A stateless distributed computer architecture allows state-caching objects, which hold server state information, to be maintained on a client or network rather than on a server. In one implementation, the computer architecture implements object-oriented program modules according to a distributed component object model (DCOM). Using an object-oriented network protocol (e.g., remote procedure call), a client-side application calls through an application program interface (API) to a program object residing at a server computer. The program object, responsive to the call, creates a state caching object that contains state information pertaining to the client connection. The server inserts the state-caching object into a local thread context and processes the request to generate a reply. The server subsequently attaches the state-caching object to the reply and returns them both to the client. The client stores the state-caching object for later communication with the server. When the client subsequently calls the program object at the server, the client submits the state-caching object along with the request packet. The server uses the state information in the state-caching object to quickly restore state for the client reconnection. In this manner, the server can offload its state information to other computing devices in the distributed architecture, thereby improving scalability. In another implementation, the network itself caches the server-oriented state-caching object.

Distributed computer systems have multiple computing devices interconnected via one or more networks (or other type of connection) to facilitate a common computing experience. There are many examples of distributed computer systems, including such well-known examples as the client-server architecture, the mainframe-terminal architecture, computer clustering architecture, and so forth.
Software implemented by a distributed computer system is typically distributed throughout the various computing devices, whereby different computers handle different computing tasks. Object oriented programming, for example, can be implemented on a distributed computer system using an extension of the component object model (COM), which is often referred to as "DCOM" (for Distributed COM) or "Network COM".
Object-oriented programming utilizes the concept of "objects" and "object interfaces" to specify interactions between computing units. An object in this context is a unit of functionality that implements one or more interfaces to expose that functionality to outside applications. An interface is a contract between the user, or client, of some object and the object itself. In more practical terms, an object is a collection of related data and functions grouped together for a distinguishable common purpose. The purpose is generally to provide services to remote processes. An interface is a grouping of semantically related functions through which a remote process can access the services of the object. COM has been well documented. For more information regarding COM, the reader is directed to OLE 2 Programmer's Reference and Inside COM, both published by Microsoft Press of Redmond, Wash.
FIG. 1 shows an exemplary client-server architecture 100 in which a client computer 102 occasionally connects to a file server computer 104 via a network 106, such as a LAN (local area network) or WAN (wide area network). For discussion purposes, suppose the architecture 100 implements object-oriented applications according to the distributed component object model. DCOM specifies how objects at the client 102 and server 104 interact with each other over the network 106. To a client process, the object appears to be readily available, as if it were running on the same computer. In reality, however, the object might be running on a computer that is remotely located and only accessible over the network.
Calling a remote interface (one that is in a different address space than the calling process) requires the use of remote procedure calls (RPCs), which involve "stubs" and "proxies," and topics such as "marshalling" and "unmarshalling" of procedure parameters. These mechanisms are well understood and are documented in the books mentioned above. In regard to these topics, the reader may also want to refer to "X/Open DCE: Remote Procedure Call," published by X/Open Company Ltd., U.K.
In this example, the client-server architecture 100 implements a "state-based" architecture, meaning that the file server 104 maintains state information on behalf of the client. State information pertains to the operations and tasks being performed for or during a particular client-server computing experience. Typically, state information includes one or more identities of participating computers, status of tasks/operations being performed, data being generated, and the like.
In FIG. 1, the client 102 and file server 104 maintain a connection until the entire session is completed. Thus, there may be many communications going back and forth between the client and server during the connection session. In the DCOM context, the communication is in the form of RPCs from the client 102 to remote objects on the server 104. The file server 104 maintains the state information during the connection session.
One problem with the state-based architecture of FIG. 1 is that it does not scale well to accommodate increasingly larger numbers of clients. The file server effectively dedicates resources to a requesting client until that client finishes, thus preventing reallocation of resources to other requesting clients. Additionally, tracking state information on the server for increasingly more clients becomes burdensome on the file server's ability to respond quickly to client requests.
In contrast to state-based architectures, "stateless" architectures do not explicitly keep state information at the file server. FIG. 2 shows an exemplary stateless client-server architecture 200 where a client 202 communicates with a file server 204 over a network 206. The network utilizes a communication protocol that is specially designed to permit the network file server 204 to pass data and state information to the client 202, thereby alleviating the file server 204 from maintaining the state information. A further benefit of "stateless" architectures is that client requests can be sent to any number of identical, replaceable servers, because no single server retains the server state. Instead, the state travels with the client request. One example of a domain-specific stateless communication protocol is the NFS (Network File System) protocol common among UNIX-based network file servers.
Prior art stateless architectures, however, are plagued by the problem that they are limited to domain-specific protocols that prescribe precise protocol-specific state to be exchanged between the client and the server. This makes incremental upgrades of the protocols more difficult because all computers—both clients and servers—must be updated anytime the protocol is modified. Furthermore, it limits the advances that can be made on the server code since the server cannot add new state to the protocol without a pre-existing agreement covering protocol architecture with the client. Accordingly, there remains a need to develop a stateless architecture that is not tied to domain-specific protocols—an architecture in which a server can add arbitrary state to the protocol at anytime without requiring parallel changes to the client.
The Internet's HTTP (hypertext transport protocol) offers one compelling example of a stateless architecture that does not rely on domain-specific state-exchanging protocols. FIG. 3 shows an Internet-based client-server architecture 300 where a client 302 communicates with a Web server 304 via the Internet 306. With HTTP, a browser on the client 302 submits a request to the Web server 304. In response, the Web server 304 processes the request and returns a reply. Originally, there was only one request and one reply per client-server interaction. The Web server had no way of associating consecutive reply/request sets with any one particular client. Thus, if the client subsequently submitted a request, the Web server 304 was incapable of distinguishing whether the request came from the same client or a different client.
To solve this problem, the server began returning data along with the reply that could be used to identify the client. The data piece, commonly referred to as a "cookie", originally included just a user or client ID. Today, cookies can hold essentially any type of date and typically include a name, data, an expiration period, and a scope (e.g., "//msn.com/bookstore/compsci").
The contents of a cookie originate within a request on the server. The cookie is passed to the client along with the client's request. The client returns the cookie with subsequent requests to the server. To the client, the cookie is an obscure piece of data that resides in memory, perhaps indefinitely (or until deleted as being expired). However, the cookie allows the server to offload storage of state information to the client, who owns a vested interest in preserving relevant state.
As a result, Web servers achieve tremendous scalability to accommodate increasingly more traffic. State-storage capacity, in the form of client-cached cookies, scales linearly with increasing numbers of clients, while access time remains constant. Furthermore, individual servers can be replaced or replicated with greater freedom when no single server hoards state related to a specific client. For more discussion of cookies, the reader is directed to an IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) specification entitled "HTTP State Management Mechanism", which was published February 1997.
In view of the foregoing discussion, there remains a need for a stateless architecture in a non-HTTP-based distributed computing environment that achieves scalability without utilizing domain-specific protocols.

Stateless distributed computer architecture with server-oriented state-caching objects maintained on network or client


A human-powered watercraft may include a frame, a forward hydrofoil attached to the frame, and a first rear hydrofoil attached to a first strut with the first strut rotatably attached to the frame at a pivot point and the first rear hydrofoil configured to pivot about a rear end of the first strut. The human-powered watercraft may also include a second rear hydrofoil attached to a second strut with the second strut rotatably attached to the frame at the pivot point and parallel to the first strut and the second rear hydrofoil configured to pivot about a rear end of the second strut and a tension system coupled between the first strut and the second strut. The tension system allows the first strut and second strut to move in a generally stair-stepping manner which causes the first rear hydrofoil and the second rear hydrofoil to propel the human-powered watercraft forward.

Water sports are popular, particularly for recreation and as a form of exercise. Few types of watercraft, however, use human power (i.e., work or energy produced from the muscles of the human body). Rowing or paddled watercraft; such as boats, canoes, kayaks, and the like; have traditionally served users wanting to experience the water while getting physical exercise. However, disadvantages exist with paddled or rowing watercraft. Rowing or paddling tends to be quite inefficient as a propulsion method. Moreover, friction or drag associated with the interaction of the watercraft and the water limits achievable speeds.
Reducing the resistance of water against forward motion increases the efficiencies and speeds achievable by watercraft. Hydrofoils reduce this resistance when employed in motor-powered watercraft. Such watercraft use hydrofoils to achieve lift, often raising the watercraft hull completely out of the water. This lifting reduces drag on the watercraft by reducing water resistance.
In nature, applying force to a hydrofoil in a direction generally perpendicular to the water stream is a method of propulsion used by many swimmers. Dolphin, orcas, bluefin tuna, and the like achieve great speeds by applying near perpendicular force to their tails, which act as hydrofoils.
Many human exercise machines employ, among other things, resistance of a user's weight against gravity to produce a desired exercise workout. Examples of popular exercise equipment include stationary bikes, treadmills, stair steppers, and elliptical bikes. However, many of the user-friendly aspects of such equipment are not present in personal, human-powered watercraft, making such watercraft less desirable for exercise use.


A switch of an integrated circuit includes: a housing wherein a plurality of cells connected in series are stored in a battery chamber formed in the housing, and an integrated circuit formed on a board mounted in the housing electrically connected to a power source comprised of the cells. An insulating barrier is normally inserted in between any two neighboring cells for disconnecting the power conducted through the cells for preventing power loss. An upper cover is resiliently held above the housing for shielding the housing having an actuating pawl normally engageable with a ratchet tooth formed on the insulating barrier. Upon depression of the upper cover to allow the pawl to pivotally raise and remove the barrier from the two neighboring cells for electrically connecting the cells, the power supply to the integrated circuit operatively actuates the integrated circuit such as for sounding purposes.

A conventional integrated circuit includes a plurality of batteries C such as button-type cells connected in series and stored in a bottom chamber shielded by a bottom cover B in a housing H as shown in FIG. 5 for powering the integrated circuit (not shown) in the housing. An electrically insulating plate I may be inserted through a slot S formed in the bottom cover B in between any two neighboring cells for normally switching off the power connection through the cells for preventing the consumption of electrical energy by the components of the integrated circuit. Even though the electrical energy normally consumed by the integrated circuit is small, an accumulated power consumption, such as caused by a shipping period or when kept in a show room for a long time during handling or storage, may still exhaust the power.
However, the insulating plate I inserted in between the cells C may be easily missing or loosened, thereby losing its normal power-disconnection effect. Also, upon installing the integrated circuit into a stuffing toy, the integrated circuit with its housing H may be sewn into the stuffing of the toy and the insulating plate I should be removed before putting the integrated circuit into the toy, thereby still causing power consumption of the cells stored in the integrated circuit housing especially when shipped, handled or displayed for a long time period and possibly producing no sound from the integrated circuit once the power is exhausted.

Depressibly-actuated switch means for normally disconnecting power source of integrated circuit

c/o Hung Hsing Patent Service Center, P.O. Box 55-1670


A system and method for aligning prior patterning positions formed by a first SPM tip with a second SPM tip in combination with an SPM system includes identifying first location information that includes a location of the first SPM tip and a sample reference location on an SPM sample and storing the first location information in a storage area. After replacing the first SPM tip with the second SPM tip, second location information, which includes a location of the second SPM tip and the sample reference location on the SPM sample, is identified. Displacement is calculated between the location of the second SPM tip and the first SPM tip based on the first and second location information, and either the second SPM tip or a stage supporting the SPM sample is translated to align the second SPM tip with the location of the first SPM tip in accordance with the calculated displacement.

Scanning probe microscopes (SPMs) can be used to obtain extremely detailed analyses of the topographical or other features of a surface, with sensitivities extending down to the scale of individual atoms and molecules. SPMs basically scan a probe over a sample surface and make local measurements of the properties of the sample surface. Several components are common to practically all scanning probe microscopes. The essential component of the microscope is a tiny probe positioned in very close proximity to a sample surface and providing a measurement of its topography or some other physical parameter, with a resolution that is determined primarily by the shape of the tip and its proximity to the surface. In a scanning force microscope (SFM), the probe includes a tip which projects from the end of a cantilever. Typically, the tip is very sharp to achieve maximum lateral resolution by confining the force interaction to the end of the tip.
One common example of an SPM is the atomic force microscope (AFM), also known as the scanning force microscope (SFM). By measuring motion, position or angle of the free end of the cantilever, many properties of a surface may be determined including surface topography, local adhesion, friction, elasticity, the presence of magnetic or electric fields, etc. In operation, an AFM typically will scan the tip of the probe over the sample while keeping the force of the tip on the surface constant, such as by moving either the base of the lever or the sample upward or downward to maintain deflection of the lever portion of the probe constant. Therefore, the topography of a sample may be obtained from data on such vertical motion to construct three dimensional images of the surface topography.
It is also known that AFMs utilize analog and digital feedback circuits to vary the height of the tip of the probe or the sample based upon the deflection of the lever portion of the probe as an input. An image may be formed by scanning a sample with respect to the probe in a raster pattern, recording data at successive points in the scan, and displaying the data on a video display. The development of atomic/scanning force microscopy is described in articles by G. Binnig at al., Europhys. Lett., Vol. 3, p. 1281 (1987), and 1. R. Albrecht et al., J. Vac. Sci. Technology, A6, p. 271 (1988). The development of the cantilever for AFMs is described in an article by T. R. Albrecht at al., entitled "Microfabricated Cantilever Stylus for Atomic Force Microscopy". J. Vac. Sci. Technol., A8, p. 3386 (1990).
Other types of SPMs, such as scanning capacitance or scanning magnetic force microscopes, also use similar deflection sensors. Moreover, scanning tunneling microscope (STM) is similar to an SFM in overall structure and purpose, except that the probe consists of a sharpened conductive needle-like tip rather than a cantilever. The surface to be mapped must generally be conductive or semiconductive. The metallic needle is typically positioned a few Angstroms above the surface. When a bias voltage is applied between the tip and the sample, a tunneling current flows between the tip and the surface. The tunneling current is exponentially sensitive to the spacing between the tip and the surface and thus provides a representation of the spacing. The variations in the tunneling current in an STM are therefore analogous to the deflection of the cantilever in an SFM. The head contains circuitry for biasing the tip with respect to the sample and preamplifying the tunneling current before it is passed to a controller. Further details of SPMs are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,025,658 and 5,224,376, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
DIP PEN NANOLITHOGRAPHY™ (a trademark of Nanoink, Inc.) printing, also referred to as DPN (also a trademark of Nanoink, Inc.) printing, is conceptually the nano-version of the 4,000-year-old quill pen. DPN printing, which can be performed using an SPM, is a direct-write lithography technique based upon the transport of materials from a nanoscopic tip onto a surface of interest (e.g., paper). DPN printing allows one to draw fine lines or patterns one molecule high and a few dozen molecules wide.
In one embodiment of DPN printing, an AFM tip is coated with a patterning compound (also referred to herein as an "ink"), and the coated tip is contacted with the substrate so that the patterning compound is applied by capillary transport to the substrate to produce a desired pattern in submicrometer dimensions. Chemisorption can be used as the driving force for patterning ink onto the paper, as the tip is scanned across this paper. Through DPN printing, line widths can be controlled by adjusting scan rate and relative humidity. The relative humidity controls the size of the meniscus between the AFM tip and surface of interest and, therefore, the effective contact area between pen and paper.
By way of example of DPN printing methodology, an oily "ink" of octadecanethiol (ODT) is applied uniformly to an AFM's tip. When the tip is brought into contact with a thin sheet of a gold substrate or "paper," the ODT molecules are transferred to the gold's surface via a tiny water droplet that forms naturally at the tip. Other details of DPN printing methodology are described in International Patent Application No. PCT/US00/0031 9, the entire disclosure of which (including defined terms contained therein) is incorporated herein by reference.
When using multiple inks or patterning compounds with DPN printing, probe tips of different patterning compounds sometimes need to be interchanged or even replaced during the process, as needed. Also, the sample sometimes needs to be removed for an intermediate processing step. As a result, finding a previously deposited patterning compound on a sample surface requires cumbersome and imprecise manual techniques. One such technique involves the use of plastic sheets that are taped onto a CRT screen showing an image of the sample surface. Markers are then used to manually mark up the plastic sheet to essentially designate positional coordinates of the relevant objects depicted on the CRT screen. In order to work with a sample that was previously made, or when changing patterning compounds, a DPN printing experimenter must utilize the plastic sheet template that was created in a correct orientation. As can be appreciated, the manual nature of marking coordinates to align multi-ink patterns is tedious and inconvenient, increases the chance for misalignment errors, and increases the time and effort needed to perform multi-ink DPN printing. Thus, there remains a need for more efficient methods and apparatuses that allow multi-ink patterning to be performed with more than three or four inks without the attendant disadvantages of conventional methods and apparatuses.

Method and apparatus for aligning patterns on a substrate


The invention relates to chiral photoisomerizable compounds of formula (I) wherein X1, X2, X3, X4, X5 and X6 have the meanings given in claim 1, to liquid crystalline mixtures and polymers containing them, and to the use of chiral photoisomerizable compounds, liquid crystalline mixtures and polymers containing them in optical and electrooptical devices like liquid crystal displays or projection systems, in optical elements like polarizers, retardation films, compensators, color filters or holographic elements, in liquid crystal pigments and colored films or coatings for decorative or security applications, cosmetic and pharmaceutical compositions, in nonlinear optics and optical information storage.

Chiral materials which change their chirality upon photoirradiation are known in prior art. For example, photoisomerizable chiral materials were reported which show E-Z or cis-trans isomerization upon photoirradiation and are thereby converted from one chiral form into another chiral form. Further known are photodegradable or (photo)tunable chiral materials (TCM) that change from chiral to achiral or to a racemic mixture upon photoirradiation, due to destruction of their chirality by photoelimination or photocleavage of the chiral center.
Photoisomerizable chiral materials have been suggested inter alia for the preparation of cholesteric polymer films with patterned optical properties, which can be used as optical components like colour filters or broadband reflective polarizers in liquid crystal displays. The preparation of patterned cholesteric films is described for example in WO 00/34808.
Furthermore, photoisomerizable and phototunable chiral materials have been suggested for use in cholesteric or multi-domain liquid crystal displays.
For example, WO 98/57223 discloses a multi-domain liquid crystal display with a nematic liquid crystal material comprising a polymerizable menthone derivative as photoisomerizable chiral dopant. The display comprises different sub-pixels in which the twist sense of the liquid crystal material is mutually opposite. It is manufactured by photoirradiation of a layer of liquid crystalline material containing a photoisomerizable chiral dopant with a given twist sense and a non-isomerizable chiral dopant with opposite twist sense through a photomask. This causes the isomerizable dopant in the exposed parts of the layer to change its chirality, leading to a change of the helical pitch in the exposed parts.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,668,614 discloses a multicolour cholesteric display made from a cholesteric liquid crystal mixture comprising a tunable chiral material (TCM). The display is prepared by partially exposing the liquid crystal mixture with the TCM to photoirradiation through a photomask. This leads to a change of the chirality of the TCM by photocleavage or photoracemisation and thus to a change of the helical pitch in the exposed parts of the cholesteric liquid crystal material. Thereby regions with different pitch and thus different colours of the reflected wavelength are obtained and a multicolour display is realized.
Photoisomerizable chiral materials comprising menthone, camphor or nopinone derivatives or chiral stilbenes have been reported by P. van de Witte et al., Liq. Cryst. 24 (1998), 819–27, J. Mat. Chem. 9 (1999), 2087–94 and Liq. Cryst. 27 (2000), 929–33 and A. Bobrovski et al., Liq. Cryst. 25 (1998), 679–687.
Tunable chiral materials (TCMs) comprising a photocleavable carboxylic acid group or aromatic keto group attached to the chiral center are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,668,614. Furthermore, F. Vicentini, J. Cho and L. Chien, Liq. Cryst. 24 (1998), 483–488 describe binaphthol derivatives as TCMs and their use in multicolour cholesteric displays.
However, the isomerizable and tunable chiral materials of prior art have several drawbacks. The TCMs reported in U.S. Pat. No. 5,668,614 and by F. Vicentini et al. have the general disadvantage that photocleavage is an irreversible process and leads to destruction of the chiral compound. The photoisomerizable menthone and stilbene derivatives disclosed in in WO 98/57223 and the articles of P. van de Witte et al. and A. Bobrovsky et al. have the disadvantage that they are not easily structurally modified due to a lack of functionality.
Another drawback of many photoisomerizable compounds known from prior art is that they exhibit only a low helical twisting power (HTP). The HTP describes the effectiveness of a chiral compound to induce a helically twisted molecular structure in a liquid crystal host material, and is given in first approximation, which is sufficient for most practical applications, by equation (1):
                    HTP        =                  1                      p            ·            c                                              (        1        )            wherein c is the concentration of the chiral compound and p is the helical pitch. As can be seen from equation (1), a short pitch can be achieved by using a high amount of the chiral compound or by using a chiral compound with a high absolute value of the HTP. Thus, in case chiral compounds with low HTP are used, high amounts are needed to induce a short pitch. This is disadvantageous, because chiral compounds often negatively affect the properties of the liquid crystalline host mixture, like for example the clearing point, the dielectric anisotropy Δε, the viscosity, the driving voltage or the switching times, and because chiral compounds can be used only as pure enantiomers and are therefore expensive and difficult to synthesize.
Another disadvantage of chiral compounds of prior art is that they often show low solubility in the liquid crystal host mixture, which leads to undesired crystallization at low temperatures. To overcome this disadvantage, typically two or more different chiral compounds have to be added to the host mixture. This implies higher costs and also requires additional effort for temperature compensation of the mixture, as the different chiral compounds usually have to be selected such that their temperature coefficients of the twist compensate each other.
Therefore, there is a considerable demand for chiral photoisomerizable compounds with a high HTP which are easy to synthesize in a large range of derivatives, can be used in low amounts, show improved temperature stability of the cholesteric pitch e.g. for utilizing a constant reflection wavelength, do not affect the properties of the liquid crystalline host mixture and show good solubility in the host mixture.
The invention has the aim of providing chiral photoisomerizable compounds having these properties, but not having the disadvantages of the chiral compounds of prior art as discussed above. Another aim of the invention is to extend the pool of chiral photoisomerizable compounds available to the expert.
It has been found that the above aims can be achieved by providing photoisomerizable chiral compounds according to claim 1.
Definition of Terms
The terms 'liquid crystalline or mesogenic material' or 'liquid crystalline or mesogenic compound' should denote materials or compounds comprising one or more rod-shaped, lath-shaped or disk-shaped mesogenic groups, i.e. groups with the ability to induce liquid crystal phase behaviour. Rod-shaped and lath-shaped mesogenic groups are especially preferred. The compounds or materials comprising mesogenic groups do not necessarily have to exhibit a liquid crystal phase themselves. It is also possible that they show liquid crystal phase behaviour only in mixtures with other compounds, or when the mesogenic compounds or materials, or the mixtures thereof, are polymerized.
For the sake of simplicity, the term 'liquid crystal material' is used hereinafter for both liquid crystal materials and mesogenic materials, and the term 'mesogen' is used for the mesogenic groups of the material.
The term 'helically twisted structure' refers to anisotropic materials, like for example liquid crystal materials, that exhibit a chiral mesophase wherein the mesogens are oriented with their main molecular axis twisted around a helix axis, like e.g. a chiral nematic (=cholesteric) or a chiral smectic phase. Materials exhibiting a cholesteric phase or chiral smectic C phase are preferred. Particularly preferred are materials exhibiting a cholesteric phase.
The term 'film' includes self-supporting, i.e. free-standing, films that show more or less pronounced mechanical stability and flexibility, as well as coatings or layers on a supporting substrate or between two substrates.
The term "photoisomerizable group" means a group that shows isomerization, for example cis-trans or E-Z isomerization, imparting a change in shape upon photoirradiation with a suitable wavelength, preferably in the range from 250 to 400 nm, very preferably from 300 to 400 nm.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


The invention relates to a liquid pump device, having a pump shell body, a soft rubber pressing device, a discharge channel, a sealed discharge cap, and a guiding tube. The pump shell body has an upper shell and a lower shell connected to form a first cavity communicated with the discharge channel. The lower shell has an arc surface with an upward opening. A flange is arranged at the lower end of the arc surface of the lower shell, a through hole being arranged at the middle of the flange. The soft rubber pressing device forms a second cavity with the lower shell. The sealed discharge cap has at least one cut forming a discharge port, and is sleeved to an end portion of the discharge channel. The guiding tube is arranged in the through hole of the flange, and is communicated with the second cavity via the feeding channel.

Liquid pump devices are typically installed at the mouths of containers, and are used for pumping liquid products inside the container out of the containers. In a typical liquid pump device, the liquid is pumped out of the container through up and down movement of the piston rod, such that the liquid is discharged from the discharge port. FIG. 1 illustrates a liquid pump device in the prior art. When a user presses the press head of the press pump, a lower one-way valve 180 is turned off, and an upper one-way valve 140 is turned on. The upper one-way valve is formed of the outer circumferential surface of a piston rod 152 and a piston member 141 installed on the circumferential surface. The outer circumferential surface of the piston rod 152 serves as a valve base, and the piston member 141 serves as a valve member. The liquid product in a liquid storage tank 130 in a cylinder 160 is conveyed out of the container through the turned-on upper one-way valve 140 and a conveying channel 151 of the piston 150, and a discharge channel 111 of the press head 110. The piston 150 is formed of the piston rod 152 and the piston member 141 on the piston rod 152, wherein the piston rod 152 and the piston member 141 simultaneously serve as members of the one-way valve 140 and the piston 150. To be specific, the one-way valve 140 is provided as a part of the piston 150. The conveying channel 151 and the discharge channel 111 form a distribution channel for pumping and distributing the liquid product from the liquid storage tank 130 to the outside of the container. When the user cancels the pressing onto the press head 110, the press head 110 restores to its original position under the action of an elastic restoration device 120; and during restoration of the press head 110, the lower one-way valve 180 is turned on, the upper one-way valve 140 is turned off, the liquid product in the container is suctioned by the lower one-way valve 180 to the liquid storage tank 130 for subsequent pumping and distribution. Generally, the distribution channel is arranged between the upper one-way valve 140 and an outlet portion 112 of the press head 110.
Such liquid pump device has a defect in terms of design. Specifically, upon completion of the press, pumping and distribution operations of the liquid pump device each time, liquid product still remains at the outlet portion of the press head, the liquid remain will trickle onto the surface where the container is placed or on the container, especially when the container is being moved or being replaced. As for liquid products (for example, oil-like or water-like products) with low viscosity and good flowability, even if the container is not moved and suffers from no shock, after a period of time, the liquid remain at the outlet portion approximate the press head will also trickle under the gravity, thereby causing undesired pollution.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a new-type liquid pump device


A humid gas stream is dehumidified by bringing that stream into contact with the front surface of a hydrophilic capillary condenser layer that captures the water and moves it adjacent the rear surface of the capillary layer. A semi-permeable collodion membrane, is disposed on the rear capillary surface of the condenser layer, and an osmotic fluid, such as glycerol, is disposed adjacent the collodion membrane. An osmotic driving force, resulting from a water concentration gradient across the collodion membrane, transports the condensed water from the condensing layer through the thickness of the membrane and into an osmotic fluid. The collodion membrane also inhibits the osmotic fluid from flowing into the condenser layer.

This invention relates to conditioning a gas stream, such as air, and especially to the dehumidification of a gas stream.
Conditioning of a gas stream, such as air, generally involves the removal or addition of moisture and the increase or decrease of temperature to make the gas stream suitable for its intended environment. For air conditioning in warm weather, this typically involves dehumidifying and cooling the air to comfortable levels.
Current dehumidification technology is based on the conventional, refrigerant vapor compression cycle (hereinafter referred to as DX technology) or on desiccant substrate capture technology (hereinafter referred to as DS technology). DX technology requires cooling humid supply air, such as the air within a room and/or outside air, to the water vapor condensation point, with external heat rejection on the compression side. This usually requires the supply air to be cooled below comfortable temperatures and, thereafter, either reheated or mixed with warmer air to raise its temperature to an acceptable level before directing it into the space being dehumidified. 20-35% of the energy expended in cooling the high humidity air is utilized to remove the latent heat from the air (the heat of condensation associated with water vapor condensation). Cooling and dehumidification of the air are thus coupled. That makes it impossible to independently control comfort parameters, making the DX cycle less efficient, from an overall system perspective, than a technology that would allow independent control of sensible and latent heat.
In applications where the outside air has both high humidity and temperature and the functional use of the interior space generates high water vapor levels (e.g. populated convention halls, exercise rooms, school buildings, etc.), it may not be possible for the DX technology to maintain the air introduced into the interior space at the correct humidity and temperature for maintaining comfort. The air delivered is cool but xe2x80x9cmuggyxe2x80x9d, since further cooling to remove additional water would result in the air being uncomfortably cool.
In stand-alone dehumidification using a conventional compression cycle, heat reject is in direct contact with the room air. As a consequence, the room air becomes more comfortable from a humidity side, but may be less comfortable (too warm) from a temperature parameter consideration. Again the comfort parameters are coupled.
DS systems are generally applied in central air, ducted systems. Water vapor is captured by capillary condensation on a solid phase substrate containing pores of the appropriate size (typically less than 100 Angstroms) to cause capillary condensation. The capture process is efficient and rapid. However, removal of the water vapor from the pores, wherein the intrinsic vapor pressure of the water is lowered in correspondence with the Kelvin equation, requires energy input. It also requires removing the substrate from the high humidity air stream and placing it in an exhaust, water reject stream, before adding the re-evaporation energy. Alternatively, the substrate may remain fixed and the treated air and exhaust streams flow directions interchanged as is done in a parallel bed, desiccant drier system.
In these DS systems, the re-evaporation energy is the latent heat of condensation plus the heat of adsorption of the water vapor in the substrate pore material. It is important to note that DS technology requires, in steady state operation, the addition of this energy at a rate equal to or greater than the latent heat of condensation of water in the desiccant substrate. That is, the water vapor reject power input must exceed the equivalent latent heat of condensation power. After water removal from the desiccant substrate the substrate must be re-cooled to the water capture temperature range of the substrate. As a consequence, some of the sensible heat of the subsequent cooling system (e.g. a DX cooling system) must be utilized in treating the DS substrate rather than for cooling the now dehumidified air.
The advantage of DS technology is that humidity levels in the outside air and/or recirculated air can be adjusted independently of the subsequent cooling step. The disadvantage is the requirement to move the substrate and treated air stream relative to each other for capture and rejection of the water vapor. This requires moving a large substrate through a sealed system, or, in a parallel bed DS system, requires complicated valving and valve cycling to move the humid air stream and an exhaust stream alternately across the desiccant beds. Again, application in typical stand alone, non-ducted room-type dehumidifiers is difficult if not impossible.
One object of the present invention is to provide an improved method and means for dehumidifying a gas stream.
Another object of the present invention is an efficient method and means for removing water from an air stream wherein the level of dehumidification is not interdependent with the temperature to which that stream may need to be ultimately cooled (for comfort or other purposes) before it is exhausted into the space being conditioned.
According to one embodiment of the method of the present invention, moisture is removed from a gas stream by bringing that stream into contact with the front surface of a hydrophilic capillary condenser layer that captures the water. An osmotic driving force, resulting from a water concentration gradient, transports the condensed water from the rear surface of the condensing layer through a semi-permeable membrane of collodion and into an osmotic fluid.
In apparatus used in the practice of the present invention, a porous wall is used to separate a moist gas stream from an osmotic fluid. The wall is comprised of a thin hydrophilic capillary condensing layer on the gas stream side with a collodion (nitrated cellulose) osmotic layer or membrane disposed on the surface facing the osmotic fluid. In one embodiment the osmotic fluid is a solute dissolved in water, wherein the solute has a high molecular weight and a high concentration. The collodion layer is a membrane permeable to water and not to high molecular weight molecules in solution. The choice of solute and any other additives making up the osmotic fluid will be determined by the transport properties through the membrane. In another embodiment the osmotic fluid is one that is miscible with water at all concentrations, such as glycerol. Here the fluid can be maintained at low water concentrations in order to maximize the osmotic flux. Typical membranes have permeabilities for glycerol which are about one thousand times less than for water. However, some reverse transport will likely occur.
In a preferred embodiment, a biocidal component may be added to the osmotic fluid. The biocidal component is selected to prevent microbial growth or biofouling on surfaces which would naturally occur in an aqueous environment and eventually block the membrane or pores. Examples of biocidal or bacteristatic additives that can exist in osmotic fluid as ionic species include silver and copper. In addition to these simple ionic antimicrobial agents, small concentration of larger molecules such as detergents, quaternary amines, or gluteraldehydes may be used. Gluteraldehyde is an example of a sterilant and disinfectant that is less corrosive than most other chemicals and does not damage plastics. Bleach (e.g. hypochlorous acid), for example, is antimicrobial but accelerates corrosion and would not be a preferred additive to the osmotic fluid.
Preferably the osmotic layer is in the form of a thin membrane adjacent to the surface of the capillary condenser layer. If the osmotic fluid is a solute dissolved in water, the membrane must have a material composition, thickness, pore size and porosity that must a) prevent the solute within the osmotic fluid from entering or blocking the pores of the membrane, and b) allow water to flow from the capillary condenser layer through the membrane and into the osmotic fluid as a result of a water concentration gradient level maintained during operation of the dehumidifier. In the present invention the membrane is a layer of collodion disposed over the surface of the capillary layer.
The thickness of a typical collodion layer is about 200 nanometers. With layers that thin, water concentration gradients across the layer can be large. This can provide a large driving force for water transport from the capillary layer, through the collodion layer, and into the osmotic fluid. Water vapor condensing in the nanopores of the capillary layer will diffuse rapidly through the osmotic layer and into the osmotic fluid.
If the osmotic fluid is a solute dissolved in water, high solute concentration in the osmotic fluid may be maintained in several different ways. For example, excess water may be evaporated or otherwise removed from the fluid; the solute may be replenished at appropriate times or intervals; and/or the fluid may be provided with excess solute (undissolved) that dissolves automatically when the concentration of water in the osmotic fluid exceeds the amount needed to have the water fully saturated by the solute. Other techniques or a combination of techniques may also be used to maintain a high solute concentration.
One of the primary benefits of the present invention is that the humidity of the incoming air may be controlled independently of the temperature. The water may be condensed out of the incoming humid gas stream onto the surface of the pores of the capillary condenser, taking advantage of the rapid and efficient water capture capability of capillary pore condensation technology and without the need to remove sensible heat from the air stream (i.e. the moisture may be removed from the gas stream at ambient temperatures). The water condensed in the capillary layer is caused to move through the osmotic layer and into the osmotic fluid by maintaining a water concentration gradient across the osmotic layer. The water concentration gradient across the osmotic layer is created and maintained by having a sufficiently low concentration of water (i.e. a high concentration of solute or miscible fluid) within the osmotic fluid. The proper concentration of water in the osmotic fluid may be maintained over time by removing excess water from the osmotic fluid or by adding solute to the osmotic fluid. If it is assumed that the water vapor removed from the air is rejected to an exhaust area not in contact with the treated air, the now dehumidified gas stream may then be cooled to any desired temperature by appropriate means, such as by using a standard air conditioning cycle. The incoming air stream is thus made more comfortable by separately controlling both its humidity and temperature.
The present invention requires less energy to dehumidify a gas stream than do prior art methods. For example, re-evaporation power requirements for the present invention are lower than if the water were to be removed from the system by, for example, reheating a desiccant bed. This is because the osmotic fluid serves as a latent energy buffer for the captured water vapor (i.e. the heat of condensation released when water vapor condenses is buffered by the osmotic fluid). While it may be necessary or desirable, to use an energy source to assist in the removal (e.g. by separation or reevaporation) of the excess water from the osmotic fluid, the process can be relatively simple and energy efficient compared, for example, to the analogous step of a DS cycle wherein a bed of desiccant is usually taken off line and heated.
The current system has the advantage of minimal moving parts and prolonged dehumidification capability. Even though the accumulated reject water must eventually be removed and energy must be expended, operation of the device may be continued for prolonged periods without such water removal. The reason this is permissible is that the water need not be separated or re-evaporated at the same rate or at the same time at which it is produced. If the water is directed outside, or where a lower humidity waste stream is present, or. preferably where a source of waste heat is present (such as the condenser or compressor of an air conditioning system), the water may gradually evaporate with no additional work to be done by the system.
Capillary condensers that may be used in the present invention are well known in the art. The pore size and porosity of the capillary condenser layer are selected to assure that the water condenses onto the pore surfaces at a rate much faster than the rate at which it evaporates from the pores. The net amount of condensed water moves, by capillary action throughout the volume of the condenser to the interface of the condenser and the osmotic layer by capillary action and due to the hydrophilic nature of the condenser material. A thin capillary condenser layer may be supported on the surface of a thicker, larger pore condenser layer for structural integrity. Mounting the osmotic membrane on the back surface of the support can provide an effective spacer to keep capillary pressure from countering the osmotic forces. A micron thickness macroporous support between the capillary condenser and the membrane will accomplish this without reducing water flux significantly.
As mentioned above, an osmotic fluid that may be used in the method of the present invention is comprised of a solute dissolved in water. For example, the solute may be a salt. The solute and the osmotic layer are selected such that the size of the hydrated solute molecules are greater than the pore size of the osmotic layer in order to prevent the solute from flowing through the osmotic layer toward the capillary layer. The solute is selected such that molecules of solute do not cause blocking of the pores of the osmotic layer, which they would if they adhered to the surface of the osmotic layer or became lodged, to a significant extent, within the pores of the osmotic layer. To assure that the condensed water flows from the capillary condenser layer through the osmotic layer and into the osmotic fluid, a high concentration of solute is maintained in the osmotic fluid to maintain a high water concentration gradient across the osmotic layer.
In accordance with one embodiment of the dehumidification apparatus of the present invention, the combined condensing layer and collodion osmotic layer define a porous wall within an enclosure. The wall, in combination with the enclosure, forms separate compartments on opposite sides of the wall. The compartment on the condenser layer side of the wall is the airflow compartment and the compartment on the osmotic layer side of the wall is the osmotic fluid compartment. High humidity air, which may be outside air and/or recirculated indoor air, is brought into and through the airflow compartment and passes over the condenser surface. Water vapor in the air condenses and travels to the interface between the condensing layer and osmotic layer through the capillary pores. The less humid air exits the airflow compartment and may then be cooled by separate air conditioning apparatus, if desired.
In one embodiment of the present invention, a solution of water and solute is disposed within the osmotic fluid compartment. As a result of the water concentration gradient across the osmotic layer, the water within the capillary condenser layer travels from the interface between the condenser and osmotic layers, through the osmotic layer, and into the osmotic fluid. This results from an osmotic driving force created by the water concentration gradient across the osmotic layer. The dehumidification apparatus preferably includes means for regenerating the osmotic fluid to maintain a high concentration of solute in the osmotic fluid, and thus to maintain the high water concentration gradient across the osmotic layer during operation of the apparatus. For example, apparatus may be provided to evaporate, either continuously or as needed, excess water from the osmotic fluid.
The porous wall may also be the wall of a tube, with the above referred to osmotic fluid and air compartments being, respectively, the space within the tube and the space surrounding the tube. The osmotic layer is disposed on the capillary condenser surface on the inside of the tube.

Dehumidification process and apparatus using collodion membrane


A decentralized simulator according to the invention has each processing unit arranged to each vertex in the hypercube structure and each communication line arranged to each side in the hypercube structure. Each component of the system to be simulated is assigned to each processing unit, and each processing unit communicates with other processing unit via communication line and operates concurrently with other processing unit. Since the decentralized simulator carries out the concurrent processing regarding each component, it is suitable for the simulation of the system such as power system including a number of components.

As an example of simulation in a simulator in the prior art, calculation of transient stability in an electric power system will be described based on a flow chart in FIG. 1. This is disclosed in the Transaction of the Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan, May 1984, pp. 297-304, article 59-B36, "Calculation Method of High Speed Transient Stability Suitable for Array Processor".
In FIG. 1, reference numerals 41-51 designate respective steps in calculation of the transient stability. The calculation of the transient stability in an electric power system is in that system plan and working are carried out based on this, and two sets of equation, i.e., differential equation representing a generator and control system and algebraic equation representing relation of voltage and current in the power system, are solved in time sequence and alternately. Components to constitute the phenomenon of the power system include a generator, a generator bus connected to the generator, a non-generator bus being a load bus, excitation system constituted by an automatic voltage regulator, governor system constituted by a turbine, a power system stabilizer (hereinafter referred to as "PSS"), motion system and the like. Flow of the simulation is as shown in FIG. 1. That is, after the initial setting (step 41). calculation of the generator bus (step 42) and calculation of the non-generator bus (step 43) are carried out until attaining the convergence (step 44). If the convergence is the first time (step 45), calculation of each component is carried out in steps 47-51. After calculation of each component, process is returned to step 42. If the convergence is the second time or later, the convergence decision (step 46) is carried out and the simulation comes to the end in the case of the convergence.
Other simulation method is disclosed, for example, in "Denki Kyodo Kenkyu", Vol. 34, No. 5 (January 1979), p. 36.
As above described, simulation of phenomenon of the system in the prior art has been carried out in that each component is sequentially simulated by single processing unit.
Since the simulator in the prior art is constituted as above described, problems exist in that when the scale of the system and the number of components become large, enlargement or changing is difficult, and since the amount of processing becomes much, time to simulate the phenomenon of the system must be spent much.


A system generates a plurality of spatial points based on depth measurements of physical objects. The system determines, based on the plurality of spatial points, an occupancy score for each voxel within a plurality of voxels. The system identifies, based on a gaze of the user, a first set of occupied voxels that are in a field of view of the user and a second set of occupied voxels that are outside the field of view of the user. The system updates the occupancy scores of the first set of occupied voxels by temporally decaying one or more of the plurality of spatial points within the first set of occupied voxels. The system maintains the occupancy scores of the second set of occupied voxels. The system detects intrusions in a predefined subspace within a physical space based on the updated occupancy scores of the first set of occupied voxels.

Artificial reality is a form of reality that has been adjusted in some manner before presentation to a user, which may include, e.g., a virtual reality (VR), an augmented reality (AR), a mixed reality (MR), a hybrid reality, or some combination and/or derivatives thereof. Artificial reality content may include completely generated content or generated content combined with captured content (e.g., real-world photographs). The artificial reality content may include video, audio, haptic feedback, or some combination thereof, any of which may be presented in a single channel or in multiple channels (such as stereo video that produces a three-dimensional effect to the viewer). Artificial reality may be associated with applications, products, accessories, services, or some combination thereof, that are, e.g., used to create content in an artificial reality and/or used in (e.g., perform activities in) an artificial reality. The artificial reality system that provides the artificial reality content may be implemented on various platforms, including a headset/head-mounted display (HMD) connected to a host computer system, a standalone HMD, a mobile device or computing system, or any other hardware platform capable of providing artificial reality content to one or more viewers.
When immersed in such artificial reality, particularly VR, via an HMD, a user's view of the real world may be blocked by the physical structure of the HMD. Because objects in the real world and intruders may pose a hazard to the user, there is a need to make the user aware of their presence.

Systems and methods for detecting objects within the boundary of a defined space while in artificial reality


An injection mould for manufacturing disc-shaped plastic articles with a central hole comprises a first mould part and a second mould part displaceable relative to the first mould part by a first displacing mechanism. The two mould parts are displaceable between a closed first position, in which they together partially bound a mould cavity corresponding to the shape of an article for manufacture, and an open second position in which a formed article can be removed. A third mould part is provided which, in the closed position of the first and second mould parts, extends through the mould cavity and has a shape in the region of the mould cavity which corresponds to the shape of the central hole. The third mould part is axially displaceable by a guide sleeve forming part of the first mould part between a first position, in which it partially forms a bounding of the mould cavity, and a second retracted position. The third mould part bounds a channel that is connectable at a free outside end to an injection nozzle of an injection moulding device. At the other side, the third mould part debouches with an injection inlet into the region of the mould cavity in the first position of the first and the second mould parts and the first position of the third mould part. In the second position, the third mould part debouches blind against the inner wall of the guide sleeve. A heater for keeping plastic present in the channel in the plastic state is also provided.

Injection moulds exist which are equipped for manufacturing disc-shaped articles with a central hole. Examples of this are compact discs, VLPs, laser discs and other information carriers. Such known moulds are of the two-part type and bound in closed position a disc-shaped mould cavity. After the injection moulding treatment the central hole is removed from the formed article by means of a punching process.
The drawback to this known art is that in this way valuable plastic is lost and that the quality of the hole is greatly dependent on the accuracy with which the punching process is performed, in particular the moment during the manufacturing cycle at which the actual punching takes place.

Injection mould for manufacturing disc-shaped plastic articles


A pegylated type I interferon for use in treating an infectious disease, cancer, or myeloproliferative disease in a subject in need thereof, wherein a 50 to 540 μg dose of the pegylated type I interferon is administered to the subject at a regular interval for a treatment period, the interval being 3 to 8 weeks.

Interferons (IFNs) are proteins made and released by host cells in response to the presence of pathogens such as viruses, bacteria, parasites or tumor cells. In a typical scenario, a virus-infected cell will release interferons causing nearby cells to increase their anti-viral defenses.
IFNs belong to the large class of glycoproteins known as cytokines. Interferons are named for their ability to "interfere" with viral replication by protecting cells from virus infection. More than twenty distinct IFN genes and proteins have been identified in animals, including humans. They are typically divided among three classes: Type I IFN, Type II IFN, and Type III IFN. IFNs of all three classes are important for fighting viral infections and regulating the immune system.
Recombinant IFNs have been developed and are commercially available.
Due to their various biological activities, use of IFNs for treating a number of conditions, such as infectious diseases and cancers, has been proposed. However, use of IFNs has generally been limited by several shortcomings, including immunogenicity, which may lead to formation of neutralizing antibodies and loss of clinical response, and a short half-life, which means that frequent doses are required to maintain therapeutically effective concentrations of the protein.
These problems were partially solved by conjugating IFNs to polymers, such as polyethylene glycol. Several different types of IFN are now approved for use in humans, including a pegylated interferon-alpha-2b (Pegintron) and a pegylated interferon-alpha-2a (Pegasys). These pegylated drugs are injected once weekly, rather than two or three times per week, as is necessary for conventional interferon-alpha. When used with the antiviral drug ribavirin, pegylated interferon is effective for the treatment of hepatitis C.
However, while interferon-polymer conjugates are clinically beneficial, they also have a number of adverse side effects such as flu-like symptoms, increased body temperature, feeling ill, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, convulsion, dizziness, hair thinning, and depression. Erythema, pain and hardness on the spot of injection are also frequently observed.
Side effects are particularly important considerations when long term treatment is needed. Reducing the frequency of administration and total cumulative amount administered may decrease side effects and increase tolerability. However, previous such attempts did not show any satisfactory therapeutic effectiveness.


A folding mechanism of a golf cart includes a fixed member secured to a middle rod part of a golf cart frame, first and second moving members joined to upper and lower rod parts of the frame respectively, and a spring-biased pivotal plate. The moving members each have a toothed portion, which has an engaging protrusion at one end. The toothed portion of the first moving member further has a stop portion. The moving members are pivoted to the fixed member, and engaged with each other such that angular displacement of one of the moving members will cause angular displacement of the other. The golf cart will be fixed in a stretched position when the engaging protrusions engage. The pivotal plate is normally in a first position, in which position the front end thereof will engage the toothed portion of the first moving member to prevent the golf cart from folding.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a folding mechanism of a golf cart, more particularly one, which allows the golf cart to move to its correct folded position in single motion, and allows the golf cart to move to its correct stretched position in single motion.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Golf is getting more and more popular with the heightening of the standard of living. Because many different golf clubs, which are relatively heavy in weight, have to be used in a golf game, the golfers usually put their golf clubs in golf bags, and carry the golf bags with golf carts. Many golf carts can be folded so as to occupy less space for easy transportation and storage. However, most conventional foldable golf carts have a disadvantage: the users can't be sure whether or not a golf cart has been moved to its correct position, stretched or folded, after the stretching or folding motion. The user has to exert force on the golf cart again to make sure the golf cart can't be stretched or folded any further after stretching or folding the cart initially. Therefore, the golf carts aren't convenient to use, and are prone to being damaged owing to the users' improper application of force.


The present invention discloses a novel method of preparing 8-methyldecanal, a flavor and fragrance material. Specifically, starting from cheap and readily available material 6-chloro-1-hexanol, first, the hydroxyl group was protected with dihydropyran catalyzed by para-toluene sulfonic acid to produce 6-chloro-hexyl tetrahydropyran ether. Then 6-chloro-hexyl tetrahydropyran ether reacted with magnesium turnings to form a Grignard reagent and reacted with 1-bromo-2-methyl-butane under the catalysis of cuprous bromide to give the intermediate 8-methyl-sunny tetrahydropyran ether. Without purification, crude 8-methyl-sunny tetrahydropyran ether was treated under acidic conditions to remove the protecting group to generate 8-methyl-1-decyl alcohol. Finally, 8-methyl decanal was obtained after oxidation with 2, 2, 6, 6-tetramethylpiperidinyloxy. The novel method of preparing 8-methyldecanal disclosed in the present invention utilizes common raw materials with low costs, the reaction conditions are mild, and yield is high. It is suitable for large-scale production.

8-methyldecanal (CAS #127793-88-8) exists naturally in citrus fruits. USA and the European Union have approved the use of 8-methyldecanal in food flavors (FEMA #4795). 8-Methyldecanal is a valuable flavor material, it is widely used in the manufacturing of citrus flavors, fruit flavors, confectionary flavors, and other food additives.
EP0448740 discloses the following method of preparing 8-methyldecanal:
In the process, intermediate ethyl 8-methyl-6-decanoate is prepared by Wittig reaction of ethyl 6-bromocaproate with 2-methyl butyraldehyde in the presence of triphenylphosphine and a strong base such as sodium hydride. Then ethyl 8-methyl-6-decanoate is reduced by lithium aluminum hydride to provide 8-methyl-6-decene-1-ol; catalytic hydrogenation of the unsaturated alcohol gives saturated alcohol 8-methyl-1-decyl alcohol. In the last step, oxidation by pyridine chlorochromate (PCC) generates 8-methyldecanal. In this process, flammable and potentially explosive organic metallic reagents (sodium hydride and lithium aluminum hydride) are used; the reaction conditions have to be anhydrous and oxygen-free. In addition, the starting material of ethyl 6-bromocaproate is expensive, and the by-products triphenylphosphonium oxide and chromium salt are not environmental friendly. As a result, this process is not suitable for large-scale production.
JP2008100960 discloses the following synthesis method of 8-methyldecanal:
Starting material 1-bromo-2-methyl butane reacts with magnesium turnings to form a Grignard reagent and then reacts with 6-bromo-hexonitrile in the presence of cuprous bromide and organic base N-methyl pyrrolidone to provide the intermediate 8-methyl-decanitrile. 8-methyl-decanitrile is then reduced by diisobutyl aluminum hydride (DIBAL) and worked up under acidic conditions to give 8-methyldecanal. Although the reaction sequence of this process is relatively short, the starting material 1-bromo-2-methyl butane is expensive, the preparation of 6-bromo-hexonitrile requires highly toxic cyanide raw material, and the reduction with diisobutyl aluminum hydride needs to be carried out at a low temperature of −60° C. As a result, this process is not suitable for large-scale production.
Currently, the application of 8-methyldecanal is largely hampered by its availability. A new process of preparing 8-methyldecanal, which is environmental friendly and cost effective is needed.


Methods and systems for making and bottling a juice containing beverage in sealed containers are disclosed. The systems and methods may be performed without using heat-based or pressure-based pasteurization, and yet are still safe to consume and have a commercially viable shelf-life.

The present disclosure relates to bottling beverages that includes juice from fruits and/or vegetables. More particularly, systems, devices, and methods disclosed herein can be used to create bottled beverages in glass containers that are not subjected to heat pasteurization nor subjected to high pressure pasteurization and yet are still safe to consume and have a commercially viable shelf-life.
Juice from fruits and/or vegetables are highly perishable. In the U.S., the FDA requires a minimum 5-log reduction of the most resistant microorganism of public health significance identified as the pertinent pathogen under a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point ("HACCP") plan. The target microorganisms are dependent on the juice product and process. For acidic juice E. coli, Salmonella and Cryptosporidium parvum may occur. In lower-acid juices, such as carrot juice, C. botulinum may be the pathogen hazard of concern.
The European Chilled Food Federation ("ECFF") provides guidance for producing chilled foods in Europe. According to ECFF recommendations, heat-treated chilled food should have a 6 log reduction of either L. monocytogenes or cold growing C. botulinum.
Traditionally, the shelf-life stable juice products are made using thermal pasteurization ("TP"). Low temperature long time ("LTLT") and high temperature short time ("HTST") treatments are the most commonly used techniques for juice pasteurization. Other non-thermal pasteurization methods have been proposed. Such methods include high hydrostatic pressure ("HHP"), high pressure homogenization ("HPH"), pulsed electric field ("PEF"), and ultrasound ("US"). Unfortunately, TP may cause substantial changes to the nutritional content and flavor of juice containing beverages.
High pressure processing ("HPP") is a cold pasteurization technique for juices where the juice is first sealed in plastic, flexible, and water-resistant packaging, and then are exposed to a high level of hydrostatic pressure (e.g. pressure transmitted by water) of up to 600 MPa/87,000 psi for a few seconds to a few minutes. HPP is not compatible with glass containers.
More recently, ultraviolet (UV-C at 253.7 nm) technology has been implemented. However, due to the physicochemical characteristics of fruit juice, the use of UV-C technology to adequately achieve at least a 5 log reduction of pertinent pathogens in the juice without adversely affecting flavor, aroma, appearance, and nutritional value is highly unpredictable.

Systems and methods of making cold processed juice beverages


A mobile terminal including an output unit configured to output an alarm, a memory configured to store an expandable alarm-integrated database, and a controller configured to expand the alarm-integrated database to include alarm information corresponding to an alarm feature of content added after the mobile terminal was manufactured.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal and corresponding method that manages all alarms in the mobile terminal using a single integrated database.
2. Description of the Background Art
Mobile terminals are generally used to wirelessly communicate with other users. However, mobile terminals also include several other features including a scheduling feature, MP3 features, Internet features, etc. The mobile terminal also generally includes two type of alarm functions to notify the user about a specific condition.
For example, the mobile terminal include system alarms such as a service-unavailable alarm indicating the user is out of a telecommunication service area and a one-minute alarm alerting the user that one minute has passed since his or her call was first established. The mobile terminal also includes personal alarms that are set by the user such as a wake-up alarm or appointment/task alarm. The user is able to selectively set different times for the personal alarms.
However, the user can not set or change a system alarm. That is, the system alarms are preconfigured when the mobile terminal is manufactured and can not be changed by the user. Thus, for new contents that include a system alarm, the user must return the terminal to a representative of the manufacturer, and the representative installs the new feature onto the terminal. During this installation process, the manufacturer adds a separate new database corresponding to the added contents. This increases the number off databases stored on the terminal and results in more complex operations required to access the plurality of separate databases, thus increasing the time necessary to perform the alarm function.


The image copying apparatus of the present invention comprises a document drawing-in port for drawing an original document before reading operation in and a document discharging port for discharging the original document after reading operation, and copies images of the original document on a medium. The image copying apparatus further comprises trays more than two which are movable upward and downward within a range covering a document feeding position to the document drawing-in port, a receiving position from the document discharging port, and a bottom region located further lower than the lower of these positions. At least one of the trays moves to a position within the bottom region, a tray on which an original document is placed moves to a document feeding position, and another tray moves to a document receiving position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image copying apparatus and an image copying method for reading images on an original document and copying the images on a sheet. More specifically, the present invention relates to the image copying apparatus including an automatic document feeding device, and an image copying method in the image copying apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, universal designs aiming to embody products easy for any people to use have been adopted. In this circumstance, an image copying apparatus including an automatic document feeding device is also desired to incorporate universal designs. Conventionally, in the image copying apparatus, a document reading device is located at the uppermost portion of the image copying apparatus. This is because the document reading device is also used as a reading unit for an original document in a statically placed state. For this reason, in many cases, a document inserting port of the automatic document feeding device is also located in the vicinity of the uppermost portion of the image copying apparatus. In a general large-sized image copying apparatus, the uppermost portion of the apparatus where the document inserting port is located is about 1200 mm in height. Therefore, operations of inserting original documents into the document inserting port and checking the inserted state of the originals are not easy for persons in wheelchairs and children short in height.
As an attempt to solving this problem, there has been proposed an image copying apparatus which utilizes a manual sheet feeding tray or a sheet feeding cassette as document feeding means for persons in wheelchairs (see e.g. Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2003-122062). These are sheet feeding means conventionally located at low position. According to this apparatus, for example, a feeding path for feeding a sheet-like document from the manual sheet feeding tray to an automatic document reading device is formed. Then, the sheet-like document after reading operation is discharged to document discharging means or to the manual sheet feeding tray.
However, in the conventional image copying apparatus described above, a feeding path is additionally formed inside the apparatus. Therefore, the document feeding path has an increased length by this additional length. In general, it is more difficult to ensure the feeding reliability of an original sheet as compared with a sheet for forming images. This is because original documents are of a wide variety of sheets. For example, there are many cases where the end of the sheet is folded or where the sheet is entirely warped. There are also many cases where the friction coefficients on the original sheet surface do not distribute uniformly depending on whether ink is present or absent, and the like. If paper jam occurs in the course of the feeding path, there is a fear that an important original is damaged. For this reason, it is not much preferable that the document feeding path is long in length.
The conventional image copying apparatus described above also has a problem in discharging the original document reading operation. In order to discharge the document at a low position as is the case of inserting, the original document is discharged to the manual sheet feeding tray which is the same tray from which the original has been inserted. Thus, only one sheet of original can be processed at one time. Specifically, one sheet of original is inserted into the manual sheet feeding tray to read the image thereof. The original after the reading operation is discharged from the same manual sheet feeding tray. Then, the next original is inserted. Therefore, it cannot be that the operation efficiency is good and there is a problem that the productivity of the copying operation is low.

Image copying apparatus and image copying method

Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.


An apparatus and method for creating and recording both an electronic and printed ballot for each voter during voting. The system can employ a variety of vote selection techniques, all of which can lead to the generation of an electronic tally of the vote in addition to the printing of a paper ballot. The printed ballot includes only the names of the candidates for whom the voter has voted in a form that is easily readable by both humans and machine. This unambiguous printed ballot makes it easy for voters to verify the accuracy of their intended vote and can subsequently be used to cast the voter's official vote or saved to provide an audit trail for subsequent confirmation of the electronic tally. These and other features accelerate the initial tabulation of results while providing multiple safeguards against fraud through the printing of a paper record for verifying voter intent.

This invention relates in general to electronic voting systems and more specifically to a voting system that includes means to record a voter's selections on a custom printed ballot for verification by the voter at the time a voter casts his or her ballot.
The presidential election of 2000 illustrated the hazards of punch card ballots and the uncertainty of verifying voter intent. Indeed, since punch card ballots are not easily read by voters, there were many voters who subsequently felt disenfranchised based on the fear that their intended vote was not accurately recorded.
This national controversy revealed that there is the need for a method to cast ballots that is (1) easy for humans to read, so that both voters and election officials can verify the accuracy of the cast vote, (2) easy for machines to read for the purpose of automating the count, and (3) provides for multiple paths of verification.
A number of electronic voting methods have been devised (De Phillipo, U.S. Pat. No. 4,015,106, Narey et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,780, and Moldovan, Jr. et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,010,353, Challener, et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,081,793, Kilian, et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,051) but these have proven to be too expensive or cumbersome for widespread use.
Many of these new technologies seek to replace the paper ballot with secure digital records. While the electronically cast votes are easy to count and transmit, public confidence in a voting system will be undermined in any system that lacks a physical paper record. A paper record, also known as a ballot, is tangible evidence of the cast vote and may be considered as an essential element in the verification of computer tallies.
This invention relates in general to a voting system that combines the speed and accuracy of computer technology with the advantages of custom printed paper ballots in a novel fashion that produces numerous advantages in terms of speed, ease of use, and multiple levels of verification.

Computer enhanced voting system including voter verifiable, custom printed ballots imprinted to the specifications of each voter


A nuclear density gauge and test method is provided for measuring bulk density, especially of a cylindrically shaped sample such as asphalt paving material. The gauge comprises a base; a sample holder carried by the base and having a surface configured for receiving and holding a first generally planar end of the cylindrically shaped sample; a plate mounted in proximity to said sample holder; and at least three sources of gamma radiation located in said plate adjacent the sample holder. The sources are positioned in spaced-apart relation from one another for emitting gamma radiation from at least three spaced-apart locations into said one end of the sample. Each of the sources comprises an isotope having a characteristic primary energy. A detector is mounted to the base and is positioned adjacent the opposite end of the cylindrically shaped sample for receiving gamma radiation which has penetrated the sample. Means is provided cooperating with the detector for calculating the bulk density of the sample based upon the gamma radiation counts by the detector. Preferably the detector comprises a scintillation detector, and the means for calculating the bulk density of the sample includes an analyzer connected to the scintillation detector for detecting gamma radiation in a predetermined energy spectrum, which preferably falls within the range of 0.1 MeV to 2 MeV.

This invention relates to the measurement of bulk density, and more particularly to an apparatus and method for measuring the bulk density of a sample using gamma radiation. The invention is especially suited for measuring the bulk density of relatively small xe2x80x9cfinite volumexe2x80x9d samples, and in particular, cylindrically shaped samples such as core samples or gyratory compacted specimens of asphalt paving material.
In the asphalt pavement construction industry, the cylinder is a common sample geometry. In laboratories, cylindrical samples are prepared, typically with a gyratory compactor, and various material properties are studied to determine the best mix design for a pavement. In the field, cylindrical samples are cored from test strips, newly constructed roads, or existing roads. The material properties of these samples are then used to evaluate whether the test strip or the new pavement meets the design criteria and whether the existing road is in good operating condition or in need of repairs. Among the material properties studied in the cylindrical asphalt samples, material bulk density or bulk specific gravity is an important property.
Currently, several methods are used for measuring the density of cylindrical samples: dimensional analysis, the water displacement method, the paraffin coated method, and the para-film-covered method. In each case, the bulk density of a sample is derived by, as in the definition, dividing the dry sample mass by the estimated sample volume. All methods require a balance with a sensitivity of 0.1 g. to measure the mass of the sample. In the dimensional analysis method, sample volume is determined from the radius and thickness (height) measurements. Here, many readings of the radius and thickness of the sample are made using a vernier caliper. The average values of the radius and the thickness are then used to calculate the sample volume. The other methods use the Archimedes Principle for determining the sample volume. These methods require a large container filled with clean water. The water,temperature should be monitored and controlled at a specific temperature, e.g. at 25xc2x0 C. At one stage of the test, the sample is kept immersed in water for approximately 4 minutes and the weight of the sample, while suspended in water, is recorded. In the xe2x80x9cparaffin-coatedxe2x80x9d method, after determining the dry weight of the sample, a thin coating of paraffin is applied to cover the entire surface area of the sample. Then, the sample is weighed again in air. Finally, the sample is weighed while immersed in water. The xe2x80x9cparafilm-coveredxe2x80x9d method is similar to the xe2x80x9cparaffin-coatedxe2x80x9d method, except that a film is used to wrap the sample. The water displacement test, which is the fastest of all three Archimedes methods, takes about 6 minutes. The single operator precision of the water displacement method is 0.0124 g/cm3 and the paraffin-coated method is less than 0.02 g/cm3. More details can be found in standards ASTM D 2726 for the water displacement method and ASTM D 1188 for the paraffin-coated method.
Because an asphalt mix is heterogeneous and granular in nature, there is no single density determination method to cover all mix designs. The decision on which density determination method to use depends on the aggregate size and whether it is an open or closed mix design. For example, for mixes using aggregate with a nominal aggregate size of 9.5 mm and a void content less than about 6%, the water displacement method provides reasonably accurate densities. For open-graded mixes with larger aggregates and coarser gradations, the water displacement method provides densities higher than the xe2x80x9ctruexe2x80x9d densities. For such samples, the industry recommends using paraffin-coated or para-film covered methods for density determination. However, paraffin-coated and para-film methods are time consuming and their accuracy of density determination have been found to be highly user dependent. Furthermore, for many mix designs, the dimensional analysis method overestimates the volume and yields lower density values than the other methods. However, literature has shown that dimensional analysis provides better estimates of the densities of highly permeable specimens.
With more and more roads being constructed using mixes of large aggregate sizes and/or open graded mix designs, there is a need for developing techniques for determining the density of cylindrical asphalt samples.
For many decades, gamma-ray based nuclear gauges have been successfully used to determine densities of asphalt pavements. This type of gauge provides a non-destructive test method and provides density measurements rapidly (e.g. within 1 to 4 minutes).
Various designs for gamma-ray based surface gauges, depth probes, and the like have been reported in literature and are available commercially. Single system surface density gauges, such as the Model 3400 series Surface Moisture-Density gauges available from applicant""s assignee, Troxler Electronic Laboratories, Inc., are designed to be placed on a surface, such as an asphalt pavement surface, and the density determination assumes a sample of relative large or xe2x80x9cinfinite volumexe2x80x9d in relation to the field of view of the gauge. Such gauges are not designed to reliably measure the bulk density of relatively small, xe2x80x9cfinite volumexe2x80x9d samples, such as cylindrically shaped samples of asphalt paving mix.
In commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,151,601, a system is described by which a nuclear asphalt content gauge, such as the Troxler 3200 series asphalt content gauge, can be used to determine the asphalt content of cylindrical samples of asphalt paving mix. However, currently no commercial nuclear gauge is available in the market for determining the density of cylindrical specimens.
The present invention provides a nuclear density test instrument and method which is suited for measuring the bulk density of relatively small, xe2x80x9cfinite volumexe2x80x9d samples, and is particularly suited for measuring the bulk density of cylindrical specimens, such as cylindrical core samples or gyratory compacted specimens of asphalt paving mix.
In one embodiment, the density gauge of the present invention comprises a plurality of sources of gamma radiation positioned in spaced-apart relation from one another for emitting gamma radiation from a plurality of spaced-apart locations into a sample placed nearby and a detector mounted for receiving gamma radiation which has penetrated the sample. Means is provided cooperating with the detector for calculating the bulk density of the sample based upon the gamma radiation counts by the detector. In one embodiment, each of the sources of gamma radiation is preferably a point source, and the sources are preferably mounted to a source plate. The sources are preferably at least three in number and are arranged in a common plane. In a further more specific aspect, the gauge includes a sample holder configured to hold a cylindrically shaped sample, the sample holder being mounted adjacent to said source plate to orient the sources at spaced locations opposite a first end of the cylindrically shaped sample.
Preferably, the detector is an energy selective detector configured to detect gamma radiation in a predetermined energy spectrum, which desirably is within the range of from 0.1 MeV to 2 MeV. The detector may comprise a scintillation detector, and the system may include an analyzer connected to the scintillation detector for detecting gamma radiation in the desired predetermined energy spectrum. In one specific embodiment, each of the sources is a 137Cs gamma-ray source with a 0.662 MeV primary energy, and the predetermined energy spectrum measured by the gauge falls within the range of 0.25 to 0.73 MeV.

Apparatus and method for gamma-ray determination of bulk density of samples


A high energy chemical laser capable of being operated in an aircraft to interdict and destroy theater ballistic missiles is provided. A key to the chemical laser of the invention is the use of individual chemical lasers whose individual photon energy outputs can be combined into a single high-energy laser beam.

The development of an effective defense against theater ballistic missiles is an important national defense requirement. Experience gained during the Desert Storm War highlighted the critical importance of providing an adequate defense against theater ballistic missiles.
Research has shown that an effective anti-theater ballistic missile system is theoretically possible if a high energy laser beam can be directed at theater ballistic missiles during the brief period between missile launch and booster rocket burn-out. It is during this short interval when theater ballistic missiles are most readily identified and most vulnerable to a high energy laser beam.
Prior art anti-theater ballistic missile weapons lack the capability to interdict theater ballistic missiles before booster rocket burn-out, and have therefore proven to be largely ineffective in destroying even the current generation of theater ballistic missiles.
Accordingly, there is a need for an anti-theater ballistic missile system capable of interdicting theater ballistic missiles during the short period of time between missile launch and booster rocket burn-out.