The present invention uses a plurality of magnetic field sources and magnetic field sensors mounted against a surface. Based on the mass of ferromagnetic material, such as steel, the magnetic field sensors detect variable magnetic field strength and this variance is proportional to the mass of ferromagnetic material being detected. An electronic device reads the magnetic field values and uses the information to quantify the ferromagnetic material in the surface or inside the volume of the construction component.

Loss of metal (especially steel mass), through corrosion or erosion is a major problem in a wide span of industries that include transportation, infrastructure, energy, and oil and gas. It involves oxidization of metal in the case of corrosion or gradual loss of metal through chipping or friction in the case of erosion. Undetected, steel mass loss can cause collapse of buildings or structures, burst of pipelines, or malfunction of tubes. Those faults not only contribute to a significant economic loss, they can also lead to injuries or fatalities.
For example, corrosion in pipelines can lead to degradation of pipe strength and possible ruptures. In infrastructure applications, corrosion in steel can lead to reduction in the load-bearing capability that these structures can handle. This can lead to collapse of buildings made with reinforced steel or bridge failures as pre-stressed tendons give away. Detection of steel mass is especially important in segmental bridges where the bridge's load-bearing ability depends on the steel of pre-stressed tendons. Tendons, in this case, hold the numerous segments of a segmental bridge together. The loading capability of a bridge depends on the number of tendons linking the segments together and the health of the steel inside each tendon. A tendon typically fails when steel strands snap, thus increasing the load on other tendons holding the bridge together. If enough tendons snap, the remaining tendons cannot hold the bridge weight together and a bridge collapse is imminent. Another risk factor for tendons is in the form of steel corrosion. Here, the load-bearing capability is weakened when the steel strands inside the tendons corrode. It is critical to continuously inspect these bridge components for corrosion in the tendons and to detect for failed or broken tendons. Corrosion is brought on by air and moisture in contact with steel, as well as by high chloride content within the grouting or fill material surrounding the steel.
A more common issue is corrosion and damage in steel pipes and plates. Steel pipes and plates are used in an incredibly wide variety of applications across many industries, including power generation and oil and gas industries. These pipes and plates can undergo a lot of wear over time, and internal damage and wall thinning can occur due to corrosion, stress, and abrasion. Extensive corrosion and damage can lead to catastrophic failure if left unrepaired or unchecked. It is therefore important for facility operators to know the status of their steel components, especially in corrosive or abrasive environments. It is also desirable that inspection methods for analyzing these components do not require the component to be taken out of service. A fast, safe, easy-to-use, and noninvasive inspection method is needed in these cases.
Current inspection methods depend on either inaccurate or inefficient technologies. For example, magnetic flux is based on generating magnetic field at one side of the tendon and detecting the strength of that field as it is received from a detector end. This method, being the most viable solution that currently exists, has two major drawbacks. First, it is labor and time intensive as it requires repeatedly winding and unwinding heavy cables. Second, it is not very accurate as the magnetic field detected at the receiver end is typically very low. Another method is based on the use of microwave signals transmitted into the structure. A receiver in this case detects the electromagnetic waves as they bounce back from the steel rods. However, this method also suffers from two major drawbacks: First, the steel rods are typically located relatively near to the surface where the sensors are mounted. This makes deciphering the received signals from multiple reflections difficult, and thus accuracy is reduced. Second, this method is more suited to detecting if steel rods are present or not, but it cannot accurately detect corrosion of steel mass.
Existing inspections methods also involve using magnetometers to measure magnetic field from a ferromagnetic material and then infer corrosion or erosion. In prior art (U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,542,127 and 8,447,532), a magneto meter is used to measure the change in magnetic field in a material when subjected to mechanical stress. This method requires applying pressure on the inspected material and is typically suitable to pressurized pipes. In another prior art (US 2016/0245737), magnetometers are used to detect residual magnetic field in pipes. The change in residual magnetic field is inferred as a result of corrosion or erosion. This method does not use any magnetic source and relies only on measurement of residual magnetic fields when the pipes are manufactured or installed.
In the present invention, magnetometers are used with an active magnetic field source. The active magnetic field source energizes the object being inspected with beams of magnetic field. Those beams erase or mitigate residual magnetic fields in the inspected objects and writes a magnetic signal in place. The residual magnetic field measured after writing the new magnetic signal is used to infer the total mass of ferromagnetic material in the inspection domain. The inspection here is based on differential magnetic field measurement where the magnetic field is measured when the magnets are activated and after the magnets are deactivated. The difference between those measurements is used to infer the total mass of ferromagnetic material in the measurement domain. Specifically, the new invention uses a magnetic field sensor and a magnetic source mounted against a surface. Based on the mass of ferromagnetic material—such as steel—inside a volume, the magnetic field sensor detects different magnetic fields when the source is activated. An electronic device reads this measurement and uses the information to quantify the ferromagnetic material inside the volume. The present invention also allows for imaging the distribution of ferromagnetic material using image reconstruction techniques developed for soft field tomography modalities.
A further extension of this invention involves the mounting of several magnetic field sensors around the volume being detected. The collective signals from the sensors are used to map the location of ferromagnetic material inside the volume being tested.
The present invention can be applied wherever there is a need to measure the mass of steel of ferromagnetic material in a non-invasive manner. In addition to infrastructure Non-Destructive Testing (NDT), inspection of pipes for detection of corrosion based on the available thickness of steel is also made possible.
The present invention relates to a system and process to obtain a relationship between magnetic field from a magnetization source and the area (or volume) of steel in the imaging domain. In one embodiment, multiple sensors are mounted around cylindrical objects like tendons or pipes. In another embodiment, the magnetic field sensor modules are placed on plane or flat surfaces.


An arrangement for stabilizing the line of sight in an optical tracking system relative to inertial space over a specified range of frequencies utilizing a mirror/torquer/pickoff subassembly both as an inertial sensor and as a control effector.

This invention relates to an optical system which tracks a commanded line of sight and, more particularly, to an arrangement in such a system for stabilizing the system line of sight relative to inertial space over a specified range of frequencies.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,881,800, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference, discloses an optical tracking and image stabilization system for use in an aircraft which tracks the movement of the pilot's helmet by developing a position command signal which causes the line of sight of the optical system to follow the line of sight of the pilot. In the disclosed system, a mirror is flexibly mounted to a rigid block which in turn is fixedly mounted to the inner gimbal of a pair of gimbals. A gyroscope having a spin axis aligned with the line of sight of the optical system is mounted to the rigid block to develop signals which are utilized to control movement of the mirror relative to the rigid block so as to nullify environmental perturbations which emanate both from the gimbal system during its positioning of the rigid block and from the aircraft.
A substantial portion of the cost of such an optical system is due to the gyroscope and its associated electronics. In addition, the incorporation of a gyroscope in such a system impacts on the amount of space required for the system. In an airborne system, such as that disclosed in the above-referenced patent, the size and weight of the system is a critical factor so that elimination of the gyroscope would be advantageous. In certain respects, optical binoculars are similar to the optical system disclosed in the referenced U.S. patent. Thus, both include a mirror mounted to a base and both track a commanded line of sight, the binoculars doing so by manual positioning whereas in the referenced patent, this is accomplished electromechanically. In the latter, the command consists of two components; the helmet angular position relative to the vehicle and the vehicle angular position, thereby creating a line of sight command relative to inertial space. Thus, the manual positioning of the binoculars is analogous to the maneuvering of the aircraft. The present invention is applicable in both cases, when the relative command is present or when it is not. In addition, it would be impractical to include a gyroscope in a pair of binoculars so that elimination of the gyroscope from an image stabilization arrangement would be advantageous to this application. Further, both are subject to environmental perturbations which vibrate the line of sight and hence the image viewed by the observer. The desired frequency response of both types of systems is also similar. Thus, if one considers the ratio of change of line of sight angle to change of base angle over a frequency band, at low frequencies this ratio should be unity because the line of sight should follow the base in a one-to-one fashion. For example, in a head-steered line of sight pointing system with a helmet mounted display, the line of sight should follow the helmet, whereas in the case of binoculars, the orientation of the line of sight should follow the nominal orientation of the binoculars. However, the jittery motions that occur at higher frequencies either due to vehicle vibration in the case of the referenced patent or because the user cannot hold the binoculars steady, especially at higher magnification, are undesirable. Thus, the ratio of change of line of sight angle to change of base angle should be smaller in that region of the frequency band so that less of this undesirable base motion is transmitted to the line of sight. Therefore, in order to reduce the cost and size of an image stabilization system, as described above, it is an object of the present invention to provide such an image stabilization arrangement without the necessity for a gyroscope and its associated electronics.
In my copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/802,870, filed Dec. 6, 1991, and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,220,456, issued Jun. 15, 1993, I disclose a gyroless arrangement for stabilizing the line of sight in an optical tracking system of the type disclosed in the referenced patent by isolating the line of sight from angular vibration induced by the gimbal system. This gyroless arrangement is useful in applications where vehicle vibration can be ignored, but is not effective where vehicle vibration is a significant factor. It is therefore a more specific object of the present invention to provide a gyroless image stabilization arrangement of the type described which is effective over the frequency band of interest to nullify the effects of all environmental perturbations.

Image stabilization assembly for an optical system


In stopping apparatus and method for an oil pump, which are applied to a hydraulic actuator that works based on a hydraulic pressure derived from the oil pump driven by a motor, a backward rotation of the oil pump is prevented by resisting a remaining pressure that is acting on the oil pump from the hydraulic actuator after the hydraulic actuator is deactivated. A one-way clutch disposed on an oil pump drive train between the motor and the oil pump mechanically prevents the backward rotation of the oil pump. Moreover, in order to prevent the backward rotation, a controller of the stopping apparatus gradually decreases the rotation of the motor after the hydraulic actuator is deactivated, and eliminates the remaining pressure within the hydraulic actuator while decreasing the rotation of the motor.

a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a stopping apparatus and method for an oil pump.
b) Description of the Related Art
A shift control hydraulic circuit for an automatic transmission is included in a hydraulic actuator which works based on a hydraulic pressure derived from the oil pump driven by a motor. The oil pump that is used as a source of the hydraulic pressure for a transmission mechanism of the automatic transmission is suggested to be driven by the motor instead of an engine. In such a case, (a drive of) the motor is deactivated when the shift control hydraulic circuit (or, the hydraulic actuator) is deactivated by turning an ignition switch off. At this time, the hydraulic pressure which remains, in a compressed fashion, within a controlling valve or the transmission mechanism that constitutes the shift control hydraulic circuit (hereinafter, also called a remaining pressure) flows toward the oil pump (i.e., flows in the opposite direction).
Such a backflow of an oil (or, a backflow of the remaining pressure) rotates the oil pump backward since the oil pump can rotate in any direction with the motor deactivated. Thereby, there is a problem that, for example, noise (or, abnormal sound) may be generated. In particular, this tendency (or, problem) is remarkable in a case where the oil pump is a vane pump which is favorably adopted for the automatic transmission.
With this fact taken into consideration, page 97 in a Japanese technical book "Mechanical engineering basic course 18 Hydraulic engineering (SI units edition) the second edition" published in April, 2003 by ASAKURA SHOTEN Co. Ltd. exemplifies a previously proposed stopping apparatus in which a countermeasure against this problem is taken as will be described below.
In a system including a transmission mechanism (namely, an automatic transmission), a controlling valve that performs a shift control for the transmission mechanism, an oil pump that supplies a hydraulic pressure to the controlling valve, and a motor that drives the oil pump, the controlling valve works based on the hydraulic pressure derived from the oil pump driven by the motor and sets a friction element inside the transmission mechanism to be selectively actuated (or, engaged) thereby, a required shift mode of the transmission mechanism is selected.
In such a system, a nonreturn (or, check) valve is interposed on a hydraulic route which establishes a connection between the controlling valve and the oil pump. Thereby, the nonreturn valve prevents an oil from (backward) flowing to the oil pump from the transmission mechanism or the controlling valve due to the remaining pressure within the transmission mechanism or the controlling valve. Hence, the oil pump does not rotate backward. A generation of the noise (or, the abnormal sound) due to such a backward rotation can be avoided.

Stopping apparatus and method for oil pump


In one embodiment, the present invention includes a computer-implemented method to collect information to determine damage to a vehicle involved in a collision using photogrammetric techniques. When determined, this vehicle damage information, which may be in the form of crush measurement information such as a crush damage profile, can be displayed in a computer-generated view of the subject vehicle with a crush damage profile and used to estimate the impact severity. In some embodiments, based on the photogrammetric information derived, a direction of any shifting of the vehicle's components may be obtained and used along with other information to estimate a principal direction of force (PDOF) for one or more vehicles involved in the collision. Still further embodiments may be used to generate and/or audit repair estimates based at least in part on the photogrammetric information.

Embodiments of the present invention relate to vehicular accident analysis and specifically to the collection and analysis of information for using the principles of photogrammetry to estimate vehicle damage and impact severity.
Organizations such as insurance companies and others are tasked with investigating accidents to resolve property and injury claims. Part of the investigation is to determine the severity and direction of the impact. A review of repair estimates and photos is usually done to develop a qualitative assessment of impact severity. If there is damage beyond the bumper of the vehicle(s) (i.e., there is crush damage to the vehicle), the vehicle is often given the qualitative assessment of a significant impact based on a subjective review of the damage information. As much as 40% of accidents of a low severity are subjectively analyzed as a high severity impact, primarily because of the damage to the vehicle(s).
One solution to determining crush damage is to measure the crush when the vehicle is examined for damage and use that information to determine impact severity. The measurement of crush requires some training to understand the concepts and insure consistency, and is also time consuming. With high turnover in the insurance industry and a desire to improve operational efficiency, this creates an ongoing and potentially expensive effort.
Alternately, organizations can retain forensic experts such as engineers and accident reconstructionists to evaluate accident information, reconstruct the accident scenario and characteristics including the determination of the magnitude and direction of the impact. This is an expensive and non-timely solution to be used on wide-scale basis.
The current solution for determining the components and operations required to fix a damaged vehicle is to visually inspect the vehicle. A list of components is created identifying which should be repaired or replaced. This visual inspection process frequently requires a second or more inspection to correct errors in the first inspection. This is a labor intensive and inefficient process. The current process does not leverage the information from similar impacts to similar vehicles.
The Principal Direction of Force (PDOF) is the main axis along which the force of the impact acts on the vehicle. The PDOF is a factor in both the determining of injury potential of the accident and determining which components of the vehicle are damaged. The current method of determining PDOF is to examine photos, descriptions of the accident and possibly scene information to determine the final resting locations of the vehicles. In low to moderate severity impacts, the final resting locations of the vehicles are either not particularly relevant or not available. The current evaluation of PDOF is done by forensic experts which is an expensive and time consuming process.

Method and apparatus for obtaining photogrammetric data to estimate impact severity


The invention discloses a method for determining the air content of the brake fluid in a hydraulic braking system. This method also permits determining the quality of the bleeding of the braking system.

A braking system of this type is filled with an incompressible brake fluid. The dimensioning of the individual components (master brake cylinder, high-pressure accumulator, wheel brakes, etc.) is adapted to the elasticities and clearances in the system. It does not take into account that the brake fluid itself, when enriched with air or water vapor, becomes compressible and contributes to the elasticity of the system. It is therefore necessary in a conventional system to exchange the brake fluid on a regular basis. Admittedly, this is also required in an electrohydraulic braking system, however, the system acts tolerantly with respect to an enrichment of the brake fluid with air because the pump and the high-pressure accumulator can supply an adequate rate of pressure fluid to be able to compensate an increased volume intake that is due to air inclusions. If, however, the electrohydraulic braking system switches to the conventional mode because e.g. the pump or the high-pressure accumulator has failed, the compressibility of the brake fluid will have a negative effect. As the pedal travel is limited it is only possible to reach a defined braking pressure which, depending on to what extent the brake fluid is enriched with air or water vapor, will no longer be adequate to achieve the deceleration of a vehicle mandated by law. An extension of the pedal travel allowing the driver to sense enrichment with gas in the conventional system is not imperatively available in the electrohydraulic system because the wheel brake is separated from the pedal area by operation of the separating valves.

Method for monitoring the air bleeding quality of an electrohydraulic braking system

Abstract: The principle of the method is a comparison of the volume intake with the respectively achieved pressure. The correlation is compared to nominal values. As the volume intake is determined by the clearance, the system is set by means of a pre-actuation to an initial condition before each actual measurement.


A method and apparatus that implements avatar modifications to another user's avatar from a first mobile communication device is disclosed. The method may include selecting an avatar modification to relating to a user of a second mobile communication device based on input from a user, and sending a signal to initiate transmission of selected avatar modification to at least one of the second mobile communication device, an avatar management server, and a plurality of mobile communication devices wherein the user's avatar modification may be viewed by other mobile communication device users.

1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates to avatars for mobile communication devices.
2. Introduction
Avatars are becoming more popular with users of mobile communication devices. Currently, a user may modify his or her own avatars to show emotions, state of mind, presence, present status, etc. Thus, a user can modify his or her avatar to show information to others who view his or her avatar. However, conventional mobile communication devices do not permit one person to modify another person's avatar as it appears to other mobile communication device users.

Method and apparatus for implementing avatar modifications in another user's avatar


This invention generally pertains to the field of psychiatry. In particular, this invention pertains to the discovery that agents capable of inhibiting the binding of cortisol to its receptors can be used in methods for preventing or reversing cognitive deterioration in adults with Down's syndrome. Mifepristone, a potent specific glucocorticoid receptor antagonist, can be used in these methods. The invention also provides a kit for preventing or reversing cognitive deterioration in a DS patient including a glucocorticoid receptor antagonist and instructional material teaching the indications, dosage and schedule of administration of the glucocorticoid receptor antagonist.

Down's syndrome (DS) is the most common genetic cause of mental retardation and probably the earliest identified condition associated with mental retardation (Pulsifer, J Int Neuropsychol Soc 2:159-76 (1996). DS arises from one of three chromosomal abnormalities. Most commonly (95% of cases) DS is the result of trisomy 21, or the presence of an extra chromosome 21 in otherwise diploid cells. Trisomy 21 usually results from nondisjunction of chromosome 21 during meiosis of the gametes, and brings the total number of chromosomes in the adult offspring to 47. DS may also result (in about 2-4% of cases) from translocation events, occurring when a fragment of chromosome 21 becomes attached to another chromosome, most typically chromosome 14. The rarest form of DS(about 1-4% of cases) results from nondisjunction of chromosome 21 during early embryogenesis. Such individuals are mosaic, with both normal and trisomic cells being present.
DS individuals are almost invariably cognitively impaired, with most having an IQ between 40 and 60, although IQ scores within the normal range are possible (Epstein, in Scriver et al. eds., The metabolic basis of inherited diseases, New York: McGraw-Hill (1989)). Generally, significant developmental delays are apparent in DS child in infancy and early childhood (see Pulsifer, supra).
Superimposed on this early cognitive impairment, however, is a more serious deterioration of cognition that begins to appear as individuals with DS age. Adults with DS are at high risk for developing clinical dementia similar to that observed in Alzheimer's disease. Clinical dementia is seen in 25-30% of DS individuals by age 40, and in 75% of DS individuals at age 60 (Lai & Williams, Arch Neuro 46:849-53 (1989); Johanson et al., Dementia 2:159-168 (1991)). Other individuals display marked cognitive deterioration but do not meet the diagnostic criteria for clinical dementia. (Johannsen et al., Dementia 7:221-5 (1996); Burt et al., Am J Ment Retard 103:140-45 (1998)). Reported manifestations of cognitive deterioration in adults with DS include memory loss, anomia, apraxia, and decline in self-help skills (Lott & Lai, Annals Neurology 12:210-215 (1982); Young & Kramer, Mental Retard 29:75-9 (1991); Haxby & Shapiro, in Nadel & Epstein eds., Alzheimer's disease and Down syndrome, New York: Wiley-Liss (1992)). With modern medical treatment, over half of individuals with DS will survive into their fifties, and 13.5% will still be alive at age 68 (Baird & Sadovnick, Hum Genet 82:291-2 (1989)). Accordingly, the problem of cognitive deterioration in adults with DS is severe and growing.
No effective treatment for the cognitive impairment and decline of DS individuals is known. While multiple attempts to treat cognitive deterioration in DS individuals have been reported, none has achieved significant success. Geldmacher et al. (J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol 10:99-104 (1997)) treated DS adults with selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), but reported improvement only of non-cognitive behavioral symptoms. Based on the theory that the cognitive deficits observed in DS may be linked to dysfunction of the cholinergic system, encouraging results in small-scale trials of donepezil (Kishani et al., Lancet 353:1064 (1999)) and nicotine (Seidl et al., Lancet 356:1409-10 (2000)) have been reported. However, randomized clinical trials have yet to validate these studies, and both nicotine and donepezil have drawbacks as therapeutic agents. Piracetam, a drug acting on glutamatergic neurotransmission and reported to enhance cognitive function, has been evaluated in DS children but failed to enhance cognitive function (Lobaugh et al., Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 155:442-8 (2001)). Thus, there is a need for an effective therapy to prevent, inhibit, or reverse the cognitive deterioration seen in DS adults.
Cortisol, a glucocorticoid hormone which is secreted in response to ACTH (corticotropin), shows circadian rhythm variation, and further, is an important element in responsiveness to many physical and psychological stresses. It has been proposed that, with age, the cortisol regulatory system becomes hyperactivated in some individuals, resulting in hypercortisolemia. It has additionally been postulated that high levels of cortisol are neurotoxic, particularly in the hippocampus, a brain structure that is thought to be central to the processing and temporary storage of complex information and memory (see, e.g., Sapolsky et al., Ann. NY Acad. Sci. 746:294-304, 1994; Silva, Annu. Rev. Genet. 31:527-546, 1997; de Leon et al., J. Clin. Endocrinol & Metab. 82:3251, 1997; Maeda et al., supra).
Studies of human subjects who have received treatment with exogenous glucocorticoids at therapeutic levels have suggested that glucocorticoids may play a role in short-term, reversible memory impairment. (see, e.g., Wolkowitz et al., Am J. Psychiatry 147:1297-1303, 1990; Keenan et al., Neurology 47:1396-1402, 1996; Newcomer et al., Arch Gen. Psychiatry 56:527-533, 1999). Furthermore, it has been suggested that basal levels of cortisol that are chronically at the high end of the normal range, i.e., levels that correspond to peak circadian values or approximate those levels seen during stress, contribute to the impaired cognitive performance and loss of hippocampal-mediated memory function observed in aging (see, e.g., Lupien et al., J. Neurosci. 14:2893-2903, 1994; Lupien et al., Nat. Neurosci 1:69-73, 1998).
Basal cortisol levels are similar in DS and non-DS individuals (Murdoch et al., J Ment Defic Res 23:157-62 (1979); Ramunni et al., J Endocrinol Invest 22S10:5708 (1999)). Impaired activity of the HPA axis in response to ACTH has been reported in DS individuals (Murdoch et al., supra) but the significance of this finding is unknown. Hence, there has been no evidence prior to this invention that a glucocorticoid receptor antagonist can be an effective agent to prevent or reverse cognitive deterioration in adults with DS, especially in patients having cortisol levels that fall within a normal range. Many of the actions of cortisol are mediated by binding to the type I (mineralocorticoid) receptor, which is preferentially occupied, relative to the type II (glucocorticoid) receptor, at physiological cortisol levels. As cortisol levels increase, more glucocorticoid receptors are occupied and activated. Because cortisol plays an essential role in metabolism, inhibition of all cortisol-mediated activities, however, would be fatal. Therefore, antagonists that specifically prevent type II glucocorticoid receptor functions, but do not antagonize type I mineralocorticoid receptor functions are of particular use in this invention. RU486 and similar antagonists are examples of this category of receptor antagonists.
The present inventors have determined that glucocorticoid receptor antagonists such as RU486 are effective agents for preventing or reversing cognitive deterioration in DS adults with normal, increased, or decreased cortisol levels. The present invention therefore fulfills the need for an effective preventive measure for cognitive deterioration in DS patients by providing methods of administering glucocorticoid receptor antagonists to improve cognitive function in DS patients.

Methods for inhibiting cognitive deterioration in adults with down's syndrome


This invention is directed to a polymer thick film conductor composition. The polymer thick film (PTF) conductor composition may be used in applications where significant stretching is required, particularly on highly permeable substrates. A particular type of substrate which is suitable is a woven polyester coated with polyamide. An electrical circuit containing a conductor formed from the composition and a process to make such a circuit are provided.

Conductive PTF circuits have long been used as electrical elements. Although they have been used for years in these types of applications, the use of PTF silver conductors in highly stretchable applications such as for wearable garments is not common. In such applications, the ability to be stretched and exposed to multiple wash/dry cycles and still maintain conductivity is critical. One permeable substrate used for this type of application is a woven polyester coated with polyamide, e.g., Cetus® OS5000U available from Dynic Corp. The silver PTF conductor composition must be compatible with this substrate. One of the purposes of this invention is to address these issues and produce a conductive, stretchable construction in which the printed silver conductor can be used on such a substrate.

Stretchable polymer thick film silver conductor for highly permeable substrates


The suspension of a door hinged within a frame for swinging movements in a horizontal plane includes an elongated metal cable with blocks secured upon its ends, with spaced apertures within the frame and door and with blocks projected into said apertures and supportably interlocked with the frame and door.

Often when hinging a door within the opening of a frame or wall there is no room for vertical adjustments of the door with respect to the frame. In such situations it has been known to provide a continuous hinge for mounting the door within the frame in order to define its pivotal or swinging movements relative to the frame in a horizontal plane. Under this circumstance it is necessary to provide a separate suspension for the weight of the door within the frame such as a rigid bar with hook ends, with one hooked end secured upon a portion of the door frame and with the other hooked end underlying and supporting the door or connected therewith immediate its top and bottom.


Novel tools and techniques are provided for implementing accounting platform functionalities. In various embodiments, a computing system might access a data file(s) associated with a first entity from a first accounting software system among a plurality of accounting software systems, each operating based on corresponding one of two or more commercial accounting software that are different from and/or incompatible with each other. The computing system might autonomously extract transaction data corresponding to a transaction entry for each individual transaction. The computing system might autonomously generate a transaction-based trial balance based on the extracted transaction data, the generated transaction-based trial balance serving as a living trial balance that is continually updated based on updated or new transaction data that is accessed from the first accounting software system. The computing system might autonomously generate one of a tax trial balance or an adjusted trial balance, based on the generated transaction-based trial balance.

Certified Public Accountants ("CPAs"), enrolled agents, tax preparers, and other accounting advisors are faced with the problem that each of their clients use different accounting software packages, with different chart of accounts, saved in different locations, transmitted to them in a variety of ways (e.g., as .pdf files, as backups, as Microsoft Excel documents, as printed copies of financial statements, trial balances, and general ledgers, etc.). The files are all received in the first quarter of the year and the CPA or tax preparer must transfer that data onto their platform and convert it into a workflow so that they can determine what taxable income is before extensions are due on March 15 (for business returns and many states) and April 15 (for the individual returns of business owners). Additionally, financial statements need to be audited, reviewed, or compiled for their clients' lenders and investors. With a limited number of exceptions, every client has the exact same deadlines. As a result of this, the typical tax practitioner needs to do significantly more work on 100% of their clients than time allows in that window of about 60 days ending on April 15th. Meanwhile, the firm's auditors are working on delivering the financial statements. Since the method of delivering the data to the CPA is different for every client, there is no real way to automate this workflow and the transfer back and forth of accounting data and the subsequent adjustments creates many hardships.
Any chance to "get ahead" or start early on clients involves logging in remotely to hundreds of different client accounting systems and individually accessing the files, keeping up with login credentials, user names and passwords, etc., so they can manually export the aforementioned accounting data, update depreciation schedules, check on reconciliations, and update accrued income and expense, etc. If there is no remote login capability provided by their client, schedules and reports are exported to excel or printed to a .PDF document to electronically transmit to the CPA, so that the CPA can use those documents to plan or to get ahead. However, these efforts are still limited by the calendar. Balances collected before year-end will all change before year-end. They cannot be entered on to a tax return or placed into financial statements due to the fact that they will change. A CPA cannot start updating his actual workflow because every balance could change before year-end and updating his workflow only to have to enter new numbers after year-end is a waste of time that the CPA does not have. If a client's balances change after a December 31 trial balance has been used, the only thing a CPA can do is to replace the old trial balance with a new one, and then make sure that the work previously done still ties to the new numbers. Work is typically performed and documented directly on the schedules containing the interim balances. That workpaper containing interim balances may be where year-end strategies are documented, questions on fluctuations in client activities are answered, and plans made are all documented on a schedule containing balances that have nothing to do with the actual balances at year-end. The plans and strategies documented on the interim balance workpapers are not part of a workflow for the year-end balances, because the interim balances are not relevant to year-end balances. They are only interim measurements or subtotals calculated during the year (i.e., the total calculated for a list of numbers is not affected by the inclusion or exclusion of sub-totals). Therefore, (1) answers to questions regarding significant fluctuations in the balances from one year to the next are also not in the year-end workflow, causing client inquiries being replicated at year-end when they were answered during interim planning. Additionally, they may get asked by tax preparers and the auditors creating frustration for the clients as they answer the same question(s) from different people at the same accounting firm multiple times. The reality of the hardships of an accounting firm's workflow is not apparent to most business owners and they end up questioning the competency of the firm. (2) The work done on the schedules containing the interim balances (sub-totals) must be replicated on the year-end balances (totals) often times from scratch. Since the interim balances are not part of the workflow, an inexperienced staff person may use a different, potentially incorrect, method of calculating a number, causing errors and wasted resources at year-end. (3) The strategies and plans made using interim balances to mitigate a potentially adverse tax consequence may get missed when the practitioner is preparing the tax return and elections using the year-end balances. This could cause a higher tax bill than initially communicated to the client (due to different strategies than planned) being utilized or could cause the missed filing of elections needed to complete the strategy determined when accessing interim balances due to missing the filing of elections needed to complete the strategy. Additional strategies set in place to ensure that a client remains in compliance with loan requirements may be overlooked, potentially causing incorrect year-end numbers being reported in error, which may create a strained relationship with the client and his lender.
The number of accounting platforms, versions, and report formats does not give most accountants an opportunity to address the idea of automating the process. Things that are as simple as an account number and an account description are reported in a variety of manners. For example, one accounting platform (platform A) may require account numbers to be used, while another accounting platform (platform B) may require only an account name while account numbers are optional, causing the accounting records in the same accounting file to have items in their chart of accounts with and without account numbers. The account numbers used for platform A may be in a standard format containing numbers and dashes, while platform B allows alphanumeric account numbers, causing the same platform to potentially contain accounts with and without account numbers with no consistency amongst the account numbers within the same file. When the balances for those accounts are reported in a digital format (e.g., pdf, Excel, etc.), platform A might report the account number and account name in two different cells or with no visual separators in between the account number and account name. Platform B may include them both in the same cell and separated by a special character, not found on a standard keyboard, or with no separator when no account number is used.
Often times, clients create sub-accounts in their chart of accounts, an example of which would include utilities, wherein the client sets up subsidiary accounts for gas, electric, and/or water and waste disposal, etc. Platform A may only include the name and account number of the subsidiary account number and the linking of the parent with the subsidiary account is contained in the account numbers. Platform B may report the name of the parent and the subsidiary together, on one report, and on another only show the balances for the parent account with no sub-accounts included. Reports in platform A may be submitted as an exported Excel schedule from a reporting software (e.g., Crystal Reports, or the like) and the reported balances and account descriptions end up in different columns on the same report, making it impossible to use the report as a source for other calculations or to have software read. Platform B may report the information in the same column on every report, others may report the balances in the sub-accounts in different columns, even for the same financial statement from one client to the next column or in the same client from one reporting period to the next. Some might indent on reports in the formatting, others might use tabs, and there are some that might use spaces. Adding characters into a description field makes using that report to summarize activity inconsistent, and a process that must start from scratch every single time. This represents only a partial list of the variances that accounting software packages report the balances used to prepare annual tax returns and financial statements for accountants. Because of these inconsistencies, any attempt to gather the data from Excel or machine read a pdf requires expensive optical character recognition ("OCR") technology that requires careful setup that needs to be updated and reviewed by the client. Additionally, the report does not include adjustments to be made or details of fixed asset additions, deductible and non-deductible expenses, etc. The balances at year-end, if exported to Excel, require manual manipulation to be imported into a trial balance software and that has to be manually updated into the tax return. If the data comes by pdf, paper, or in a report that is not formatted correctly, the balances have to be manually entered into the CPA's workflow so adjustments can be made to the balances so that the adjusted balances can be manually entered onto tax returns and financial statements.
The tax returns are typically extended, so the details making up some of the balances can be obtained. Inevitably, there are dozens, if not hundreds of individual transactions that need to be looked at so that the balances for depreciation expense, accumulated depreciation, interest expense, accrued interest and notes payable can be updated. Often times, individual transactions that comprise the balance in some accounts need to be obtained so that the preparer can divide them into two different pools and a deductible balance for an expense can be determined as well as the non-deductible balance for an expense category. These balances may need to be accounted for differently for financial reporting than it will be for income tax reporting purposes. Since income tax accounting differs significantly from the accrual-based accounting needed to prepare financial statements for banks and lenders in compliance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ("GAAP"), the amount of profit or loss a business has may differ significantly for federal tax purposes compared to profit or loss for income tax purposes. For financial reporting purposes, the limitations on deductions for a business may not be considered and a business that reports a loss on an accrual basis all year may end up with taxable income for income tax purposes. Business owners and CPAs that assume that there may not be a tax liability are often surprised at the discrepancy in income and are completely caught off guard by a tax liability at the end of the year. The compressed time frame before an extension is filed, combined with the sheer volume of data that has to be processed, often creates items that are missed all together or are not discovered until shortly before the deadline. This results in frustration and stress for their clients as they find out shortly before or on the deadline that taxes are due and that the amount that is owed is considerably different from what they believed, or were told, they would be.
Many small business owners do not obtain the profit or loss from the business reported to them by their bookkeepers and or in-house accountant as they update the records during the year. The process of monitoring cash, payables, receivables, etc. is the focus of their staff. Financial reporting is left undone, so a business owner may never see the financial statements from a business, as there are no monthly close out procedures and financial statements are not prepared. The prospect of logging into accounting software and determining what report should be run and what it means is more tedious than a person with an entrepreneurial heart may be willing to endure. Their trust is in their CPA to tell them how they did after year-end, and by that time it is often too late.
CPAs often perform two separate roles, financial reporting (including, but not limited to, annual audits, reviews, or compilations, or the like) and tax preparation. An income statement or balance sheet from the accounting software may not be formatted the same way, and therefore looking at interim financial statements is not as meaningful as it would be if the internal financial statements were prepared on a GAAP basis. The gathering of the data is a totally separate process from the data for the preparation of the tax return.
Conventional accounting software systems are unable to address these issues.
Hence, there is a need for more robust and scalable solutions for implementing accounting software functionalities, and, more particularly, to methods, systems, and apparatuses for implementing accounting platform functionalities.


A system for collecting paper trim and dust automates and simplifies the removal and disposal of trim. The system includes a funnel receiving the paper trim from an automatic trimmer, a drum and rewinder for winding the paper trim into a bale, and a dust trap for sucking dust from the drum and funnel into a dust bin. As the trim is baled, the rewinder drags the paper bale against the side of the drum. This drag compacts the bale and increases the load on the rewinder. As the drag load on the rewinder increases, the rewinder is moved radially towards the center of the drum to increase the distance between the rewinder and the drum wall. A current sensing circuit triggers the radial movement of the rewinder when the current load on the rewinder motor exceeds a threshold limit. This radial movement reduces the drag on the rewinder. When the rewinder reaches the center of the drum and the trim bale fills the drum, the rewinder is stopped and the trim bale removed.

Paper trim and dust must be collected and discarded in many paper handling systems. For example, high speed computer printers have tractor feeders that engage the tractor drive strips at the outer edges of a continuous web of paper. In post-processing equipment, the tractor drive strips are often trimmed away from the paper web. These paper strips are then thrown out or recycled. In addition, paper dust is generated as the strips of paper are trimmed. This dust should also be collected and discarded so that the operators do not breath the dust, and the dust does not coat the printer and post-processing area.
Previously, the collection of paper trim strip's was usually done manually by the operator who picked the trim off the floor. An example of an automatic trim rewinder is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,572,496, entitled "Trim Rewinder With Automatic Stop" and issued to Mark Casper and Robert Thomson on Feb. 25, 1986. However, the rewinder disclosed in the '496 Patent has no means to collect dust, requires a pressure plate to compact the baled trim, and the rewinder is rotatably fixed with respect to paper drum.
In the present invention, after the paper trim strips are mechanically trimmed from the paper web, the strips and associated dust fall into a funnel beneath the trimmer. A vacuum hose connected to the bottom of the funnel draws the trim strips and dust from the funnel and passes them into a cylindrical drum.
In the drum is a rewinder having a pair of rotating tines. These tines catch the paper strips and spin the strips into a paper bale. Initially, the rewinder tines are near the bottom of the drum so that the rotating paper bale is compacted as it is dragged against the drum bottom by the rotating tines. As the paper bale increases in size, the rewinder moves upward toward the center of the drum to allow more of the paper trim strips to be wound onto the bale. When the rewinder reaches the center of the drum, the paper bale fills the drum. At this point, the rewinder stops, the bale of paper is removed from the drum, and the bale is discarded or recycled.
The dust from the trimming operation is drawn by suction into the funnel through the hose and into the paper drum. The dust falls to the bottom of the drum into a dust trap. The dust falls to the bottom of the dust trap. Clean air is sucked out of the dust trap by a vacuum pump. The paper dust is discarded or recycled after being collected in the separator.
An electronic controller monitors the current load on the rewinder motor. The mechanical load on the rewinder increases as the paper bale expands and fills the space between the rewinder tines and the bottom of the drum. This increasing mechanical load increases the current load on the rewinder motor When the current load exceeds a threshold limit, the electronic controller triggers an elevator motor to move the rewinder towards the center of the drum. In this way, the controller automatically moves the rewinder to the center of the drum as the paper bale fills the drum.
One advantage of this invention is that it automatically removes and collects paper trim and dust. Another advantage of this invention is that its rewinder has fewer mechanical moving parts than prior rewinders. Furthermore, this invention advantageously adjusts the rewinder by monitoring current load. In addition, the invention is portable and can be easily adapted to a wide variety of printers and locations.

Portable paper trim removal system with trim rewinder and dust vacuum


A semiconductor device manufacturing method includes forming an insulating layer on a semiconductor substrate, forming, over the insulating layer, a first sacrificial layer having a first opening, and forming, on the sacrificial layer, a first electrode and a dummy body between the first electrode and the first opening. A photoresist is formed on the structure obtained by the previous steps, the photoresist having a second opening that opens inside the first opening. The insulating layer is etched using the photoresist as a mask to expose the semiconductor substrate, and a second electrode is formed in contact with the exposed semiconductor substrate. The sacrificial layer is removed.

Patent Document 1 discloses an acceleration sensor having a beam-structured movable portion. The sensor element portion of the acceleration sensor has a movable electrode as part of the beam structure, first and second fixed electrodes, and a fixed electrode for canceling electrostatic force. The sensor element portion is covered and protected by a recessed portion of a cap substrate, with electrode extraction portions connected to the four electrodes through interconnections and not covered by the recess of the cap substrate.
The beam structure of an acceleration sensor is formed by previously forming a sacrificial layer for supporting it, forming and patterning a conductive layer (e.g. doped polysilicon) on it, and then removing the sacrificial layer. Therefore, when an opening for making contact with the silicon substrate on which the beam structure resides is formed alter the formation of the conductive layer by applying photolithography from the same side as the beam structure, it is necessary that the photoresist satisfactorily cover a step height approximately equal to the sum of the thickness of the conductive layer and the thickness of the sacrificial layer. Now, the conductive layer itself has a thickness of about 3.5 to 4.0 μm and the sacrificial layer has a thickness of about 2.0 to 2.5 μm, and thus the sum of the two exceeds 5 μm. It is therefore desirable to form the photoresist thick, in order to satisfactorily cover such a step height.
However, in general, forming photoresist thick is likely to cause cracks. Therefore, in order to form thick photoresist without causing cracks, it is desirable to apply the photoresist in a plurality of coating steps. Also, using a thick photoresist as a mask for etching incurs a reduction in etching rate, which necessitates an increased number of etching steps.
Patent Document 2 discloses a method for forming a contact hole having a tapered portion in its upper part. Patent Document 3 discloses a technique for improving the step coverage of metal interconnections, in which plural kinds of interlayer films are stacked and planarized and a tapered contact hole is formed by utilizing differences among etching rates of the films, so as to facilitate provision of an upper-layer metal interconnection.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-119040
Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-274066 (1996)
Patent Document 3: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-190690 (1993)

Semiconductor device manufacturing method


A system and method for applying atrial therapy to a human heart using a defibrillator includes detecting an atrial arrhythmia and delivering electrical energy to at least one atrium in response to a detected atrial arrhythmia. A first atrial activation is detected after delivering the electrical energy, occurrence of a detected first atrial activation defining a first moment. Finally, a first pacing pulse is delivered to a number of locations within the atria when the first atrial activation is detected. The first pacing pulse is delivered at a second moment substantially synchronous with the first moment.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to cardiac pacing therapy. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system and method for providing atrial pacing in order to prevent the immediate reentry into fibrillation following the application of an atrial arrhythmia termination therapy.
2. Related Art
Atrial fibrillation is a common cardiac arrhythmia in which small areas of atrial tissue repeatedly depolarize in a disorderly fashion when compared to neighboring areas of atrial tissue. Although it is not normally a life-threatening arrhythmia, it is well-known that atrial arrhythmias lead to dizziness resulting from reduced cardiac output, palpitations of the heart, and even stroke. Atrial fibrillation may be corrected by an external defibrillator configured to apply electrical energy to the heart through the skin of a patient, or through use of an implantable device applying electrical energy to the heart based upon detected R waves produced by the heart. Cardioversion, for example, is a conventional type of post-atrial arrhythmia termination therapy used to treat atrial fibrillation.
A problem with the conventional treatment of atrial fibrillation, also known as atrial therapy, is that the treatments are often followed by an early return to atrial fibrillation (ERAF) after a few cardiac sinus intervals. ERAF reduces the success rate of the pacing therapy and forces repeated and higher-amplitude shocks resulting in additional patient discomfort. The cause of ERAF is not completely understood. It is hypothesized, however, that it might be related to a time-delay in the remodeling of the effective refractive period (ERP) and conduction velocity of the atria. Other hypotheses suggest that it could also be related to a level of dispersion of ERP that exists during atrial fibrillation that might still be present within the first few minutes following cardioversion.
A number of systems have been presented in an attempt to treat various effects of atrial fibrillation. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,527,345 issued to Infinger discloses an atrial defibrillator for applying cardioverting electrical energy to the atria of a human heart in need of cardioversion and thereafter pacing the heart in a demand mode. In particular, Infinger relates to the pacing of the ventricles at a base rate following cardioversion to treat sinus node dysfunction, which can lead to dizziness or possible ventricular arrhythmia.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,265,600 issued to Adams et al, discloses an implantable atrial defibrillator for applying cardioverting electrical energy to the atria of a human heart in need of atrial therapy and thereafter gradually returning the cardiac rate of the heart to a normal cardiac rate. Although Adams et al. and Infinger address treatment of various aspects of atrial fibrillation, neither discloses a method or technique for treating reinitiation of atrial fibrillation.
Next, U.S. Pat. No. 5,645,569 issued to Ayers, (the '569 patent) discloses an atrial cardioverter/defibrillator and method, wherein after each application of atrial cardioversion therapy, the atria are paced to prevent spontaneous reversion from a normal sinus rhythm back to atrial defibrillation.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,676,687, issued to Ayers (the '687 patent) discloses an atrial cardioverter defibrillator and method, wherein the atria are paced from a relatively high rate to a gradually derived normal or bradycardia rate to prevent spontaneous reversion from a normal sinus rhythm back to atrial fibrillation. The '687 patent and the '569 patent both address pacing following cardioversion to prevent arrhythmia reinitiation. The '569 patent, however, primarily addresses current clinical pacing modes such as atrial pacing (AAI) and dual-chamber pacing (DDD).
AAI atrial pacing is inhibited by sensing in the atria and DDD pacing is inhibited by sensing in the atria or ventricle. The '687 patent discloses a technique by which the atria are paced in a demand mode at a rate greater than the brady rate, followed by a gradual decrease to a bradycardia rate. Both the '569 patent and the '687 patent allow for an initial unsynchronized pacing pulse that may be conducive to initiating an arrhythmia.
The '569 and '687 patents discuss pacing either in the right atria, the left atria, or pacing between the atria. Both patents also call for pacing termination at the end of a fixed time interval or a certain number of sequential sense events. Conventional techniques have not been shown to be particularly effective at preventing reinitiation of atrial fibrillation following cardioversion therapy.
What is needed, therefore, is a system and method for preventing ERAF following the application of post-atrial arrhythmia therapy.

System and method for delivering post-atrial arrhythmia therapy


Secure sharing of bound information is enabled in client applications associated with a backend LOB service. Bound item IDs are assigned to newly created bound items by a client, the items synchronized with the LOB system, a correlation ID received in response to the synchronization, and the two IDs mapped. A reverse sequence of actions is performed when the LOB service creates the bound item. In response to an attempt by a client to exchange bound information, the item is placed in a pending state and allowed to be received by a receiver upon successful completion of data transfer and LOB system permission of the exchange passing the bound item ID and the correlation ID. If the LOB system rejects the exchange, the item is placed in an unbound state and the receiver not allowed to receive the bound information.

Applications that enable organizations to connect their desktop programs, such as collaborative applications, to line-of-business systems in an intuitive, cost-effective way may increase worker efficiency as well as employee satisfaction. By providing information workers with the information they need to make sound, timely business decisions, workers may become more productive and organizations more agile.
Collaborative applications are one of the commonly used tools for sharing information. A collaborative application may include scheduling, electronic mail exchange, task management, and other functionalities. Through networked environments, collaborative applications may enable users to share messages, appointments, tasks, meetings, and embedded objects such as files, images, and the like. While seamless sharing of information may increase efficiency in organizations, security and privacy concerns present a significant challenge for how these systems can be designed and configured.

Secure sharing of LOB bound information in client applications


Sheets of a foldable plastic material are folded by operation of two conveyors. A first conveyor has a conveying belt run having a downstream run end which is reciprocable for extending the run for a distance and then retracting the run. A second conveyor is rotatable and positioned so that at a first position, it has a conveying belt run in a longitudinal end-to-end relationship with the conveying belt run of the first conveyor for conveying a sheet of foldable material from the conveying run of the first conveyor to the conveying run of the second conveyor and so that at a second position, the second conveyor is, with respect to the first position, substantially inverted and so that the second conveyor conveying run is spaced a distance away from the first conveyor conveying run. In operation, transport of the second conveyor conveying belt run ceases upon rotation while the downstream end of the first conveyor conveying run extends beneath it during folding of a sheet. Upon the sheet being folded, the first conveyor conveying run retracts and transports the folded sheet off its downstream end and the second conveyor returns to its first position.

The present invention relates to an apparatus and process for folding sheets of plastic material such as dough sheets.
The automatic folding of sheeted dough for stuffed bakery products is normally carried out on a continuous conveyor by the use of a type of plough equipment, and this method works well for small products such as pirogues. The plough-shaped apparatus is mounted above a conveyor belt carrying the dough products, and when a product passes beneath the plough, one half of its surface will be lifted and turned over to cover the other half. This principle is suitable if the dough product has a certain thickness and a surface of which is not too large to fold. However, for dough products with little self-stability, such as large sheets of dough having a width of above about 18 cm and a thickness of only about 1 mm, e.g., sheets of dough used for the preparation of Calzone pizzas, the plough method is not satisfactory, and for certain types of dough, it does not work at all. For instance, the half of the surface of the dough that is being lifted and turned collapses before it has covered the other half of the dough.
The methods so far proposed for folding dough sheets having a width above 18 cm involve complicated machinery and the folding precision is easily disturbed by small variations of the dough consistency.

Folded article preparation from plastic material sheets


The invention relates to a modular transmission that can be combined with a drive module having an output shaft. The modular transmission comprises at least one worm-gear module that can be coupled directly to the drive module output shaft by an insertable clutch and an intermediate flange. The worm shaft of the worm-gear module has clutch toothing complementary to a clutch toothing of the insertable clutch. The modular transmission may also include one or more spur-gear modules interposed between the drive module and worm-gear module. Each spur-gear module is provided with an output-side spur wheel with clutch toothing compatible with the clutch toothing of the worm shaft.

Catalogue transmissions are listed in very many versions or variants (types of fastening, ratios, constructions sizes, shaft arrangements, etc.) in usually comprehensive catalogues of the manufacturers. Most tasks can be performed with catalogue transmissions of this type. Moreover, in contrast to special transmissions, they can be delivered quickly and also cost-effectively in small quantities.
So that this large number of versions or variants can be delivered quickly and cost-effectively, modular transmission systems are used nowadays, which manage with a small number of parts manufactured and intermediately stored in relatively large batches, to produce a large number of versions or variants of modular transmissions.
Thus, German Published Patent Application No. DE 199 17 145 A1 discloses a modular transmission system which uses spur gears and flat gears.
German Patent No. DE 197 33 546 C describes a modular transmission consisting of two or more transmission modules of identical or different type of construction, which in each case comprise one or more transmission sizes and, within a size, one or more ratios and of which at least one transmission module is an angular gear in the form of a crown gear, whilst a spur toothing of the electric motor can also engage into a crown wheel.


The invention relates to compounds of formula I

The compounds of the invention of formula I have not previously been described. They act on the so-called Kv1.5 potassium channel and inhibit a potassium current which is designated the ultra-rapidly activating delayed rectifier in the human atrium. In addition, the compounds also act on other atrium-specific potassium channels such as the acetylcholine-dependent potassium channel KACh, and the 2P domain potassium channel TASK-1. The compounds are therefore very particularly suitable as antiarrhythmic active ingredients, in particular for the treatment and prophylaxis of atrial arrhythmias, for example atrial fibrillation (AF) or atrial flutter.
Atrial fibrillation (AF) and atrial flutter are the commonest sustained cardiac arrhythmias. The incidence increases with increasing age and frequently leads to fatal sequelae such as, for example, stroke. AF affects for example about 3 million Americans and leads to more than 80 000 strokes each year in the USA. Although class I and III antiarrhythmics currently in use can reduce the rate of recurrence of AF, their use is restricted owing to their potential proarrhythmic side effects. There is for this reason a great medical need for better medicaments for treating atrial arrhythmias to be developed.
It has been shown that so-called reentry depolarization waves underlie most supraventricular arrhythmias. Such reentries occur if the cardiac tissue has a slow conductivity and, at the same time, very short refractory periods. The increase in the myocardial refractory period by prolonging the action potential is an accepted mechanism for terminating arrhythmias and preventing their development. The length of the action potential is substantially determined by the extent of repolarizing K+ currents which flow out of the cell through the various K+ channels. Particularly great importance is ascribed in this connection to the so-called delayed rectifier IK which consists of 3 different components: IKr, IKs and IKur.
Most known class III antiarrhythmics (for example dofetilide or d-sotalol) block predominantly or exclusively the rapidly activating potassium channel IKr which has been detected both in cells of the human ventricle and in the atrium. However, it has emerged that these compounds have an increased proarrhythmic risk when heart rates are low or normal, and the arrhythmias which have been observed are in particular those referred to as torsades de pointes. Besides this high risk, which is fatal in some cases, when the rate is low, the efficacy of IKr blockers has been found to decline under the conditions of tachycardia, which is just when the effect is required ("negative use-dependence").
The "particularly rapidly" activating and very slowly inactivating component of the delayed rectifier IKur (=ultra-rapidly activating delayed rectifier), which corresponds to the Kv1.5 channel, is of particularly great importance for the duration of repolarization in the human atrium. Inhibition of the IKur potassium outward current thus represents, by comparison with inhibition of IKr or IKs, a particularly effective method for prolonging the atrial action potential and thus for terminating or preventing atrial arrhythmias. Mathematical models of the human action potential suggest that the positive effect of a blockade of the IKur ought to be particularly pronounced precisely under the pathological conditions of chronic atrial fibrillation (M. Courtemanche, R. J. Ramirez, S, Nattel, Cardiovascular Research 1999, 42, 477-489: "Ionic targets for drug therapy and atrial fibrillation-induced electrical remodeling: insights from a mathematical model").
In contrast to IKr and IKs, which also occur in the human ventricle, IKur plays a significant role in the human atrium, but not in the ventricle. For this reason, if the IKur current is inhibited, the risk of a proarrhythmic effect on the ventricle is precluded from the outset, in contrast to blockade of IKr or IKs (Z. Wang et al, Circ. Res. 73, 1993, 1061-1076: "Sustained Depolarisation-Induced Outward Current in Human Atrial Myocytes"; G.-R. Li et al, Circ. Res. 78, 1996, 689-696: "Evidence for Two Components of Delayed Rectifier K+-Current in Human Ventricular Myocytes"; G. J. Amos et al, J. Physiol. 491, 1996, 31-50: "Differences between outward currents of human atrial and subepicardial ventricular myocytes").
Antiarrhythmics which act by atrium-selective blockade of the IKur current or Kv1.5 channel have not, however, been available on the market to date. Although a blocking effect on the Kv1.5 channel has been described for numerous active pharmaceutical ingredients (for example quinidine, bupivacaine or propafenone), the Kv1.5 blockade in each of these cases represents only a side effect in addition to other main effects of the substances.
A number of patent applications in recent years have described various substances as Kv1.5 channel blockers. A compilation and detailed discussion of these substances has recently been published (J. Brendel, S. Peukert; Curr. Med. Chem.—Cardiovascular & Hematological Agents, 2003, I, 273-287; "Blockers of the Kv1.5 Channel for the Treatment of Atrial Arrhythmias"). However, all Kv1.5 blockers disclosed to date and described therein have entirely different types of structures than the compounds of the invention in this application. In addition, no clinical data on the effect and tolerability in humans have been disclosed to date for any of the compounds disclosed to date. Since experience has shown that only a small proportion of active ingredients successfully overcome all the clinical hurdles from preclinical research to the medicament, there continues to be a need for novel, promising substances.

Substituted heterocycles, their use as medicament, and pharmaceutical preparations comprising them

Abstract: in which R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6 and X have the meanings stated in the claims. The compounds are particularly suitable as antiarrhythmic active ingredients, in particular for the treatment and prophylaxis of atrial arrhythmias, for example atrial fibrillation (AF) or atrial flutter.


Membrane anchoring peptides which are part of the heavy chain of an associated immunoglobulin (IgM, IgD, IgA, IgE, or IgG), span the cell membrane lipid bilayer of B cells thereby affixing the associated immunoglobulin to the cell membrane surface. The extracellular segments of these peptides are unique for different isotypes, but tend to be very similar among different subclasses of a particular isotype. The extracellular segments form in whole or in part an epitope unique to the B cells which produce each isotype. These membrane-bound immunoglobulin isotype-specific ("migis") extracellular epitopes are not present on the secreted, soluble form of the immunoglobulins, which are not bound to the cell surface by the membrane anchoring peptides. The antibodies of the invention (and other related products) bind the extracellular migis epitopes. Tumorous B cells which produce particular isotypes, whether associated with B cell lymphoma and B cell leukemia, can be destroyed when they are bound by such an antibody (or by a derivative product of such an antibody), by any of a number of well-known mechanisms.

B-cell lymphoma is a generally fatal cancer of the immune system. It afflicts about 100,000 people in the United States alone, and its incidence is increasing at about 7% per annum. This increase results in part from the corresponding increase in Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome ("AIDS"). The high grade B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, which is a particularly aggressive lymphoma, is often a sequelae of AIDS; or HIV-1 infection.
By way of background, it is noted that malignant lymphomas are a heterogeneous group of neoplasms, generally originating in the lympho-reticular system. They are usually observed as lymph node tumors. Hodgkin's disease is a subgroup of the lymphomas. The cell of origin in Hodgkin's disease is believed to be derived from the monocyte-histiocyte series. The other lymphomas, which can affect either the T cell or the B cells, are referred to as non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. The non-Hodgkin's T and B cell lymphomas are divided into the high grade and low grade types, the former being more pathogenic than the latter.
Resting B cells, which are immunocompetent but not yet activated, express Igm and IgD. Once activated, these B cells can express any of the five immunoglobulin isotypes, (IgD, IgM, IgA, IgE or IgG). The non-Hodgkin's B cell lymphomas are generally associated only with B cells which express one particular isotype. IgM-expressing B cells are most often affected, leading to so-called small cleaved type lymphomas, characterized as such due to the appearance of the affected cells. However, B cells which express any of the other isotypes can also be affected.
Leukemia is best defined as the proliferation of a clone of abnormal hematopoietic cells. Myeloid leukemias affect the descendants of the myeloid lineage, whereas the lymphocytic leukemias involve abnormalities in the lymphoid lineage. The lymphocytic leukemias can be divided further into those affecting T cells and those affecting B cells. Leukemias of either type can be acute or chronic, the acute form being more aggressive. Without treatment, however, even the chronic leukemias can be fatal.
Several conventional methods are used to treat B cell lymphomas and leukemias. However, because these diseases respectively spread throughout the lymphatic and circulatory systems, conventional treatment is difficult. The tumors which arise in the B cell lymphomas are not amenable to removal by surgery. While radiation therapy may kill the individual lymphoma tumors, it will also damage the healthy tissue surrounding the malignancies.
Chemotherapy can be used to treat the B cell lymphomas or leukemias. The B cell leukemias are usually treated with chemotherapy because they do not produce readily identifiable tumors. The side effects of chemotherapy, however, are often debilitating, with damage to critical fast-growing cell such as blood cells in the bone marrow. Further, certain B cell lymphomas tend to rebound from chemotherapy in more aggressive forms.
Most B cell lymphomas (and, as noted above, substantially all the leukemias) are monoclonal, meaning that all tumor cells in a patient are derived from one cell, and therefore, bear the same antibody idiotype on the cell surface. This fact has led one group, IDEC Pharmaceuticals Corp., to attempt treatment of B cell lymphomas through targeting the affected B cells with antibodies which bind only to the idiotypes produced by the affected B cells. Typically, malignant cells derived from B cells at late stages of differentiation secrete antibody and also express antibody on their cell surface. The IDEC antibodies bind to both the secreted and cell-bound idiotypes. When the IDEC antibodies bind the cell-bound idiotypes, the associated B cells are somehow destroyed by the immune system's suppressive or cytolytic mechanism.
The IDEC approach avoids some disadvantages of conventional therapy, particularly the debilitating side effects of chemotherapy, but it also suffers from significant drawbacks. At first, it was necessary to custom-make the IDEC antibodies for each patient. It can take several months to make mouse (or reurine) antibodies. It is often desirable, however, to make chimeric or humanized antibodies which are less immunogenic than mouse antibodies. With aggressive high grade lymphomas, the patient would not survive long enough to produce the appropriate less immunogenic antibodies. Even with less aggressive, low grade lymphomas, the time to production is sufficiently long so that there could be an appreciable decline in the patient's health. Further, the production process is very labor intensive and expensive.
It was later discovered that certain tumor-associated idiotypes are common to some patients with B cell lymphoma. This meant that some of IDEC's antibodies would be effective among different patients. Even though it was then no longer necessary to custom make the product in all cases, several disadvantages remained.
First, the developers of the IDEC therapy have recognized that it is only effective in patients which secrete limited amounts of the target antibodies. See S.L. Brown et al., "Antiidiotype Antibody Therapy of B-Cell Lymphoma" Vol. 16, No. 3, pp. 199-210 Seminars in Oncology (June 1989). In patients which secrete large amounts of antibody, much of the IDEC antibodies which are -administered will bind to these endogenous secreted antibodies, and thus, the administered antibodies will not significantly affect the tumorous B cells. It is known that the tumorous B cells in patients having high grade lymphomas, and who are particularly in need of an immediately effective treatment, secrete large amounts of antibody. Thus, the IDEC therapy may be least effective in those who need it most.
The S.L. Brown et al. group also recognized that the IDEC therapy selects for idiotype-negative tumor cells. These tumor cells do not react with the IDEC antibodies, resulting in new tumors which cannot be treated with the IDEC methods. This group also combined the IDEC therapy with administration of l@ba interferon. This appeared to yield a higher response rate than antibody administration alone, yet it also appeared to exert an even stronger selection pressure for the idiotype-negative tumor cells.
In an alternative approach, some members of this group tried using a radiolabeled antibody to target the tumor cells. The radiolabeled antibody is itself cytotoxic. One disadvantage noted by this group is that myelosuppression occurred in all patients tested three to five weeks after treatment. An additional disadvantage of this therapy which was not noted is inherent in the use of radioisotopes. The patient's feces, urine, saliva, sweat, and other bodily secretions will all become radioactive as a result of the treatment. Disposal of these radioactive products presents major problems.
It seems that administering antibodies which react only with cell-bound idiotypes, which idiotypes are common to a majority of patients and are not subject to selection which yields an idiotype-negative tumor cell, would be an effective therapy for both B cell lymphoma and B cell leukemia. Such antibodies would avoid the disadvantages of radioimmunotherapy, chemotherapy, and of the IDEC approach.

Treating B cell lymphoma or leukemia by targeting specific epitopes on B cell bound immunoglobulins


It is a theme of the present invention to provide a diversity receiving device capable of reducing a power consumption to the utmost extent while keeping a predetermined received quality without measurement of an electric field strength and a fading pitch. A decision about whether or not the diversity reception is executed is made by sensing a received quality. Also, a diversity gain is reduced by a predetermined value by controlling the diversity gain in the diversity reception, then a receiving operation of a predetermined branch or a branch whose received quality is low is stopped when the received quality at that time is in excess of a previously set value, and then a supply of power to all circuit or a partial circuit of the branch whose receiving operation is stopped is shut down. Accordingly, a power consumption can be reduced to the utmost extent while keeping a predetermined received quality.

In the prior art, as shown in FIG. 7, the diversity receiving device that is equipped with a plurality of receiving systems and executes the diversity reception has been proposed (see Patent Literature 1, for example). The conventional diversity receiving device shown in FIG. 7 is constructed to include two antennas 101, 102 used as diversity antennas, a tuner portion 103 for turning in to a desired channel from a digital modulation signal caught by the antenna 101, a tuner portion 104 for turning in to a desired channel from a digital modulation signal caught by the antenna 102, a demodulating portion 105 for demodulating a signal on the channel chosen by the tuner portion 103, a demodulating portion 106 for demodulating a signal on the channel chosen by the tuner portion 104, a synthesizing portion 107 for synthesizing the signal demodulated by the demodulating portion 105 and the signal demodulated by the demodulating portion 106, a received field strength sensing portion 108 for sensing a received field strength based on the signal demodulated by the demodulating portion 105 and the signal demodulated by the demodulating portion 106, a fading pitch sensing portion 109 for sensing a fading pitch based on the received field strength sensed by the received field strength sensing portion 108, a synthesis-stop deciding portion 110 for deciding a stop of a signal synthesis in the synthesizing portion 107 based on the fading pitch sensed by the fading pitch sensing portion 109 and the received field strength sensed by the received field strength sensing portion 108, and a power-supply controlling portion 111 for ON/OF-controlling a power supply of the block whose power supply should be shut down when the diversity operation is stopped.
Here, the antenna 101, the tuner portion 103, and the demodulating portion 105 and the antenna 102, tuner portion 104, the demodulating portion 106 constitute one receiving system respectively. The former receiving system is called a first branch 1200, and the latter receiving system is called a second branch 1300.
Next, an operation of the diversity receiving device constructed as above will be explained hereunder. The tuner portion 103 turns in to the desired channel from the digital modulation signal caught by the antenna 101. At the same time, the tuner portion 103 also turns in to the desired channel from the digital modulation signal caught by the antenna 102. Then, the signal on the channel chosen by the tuner portion 103 is demodulated by the demodulating portion 105, and the signal on the channel chosen by the tuner portion 104 is demodulated by the demodulating portion 106. Then, signals demodulated by the demodulating portions 105 and 106 respectively are synthesized by the synthesizing portion 107, and a synthesized signal is output as demodulated data. Also, the signals demodulated by the demodulating portions 105 and 106 respectively are input into the received field strength sensing portion 108, and the received field strength is calculated. The field strength value calculated by the received field strength sensing portion 108 is input into the fading pitch sensing portion 109, and the fading pitch is sensed.
Then, the fading pitch and the field strength value are input into the synthesis-stop deciding portion 110, a threshold best suited to stop the synthesis is calculated based on a value of the fading pitch. Then, when the field strength value satisfies the threshold, a command to stop a synthesizing operation is sent to the synthesizing portion 107 from the synthesis-stop deciding portion 110. Also, a command to stop a supply of power to the unnecessary branch is sent to the power-supply controlling portion 111 from the synthesis-stop deciding portion 110. For example, when a command to stop a supply of power to the first branch 1200 is issued, a supply of power to the first branch 1200 is stopped. Accordingly, only the demodulated signal from the second branch 1300 is input into the synthesizing portion 107. Then, the demodulated signal from the second branch 1300 is output as demodulated data. In this manner, the diversity receiving device in the prior art implements a lower power consumption in such a way that the fading pitch is sensed, then the diversity stop conditions that are most suitable in the present fading circumstance is decided, and either the synthesis is stopped or the supply of power to the unnecessary branch is stopped.    Patent Literature 1: JP-A-2000-357983


Disclosed herein is a cushioned blown film including a first blown film layer, a second blown film layer, and a plurality of cushioning cells defined between the first blown film layer and the second film layer. The cushioned blown films may be bonded to a fibrous web to make film nonwoven laminates. Processes for making the cushioned blown film and the film nonwoven laminates are also disclosed. Such laminates are highly useful for use in personal care products, protective wear garments, medical care products, mortuary and veterinary products and the like.

Many of the medical care products, protective wear garments, personal care products, and veterinary products, and in use today are available as disposable products. By disposable, it is meant that the product is used only a few times, or even only once, before being discarded. Examples of such products include, but are not limited to, medical and health care products such as surgical drapes, gowns and bandages, protective workwear garments such as coveralls and lab coats, and infant, child and adult personal care absorbent products such as diapers, training pants, incontinence garments and pads, sanitary napkins, wipes and the like. Despite the disposability of these products, comfort is an important feature for these products to provide.
Fibrous nonwoven webs formed by extrusion processes such as spunbonding and meltblowing, and by mechanical dry-forming process such as air-laying and carding, used in combination with thermoplastic film or microfiber layers, may be utilized as components of these disposable products since their manufacture is often inexpensive relative to the cost of woven or knitted components. A layer of film or microfibers may be used to impart liquid barrier properties, and an elastic layer (elastic film or elastic microfibers, for example) may be used to impart additional properties of stretch and recovery. However, films in general and elastic layers in particular, whether a film sheet layer or a microfiber layer, often have unpleasant tactile aesthetic properties, such as feeling rubbery or tacky to the touch, making them unpleasant and uncomfortable against the wearer's skin. Fibrous nonwoven webs, on the other hand, have better tactile, comfort and aesthetic properties.
The tactile aesthetic properties of elastic films can be improved by forming a laminate of an elastic film with one or more non-elastic materials, such as fibrous nonwoven webs, on the outer surface of the elastic material. However, fibrous nonwoven webs formed from non-elastic polymers such as, for example, polyolefins are generally considered non-elastic and may have poor extensibility, and when non-elastic nonwoven webs are laminated to elastic materials the resulting laminate may also be restricted in its elastic properties. Therefore, laminates of elastic materials with nonwoven webs have been developed wherein the nonwoven webs are made extensible by processes such as necking or gathering.
Materials that provide improved comfort at a price attractive for single use products remain a sought-after goal. In particular, there remains a need for cushioned films, cushioned film nonwoven laminate materials and cost-effective and efficient processes of making such materials.

Films and film laminates having cushioning cells and processes of making thereof


Two pairs of deblock instructions for performing deblock filtering on a horizontal row of pixels according to the H.264 (MPEG 4 part 10) and VC1 video codec algorithms. The first instruction of each pair has three 128-bit operands comprising the 16-bit components of a horizontal line of 8 pixels crossing a vertical block edge between pixels 4 and 5 in a YUV image, a series of filter threshold parameters, and a 128-bit destination operand for storing the output of the first instruction. The second instruction of each pair accepts the same 16-bit components as its first input, the output of the first instruction as its second input and a destination operand for storing an output of the second instruction as its third input. The instruction pairs are intended for use with the H.264 or VC1 video codecs respectively.

Single instruction multiple data (SIMD) architectures have become increasingly important as demand for video processing in electronic devices has increased. The SIMD architecture exploits the data parallelism that is abundant in data manipulations often found in media related applications, such as discrete cosine transforms (DCT) and filters. Data parallelism exists when a large mass of data of uniform type needs the same instruction performed on it. Thus, in contrast to a single instruction single data (SISD) architecture, in a SIMD architecture a single instruction may be used to effect an operation on a wide block of data. SIMD architecture exploits parallelism in the data stream while SISD can only operate on data sequentially.
An example of an application that takes advantage of SIMD is one where the same value is being added to a large number of data points, a common operation in many media application. One example of this is changing the brightness of a graphic image. Each pixel of the image may consist of three values for the brightness of the red, green ad blue portions of the color. To change the brightness, the R, G and B values, or alternatively the YUV values are read from memory, a value is added to it, and the resulting value is written back to memory. A SIMD processor enhances performance of this type of operation over that of a SISD processor. A reason for this improvement is that in SIMD architectures, data is understood to be in blocks and a number of values can be loaded at once. Instead of a series of instructions to incrementally fetch individual pixels, a SIMD processor will have a single instruction that effectively says "get all these pixels" Another advantage of SIMD machines is multiple pieces of data are operated on simultaneously. Thus, a single instruction can say "perform this operations on all the pixels." Thus, SIMD machines are much more efficient in exploiting data parallelism than SISD machines.
A disadvantage of SIMD system is that they can require additional memory registers to support data which increases processor complexity and cost or they share resources such as registers with processing units of the CPU. This can cause competition for resources, conflicts, pipeline stalls and other events that adversely effect overall processor performance. A major disadvantage of SIMD architecture is the rigid requirement on data arrangement. The overhead to rearrange data in order to exploit data parallelism can significantly impact the speedup in computation and can even negate the performance gain achievable by a SIMD machine in comparison to a conventional SISD machine. Also, attaching a SIMD machine as an extension to a conventional SISD machine can cause various issues like synchronization, decoupling, etc.

System and methods for performing deblocking in microprocessor-based video codec applications


A folding lounge chair that is selectively configurable between an open configuration and a folded configuration. The folding lounge chair has a seat section, a backrest section, and a leg support section. A first leg assembly and a second leg assembly are both pivotably connected to the seat section. The two leg assemblies are folded into a common plane that is flush against the seat section when the lounge chair is in its folded configuration. Shoulder straps are anchored to the seat section. The shoulder straps can be selectively opened between ends. This enables the shoulder straps to pass over the leg assemblies when in the folded configuration and pass under both the leg assemblies when the folding lounge chair is in the open configuration.

1. Field of the Invention
In general, the present invention relates to the structure of folding chairs that can be carried as backpacks. More particularly, the present invention relates to folding chairs configured as loungers that can provide full support to elevated legs.
2. Prior Art Description Many people carry folding chairs to the beach, parks, and other outdoor destinations. Typically, the folding chair is a simple small chair. However, some people would prefer the comfort of a larger lounge-style chair that provides support to the legs. Although many lounge chair designs exist, most are too large and too bulky to be comfortably carried for any significant period of time. Accordingly, lounge-style chairs are rarely transported farther than from the house to the backyard patio, or from the car to the beach.
In the prior art, there are many lounge chairs that fold into smaller sizes. Typically, a lounge chair has a backrest that can fold flush against the seat of the lounger. Such folding abilities make the lounge chairs easier to store and stack when not in use. Such lounge chairs are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,246,265 to Nagan, entitled Lounge Chair. Although such prior art lounge chairs can be folded to some degree, the lounge chairs remain very bulky and difficult to transport.
Recognizing the problem of transporting lounge chairs, some manufacturers have designed lounge chairs that collapse into very small sizes. The collapsed lounge chair can then be carried in a bag. Such prior art collapsible lounge chairs are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,413 to Levy, entitled Folding Lounge Chair and U.S. Pat. No. 6,062,648 to Adler, entitled Foldable Lounge Chair. The problem associated with such prior art lounge chairs is that the lounge chairs must be removed from the carry bag every time they are used and returned to the carry bag whenever they are to be transported. The need to transport the folding lounge chair in a bag makes such prior art chairs inconvenient to use.
A need exists for a collapsible lounge chair that is specifically designed to be carried by a user, hands free. A need also exists for a collapsible lounge chair that can be carried hand free, yet requires no carry bag. Such a collapsible lounge chair needs to be lightweight and collapsible into a convenient size and have lifting features that enable the chair to be comfortably carried for long distances. These needs are met by the present invention as described below.

Folding lounge chair with backpack straps