenient place nearby the driver's seat by reasonable means capable of obviating the above-mentioned inconveniences.
Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:

Seat belt cutter and method for attaching the same


The present invention relates to a process for recycling product streams that have been separated from a hydrocarbon-containing feed stream comprising olefin monomer, olefin co-monomer, hydrocarbon diluent and components such as H2, N2, O2, CO, CO2, and formaldehyde. In accordance with the present process a hydrocarbon-containing feed stream is separated into a) a first side stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and olefin monomer; b) a second side stream which is substantially hydrogen-free and comprises hydrocarbon diluent and olefin monomer, c) a bottom stream comprising substantially olefin-free hydrocarbon diluent, and d) an overhead vapor stream comprising olefin monomer, hydrocarbon diluent and components such as formaldehyde, H2, N2, O2, CO and CO2. The present process further includes recycling said first and said second side streams in a polymerization process for preparing bimodal polyolefin.

Olefin polymerizations are frequently carried out using monomer, diluent and catalyst and optionally co-monomers and hydrogen in a reactor. When the polymerization is performed under slurry conditions, the product consists usually of solid particles and is in suspension in a diluent. The slurry contents of the reactor are circulated continuously with a pump to maintain efficient suspension of the polymer solid particles in the liquid diluent. The product is discharged by means of settling legs, which operate on a batch principle to recover the product. Settling in the legs is used to increase the solids concentration of the slurry finally recovered as product slurry.
Alternatively, the product slurry may be fed to a second reactor serially connected to the first reactor where a second polymer fraction may be produced. Typically, when two reactors in series are employed in this manner, the resultant polymer product is a bimodal polymer product, which comprises a first polymer fraction produced in the first reactor and a second polymer fraction produced in the second reactor, and has a bimodal molecular weight distribution. The resultant product will also usually consist of solid particles in suspension in a diluent and will then be discharged from the second reactor using settling legs in a similar way as explained above.
The product slurry recovered in an olefin polymerization process comprises a slurry of polymer solids in a liquid that contains diluent, dissolved unreacted monomer, and optionally dissolved unreacted co-monomer. Typically this liquid also includes traces of heavier elements, e.g. oligomers, and lighter components including H2, N2, O2, CO and/or CO2. Catalyst will generally be contained in the polymer.
Once recovered from the reactor, the product slurry is discharged to a flash tank, through flash lines, where most of the diluent and unreacted monomers and optionally unreacted co-monomers are flashed off. Afterwards, it is highly desirable to further treat the vapors in order to recover the unreacted monomer, optionally unreacted co-monomer and the diluent, since there is an economic interest in re-using these separated components including the monomer, co-monomer, and the diluent, in a polymerization process.
It is known in the art that a vaporous stream comprising unreacted monomer, unreacted co-monomer and diluent issued from the effluent of a polymerization process may be treated in a distillation system for separation of its components. Traditionally, the diluent is captured through a complicated process so that such diluent can be recycled to the reactor.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,589,957 for instance describes a separation process of a hydrocarbon-containing vaporous stream comprising monomer, co-monomer and diluent issued from the effluent of a homo-polymerization and/or co-polymerization process. The described process comprises subjecting the vaporous stream to a two-stage distillation provided with a common accumulation zone wherein the condensate from the accumulation zone serves as the source of feed for the second distillation and reflux for the first distillation.
However, a problem encountered in many distillation systems, is that there is a sub-optimal separation of lighter components, including H2, N2, O2, CO and/or CO2, from recovered diluent. As a consequence, use of separated diluent streams containing these components in a polymerization process may seriously reduce polymerization efficiency and result in sub-optimal polymerization conditions. Especially in the case of re-using separated diluent streams in a polymerization process for preparing bimodal polymer product, it is for instance required to recover diluent streams wherein the residual amount of lighter components such as hydrogen, is substantially reduced in order to be able to use these diluent streams in reactors wherein the higher molecular weight component of a bimodal polymer product is prepared.
An example of a recovery process that is currently applied to meet this requirement involves the production of large amounts of diluent streams that are substantially free of olefin. However, such recovery process involves the re-utilisation of a diluent stream which is in fact too pure for that purpose as it substantially lacks olefin monomer and hence also is too costly for that use. Moreover, separation methods adapted to recover large amounts of substantially olefin-free diluent entail a number of problems and disadvantages, including inter ails requiring high amounts of energy for carrying out the separation process; resulting in increased amounts of olefin monomers that have to be separated from lighter components such as those given above; increased loss of olefin monomer, reduced stability of distillation systems; etc.
In view of the above, there remains a great need in the art for optimised methods for recycling hydrocarbon-containing feed streams that need to be separated into streams that can be recycled to a polymerization process, especially wherein bimodal polyolefins, such as for instance bimodal polyethylene, is prepared. Furthermore, there is a need in the art to provide a diluent recycle process that is less expensive to construct and/or to operate.
Summary The Applicants provide a process that overcomes at least some of the above-mentioned problems. Thereto an optimised process for separating a hydrocarbon-containing feed stream into different product streams and for re-using said separated product streams is provided. More in particular, the herein provided process permits to optimally recycle the separated streams in a polymerization process for preparing bimodal polymer.
In a first aspect, the invention thereto provides a process for recycling product streams separated from a hydrocarbon-containing feed stream comprising olefin monomer, one or more optional olefin co-monomer, hydrocarbon diluent and components such as H2, N2, O2, CO, CO2, and formaldehyde, wherein said hydrocarbon-containing feed stream is separated by the steps of:                a) introducing said feed stream into a first distillation column for subjecting said feed to distillation conditions adapted to remove                    a1) a bottom stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and one or more optional co-monomer, and            a2) an overhead stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent, olefin monomer and components such as H2, N2, O2, CO, CO2, and formaldehyde;                        b) condensing the overhead stream issued from the first distillation column in step a2) to form a condensate and storing said condensate in a separator (108) adapted to separate a vapor stream and a liquid stream;        c) removing from said separator said vapor stream comprising olefin monomer, hydrocarbon diluent and components such as formaldehyde, H2, N2, O2, CO and CO2;        d) condensing the vapor stream removed in step c) to form a condensate and storing said condensate in a separator adapted to separate a vapor stream and a liquid stream (15);        e) removing from said separator said liquid stream of step d);        f) separating said liquid stream into a first side stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and olefin monomer; and a remainder stream;        g) introducing said remainder stream in a second distillation column and subjecting said remainder stream to distillation conditions adapted to remove                    g1) a bottom stream comprising substantially olefin-free hydrocarbon diluent,            g2) a substantially hydrogen-free second side stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and olefin monomer, and            g3) an overhead vapor stream comprising olefin monomer, hydrocarbon diluent and components such as formaldehyde, H2, N2, O2, CO and CO2.
In accordance with the present method, it is further noted that vapor stream issued from the separator of the first distillation column is sent/fed to the overhead condenser of the second distillation column. The present invention is thus characterized in that it comprises at least two condensation/separation cycles provided in series. This advantageously permits to limit monomer loss, and therefore to reduce production costs. In particular, in the case of polyethylene production, such mode of operation allows to limit the loss of ethylene with the ethane purge in case of bimodal configuration of the reactors. In another embodiment of the present process, a portion of the condensate stored in step b) is removed as liquid stream and passed as reflux to the first distillation column.
In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides a process wherein said first and said second side streams are recycled in a polymerization process for preparing bimodal polyolefin comprising at least two different polyolefin fractions that have been obtained in two different polymerisation reactors connected to each other in series, and wherein one of said fractions has a higher molecular weight than said other fraction, and wherein said second side stream is re-used in the polymerization process wherein the polyolefin fraction having the higher molecular weight is prepared, and wherein said first side stream is re-used in the polymerization process wherein the other polyolefin fraction is prepared.
In other words, the present process involves the steps of recycling said first and said second side streams in a polymerization process for preparing bimodal polyolefin comprising at least two different polyolefin fractions that have been obtained in two different polymerisation reactors connected to each other in series, and wherein one of said fractions has a higher molecular weight than said other fraction. The second side stream is re-used in the polymerization process wherein the polyolefin fraction having the higher molecular weight is prepared and the first side stream is re-used in the polymerization process wherein the other polyolefin fraction, i.e. the polyolefin fraction having the lower molecular weight, is prepared. The first side stream can thus be fed to a reactor in which the polyolefin fraction having the higher molecular weight is prepared, while the second side stream can be fed to the reactor in which said other polyolefin fraction is prepared.
In yet another embodiment, the invention provides a process in which said bottom stream of step g1) is re-used in a polymerization process for preparing bimodal polyolefin comprising at least two different polyolefin fractions that have been obtained in two different polymerisation reactors connected to each other in series, and wherein one of said fractions has a higher molecular weight than said other fraction, and wherein said bottom stream is re-used in the polymerization process wherein the polyolefin fraction having the higher molecular weight is prepared.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a process comprising the steps of                h) condensing the overhead vapor stream obtained in step g3), optionally in admixture of the vapor stream removed in step c) to form a condensate, and storing the condensate thus formed in a separator; and        i) subjecting the stored condensate obtained in step h) to steps e) to g).
Preferably, the process further comprises the step of removing from the condensate stored in step d) a vapor stream comprising olefin monomer, and components such as formaldehyde, H2, N2, O2, CO and CO2; and recovering olefin monomer from said vapor stream.
In yet another embodiment, the present invention provides a process which may further comprise the step of introducing the bottom stream of step al) in a third distillation column (3) for subjecting said bottom stream to distillation conditions adapted to remove 1) a side stream comprising one or more optional co-monomer, 2) an overhead stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and optionally co-monomer, and 3) a bottom stream comprising heavy components.
Preferably the side stream 1) is taken from the lower part of the distillation column e.g. from tray 3 of the column, when counting from the bottom of the column. Generally, the overhead stream of the third distillation column will contain only minor amounts of co-monomer.
This overhead stream of the third distillation column comprising hydrocarbon diluent can be fed back to the first distillation column. Preferably, the overhead stream which exits the top of the third distillation column is first cooled down in an overhead condenser of the third distillation column. Then the condensed stream, issued at the outlet of the condenser of the third distillation column is collected in a reflux drum of the third distillation column. The condensate can then be split up in two parts: a first part thereof is sent as reflux to the third distillation column and a second part is recycled as feed to the first distillation column.
Alternatively or in combination therewith, bottom stream of step a1) can also advantageously be re-used in the polymerization process for preparing bimodal polyolefin. Especially it can be fed to the reactor in which the polyolefin fraction with the higher molecular weight fraction is prepared. In bimodal configuration, the reactor in which the polyolefin fraction with the higher molecular weight fraction is prepared is also the one in which co-monomer (e.g. hexene) concentration is the highest.
It shall be noted that all values that are given herein in ppm are meant to refer to values of ppm by weight. Hence the terms "ppm" and "ppm by weight" are used herein as synonyms.
In another embodiment, the present invention provides a process wherein said first side stream of step f) comprises at least 3wt %, more preferably at least 5 wt % olefin monomer.
In another embodiment, the present invention provides a process wherein said first side stream of step f) comprises less than 10 wt % olefin monomer, and for instance less than 8wt % olefin monomer.
In another embodiment, the present invention provides a process wherein said first side stream of step f) comprises between 100 and 10000 ppm by weight hydrogen, preferably between 100 to 5000 ppm by weight. In a preferred embodiment said first side stream of step f) comprises less than 500 ppm by weight hydrogen.
In still another embodiment, the invention provides a process wherein said second side stream of step g2) is removed from the upper third of said second distillation column. In an embodiment, the present invention provides a process wherein said second side stream of step g2) comprises at least 2 wt % olefin monomer, preferably at least 2.5 wt %, and more preferably at least 3 wt % olefin monomer. In another embodiment, the present invention provides a process wherein said second side stream of step g2) comprises at most 5 ppm by weight, preferably at most 2 ppm by weight, more preferably at most 1 ppm by weight hydrogen.
In yet another embodiment, the present invention provides a process wherein said bottom stream of step g1) comprises less than 5 ppm by weight of olefin monomer, and preferably less than 1 ppm by weight of olefin monomer. In another embodiment, the present invention provides a process wherein said bottom stream of step g1) comprises less than 5000 ppm by weight of olefin co-monomer.
In another preferred embodiment, a process is provided wherein said hydrocarbon-containing feed stream comprising olefin monomer, co-monomer and hydrocarbon diluent is an effluent stream obtained from a polymerization process for preparing monomodal or bimodal polyolefin. Preferably, said olefin monomer is ethylene, said co-monomer is 1-hexene and said hydrocarbon diluent is isobutane.
The present process includes the recovery of a side stream which is substantially free of hydrogen. This side stream is as rich as possible in olefin monomer while still poor enough in hydrogen, so that it can be fed to the reactor wherein the polymer fraction having the higher molecular weight is prepared during a bimodal polymerisation process. Consequently, the need for using an olefin-free hydrocarbon stream for that same purpose is strongly reduced. Since the flow rate of steam used for reboiling the distillation column is directly proportional to the flow rate of olefin-free hydrocarbon stream to be obtained as bottom stream, reducing this bottom stream further makes it possible to significantly reduce the steam consumption necessary to ensure proper re-boiling of the distillation column.
Another advantage of the present invention is that said substantially hydrogen-free side stream will take up olefin monomer, and hence significantly reduce—e.g. by more than 50%—the incondensable vaporous stream which contains the main part of the hydrogen entering the recycle section and which is removed from the recycle section and sent to a monomer recovery unit. Hence, the present invention permits to recover a larger portion of the olefin monomer entering the recycle section before it is sent to a recovery unit compared to currently applied recovery processes. For instance, the present invention permits to recover a larger portion of ethylene monomer entering the recycle section before it is sent to an ethylene recovery unit (ERU) compared to currently applied recovery processes. In accordance with the present process, recovering a substantially hydrogen-free side stream from the hydrocarbon feed stream permits to significantly reduce the loss of ethylene monomer.
Further in accordance with the present process less incondensable vaporous stream containing lighter components needs to be sent to the monomer recovery unit and the size of the monomer recovery unit, for instance an ethylene recovery unit, can be significantly reduced. This has important economic and environmental repercussions and benefits.
Furthermore, unexpectedly, the Applicants have seen that the present process involving the recovery of a) a first side stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and olefin monomer; b) a second side stream which is substantially hydrogen-free and comprises hydrocarbon diluent and olefin monomer, c) a bottom stream comprising substantially olefin-free hydrocarbon diluent, and d) an overhead vapor stream comprising remaining olefin monomer, remaining hydrocarbon diluent and remaining components such as formaldehyde, H2, N2, O2, CO and CO2 has improved efficiency and stability compared to conventional distillation system which lack recovery of said second side stream.
The present optimized recovery process is particularly suitable for providing diluents streams for re-use in a polymerization system for preparing bimodal polymer product. In particular, the present invention provides a process enabling to separately recover I) a substantially hydrogen-free diluent side stream that can be used in the reactor wherein the higher molecular weight fraction of a bimodal polymer is prepared; and II) a diluent side stream that can be used in the reactor wherein the lower molecular weight fraction of a bimodal polymer is prepared. Thus the present process optimally provides two side streams that each can be re-used to feed diluent to the respective reactors applied in the polymerization process for preparing bimodal polyolefins, for instance bimodal polyethylene.
In another aspect, the invention therefore also relates to the use of a process according to the invention in a polymerization process for preparing bimodal polyolefin, such as for instance bimodal polyethylene, comprising at least two different polyolefin fractions that have been obtained in two different polymerisation reactors connected to each other in series, and wherein one of said fractions has a higher molecular weight, comprising the steps of:                feeding olefin monomer, a diluent, at least one polymerization catalyst, optionally hydrogen, and one or more optional olefin co-monomer(s) to a first reactor,        polymerizing said olefin monomer in said first reactor to produce a polymer slurry comprising a first polyolefin fraction in the diluent,        transferring said polymer slurry from said first reactor to a second reactor,        feeding olefin monomer, a diluent, optionally hydrogen, and one or more optional olefin co-monomer(s) to said second reactor,        polymerizing said olefin monomer and said one or more optional olefin co-monomer(s) in said second reactor to produce a slurry comprising a second polyolefin fraction in the diluent, said second polyolefin fraction having a different molecular weight than the polyolefin fraction produced in said first reactor, and        discharging from said second reactor a slurry comprising bimodal polyolefin in said diluent,        recovering bimodal polyolefin from the slurry by separating at least a majority of the diluent from the slurry in a hydrocarbon-containing feed stream, and        subjecting said hydrocarbon-containing feed stream to a process as described herein.
In yet another aspect, the invention also provides a polymerization system for preparing bimodal polyolefin comprising two polymerisation reactors connected to each other in series operably connected to a distillation system, the distillation system comprising a first distillation column and a second distillation column which are operably connected to each other in series; and
wherein said first distillation column which is configured to separate a hydrocarbon-containing feed stream comprising olefin monomer, optionally one or more co-monomer and hydrocarbon diluent, into
                a bottom stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and one or more optional co-monomer, and        an overhead stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent, olefin monomer and components such as H2, N2, O2, CO, CO2, and formaldehyde;is provided with at least one condenser for condensing said overhead feed stream to form a condensed stream and at least one separator, operably connected to said condenser and adapted to separate said condensed stream in a vapor stream and a liquid stream; andwherein said second distillation column which is configured to separate a hydrocarbon-containing feed stream comprising olefin monomer, optionally one or more co-monomer and hydrocarbon diluent, into        a bottom stream comprising substantially olefin-free hydrocarbon diluent,        a substantially hydrogen-free side stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and olefin monomer, and        an overhead stream comprising olefin monomer, hydrocarbon diluent and components such as formaldehyde, H2, N2, O2, CO and CO2,is provided with at least one condenser for condensing said overhead stream to form a condensed stream and at least one separator, operably connected to said condenser and adapted to separate said condensed stream in a vapor stream and a liquid stream, of which a part is separated as a first side stream comprising hydrocarbon diluent and olefin monomer.
The present invention will be further disclosed in detail hereunder. The description is only given by way of example and does not limit the invention. The reference numbers relate to the hereto-annexed figures.

System for recycling product streams separated from a hydrocarbon-containing feed stream