A point-of-purchase (“POP”) display employing RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) technology for inventory control is provided. The POP is preferably fabricated from paper, paperboard and/or corrugated paperboard material, and incorporates one or more shelves and/or cover layers. An RF antenna structure is applied to the surfaces of, or built into, the one or more shelves and/or cover layers. Suitable RF transmitter/receiver circuitry may also be built into the POP, or the POP may simply have suitable connections built in, to permit such transceiver apparatus to be plugged into the POP. The transceiver circuitry is connected in any suitable manner to an inventory control computer, such as the retail store's computer. Each article that is to be displayed in the POP is provided with an RFID tag. Removal of an article from the POP, results in a signal being transmitted to the inventory control computer, corresponding to the removal of the article from the POP, and corresponding adjustment of the inventory records in the inventory control computer.

1. The Technical Field
The present invention is directed to retail product shelving and point-of-purchase displays, in particular such shelving and display structures that are provided with inventory control devices.
2. The Prior Art
Point-of-purchase ("POP") displays for use in retail environments, are well known in the prior art. Such POP displays have been fabricated from metal, plastic, paper, paperboard and/or corrugated paperboard, and combinations thereof. In recent times, POP displays fabricated from paper, paperboard and/or corrugated paperboard have become particularly popular, in terms of weight, collapsibility, transportability, cost, and recyclability.
Traditional POP displays have required periodic physical inspection and monitoring, to ensure that the POP display is always filled with product and/or that the POP display, once it has served its purpose, is removed and disposed of in a suitable manner. It would be desirable to provide a way to reduce or eliminate the need for periodic physical, in-person, inspection of POP displays, so that the POP displays need to be visited only when it is known that the POP displays must be refilled or removed.
So-called "Smart Shelves" are known to exist, which are permanently installed (usually plastic or metal), hard-wired (to hide the wiring and electronics) structures.
In addition, shelves have been produced with are provided with electronic/radio controlled shelf labels. However, while the individual products may bear RFID tags, the transmitter/receivers that communicate with such tags are not in the shelves themselves, but are typically centrally located in or spatially distributed throughout the retail space, separate and apart from the shelve structures themselves.
The following references disclose various shelving and/or RFID product tracking and inventory control schemes.
Stevens et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,821,291 discloses RF communications systems, specifically for RF based electronic shelf edge information displays. Stevens et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,879,756. This is a division of the above '291 patent, and thus has the same disclosure.
Stevens et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,937,586 discloses RF based electronic shelf edge information displays.
Takemoto et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,407,050 discloses an article control system, with matrix sensors positioned on the upper surfaces of a display stand, that generate magnetic fields that interact with magnetic labels on articles placed on the stand.
Escritt et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,548,282 discloses an electronic shelf edge price display system.
Nekomoto et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,583,525 discloses an electronic shelf tag scheme.
Cowe et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,671,362 discloses an inventory control system, incorporating shelves having arrays or grids of sensors thereon. Each shelf or group of shelves has an associated transmitter, for communicating to a remote location the status of the articles disposed on the shelves. The articles may include RFID labels.
Giordano, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 5,715,622 discloses an electronic display module mounted on a shelf rail or a method of mounting such a display module.
French, U.S. Pat. No. 5,735,742 is directed to an RF-based gaming chip tracking system, in which RFID devices are embedded in the gaming chips.
Hughes et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,920,261 is directed to an RFID based tracking system for a retail environment, incorporating a central transmitter, several widely spaced apart locating receivers, and individual tags on individual retail items. The system is capable of locating and providing an image of the tags on a two- or three-dimensional basis.
Issacman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,936,527 discloses a system for locating and tracking items, such as file folders in an office. Individual file folders are provided with RFID tags. Local exciters communicate with the tags, which in turn communicate with a main or host transmitter/computer.
Maynard, U.S. Pat. No. 5,949,335 is directed to RFID tagging systems for computer network assets.
Bowers et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,963,134 is directed to an article (or library) inventory control system, including; 1) a storage area, an article return area, an interrogation zone and a collection bin; and/or 2) a mobile interrogator; and/or 3) first and second interrogators; and/or 4) video monitoring of a checkout area.
Lin et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,977,875 discloses a file inventory control system, in which file folders are provided with RF responsive tags, responsive to a remote RF generator. The file drawers have visual indicators to assist in indicating that a file in that drawer is responding to a generated signal.
Rojas et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,014,078 discloses a system for locating weight lifting implements, in which a rack is provided with individualized slots with RFID tags, that communicate with RFID tags on the weights. Misplacement of the weights produces an indication by a monitoring system in the form of a visible or audible signal.
Herman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,108,367 discloses a two way wireless communication system for shelf labels. The system incorporates one or more transceivers and a plurality of tag receivers/reflectors.
Brady et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,121,878 is directed to an RFID tag-based system for controlling assets, such as articles for sale.
Issacman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,127,928 is a continuation of the aforementioned '527 patent and thus has the same disclosure.
Bowers et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,195,006 B1 discloses an RFID tag based inventory system, such as for a library.
DeVolpi, U.S. Pat. No. 6,198,391 B1 discloses a retail security system, in which individual articles are secured to display racks with tags that must be severed or released to permit removal of the articles from the racks. The tags appear to be hard-wired electrical contacts.
Yarin et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,294,999 B1 discloses a system for monitoring the removal and replacement of medicine containers in a medication distribution tray ("smart tray"). The containers are provided with electromagnetic tags. In addition, the tray has an RF array built into it. The tray can then communicate to remotely located appliances or a computer.
Stephens et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,323,782 B1 is directed to an unattended item delivery system, incorporating an article to be transported which has a transponder associated with it; an enclosure having a locking mechanism, and a transponder that is connected to the locking mechanism and is capable of communicating with the article transponder. An external communications device or devices (at the sending and/or drop-off points) may be provided to externally actuate the locking mechanism. Additional surveillance and security features are also disclosed.
Goff et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,335,686 B1 discloses antenna shelf tape for use with items having RFID tags or labels. Although focused on use in libraries, the reference suggests the use of the invention in stores, warehouses, etc.
Rodgers et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,340,932 discloses a carrier with antenna for RFID identification, in which a plurality of objects having RFID tags can be placed in the carrier, which itself is then passed through a passage lined with further antennas, that forms the actual reader. The antenna in the carrier is intended to improve interrogation and response performance, as well as to potentially provide for the capacity to locate individual articles within the carrier.
Goff et al., U.S. Pub. 2002/0011967. This published application is a divisional application of Goff et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,335,686 B1, and thus has the same disclosure.
Okamura, U.S. Pub. 2002/0014964 discloses the use of electronic tags mounted in a floor, and a movable reader, for addressing storage and inventory issues in a warehouse or storage environment.
Javitt, U.S. Pat. No. 6,353,746 is directed to a method and apparatus for improving signal quality in an electronic shelf label scheme.
Kruger et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,388,630 is directed to a waveguide structure for facilitating the interrogation of individually RFID tagged articles that are stacked on shelves or pallets or the like.
Collins et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,392,544 is directed to a shelf inventory apparatus and method, in which antennae are placed on the shelf surfaces, and individual articles are provided with RFID tags. The material and/or manner of construction of the shelves are not specified. The antennas may be fabricated from conductive ink.
Dalton et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,419,154 discloses an electronic shelf label system, incorporating a main transmitter, a plurality of relay units (antennae) that split the initial signal, and the labels themselves.
Maloney, U.S. Pat. No. 6,424,260 is directed to a mobile object tracking system, such as a key tracking system, including racks for holding individual objects that may be tagged, and an enclosure which monitors the removal and return of the objects and/or the racks.
Porter, U.S. Pat. No. 6,426,699 is directed to a collapsible storage device for the delivery and pickup of goods. The device includes communication equipment to control access to the device, and to provide notification, to a remote location of delivery to or pickup from the device.
Garber et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,448,886 B2 is directed to RFID applications, in particular for libraries.
Terashima et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,473,047 B1 is directed to a method for inventory control of library books, in which individual books bear RFID labels, and are passed through an antenna loop formed in an open-topped box.
Garber et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,486,780 B1 is directed to RFID applications, in particular for libraries.
Mason, U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,361 is directed to electronic article surveillance (EAS) methods and apparatus, specifically in the environment of a retail self-checkout system.
Nelson, U.S. Pat. No. 6,502,012 is directed to a newspaper rack that monitors the quantity of papers in it, and is provided with the capability of wirelessly transmitting a signal, when servicing is required.
Valiulis et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,539,280 B1 discloses merchandise display racks, including tracks for linearly arranging articles having individual RFID tags. The antennae for receiving signals from the tags are permanently mounted in the store, remote from the racks, or are in hand-held units.
Swartzel et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,552,663 is directed to an electronic product information display system (electronic shelf labels).
In existing retail shelving that has been provided with RFID technology, the shelving is usually intended for permanent installation with its attendant cost, weight, and generally low recyclability. The existing approach is to attempt to integrate the electronics and wiring into conventional shelving displays, which may be time consuming, involving the dismantling of the shelving, inconvenience to the retailer/wholesaler, etc.
Companies that have provided RFID shelf inventory control systems in the past include SAMSys Technologies, Inc., 44 East Beaver Creek Road, Unit 11, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada L4B 1Gb; TAGSYS, 180 Chemin de Saint Lambert, 13821 La Penne sur Huveaunne, France; and Lloyd, Gerstner & Partners, Montvale, N.J. Some portable display systems have been demonstrated, such as by TAGsys.
It would be desirable to provide a low-cost point-of-purchase display that is provided with RFID technology so that it can be supplied in a ready to use condition to a retailer/wholesaler.
It would be desirable to provide such a point-of-purchase display that is fabricated from paper, paperboard, and/or corrugated paperboard.
These and other desirable characteristics of the present invention will become apparent in view of the present specification, including claims, and drawings.

Point-of-purchase display with RFID inventory control

Smurfit-Stone Container Enterprises, Inc.


A transceiver of a terminal for use in a TDD-based mobile communication system is provided. The transceiver comprises a receiver for processing a reception signal in a reception mode; a transmitter for processing a transmission signal in a transmission mode; a switching mechanism operable in the transmission mode and the reception mode; and a ground divider for dividing grounds for the receiver, the transmitter, and the switching mechanism.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile communication system and, more particularly, to an isolation-enhanced system and method for a mobile station for a TDD-based mobile communication system.
2. Description of the Related Art
A time division synchronous CDMA (TD-SCDMA) is a third-generation mobile communication standard being developed by the initiative of China. The standard was approved by the ITU as a third generation mobile communication standard together with SCDMA and CDMA-2000 on November 1999.
The TD-SCDMA aims at increasing channel capacity and effectively managing resources by combining merits of time division duplex (TDD) and CDUA such as uplink synchronization and smart antenna.
In a TDD-based communication system such as the TD-SCDMA, transmission and reception channels are divided in time. Therefore, the receiving and transmitting modes of a mobile station are determined by the switching function of a transceiver. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an RF transceiver of a TD-SCDMA terminal. As shown, the transceiver switches between a reception or a transmission mode by operation of switch 3, controlled by a control signal.
In the reception mode, an RF signal received through antenna 1 is led to a receiving part of the transceiver such that the signal is amplified in a low-noise amplifier (LNA) 4, filtered by a filter 5, and then converted into a baseband signal in an intermediate frequency (IF) mixer. In the transmission mode, a transmission signal is up-converted in the IF mixer and is filtered by a transmission filter 8, amplified in an amplifier 7, and then transmitted over the air through isolator 6, switch 3, duplexer 2, and antenna 1.
Generally, in the mobile station for TD-SCDMA, a single pole double throw (SPDT) switch 3 is used for switching the transceiver between transmission and reception modes, and the isolator 6 is located right before the SPDT switch 3 on the transmission line to prevent a backflow of the transmission signal.
Unfortunately, in a conventional transceiver, there is a trade-off between isolation characteristics of the switch and an insertion loss for a receiving party, such that a switch with good isolation characteristics causes insertion loss for the receiving party and limits isolation performance of the commercial isolator.
In addition, if elements of a transmitting and receiving party are commonly grounded to a terminal frame with insufficient ground area, an undesired transmission signal can be induced to the receiving party through the ground line even though the undesired signal induction value depends on a PCB design. Since in power class A of the TD-SCDMA system, the maximum output power is +33 dBm and sensitivity level is −108 dBm. Therefore, the commercial SPDT switch is limited in fully isolating the transmission and reception channel.

System and method for enhancing transmission and reception of a transceiver


In one embodiment, a computer program product for providing header protection in magnetic tape recording includes a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions readable by a processor to cause the processor to: calculate or obtain, by the processor, codeword interleave designation (CWID) parity for all CWIDs in a codeword interleave (CWI) set header, the CWID parity including error correction coding (ECC) parity, and store, by the processor, the CWID parity to a magnetic tape in one or more fields which are repeated for each CWI header in the CWI set header without using reserved bits in the CWI set header to store the CWID parity. Other systems and methods for providing header protection in magnetic tape recording are described in more embodiments.

The present invention relates to data storage, and more particularly, to a tape header format which provides efficient and robust codeword interleave designation (CWID) protection for use in a tape storage system.
In modern magnetic tape storage devices, data which is written on the tape is protected by one or more error correction code (ECC). For data correction, data which is read from the tape is conceptually arranged into a large matrix and is protected by two orthogonal error correcting codes, referred to typically as C1 and C2. The large data matrix is referred to as a sub data set (SDS). The C1 code is used to correct the rows of the SDS and the C2 code is used to correct the columns. This error correction methodology is very powerful. However, in order for this error correction methodology to work, the data has to be placed into the correct locations in the SDS. If the data's location cannot be determined, then the error correction methodology cannot be applied to this data. Therefore, the data location information is stored in a field called the header.
Hard-decision iterative C1/C2 decoding using error-only decoding significantly improves error rate performance over other conventional decoding methods. To obtain the best possible error-rate performance with hard-decision iterative C1/C2 decoding, it is important to place uncorrectable C1 errors (uncorrectables) at the correct locations in the data set stored to the buffer memory. Codeword interleave designations (CWIDs) stipulate the addresses of a number of byte-interleaved codeword interleaves (CWIs) within a data set. In one such approach, four byte-interleaved codeword interleaves (CWI-4s) are used. Successful decoding of CWIDs is required for correct placement of C1 uncorrectables in the data set. Therefore, strong error protection of the CWIDs is beneficial to ensuring proper placement of the C1 uncorrectables. However, most conventional methods of improving the CWID protection also reduce format efficiency by adding error correction overhead to the existing header format. Furthermore, conventional methods of providing CWID protection may also utilize bits in the tape headers that are reserved (such as for future use, expansion, etc.). This is undesirable.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Tape header format having efficient and robust codeword interleave designation (CWID) protection

International Business Machines Corporation


The planar member for a stripping station in a machine for cutting sheet elements consists of a board which may be provided with openings if it is a stripping template, or if it is one of the upper or lower stripping boards is provided with working parts, on one surface and on an opposite surface is provided adjacent a downstream edge with a centering post and at least two mounting strips, an upstream edge of the member is provided with one or more mounting strips which strips protrude from the edges of the board and one of the sides of the board is provided with grasping handles. The planar member is mounted in a frame which has means for engaging the centering post and the mounting strips adjacent the downstream end so that the planar member is not subjected to warping. In addition, the planar member may be received in a table which has an arrangement for engaging the mounting strips to position the board so that a second stripping member such as the lower stripping member can be mounted above the planar member to enable positioning the stripping pins relative to the working parts of the planar member.

The present invention is directed to a planar member as well as associated arrangements for mounting of the member in a machine for cutting sheet elements, such as for example sheets of paper or cardboard, or in an annexed control table. The invention concerns more particularly a member for supporting equipment for ejecting waste which member is installed in an ejection or stripping station, or a member having cutters which member is installed in a cutting platen press.
At present, machines are used to cut one or more box blanks into a sheet of material which blanks after folding and gluing, may be formed into boxes. Each blank has a format that generally includes six surfaces of a box with certain edges being provided with tongues or flaps for gluing and closing. Advantageously, the waste, which is the unused area of the sheet between the tongues or between the different blanks, is immediately ejected after cutting, so that in the output stack only sheets which contain finished blanks interconnected by break points are collected or accumulated.
A machine of this type usually comprises an input station in which the sheets are taken one by one from the top of a stack in order to be sent to a feed table where they are placed in position against front and lateral stops. The sheet can then be grasped at a front edge by a series of grippers or clamps mounted along a transverse bar whose ends are attached to lateral chain trains of a chain conveyor for leading the bar and any attached sheet into subsequent processing stations. The sheet is then conveyed into a cutting station comprising a platen press provided with cutters, which press is actuated during a dwell in the movement of the chain to cut the various blanks into the sheet. From the cutting station, the sheet is then conveyed to an ejection or stripping station where the waste material is grasped by pins in order to be moved downward into a container. If desired, the cuffing station may be preceded by a printing station, also with platen. These processing stations are followed by a receiving or delivery station in which each cut sheet is released from the grippers or clamps so as to fall squarely onto the top of an output stack of die cut and stripped sheets.
In the ejecting or stripping station, the sheet is led flatly onto a first median means in the form of a horizontal board which is provided with apertures according to the periphery of the areas to be stripped from the die cut sheet. An upper horizontal stripping means, bearing stripping or ejecting pins, ejectors or pressers, is movable in the vertical direction according to an alternating motion, synchronized so that the ejecting or stripping means is lowered shortly after the arrival of a sheet. Under the aperture board is located a second horizontal ejecting or stripping means, called the lower means, which has vertical telescopic pins arranged in correspondence with the upper ejectors. Thus, when the upper stripping means lowers itself onto the cut sheet placed in position on the board, the respective combination of the ejector pins of the upper means and the telescopic pins grasp the waste areas and hold them as they move them downward, where they fall into the container.
In the following, the terms upstream and downstream are used in reference to the direction of displacement of the sheets, so that a piece on the upstream side is close to the entrance to the station, while a piece on the downstream side is close to the exit. Analogously, the expressions left and right are to be understood in relation to the running direction of the strip, with the left side usually being the driving side or the operation side and the right side being the side opposed to the driving side of the machine.
The ejecting or stripping means is changed for every change of production series in order to adapt the stripping means to new demands such as the type of sheet, the sheet format, and the various contours of the parts to be ejected or stripped from die cut sheet. In particular, the lower means must be designed so that its structure does not interfere with the free falling of the waste materials, once these have been removed from the die cut sheet.
To accomplish these goals, the upper and lower stripping means currently in use are each made up of immovable metallic rectangular interior frames to which a grid of crossbeams is attached. This frame and these crossbeams are made of formed metal bars, which are preferably made of aluminum, so as to be relatively light and save weight. The fact that these bars are shaped so as to be higher than they are wide ensures a great rigidity in the vertical direction of the stripping means. The ejecting or stripping means properly so called are then arranged along the crossbeams as needed and are held there by anchoring pieces.
The exterior surfaces of the upstream and downstream crossbeams of the frame of the stripping means comprise a groove that enables the means to be removed and then reinstalled in the station by passing through a lateral window or port and sliding it along the two upstream and downstream strips belonging to the drive mechanism of the stripping station. In addition, the frame is provided in its four corners with centering posts that have conical parts and that receive the locking tenons.
In order to facilitate the modification of these stripping means during changing from one production series to another, the stripping means are removed from the station and installed in a control table, i.e. a structure comprising pairs of support strips for the stripping means, arranged one above the other, and locking arrangements for the centering posts. In this table, the order of the stripping pins is inverted with the upper stripping means being installed in the lower part of the table, and the lower stripping means being installed in the upper part. This arrangement facilitates the precise positioning of the telescopic pins of the lower stripping means opposite the ejectors of the upper stripping means.
The handling of these ejecting or stripping means from the station to the control table and then back again is long and tiresome, due to the weight and cumbersomeness of these stripping means. Certain shops are equipped with lifting devices whose hook is specially adapted to lift an ejecting or stripping means and move it horizontally. Other shops have means for lifting the entire control table in order to lead it directly against the window or port of the station in order to slide the stripping means only. However, these operations are still very delicate.
Moreover, since the upper stripping means does not require intermediate space for the passage of the waste, the idea occurred to replace the grid of internal crossbeams with a single board in which are implanted the ejecting pins, ejectors and pressers. However, the holding of this board in the frame by means of a plurality of screws distributed on the periphery of the frame and supported against the edge of the board too frequently caused a warping of the board, which would distort the alignment of the pins. In addition, it was necessary to attach a rigid plate against an upper surface in order to hold the reaction forces to the pushing of the waste down and this caused the stripping board to remain too heavy and cumbersome.

Planar member for a machine for cutting sheet elements, and associated arrangements


A contact probe electrically connects the tester side and an electrode pad of a circuit to be tested. This contact probe has a mounting portion on a base end portion mounted on a probe card, a contact portion on a distal end portion brought into contact with the electrode pad, and an arm portion between them elastically supporting the contact portion. The contact portion is provided on a lower end portion of a base portion integrally mounted on a distal end portion of the arm portion. The arm portion has a one-side arm piece supporting the base portion and allowing vertical movement of the base portion and the other-side arm piece supporting the base portion and adjusting an inclination angle of the base portion to reduce a scrub amount of the contact portion. The probe card uses the above-described contact probe.

1. Technical Field Relating to the Invention
The present invention relates to a cantilever-type contact probe and a probe card used in an electrical current test and the like.
2. Description of Related Art
Density and integration of semiconductor integrated circuits have become higher with recent technical development, and with that trend, the size of an electrode pad of the semiconductor integrated circuit has become smaller. In order to cope with this, a distal end of a contact probe needs to be made smaller in accordance with the size of the electrode pad in order to conduct a stable electrical current test of a semiconductor integrated circuit. Moreover, a distal-end scrub amount when a load is applied to the contact probe (in overdrive in which a distal end portion of the contact probe is lifted up by a reaction force from the electrode pad side) also needs to be reduced.
Prior-art technologies of reducing a scrub amount in accordance with the electrode pad which has become smaller due to higher density of the circuit and the like include a cantilever-type contact probe described in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-229410) and a vertical contact probe described in Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-162483), for example.
In the case of the vertical contact probe (vertical probe), a fulcrum portion (foot portion) connected to and supported by the probe card side and a distal end portion in contact with the electrode pad on the circuit side are not spaced apart from each other in the XY direction (horizontal direction), and thus, very little scrub occurs. However, in the case of the vertical probe, connection of the probe to the probe card during assembling of the probe card is difficult, and since a pitch between each probe is restricted in principle, the electrode pad which has become smaller due to higher density of the circuit and the like cannot be accommodated easily.
On the other hand, the cantilever-type contact probe can accommodate the electrode pad which has become smaller due to higher density of the circuit and the like. Moreover, in the case of the cantilever-type contact probe, the foot portion and the distal end portion are spaced apart from each other in the XY direction, but it is set such that, when overdrive is applied (hereinafter referred to as "OD"), scrub occurs within a range of the size of the electrode pad in accordance with this OD.


An information transmission apparatus is provided which has a connection unit for connection with a personal digital assistant in a wired, wireless or optical manner for transmitting information. When a portion of data displayed by an active one of programs is specified and a transmission command is given, the transmission apparatus transmits the specified portion of the data as a new file to the personal digital assistant, which receives the transmitted file, stores the same in a data area depending on the kind of the file, and displays the file in a display form depending on the kind of the file.

The present invention relates to a personal digital assistant and an information transmission apparatus for use with the personal digital assistant and more particularly to a personal digital assistant and an information transmission apparatus for use with the personal digital assistant capable of displaying data, for example, in texts or spreadsheets.
Since the personal digital assistant (which can be hereinafter simply referred to as xe2x80x9cPDAxe2x80x9d) is so small that it can be accommodated in a pocket and can operate for a considerably long period of time with a battery source, it has excellent convenience not found in a desktop personal computer, for example, in that even a user who is out can use it whereas it has a drawback that its small size limits the size of a keyboard and that the data inputting efficiency is low inevitably. In this respect, some of PDAs have a transparent touch panel attached to a display screen such that one of icons appearing on the screen is touched with a pen tip or the like to facilitate an inputting operation. However, it is apparent that the pen-touch input efficiency is greatly low compared to that of a general blind touch operation at the keyboard.
In addition, since the PDAs usually have a small display size, a small data storage capacity and a low processing speed compared to desktop personal computers, they are not suitable for processing a large amount of data at high speeds such as data collection through the internet.
Now, the roles of the desktop personal computers and the PDAs have been settling such that the desktop personal computers take charge of collecting a large amount of data from the outside via the internet or the like and inputting data from a general keyboard while the PDAs take charge of fetching and utilizing required data from the collected or inputted large amount of data as requested.
FIG. 22 illustrates a desktop personal computer (hereinafter simply referred to as xe2x80x9cpersonal computerxe2x80x9d) connected to a PDA, in which connectors 3 and 4 provided to both of the PDA and the personal computer 2 are connected by a dedicated communication cable 5.
The connectors 3 and 4 and the cable 5 have structures and electrical specifications conforming to predetermined interface standards. RS (recommended standard)-232C established by EIA (Electronic Industry Association in United States) is typical of such standards.
For instance, when browser data collected by the personal computer 2 from the outside through the internet browser or a word processor file created by the personal computer 2 is transferred to the PDA 1, a user first connects the cable 5 between the personal computer 2 and the PDA 1, as shown in FIG. 22, and then turns on a power source for the PDA 1 to prepare for information reception. The user starts up a communication program in the personal computer 2 to transmit the browser data or the word processor file to the PDA 1.
Further, it is sometimes desired to transmit only a portion of a file collected by or inputted in the personal computer to the PDA. Especially, recently, such a demand has increased since a large amount of information is available easily via personal computer communication or the internet. To this end, as in the above case, a user performs an applied operation which includes connecting the cable as shown in FIG. 22, turning on the power source for the PDA 1 to prepare for information reception, starting up a browser program or a word processing program in the personal computer to open a desired data file, selecting the range of a part of a character string to be transmitted on a screen of the personal computer 2, copying it to a predetermined work area (clipboard) in a memory, then starting up an editor program for text data, pasting the data on the clipboard, saving the data under any particular file name, starting up a communication program and then transmitting the text file to the PDA 1.
However, the applied operation requires an extremely complicated operation which includes copying a desired range of the displayed data, preparing for and starting up another editor program to save the range as a separate file. It is very difficult especially for a beginner who does not have enough knowledge about the clipboard and the editor program to understand and utilize the applied operation.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to make it possible to transmit only a desired portion of data in an information transmission apparatus (personal computer or the like) in a simple operation to a personal digital assistant, or to store the thus transmitted data into the personal digital assistant in a simple operation such that a required portion of the data obtained by the information transmission apparatus (personal computer or the like) can be utilized easily in the personal digital assistant.
In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided an information transmission apparatus which contains various kinds of programs each having a function of displaying data, comprising:
connecting means for connecting the information transmission apparatus with a personal digital assistant in a wired, wireless or optical manner for transmission of information,
specifying means for specifying the range of any part of data displayed based on an active one of the programs and to be sent to the personal digital assistant,
transmission commanding means for commanding transmission of the specified range of any part of data to the personal digital assistant; and
transmission control means, responsive to the transmission commanding means commanding transmission of the specified range of any part of data, for creating a new file including the specified range of any part of data and for transmitting the file via the connecting means to the personal digital assistant.
In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is also provided an information transmission apparatus comprising:
event generating means, responsive to a use""s predetermined manipulation, for generating a predetermined event,
storing means, responsive to the generation of the predetermined event, for storing data on a clipboard,
producing means for producing a new file from the data on the clipboard stored by the storing means; and
transmitting means for transmitting the produced file to a personal digital assistant via a communication port in a wired, wireless or optical manner.
According to the present invention, when a desired range of a part of a large amount of data is specified which is obtained and displayed by one of various kinds of programs on the information transmission apparatus (personal computer or the like), the data is transmitted as a new file to the personal digital assistant. The personal digital assistant can receive the transmitted file, store it in a predetermined data area, and display and use its contents.

Personal digital assistant and information transmission apparatus for use with the personal digital assistant


An opto-electrical ultrasound sensor, preferably for the use in medical diagnostics, comprising at least one light source (2), a photo detector (3) illuminated by the light source (2) and capable of producing an electrical signal indicative of the intensity of the light incident on the photo detector (3), and an optical ultrasound detector (4) located in the optical path between the light source (2) and the photo detector (3) and capable of modulating in response to an ultrasound signal the intensity of at least part of the light incident on photo detector (3) from the light source (2). The opto-electrical ultrasound sensor further comprises intensity adjustment means (5) for adjusting the intensity of the light incident on the photo detector (3) via the optical ultrasound detector (4).

The invention relates to an opto-electrical ultrasound sensor, preferably for the use in medical diagnostics, according to the pre-characterizing clause of claim 1. It further relates to an ultrasound system according to the pre-characterizing clause of claim 9. Finally, the invention relates to a method of detecting ultrasounds according to the pre-characterizing clause of claim 21.

Opto-electrical ultrasound sensor and system


A method for controlling and operating a vending machine that incorporates a mobile radiocommunication transmit/receive unit and can be called from a user's mobile telephone unit over a mobile telephone network via an abbreviated mobile telephone number affixed on the vending machine. The method includes, upon receipt of a call from the user's mobile telephone unit to the abbreviated mobile telephone number on the vending machine, establishing a connection to a bank and determining if the user has an account at that bank, and if so, whether there are sufficient funds in the user's account, if the user has an account and there are sufficient funds, prompting, via the vending machine, the user to select a merchandise item, after the merchandise item has been dispensed, generating, a billing entry in the vending machine, and settling the billing entry via a payment gateway, the step of settling comprising accessing a mini-payment account the user has opened with a bank, and determining the mini-payment account number based on the user's mobile telephone number.

Patent document WO-A-99 22346 reveals a method for controlling a vending machine and charging of a dispensed item of merchandise using a mobile telephony system. A user can order an item of merchandise from the vending machine with his mobile telephone by dialing a vending machine telephone number that is displayed on the vending machine. The item of merchandise is charged with the aid of billing data that are matched to the user's telephone number and billed with his telephone bill.
A method for controlling a vending machine and charging of a dispensed item of merchandise using a mobile telephony system is also known from patent document JP-A-08249530A. The user can control a vending machine with his mobile telephone in such a way that he is recognized by the system based on his telephone number. Billing data are generated that are transmitted to a billing center, where the incurred costs are charged.
The present invention is based on the following object (problem):
A method shall be presented for a simple control of a vending machine and a simple and cashless charging of the dispensed item of merchandise.

Method for controlling a machine dispensing good and charging of goods thus dispensed


An inkjet ink comprising at least one dye having a heterocyclic ring and a metal ion in an aqueous medium, wherein the ink jet ink further comprises a compound capable of accelerating aggregation of the dye in the aqueous medium.

With the popularization of computers in recent years, inkjet printers are widely used not only at offices but also at homes for printing letters or images on paper, films, cloths or the like.
The inkjet recording method includes a system of ejecting a liquid droplet upon applying a pressure by means of a piezoelectric element, a system of ejecting a liquid droplet by generating a bubble in an ink upon heat, a system of using an ultrasonic wave, and a system of ejecting a liquid droplet by drawing with an electrostatic force. An ink for use in such inkjet recording methods includes an aqueous ink, an oily ink and a solid (melt-type) ink. Of these inks, the aqueous ink becomes mainstream in view of production, handleability, odor, safety and the like.
A coloring agent used in such an ink for inkjet recording method is required to have high solubility in a solvent, enable high-density recording, have good color hue, exhibit excellent fastness to light, heat, air, ozone, water and chemicals, ensure good fixing property and less bleeding on an image-receiving material, provide an ink having excellent preservability, shows no toxicity, have high purity, and be available at a low cost. However, it is very difficult to find out a coloring agent satisfying these requirements at a high level. In particular, a coloring agent having good cyan color hue and excellent fastness to ozone is strongly desired.
Although various dyes and pigments for inkjet recording have been already proposed and practically used, a coloring agent satisfying all requirements is not yet found out at present. Conventionally well-known dyes and pigments such as those having a Colour Index (C.I.) number can hardly satisfy both color hue and fastness required to the ink for inkjet recording method.
The inventors have made technical searches for resolving the above-described problems in the inkjet ink using dye and found that an aqueous inkjet ink is many times particularly interior in image preservability due to water solubility of the dye. As dyes suitable for the aqueous inkjet ink, phthalocyanine dyes having specific structures are set forth in Patent Documents 1 to 3 described below. These techniques exhibit improvements in simultaneous pursuit of color hue and fastness. However, since the color hue and fastness are especially important characteristics together with ejection stability, further improvements have been desired.
Patent Document 1: JP-A-2003-3086 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application")
Patent Document 2: JP-A-2003-3099
Patent Document 3: JP-A-2003-3109


A bus controller controls access to a computer bus by a plurality of bus requesters. The bus controller activates a priority bus request line on the computer bus regardless of which of plural priority bus agents desires to transmit a transaction on the computer bus. The bus controller receives an I/O request signal from a bus agent and determines whether the priority bus request line is in an active state. If the priority bus request line is not in the active state, then the bus controller activates the priority bus request line in response to the I/O request signal. If the priority bus request line is already in the active state, then the bus controller leaves the priority bus request line in the active state for a time period sufficient to enable the bus agent to transmit a transaction on the computer bus. In addition, the bus controller transmits an I/O grant signal to the bus agent to enable the bus agent to transmit the transaction on the computer bus. Controlling the priority bus request line solely with the bus controller enables the control of the processor bus to switch between priority bus agents without having to deactivate and reactivate the priority bus request line.

A computer system includes a set of interconnected components or modules of three basic types: central processing unit (CPU), memory, and input/output (I/O). The modules of the computer system are connected together by communication pathways known as busses. A bus is a shared transmission medium in that plural computer modules can transmit across the same bus. However, if two modules transmit during the same time period, their signals will overlap and become garbled. Therefore, it is important to ensure that only one module transmits across the bus during a given time period.
The process of allocating time or bandwidth on a computer bus among plural bus agents is known as arbitration. Typically, an arbiter grants access for a predetermined time period or bandwidth window to whichever bus agent first requests use of the bus. If plural bus agents have requests for use of the bus pending, then the arbiter typically employs a rotational priority or round-robin scheme to share the bus among the bus agents. In a rotational priority scheme, the use of the bus is given for one bandwidth window to each bus agent in sequential order. After the last bus agent uses the bus, then the use of the bus is given back to the first bus agent and the rotational sequence continues.
In many computer systems, such as the Intel P6 computer system, the bus agents can be either symmetric bus agents or priority bus agents. As the name suggests, bus requests from the priority bus agents have preference over any new bus requests from the symmetric bus agents. In the Intel P6 computer system, from one to four P6 processors are coupled to a processor bus, with each P6 processor being a symmetric bus agent. In addition, one or more bus controllers couple memory and input/output (I/O) devices to the processor bus, with each bus controller being a priority bus agent. The P6 processors are referred to as symmetric bus agents because they are arbitrated on a strict rotational priority scheme.
The prior art computer system 10 shown in FIG. 1 includes a multiprocessor system architecture in which first through fourth computer processors 14, 16, 18, 20 are each coupled to a processor bus 12. The computer processors 14-20 are known as symmetric bus agents, as discussed above. The computer system 10 also includes two priority bus agents: a bus agent 22 and a bus controller 24. Coupled to the bus agent 22 is a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus 26 which is coupled to a hard drive 28 and a video controller 30. Coupled to the bus controller 24 is a main memory 32. The hard drive 28, video controller 30, and main memory 32 are bus requesters that generate bus requests for use of the processor bus 12.
The bus controller 24 includes an external arbiter 34 that arbitrates between requests for access to the processor bus 12. Such bus requests can come from the main memory 32 directly to the bus controller 24 or from the hard drive 28 and the video controller 30 to the bus agent 22 via the PCI bus 26. In response to receiving a bus request from the PCI bus 26, the bus agent 22 transmits an I/O request signal to the bus controller 24. The external arbiter 34 of the bus controller 24 performs arbitration between the I/O request signal from the bus agent 22 and any other bus requests, such as from the main memory 32. If the external arbiter 34 selects the I/O request signal from the bus agent 22, then the external arbiter transmits an I/O grant signal to the bus agent 22. Upon receiving the I/O grant signal, the bus agent 22 monitors a priority bus request line (BPRI#) of the processor bus 12 to determine whether the processor bus is available. If the BPRI# line is inactive when the I/O grant signal is received from the bus controller 24, then the bus agent activates the BPRI# line. When the BPRI# line is activated the bus agent 22 can transmit on the processor bus 12 a bus transaction (e.g., read or write) corresponding to the selected bus request from the PCI bus 26. An active BPRI# line informs the symmetric bus agents (i.e., processors 14-20) that they cannot transmit any bus transactions on the processor bus 12 until the BPRI# line is deactivated.
When the bus agent 22 is ready to finish transmitting transactions on the processor bus 12, the bus agent releases the I/O request signal and the BPRI# line to enable another bus agent to access the processor bus 12. For example, if the bus controller 24 is ready to transmit a transaction corresponding to a bus request received from the main memory 32, then the bus controller determines whether the BPRI# line is active. If the BPRI# line is not active, then the bus controller 24 activates the BPRI# line and transmits its transaction on the processor bus 12. As such, when switching between priority bus agents that are accessing the processor bus 12, the prior art system requires the first priority bus agent to deactivate the BPRI# line and the second priority bus agent must check to see if the BPRI# line is inactive, and then activate the BPRI# line.

Method for controlling access to a computer bus


Homopolymers and/or copolymers are manufactured by polymerizing ethylenically monounsaturated monomer(s) in an aqueous solution in a reaction vessel containing compounds which contain a phosphorus atom of degree of oxidation less than 5, phosphorous compounds being introduced in amounts of 0.005-0.49 gram-atom phosphorus per mol of unsaturation in said ethylenically unsaturated monomer(s) in the presence of hydrogen peroxide and in the absence of any agent(s) which decomposes hydrogen peroxide thereby forming free radicals, in the absence of any other generator of free radicals, and in the absence of any per salt and/or any other transfer agent.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing homopolymers and/or copolymers, in an aqueous solution of ethylenically monounsaturated monomers, e.g. acrylic and/or vinylic monomers, such that, for each monomer, one can achieve a residual monomer concentration less than or equal to 300 ppm (based on the weight of the raw product), wherewith the concentration of the products is at least 38%; and wherewith these results can be achieved regardless of the monomer(s) used, and at the end of the polymerization, without the need for any intervening treatment.
The invention also relates to the homopolymers and/or copolymers manufactured by the described method; and the use of said homopolymers and/or copolymers, as:
milling agents and/or dispersants in aqueous suspensions of mineral materials; or PA1 sequestering agents and/or precipitation inhibitors and/or inhibitors of mineral incrustation (particularly with respect to heat transfer surfaces in industrial or household systems); or PA1 fluidifying agents for aqueous suspensions based on non-saline or saline water, which suspensions are used as drilling fluids (muds) and the like in the areas of civil engineering, construction, public works, minerals prospecting, and petroleum production; or PA1 stabilizers for suspensions of zeolites; or anti-scaling agents and dispersant agents, in detergent formulations containing hypochlorite compounds, wherewith the subject polymers do not destabilize the "chlorometric index" of said hypochlorite compounds; or PA1 "builders" in detergent compositions; or PA1 water retention agents in the paper industry. PA1 the use of metallic salts which promote decomposition reactions of hydrogen peroxide, e.g. the Fenton reaction, which often result(s) in ultimate products which are undesirably colored and which contain metal salts which are environmental pollutants; PA1 the use of persulfates which undergo decomposition because of the application of heat or because of redox reactions, resulting in ultimate products which undesirably contain sulfur; and PA1 the use of organic initiators, e.g. organic peroxides, particularly benzoyl peroxide, which result in the production of undesirable by-products such as certain nitrogen compounds. PA1 a fluidifying agent for aqueous suspensions which are used as drilling fluids (muds) and the like; or PA1 a stabilizer for suspensions of zeolites; or PA1 an anti-scaling agent and dispersant agent, for use in detergent formulations containing hypochlorite compounds, wherewith said agent does not destabilize the "chlorometric index" of said hypochlorite compounds; or PA1 a "builder" for detergent compositions and the like. PA1 in the presence of hydrogen peroxide and PA1 in the absence of any agents, which decompose hydrogen peroxide to form free radicals, such as metals or metal salts, which agents are deemed necessary by the art to satisfactorily achieve such decomposition, further, in the absence of any other generator of free radicals, and in the absence of any per salt and/or any other transfer agent. PA1 homopolymerization of a monomer such as (meth)acrylic acid or maleic acid, or PA1 copolymerization of maleic acid or a copolymerizable monomer, with acrylic acid or a copolymerizable monomer, with the addition solely of hydrogen peroxide, without the presence of agents which promote decomposition of hydrogen peroxide to form free radicals, e.g. metals or metal salts, such as salts of Cu, Fe, Co, Ni, Zn, W, Ce, Mo, Zr, or mixtures of these, which agents are deemed necessary in the art in order to satisfactorily achieve such decomposition, e.g. in the familiar Fenton reaction, and further without the presence of organic initiators, e.g. benzoyl peroxide, and further without the presence of per salts, e.g. persulfates, and further without the presence of other transfer agents e.g., thio compounds, alcohols, halides, amines, and the like. PA1 in the presence of hydrogen peroxide and PA1 in the absence of any agents which promote decomposition of hydrogen peroxide to form free radicals, and further, in the absence of any other generator of free radicals, and in the absence of any per salt and/or any other transfer agent. More particularly, in the method, all or part of the necessary quantity of the compound containing a phosphorus atom of degree of oxidation less than 5 is introduced into the reaction vessel or into the starting mixture in the reaction vessel, prior to the start of the polymerization, which introduction may occur in the presence of all or part of the monomer(s) which are to undergo polymerization, which monomer(s) if then present may be present as acids or in a partially or completely neutralized state by neutralization with a basic solution. Further the method results in the production of homopolymer(s) and/or copolymers without addition of metals or metallic salts, which metals or metallic salts initiate the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide. PA1 in the presence all or part of the monomer(s) to be polymerized, which monomer(s) if then present may be present as the acids or in a partially or completely neutralized state provided by neutralization with a basic solution, and PA1 generally in the presence of sufficient added water to obtain a homogeneous solution. PA1 all or part of the total amount of the monomer to be polymerized, PA1 all or part of the total amount of the compound containing a phosphorus atom which is sodium hypophosphite as hypophosphorous acid, in an amount determined by the desired molecular weight, and PA1 a quantity of water as needed to prepare a homogeneous solution. PA1 alkali cations, particularly those of sodium and potassium, and also ammonium ion; PA1 the primary, secondary, or tertiary amines, aliphatic and/or cyclic, e.g. mono-, di-, and triethanolamine, mono- and diethylamine, cyclohexylamine, and methylcyclohexylamine; PA1 the divalent alkaline earth cations, particularly those of magnesium and calcium, and the divalent zinc cation; PA1 the trivalent cations, particularly aluminum; certain cations of higher valence; and PA1 cations of primary and secondary amines, aliphatic and/or cyclical, e.g. cations of monoethylamine, diethylamine, cyclohexylamine, methylcyclohexylamine(s); and combinations thereof. PA1 the efflux time of a given volume of said solution containing the copolymer and PA1 the efflux time of the same volume of doubly de-ionized water, not containing the copolymer. PA1 the efflux time of a given volume of a solution of 2.5 g of the corresponding sodium polyacrylate (dry) in 50 mL of a 60 g/L aqueous solution of sodium chloride to PA1 the efflux time of an equal volume of aqueous sodium chloride solution without the polyacrylate. PA1 silicon oxide, aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, or mixtures thereof; PA1 hard synthetic resins; and PA1 steels.
The invention further relates to the abovementioned aqueous suspensions of mineral materials, having characteristics of long term stability and high concentrations of the mineral materials; and the use of the suspensions in areas such as paper, paints and other coatings, detergents and other cleaning agents, ceramics, mineral drilling and production (e.g. drilling-mud compositions), and other sectors which employ such suspensions.
2. Description of the Background
Various methods have long been known for homopolymerization, in solution, of acrylic and/or vinylic monomers, e.g. (meth)acrylic acid, maleic anhydride, and acrylamide; and for copolymerization, in aqueous solution, of acrylic acid with monoethylenically unsaturated comonomers such as, e.g., maleic anhydride, itaconic acid, acrylamide, (acrylamidomethyl)propanesulfonic acid, and acrylate esters. However, none of these methods is entirely satisfactory in the light of current and/or expected environmental regulations, particularly regulations governing the residual monomer content in the polymer in a given application, or requirements as to the color and/or odor of the product.
Eur. Pats. 0,668,298 and 0,608,845 describe methods of copolymerization which, unless subsequent treatments are employed, result in residual monomer contents which exceed 1000 ppm. These methods would not meet the standards demanded in the current market.
Eur. Pat. 0,618,240 discloses a method enabling production of polymers with lower residual monomer content, as do Eur. Pats. 0,398,724, 0,510,831, and 0,663,408; however, all have fundamental practical disadvantages connected with the method, or disadvantages such as:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,301,266 discloses a method of manufacturing acrylic acid polymers, with the disadvantage that one must use a solvent of the isopropanol type and must operate at elevated pressure.
Also known to those skilled in the art is U.S. Pat. No. 4,621,127, which discloses a method of copolymerization. The method is costly and lengthy, and requires the use of chain regulators to prepare low molecular weight polymers.

Method of manufacturing water-soluble polymers, polymers manufactured thereby, and uses of said polymers


A correction function is calculated based on a reference image formed of reflected light reflected upon the irradiation of a predetermined living tissue, for which a diseased state is known, with a reference light. This correction function is employed to administer distance correction on calculated standardized values based on fluorescence images to which an offset has been added, to correct the fluctuations of the calculated standardized values caused by the distance between living tissue and the distal end of a fluorescence endoscope, thereby generating a corrected standardized fluorescence image.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for standardized image generation which detects reradiated light of mutually different wavelength bandwidths, generated from a living tissue by irradiation thereof by light, as images; adds a desired offset to at least one of the images of mutually different bandwidths; and generates a standardized image based on the ratio between the mutually different images, at least one of which the offset has been added to.
2. Description of the Related Art
When a living tissue is irradiated by excitation light within an excitation light wavelength range of pigment existing within a living organism, normal tissue and diseased tissue emit fluorescent light of different intensities. There has been proposed a fluorescence detection apparatus that takes advantage of this phenomenon by irradiating a living tissue with excitation light of a predetermined wavelength range, and recognizing the location and region of infiltration of diseased tissue by detecting the fluorescent light emitted by the pigment existing therein.
Generally, when irradiated with excitation light, normal tissue emits strong fluorescence as indicated by the solid line in the graph of FIG. 10, whereas fluorescence weaker than that of normal tissue is emitted from diseased tissue, as indicated by the broken line in the graph of FIG. 10. Therefore, by measuring the intensity of fluorescence, a judgment can be made as to whether living tissue is normal or in a diseased state.
Further, there has been proposed a method in which fluorescence caused by excitation light is imaged by an imaging element, and a judgment is made as to whether living tissue is normal or in a diseased state by displaying a fluorescence image corresponding to the intensity of the fluorescence. With regard to this technology, as there are concavities and convexities in living tissue, the intensity of excitation light irradiated on the living tissue is not uniform. Consequently, the intensity of the fluorescence emitted from the living tissue decreases in proportion to the square of the distance between a light source and the living tissue. In addition, the intensity of the fluorescence emitted from the living tissue decreases in proportion to the square of the distance between a fluorescence detection means and the living tissue as well. Therefore, there are cases in which fluorescence of a stronger intensity is received from diseased tissue closer to the light source or the fluorescence detection means than from normal tissue further therefrom. Consequently, it is not possible to accurately discriminate the tissue state of living tissue based solely on information regarding the intensity of fluorescence caused by excitation light. In order to reduce such inaccuracies, there has been proposed a method in which fluorescence images are obtained based on fluorescence intensities of two mutually different wavelength bandwidths (a narrow bandwidth in the vicinity of 480 nm, and a wide bandwidth ranging from the vicinity of 430 nm to the vicinity of 730 nm), the ratio between the two fluorescence images is derived by division, then a standardized fluorescence image is generated based on the divided value. That is, a method of standardized fluorescence image generation based on the difference of the shape of the fluorescence spectra which reflects the tissue state of an organism has been proposed. Further, a method in which color information is assigned to the divided value of the fluorescence images of different wavelength bandwidths, and indicating the diseased state of living tissue by differences in color shown in a color image has been proposed. Still further, a method in which a near infrared light, which is uniformly absorbed by various living tissues, is irradiated on living tissue as a reference light, a reference image based on the intensity of the light reflected by the living tissue upon irradiation thereof with the reference light is detected, brightness information is assigned to the reference image, and the brightness image obtained thereby is synthesized with the aforementioned color image, thereby showing an image having a three dimensional feel which reflects the contour of the tissue as well, has been proposed.
In addition, in the case that a standardized fluorescence image is generated based on the divided value of fluorescence images of different wavelength bandwidths, the fluorescence intensity from the living tissue used for the standardization calculation is minute. Therefore, the standardized fluorescence image based on this fluorescence intensity has an extremely low S/N ratio. In order to ameliorate this problem, the adding of an offset to at least one of the fluorescence images of different wavelength bandwidths when the aforementioned divided value is calculated, thereby improving the S/N ratio of the standardized fluorescence image, has been proposed.
When deriving a divided value by adding an offset as described above, a favorable S/N ratio can be obtained by making the value of the offset large. However, the fluorescence intensity changes greatly depending on the distance between the detection means and the living tissue. Therefore, if the offset is made too large, cases arise in which living tissue far from the detection means and living tissue close to the detection means have greatly different divided values even when their diseased state is the same. Consequently, the discrimination between diseased tissue and normal tissue becomes difficult. As an example, the relationship between the divided values and the aforementioned distances of a predetermined normal tissue and a predetermined diseased tissue is shown in the graph of FIG. 8. The divided values were obtained by dividing a narrow bandwidth fluorescence image by a wide bandwidth fluorescence image to which an offset was added (narrow bandwidth fluorescence image/(wide bandwidth fluorescence image+offset)). Values of 5, 10, 15, and 20 were utilized for the offset, and the divided values for the normal tissue are indicated by the outlined symbols, while the divided values for the diseased tissue are indicated by the solid symbols. As shown in the figure, the divided value changes according to the aforementioned distance. It can be seen that the larger the offset value, the difference between the divided values of the normal tissue and the diseased tissue decrease as the aforementioned distance increases, and discrimination therebetween becomes difficult. Conversely, if the offset value is small, changes in the divided value according to distance is less significant. However, a problem arises that an effect whereby the S/N ratio of the standardized fluorescence image is improved is not sufficiently obtained. Further, standardized fluorescence images of a predetermined living tissue based on the above described divided value are shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B. FIG. 9A shows a standardized fluorescence image wherein the distance between the detection means and the living tissue is large, and FIG. 9B shows a standardized fluorescence image wherein the aforementioned distance is small. Note that the offset value in these cases is 20, and in each image, the portions that are comparatively darker than their surroundings indicate diseased portions. As shown in the figure, although it is necessary that the large distance image (far image) and the small distance image (close image) display their normal tissue portions and their diseased tissue portions at the same brightnesses, respectively, the far image is darker than the close image as a whole. In addition, there is little contrast in the far image between the normal tissue portion and the diseased tissue portion, making discrimination therebetween difficult.

Method and apparatus for standardized fluorescence image generation


A switch creates and dynamically updates a latency map of a network to adjust routing of flows. Further, the network is monitored to detect latency issues and trigger a dynamic adjustment of routing based on the latency map. In this manner, a flow can be routed along a route (i.e., a faster route) that provides less latency than other available routes. The latency map can be generated based on latency probe packets that are issued from and returned to the source switch. By evaluating many such latent probe packets that have traveled along many available routes (e.g., corresponding to various ports of the switch), the switch or associated administrative logic can dynamically adjust the latency map to updated latency information of available routes. Therefore, responsive to a trigger, the source switch can dynamically adjust the routing of a flow based on latency issues discerned from the network.

With some networks, communication between one node and another node (e.g., a server and a storage device) may be possible via multiple available routes through the network. Such communication is embodied in a sequence of transmitted data frames or a "flow" between the source node and the destination node, wherein the flow typically represents a single session or data exchange within a specific protocol. The flow enters the network at a source switch connected to the source node and leaves the network at a destination switch connected to the destination node.
In cases where multiple routes exist for a flow, when the source switch receives a frame associated with that flow, the source switch determines whether a route though the network has already been assigned to the flow. If a route has already been assigned, the source switch transmits the frame via the egress port corresponding to the assigned route. If a route has not already been assigned, the source switch selects one of the available routes over which to transmit the flow and records the selected route corresponding to the flow.
Typically, such a selection is performed randomly and/or without significant knowledge of downstream network characteristics, and therefore the selected route may not offer the best performance. In other words, in some circumstances, another available route may have provided better performance but might not be selected. In such cases, after that initial selection, the flow is fixed to the lower performance route for the flow's duration (e.g., until the server/storage exchange completes and the flow terminates). For example, a flow may be routed through a part of the network that includes slow switches and/or congested links, while other routes were available that do not include such slow switches or congested links. Yet, by virtue of the initial route selection, the flow remains bound to the slower route until its completion. Such route selection can result in non-optimal routing, particularly for latency-sensitive flows.
Further, network performance can change as the traffic through various network links changes. Therefore, even if an optimal route is initially selected for a given flow, the route may later change to have excessive latency while other routes could provide a lower latency. However, no solutions exist to dynamically adjust routing based on latency distributions and changes in a network.


In a plastic "miniprep" device for separating liquid samples including (i) a first, sample, cylindrical container having an inlet and an outlet opening between which a separation layer is arranged, the outlet opening typically being connected to and enclosed by an outlet spout, fitting within a cylindrical bore of (ii) a second, collecting, container receiving the separated liquid discharged from the outlet spout, the cylindrical first container is (a) of lesser diameter than is the bore, and (b) possessed of longitudinal exterior rib hat hold it eccentric within the bore. According to the (a) lessor diameter and (b) eccentric mounting, access may be had by hypodermic syringe or thin pipette down the side of the first container to separated liquid present at the bottom of the second container. Normally a large number of arrayed sample containers each positioned within a collection container are (i) loaded with samples, typically by use of a pipette, and then (ii) centrifuged in parallel while held in a rack, the (iii) separated liquid being withdrawn by syringe or pipette without necessity of separating the sample and collection containers, and (iv) the used containers discarded.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally concerns laboratory devices and laboratory methods for separating liquid samples.
The present invention particularly concerns an improvement to a device for separating liquid samples including (i) a first, sample, cylindrical container having an inlet and an outlet opening between which a separation layer is arranged, the outlet opening typically being connected to and enclosed by an outlet spout, fitting within a cylindrical bore of (ii) a second, collecting, container receiving the separated liquid discharged from the outlet spout; the improvement being of the nature of making the cylindrical first container to be both (a) of lesser diameter than is the bore and (b) possessed of features, normally longitudinal exterior protuberances or ribs, that hold it eccentric within the bore, thus permitting that access may be made by hypodermic syringe down the side of the first container to a separated liquid present at the bottom of the second container.
2. Background of the Invention
2.1 General Laboratory Devices and Procedures for Separation of Liquid Samples
The present invention will be seen to concern an improvement to an existing laboratory device commonly called a "miniprep", and to the laboratory procedures for the use of such a device.
A"miniprep" is concerned with the separation of liquid samples into their individual components, the extraction of particular components of a liquid sample, and/or the filtration of a liquid sample. The liquid sample can be, for example, a solution, a colloidal dispersion, or a suspension. The liquid sample is commonly only a few milliliters in volume.
The liquid sample is introduced--typically, for example, by pipette--into a first, sample, container of generally cylindrical form. The cylindrical sample container typically, but not necessarily, narrows to a spout at its lower region.
A separation layer normally in the form of filter paper, glass frit, a membrane, or other material with selective absorption properties is held in, and near the bottom of, the sample container. The liquid sample introduced into and held within the sample container penetrates this separation layer, flows through the spout, and enters into a second, collection, container that is arranged at a distance below the sample container.
The separation normally proceeds liquid drop by liquid drop, typically under (i) the centrifugal force of centrifuging or, else (ii) vacuum suction such as is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,464,541 for a DEVICE AND METHOD FOR SEPARATING OF LIQUID SAMPLES as is further described below.
The present invention will be seen to concern improvements to "miniprep" containers that are generally centrifuged, and that are of a kind not normally used in vacuum separation (although it is not precluded that they should be so used).
The "miniprep" sample container and collecting container are generally of substantially tubular shape, typically holding but a few milliliters liquid each. (Ergo the "mini".) The separation layer normally abuts the bottom wall of the sample container, which bottom wall has the outlet opening formed therein. The outlet opening normally has a diameter of only a few tenths of a millimeter. The sample container normally fits (i) snugly, or nearly snugly in accordance with the showings of the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,464,541, and (ii) coaxially within the cylindrical bore of the cylindrical collection container.
The present invention will be seen to change this, and to be opposite in both its (i) fit and (ii) co-axial alignment.
Typically a large number of such sample containers are arranged side by side in rows and in columns, with the arrayed containers being interconnected by a support plate. The penetration of the separation layer in each and all of the sample containers is effected in parallel by force of (i) gravity, (ii) centrifuging, or (iii) vacuum. Each sample container must be withdrawn from its associated collection container after the separation process to expose the separated liquid collected in the bottom of the sample container. Contamination is possible if remaining liquid in the extracted sample containers drips onto other containers of the array, so this must be avoided. The exposed liquid contents in the collection containers are then typically removed with a syringe.
The present invention will be seen to make the laborious step or removing the sample containers from the collection containers unnecessary.
2.2 Specific Previous Patents Concerning Laboratory Devices and Procedures for Separation of Liquid Samples
U.S. Pat. No. 5,464,541--issued Nov. 7, 1995 for a DEVICE AND A METHOD FOR SEPARATING LIQUID SAMPLES to James E. Aysta and assigned to Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, St. Paul, Minn.--concerns a device for separating liquid samples. The device has a sample container the bottom wall of which has an outlet opening. The outlet opening is joined to an outlet spout extending in the axial direction of the sample container. A separation layer is on the bottom wall. A collecting container is arranged abutting and below the sample container. An exchange of air between the interior of the collecting chamber and the environment is possible, yet an escape of liquid is largely inhibited. The contact surface between collecting chamber and sample container, and the end of the outlet spout through which the liquid is discharged, are axially spaced apart. (This will be seen not be the case in the device of the present invention.)
In use a partial vacuum is pulled on the liquid sample. To this end a chamber that may be subjected to a partial vacuum is sealed in an airtight manner with a support plate that supports a number of sample containers. Within the chamber, there are collecting containers associated with each of the sample containers. The collecting containers are fitted into and supported in a rack. The liquid samples are pulled through the separation layer of each sample containers and into the associated collection container under force of the vacuum. Such an apparatus is used, for example, in medical laboratories for the simultaneous separating of a number of liquid samples.
Still earlier multi-well filtration devices have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,777,021 and 4,427,415. Both reference devices have in common that liquid drops of samples penetrating separation layers will enter a common collecting vessel that is part of a vacuum chamber. The vacuum chamber is again sealed by a support plate interconnecting the individual sample containers arranged in a matrix-like manner. In the reference device for separating liquids, the sample components retained by, or in, the separation layer are of interest in the subsequent tests. The liquid penetrating the separation layer is "lost" for further analyzing purposes. It is frequently necessary for a chemical or bio-polymer separation of samples to individually and selectively catch the sample components that have penetrated the separation layer or have been washed out or removed from the separation layer by applying a solvent. This cannot be realized by using the reference devices.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,902,481 discloses a multi-well filtration apparatus for the assay of microliter quantities. The apparatus has a filter that is positioned in each well on a plate having an open spout positioned in the plate. The spout has a collar on its outer surface extending in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis of the spout. The collar prevents a liquid droplet from climbing the outer surface of the spout from its open end.
In the '481 patent, the individual collecting containers are only a small distance apart. Due to the distance of the collecting containers to the sample containers, there is a risk that parts of a fluid drop to be received by a collecting container, arranged below a sample container, will enter a neighboring collecting container, thereby contaminating the filtrate thereof. Further, the forming of the drops may not be uniform in the device of U.S. Pat. No. 4,902,481. In particular, it is not uniform when the vacuum in the chamber is released for a short time in order to replace the set of collecting containers accommodated therein by a new one. When releasing the partial vacuum in the chamber, the lower surface of the plate can become wetted by the liquid drops. When a partial vacuum is subsequently generated, relatively large drops will form since sucked-in liquid expands along the lower surface because it is wetted. In this case, a drop may extend up to the annular collar, where it can be sucked off via the gap between the annular collar and the collecting container. Thus, the liquid does not get into the collecting container, but may possibly run into an adjacent collecting container (contamination) or flows along the outside of the respective collecting container.
Contamination of the liquid drops received by the collecting containers is particularly intolerable in the bio-polymer separation of liquid samples since, in this event, the examination of nucleic acids and proteins can be performed after a plurality (25 to 40) of self-replicating cycles, for example in a polymerase chain reaction (PCR), whereby even slight contaminations (contaminations of 1:1000) will be magnified and thus lead to erroneous results in the subsequent analysis.

Liquid-sample-separation laboratory device and method particularly permitting ready extraction by syringe of the separated liquid sample


An automatic machine for grinding the borders of glass panes, particularly the edges, arranged preferably vertically but applicable to any other arrangement, comprising devices which allow the machining of glass panes, which are notoriously fragile and have an irregularly cut or even contoured perimeter by means of a rigid tool, such as a diamond grinding wheel, by acting simultaneously on the two edges along the perimeter of the pane. In particular, the machine comprises a feeler element and feedback circuits for symmetrically edging the glasspane and, advantageously, for keeping unchanged the perimetric profile of the pane.

Methods for grinding ("edging", in the jargon) the borders of glass panes as they result after they have been cut into the final formats for use are currently known. In principle, the grinding operation can be applied to any step of the working of the glass pane, for example before toughening.
Edging is performed for two reasons: the first reason relates to safety in handling said panes, the edges of which would be dangerously sharp if they were not ground. The second reason relates to eliminating the border defects of panes, typically so-called microcracks, which may trigger breakage of the pane in subsequent working steps (particularly during toughening) as well as in subsequent use.
In order to better understand the configuration of the glass pane, not so much in its possible separate use but especially in its use in combination with other components in order to constitute a so-called double-glazing unit, some concepts related to the intermediate component, i.e. the glass pane, and the final product, i.e. the double-glazing unit, are summarized hereafter. The subsequent use of the double-glazing unit, i.e. as a component of doors and windows, is known to the person skilled in the art and is not discussed here in detail.
With reference to FIG. 1, the double-glazing unit is typically constituted by two or more glass panes 1001, 1002, which are mutually separated by one or more spacer frames 1003, which are internally hollow and are provided with microperforations on the side directed toward the inside of the unit.
The spacer frames 1003 usually contain, in their hollow part, hygroscopic material, which is not shown in the figure. The chamber (or chambers) 1006 delimited by the glass panes 1001 and 1002 and by the frame 1003 may contain air or gas or mixtures of gases injected therein, which give the double-glazing unit particular properties, for example thermal insulation and/or soundproofing properties. The glass panes and the frame are mutually joined by means of two levels of seal: the first seal 1004 is adapted to provide a hermetic closure and affects the lateral surfaces of the frame 1003 and the portion adjacent thereto of the glass panes 1001, 1002; the second seal 1005 affects the compartment constituted by the outer surface of the frame and by the faces of the glass panes up to their borders and is adapted to provide cohesion between the components and to maintain the mechanical strength of the coupling between them.
FIG. 1 illustrates five possible sectional views of configurations of the double-glazing unit 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E, only the first of which has been described. However, it is straightforward to extend the considerations made above to the configurations 1B–1E, in which a plurality of frames or of panes are provided, said panes being optionally laminated. In the figure, the sun schematically represents the outside environment of a building in which the double-glazing units are installed, and the inside of the building is represented schematically by a radiator.
The glass panes used in the composition of the double-glazing unit may have different configurations depending on their use: for example, the outer pane 1001 (with respect to the building) may be normal or reflective in order to limit the input of heat during summer months, or can be laminated/armored (1D) for intrusion/vandalism prevention functions, or can be laminated/toughened (for security functions) or combined, for example reflective and laminated.
The internal pane 1002 (with respect to the building) may be normal or of the low-emissivity type, in order to limit heat loss during winter months, or laminated/toughened (for security functions) or combined (1E), for example of the low-emissivity type and laminated.
The brief summary provided above already makes it evident that a production line, in order to obtain the double-glazing unit, requires many operations in sequence and that both the intermediate components (i.e. the glass panes) and the finished product (i.e. the double-glazing unit) have the edges of the glass panes that are accessible for contact with the hands of the operators and users. It is therefore important to increase safety by beveling the peripheral borders of the glass panes. If the finished product, which in any case has a considerable added value with respect to the individual pane, had sharp pane borders or sharp-edged panes, it would be degraded in terms of quality and commercial value.
The processes for producing the double-glazing unit are typically numerous, and each one requires a corresponding particular machine to be arranged in series with respect to the other complementary ones. Some processes or operations, cited by way of non-limiting example and at the same time not all necessary, are the following:    REMOVAL, on the peripheral face of the pane, of any coatings in order to allow and maintain over time the bonding of the sealants;    WASHING of the individual panes, alternating an inner pane with an outer pane (the orientation being the one defined above);    APPLICATION OF THE SPACER FRAME: the previously manufactured frame, filled with hygroscopic material and coated on its lateral faces with an adhesive sealant, which has a sealing function, is applied to one of the panes that constitute the double-glazing unit in a specifically provided station of the double-glazing unit production line;    COUPLING AND PRESSING of the assembly constituted by the panes and the frame or frames;    FILLING WITH GAS of the chamber or chambers thus obtained;    SECOND SEALING.
The processes listed above may be performed by the respective machine automatically or semiautomatically, but in any case entail contact of the intermediate components and of the finished products with the operator, for example during loading and unloading of the line and in subsequent steps for storage, transport, assembly and installation of the double-glazing units.
In known manual processes, the glass panes, rested on supporting surfaces, are placed in contact with belt grinders, which are arranged sequentially and are angularly staggered so as to bevel both edges of the side of the pane (methods of this type are disclosed for example in DE-A 44 19 963). The main drawbacks that arise from the known methods described above relate to the considerable bulk and cost of the machines, to the complex operations for process maintenance (such as replacement of the abrasive belts), the less than optimum quality of the grinding operation, the abnormal behavior of the belt in interaction with the pane when its width does not overlap the pane completely (i.e. at the end of the side of the pane), and finally the excessively long production times.
EP-A 0 920 954 discloses an apparatus for beveling panes of cut glass that uses two belt grinders.

Automatic machine for grinding the borders of glass panes

For.El Base di Vianello Fortunato & C. S.N.C


Briefly, in accordance with one or more embodiments, a method of making an inverse-t shaped floating gate in a non-volatile memory cell or the like is disclosed.

In the integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing industry, there is a universal drive to shrink the geometries of IC substrate areas. At the same time, manufacturers strive to reduce power consumption, increase storage capacity and to increase reliability of IC devices. With respect to memory devices, in order to accomplish these competing goals, manufacturers must grapple with how to efficiently produce memory storage devices that operate reliably at lower voltages.

Insitu formation of inverse floating gate poly structures


A method and an arrangement of tracking a selected (e.g., maximum) power point of a photovoltaic system is disclosed, in which method an operation point of the photovoltaic system is changed based on the change of operation point and a change of power generated by the photovoltaic system. The method can include repeatedly determining a current or voltage of the photovoltaic system, determining a power of the photovoltaic system, determining a change of power of the photovoltaic system with respect to a previous determined power, and changing the operation point of the photovoltaic system by changing a current or voltage reference of the system stepwise depending on the change of power and a direction of a previous change of the current or voltage reference.

In photovoltaic (PV) power generation systems, the operation point of panels can be driven to the best possible operation point, for example, to a point in which a maximum amount of power can be extracted from the panels. The most common maximum power point tracking (MPPT) method is the perturb & observe (P&O) method and its variations. In this method, the voltage or current reference can be constantly changed, and the produced change in generated power can be determined. On the basis of the change of power and the change of the reference value (voltage or current), it can be determined whether the reference should be decreased or increased for increasing the amount of extracted power.
The variations of a P&O algorithm include changing the sampling frequency or the step size of the reference on the basis of changes of the generated power and the given reference. Further modifications include using multiple samples for determining the change of power due to a changed reference.
The modifications of a P&O scheme can relate to increasing the accuracy of the scheme during changes in irradiation. For example, it is a known issue with P&O based algorithms that under constantly changing conditions the algorithms are not able to find the maximum power point.
FIG. 1 shows the operation of a P&O algorithm during a linear change of irradiation. During increasing irradiation at a time interval of 2 seconds to 9 seconds, the voltage of the panel system can be decreased during the whole interval, as can be seen in the lower plot of FIG. 1. As a consequence, the extracted power does not follow the linearly increasing irradiation as it should, as can be seen in the upper plot of FIG. 1. As such, an MPP algorithm cannot keep the operation point at a maximum power point. For example, at a time interval of 11 seconds to 19 seconds, the irradiation can be linearly decreased. The voltage of the panel system (lower plot) can be changed back and forth and can thus be kept almost at the same level. The extracted power (upper plot) cannot be at its maximum during the change.
The operation of the P&O method is disturbed by the changing irradiation since the observed change in power results from both the changed irradiation and the changed reference voltage or current. The method itself cannot separate the origin of the power change and therefore can arrive at wrong conclusions about the direction of the next voltage or current reference.
The maximum power point voltage of the panel does not change much even when the irradiation level changes from 500 W/m2 to 1000 W/m2. Therefore, the correct operation of the tracker can be affected and the tracker should change the voltage of the panel system in a controlled manner.


A carton which is intended especially for drugs, as well as a blank for forming the same. The carton comprises a sleeve portion consisting of at least three wall-forming panels (1,2,4,6) which are interconnected by folding lines (3,5,7) and by a closure tab (8), which is attached to a first wall-forming panel (1) along a folding line (9) and engages a second wall-forming panel (6), ends flaps (10,11;12,13;14,15) attached to the ends of the sleeve portion along folding lines (16,17,18,19,20,21) and closing the ends of the sleeve portion and the carton comprises an additional panel (25), which is connected to one of the wall-forming panels (1,2,4,6) along a folding line (26) and which overlies at least one of the wall-forming panels (1,2,4,6). The use of the carton for carrying at least one pharmaceutically active substance as described.

Conventionally, drugs are packed in e.g. blister packs, which in turn are stacked in a separate box or carton. This carton has the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped and comprises a sleeve portion consisting of four walls which are interconnected by folding lines. End flaps are connected to the sleeve portion along folding lines in order to close the ends of the carton. Normally, one end of the carton is permanently closed, the end flaps being for example glued to one another. The other end of the carton is closed by means of a tuck-in tab, which is connected along a folding line to one of the end flaps. Consequently, the carton can easily be opened and reclosed at this end, such that the patient can remove a blister pack from the carton. User instructions are generally enclosed in the form of a separate leaflet, which is placed inside the carton.
This kind of tubular carton is made from an essentially rectangular blank having a sleeve-forming portion with four wall-forming panels arranged side by side and being interconnected by folding lines. A closure tab is connected along a folding line to a first wall-forming panel on one side of the sleeve-forming portion. When the carton is erected, the closure tab is engaged, for example by means of adhesive, with a second wall-forming panel on the other side of the sleeve-forming portion. The blank further comprises end flaps, which are connected along folding lines to both ends of the sleeve-forming portion.
One disadvantage of this conventional carton is that all information concerning the drug, e.g. composition, secondary effects, manufacturer, user instructions, etc., is printed on the separate leaflet or folder that accompanies the blister packs in the carton. Thus, the leaflet contains a considerable amount of information, and it will require some effort on the part of the patient to find a certain piece of information, e.g. the user instructions. Due to the difficulty of finding these instructions, it might be impossible for an elderly or confused patient to administer the drug himself. This problem is even more pronounced when the carton contains different drugs that should be administered in combination.
Another drawback of this known carton is that the leaflet is lying loose in the carton. The user might therefore unintentionally lose the only item carrying vital information, or even deliberately throw it away.
A further drawback of this known carton resides in the fact that a receiver, e.g. a patient or a pharmacist, in no way can make sure that the carton has not been opened prior to delivery. Even if a separate seal is attached to the carton, e.g. a piece of tape, this is no guarantee that the contents have not been tampered with.