The invention provides a non-contact charging equipment having high transmission efficiency and used to supply electric power on non-contact basis by electromagnetic induction, whereby it comprises a plurality of coils on a planar magnetically soft material on each of power transmitting and power receiving sides, whereby the coils on the power transmitting side and the power receiving side are arranged at opposed positions and with a spacing so that magnetic fluxes generated by adjacent coils are directed in reverse directions, the magnetically soft material in planar shape on the power receiving side is arranged directly or via an insulating member on a battery can, and heat generated on the power receiving side is radiated by the battery can.

The present invention relates to a non-contact charging equipment for transmitting electric power from a charger to a battery on non-contact basis by electromagnetic induction, and in particular to a non-contact charging equipment for efficiently transmitting electric power.
Charging to a secondary battery to be used as power source for portable devices has been generally performed by transmitting electric power through conductive contact between metallic contact and contact of a charger on a battery pack or on a battery pack mounted on a device.
However, there have been problems in that poor conductive contact occurs or charging cannot be achieved due to oxidation of the metal of the contact or due to attachment of dust or oil, and abnormal heating occurs at the contact. Also, accidents are sometimes caused by electrostatic destruction of electronic components inside the device due to contact of metal contact with human body or other electrically charged object.
Further, there have been problems such as complicated structure of the equipment because waterproof construction must be adopted when conductive contact is provided on the surface of the equipment.
To solve the above problems, there has been proposed a method to supply electric power from the transmitting side to the receiving side using electromagnetic induction between coils provided on both the power transmitting side and the power receiving side, thus without replying on conductive connection through contacts.
In a transmission equipment of charging current using electromagnetic induction, coils wound on a core such as ferrite core have been used. However, transmission efficiency is lower despite of large volume and heavy weight of the equipment, and output is about 2 W and there is also problem of heating.
To overcome these problems, an equipment having high transmission efficiency combining a magnetically soft material and a flat-faced spiral coil has been proposed instead of the coil wound on ferrite core, and this is described as a cordless power station in JP-A-7-231586.
However, even in this type of equipment, battery is sometimes arranged away from the coil on the power receiving side, and the measures to prevent excessive heating caused by coil have also been not very satisfactory.
In particular, it is generally practiced to use metal such as iron or its alloy as a battery can, and it is necessary to arrange the battery away from magnetic line of force for receiving electric power. Specifically, when it is desired to increase electric power for charging, magnetic force on the power transmitting side is also increased. As a result, large space is required on the side of the portable device, and it is considered as difficult to arrange it in a battery pack.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a non-contact charging equipment for supplying electric power from power transmitting side to power receiving side on non-contact basis by electromagnetic induction, by which it is possible to transmit and receive electric power efficiently and to suppress heating, and also to provide an equipment where the equipment on the power receiving side is arranged in a battery pack.

Non-contact battery charging equipment using a soft magnetic plate


Provided is a semiconductor device including a semiconductor substrate which includes a first semiconductor layer of a first conductivity and a pair of second semiconductor layers disposed on the first semiconductor layer and spaced apart from each other to form a trench therebetween, wherein the second semiconductor layer includes a first impurity-diffused region of the first conductivity extending from a lower surface toward an upper surface of the second semiconductor layer, and a second impurity-diffused region of a second conductivity which extends from the lower surface toward the upper surface and is adjacent to the first impurity-diffused region, an insulating layer covering a sidewall of the trench, and a cap layer which is in contact with the semiconductor substrate and covers an opening of the trench to form an enclosed space in the trench, a material of the cap layer being almost the same as that of the semiconductor substrate.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Trench isolation has widely been used in the field of semiconductor devices. Trench isolation is utilized for isolation of a MOS (Metal Oxide Semiconductor) transistor, bipolar transistor, and the like.
One of trench isolation techniques is to cover the opening of a trench with a cap layer made of an insulator and form an airtight space in the trench. This technique is disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2-119238. According to this technique, the trench is filled with gas whose relative dielectric constant is low. This technique is effective particularly in a high voltage device.
However, the present inventors have found that a cap layer formed by the prior art is readily destructed in a heat treatment such as activation annealing.


A tamper resistant combination lock including a housing having a through bore receiving a locking plunger with a plurality of integral-spaced obstructions thereon, the housing having a plurality of transverse slots each receiving one of two identical blocking slides that snap between three distinct positions, one passing the obstructions and plunger, and two blocking the obstructions and plunger. Lock picking is minimized by flexible fingers in the slides that engage the plunger obstructions when the slides are in the plunger passing position to simulate the slide blocking positions as the lock picker tugs the plunger.

Combination locks have, of course, achieved considerable commercial success, but attempts to manufacture and market relatively inexpensive locks have been quite different largely because very inexpensive locks are fairly simple to pick. While the present lock is exemplified as an aftermarket combination lock for pistol cases, the lock has other low costs applications, and hence, the prior art is equally as broad.
A preliminary patentability search resulted in the following collection of U.S. Pat. Nos.: Enholm, 428,387; Battershell, 1,733,772; Legat, 1,898,974; Ponder, 2,740,530; Nemsky, 3,155,230; Esquibel, et al., 3,514,981; Feinberg, 3,597,945; Pedro, 3,865,166; Jones, Re. 30,139; Ippolito, et al., 4,187,703; Gordon, 4,463,847; Terada, et al., 5,081,855; Jarboe, 5,125,661; and Blanchard, 5,322,200.
The Ippolito, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,187,703, shows a locking system applied to an envelope defined by a pair of spaced plates, holding a numismatic coin. The Ippolito device has a slide plate 14 with cross slots 16 transversely positioned away from a central longitudinal slot 18. The transversely movable slides are all identical and can be positioned either in a right-hand or left-hand orientation as seen in FIG. 9. This arrangement, however, produces only two positions for each switch and, therefore, yields few combinations.
The Jarboe, U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,661, discloses a plunger-type locking mechanism, but there is really no logic in the lock combination because if all the plungers are depressed, the plunger 19 can be removed regardless of the position of blocks 35. Thus, it is not really a true combination lock at all.
The Esquibel, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,514,981, discloses a plunger-type locking mechanism for a box wherein a locking bar 14 is held or released by a plurality of slide bars 13 that have second slots 30 all positioned the same distance from the inner ends of the bars, and first slots 29 positioned in varying locations to correspond to one of the indicia on area 33 of the projecting ends of the bars 13. When the bars are slid to the appropriate indicia, the slots 29 permit the release of bars 14. The Esquibel, et al. lock has a total of only 48 combinations possible with five bars 13.
It is a primary object of the present invention to ameliorate the problems noted in the prior art above and provide a low cost combination lock that is considerably more tamper-proof than prior art constructions while at the same time having a greater number of possible combinations.


A circuit to supply power to a detachable load incorporates a power source, a power converter and an array of capacitors. Upon connection of the detachable load, the capacitors of the array of capacitors are automatically configured into a desired series, parallel or combination series and parallel configuration of interconnections to accommodate limitations in the voltage ranges of the capacitors in being coupled to the load and/or to achieve other desired characteristics of electrical power to be provided to the load. Further, upon connection of the detachable load, a limit on current flow imposed by the power converter may be set to a desired level to achieve desired characteristics of electrical power to be provided to the load and/or desired characteristics of charging and discharging behaviors of the array of capacitors.

This description relates to automatic configuration of capacitors and power converters in a power source.
Power converters and capacitors are used to supply power to a load. In some cases, capacitors using various techniques to achieve a very high charge storage capacity in a relatively small volume (i.e., "super capacitors" or "ultra capacitors") are used. Although the higher capacities in smaller physical forms are deemed desirable, such capacitors are also noted for having a very limiting maximum voltage across the anode and cathode. It is not uncommon for super capacitors or ultra capacitors to have a maximum permissible voltage between the anode and cathode of approximately 2.5 volts. This is highly limiting in comparison to, for example, some varieties of electrolytic capacitors which may permit a voltage as high as hundreds of volts.
Highly limiting maximum voltages for such capacitors (such as 2.5 volts) can become even more problematic where such capacitors prove to have an tendency for building up a charge over time from exposure to various electrical environments, since such capacitors will likely build up a charge at its maximum voltage. This tendency can further limit the manner in which such a capacitor is used, since such a capacitor having a maximum voltage of 2.5 volts may effectively be useable only at or near that voltage, rather than throughout a full range of voltages from 0 to 2.5 volts (i.e., from zero to its maximum voltage).


A work piece conveyor whose structure is simplified and downsized with the intention of achieving cost reduction, an improved degree of freedom in setting a motion pattern and improved productive efficiency. The workpiece conveyor is such that a cross bar carrier for supporting a cross bar provided with vacuum cups is movably attached, through a linear movement mechanism, to a feed lever which is oscillating-driven along a workpiece conveying direction, thereby making the relative distance between the center of oscillation of the rocking element and the cross bar variable.

Typical press lines such as transfer presses and tandem press lines are provided with workpiece conveyors for transferring workpieces into and out of work stations in synchronization with a series of multiple press work operations.
As such workpiece conveyers, there has been proposed a workpiece conveyor (transfer feeder) for use in a transfer press in Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 6-262280 filed by the present applicant. The workpiece conveyor 200 disclosed in this publication comprises, as shown in FIG. 24, a pair of lift beams 201 disposed side by side, extending in a workpiece conveying direction T; a plurality of cross bar carriers 202 aligned at intervals in the workpiece conveying direction T, being movably supported by these lift beams 201; cross bars 203 each extending in a direction perpendicular to the workpiece conveying direction T between an opposed pair of cross bar carriers 202. With vacuum cups (not shown) attached to the cross bars 203, a workpiece (not shown) is held by adsorption and conveyed.
In the workpiece conveyor 200, the lift beams 201 are suspended from above through lift mechanisms each having a servo motor 204 as a driving source. The adjacent cross bar carriers 202 aligned side by side in the workpiece conveying direction T are connected by a coupling rod 205, and the most downstream cross bar carrier 202 is connected to the distal end of a cam lever 207 through a coupling rod 206. A feed cam 208 rotatable by a power extracted from the press body is in contact with the cam lever 207. The feed cam 208 is rotated while the lift beams 201 being vertically moved by activation of the servo motors 204, so that the cam lever 207 is oscillated, thereby reciprocating all the cross bar carriers 202 at the same time in the workpiece conveying direction T. In this way, the movements in the vertical direction and in the workpiece conveying direction T are combined into a synthetic movement to cause the motion of the cross bars 203, which allows the workpiece to be transferred between the dies of the adjacent presses.
Another workpiece conveyor has been proposed in German Patent Application No. 19851743. As shown in FIG. 25, the workpiece conveyor 210 disclosed in this publication is designed such that a pair of uprights 211 are disposed at the right and left when viewed in the workpiece conveying direction T, opposing to each other with a specified spacing, and a cross bar 213 is disposed in the space between the pair of uprights 211, the cross bar 213 having a plurality of vacuum cups 212 for retaining a workpiece (not shown) suspended therefrom during a delivery of the workpiece from an upstream work station to a downstream work station. The workpiece conveyor 210 has, in combination, an oscillation driving unit 214 for rocking the cross bar 213 and an up-and-down driving unit 215 for moving the cross bar 213 up and down.
The oscillation driving unit 214 comprises a pair of arms 216 for supporting both ends of the cross bar 213 being held perpendicularly to the workpiece conveying direction T; carriages 217 each of which is supported by its associated upright 211 so as to be freely movable in a vertical direction and pivotally supports the proximal end of its associated arm 216; carriages 218 each slidably supported by its associated carriage 217; servo motors 219 each attached to its associated carriage 218; and guide rods 220 each of which has a proximal end to which a power transmission shaft 220a is secured and a distal end which is pivotally attached to the substantial center of its associated arm 216, the power transmission shaft 220a being connected to the output shaft of its associated servo motor 219 through a power transmission mechanism composed of bevel gears etc. The oscillation driving unit 214 is designed such that the relative movement of the carriages 217 and 218 allows each guide rod 220 to pivot about the power transmission shaft 220a, being driven by the servo motor 219, and each arm 216 is oscillated around its pivotal point by torque from the guide rod 220.
The up-and-down driving unit 215 is composed of servo motors 221 and screw mechanisms 222. Each screw mechanism 222 is interposed between its associated servo motor 221 and carriage 218, for converting the torque of the servo motor 221 into a linear motion force. In the up-and-down driving unit 215, the carriages 218 are moved up and down by activation of the servo motors 221 to move the entire oscillation driving unit 214 upward and downward. The up-and-down driving unit 215 has air-type balance cylinders 223 for imparting an upward energizing force to the carriages 218.
Changes in the height of the cross bar 213 caused by the oscillation of the arms 216 driven by the servo motors 219 are substantially compensated by the upward/downward movement caused by the servo motors 221, and the cross bar 213 is arbitrarily moved upward and downward in some cases, so that the motion indicated by broken line M in FIG. 25 is made.
The above-cited German Patent Application No. 19851743 has proposed a workpiece conveyor 230 as another embodiment, which comprises, as shown in FIG. 26, a pair of arms 232 pivotally supported by a pair of brackets 231 at their proximal ends, the brackets 231 being fixed to the bed located between two work stations so as to be spaced at a specified distance in a direction perpendicular to the workpiece conveying direction T. Pivotally attached to the distal ends of the pair of arms 232 is the cross bar 213 which is laterally held so as to extend in a direction perpendicular to the workpiece conveying direction T. In the workpiece conveyor 230 of this embodiment, each of the pair of arms 232 is oscillated around its pivotal point located at the proximal end thereof by activation of an oscillation driving unit 233 attached to each bracket 231. Each arm 232 is of a nested-structure and designed to be expanded and contracted in a longitudinal direction by an expansion/contraction driving unit (not shown) housed in the arm 232. The workpiece conveyor 230 includes a horizontal condition keeping system (not shown) for keeping a workpiece (not shown) in a horizontal condition, and this horizontal condition keeping system has first toothed pulleys secured to the cross bar 213; second toothed pulleys mounted at the proximal ends of the arms 232; and a toothed belt wound around each pair of first and second toothed pulleys. By unrotatably fixing the second toothed pulleys, the workpiece can be maintained in a horizontal condition even when the pair of arms 232 oscillate.
Changes in the height of the cross bar 213 caused by the oscillation of the arms 232 driven by the oscillation driving unit 233 are substantially compensated by proper expansion/contraction of the arms 232 and the cross bar 213 is arbitrarily moved upward and downward in some cases, whereby a motion similar to the motion M (See FIG. 25) of the workpiece conveyor 210 described earlier can be obtained.
The robot type and the loader/unloader type have been known as workpiece conveyors for use in a tandem press line. In the robot type workpiece conveyors, an articulated handling robot is placed between every adjacent pair of press machines, and a workpiece is carried out of a preceding press work station and carried into a succeeding press work station, using the handling robots. The robot type workpiece conveyors have the advantage of setting the trajectory of carrying-out and carrying-in of a workpiece in conformity to the dies. In contrast with this, the loader/unloader type workpiece conveyors are designed such that a loader and unloader of a link structure are provided for the upstream side face and downstream side face, respectively, of each press machine and a shuttle carriage is provided between the upstream unloader and the downstream loader. Carrying-out and carrying-in of a workpiece with respect to the press machine body are done by the unloader and the loader respectively and the delivery of the workpiece to the next station is done by the shuttle carriage.
Regarding the above-described conventional workpiece conveyors for a transfer press, the workpiece conveyor 200 disclosed in Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 6-262280 is designed to drive all the cross bar carriers 202 at the same time by the driving means composed of the cam mechanism and link mechanism and therefore the driving system becomes heavy, thick, long, bulky and complex, resulting in poor visibility. In addition, the rigidity of the lift beams 201 needs to be increased in order to ensure positioning accuracy, which unavoidably leads to an increase in the weight of the lift beams 201. For the upward and downward movement of the cross bars 202, it is necessary to entirely move the lift beams 201 up and down, so that large-sized servo motors are needed as the servo motors 204 and, in consequence, the cost as well as the size of the whole system is inevitably increased. Further, since the motions of the cross bars 203 with respect to the workpiece conveying direction T at all the work stations are dependent on the feed cam 208, restrains are placed on setting of the optimum motion pattern for each work station, accompanied with a drop in the degree of freedom.
The workpiece conveyor 210 of German Patent Application No. 19851743 has revealed such a problem that the oscillation driving unit 214 and its peripherals are complex in structure. Additionally, the workpiece conveyor 210 cannot be installed in places where the uprights 211 are not provided and therefore its installation place is limited. Although the size of the servo motors 221 is reduced by the provision of the balance cylinder 223, complicated construction is unavoidably involved.
In the workpiece conveyor 230 according to the second embodiment of German Patent Application No. 19851743, although the cross bar 213 is attached to the distal ends of the pair of expandable/contractible arms 232 that are driven to oscillate along the workpiece conveying direction T and the relative distance between the cross bar 213 and each arm 232 is varied by the expansion and contraction of the pair of arms 232, the minimum length (the length when the arms 232 are fully contracted) of the arms 232 that is inevitably dependent of their structure is relatively long because of the nested-structure of the arms 232, which leads to the problem that the zone within which the cross bar 213 can move is comparatively narrow. According to German Patent Application No. 19851743, the horizontal condition keeping system has the first toothed pulleys secured to the cross bar 213; the second toothed pulleys mounted on the proximal ends of the arms 232; and a toothed belt wound around each pair of first and second toothed pulleys, and even when the pair of arms 232 oscillate, the workpiece can be kept in a horizontal condition, thanks to the second toothed pulleys secured so as to be unrotatable. However, the structure, in which a toothed belt is wound around each pair of first and second toothed pulleys, has presented such a doubt that the pair of arms cannot be expanded and when the pair of arms are contracted, the toothed belt is slackened with the result that the system cannot function properly. No technique for clearing up such a doubt is described in German Patent Application No. 19851743.
Regarding the workpiece conveyors used in a tandem press line, the robot type workpiece conveyors present the problem that if adjacent press machines are apart a long distance, the arm length between the joints needs to be increased in proportion to the distance between the adjacent press machines and therefore the driving unit for each joint is required to have higher output power, which progressively increases the whole size of the workpiece conveyor. On the other hand, if the distance between the adjacent press machines is short, it becomes very difficult to set a workpiece trajectory so as to avoid interference between the workpiece and the uprights etc. In the case of the loader/unloader type workpiece conveyors, it is required to install a shuttle carriage between every adjacent pair of press machines, so that a large scale system and, in consequence, a large installation space are involved. In addition, since the workpiece needs to be transferred between the shuttle carriage and the work station, there is a possibility that a delivery error may occur. As described above, a large-scale system structure is unavoidably involved in any of the above conventional workpiece conveyors and therefore they have difficulties in achieving increased handling speed and productive efficiency.
As an attempt to solve the above problems, the present applicant has already proposed a workpiece conveyor for use in a tandem press line in the earlier invention (Japanese Patent Application No. 2001-400849), which provides high workpiece delivery speed, with relatively slim configuration. As illustrated in FIGS. 27(a), 27(b), the workpiece conveyor 240 of this earlier invention is designed to have lift beams 241 extending in the workpiece conveying direction T; carriers 242 and sub carriers 243 which are movable along the longitudinal direction of the lift beams 241; and a cross bar 245 with vacuum cups 244 disposed between the right and left pair of sub carriers 243 and serving as a workpiece holding means.
In the workpiece conveyor 240 of the earlier invention, the lift beams 241 are upwardly and downwardly moved by activation of lift axis servo motors 246, thereby upwardly and downwardly moving the vacuum cups 244 through the carriers 242, the sub carriers 243 and the cross bar 245. By moving the carriers 242 in the longitudinal direction of the lift beams 241 by activation of linear motors (not shown) each interposed between a lift beam 241 and a carrier 242 and making the sub carriers 243 offset in the moving direction of the carriers 242 by linear motors (not shown) each interposed between a carrier 242 and a sub carrier 243, the cross bar 245 and the vacuum cups 244 are moved in the workpiece conveying direction T. In this way, two orthogonal drive axis positions (more particularly, the position with respect to the vertical direction and/or the position with respect to the workpiece conveying direction T) are controlled, thereby controlling the moving trajectory of the vacuum cups 244, in other words, the trajectory of conveyance of the workpiece W.
The workpiece conveyor 240 of the earlier invention, however, has proved unsuccessful in overcoming the foregoing drawbacks. Specifically, the rigidity of the lift beams 241 needs to be increased in order to achieve high positioning accuracy, resulting in an increase in the size of the lift beams 241, and the lift beams 241 need to be entirely moved up and down when moving the cross bar 245 up and down so that large-sized servo motors are necessary as the servo motors 246, increasing the whole size of the system and the cost as a logical consequence. In addition, since the ends of each lift beam 241 are located within the zone of the die carry-in-and-out passage, replacement of the die is required to be carried out after the lift beams 241 are once lifted out of the die carry-in-and-out passage, which leads to poor productive efficiency.
The present invention is directed to overcoming the above shortcomings and a primary object of the invention is therefore to provide a workpiece conveyor for a press line, which has a simple small-sized structure thereby providing cost reduction, and offers an increased degree of freedom in setting a motion pattern and improved productive efficiency.


The present invention relates to a composition and uses thereof for treatment of damaged tissue comprising at least one essential amino acid in L form and at least one essential lipid; wherein the composition is administered to a mammal suffering from severe tissue damage. The invention further relates to a composition and uses thereof comprising a mixture of one or more free L-amino acids in which the molar ratio of the free L-amino acids corresponds to the molar ratio of amino components in a mammalian tissue protein; and at least one essential lipid.

The present invention is useful for the treatment of many disorders, particularly tissue or organ failure (such as kidney or liver failure), corneal disorders, gastrointestinal disorders, and dermatological disorders. At present, many of the methods of therapy for these disorders involve invasive surgical methods, such as organ transplant in the case of extreme tissue damage. Organ transplantation involves many risks, such as complications resulting from the anesthesia and surgical procedures, side effects from medications, such as cyclosporin, which help prevent organ rejection, and the risks of blood borne pathogens or shock if transfusions are needed. Moreover, organ transplantation is very costly. The present invention functions to treat disorders with a therapy that has minimal risk of complications, low cost, and no serious side-effects.
The present invention concerns useful therapeutic formulations having L-amino acids present in molar ratios corresponding to either (1) the ratio of the amino constituents in normal tissue or normal organs, or (2) the constituents found in a medicinal compound useful for treating a medical disorder. Furthermore, Applicants have discovered that relatively low amounts of this therapeutic formulation comprised of L-amino acids, such as a daily intake of about 10 grams or less for an adult, are sufficient for therapeutic effect. The invention can be used with many medical disorders, preferably to avert the need for organ transplants, to treat the biological rejection of a transplanted organ, or prophylactically after transplantation before rejection occurs to reduce the risk of organ rejection. In one embodiment, the therapeutic formulations of the invention are administered for pre-operative optimal care where considerations for surgery have not been finalized. In one embodiment, the therapeutic formulation components simulate the chemical components in cyclosporin.
Elemental feedings containing free amino acids are known as substitutes for milk allergies or milk intolerance, such as in infantile asthma, eczema, or colic. The following articles disclose such uses, all of which are incorporated in their entirety herein by reference: Beyond hydrolysates: Use of L-amino acid formula in resistant dietary protein-induced: intestinal disease in infants, Lake, A. M., J. Pediatrics, 131:658-660 (1997); Intolerance to protein hydrolsate infant formulas: An under-recognized cause of gastrointestinal symptoms in infants, Mack, D. R, Antonson, D. L., Corkins, M. R., Perry, D., and Kruger, R., J. Pediatrics, 131: 741-744 (1997); Allergy to extensively hydrolyzed cow milk proteins in infants: Identification and treatment with an amino acid-based formula, DeBoissieu, D., Matarazzo, P., and Dupont, C., J. Pediatrics, 131:741-744 (1997); and Efficacy and safety of hydrolyzed cow milk and amino acid-derived formula in infants with cow milk allergy, Solauri, E., Sutas, Y., Makinen-Kilgunen, S., Oja, S. S., Isosomppi, and R., Turjanmaa, K., J. Pediatrics, 131: 550-557 (1997). Elemental feedings are also known to be useful for treatment of gastrointestinal conditions, such as Crohn's disease (regional ileitis), as noted in the following article, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference: Treatment of active Crohn's disease by exclusion diet: East Anglian multicentre controlled trial, Riordan, A. M., Hunter J. O., Cowan, R. E., Crampton, J. R., Davidson, A. R., Dickinson, R. J., Dronfield, M. W., Ellows, I. W., Hishon, and S., Kerrigan, G. N., et al., Lancet, 342 (8880): 1131-34 (Nov. 6, 1993). In the present invention, much smaller dosages of L-amino acids are used than are found in elemental feedings. Furthermore, the inventive compositions contain specific molar ratios of L amino acids for a given disease or to mimic therapy with a given medicament.
The present invention is particularly useful for the medical treatment of congenital biliary atresia, which is the most common cause for pediatric liver transplantation. Congenital biliary atresia has been a fatal disease if not treated surgically with liver transplantation and the Kasai procedure. Past research suggests that congenital biliary atresia is caused by the following: (1) hypersensitivity immunopathy; (2) viral infection—hepatic; and (3) inflammation due to (1) and (2). Eosinophiles present in early stages are suggestive of possible hypersensitivity. In the article entitled Contribution of Hepatic Parenchymal and Nonparenchymal Cells to Hepatic Fibrogenesis in Biliary Atresia, Ramm, Grant A., Nair, Visalini G., Bridle, Kim R., and Shepherd, Ross, W., American Journal of Pathology, 13(2)L 27-35 (August 1998), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, it is disclosed that extrahepatic congenital biliary atresia is a severe neonatal liver disease resulting from a sclerosing cholangiopathy of unknown etiology. Although biliary obstruction may be surgically improved by a "Kasai" hepatoportoenterostomy, most patients still develop progressive hepatic fibrosis and cirrhosis. Although the source of increased collagen deposition is unclear, an article entitled Prognostic value of serum procollagen III peptide and type IV collagen in patients with congenital biliary atresia, Kobayashi H., Mayano, T., Horikoshi, K., and Tokita A., J. of Ped. Surgery, 33(1):112-4 (January 1998), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, discloses that progressive hepatic fibrosis, in spite of a successful Kasai procedure, is a major problem in patients with congenital biliary atresia. N-terminal procollagen-III peptide (PIIP) (which is a marker of fibrogenesis, and therefore, of ongoing inflammation), and type IV collagen (found in basement membrane extracellular matrix), were measured in patients with congenital biliary atresia to determine their potential as prognostic markers.
Long-term follow-up of patients with congenital biliary atresia successfully treated with hepatic portoenterostomy: The importance of sequential treatment, Lopez-Santamaria M., Gamez M., Marcia J. Diez-Pardo, J., Diaz, M., Leal, N., Lobato R., Martinez, L., Hierro, L., Camarena C., De La Vega A., Frauca E., Jara P., Barrocal, T., Prieto, C. Coretes P., and Tovar, J., Ped. Surgery International 13(56):327 (July 1998), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, discloses long-term follow-up of patients with congenital biliary atresia who have been treated with hepatic portoenterostomy. As to the importance of sequential treatment, the authors concluded that the natural outcome of extrahepatic biliary atresia is toward fibrosis, and cirrhosis, even in those cases successfully treated with hepatic portoenterostomy (HPE).
Urinary 7alpha-hydroxy-3-oxochol-4-en-24-oic and 3-oxochola-4,6-dien-24-oic acids in infants with cholestasis, Kimura, A., Suzuki, M., Murai, T., Kurosawa, T., Tohma, M., Sata M., Inoue, T., Hoshiyama, A., Nakashima E., Yamashita, Y, Fujisawa, T., and Kate, H., J. of Hepatology, 28(2):270-9 (February 1998), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, discloses that urinary 3-oxo-delta4 bile acids have been detected in infants who ultimately died of liver disease. The results reported in this article suggest that an increase in the 7 alpha-hydroxy-3-oxochol-4-en-24-oic acid and 3 oxochola-4,6-dien-24-oic acid in the urine of patients with hepatobiliary disease indicates a poor prognosis.
The first cooperative living-related donor liver transplantation performed by two separate institution teams: The Kanaqawa Liver Transplantation Program, Ohhama, Y., Shinkai, M., Fujita, S., Nishi, T., Yamamoto, H., Torigai, K., Takemiya, S., Sugimasa, Y., Akaike, M., and Tanabe, H., Surgery Today, 28(2): 173-7 (1998), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, is a study of living-related donor liver transplantations. The study involves five children with congenital biliary atresia who were given partial liver grafts obtained from their mothers in January, 1995.
Portal vein reconstruction in pediatric liver transplantation from living donors, Saad, S., Tanaka, K., Inomata, Y., Uamoto, S., Ozaki, N., Okajima, H., Egawa, H., and Yamacka, Y., Annals of Surgery, 227(2):275-81 (February 1998), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, discloses that in living related partial liver transplantations, portal vein anastomosis to the confluence, with or without the use of vein grafts, is an optional alternative to end-to-end reconstruction, especially in small children.
Soluble ICAM-1 (Sicam-1) in congenital biliary atresia, Minnick, K. E., Kreisberg, R., and Dillon, P. W., J. of Surgical Research, 76(1), 53-6 (April 1998), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, discloses that SICAM-1 (Soluble Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1) is markedly elevated in congenital biliary atresia, reflecting the immunopathology of the disease process, but it does not appear to correlate with markers of liver function. SICAM-1 may be useful in assessing the effects of immunomodulatory therapy.
Diverse morphology of biliary atresia in an animal model, Petersen, C., Grasshoff, S., and Luciano, L. Journal of Hepatology, 28(4): 603-7 (April 1998), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, discloses diverse morphology of congenital biliary atresia in an animal model and relates the findings to congenital biliary atresia in children. Extrahepatic congenital biliary atresia can be simulated in Balb/c-mice which have been infected with a rotavirus. Irreversible occlusion of the common bile duct is the result of an inflammatory process of the whole biliary tract. The observations in this animal model are analogous to observations of extrahepatic congenital biliary atresia in newborn children. This original model can be used to help determine the minimal therapeutic dose required of the present invention per animal weight of this nutrient therapy (similar concept to toxicologic studies for minimal lethal dosage). These studies suggest that most types of extrahepatic congenital biliary atresia in children can be mimicked in an animal model.
Neurodevelopmental outcome of young children with extrahepatic congenital biliary atresia 1 year after liver transplantation, Wayman, K. I., Cox, K. L., and Esquivel, C. O., Journal of Pediatrics, 131(6):894-8 (December 1997), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, stresses that urgent nutritional therapy is a preventive measure for development delay.
A case series of transplant recipients who despite immunosuppression developed inflammatory bowel disease, Riley, T. R., Schoen, R. E., Lee, R. G., and Rakela, J., American J. of Gastroenterology, 92(2):279-82 (February 1997), which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, discloses a small number of patients who developed inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn's Disease, after solid organ transplantation, one of which had pre-transplantation diagnosis of congenital biliary atresia, despite use of immunosuppressive therapy.
Congenital biliary atresia is similar to infantile asthma; the asthma and associated inflammation and edema occur in the tracheobronchial tree, whereas in congenital biliary atresia, the shock organ and associated inflammation and edema occur in the biliary tree. In a preferred embodiment, the method and composition of the present invention treats congenital biliary atresia without resulting in cirrhosis or inflamatory bowel disease, two common ailments suffered by children having received conventional therapy for congenital biliary atresia.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Therapeutic stem cell growth factor composition, anti-inflammatory composition, and uses thereof


An E-mail terminal device comprises a judging unit which judges whether or not a reply destination mail address extracted from an E-mail received is an address of a mailing list capable of broadcasting the same E-mail to a plurality of destinations at one time, an extracting unit which extracts, when the reply destination mail address is the address of the mailing list, at least one mail address contained in a text of the E-mail received, and a selecting module which displays the at least one extracted mail address as a candidate for a reply destination from which a specified reply destination can be selected. This construction makes it feasible to prevent a reply mail from being mis-transmitted to the mailing list.

The present invention relates generally to an electronic mail (E-mail) system, and more particularly to an E-mail terminal device, an E-mail transmitting method and a readable-by-computer medium recorded with a program which are capable of preventing an E-mail from being mis-replied (mis-transmitted).
E-mail services have spread most as applications and services in the communication networks over the recent years.
The E-mail system is defined as a technology of transmitting and receiving mail data (including character information, voice information and picture information) between E-mail terminal devices connected to communications networks, i.e., between computer terminals such as personal computers (PCs) and between data terminals such as workstations (WSs).
In the E-mail system for exchanging the mail data by way of the E-mails, a transmission of the E-mail from a certain E-mail terminal device to other E-mail terminal device involves the following processes. An address (a mail address) allocated to the other E-mail terminal device is designated, and the mail data are forwarded to the communications network. Then, an E-mail server (an E-mail post) connected to the communications network distributes the E-mails to predetermined mailboxes on the basis of the addresses (transmission destination addresses, or addresses of addressees). The E-mail terminal device on the receiving side takes the E-mail addressed to the device itself out of the mailbox, and this receive the mail data.
This type of E-mail system incorporates, in addition to basic functions such as creating the mail and transmitting/receiving the mail, additional functions such as replying, transferring, saving and further broadcasting functions. This broadcasting function is a service for designating a plurality of addressees (transmission destination addresses) or naming a certain group, and broadcasting at one time the same mail data to the plurality of addressees or to all users (members) of that group given a name at one time. This broadcast facilitates the transmission of the same E-mail to the plurality of other E-mail terminal devices from one single E-mail terminal device with reduced labors of the users.
Note that the existing E-mail system is constructed such that when utilizing the broadcasting function, E-mails as replies (such as answers, comments and so on) to the broadcast E-mail are transmitted to not only the E-mail terminal device having broadcast the mail but also other E-mail terminal devices having received the broadcast mail.
The broadcast for transmitting the same E-mail to the plurality of transmission destinations at one time in the conventional E-mail system, involves the use of a [mailing list]. When transmitting (replying) E-mails in response to one single request by making use of this mailing list, the E-mails are broadcast to all the members (transmitters) registered in that list, and hence this system is most efficient in the case of exchanging opinions and information between the plurality of users.
Thus, the labor for inputting the mail addresses of a multiplicity of unspecified addressees can be saved by utilizing the mailing list when transmitting the information, and the transmission of the information can be simplified. While on the other hand, there might occur an endless chain of mistakes in which the reply mail is mis-transmitted to the address of the mailing list with an intention that the reply mail would have been given to the individual information transmitter having posted to the mailing list, and it follows that the private reply mail is broadcast to all the registered members.
Accordingly, the users are required to confirm the addressee when creating and transmitting the reply mail and designate to a correct address of the addressee, which might lead an increase in load upon the operations of the users and cause a decrease in an efficiency of utilizing the E-mail system.


A floor cleaning system having a flat headed mop is provided. The system includes a bucket having a plurality of compartments. At least one compartment is provided for cleaning the flat headed mop to remove dirt and debris accumulated during use. A second compartment is provided for recharging the mop pad with fluid. At least one wringer device is operably coupled to one of the plurality of compartments. The at least one wringer device having an extractor element to remove at least a portion of fluid from the mop pad.

The subject matter disclosed herein relates to a mop for cleaning surfaces, such as a floor, and in particular to a flat mop that automatically configures the mop head when lifted from the surface being cleaned.
Mops have been traditionally used to clean floors. Mops come in different styles, such as a string, strip, foam or flat mop for example. A flat mop has a generally planar end member with a flat microfiber pad coupled to one side. Further, one property of the microfiber pad is that it releases dirt when placed in water. The microfiber pad is then wrung-out, such as by pressing the mop head against a plate. One issue with many mop and bucket combinations it that the same water is used to both clean and recharge the microfiber pad. However, this means that the water used for recharging is dirty after the first time the microfiber pad is cleaned. Thus, after only a short while the user is left with a bucket of dirty water. If the water in this bucket is continued to be used, dirty water will be spread on the floor being cleaned.
A second issue that arises with current flat mops is the amount of water contained in the microfiber pad. Depending on the type of floor being cleaned, the desired amount of water will change. For example, when cleaning wood floors, it is desired to have only a small amount of water when compared to cleaning tile floors. The technique of pressing the microfiber pad against a plate is requires significant effort.
Accordingly, while existing mops are suitable for their intended purposes the need for improvement remains, particularly in providing a flat headed mop having the features described herein.


Methods and apparatus for delaying a clock signal for a multiple-data-rate interface. An apparatus provides an integrated circuit including a frequency divider configured to receive a first clock signal and a first variable-delay block configured to receive an output from the frequency divider. Also included is a phase detector configured to receive the first clock signal and an output from the first variable-delay block, and an up/down counter configured to receive an output from the phase detector. A second variable-delay block is configured to receive a second clock signal and a plurality of flip-flops are configured to receive an output from the second variable-delay block. The first variable-delay block and the second variable-delay block are configured to receive an output from the up/down counter.

The present invention relates in general to integrated circuit input/output (I/O) interfaces, and in particular to methods and circuitry for accurately phase shifting clock signals in a multiple-data-rate interface.
Various interfaces have been developed to increase data transfer rates and data throughput between integrated circuits. In a multiple-data-rate interface scheme, two or more bits of data are transferred during each clock period. A specific example is double-data-rate (DDR) technology, which performs two data operations in one clock cycle and achieves twice the data throughput. This technology has enhanced the bandwidth performance of integrated circuits used in a wide array of applications from computers to communication systems. The DDR technique is employed in, for example, synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM) circuits.
DDR interfaces process I/O data (also referred to as DQ signals) using both the rising edge and falling edges of a clock signal DQS that functions as a data strobe to control the timing of data transfers. DQS is normally edge-aligned with DQ for a DDR interface operating in read mode (i.e., when receiving data at the DQS). For optimum data sampling, DQS is delayed by one-quarter of a clock period so that there is a 90 degree phase shift between the edges of DQ and DQS. This ensures that the DQS edge occurs close to the center of the DQ pulse. It is desirable to implement this 90 degree phase shift in a way that is as accurate and as stable as possible. But typical phase shift techniques that use, for example, delay chains, are highly susceptible to process, voltage, temperature, and other variations. In addition, typical DDR timing specifications require a wide frequency range of operation from, e.g., 133 MHz to 200 MHz. This places further, demands on the performance of the phase shift circuitry.
To ensure proper data transfer at multiple-data-rate interfaces, it is desirable to devise methods and apparatus for phase shifting clock signals in an accurate and stable manner.

Self-compensating delay chain for multiple-date-rate interfaces


An electrochemical electrode probe includes an elongated body of a porous material disposed in a housing. The porous material is permeated with an electrolyte. A body of electrode material surrounds the porous body and functions as one electrode of an electrochemical system. A portion of the elongated body of porous material projects beyond the electrode body and functions to establish ionic and electrical conductivity with a sample of material which is to be tested. The sample of material functions as a working electrode, and the electrode body of the probe functions as a counter electrode/reference electrode. Further disclosed is an electrochemical analysis system which includes the probe and a support plate operable to retain a plurality of samples of test material thereupon. The probe is moved across the plate to sequentially measure the electrochemical properties of the various samples of material. Also disclosed are methods for using the system.

There is a need for a system and method whereby large numbers of materials, and combinations of materials, may be rapidly and accurately scanned so as to determine their performance as components of electrochemical devices such as fuel cells, batteries, chemical reactors, catalytic systems and the like. Various systems for such high throughput scanning have been shown and suggested in the prior art. For example, the use of a combinatorial approach to study electrochemistry was first reported by Reddington et al., Ref. Science, 280, 1735 (1998). As disclosed, an array of material spots disposed on a large, flat working electrode of an electrochemical cell was prepared. As shown therein, an optical screening method was used to determine proton concentration within small active portions of the array. Such optical scanning methods are inherently limited because the variation of proton concentration is not easily detectable within the small areas of material spots in concentrated base and acid electrolytes. Other such combinatorial mass screening systems are known in the art. In one approach, a large container is employed to encompass a counter electrode, a reference electrode, and an array of material samples disposed upon multiple working electrodes. Such systems are shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,187,164; 6,756,109; 6,818,110; and 6,132,971. In other similar systems, the multiplicity of materials being tested are disposed on a single working electrode, and such a system is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,913,849. In another approach of the prior art, a number of small containers are used to provide an array of electrochemical cells disposed upon a single flat base. Multiple electric leads are printed on the base and disposed to conduct electricity from each test sample to an analyzer. Such a system is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,758,951. In yet another type of system as embodied in U.S. Pat. No. 6,692,856, an array of sensor electrodes are inserted into a number of separate holes in an anode base configured to hold individual sensor electrodes. Further portions of the disclosed apparatus include a common counter electrode and a polymer membrane disposed between the sensor electrodes and the counter electrode. All of the foregoing apparatus are very complex in mechanical configuration and operation and typically require multiple, printed electrical leads. This leads to complicated operation in the devices which decreases any benefit obtained from large scale scanning systems.
Another approach to providing for the large scale scanning of a plurality of samples is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,074,318 which was filed by the inventors hereof, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. The prior art system described in the above-referenced patent describes a system for screening a plurality of materials disposed, in an array configuration, upon a common substrate. These samples are all in electrical communication with the substrate, which in turn is connected to an electrochemical analyzer. In a typical implementation, the substrate plate is covered with an electrically insulating layer having a plurality of openings formed therein, and the samples being tested are exposed in the openings. In this manner, the samples are all connected to the substrate, but are spaced from one another by the insulating, upper coating.
The system of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,074,318 patent further includes a large area counter electrode assembly which is separated from the substrate and associated array of test samples. This counter electrode assembly is in electrical communication with the analyzer. A relatively long, typically flexible, ionically conductive member, referred to as ionic conductive wire, is used to provide electrical and ionic conductivity between the counter electrode and selected members of the array. When such ionic conductivity is established, the selected member of the array and the counter electrode form an electrochemical cell, and the analyzer may be used to analyze the electrochemical properties of that resultant cell. By moving the ionically conductive wire from one member of the array to another, the entire array may be sequentially scanned. The ionic resistance of the ionically conductive wire is relatively high; therefore, only a very small current, typically less than 1 mA, can be measured by the apparatus of the prior art. This greatly restricts the utility of the system and the nature of the measurements which may be made thereby.
As will be apparent from the following, there is a need for a system which allows for the high speed, simple, and accurate measurement of electrochemical properties of a plurality of test samples.

Electrochemical test apparatus and method for its use

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army


Endoscopes comprising a reusable hand-piece and separable disposable shaft assembly are illustrated and described. The reusable hand-piece includes a housing having an articulation control mounted thereto and an electronics module mounted thereto. The articulation control includes control knobs and concentric drive shafts for articulation. The electronics module includes a battery, a control board, and an optical and/or electrical connector. The separable disposable shaft comprises a housing having an articulation wire actuating assembly mounted thereto and an optical and/or electrical connector mounted thereto. When the housing of the hand-piece and the housing of the separable disposable shaft assembly are joined together, the articulation control engages the articulation wire actuating assembly and the optical and/or electrical connector of the reusable hand-piece engages the optical and/or electrical connector of the disposable shaft assembly.

Endoscopes are used in a wide variety of medical procedures to visualize internal cavities or potential spaces within the human body during either diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.
One factor affecting endoscope design and use is infectious disease transmission. Although infectious disease transmission has always been a risk with reusable endoscopes, this risk has increased with the advent of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Once transmission of these bacteria has occurred between patients, antibiotic resistance makes it difficult to treat these infections. Many of these bacteria, including Staphylococcus, have the ability to form a protective outer barrier, frequently referred to as a bio-film, which protects the infectious bacteria from during cleaning procedures.
Another recent development that increases the risk of infectious disease transmission is an ever-increasing number of diagnostic procedures that require the use of smaller and more complicated instruments and longer working (lumens) and distal manipulators, e.g. elevators, associated with the endoscope distal articulating shaft. Together, the increasing prevalence of difficult to treat infectious diseases and more complex, difficult-to-clean endoscopes make the sterilization and re-use of endoscopes an increasingly risky activity.
Reducing or limiting the potential for infectious disease transmission is desirable. Accordingly, new endoscope designs are desired.

Endoscope with separable, disposable shaft


An operation method of a communication node in a vehicle network may include detecting a local event; transitioning an operation mode of the communication node from a sleep mode to a normal mode when the local event is detected; generating a wake-up signal including a wake-up pattern corresponding to the local event; and transmitting the wake-up signal.

The number and variety of devices installed in vehicles have increased significantly in accordance with the recent digitalization of vehicle parts. Generally, electronic devices may be used throughout the vehicle, for example, a power train control system (e.g., an engine control system, an automatic transmission control system, or the like), a body control system (e.g., a body electronic equipment control system, a convenience apparatus control system, a lamp control system, or the like), a chassis control system (e.g., a steering apparatus control system, a brake control system, a suspension control system, or the like), a vehicle network (e.g., a controller area network (CAN), a FlexRay-based network, a media oriented system transport (MOST)-based network, or the like), a multimedia system (e.g., a navigation apparatus system, a telematics system, an infotainment system, or the like), and so forth.
The electronic devices used in each of these systems are connected via a vehicle network, which supports functions of the electronic devices. For instance, the CAN may support a transmission rate of up to 1 Mbps and support automatic retransmission of colliding messages, error detection based on a cycle redundancy interface (CRC), or the like. The FlexRay-based network may support a transmission rate of up to 10 Mbps and support simultaneous transmission of data through two channels, synchronous data transmission, or the like. The MOST-based network is a communication network for high-quality multimedia, which may support a transmission rate of up to 150 Mbps.
Most enhanced safety systems of a vehicle, such as telematics systems and infotainment systems, require higher transmission rates and system expandability. However, the CAN, FlexRay-based network, and the like may not sufficiently support such requirements. The MOST-based network, in particular, may support a higher transmission rate than the CAN or the FlexRay-based network. However, applying the MOST-based network to vehicle networks can be costly. Due to these limitations, an Ethernet-based network is often utilized as a vehicle network. The Ethernet-based network may support bi-directional communication through one pair of windings and may support a transmission rate of up to 10 Gbps.
The vehicle network described above may include a plurality of communication nodes (e.g., electronic devices), and a first communication node may transmit a wake-up signal to a second communication node when a specific event is detected. Upon receiving the wake-up signal, an operation mode of the second communication node may transition from a sleep mode to a normal mode. Thereafter, the second communication node may perform operations according to a wake-up reason if the second communication node is aware of the wake-up reason. However, the second communication node may not be aware of the wake-up reason even if it is woken up, so that operations according to the wake-up reason may not be properly performed. For example, in case that information indicating a wake-up reason is transmitted via a separate message (e.g., an application message, a network management (NM) message, etc.), the second communication node may not identify the wake-up reason until it receives the separate message including the information.

Method for transmitting and receiving wake-up signal in vehicle network


A gas turbine engine includes a compressor section, a combustor section, a turbine section and a nacelle assembly which at least partially surrounds the compressor section, the combustor section and the turbine section. At least a portion of the nacelle assembly includes an adjustable contour. The portion of the nacelle assembly including the adjustable contour is selectively moveable between a first portion and a second position to influence the adjustable contour of the nacelle assembly. A controller identifies an abnormal aircraft operating condition and selectively moves the portion of the nacelle assembly including the adjustable contour between the first position and the second position in response to detecting the abnormal aircraft operating condition.

This invention generally relates to a gas turbine engine, and more particularly to a method for influencing a variable contour of a nacelle assembly during abnormal aircraft operating conditions.
In an aircraft gas turbine engine, such as a turbofan engine, air is pressurized in a compressor and mixed with fuel in a combustor for generating hot combustion gases. The hot combustion gases flow downstream through turbine stages which extract energy from the hot combustion gases. A fan supplies air to the compressor.
Combustion gases are discharged from the turbofan engine through a core exhaust nozzle and a quantity of fan air is discharged through an annular fan exhaust nozzle defined at least partially by a nacelle assembly surrounding the core engine. A majority of propulsion thrust is provided by the pressurized fan air which is discharged through the fan exhaust nozzle, while the remaining thrust is provided by the combustion gases discharged through the core exhaust nozzle.
It is known in the field of aircraft gas turbine engines that the performance of the turbofan engine varies during diversified operability conditions experienced by the aircraft. An inlet lip section located at the foremost end of the turbofan nacelle assembly is typically designed to enable operation of the turbofan engine and reduce separation of airflow from the inner and outer flow surfaces of the inlet lip section during these diversified conditions. For example, the inlet lip section requires a "thick" inlet lip section to support operation of the engine during specific flight conditions, such as crosswind conditions, takeoff conditions and the like. Disadvantageously, the "thick" inlet lip section may reduce the efficiency of the turbofan engine during normal cruise conditions of the aircraft, for example. As a result, the maximum diameter of the nacelle assembly is approximately ten to twenty percent larger than required during cruise conditions.
An aircraft may also experience a variety of abnormal aircraft operating conditions, including but not limited to, windmilling engine-out conditions and fan blade-out conditions. Disadvantageously, the performance characteristics of the gas turbine engine may drastically decrease during abnormal aircraft operating conditions of this type. Known nacelle assemblies have not fully reduced the drag penalties, flow separation and pressure recovery problems that occur during the abnormal aircraft operating conditions.
Accordingly, it is desirable to improve the performance of a turbofan gas turbine engine during abnormal aircraft operating conditions to provide a nacelle assembly having a reduced thickness, reduced weight and reduced drag.

Variable contour nacelle assembly for a gas turbine engine


A target identification and tracking system includes a carrier vehicle and one or more tracking vehicles. The carrier vehicle may determine an aimpoint of a target from a high resolution image of the target and may generate an offset from a tracking point to the aimpoint. The offset may be conveyed to an assigned tracking vehicle for tracking the tracking point of the target while navigating toward the aimpoint of the target. The tracking point may be the target's centroid. The carrier vehicle may employ a high-resolution LIDAR imaging system to identify the aimpoint from a target's features; while the tracking vehicle may employ a lower resolution optical imaging system for tracking the target's tracking point. The carrier vehicle may correct the offset for parallax and the offset may be revised as the tracking vehicle approaches the target.

Target identification and tracking systems that employ a number of tracking vehicles to track and/or destroy targets generally require high resolution imaging to identify a specific aimpoint on a target that differs from the target's centroid. It may be desirable to track an aimpoint on a target, rather than a centroid, because the lethality of the tracking vehicle can be improved, resulting in reduced cost, size, and/or weight. Some conventional target identification systems use long-wave (LW) diffraction techniques to identify and/or track a target. The resolution of these long-wave diffraction techniques is limited by aperture size and wavelength, among other things, making these techniques impractical for small tracking vehicles, such as miniature kill vehicles, to track a target's aimpoint other than a centroid.
Some higher resolution systems that use shorter wavelengths for imaging may have better diffraction limits for tracking a separate aimpoint, but have a limited passive acquisition range and may require external illumination to acquire targets. Some lower resolution systems that track a target's centroid do not need high resolution because they do not identify a separate aimpoint. These lower resolution systems may require the tracking vehicles to have a higher kill radius. This may result in heavier and/or more expensive tracking vehicles.
Thus, there are general needs for methods and target tracking systems that can track a target's aimpoint that's offset from the centroid with smaller tracking vehicles.

Systems and methods for tracking targets with aimpoint offset


A thermosetting resin is formed from cyclopentadiene and a propargyl halide. The resin can be used with carbon fibers to form a carbon-carbon composite.

The present invention relates to carbon-carbon composites and monomers used in their formation. More particularly, the invention relates to a new family of monomers used in the formation of carbon-carbon composites.
Interest in carbon-carbon composites has grown exponentially in recent years. The combination of high specific strength retention at elevated temperatures and chemical inertness have led to their use in applications such as aircraft brakes, space vehicle heatshields and rocket nozzles.
Although the properties of carbon-carbon composites make them very useful, there are inherent problems with typical precursors such as pitch and many thermoset resins used to fabricate these composites. One of the most severe limitations of the presently used precursors is low char yields during pyrolysis. Typical thermoset precursors yield 50-65 weight percent carbon after pyrolysis. This results in the need for repeated impregnation cycles with resin to achieve a void-free sample.
Another problem with typical thermoset and pitch based carbon precursors arises from the high viscosities and intractable nature of these materials. This often results in poor wetting of the reinforcing fiber and/or the need for higher pressures and temperatures during the impregnation cycles.
Accordingly, it would be a significant advancement in the art to provide a precursor for carbon-carbon composites which had a low viscosity. It would be a further advancement in the art if such a resin had a char yield of greater than about 75%.

Cyclopentadiene derivatives for carbon-carbon composites


Systems and methods for automatically switching to a track view mode on a vertical view display. The system determines aircraft position relative to a leg of a flight plan and switches display mode for a navigation vertical display to track view mode, if the display mode is in a plan view mode and if the determined relative position is greater than a threshold distance.

Many aircraft include a number of navigation displays, particularly, a plan view display and a vertical view display. The plan view display is a top-down view of a navigation map that may display various information, such as terrain data, weather data, traffic data and navigation data. The vertical view display illustrates a side view of either where the aircraft is currently headed or what is expected along the flight plan of the aircraft.
On a typical flight the air crew selects the mode of the vertical view display in order to get an overall picture of what they will be seeing on the next leg or legs of their flight plan. However, if the aircraft is deviating from their flight plan, the information displayed on the vertical view display may not present obstacles that are along the aircraft's current track. If the air crew is attentive, they will switch to the track view mode of the vertical view display in such situation. However, this may not always occur. Therefore, there exists a need for a switching device that automatically switches from the flight plan vertical view mode to the track view mode of the vertical view display.
One attempt to resolve this issue has been to perform an automatic switch based solely on angular deviation between the angular track of the aircraft and the direction of the leg of the flight plan. However, unnecessary automatic switches may occur when the deviation is greater than the threshold limit, but the aircraft is on or very close to their present track.
Therefore, there exists a need for methods and systems for more intelligently switching from flight plan view mode of the vertical view display to the track view mode.

Systems and methods for automated deselection of flight plan information from a display


Apparatuses, systems, and associated methods of assembly are described that provide for improved sensor devices. An example sensor device includes a bobbin tube that defines a hollow interior. The device includes a primary coil element wound around the bobbin tube configured to, in response to a current input, generate a primary magnetic flux and includes a secondary coil element wound around the primary coil element. In an instance in which the bobbin tube receives a probe assembly therein, magnetic interaction between the probe assembly and the primary coil element is configured to induce a signal in the secondary coil element. Furthermore, a pitch of the secondary coil element varies according to a non-linear, polynomial function along a second length of the bobbin tube so as to reduce linearity error of the sensor device.

Sensor assemblies, such as a Linear Variable Differential Transformer (LVDT), may be used to convert between mechanical motion (e.g., vibration, strain, force, linear motion, etc.) and electrical signals (e.g., current, voltage, etc.). These sensors may be used in hydraulic applications, engine systems, automated teller machines (ATMs), aerospace applications, and a variety of other environments in which conversion between mechanical motion and electrical signals is needed. In these applications, such as in an engine control system, the sensor system may be exposed to strain, vibrational loads, or other forces that may damage the sensor system.

Apparatuses, systems, and methods for improved sensor devices


The sequences of 5′ ESTs derived from mRNAs encoding secreted proteins are disclosed. The 5′ ESTs may be to obtain cDNAs and genomic DNAs corresponding to the 5′ ESTs. The 5′ ESTs may also be used in diagnostic, forensic, gene therapy, and chromosome mapping procedures. Upstream regulatory sequences may also be obtained using the 5′ ESTs. The 5′ ESTs may also be used to design expression vectors and secretion vectors.

The estimated 50,000–100,000 genes scattered along the human chromosomes offer tremendous promise for the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of human diseases. In addition, probes capable of specifically hybridizing to loci distributed throughout the human genome find applications in the construction of high resolution chromosome maps and in the identification of individuals.
In the past, the characterization of even a single human gene was a painstaking process, requiring years of effort. Recent developments in the areas of cloning vectors, DNA sequencing, and computer technology have merged to greatly accelerate the rate at which human genes can be isolated, sequenced, mapped, and characterized. Cloning vectors such as yeast artificial chromosomes (YACs) and bacterial artificial chromosomes (BACs) are able to accept DNA inserts ranging from 300 to 1000 kilobases (kb) or 100–400 kb in length respectively, thereby facilitating the manipulation and ordering of DNA sequences distributed over great distances on the human chromosomes. Automated DNA sequencing machines permit the rapid sequencing of human genes. Bioinformatics software enables the comparison of nucleic acid and protein sequences, thereby assisting in the characterization of human gene products.
Currently, two different approaches are being pursued for identifying and characterizing the genes distributed along the human genome. In one approach, large fragments of genomic DNA are isolated, cloned, and sequenced. Potential open reading frames in these genomic sequences are identified using bioinformatics software. However, this approach entails sequencing large stretches of human DNA which do not encode proteins in order to find the protein encoding sequences scattered throughout the genome. In addition to requiring extensive sequencing, the bioinformatics software may mischaracterize the genomic sequences obtained. Thus, the software may produce false positives in which non-coding DNA is mischaracterized as coding DNA or false negatives in which coding DNA is mislabeled as non-coding DNA.
An alternative approach takes a more direct route to identifying and characterizing human genes. In this approach, complementary DNAs (cDNAs) are synthesized from isolated messenger RNAs (mRNAs) which encode human proteins. Using this approach, sequencing is only performed on DNA which is derived from protein coding portions of the genome. Often, only short stretches of the cDNAs are sequenced to obtain sequences called expressed sequence tags (ESTs). The ESTs may then be used to isolate or purify extended cDNAs which include sequences adjacent to the EST sequences. The extended cDNAs may contain all of the sequence of the EST which was used to obtain them or only a portion of the sequence of the EST which was used to obtain them. In addition, the extended cDNAs may contain the full coding sequence of the gene from which the EST was derived or, alternatively, the extended cDNAs may include portions of the coding sequence of the gene from which the EST was derived. It will be appreciated that there may be several extended cDNAs which include the EST sequence as a result of alternate splicing or the activity of alternative promoters. Alternatively, ESTs having partially overlapping sequences may be identified and contigs comprising the consensus sequences of the overlapping ESTs may be identified.
In the past, these short EST sequences were often obtained from oligo-dT primed cDNA libraries. Accordingly, they mainly corresponded to the 3′ untranslated region of the mRNA. In part, the prevalence of EST sequences derived from the 3′ end of the mRNA is a result of the fact that typical techniques for obtaining cDNAs, are not well suited for isolating cDNA sequences derived from the 5′ ends of mRNAs. (Adams et al., Nature 377:3–174, 1996, Hillier et al., Genome Res. 6:807–828, 1996).
In addition, in those reported instances where longer cDNA sequences have been obtained, the reported sequences typically correspond to coding sequences and do not include the full 5′ untranslated region (5′UTR) of the mRNA from which the cDNA is derived. 5′UTRs are often involved in the regulation of gene expression, by affecting either the stability or translation of mRNAs. Indeed, 5′UTRs may contain several features known to affect the initiation of translation: (i) the distance between the cap structure and the initiation codon, (ii) the presence of cis-acting elements which may be either linear sequences such as polypyrimidine tracts (Kaspar et al, J. Biol. Chem. 267, 508–514, 1992; Severson et al., Eur J Biochem 229:426–32, 1995) or secondary structures such as IREs (Rouault and Klausner, Curr Top Cell Regul 35:1–19, 1997), and (iii) upstream open reading frames or uORFs (Geballe and Morris, Trends Biochem Sci 19:159–64, 1994). Thus, regulation of gene expression may be achieved through the use of alternative 5′UTRs. For instance, the translation of the tissue inhibitor of metalloprotease mRNA is enhanced in mitogenically activated cells through modification of the start codon of an uORF in its 5′UTR using an alternative promoter (Waterhouse et al, J Biol. Chem. 265:5585–9. 1990). Furthermore, modification of 5′UTR through mutation, insertion or translocation events may even be implied in pathogenesis. For instance, the fragile X syndrome, the most common cause of inherited mental retardation, is partly due to an insertion of multiple CGG trinucleotides in the 5′UTR of the fragile X mRNA resulting in the inhibition of protein synthesis via ribosome stalling (Feng et al, Science 268:731–4, 1995). An aberrant mutation in regions of the 5′UTR known to inhibit translation of the proto-oncogene c-myc was shown to result in upregulation of C-myc protein levels in cells derived from patients with multiple myelomas (Willis et al, Curr Top Microbiol Immunol 224:269–76, 1997). However, the use of oligo-dT primed cDNA libraries does not allow the isolation of complete 5′UTRs since such obtained incomplete sequences may not include the first exon of the mRNA, particularly in situations where the first exon is short. Furthermore, they may not include some exons, often short ones, which are located upstream of splicing sites. Thus, there is a need to obtain sequences derived from the 5′ ends of mRNAs.
While many sequences derived from human chromosomes have practical applications, approaches based on the identification and characterization of those chromosomal sequences which encode a protein product are particularly relevant to diagnostic and therapeutic uses. In some instances, the sequences used in such therapeutic or diagnostic techniques may be sequences which encode proteins which are secreted from the cell in which they are synthesized, as well as the secreted proteins themselves, are particularly valuable as potential therapeutic agents. Such proteins are often involved in cell to cell communication and may be responsible for producing a clinically relevant response in their target cells. In fact, several secretory proteins, including tissue plasminogen activator, G-CSF, GM-CSF, erythropoietin, human growth hormone, insulin, interferon-α, interferon-β, interferon-γ, and interleukin-2, are currently in clinical use. These proteins are used to treat a wide range of conditions, including acute myocardial infarction, acute ischemic stroke, anemia, diabetes, growth hormone deficiency, hepatitis, kidney carcinoma, chemotherapy-induced neutropenia and multiple sclerosis. For these reasons, extended cDNAs encoding secreted proteins or portions thereof represent a valuable source of therapeutic agents. Thus, there is a need for the identification and characterization of secreted proteins and the nucleic acids encoding them.
In addition to being therapeutically useful themselves, secretory proteins include short peptides, called signal peptides, at their amino termini which direct their secretion. These signal peptides are encoded by the signal sequences located at the 5′ ends of the coding sequences of genes encoding secreted proteins. These signal peptides can be used to direct the extracellular secretion of any protein to which they are operably linked. In addition, portions of the signal peptides called membrane-translocating sequences, may also be used to direct the intracellular import of a peptide or protein of interest. This may prove beneficial in gene therapy strategies in which it is desired to deliver a particular gene product to cells other than the cell in which it is produced. Signal sequences encoding signal peptides also find application in simplifying protein purification techniques. In such applications, the extracellular secretion of the desired protein greatly facilitates purification by reducing the number of undesired proteins from which the desired protein must be selected. Thus, there exists a need to identify and characterize the 5′ portions of the genes for secretory proteins which encode signal peptides.
Sequences coding for non-secreted proteins may also find application as therapeutics or diagnostics. In particular, such sequences may be used to determine whether an individual is likely to express a detectable phenotype, such as a disease, as a consequence of a mutation in the coding sequence for a non-secreted protein or for a secreted protein. In instances where the individual is at risk of suffering from a disease or other undesirable phenotype as a result of a mutation in such a coding sequence, the undesirable phenotype may be corrected by introducing a normal coding sequence using gene therapy. Alternatively, if the undesirable phenotype results from overexpression of the protein encoded by the coding sequence, expression of the protein may be reduced using antisense or triple helix based strategies.
The secreted or non-secreted human polypeptides encoded by the coding sequences may also be used as therapeutics by administering them directly to an individual having a condition, such as a disease, resulting from a mutation in the sequence encoding the polypeptide. In such an instance, the condition can be cured or ameliorated by administering the polypeptide to the individual.
In addition, the secreted or non-secreted human polypeptides or portions thereof may be used to generate antibodies useful in determining the tissue type or species of origin of a biological sample. The antibodies may also be used to determine the cellular localization of the secreted or non-secreted human polypeptides or the cellular localization of polypeptides which have been fused to the human polypeptides. In addition, the antibodies may also be used in immunoaffinity chromatography techniques to isolate, purify, or enrich the human polypeptide or a target polypeptide which has been fused to the human polypeptide.
Public information on the number of human genes for which the promoters and upstream regulatory regions have been identified and characterized is quite limited. In part, this may be due to the difficulty of isolating such regulatory sequences. Upstream regulatory sequences such as transcription factor binding sites are typically too short to be utilized as probes for isolating promoters from human genomic libraries. Recently, some approaches have been developed to isolate human promoters. One of them consists of making a CpG island library (Cross et al., Nature Genetics 6: 236–244, 1994). The second consists of isolating human genomic DNA sequences containing SpeI binding sites by the use of SpeI binding protein. (Mortlock et al., Genome Res. 6:327–335, 1996). Both of these approaches have their limits due to a lack of specificity or because they are not universally applicable since only a limited number of promoters have either a CpG island or a Spe I recognition site and because Spe I binding sites are not specifically found in promoter regions. Thus, there exists a need to identify and systematically characterize the 5′ portions of the genes.
The present 5′ ESTs may be used to efficiently identify and isolate 5′UTRs and upstream regulatory regions which control the location, developmental stage, rate, and quantity of protein synthesis, as well as the stability of the mRNA. Once identified and characterized, these regulatory regions may be utilized in gene therapy or protein purification schemes to obtain the desired amount and locations of protein synthesis or to inhibit, reduce, or prevent the synthesis of undesirable gene products.
In addition, ESTs containing the 5′ ends of protein genes may include sequences useful as probes for chromosome mapping and the identification of individuals. Thus, there is a need to identify and characterize the sequences upstream of the 5′ coding sequences of genes.

Expressed sequence tags and encoded human proteins


The present invention describes a process for preparing N-substituted phthalimides of Formula I which are widely useful as intermediates in the preparation of organic compounds such as pharmaceuticals

N-Substituted phthalimides are useful intermediates for the synthesis of a large variety of primary amines via well-known processes such as the Gabriel synthesis (e.g., Gibson et al., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl., 1968, 7, 919) and Ing-Manske procedure (Ing et al., J. Chem. Soc., 1926, 2348).
N-Substitution of phthalimides can be mediated by the versatile Mitsunobu reaction (Mitsunobu et al., Bull. Chem. Soc. Jpn., 1967, 40, 2380; Camp et al., Aust. J. Chem., 1988, 41, 1835) the general outline of which is shown below in Scheme I. This reaction typically utilizes a triarylphosphine and a dialkyl azodicarboxylate as reactants, which serve to activate a primary or secondary alcohol towards nucleophilic attack by acidic or weakly acid groups such as phenols, carboxylic acids, diimides, etc. While the Mitsunobu reaction is a versatile synthetic tool since it allows one to directly activate and substitute an alcohol group in one step, it has the drawback of generating the undesirable by-products of triphenylphosphine oxide and a dialkyl, diacyl hydrazide in stoichiometric amounts. These reaction by-products, in addition to any unreacted reagents can often lead to difficult or tedious separations, thus potentially limiting the industrial utility of the process.

As can be well appreciated by the skilled artisan, the N-substituted phthalimides are widely useful in all areas of synthetic chemistry and particularly pharmaceutical research. For example, 2-(3-butynyl)-1-H-isoindole-1,3-(2H)-dione is used in the preparation of pain relieving drugs that are inhibitors of the enzyme cytosolic phospholipase A2 as reported in, for example WO 03/048122A2. Preparations of this intermediate via Mitsunobu and other reactions have also been reported in Griffiths et al., Tetrahedron, 1992, 48, 5543; Jackson et al., Aust. J. Chem., 1988, 41, 1201; Acta. Pharm. Suec., 1975, 12, 290; Jackson et al., Tetrahedron, 1988, 29, 1983; Hoffmann et al., J. Med. Chem., 1975, 18, 278; NL 6600916; NL 6501131; and Iyer et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1987, 109, 2759. These preparations, however, tend to involve multistep syntheses, commercially unavailable starting materials, lengthy reaction times, chlorinated solvent, and/or complicated isolation or purification steps. Accordingly, improved synthetic routes to N-substituted phthalimides are needed, and the processes described herein help meet this and other needs.

Processes for the preparation of N-substituted phthalimides


A projection lens system includes, in order from the magnification side, a negative first group G1 and positive second to fifth groups G2 to G5. In the lens system, the first group G1 has aspheric surface, a lens closest to the magnification side (L7) in the fourth group G4 has an aspheric surface, and the fifth group G5 is formed of one positive lens. During zooming, the first group G1 and the fifth group G5 remain stationary, while the second to fourth groups G2 to G4 are moved separately. Furthermore, the lens system satisfies the expression 0.8<d34/fw, where fw denotes a focal length of the whole system at the wide-angle end, and d34 denotes an air space between the third lens group G3 and the fourth lens group G4 at the wide-angle end.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a projection zoom lens system having a five-group configuration in which three groups are movable for zooming and mounted in a projection type display apparatus and to the projection type display apparatus having the projection zoom lens system. In particular, the invention also relates to a projection zoom lens system and a projection type display apparatus configured so that rays containing image information, which are generated from a light valve such as a transmissive or reflective liquid crystal display device or a DMD (Digital Micromirror Device) display device, are projected and magnified on a screen.
2. Related Art
In recent projectors, a projector having a configuration in which three light valves corresponding to illuminating rays of RGB three primary colors are employed is used. The rays modulated by the respective light valves are synthesized by a prism or the like. And an image is displayed on a screen through a projection lens.
Recently, a decrease in size and an increase in accuracy rapidly progress in the light valve mentioned above. Besides, with an increase in spread of PCs, the demands of performing presentation using such a projector increase. Hence, needs for a more high-performance and more small-sized lightweight projector arise. Accordingly, it is necessary for the projections lenses to satisfy the needs.
However, in a projector that synthesizes and projects the rays modulated from the three light valves by using a color synthesizing optical system, a projection lens system is in need of a long back focal length for disposing a prism and the like which synthesize colors. Furthermore, in a color synthesizing optical system, spectrum characteristic thereof is changed depending on an incident angle of incident rays. Thus, the projection lens system is required to have telecentricity, which is a property of a telecentric system in which an entrance pupil is sufficiently far away in view from reduction side. Further, there are required lens speed and aberration correction appropriate to resolution of an image pickup device, and in the case of front projection type, there are also required a zoom function and a wide angle of view in terms of installation. In addition, according to a decrease in size of the light valve, an increase in demand for mobile applications, and reduction in price of the apparatus, similarly to the other members, the projection lens system also has been strongly required to be reduced in size and weight.
As projection lenses satisfying the requirements mentioned above, there have been known projection lens systems configured such that five groups of negative-positive-positive-positive-positive or negative-positive-positive-negative-positive are arranged in order from the magnification side. In the lens system, during zooming, the first lens group and the fifth lens group remain stationary while the second lens group, the third lens group, and the fourth lens group are movable in an optical axis direction. Such projection lens systems are disclosed in Patent Documents 1 (JP-B-3954736) and 2 (JP-A-2006-162734 corresponding to US 2006/139766 A).
However, the projection lens systems disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are not enough to satisfy the recent strong requirement for projection lens systems in view of balance of various aberrations.
Meanwhile, if the possibility of optical design is expanded, for example, by increasing the number of lenses or lens groups movable for zooming, it is possible to improve lens performance. However, when lens performance is improved depending on such an increase in the number of components, increases in size and cost is directly caused, and a thickness of glass material increases in the whole lens system, thereby causing deterioration in spectral transmittance. The deterioration in spectral transmittance is remarkable in a short wavelength range, and becomes a disadvantageous factor particularly in a projector incapable of controlling directly an image which is projected after passing through a projection lens.
Furthermore, to use aspheric surface is a means for correcting aberrations. By replacing a plurality of spherical lenses by one aspheric lens, it is possible to downsize an optical system while maintaining performance thereof.
Meanwhile, an aspheric lens is required to have high precision in component and assembly, and thus if many aspheric lenses are used, problems arise in that difficulty in manufacture increases, and small lot production causes disadvantage in cost.
Accordingly, in an actual lens design, it is necessary to develop a lens configuration capable of obtaining high optical performance required for projection lenses while satisfying various requirements such as a decrease in size, reduction in cost, and mass productivity.
The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned situation, and its object is to provide a projection lens system capable of obtaining high optical performance while satisfying requirements such as a decrease in size, reduction in cost, and mass productivity required for recent projections lenses, and to provide a projection type display apparatus using the projection lens system.

Projection zoom lens system and projection type display apparatus


Disclosed herein are devices and methods related to UV disinfection of a transfer catheter during peritoneal dialysis. The transfer catheter comprises a first and second end, the second end comprising a transfer valve. The transfer valve body comprises an inlet, outlet, and a flush hole. The valve core comprises a notch configured to allow fluid flow between the various flow paths. The valve core and body are positioned off axis with respect to the fluid flow path. The transfer catheter can allow for a small volume kill zone, which can minimize the amount of UV required to disinfect the catheter.

Peritoneal dialysis can be used as a treatment for patients with severe chronic kidney disease. Fluid is introduced through a tube in the abdomen and flushed out periodically either while the patients sleeps, in automated peritoneal dialysis or during regular dialysis sessions through the day, as in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis.
As shown in FIG. 1, a patient undergoing peritoneal dialysis can have an indwelling catheter surgically inserted into the abdomen. A transfer catheter 2 can be attached to the indwelling catheter 4. The transfer catheter can be replaced, in a sterile environment, such as at a clinic, every few months to a year. Between dialysis sessions, the patient wears the transfer catheter against the body. During dialysis sessions, the transfer catheter can be connected to a drain bag to drain fluid present in the abdomen and a fresh dialysate bag to introduce fluid to the abdomen. The drain bag and dialysate bags can be attached in series or can be attached in parallel, using a Y-shaped solution set catheter 6. Prior to each treatment, the patient connects the tip of the transfer catheter to new dialysis tubing using rigorous aseptic techniques to maintain sterility. The same sterile technique must be employed when disconnecting the catheters as well. Once the patient feels confident enough to perform the procedure at home, and after many months of practice, the time to connect and start PD takes 20-30 minutes. The patient and anyone around them must always wear a mask, close doors and windows, turn off fans, and thoroughly wash hands for 2 minutes prior to connecting or disconnecting catheters. If sterility is compromised at any time, the component being used must be replaced and the whole process started again.
This is obviously a complicated and time-consuming process that is highly reliant on patient compliance. If a patient fails to adhere to any of the strict steps of the sterilization procedure, he or she faces a greatly increased risk of a serious infection, commonly referred to as peritonitis. This type of internal infection, if not caught early, may lead to sepsis and death of the patient. Typically, peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients experience a 50% chance of infection during the first 12 to 18 months and experience 15% mortality/yr directly related to the infection. In addition to seriously endangering a patient's health, infections in peritoneal dialysis are also very costly to treat. The average total charges from a peritonitis hospital stay are roughly $50,000 dollars and the entire annual cost on the healthcare system is around $1.5 billion. Given that the noncompliance rate for a standard peritoneal dialysis procedure is around 30%, there is a huge need to help reduce the health and financial burdens of infection.
Ultraviolet (UV) disinfection systems are known in the art. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,882,496; 7,834,328; 4,620,845; 6,461,568 and U.S. Publication Nos. 2005/0013729 and 2007/0274879, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties, describe such systems. However, such systems can be cumbersome, making them difficult for a user to use. Additionally, such systems tend to rely on UV disinfection for complete disinfection, which can, in the absence of proper components and connectors, limit the effectiveness of the disinfection.

Transfer catheter for ultraviolet disinfection