The present invention provides compositions or formulations comprising the combination of a compound of 5-[3-(4-benzyloxyphenylthio)-fur-2-yl]-imidazolidin-2,4-dione or a salt thereof or hydrate of the foregoing, and a cyclodextrin; or in further combination with an excipient comprising L-Arginine or other additives, wherein the compositions or formulations increases water solubility and oral bioavailability of 5-[3-(4-benzyloxyphenylthio)-fur-2-yl]-imidazolidin-2,4-dione and its related compounds. The method of making or using the compositions or formulations is also disclosed. Such compositions or formulations may be used in treatment of certain diseases including asthma through inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-12.

A series of compounds of 5-[3-(4-benzyloxyphenylthio)-fur-2-yl]-imidazolidin-2,4-dione or its analogues were disclosed in United States Patent Application 20060041000. These compounds were designed to be used as inhibitors of macrophage elastase. All these compounds are hydantoin derivatives and tested in vitro for their use as matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) inhibitors.
As shown in the United States Patent Application 20060041000, all compounds tested show desirable activity and favorable selectivity profile. IC50s on MMP-12 fall in the range of 1-300 nM, therefore they are all considered to be active. Most of the above compounds do not show inhibition on MMP-1 and MMP-7 at 10 uM. Their selectivity for MMP-12 over MMP-2, MMP-3, MMP-9 and MMP-13 range from 50 to 1000 fold. These compounds seem to possess some potentials to be used in the treatment of diseases or conditions mediated by MMP-12, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), arthritis, cancer, heart disease and nephritis. However, except for the IC50 data for limited MMPs, there were no further biological data provided in detail. In addition, except the NMR and MS data, no other physical and chemical property data were provided.
Therefore, it would be desirable to understand the characteristics of these compounds and develop suitable formulations to use 5-[3-(4-benzyloxyphenylthio)-fur-2-yl]-imidazolidin-2,4-dione or its analogues for potential treatment of various diseases through inhibition of MMP.
According to the teaching of the United States Patent Application 20060041000, MMP Inhibitory Assays were conducted in aqueous buffer (50 mM Hepes, 10 mM CaCl2, 0.05% Brij 35, pH 7.5), indicating that these compounds should be fairly water soluble. However, it was unexpectedly discovered that these compounds have very low aqueous solubility. 5-[3-(4-benzyloxyphenylthio)-fur-2-yl]-imidazolidin-2,4-dione and its analogues not only exhibit a low solubility in water, but also in an acidic environment. Consequently, when administered orally in a conventional solid dosage form, a low bioavailability may be expected.
Therefore, there remains a need for developing formulations of these compounds, such as formulations that render these compounds suitable for non-invasive such as oral, intranasal and/or sublingual administrations.

Pharmaceutical composition and methods of uses


The present invention relates to a process for the continuous preparation of diaryl carbonates from phosgene and at least one monohydroxy compound (monophenol) in the presence of catalysts, and also the use thereof for preparing polycarbonates. The hydrogen chloride formed in the reaction is converted by thermal oxidation into chlorine, with the chlorine being recirculated to the preparation of phosgene. In particular, the process comprises utilization of the hydrogen chloride formed for the process for preparing diphenyl carbonate (DPC process).

The present invention relates to a process for the continuous preparation of diaryl carbonates from phosgene and at least one monohydroxy compound (monophenol) in the presence of catalysts, and also the use thereof for preparing polycarbonates. The hydrogen chloride formed in the reaction is converted by thermal oxidation into chlorine, with the chlorine being recirculated to the preparation of phosgene. In particular, the process comprises utilization of the hydrogen chloride formed for the process for preparing diphenyl carbonates (DPC process).
It is known that diaryl carbonates, in particular diphenyl carbonate, can be prepared by phase boundary phosgenation (Schotten-Baumann reaction) of monophenols in an inert solvent in the presence of alkali and a catalyst. Here, the use of solvents and sodium hydroxide is disadvantageous since the aqueous alkali can cause partial hydrolysis of phosgene or chlorocarbonic esters and large amounts of sodium chloride are obtained as by-product and the solvent and catalyst have to be recovered.
For this reason, the preparation of diaryl carbonates and in particular diphenyl carbonate by reaction of monophenols and phosgene without alkali and without use of solvents in the presence of a catalyst in the direct phosgenation process has also been examined and has been described in principle in the literature.

Proposals for processes without solvent using soluble catalysts are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,837,555, 3,234,263 and 2,362,865.
There have also been proposals for using heterogeneous, insoluble catalysts which make the work-up of the reaction mixture substantially easier. Thus, EP 516 355 A2 recommends, in particular, aluminium trifluoride which is applied to supports such as aluminosilicates. However, the synthesis of aluminium fluoride is very complicated and expensive due to the handling of fluorine or hydrofluoric acid.
Furthermore, WO 91/06526 describes metal salts on porous supports as catalysts for the reactions according to the invention. A fully continuous phosgenation of phenol over such catalysts is possible only in the gas phase, but this results in relatively high reaction temperatures and the risk of decomposition of the sensitive chloroformic esters. A phosgenation of phenol using these catalysts in the liquid phase can obviously not be carried out since hot, liquid phenol washes out the active catalyst constituents.
Unsupported catalysts which have the great advantage that the catalyst can be separated off very easily and no impurities remain in the crude reaction product have therefore been proposed. The work-up is substantially simplified thereby.
Thus, processes for preparing diaryl carbonates by phosgenation of monophenols in the presence of heterogeneous catalysts such as activated carbons (EP 483 632), aluminium oxides (EP 635 477), aluminosilicates (EP 635 476), metal oxides (EP 645 364), metalates (EP 691 326), hard materials (EP 722 930) and mixed hydroxides (DE 10 2008 050 828) and also in the presence of homogeneous catalysts such as metal salts (U.S. Pat. No. 634,622), aromatic nitrogen heterocycles (D-A 2 447 348) and organophosphorus compounds (U.S. Pat. No. 5,136,077) both in the liquid phase (EP 757 029, EP 791 574) and also in the gas phase (EP 808 821) have been described.
After synthesis of the diaryl carbonate, the diaryl carbonate is separated off as a mixture with the monophenol used and possibly catalyst or if appropriate in the form of its solution in the organic solvent used in the synthesis, for example chlorobenzene.
To obtain the high-purity diaryl carbonate, a purification by distillation and/or crystallization can be carried out. For example, this is carried out by means of one or more distillation columns connected in series in which any solvent is separated from the diaryl carbonate.
This purification stage or stages can, for example, be carried out continuously in such a way that the temperature at the bottom in the distillation is from 150° C. to 310° C., preferably from 160 to 230° C. The pressure employed for carrying out this distillation is, in particular, from 1 to 1000 mbar, preferably from 5 to 100 mbar.
The diaryl carbonates which have been purified in this way have a particularly high purity (GC>99.95%) and very good transesterification behaviour, so that a polycarbonate can subsequently be prepared in excellent quality therefrom.

The use of the diaryl carbonates for preparing aromatic oligocarbonates/polycarbonates by the melt transesterification process is known in the literature and is described, for example, in the Encyclopedia of Polymer Science, Vol. 10 (1969), Chemistry and Physics of Polycarbonates, Polymer Reviews, H. Schnell, Vol. 9, John Wiley and Sons, Inc. (1964), pp. 50/51 or U.S. Pat. No. 5,340,905.
The hydrogen chloride formed in the preparation of diphenyl carbonate by direct phosgenation of phenol can be utilized, for example, by marketing of the aqueous solution (hydrochloric acid) or by use in syntheses of other chemical products. However, the amounts of hydrogen chloride obtained cannot always be marketed or used for other syntheses in their entirety. In addition, hydrogen chloride can be used for syntheses only when it is appropriately purified beforehand. On the other hand, marketing is usually only economical when the hydrogen chloride or the hydrochloric acid do not have to be transported over long distances.
One of the most common possible uses of the hydrogen chloride obtained is therefore the use as raw material in PVC production, in which ethylene is oxychlorinated by means of hydrogen chloride to form ethylene dichloride. However, this mode of operation is not generally possible since the corresponding production operations are usually not in the direct vicinity of a diaryl carbonate production plant. Disposal of the hydrogen chloride, e.g. after neutralization with alkali, is unattractive from an economical and ecological point of view.
A recycling process for the hydrogen chloride and recirculation of the chlorine to the diphenyl carbonate production process in which hydrogen chloride is obtained is therefore the desired mode of operation.
A review of electrochemical recycling processes is given in the article "Chlorine Regeneration from Anhydrous Hydrogen Chloride" by Dennie Turin Mah, published in "12th International Forum Electrolysis in Chemical Industry—Clean and Efficient Processing Electrochemical Technology for Synthesis, Separation, Recycle and Environmental Improvement, Oct. 11-15, 1998, Sheraton Sand Key, Clearwater Beach, Fla.".
The recycling of hydrogen chloride by electrochemical oxidation to form chlorine and hydrogen is described in LU 88 569 and EP 1 112 997. A disadvantage is the low current yield and the production of hydrogen which has no use in the polycarbonate production process.
The recycling of hydrogen chloride by thermal reaction with oxygen in the presence of catalysts is also known, as described, for example, in WO 04/014845. A disadvantage here is that the recovery of the phosgenation catalyst pyridine by treatment with alkali leads to a reduced recovery of hydrogen chloride due to the formation of sodium chloride, which has to be disposed of.
Proceeding from the prior art cited above, it was an object of the present invention to provide a diaryl carbonate production process which gives products in high purity and good yield and in which a reduction in environmental pollution or wastewater problems in water treatment plants is achieved by maximized recycling of by-products originating from polycarbonate production. In particular, in the recycling, the conversion of hydrogen chloride into chlorine should be carried out with minimal energy input and therefore in a resource-conserving manner.
It has now been found that hydrogen chloride can be reused particularly advantageously when this hydrogen chloride is converted back into chlorine by thermal oxidation by means of oxygen by the Deacon process and is utilized for preparing phosgene.
The hydrogen chloride obtained in the continuous preparation of diaryl carbonates by reaction of monophenols and phosgene in the presence of catalysts can be passed directly without complicated purification, if appropriate after simple treatment with activated carbon, to a thermal oxidation, with the hydrogen chloride being converted catalytically into chlorine and water and the chlorine being recirculated to the preparation of phosgene.

Process for preparing diaryl carbonates and polycarbonates


Network resources such as in a wireless system may be allocated to user devices on the network based upon at least one or more minimum user requirements being satisfied. A user may be determined as satisfied when minimum requirements of rate and delay are reached or maintained. The network may optimize throughput on the network by allowing a maximum number of users on the network to be satisfied. Users may be ranked according to signal quality, and network resources may be allocated to users according to rank to satisfy users until the resources of the network are allocated.

In a system with limited resources and spectrum such as a wireless cellular network, the system determines how to allocate resources to users. In typical voice networks such as 2G systems, users are served on a first come first served basis, as long as the user is in an area that has a minimum signal quality. Future networks are intended to provide more data services over cellular networks, such as 3G systems, so a different criterion other than a minimum signal quality is typically employed. Since data is more tolerable to delays than voice, typical data networks attempt to serve a user when a higher channel quality is present so as to minimize usage of common wireless resources such as spectrum in order to achieve a maximum throughput of the base station. However, systems that allocate resources on the basis of channel quality alone do not accommodate the issue of what rate each user desires.

Method for allocating resources in a wireless system


A scanning mirror unit for scanning a beam comprises: at least one cantilever which is formed by bonding an elastic material and a piezoelectric material together and supported by a base at its one end; and a movable mirror which is supported at least by a free end of the cantilever at its peripheral part. When voltage is applied to the piezoelectric material, the free end of the cantilever moves in a prescribed direction to press and move the peripheral part of the movable mirror while leaving a central part of the movable mirror at substantially the same position to cause a tilt to the movable mirror. With such composition of the scanning mirror unit, a reflecting member having a sufficient thickness (e.g. some hundreds of microns) can be employed for the movable mirror, by which a high power laser beam effective for treatment of affected parts, etc. can be reflected finely and durably.

The present invention relates to a scanning mirror unit for scanning a beam which is used for obtaining observation images of the inside of a body cavity and for treating tissues etc. inside the body cavity, and a beam scanning probe which is equipped with the scanning mirror unit.
In surgical operations such as cranial nerve surgery using an endoscope (removal of a brain tumor, etc.) and intrauterine fetal surgery using a hysteroscope, high-precision intra-cavity operations (intra-body-cavity operations) using lasers are effective measures. For such operations, high-precision observation with high resolution is also required.
Intra-cavity operations, guiding a laser beam to the inside of a body cavity by an optical fiber, etc. and applying the laser beam to a tissue for incision, evaporation and conglutination, have been put into practice today. However, the irradiation range of the laser beam is generally wider than the core diameter of the optical fiber and it is difficult to treat tissues precisely. The irradiation range can be narrowed by converging the laser beam by use of a lens; however, it becomes necessary to move the tip of the optical fiber or probe in order to provide effective treatment. For mechanically moving the tip of the probe precisely, a complicated mechanism becomes necessary and it is difficult to ensure high reliability.
A beam converged by a lens can be scanned on a target (object) precisely by placing a microscanner between the lens and the focal point. For example, a type of confocal probe, observing a tissue by applying a laser beam to a tissue inside a body cavity and extracting particular reflected light (at a focal point of the objective optical system on the object side) from reflected light from the irradiated tissue, has been proposed and brought into practical use (see JP-A-11-221192 (pages 3–5, FIGS. 3–5), for example). Meanwhile, OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography) probes having the function of optical coherence tomography (obtaining a tomogram of the inside of a body cavity by use of light of low coherence) are also well known and in practical use today. An example of such a probe is disclosed in Japanese Patent Provisional Publication No. P2001-87269A.
The probes disclosed in the above patent documents are scanning probes which obtain 2-D images or 3-D images of a tissue (observation target) by scanning a laser beam emitted by a light source device on the tissue as the observation target by driving a microscanner.
However, the mirror used for such a scanner is generally thin and easily damaged in cases where a high power laser beam having high intensity effective for treatment of affected parts is scanned. The mirror of a microscanner (scanning mirror unit) formed by surface micromachining, etc. can not be thickened because of its manufacturing process.

Scanning mirror unit and beam scanning probe


An OAM capability discovery method in Ethernet passive optical network is disclosed. An OLT assigns identifications according to a registration request of the plurality of ONUs connected to the OLT. In response, the OLT transmits an OAM capability information message of the OLT to a random ONU from among the registered plurality of ONUs, and the random ONU transmits an OAM capability information message of the random ONU to the OLT, then finally the OLT transmits an OAM capability discovery completion message to ONU.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an Ethernet passive optical network (EPON), and more particularly to an OAM (Operations, Administration and Maintenance) capability discovery method that may be implemented in a passive optical network.
2. Description of the Related Art
The standardization of Gigabit Ethernet and MAC technology for the ATM-PON (Asynchronous Transfer Mode Passive Optical Network) has been completed. In the ATM-PON, upward or downward transmission of frames, each of which consists of a predetermined number of ATM cells, is used for communication purposes. In particular, an OLT (Optical Line Termination) inserts downward cells in the transmission frame, and then the downward cells are distributed to each ONU (Optical Network Unit) in the PON having a tree-shaped structure. Other details of the Gigabit Ethernet and the ATM-PON protocols are described in the IEEE 802.3z dated Jan. 23, 1997. and ITU-T G.983.1 dated Oct. 13, 1998, from which the contents of both documents are incorporated herein by reference.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the physical network structure of a general passive optical network (PON). As shown, the PON includes an OLT 100 and a plurality of ONUs 110-1 to 110-3 connected to the OLT 100. FIG. 1 is an example in which three ONUs 110-1 to 110-3 are connected to one OLT 100 in the Ethernet Passive Optical Network, which transmits 802.3 Ethernet frames via a point to multi-point network. Here, multiple users 120-1 to 120-3 (users or network equipments) may be connected to the ONUs 110-1 to 110-3, respectively, so that data 131-1 to 133-1 transmitted by the users 120-1 to 120-3 can be transmitted to the OLT 100 via the ONUs 110-1 to 110-3.
As shown in FIG. 1, in the case of upward transmission, all data of the ONUs are accessed by means of a TDM (Time Division Multiplexing) method. An ODN (Optical Distribution Network), which is a passive element, enables the data not to be collided with each other by means of a ranging method. In the case of downward transmission, each of the ONUs 110-1 to 110-3 receives data broadcasted by the OLT 100. Each frame in upward or downward transmission has a field arranged in a dedicated ATM cell or a general ATM cell, by which messages can be sent or received at predetermined intervals.
However, with the development of the Internet technology, more bandwidth at the subscriber's ends are required, and to address this need, a point-to-point transmission by means of Gigabit Ethernet, which is relatively low-priced and can secure a higher bandwidth in comparison to the ATM technology, is utilized. In this regard, the ATM has drawbacks in that it requires relatively expensive equipment, has limited bandwidth, and requires the segmentation of IP packets. As such, even in the PON structure of the subscriber network, the Ethernet type is more favored rather than the ATM technique.
In order to provide services by means of Ethernet-based passive optical network, it is necessary for the provision of OAM capability, which does not exist in the existing Ethernet. The OAM has been defined recently in an EPON standardization but still being developed in IEEE 802.3ah EFM TF, Draft v1.0. The OAM capability defined in the Draft v1.0 up to now is a basic function, which supports Remote Failure Indicating function, Remote Loop-back function, and Link Monitoring function, as described in IEEE 802.3ah EFM. However, since detailed operation processes for the OAM discovery method are not defined in the Draft v1.0, some problems may occur in attempts to perform the OAM protocols effectively. In other words, no uniform discovery process for the OAM capability is available between the OLT 100 and the ONU 110. As a result, any OAM capabilities defined and used by different vendors will not cooperate with each other as the frames may be unrecognizable to each other.


A suture applying device comprises an elongate shaft having a length of suture therein. A pre-tied loop suture is held at the distal end of the shaft with a free end of the suture being attached within a handle secured to the proximal end of the shaft. In a first embodiment, a pulley and puller assembly is provided for closing the pre-tied suture loop, where the pulley permits a greater length of suture to be taken in than is traveled by the puller. In a second embodiment, a pair of opposed jaws are slidably mounted within the handle for selectively engaging and gripping the free end of the suture. In this way, an arbitrarily large length of suture may be taken in by pulling on the free end of the suture in successive strokes. The device further includes a sheath slidably disposed on the shaft for protecting the suture during introduction. The sheath automatically retracts when the device is introduced through a trocar sleeve or cannula, thereby exposing the suture loop.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to devices and methods for ligating body structures and, more particularly, to devices for positioning a pre-formed ligating loop around the body structure and tightening the loop using a device which can be manipulated with a single hand.
Pre-tied ligating loops are utilized in surgical procedures for a variety of purposes. Most commonly, the ligating loops will be placed around the outside of a severed body lumen, such as a blood vessel or the cystic duct, tightened by pulling on a free end of the ligature, and severed using separate severing shears. Usually, the ligating loop will be mounted on the end of a rod or tube so that the surgeon may hold the knot in place with the tube while pulling on the free end of the ligature to tighten the loop.
One form of a ligating loop applier comprises a hollow tube carrying the ligating loop at its distal end. The free end of the suture is threaded proximally through the lumen of the tube and secured to the proximal end of the tube. A small section of the tube near the proximal end is weakened so that it may be easily broken off by the surgeon. By breaking the proximal end off, and pulling proximally on the suture, the ligating loop at the distal end of the tube may be tightened.
While such ligating loop appliers are commonly employed in surgery, including laparoscopic surgery, they suffer from requiring two hands for use, i.e. a first hand to hold the suture applying tube and a second hand to break off and pull on the proximal end of the tube. Manipulation is further complicated by the need to use a stainless steel tube to protect the loop as it is being introduced through a conventional trocar sleeve of the type used in laparoscopic surgery. Additionally, use of such loop appliers has generally been limited to insertion through conventional 5 mm trocar sleeves which have been pre-positioned at particular locations in the body. The number and size of such trocars should be minimized in order to minimize trauma. It would often be desirable to insert the loop appliers through other locations without the need to position additional trocar sleeves or to withdraw other instruments which are already in place in the existing trocar sleeves.
It would therefore be desirable to provide improved suture applying devices which can be manipulated using a single hand, including both placement of the loop about a target body structure and tightening of the loop using only the single hand. Most desirably, the device could be introduced through a cannula of reduced diameter to minimize trauma.
A useful design for such a "single-handed" ligating loop applier would employ a three-finger actuating assembly, including an actuator which is engaged by the users middle and index fingers and a thumb rest at the proximal end of the device. By attaching the free end of the suture to the actuator, the user could first position a ligating loop held at the distal end of the device at a desired target location and thereafter tighten the loop by translating on the actuator by closing the middle and index finger in opposition to the thumb. Such a design, however, suffers from the drawback that the loop-closing stroke is limited in length so that pre-tied loops of only about 2-3 cm in diameter can be closed.
To overcome such a limitation on loop size, it has been proposed that a post be placed on the puller of the ligature applying device and that the free end of the suture be wrapped about the post with the end tied to a portion of the device which remains stationary relative to the puller. When the puller is drawn proximally, a length of suture equal to twice the length of translation will be drawn in. In this way, larger ligating loops can be closed in a single stroke. An exemplary ligating design of this type is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,610,631.
While workable and an improvement in many ways over other suture-applying devices, ligators of the type described in the '631 patent suffer from certain disadvantages. First, the ratio of suture uptake to puller travel is limited to a factor of 2. While it would be theoretically possible to wrap the suture around a second post on the ligator body and attach the free end of the puller (thus increasing the ratio to a factor of 3), such additional turns of the suture would increase the chances that the suture would become tangled while the loop applier is in use. Additional turns further compromise the device by increasing the friction between the suture and the posts, thereby reducing the ease of actuation. Moreover, the utility of the device is limited in laparoscopic and endoscopic or other cannula procedures where the applier must be introduced through a trocar sleeve, since the presence of the suture on the exterior of the ligator increases the changes that the suture will become tangled during introduction. Additionally, presence of the coupling mechanism between the puller and the suture on the exterior of the device increases the opportunity for contamination and jamming.
For these reasons, it would be desirable to provide improved devices and methods for applying pre-tied ligating loops to body structures, where the devices and methods are suitable for applying large-diameter ligating loops using a single device in a single hand. Such devices should be of relatively simple construction and should be relatively simple to use. In particular, it would be desirable if the suture be contained completely or almost completely within the interior of the device and that the design reduce the opportunity for the suture to become entangled during use. It would be further desirable to provide systems which permit insertion of the suture through conventional trocar sleeves or other cannulas, where the suture is protected by a sheath which is automatically retracted as the suture is passed through the cannula.
2. Description of the Background Art
U.S. Pat. No. 2,610,631, is described above. U.S. Pat. No. 3,476,115, describes a ligating loop applier comprising a single tube having a frangible proximal end, where the proximal end is attached to a free end of the suture and may be broken off so that a suture loop at the distal end may be drawn closed. U.S. Pat. No. 5,129,912, describes a suture applying device, where a pre-tied suture loop is used for laparoscopic and endoscopic knot tying. Other devices are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,592,355; 3,985,138; 3,665,926; 659,442; U.S.S.R. Patent Publications 1,169,630; 835,429; 552,077; and U.K. Patent 868,634.

Device and method for applying large-diameter ligating loop


A kit for connecting in parallel two electrical generators, including a wiring unit mounted on an attachment frame which is configured to be rigidly affixed to one of the two electrical generators. The wiring unit includes an external output receptacle, and a circuit breaker, plus hard-wired connections for receiving the power inputs from the two electrical generators being connected in parallel. The wiring unit is screwed or otherwise fastened to a preferably contoured bracket which, in turn, is screwed or otherwise fastened, preferably, to a frontal area of one of the two generators.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to portable power generation devices and accessories therefor.
2. Background Art
Portable power generation devices are well known. Some of these devices, having power outputs large enough to single-handedly supply most or all of an average household's power requirements, for at least a short period of time, are relatively heavy and are supported by tubular metal frames, which may or may not be supplied with wheels and handles to enable them to be moved from place to place. While these power generation devices are at least nominally designated "portable", in reality, the weight and bulk of these devices makes them not conveniently portable.
A newer generation of portable power generation devices has been developed, which are smaller self-contained units that have all-enclosing housings, and built-in handles, usually on their top surfaces. These smaller units are typically of sufficient power for uses such as camping, recreational vehicle, or light construction or other job-site uses. Occasionally, it has been found desirable, in situations in which a single one such smaller power generation device has been found to be insufficient to meet power requirements, to connect two such power generation devices in parallel, so as to increase the total current output, while maintaining the output voltage of the paired units the same as for a single unit.
Devices for parallel connection of power generation devices are known. Typically, these connection devices can be little more than a group of wires, having the appropriate end connectors, which are banded together. In other embodiments, the connection device may be in the form of a box housing, having appropriate internal circuitry, which housing has terminals, to which leads from or to each of the respective power generation devices are connected. Such a box housing in the past has either been entirely unconnected to either of the power generation devices, or possibly joined to one or the other of the power generation devices by a flexible strap. Such arrangements can be cumbersome, and can lead to a sprawling of wires, leads and circuitry boxes, which can be unsightly, difficult to move readily from place to place, and potentially hazardous.
It would be desirable to provide an alternative construction for a parallel connection kit for power generation devices, which is easier to physically manipulate and manage, and provides for facilitated electrical connection of the power generation devices to be connected.
These and other desirable characteristics of the present invention will become apparent in view of the present specification, including claims, and drawings.

Parallel connection kit for power generators


A hydraulic support monitoring a support pose in real time based on an inertia measurement unit (IMU) and a detection method thereof. In the hydraulic support, IMU sensors are separately mounted on a roof beam, a rear linkage, and a base, and an auxiliary support pose monitoring system is disposed. Each IMU sensor measures movement states of the roof beam, the rear linkage, and the base of the support in real time, and the support pose monitoring system processes the movement states to monitor a support pose of the hydraulic support in real time. Especially, it can be technically determined whether the hydraulic support is adequately lowered, moved or raised, thereby effectively reducing the labor intensity of workers and improving the working efficiency of the hydraulic support.

Coal is important basic energy and an important raw material in China, accounting for 62% of China's total energy consumption. China is currently the largest coal producer and consumer in the world. Moreover, China's energy occurrence condition of being oil poor and gas short also determines the current dependence on coal.
The environment of coal mine underground fully-mechanized working faces is severe, and high labor intensity is harmful to miners' health and even endangers their life. With the development of science and technology in China, new automation control technologies keep being introduced in the coal mine industry. Therefore, the automation in the coal mine industry is gradually improved, and working conditions of workers are improved to some extent. However, complex and severe working conditions at fully-mechanized working faces still endanger the health and life of workers. Such harms can be effectively avoided by implementing mining with fewer or no workers at working faces. Moreover, conventional coal mining mainly relies on workers. Particularly, dozens to hundreds of hydraulic supports are used at a fully-mechanized face. Manual operations are not enough to accurately determine support states of the supports. It is neither reliable nor efficient to adjust support states based on working experience.
There is no effective method for sensing a support pose. According to mechanisms of a hydraulic support, a support pose can be obtained as soon as a real-time length of an actuating cylinder of the support is measured. However, due to the restriction of a coupling effect between the mechanisms of the hydraulic support and a severe underground environment, it is impossible to use a sensor to directly measure the length of the actuating cylinder to obtain the support pose.
A main mechanism of a hydraulic support includes two degrees of freedom, and a movement state may be determined by using two driving members. As the hydraulic support moves, lengths of a column and a balance jack that are used as driving parts of the hydraulic support determine the support pose of the hydraulic support. However, due to a severe underground environment and a limitation of conditions, the length of the actuating cylinder cannot be directly measured by using a sensor.

Hydraulic support monitoring support pose in real time based on inertia measurement unit and detection method thereof

CHINA UNIVERSITY OF MINING AND TECHNOLOGY

XUZHOU GOLDFLUID HYDRAULIC TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT CO., LTD.


Bit errors in packets of data that are communicated in a network such as a wireless network can be corrected by processes that do not require any overhead in the data such as conventional error-detection codes or redundant information such as conventional error-correction codes. A validation-set process compares corrupted data against values in a set of known valid values and selects one of the known valid values to replace the corrupted data. A consistency-check process uses data correlation characteristics of two or more parameters to determine if values obtained from a packet are consistent with one another. If not, values are changed to make them consistent.

Packets of data that are communicated in a network such as a wireless network are often vulnerable to corruption by a variety of mechanisms including noise and competing signals that can interfere with the communication. As a result, the data arriving at a receiver may differ from the corresponding data that left the transmitter. Information such as cyclical redundancy codes may be included with the data to facilitate the detection of errors. This type of information is often referred to as error-detection codes. Various types of redundant information, often referred to as error-correction codes, may be included to facilitate the detection and correction of errors. Errors may also be corrected by a variety of communication techniques including those that allow a receiver to request the retransmission of a packet whenever an error is detected in that packet, or that obligates a transmitter to transmit a packet multiple times and allows a receiver the ability to derive corrected data from the multiple packets.
Unfortunately, these known techniques for correcting errors in received data require additional capacity to store or convey the required redundant data. What is needed is a way to correct errors that does not require additional overhead or redundant data such as error-correction codes.

Error correction in packet-based communication networks using validation sets

Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation


An audio label comprising a circuit board substrate with a sound-generating microchip and a photovoltaic cell both attached to the substrate such that the microchip is electrically connected to the photovoltaic cell so that power is provided to the sound-generating microchip. A sound reproduction unit is also attached to the substrate and is connected to the sound-generating microchip communicates signals to the sound reproduction unit which are then converted by the sound reproduction unit to audible sounds. A system for audio label operation is also disclosed. The system includes a separate transmitter which transmits electromagnetic waves, such as light, infrared or radio waves to one or more audio labels which have electromagnetic wave receiving circuit elements, such as phototransistors disposed thereon. The transmitter thus sends wave signals to each label each of which then converts the wave signals to electric signals which each sound reproduction unit then converts to audible sounds.

Pre-programmed or programmable talking "things" have been the object of a number of patents. For example, Barnett et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,157) teaches an audible greeting card comprising a pair of panel members, the first panel carrying a sound track, and the second one having a sound pick-up member and an amplifier speaker which is actuated by the sound pick-up member.
Other prior patents include Deffner (U.S. Pat. No. 4,035,941) who teaches an audio-visual display device which sequentially displays and describes merchandise. A timer is used to control the operation of a plurality of electrical audio and visual display components.
Tarrant et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,222,188) teaches a sound reproducing device for either music or speech combined with a display for an opaque sheet on which an insignia is defined that may be a work of art, photograph, printed material or the like. The display is a part of a resonator box that not only amplifies the volume of the sound reproducing device, but provides a number of spaced recesses in the upper portion thereof in which merchandise such as cosmetics or the like may be displayed.
Bearden (U.S. Pat. No. 4,381,558) teaches another talking greeting card, this one having a front display panel and two rear panels adapted to hold the front panel bowed in convex shape by tabs which secure the rear panels together. A flexible sound recording strip extends through a slot in the bowed front panel and has a surface prepared to produce sounds when a sliding element, such as the thumbnail of a user, moves along the surface. The sound is amplified by the bowed front wall and overlapping rear walls.
Calloway et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,611,262) teaches an electrical circuit package for greeting cards which provides an electrical circuit via a stamped and formed lead frame supported and insulated in a dielectric housing. When activated, the electrical circuit causes a piezoelectric transducer to generate audio signals in the form of a musical tone, spoken words or both.
Montgomery et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,703,573) teaches a visual and audible activated work comprising at least two pivotably turnable pages. A visual image display is affixed to at least one of the pages, the visual image display having first and second visual activation states; the first one of which corresponding to no visual image and the second visual activation state providing a visual image on the visual display. A sound generator is also attached to the work. Electrical control means are connected to the visual display for selectively activating the visual display from one of the visual activation states to another upon pivoting the pages from the open position to the closed position, and the same or similar control means are connected to the sound generator for selectively activating the sound generator to create sound upon pivoting the pages from the closed position to the opened position. Photovoltaic or solar cells are taught for providing power to the audio and/or visual portions of this work.
Kondo (U.S. Pat. No. 4,791,741) teaches card or postal media which can record and playback messages or music, such media being particularly useful to allow the mailer to record his/her own messages or desired music, so that the recipient can easily play them back. The card comprises electrical means (RAM, including one or more microchips) for storing audio information picked up by a microphone; means for generating sound including a speaker; means for producing a mode selection signal corresponding to either a record mode or a playback mode; electrical control means including a TOSHIBA TC 8830 microchip for selectively setting either of the record or playback modes according to the mode selection signal from the signal producing means, converting audio from the microphone from analog to digital and storing it in the storage means when the record mode is selected, retrieving stored information from the storage means converting it from digital to analog, and outputting the analog signal to the generating means when the playback mode is selected; and a card board on which each of the above are mounted.
Hoshi (U.S. Pat. No. 4,934,079) teaches a display device including a display panel having a recorder/playback combination and a sensor which is sensitive to light, sound, heat and/or other stimuli. Objects which are transparent to or shield light and/or which generate sound or heat will, when approaching the panel, automatically actuate the sensor to automatically actuate the recorder/playback combination, thereby producing music or sound from the display panel. The recorder/playback combination can be made thin, small and inexpensive by the use of an IC memory. An on-off switch may be substituted for the sensor. If the sensors are made integral with the recorder/playback combination, then it is possible to obtain increased efficiency and make handling much easier. The use of an IC memory chip for the sound generating source permits free selection of sounds or music. The sounds or music are recordable on the IC chip by an external ROM writer. Playback is obtained automatically by the actuation of the on-off switch or by the sensor which is sensitive to sound, light, heat and the like to produce a sound message.
Johnson et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,698) teaches a personalized greeting card including an independent, detachable, electronic IC memory device that stores electronic signals, a mechanism for retrieving the electronic signals from the IC memory device, a voice synthesizer which obtains these electronic signals and produces audible sounds representative of the personalized message represented by the electronic signals, and a switch that controls the retrieving device and the voice synthesizer. The IC memory device is separately preprogrammed by an EPROM translator machine which converts a personalized message to electronic signals which are stored in the IC memory device. The memory device is then detached from the EPROM and mounted in the circuitry disposed in the greeting card. Both the IC memory device and the voice synthesizer are coupled to a timer by a control/power line. A battery is used to deliver power to this circuit.
Fox et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,245,171) teaches a mailing piece comprising a mailing envelope which has a reusable audible message generator attached thereto. The message generator may be secured (as by adhesive) to the envelope. The message generator provides an audible message which is intended to induce the recipient to retain, read and show the package to others. The envelope has a tab extending therefrom which, when pulled by the recipient, exposes an operating element to activate a talking device which gives a short message. A solar cell or other sensor responsive to light that acts to close (or to power) the electrical circuit of the message generator may be used to activate the message generator when the tab is pulled up to expose that sensor to light.
However, as is readily apparent, none of these prior devices provide tenable stand-alone label devices for use in product presentation which could be disposed in specific store locations or on specific products with product-specific audible messages which would be activated at preset intervals, timed or otherwise, or upon the presence of motion or light changes within a predefined range thereof and which are capable of being powered by conventional store or sun lighting.


A sulfonated telechelic polycarbonate is described which is produced by melt synthesis. A dihydroxy compound is reacted with a sulfobenzoic acid salt, then with an activated carbonate. The method results in a sulfonated telechelic polycarbonate which has a high percentage of sulfonated end groups, is soluble, and is transparent.

The present disclosure relates to sulfonated telechelic polycarbonates and to methods of producing the same. For example, the disclosure relates, in certain embodiments, to the melt synthesis of sulfonated telechelic polycarbonates and to the compositions produced by such a process.
Polycarbonates are synthetic thermoplastic resins derived from bisphenols and phosgene, or their derivatives. They are linear polyesters of carbonic acid and can be formed from dihydroxy compounds and carbonate diesters, or by ester interchange. Their desired properties include clarity or transparency (i.e. 90% light transmission or more), high impact strength, heat resistance, weather and ozone resistance, good ductility, being combustible but self-extinguishing, good electrical resistance, noncorrosive, nontoxic, etc.
Polycarbonates can be manufactured by processes such as melt polymerization, i.e. melt synthesis. Generally, in the melt polymerization process, polycarbonates may be prepared by co-reacting, in a molten state, dihydroxy compound(s) and a diaryl carbonate ester in the presence of a transesterification catalyst in a Banbury® mixer, twin screw extruder, or other batch stirred reactor designed to handle highly viscous materials, to form a uniform dispersion. Volatile monohydric phenol is removed from the molten reactants by distillation and the polycarbonate polymer is isolated as a molten residue. Melt processes are generally carried out in a series of stirred tank reactors. The reaction can be carried out by either a batch mode or a continuous mode. The apparatus in which the reaction is carried out can be any suitable tank, tube, or column. Continuous processes usually involve the use of one or more continuous-stirred tank reactors (CSTRs) and one or more finishing reactors.
The presence of low concentrations of covalently bonded ionic substituents in organic polymers is well known to produce a consistent effect on their physical and rheological properties. Indeed, ionomers (polymers containing less than 10 mole percent of ionic groups) have been shown to exhibit considerably higher moduli and higher glass transition temperatures compared to those of their non-ionic analogues. Improvements in mechanical and thermal performance are generally attributed to the formation of ionic aggregates, which act as thermo-reversible cross-links and effectively retard the translational mobility of polymeric chains. The thermo-reversible nature of ionic aggregation may address many other disadvantages associated with covalently bonded high molecular weight polymers, such as poor melt processability, high melt viscosity, and low thermal stability at typical processing conditions such as high shear rate and temperature.
It is also reported in the literature that ionic interactions alter the crystallization kinetics and resulting morphology, decreasing the level of crystallinity. Telechelic ionomers (i.e. having only functionalized end groups) provide electrostatic interactions without a deleterious effect on the symmetry of the repeating unit. Moreover, the ionic aggregation will occur only at the end of the chain, giving rise to an electrostatic chain extension while random ionomers give rise to a gel-like or cross linked aggregation. For this reason, lower melt viscosities and higher molecular weights should be more easily obtained for telechelic ionomers compared to random ionomers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,644,017 reported the preparation of telechelic polycarbonates by melt and interfacial methods. It claimed that polycarbonate ionomers presented a strong non-Newtonian melt rheology behavior along with increased solvent and flame resistance.
The '017 patent reported a melt method for the synthesis of telechelic sulfonated polycarbonates by a one-pot reaction of the phenyl ester of sulfobenzoic acid sodium salt (SBENa), bisphenol-A (BPA), and diphenyl carbonate (DPC). However, this method gave rise to a consistently high amount of degradation products. Furthermore, the material obtained was completely insoluble in dichloromethane. The dark yellow product was not soluble in any common organic solvents, nor in strong solvents such as hexafluoroisopropanol or trifluoroacetic acid, and therefore could not be characterized by GPC or NMR. This insolubility has been ascribed to crosslinking due to the formation of Fries rearrangement by-products. It may be due to the high catalyst content (25 ppm of lithium hydroxide) and/or the temperature program used during polymerization. The '017 patent also claimed two glass transition temperatures (at 148° C. and at 217° C.). This fact suggests the presence of two separable components: one with sulfonated end groups, and one without.
The '017 patent also reported solution methods for the preparation of telechelic sulfonated polycarbonates, via 3- or 4-chlorosulfonyl benzoic acid. Example 2 reported a Tg of 165° C. for the 4-isomer, but no Tg was reported in Example 3 for the 3-isomer. Both polymers had very low molecular weights; the 4-isomer had a Mw of 21,210 or a degree of polymerization (DP) of 44, while the 3-isomer had a much lower Mw (since 20% of the sulfonated end groups were incorporated) and a theoretical DP of only 8. Polycarbonates having a Mw of less than 30,000 are usually not useful because they lack the required mechanical properties. The polycarbonate of Example 3 also contained sulfonated groups as integral parts of the polymer backbone (i.e. not pendant from the chain). However, this type of mixed carbonic-sulfonic anhydride linkage is very thermally unstable and would ultimately cause the polycarbonate to fragment into several chains of lower molecular weight wherever such an anhydride linkage occurred, especially during thermal processing. As such, any polycarbonate with anhydride functionality would not be very useful.
It would be desirable to provide telechelic sulfonated polycarbonates having low crosslinking and high transparency.


A method of female contraception involves administering a combination of estrogen and progestin for 60-110 consecutive days in which the daily amounts of estrogen and progestin are equivalent to about 5-35 mcg of ethinyl estradiol and about 0.025 to 10 mg of norethindrone acetate, respectively. The advantages include less menstrual bleeding, less patient anemia, less total exposure to medication, higher compliance rates and more lifestyle convenience for patients.

The ovarian/menstrual cycle is a complex event characterized by an estrogen rich follicular phase and, after ovulation, a progesterone rich luteal phase. Each has a duration of approximately 14 days resulting in an intermenstrual interval of about 28 days. The endometrial tissue responds to the changes in hormonal milieu.
The onset of menstruation is the beginning of a new menstrual cycle and is counted as day 1. During a span of about 5 to 7 days, the superficial layers of the endometrium, which grew and developed during the antecedent ovarian/menstrual cycle, are sloughed because demise of the corpus luteum in the non-fertile menstrual cycle is associated with a loss of progesterone secretion. Ovarian follicular maturation occurs progressively resulting in a rise in the circulating levels of estrogen, which in turn leads to new endometrial proliferation.
The dominant ovarian follicle undergoes ovulation at mid-cycle, generally between menstrual cycle days 12 to 16 and is converted from a predominantly estrogen source to a predominantly progesterone source (the corpus luteum). The increasing level of progesterone in the blood converts the proliferative endometrium to a secretory phase in which the tissue proliferation has promptly abated, leading to the formation of endometrial glands or organs. When the ovulated oocyte is viably fertilized and continues its progressive embryonic cleavage, the secretory endometrium and the conceptus can interact to bring about implantation (nidation), beginning about 6 to 8 days after fertilization.
If an ongoing pregnancy is to be established via implantation, the embryo will attach and burrow into the secretory endometrium and begin to produce human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG). The HCG in turn stimulates extended corpus luteum function, i.e. the progesterone production remains elevated, and menses does not occur in the fertile menstrual cycle. Pregnancy is then established.
In the non-fertile menstrual cycle, the waning level of progesterone in the blood causes the endometrial tissue to be sloughed. This starts a subsequent menstrual cycle.
Because endometrial proliferation serves to prepare the uterus for an impending pregnancy, manipulation of hormones and of the uterine environment can provide contraception. For example, estrogens are known to decrease follicle stimulating hormone secretion by feedback inhibition. Under certain circumstances, estrogens can also inhibit luteinizing hormone secretion, once again by negative feedback. Under normal circumstances, the spike of circulating estrogen found just prior to ovulation induces the surge of gonadotropic hormones that occurs just prior to and resulting in ovulation. High doses of estrogen immediately post-coitally also can prevent conception probably due to interference with implantation.
Progestins can also provide contraception. Endogenous progesterone after estrogen is responsible for the progestational changes of the endometrium and the cyclic changes of cells and tissue in the cervix and the vagina. Administration of progestin makes the cervical mucus thick, tenacious and cellular which is believed to impede spermatozoal transport. Administration of progestin also inhibits luteinizing hormone secretion and blocks ovulation in humans.
The most prevalent form of oral contraception is a pill that combines both an estrogen and a progestin, a so-called combined oral contraceptive preparation.
Alternatively, there are contraceptive preparations that comprise progestin only. However, the progestin-only preparations have a more varied spectrum of side effects than do the combined preparations, especially more breakthrough bleeding. As a result, the combined preparations are the preferred oral contraceptives in use today (Sheth et al., Contraception 25:243, 1982).
Whereas the conventional 21 day pill packs with a 7 day "pill free" or placebo interval worked well when oral contraceptives were of higher dosage, as the doses have come down, for both the estrogen and progestin components, bleeding problems have increased in frequency, especially in the early months of oral contraceptive use, but even persistently so in some patients.
Since the advent of combined estrogen-progestin medications as oral contraceptives, there has been a steady downward adjustment of the daily estrogen dosage. Concurrently, where exposure to the progestin component has also been lowered, reduced androgenicity has remained an ongoing priority. Together these adaptions in formulation have been presented in a variety of regimens, both monophasic and multiphasic. Each have their own advantages and disadvantages. All-in-all, today's oral contraceptives are much safer with regard to the incidence and severity of estrogen-linked clotting disorders as well as the suggested cumulative impact of more "lipid friendly" progestins that maintain the potentially advantageous high density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in circulation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,390,531 teaches a triphasic regimen in which each phase uses about 20-40 mcg ethinyl estradiol, phases 1 and 3 use 0.3-0.8 norethindrone and phase 2 doubles the amount of the norethindrone. These three phases consume 21 days of a 28 day cycle. European published application 0 226 279 states that this regimen is associated with a high incidence of breakthrough bleeding and substitutes a three phase oral contraceptive regimen using a relatively low amount of ethinyl estradiol (10-50 .mu.g) and a relatively high amount of norethindrone acetate (0.5-1.5 mg) in each phase provided that the amount of estrogen in any two phases is never the same. A "rest" phase of about 7 days is used in this regimen.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,098,714 teaches an osmotic, oral dosage form. One "pill" is administered per day but the administration is, in effect, polyphasic. The dosage form is constructed such that it provides an initial pulse delivery of estrogen and progestin followed by prolonged delivery of estrogen.
European published patent application 0 253 607 describes a monophasic contraceptive preparation containing units having 0.008-0.03 mg of ethinyl estradiol and 0.025-0.1 mg of desogestrel (or equivalent) and a regimen where the preparation is administered over a 23-25 day period, preferably 24 days, followed by a 2-5 day pill-free period. The object of this regimen is to provide hormonal replacement therapy and contraceptive protection for the pre-menopausal woman in need thereof by supplying a low dose of an estrogen combined with a "very low dose of a progestogen."
In 1989, the accumulating data from the evolution of oral contraceptive pill formulations containing only 20-35 .mu.g of estrogen per day spurred the Food and Drug Administration's Fertility and Maternal Health Drugs Advisory Committee to recommend indication of low dose oral contraceptives for healthy, non-smoking women even during the perimenopausal years, such as, for instance, ages 35-50. In Japan, oral contraceptives are being evaluated for safety and efficacy, as well as social acceptability, for the first time.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,552,394 describes a method of female contraception which is characterized by a reduced incidence of breakthrough bleeding after the first cycle involves monophasicly administering a combination of estrogen and progestin for 23-25 consecutive days of a 28 day cycle in which the daily amounts of estrogen and progestin are equivalent to about 5-35 mcg of ethinyl estradiol and about 0.025 to 10 mg of norethindrone acetate, respectively and in which the weight ratio of estrogen to progestin is at least 1:45 calculated as ethinyl estradiol to norethindrone acetate.
In establishing a estrogen-progestin regimen for oral contraceptives, two principal issues must be confronted. First, efficacy must be maintained and second, there must be avoidance of further erosion in the control of endometrial bleeding. In general, even the lowest dose oral contraceptive products commercially available have demonstrated efficacy but the overall instances of bleeding control problems has increased as the doses were reduced, as manifest both in breakthrough bleeding (untimely flow or spotting) or withdrawal amenorrhea during the "pill free" week (expected menses).
It is the object of the present invention to provide a new estrogen-progestin combination and/or regimen for oral contraceptive use which maintains the efficacy and provides enhanced control of endometrial bleeding. The regimen enhances compliance by involving fewer stop/start transitions per year and also results in less blood loss in patients with anemia. Having fewer menstrual intervals can enhance lifestyles and convenience. This and other objects of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description.

Ultra low dose oral contraceptives with less menstrual bleeding and sustained efficacy


A gathering and picking unit for a harvesting assembly having a plurality of picking units. Each picking unit is provided with at least one picking roll. The picking rolls are rotatably mounted to the outer portion of a moving element that is rotated about a second vertical axis. Each picking roll is rotated about a first horizontal axis. The picking units can be arranged radially or tangentially on the moving element.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to the gathering and picking unit of a harvesting assembly wherein one picking roller rotates about a first axis, which is arranged to draw plants through a picking channel through which parts of the plants are separated.
2. Description of the Prior Art
DE 197 34 747 A describes a corn harvesting header that can be installed on a self-propelled harvesting machine. The header can mow independent of rows and pick the ears of corn from the stalks, in order to process them separately from the rest of the plant. For gathering the plants and mowing them independent of rows the implement is equipped with a mower head having a rotating drum. The rotating drum is provided with recesses on its outer circumference for gathering the plants. A knife is rotated below the recesses for cutting the stalks. The plants are then conducted to conventional picking assemblies attached downstream of the mower head. Since the transport path of the plant can be very long, the danger exists that the plants can be dropped or fall over during the gathering and picking operations.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a gathering and picking unit having a simple and functional configuration.
The fundamental idea consists of arranging the picking roll in a harvesting implement on an element that moves with respect to the remaining components of the gathering and picking arrangement. As such, the picking roll moves in a path along which the plants can also be carried. A stalk of the plant is grasped by the picking roll at one of the many possible points of the path and carried along on it. During this movement the stalk of a plant is drawn in by the picking roll rotating in a known manner and the plant is drawn through a picking channel. Thereby useful plant components, such as ears of corn or sunflower fruit are retained in the picking channel and subsequently conducted to an arrangement for further processing. As a rule the picking roll has drawn in the entire plant after a portion of a revolution around the path and is free to grasp another plant. It would be conceivable to let the plant perform several revolutions. It should be noted that only the picking roll and the element retaining the picking roll move with respect to the remaining components of the gathering and picking arrangement, but not necessarily the picking channel. As a rule the picking channel itself is stationary and is attached to the gathering and picking arrangement.
In this way a gathering and picking arrangement is obtained in which the plants can be grasped by the picking roll at various points on a path of movement performed by the picking roll. The gathering and picking arrangement is therefore able to grasp the stalks of the plants independent of rows. Hence the gathering and picking arrangement can be configured as a very compact unit.
The movement of the picking roll can be performed along any desired path. It can be performed in particular along a rectangular or elliptical path or in rotation about a second axis that differs from the rotational axis of the picking roll. The second axis, about which the retaining element rotates, need not extend through the picking roll, but is arranged, as a rule, spaced at a distance from it. The advantage of a circular movement lies in the fact that it can be attained without any problem.
Since the picking roll moves, in particular rotates about the second axis, this movement can be utilized to transport the plant over the length of the picking channel. A separate drive arrangement that carries the plants through the picking channel by chains that are subject to wear is thereby omitted. In this case the picking roll can also be configured relatively short, since a movement of the plant along the longitudinal direction of the picking roll on the basis of the movement during the picking is not necessary.
The second axis, about which the picking roll is rotated, is preferably oriented at least approximately vertically. Thereby the direction of rotation conforms to the direction of growth of most plants. It would also be conceivable to orient the second axis horizontally, in order to harvest fruit at the side of a plant, for example, grapes. Analogously the direction of rotation of the picking roll, as a rule, is at least approximately horizontal. Due to the rotation of the picking roll about the second axis, the rotational axis of the picking roll circulates about the second axis.
Furthermore it is proposed that the picking roll or picking rolls be arranged at the outer circumference of a retaining element. The retaining element rotates about the second axis, that preferably extends through the centerline of the retaining element. The retaining element may be equipped with assemblies for supporting and rotating the picking roll or picking rolls. In particular appropriate gears can convert the rotational movement of the retaining element about the second axis into the rotational movement of the picking roll or picking rolls about the first axis.
The stalks of the plants are drawn into a slot that is defined in the preferred configuration between two interacting picking rolls. The picking rolls rotate in opposite directions and draw in the stalk of a plant downward. The slot can extend (at least partially) radially to the retaining element. In this case the stalk of the plant must be introduced in radial direction into the slot. Alternatively the slot may extend in the direction of rotation of the retaining element, that is, at least approximately tangential to the circumference of the retaining element. The introduction of the plant into the slot is simplified thereby, since the longitudinal direction of the slot and its direction of rotation coincide. It should be noted that other directions of orientation of the slot that lie between the tangential and the radial direction are possible.
In an alternate embodiment, the slot into which the stalks of the plants are drawn is defined between a rotating picking roll and a fixed wall. The wall may be stationary and hence need not rotate with the picking roll. With a stationary wall the picking roll is carried along by the rotation of the retaining element about the second axis. In this case the slot has an arc shape. Alternatively the fixed wall is arranged at the retaining element of the picking roll. In this case the slot can be oriented, as explained above, tangentially to the circumference of the retaining element, in the radial direction or at an intermediate angle.
In order to simplify the introduction of the plants into the slot a picking roll is equipped with a screw conveyor arranged at its point. Alternatively, or in addition, the picking rolls can be provided with cone-shaped points that simplify the introduction of the stalks of the plants.
A plant standing in a field is not always directly grasped by a picking assembly, that is, a picking roll interacting with a second picking roll or a wall. In order to simplify the introduction into the slot, an obvious solution would be to form the radially outer surface of the retaining element between two successive picking assemblies in a straight-line or a curved pattern in such a way that this surface can slide along the plant. In this way the plant is conducted into a following picking assembly without any resistance.
Furthermore it is proposed that a rotating gathering device be provided above the picking device that is able to grasp plants independent of rows and to introduce them into the picking channel. The gathering device conducts the plant preferably also into the slot of a picking assembly, in case it is not automatically drawn in by the latter. Such a gathering device may be provided with a number of fingers that extend generally in the radial direction. As a rule the number of fingers coincides with the number of picking assemblies. Preferably the fingers are curved in the trailing direction, so that their leading surface is provided with a rejecting conveying performance. In this way the stalks of the plants are forced to circulate about the points of the fingers and come into contact with their trailing surface, which, for its part, aggressively conveys them to the interior. The gathering device is arranged with an appropriate diameter to grasp plants over an adequate operating width to draw them in independent of rows. In order to increase the operating width further, stalk dividers may be arranged ahead of the gathering and picking arrangement.
Preferably the gathering device is arranged in such a way that it is able to transport the plant over the entire effective length of the picking channel. As a rule the transport of the plant through the picking channel is performed together with the picking roll, which also holds the plant and transports it over the length of the picking channel on the basis of its rotation about the second axis.
A sheet metal stripper plate into which the picking channel is formed, is preferably arranged above the picking roll. As a rule it is stationary. The gathering device is located appropriately above the sheet metal stripper plate. For reasons of better design and to improve the transport of the plants an obvious solution is to have the gathering device and the retaining element of the picking roll rotate about coaxial axes.
As already explained, the picking roll transports the plant along a circular path during its rotation about the second axis. Thereby the plant is drawn through the picking channel. In order to avoid an undesirable bending of the plant, it is proposed that the picking channel also extend in an arc, in particular, corresponding to the path of the picking assemblies in a circular arc.
The gathering and picking unit of the present invention is used on harvesting assemblies. Harvesting assemblies of this type are called pickers as they separate the useful part of the stalk. Such machines are used to harvest corn and sunflowers.
With relatively wide pickers an obvious solution is to provide gathering and picking units that are symmetrical to each other on both sides of a line of symmetry that coincides with the centerline of the harvesting assembly. The symmetry permits a uniform distribution of the weight that avoids undesirable torques transmitted to the machine to which the crop recovery arrangement is fastened.
Although the gathering and picking unit operates independently of rows, it may be useful to attach to a harvesting assembly so that is can be mounted in different transverse positions. If necessary the sheet metal stripper plates of adjacent gathering and picking arrangements may be overlapped so that no undesirable gaps develop between them upon sliding to the side. Alternatively, or in addition, additional sheet metal cover plates may cover any gaps remaining between adjacent gathering and picking arrangements.
Finally, adjacent gathering and picking arrangements attached at varying heights are conceivable, in order to reduce the minimum spacing between units.

Gathering and picking unit for a harvesting assembly


In accordance with an embodiment, a manufacturing method of a semiconductor device includes: respectively forming a first layer and a second layer at the top of a protruding portion and at the bottom of a depressed portion of a treatment target having protrusions/depressions in such a manner that sidewalls of the protruding portion is exposed, supplying a treatment liquid to the treatment target having the first layer and the second layer, bringing a catalyst into contact with or closer to the first layer and thereby increasing the dissolution rate of the first layer in dissolving into the treatment liquid and dissolving the first layer into the treatment liquid, and sequentially dissolving the protruding portion and the second layer into the treatment liquid after the dissolution of the first layer.

Recently, in the manufacture of a semiconductor device, a chemical mechanical polishing (hereinafter briefly referred to as "CMP") method has been widely used to flatten an insulating film, a metallic film, or a polycrystalline silicon film which is formed to fill a trench formed in a substrate. In the CMP method a chemical action resulting from a chemical is combined with a mechanical action resulting from abrasive grains to flatten a treatment target surface, specifically by supplying, onto an abrasive cloth, a polishing agent (slurry) including the abrasive grains and the chemical and bringing a treatment target into contact with the abrasive cloth.
However, the CMP method has a problem in that mechanical damage by the abrasive grains could not be avoided and a polishing damage might be caused to a treatment target surface.

Manufacturing method of semiconductor device


A conductive elastomer composition having rubber-like elasticity and flexibility and thermoplastic-resin-like moldability and realizing a high conductivity. The conductive elastomer composition includes a thermoplastic elastomer composition (A) containing a compound (A1) composed of a thermoplastic resin and/or a thermoplastic elastomer and a compound (A2), composed of a crosslinkable rubber and/or a crosslinkable thermoplastic elastomer, dispersed in the compound (A1) by dynamically crosslinking the compound (A2); and an ionic-conductive agent (B), containing a metal salt and a polyether-containing block copolymer resin, dispersed in the thermoplastic elastomer composition (A). The conductive elastomer composition may contain carbon black (C).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a conductive elastomer composition, a method of producing it, and conductive members composed of the conductive elastomer composition. More particularly, the conductive elastomer composition is used suitably for conductive members such as conductive belts including a transfer belt and conductive rollers including a transfer roller, a driving roller, a developing roller, and a charging roller for a copying machine, a printer, and the like. The present invention is intended to allow the conductive elastomer composition to have rubber-like durability, elasticity, and flexibility, resin-like moldability, and a low electric resistance by improving an ionic-conductive agent to be contained in the conductive elastomer composition.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is necessary that conductive members such as conductive belts including a transfer belt and conductive rollers including a transfer roller, a driving roller, a developing roller, and a charging roller for a copying machine, a printer, and the like have an appropriate stable electric resistance value.
As a method of imparting electric conductivity to the conductive member of this kind, the following two methods are known: In one of them, an electroconductive polymer composition containing a conductive filler such as powder of metal oxide or carbon black is used; and in the other method, an ionic-conductive polymer such as urethane rubber, acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber (NBR), and epichlorohidrin rubber is used.
In the case where the electroconductive polymer composition is used, there is a region in which an electric resistance changes rapidly owing to a slight change of an addition amount of a conductive filler. Thus it is very difficult to control the electric resistance. In addition, because it is difficult to disperse the conductive filler uniformly in the polymer composition, an electric resistance value has variations in the circumferential and widthwise directions of the conductive roller. Further because the electric resistance value of the conductive roller depends on an applied voltage, the conductive roller does not have a constant electric resistance value.
Thus as the recent tendency, a conductive member composed of the ionic-conductive polymer is used rather than a roller composed of the electroconductive polymer in a copying machine and a printer required to form a high-image quality by using digital image processing technique and color image processing technique and save energy. Various ionic-conductive polymers have been proposed.
For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.8-34929, to enhance ionic conductivity and mechanical strength of the ionic-conductive polymer, there is disclosed the polymeric solid electrolyte. The low-polarity polymeric phase of the polymeric solid electrolyte has a crosslinking structure. The polymeric component of the low-polarity polymeric phase has double bonds. A part of the double bonds cleaves to form an intramolecular or intermolecular crosslinking.
In Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.8-183866, there is disclosed a sheet composed of the thermoplastic elastomer containing the olefin thermoplastic elastomer used as its main component and the permanent antistatic agent and a method of producing the sheet composed of the thermoplastic elastomer. The sheet is developed to be recycled and to prevent electrical troubles from occurring.
However, the polymeric solid electrolyte disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.8-34929 has problems that the material cost and the producing cost are high, and both a low compression strain and thermoplasticity cannot be realized.
In the sheet disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.8-183866, the permanent antistatic agent is contained in the olefin thermoplastic elastomer not to reduce the volume resistivity of the sheet but to lower the surface resistance value to thereby realize antistatic performance. Thus the sheet has a high electric resistance. On the basis of the fundamental components (ultraviolet ray-absorbing agent, HALS, and colorant not affecting compression set and conductivity are not used) of the example 3 shown in table 1, a conductive specimen of the comparison example 4 shown in table 2 has been formed as an experiment. The result was that the specimen had a large compression set and did not have a preferable property value. An antistatic agent containing an electrically conductive plasticizer is conceivable. However, such an antistatic agent damages mechanical property of the sheet composed of the thermoplastic elastomer, deteriorates the compression set thereof, and stains a photosensitive member. Thus the sheet disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.8-183866 cannot be used for the conductive member for a copying machine and the like.
The ionic-conductive polymer practically used for the conductive member is composed mainly of a vulcanized rubber composition which cannot be recycled. It is conceivable to use not the vulcanized rubber composition but a chlorine-containing thermoplastic elastomer. However, the chlorine-containing thermoplastic elastomer has a large compression set and stains the photosensitive member. Further there is a fear that the chlorine-containing thermoplastic elastomer generates a harmful gas such as hydrogen chloride and dioxine when it burns. People are now very conscious of environmental problems. Thus the chlorine-containing thermoplastic elastomer has a problem in handling it when it is discarded.

Conductive elastomer composition and method of producing same


The invention relates to a thin micro reforming apparatus used in a fuel cell system with decreased back pressure in an evaporator thereof. In the reforming apparatus, a substrate has a flow path therein and a fuel inlet portion for introducing fuel into the flow path of the substrate. An evaporator includes a gas expansion part which gasifies the liquid fuel and a back pressure accommodation part which accommodates back pressure during the gasification to block the influence of the back pressure to the fuel inlet portion. A reformer has a flow path formed downstream of the evaporator, reforming fuel into hydrogen gas via heat absorption reaction. A CO remover has a flow path formed downstream of the reformer, removing CO gas contained in the hydrogen gas via heat generation reaction. A cover is attached to an upper part of the substrate to seal the substrate from the external environment.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a thin micro reforming apparatus. More particularly, the invention relates to a thin micro reforming apparatus which has a fuel inlet portion in a central portion thereof to supply drops of liquid fuel into an evaporator thereof and allows the liquid fuel to expand in a large space in the evaporator, thereby suppressing the increase of back pressure occurring during the evaporation of the liquid fuel. This prevents backflow of the fuel due to the back pressure and thus there is no need to increase the injection pressure of the fuel and induces good gas flow through the flow paths of the reforming apparatus, ultimately enhancing the reforming capacity of the reforming apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, there have been increased uses of portable small-sized electronic devices including mobile phones, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), digital cameras, notebook computers and the like. In particular, since the launch of Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) through the mobile phones, the portable small-sized terminals are required to have increased power capacity. Lithium ion secondary batteries used in general to date, which have capacity for two-hour viewing of DMB, are undergoing efforts to improve their capacity, but there have been growing expectations on small-sized fuel cells for a more fundamental solution.
In order to realize such a small-sized fuel cell, either direct methanol type in which methanol is directly supplied to a fuel electrode or reformed hydrogen fuel cell (RHFC) type in which hydrogen is extracted from methanol and supplied to a fuel electrode can be adopted. The RHFC type uses hydrogen as fuel as in Polymer Electrode Membrane (PEM) type, thus having advantages in terms of output, power capacity per volume and in that it requires no reactants besides water. However, the method requires a reformer, thus having a disadvantage for miniaturization.
In order for the fuel cell system to obtain high power output density, a reformer is required to convert liquid fuel into gaseous fuel such as hydrogen gas. The reformer includes an evaporating part for gasifying methanol, a reforming part for converting methanol into hydrogen via catalytic reaction at a temperature from 250° C. to 290° C., and a CO removing part for removing CO, a byproduct. In the reforming part, heat absorption reaction takes place and the temperature should be maintained from 250° C. to 290° C. Also in the CO removing part, the temperature should be maintained at about 170° C. to 200° C. to allow effective reaction.
As a conventional example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-048701 discloses a reforming apparatus 200 as shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, such a conventional micro reforming apparatus 200 has an inner cavity 204 in an evaporating chamber 202 and a heater 206 for evaporation disposed in the cavity 204. The cavity 204 has a fuel spray 208 therein, which sprays a mixed liquid 210 of the fuel, methyl alcohol and water inside the cavity 204. The sprayed mixed liquid fuel 210 is heated by the heater 206 and evaporated. The gas produced by gasifying the mixed liquid 210 flows through a micro channel 212 and is reformed into hydrogen and carbon dioxide by a reforming catalyst 214 formed in the micro channel 212.
The conventional method is advantageous in that the fuel spray 208 provided at a fuel inlet portion sprays the fuel to increase the surface area of the fuel being reformed, thereby expediting the evaporation. Also, the fuel spray 208 sprays the fuel in the form of droplets, thereby increasing the ratio of the surface area of the fuel to the volume of the fuel. This allows efficient evaporation of the fuel given the same amount of heat.
However, the conventional technology entails burden of separate installation of the fuel spray 208 and a separate controller for regulating the amount of the fuel sprayed by the fuel spray 208. Therefore, the conventional structure is complex and has difficulty in miniaturization.
FIG. 2 illustrates another conventional reforming apparatus 250 suggested in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-166453. In this conventional technology, a fuel cell is miniaturized to enable efficient reformation of a large amount of fuel with a micro reforming apparatus. Also, a silicon substrate 252 has micro channels 254 and a reforming space 256 formed therein. Catalysts are formed in the micro channels 254 and the reforming space 256 to reform hydrocarbon fuel and generate hydrogen. The micro channels 254 and the reforming space 256 are covered by a cover plate 260.
However, in such a conventional reforming apparatus 250, liquid fuel expands as it is gasified, and thus a large-capacity, high-pressure pump (not shown) is required to inject the fuel into the channels 254.
FIG. 3 illustrates further another conventional reforming apparatus 350 suggested in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-89748. In this conventional technology, a flow path is expanded at a side of a substrate 351 to provide a gassifier 353. A reformer 354 and a CO remover 355 are disposed successively downstream of the gassifier 353, and a hydrogen outlet 360 is formed downstream of the CO remover 355. Even though the flow path is expanded in the gassifier 353, the conventional technology does not adequately address the problem of back pressure occurring as the liquid fuel is gasified and expanded.
Therefore, the conventional reforming apparatuses have disadvantages in that as the fuel is converted to gas in the evaporator, the volume of the fuel expands instantaneously and the back pressure has an influence toward the fuel inlet portion to interfere with the inflow of the fuel. Therefore, there is a need in the art for a thin micro reformer having an improved structure of the evaporator to allow fuel inflow at low pressure, and miniaturized with excellent reforming capacity.

Thin micro reforming apparatus having reduced back pressure in evaporator thereof


A diagram manager has a diagram handler and a lineage handler.

There exist several metadata modeling tools for relational and multidimensional data sources. Those tools provide user interface components to help users to design and analyze their metadata models. Those user interface components show database tables and the joins between them in a diagram.
Such a diagram is useful to provide an "at a glance" understanding of the metadata layout. It however becomes less useful as the number of nodes, e.g., tables, in the diagram increases.
When this type of diagram needs to show more than 30 nodes, in many cases, scrolling of the screen becomes necessary to view several nodes. Thus, it becomes difficult to find nodes of interest and to create relationships between desired nodes.
There is a user interface that shows a selected node and the nodes directly connected to it. This type of view helps the user somewhat in getting a better understanding of parts of the model. It however provides a read-only and static view, whose functionality is limited.
It is therefore desirable to provide a mechanism to show nodes in a better manner such that the user can manage the nodes easily.

Method of presenting lineage diagrams representing query plans

Abstract: The diagram handler presents to a user a diagram representing relations between query subjects in a metadata model. The lineage handler changes presentation of a selected query subject to show one or more corresponding query subjects that are represented by the selected query subject.

International Business Machines Corporation