An apparatus for conducting radiologic surveys. The apparatus comprises in the main a robot capable of following a preprogrammed path through an area, a radiation monitor adapted to receive input from a radiation detector assembly, ultrasonic transducers for navigation and collision avoidance, and an on-board computer system including an integrator for interfacing the radiation monitor and the robot. Front and rear bumpers are attached to the robot by bumper mounts. The robot may be equipped with memory boards for the collection and storage of radiation survey information. The on-board computer system is connected to a remote host computer via a UHF radio link. The apparatus is powered by a rechargeable 24-volt DC battery, and is stored at a docking station when not in use and/or for recharging. A remote host computer contains a stored database defining paths between points in the area where the robot is to operate, including but not limited to the locations of walls, doors, stationary furniture and equipment, and sonic markers if used. When a program consisting of a series of paths is downloaded to the on-board computer system, the robot conducts a floor survey autonomously at any preselected rate. When the radiation monitor detects contamination, the robot resurveys the area at reduced speed and resumes its preprogrammed path if the contamination is not confirmed. If the contamination is confirmed, the robot stops and sounds an alarm.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to remote radiologic surveying. In particular, the present invention relates to radiologic surveys done by autonomous robots.
2. Discussion of Background
At present radiologic surveying of an area is usually done either by placing radiological instrumentation in that area to monitor the radiation levels or by manually making radiologic measurements using several standard techniques on specific surfaces in the area.
When an area is known to be contaminated, a health physicist will make measurements of background and the radiation coming from surfaces and take samples of contaminants on those surfaces for analysis. If that surface is to be decontaminated, it will be sampled periodically during the decontamination process until all traces of contaminants are removed. The sampling may be directed to random parts of the surface or may involve measurement of all parts of the decontaminated surface.
If the area is one where radioisotopes are handled routinely but contamination is not usually present, the far more common practice is to take radiological samples for measurements on a statistical basis; that is, small portions of the surfaces are sampled at random and the overall condition of the surface is inferred from the results of these measurements. Routine monitoring may also include floor surveys, where the floor is manually scanned at a rate of 1" per second using hand-held portable monitors.
Random surveys sample only a small portion of a potentially-contaminated surface. Obviously, if contamination is present in an area that is not selected for sampling, it will go undetected and can be spread by personnel moving through and about the area. Sampling typically involves wiping the surface with a paper disk and analyzing that disk for contamination, which sample is called a smear sample and which technique is called "smearing." This techniques is only capable of locating transferable or loose contamination.
In addition, when the chance of finding contamination in an area is very low, 100 percent sampling is unrealistic because of the time and labor involved. Manual scanning is labor-intensive, cumbersome and inefficient.
The problems associated with manual scanning could be largely eliminated by an automated scanning system, preferably a system that alerts personnel to the presence of contamination. Monitoring devices that provide an alarm in the presence of a hazard are known. For example, a remotely-operated system monitors a variety of hazardous conditions and enunciates the presence of a hazard in synthesized human speech (Lemelson, U.S. Pat. No. 4,455,551). Remotely-controlled devices for environmental monitoring are also available. However, all known devices require a human operator using stereoptic television cameras to direct from a remote location the activities of a vehicle. See also Silverman, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,709,265. Measuring radiation over 100 percent of an area using such a device is very tedious for the operator because measurements should be done no faster than approximately 1"/sec (2.5 cm/sec). There is a need for an effective and autonomous scanning system, that is, a system that measures radiation without human supervision at least until contamination is found.

Autonomous mobile robot for radiologic surveys

The United States of America as represented by the United States Department of Energy


A photodetector and optical pickup device which comprises: a monitoring photodetection element (photodiode) 23 for receiving laser beams having different wavelengths from laser light sources; a light source-discriminating photoreceiver 24 represented by a photodiode (240) and a wavelength selection filter (241) for discriminating the wavelength spectra of the laser light sources; and a sensitivity regulation circuit (25) for regulating the sensitivity of the monitoring photodetection element 23 in response to the light source-discriminating photoreceiver 24.

An optical system having a plurality of light sources to irradiate an optical disk for writing and reading of data is conventional. However, there are different types of optical disks that operate under different standards such as CD-ROM, CD-R (W), DVD each of which relate to a different type of media and, as such, each disk operates at a different wavelength for writing and reading of data. To accommodate these different wavelengths, an optical disk driving apparatus needs to install an optical pickup device having a light source that can output a laser beam of a wavelength suited to each type of media. A single optical disk driving apparatus that can operate under all of the different media standards with each type of optical disk employing a common optical pickup device to reduce the cost of additional equipment has been proposed. Such an optical pickup device should accommodate the different light sources and should output a laser beam of a different wavelength along a common optical laser beam path in which the light source outputs merge.
Fine tuning of the light intensity from each of the laser beams before irradiation onto an optical disk is essential to accurately image the laser beams on the optical disk, in order to flawlessly record signal data thereon, and to flawlessly reproduce data therefrom. However, it is inevitable that surrounding conditions such as temperature and the like will cause the output from each of the laser light sources to fluctuate thereby varying the intensity of the laser beams irradiated onto the optical disk. As a countermeasure, a photodetection element may be provided to monitor each laser beam output from each laser light source for regulating the coulombs of current flowing into each laser light source based on the monitoring result. Further, the condition of the optical disk or the condition of the signals recorded onto the disk may affect optimal light intensity values. In this situation, an optical pickup device should be used capable of independently controlling each of the laser light sources.
An optical system using a pickup device of conventional technology for irradiating laser beams onto an optical disk is shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B wherein divergent light is emitted from the semiconductor laser light sources 1, 2 as parallel light beams which are directed through a collimating lens 4 via a coupling prism 3 and reflected by a raised mirror 5 through an objective lens 6 onto an optical disk 10 (shown in FIG. 5B).
Photodetection elements 7, 8 are arranged in the vicinity of the laser light sources 1, 2 to detect luminous energy from divergent light emitted from the laser beams. The laser beams may directly reach the photodetection elements 7, 8, or they may be indirectly guided by a raised mirror or the like.
The photodetection elements 7, 8 in the optical pickup device detect luminous energy from each laser beam in proportion to the intensity of the laser beam. Accordingly, current flowing into the semiconductor laser light sources 1, 2 may be regulated based on the output from photodetection elements 7, 8, for controlling the intensity of the laser beam output of each light source.
Nonetheless, the configuration of FIGS. 5A and 5B have a problem in that for every laser beam of a different wavelength a separate photodetection element is required, thereby increasing manufacturing costs and decreasing the available space in an optical pickup to accommodate the multiple photodetection elements.
To overcome this drawback, one may consider a pickup device in which a single photodetection element 9 is used and arranged in the vicinity of the optical path of the laser beam after passing through coupling prism 3 as is illustrated in FIG. 6. Currently, the output of a laser diode for a CD system is at least 200 mW or over and the output of a laser diode for a DVD system is 100 mW or less. In addition the photodetection element for a CD system has its sensitivity peak near 780 nm, which levels off about 20% i.e. its sensitivity drops off 20% for a DVD system which utilizes a wavelength of, for example, 650 nm. It is, therefore, difficult for a single photodetector 9 alone to be used in the configuration of FIG. 6 to detect the luminous energy of laser beams having different wavelengths and to control the current level flowing into both semiconductor laser diodes 1 and 2.
The present invention overcomes the problems of using a single photodetector and provides an optical pickup device capable of controlling multiple laser light sources without space or arrangement limitations. Moreover, the photodetector of the present invention can automatically regulate the sensitivity of a selected laser beam of given wavelength spectra, eliminating the need for multiple photodetectors. Consequently the need for a control circuit in the external control system and the need for a cable for signal control are also eliminated, further allowing a reduction of manufacturing costs.


The invention relates to transgenic non-human multicellular organisms that contain polynucleotides for expressing proteins that alter posttranslational modification. In particular, the invention provides multiply-transgenic animals in which a first transgene encodes a first protein, a second transgene encodes a second protein, and expression of the second protein affects the posttranlational modification of the first protein in cells of said organism. Expression in preferred embodiments is in specific cells and the modified protein is secreted into a bodily fluid. The invention provides related methods, proteins and products. An example provides transgenic animals that express human Protein C and the processing protease PACE/furin in mammary glands and secrete both proteins into milk.

The expression of cloned or purposefully altered genes in transgenic organisms has been seen to hold great promise for the production of substances by transgenic "bioreactors" and for the production of improved animals and plants, among other applications. Obstacles to realizing the promise have been encountered, however. In particular, it has not been possible to obtain highly efficient production of properly modified useful substances in transgenic animals. The present invention relates to methods and transgenic organisms that overcome the problem and to products produced by the transgenic organisms, inter alia.
Many DNAs have been cloned and expressed in cells in culture to produce heterologous proteins, peptides and other substances. Several genes also have been introduced into plants or animals to produce heterologous proteins, peptides and other substances. Although it has been possible, in general, to engender expression and production of proteins and other substances in cells, animals and plants by expressing cloned genes, the production levels that have been obtained often have been low and the posttranslational processing of proteins produced this way generally has been incomplete or inefficient. These difficulties particularly have limited, or precluded, the use of animal and plant bioreactors to produce proteins with the proper posttranslational modifications. Low production levels and low specific activities in cultured cells have been attributed to the expression of limiting amounts of particular enzymes necessary for the production of the expressed protein in its properly modified form.
Attempts have been made to increase production of properly modified proteins in cells in culture by expressing a cloned gene to increase the amount of a limiting enzyme activity in the cells. For instance, expression of a transfected yeast Kex2 cDNA in baby hamster kidney ("BHK") cells that expressed human Protein C ("HPC") from an amplified Protein C gene increased the conversion of Protein C from the single-chain zymogen form to the mature two-chain form (Foster et al., Biochemistry 30: 367-372 (1991).
In another example, PACE/furin expressed at high levels by a transfected DNA in chinese hamster ovary cells ("CHO") apparently increased proper cleavage of the propeptide of the co-expressed Factor IX precursor (Wasley et al., J. Biol. Chem. 268: 8458-8465 (1993)).
But, the processing activity apparently engendered by expression of the PACE/furin gene in these experiments was difficult to discern and varied. In addition, apparent increases in protease activity seemed to cause cell toxicity, cytopathic effect and alterations in markers of cellular differentiation. Indeed, it has been suggested that PACE/furin and similar processing enzymes may be deleterious or lethal to cells when they are inappropriately expressed, even in culture, as noted for instance by Schalken et al., J. Clin. Invest. 80: 1545-1549 (1987), Ayoubi et al., J. Biol. Chem. 269: 9298-9303 (1994) and Decroly et al., J. Biol. Chem. 269: 12240-12247 (1994). The potential for improving the cellular production of substances in this way is overshadowed by the adverse affects observed in culture.
In light of such results, this approach to improving production of proteins, polypeptides and other substances in transgenic organisms has not been favorably considered. For one, expression of enzymes that alter posttranslational modification in cells thus far has been carried out only in abnormal cultured cells. These cells generally exhibit aberrant growth, which allows them to propagate indefinitely in artificial media. Largely, such cells are derived from tumors or are the outcome of transduction with immortalizing viruses. Differentiation and growth factors particularly are altered in such cells. Thus, the response of these cells to altered posttranslational modification capacity does not indicate the expected response of cells in a healthy organism.
Indeed, it has been thought that such cells are far more tolerant than an intact organism of adverse effects stemming from altered expression of enzymes affecting posttranslational modifications. Given the role of posttranslational modifications in controlling enzyme cascades and in modulating the activity of factors that control growth, mitosis and differentiation, including processes that generally occur only in intact organisms, altering posttranslational modification capacities poses a greater risk of being severely deleterious to an intact organism, even when it would not adversely impact a cell grown in culture.
A developing organism is especially sensitive to inappropriate expression, particularly expression that causes cytopathic effect. For example, loss of a single cell at a critical stage can hopelessly incapacitate or abort a developing embryo.
In addition, an organism can be adversely affected not only by intracellular effects but also by physiological communication of the activity from expressing cells to other parts of the organism. The complex physiological processes involved in transport and metabolism of circulating proteins, moreover, often has the potential to amplify a tolerable intracellular effect into an effect that is intolerably damaging to the organism as a whole.
For instance, it has been noted that expression of some enzymes that carry out posttranslational modifications can activate toxins. Altering a posttranslational modification that activates a toxin thus, potentially could amplify ordinarily tolerable toxin levels, such as those produced by a mild infection, to levels seriously harmful or lethal to an organism (Chiron et al., J. Biol. Chem. 269: 18167-18176 (1994)).
A variety of enzymes involved in posttranslational modification of proteins, moreover, are expressed differently in the cells of different tissues in an organism. In addition, expression of such proteins in cells often varies greatly over the course of embryonic development. This is the case, for instance, of the subtilisin-like PACEs, such as PACE/furin, which appear to carry out proteolytic steps in the maturation of some proteins. In fact, it has been suggested that posttranslational modifications, such as the proteolytic cleavages mediated by these processing proteases, not only participate in, but also have a regulatory role in the process of cell differentiation (Zheng et al., J. Neuroscience, 14: 4656-4673 (1994). Inappropriate expression of these enzymes in cells of a developing embryo thus could have broadly deleterious or lethal effects.
Concern about deleterious effects in vivo have made it seem unlikely that posttranslational modifications of proteins can be much altered in cells of transgenic organisms. Thus, the idea of changing the posttranslational modification properties of cells has not seemed to be a promising way to improve the ability of transgenic organisms to produce useful substances. Given the potential of such animals for the production of useful substances, it therefore remains an important goal to devise methods that overcome these obstacles to developing efficient bioreactors.

Engineering protein posttranslational modification by PACE/furin in transgenic non-human mammals


A method of determining the state of a path in a network includes measuring at a node of the network a rate of throughput over an interval for at least a portion of the path and determining at the node of the network a derivation associated with a characteristic of the frames communicated over at least the portion of the path. The method also includes determining a state of congestion of the path in response to the measured rate of throughput and the determined associated derivation.

The use of and development of communications has grown nearly exponentially in recent years. The growth is fueled by larger networks with more reliable protocols and better communications hardware available to service providers and consumers. In particular, an Ethernet local area network (E-LAN) service type may be used to create a broad range of services. E-LAN service types may be utilized based on one or more service level agreements (SLA) for a multipoint service.
In many cases, the applicable communications network may include any number of service providers, access providers, legs, customers, and other elements that may complicate tracking performance or compliance for users or customers. The performance metrics are useful for trouble shooting, fault isolation, performance management (PM) threshold crossing, error identification, and other measurements that may not be shared between the many separate parties.

System and method for using network performance information to determine improved measures of path states


A trailer coupler pivot assembly comprising a pivot mount member connected to a trailer frame member and a hinge bracket connected to a trailer tongue arm. The hinge bracket is pivotally connected to the pivot mount member so that the trailer tongue arm is pivotal relative to the trailer frame member between an open position and a closed position. However, either of the pivot mount member or the hinge bracket comprises a single, prefabricated component to make assembly more efficient and cost effective. With both the pivot mount member and the hinge bracket being single, prefabricate components, the trailer coupler pivot assembly can be more easily installed with fewer components and welds and by less skilled labor.

Trailered objects are typically stored on the trailers that carry them. For example, a boat can generally be stored within a typical garage while on the trailer used to tow the boat. A typical boat, which is 18 feet in length, supported by a typical trailer requires storage space of approximately 24 feet measured from the most rearward point of the boat's stem to the most forward element of the trailer, that being the trailer coupler. The average inside length of a garage is approximately 24 feet or less, which creates a condition where the boat and trailer combination will not quite fit in the garage. Forcing the boat and trailer combination to fit into such garages can cause damage to the garage, the trailer, and the boat.
The prior art discloses a solution to such a tight-fitting storage condition where a pre-determined portion of the trailer tongue or coupler is allowed to pivot or fold back upon itself to reduce the overall length of the trailer. Therefore, the trailer-boat combination may better fit into a garage of standard length. Such pivoting trailer coupler designs are well known and can be seen in the market place today. Several examples of these designs are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,398,742; 5,503,423; 5,890,617; and 6,364,337 which are enclosed and herewith incorporated by reference herein.
The prior art pivoting trailer coupler designs indicated above illustrate the complexity of design which is the current state of the art. Particularly, the prior art predominately uses a "sandwich" design having overlapping plates and tubes that extend vertically over the trailer beam. However, as described, the manufacture and installation of such designs must be handled by skilled and experienced laborers to ensure proper orientation of the numerous components and to ensure proper pivot and engagement.
The present invention provides significant benefits to the trailer manufacturer. The prior art designs require great skill and precision to weld several loose components to a structure that is not straight, does not have parallel surfaces, and is generally not an accurately defined foundation. Further, the prior art components conduct a large amount of heat generated from the welding process that can relieve internal stresses causing the finished weldment to deviate from its planned locations. This can cause a misalignment and binding of components.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A nonvolatile semiconductor storage device including: a plurality of memory cell unit groups each comprising one or more NAND nonvolatile memory cell units each comprising at least one memory cell having a control gate, a first selection transistor having a first selection gate, and a second selection transistor having a second selection gate, the memory cell unit groups each further comprising a control gate line connected to the control gate, a first selection gate line connected to the first selection gate, and a second selection gate line connected to the second selection gate; a common control gate line connected commonly to the control gate lines of different ones of the memory cell unit groups; a first common selection gate line connected commonly to the first selection gate lines of different ones of the memory cell unit groups; and a second common selection gate line connected commonly to the second selection gate lines of different ones of the memory cell unit groups; wherein the memory cells in the respective memory cell unit groups are each uniquely selected on the basis of a combination of the common control gate line and the first and second common selection gate lines.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a nonvolatile semiconductor storage device, and to a liquid crystal display device including the nonvolatile semiconductor storage device. More particularly, the invention relates to an interconnection arrangement of control gates and selection gates of NAND nonvolatile memory cell units in a nonvolatile semiconductor storage device.
2. Description of the Related Art
The recent advancement of the semiconductor technology, particularly, the development of a micro-processing technique and a three-dimensional processing technique (by which memory cells are stacked perpendicularly to a semiconductor substrate surface for increasing the number of memory cells provided in a semiconductor storage device), makes it possible to achieve the memory cell size reduction and capacity increase of a nonvolatile semiconductor storage device. There are various types of nonvolatile semiconductor storage devices which have different circuit configurations and functions. Among these nonvolatile semiconductor storage devices, flash EEPROMs (hereinafter referred to as "flash memories") are most widely used, particularly, for large storage capacity applications. The flash memories are roughly classified into a NOR type and a NAND type. The NOR flash memory includes one transistor per cell, while the NAND flash memory includes a plurality of memory cell transistors arranged in series and selection transistors provided at opposite ends of the cell arrangement. In the NAND flash memory, a bit line contact and a source line contact are shared by the plurality of memory cell transistors, so that a memory cell area is reduced. Therefore, the NAND flash memory having a smaller memory cell area is suitable for the large storage capacity applications. The NOR flash memory generally performs a programming operation by utilizing channel hot electrons, and performs an erasing operation by utilizing FN tunneling. In the programming operation, voltages of about 10V, about 0V and about 6V are applied to a control gate, a source and a drain, respectively. In the erasing operation, voltages of about −10V and about 5V are applied to the control gate and a P well, respectively, and the source and the drain are opened. On the other hand, the NAND flash memory performs a programming operation and an erasing operation by utilizing FN tunneling. In the programming operation, a voltage of about 20V is applied to a control gate, and a voltage of about 0V is applied to a source and a drain. In the programming operation, a voltage of about −20V is applied to the control gate, and about 0V is applied to the source and the drain. Since the FN tunneling is utilized for the programming operation in the NAND flash memory, the NAND flash memory requires application of higher voltages than the NOR flash memory (see, for example, Flash Memory Technology Handbook authored by Fujio Masuoka and published by Science Forum, Aug. 1993).
FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating memory blocks of the prior art NAND flash memory including memory cell units by way of example. A memory cell selecting operation to be performed by the prior art NAND flash memory will be described with reference to FIG. 9.
As shown in FIG. 9, the flash memory 100 includes four memory blocks 101, 102, 103, 104 each including four memory cell unit groups. The memory cell unit groups each include four memory cell units each including two memory cells. Sixteen selection gate lines SG1a to SG1p (any one of which is designated as "SG1"), sixteen selection gate lines SG2a to SG2p (any one of which is designated as "SG2"), sixteen control gate lines CG1a to CG1p (any one of which is designated as "CG1") and sixteen control gate lines CG2a to CG2p any one of which is designated as "CG2") are provided for driving selection gates and control gates of the memory cell units. For uniquely selecting each of the memory cells, SG1 decoders 105aSG1 to 108pSG1 and SG2 decoders 105aSG2 to 108pSG2 are respectively provided for the selection gate lines SG1a to SG1p and the selection gate lines SG2a to SG2p, and CG1 decoders 105aCG1 to 108pCG1 and CG2 decoders 105aCG2 to 108pCG2 are respectively provided for the control gate lines CG1a to CG1p and the control gate lines CG2a to CG2p. Four bit lines BLa to BLd are connected to the selection gate lines SG1a to SG1p, SG2a to SG2p and the control gate lines CG1a to CG1p, CG2a to CG2p in an intersecting manner. The bit lines BLa to BLd extend through all the blocks, and are respectively connected to drains of the memory cell units in each of the memory cell unit groups in each of the memory blocks.
When an address signal A[4:1], i.e., four address signals A4 to A1, is inputted to a predecoder 113 from an external pad, the predecoder 113 selects one of four SG2-decoder selection signals SSGD2a to SSGD2d and one of four CG2-decoder selection signals SCGD2a to SCGD2d on the basis of the address signals A4 and A3, and selects one of four SG1-decoder selection signals SSGD1a to SSGD1d and one of four CG1-decoder selection signals SCGD1a to SCGD1d on the basis of the address signals A2 and A1. More specifically, the predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD2a, SCGD2a where A4=0 and A3=0. The predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD2b, SCGD2b where A4=0 and A3=1. The predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD2c, SCGD2c where A4=1 and A3=0. The predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD2d, SCGD2d where A4=1 and A3=1. The predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD1a, SCGD1a where A2=0 and A1=0. The predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD1b, SCGD1b where A2=0 and A1=1. The predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD1c, SCGD1c where A2=1 and A1=0. The predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD1d, SCGD1d where A2=1 and A1=1.
When the signals SSGD2a, SCGD2a are selected, circuits of an SG2 decoder 109SG2 and an SG1 decoder 109SG1 in a decoder group 109 are turned on, and circuits of a CG2 decoder 109CG2 and a CG1 decoder 109CG1 in the decoder group 109 are turned on. Similarly, when the signals SSGD2b, SCGD2b are selected, circuits of an SG2 decoder 110SG2 and an SG1 decoder 110SG1 in a decoder group 110 are turned on, and circuits of a CG2 decoder 110CG2 and a CG1 decoder 110CG1 in the decoder group 110 are turned on. When the signals SSGD2c, SCGD2c are selected, circuits of an SG2 decoder 111SG2 and an SG1 decoder 111SG1 in a decoder group 111 are turned on, and circuits of a CG2 decoder 111CG2 and a CG1 decoder 111CG1 in the decoder group 111 are turned on. When the signals SSGD2d, SCGD2d are selected, circuits of an SG2 decoder 112SG2 and an SG1 decoder 112SG1 in a decoder group 112 are turned on, and circuits of a CG2 decoder 112CG2 and a CG1 decoder 112CG1 in the decoder group 112 are turned on.
When the signals SSGD1a, SCGD1a are selected, an SG2 decoder 105aSG2, an SG1 decoder 105aSG1, a CG2 decoder 105aCG2 and a CG1 decoder 105aCG1 in a decoder group 105 are turned on. When the signals SSGD1b, SCGD1a are selected, an SG2 decoder 105bSG2, an SG1 decoder 105bSG1, a CG2 decoder 105bCG2 and a CG1 decoder 105bCG1 in the decoder group 105 are turned on. When the signals SSGD1c, SCGD1c are selected, an SG2 decoder 105cSG2, an SG1 decoder 105cSG1, a CG2 decoder 105cCG2 and a CG1 decoder 105cCG1 in the decoder group 105 are turned on. When the signals SSGD1d, SCGD1d are selected, an SG2 decoder 105dSG2, an SG1 decoder 105dSG1, a CG2 decoder 105dCG2 and a CG1 decoder 105dCG1 in the decoder group 105 are turned on.
Further, where an address signal A0=0 is inputted, the control gate lines connected to the CG1 decoders are selected. Where an address signal A0=1 is inputted, the control gate lines connected to the CG2 decoders are selected.
Next, an explanation will be given to a memory cell selecting operation to be performed when an address signal A[4:0]=00000 is inputted. The predecoder 113 selects the signals SSGD2a, SCGD2a, SSGD1a and SCGD1a. Thus, the SG2 decoder 109SG2, the SG1 decoder 109SG1, the CG2 decoder 109CG2 and the CG1 decoder 109CG1 in the decoder group 109, and the SG2 decoder 105aSG2, the SG1 decoder 105aSG1, the CG2 decoder 105aCG2 and the CG1 decoder 105aCG1 in the decoder group 105 are turned on. Then, the selection gate lines SG2a, SG1a are selected. Since the address signal A0 is A0=0, the control gate line CG1a connected to the CG1 decoder 105aCG1 is selected. In a writing operation, a writing voltage generating circuit 114 is turned on by a writing enable signal WEN, whereby a writing voltage is applied to the decoders. Thus, voltages for the writing are respectively applied to the selected selection gate lines and control gate lines. In an erasing operation, an erasing voltage generating circuit 115 is turned on by an erasing enable signal EEN, whereby an erasing voltage is applied to the decoders. Thus, voltages for the erasing are respectively applied to the selected selection gate lines and control gate lines. Signals to be selected for respective status values of the address signals A0 to A4 are shown in Tables 1 to 3. Particularly, Table 1 shows selection signals to be applied to the decoder groups 109 to 112, and Table 2 shows selection signals to be applied to the decoder groups 105 to 108. Table 3 shows the selection gate lines SG2, SG1 and the control gate line CG to be selected.
TABLE 1A4A3Selection signals00SSGD2aSCGD2a01SSGD2bSCGD2b10SSGD2cSCGD2c11SSGD2dSCGD2d
TABLE 2A2A1Selection signals00SSGD1aSCGD1a01SSGD1bSCGD1b10SSGD1cSCGD1c11SSGD1dSCGD1d
TABLE 3Selected CGA4A3A2A1Selected SG2Selected SG1A0 = 1A0 = 00000SG2aSG1aCG2aCG1a01SG2bSG1bCG2bCG1b10SG2cSG1cCG2cCG1c11SG2dSG1dCG2dCG1d0100SG2eSG1eCG2eCG1e01SG2fSG1fCG2fCG1f10SG2gSG1gCG2gCG1g11SG2hSG1hCG2hCG1h1000SG2iSG1iCG2iCG1i01SG2jSG1jCG2jCG1j10SG2kSG1kCG2kCG1k11SG2lSG1lCG2lCG1l1100SG2mSG1mCG2mCG1m01SG2nSG1nCG2nCG1n10SG2oSG1oCG2oCG1o11SG2pSG1pCG2pCG1p
However, the NAND flash EEPROM described above has a smaller memory cell area and a smaller area available for routing the word lines than the NOR flash EEPROM. The NAND flash memory utilized a higher writing voltage and a higher erasing voltage than the NOR flash memory, so that the size of each of the transistors should be increased. Therefore, the routing of interconnections between the memory cells and the word line decoders and the layout of the decoders become more difficult with the size reduction and capacity increase of the semiconductor device.

Nonvolatile semiconductor storage device, and liquid crystal display device including the same


An automatic focusing apparatus for a telephotographic system includes a telephotographic system which moves a focusing lens along an optical axis to control the focus, a focus detector which detects the focus state through the telephotographic system, a lens moving device which moves the focusing lens, a controller which drives the lens moving device in accordance with the focus state detected by the detector to move the focusing lens to thereby control the focus, and an external operation device which actuates the controller to perform the focusing operation. The controller continues the focusing operation until the focusing operation is completed when the external operation device is actuated.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automatic focusing apparatus which can be applied to an auto-level or a transit instrument etc., having a telephotographic system.
2. Description of the Related Art
A surveying instrument having a telephotographic system is basically provided with a collimating telescope.
In general, a surveying instrument is provided with a focusing apparatus which enables an operator to view a clear object image regardless of the distance of the object being viewed (aiming object). That is, it is necessary for an operator to actuate the focusing apparatus, while observing the aiming object through the collimating telescope, to view the object in a clear state. Consequently, a conventional auto-level suffers from the defects that the operator cannot concentrate upon the collimation operation due to the focusing operation, and that it takes a long time to complete the focusing operation. Due to these circumstances, an automatic focusing apparatus has been needed. However, if focusing cannot be carried out using the automatic focusing apparatus, or if the operator wants to manually control the focus, a manual focusing operation is further required.
In particular, in a surveying instrument which is often used outdoors, a dry battery (primary battery) or a rechargeable battery (secondary battery), etc., having a limited capacity is used as a power source for the automatic focusing apparatus. Consequently, the operation time of the automatic focusing apparatus is limited due to the limited capacity of the battery. There is a need to increase the operation time.

Automatic focusing apparatus for a telephotographic system


A liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment includes: a substrate; a thin film transistor disposed on the substrate; a pixel electrode connected with the thin film transistor; a roof layer provided facing the pixel electrode; and a capping layer disposed on the roof layer, wherein a plurality of microcavities are between the pixel electrode and the roof layer, each microcavity includes a liquid crystal material, and the roof layer is formed of only at least one inorganic layer.

(a) Field
The present application relates to a liquid crystal display and a manufacturing method thereof.
(b) Description of the Related Art
A liquid crystal display is one of flat panel displays which are currently most widely used, and includes two sheets of display panels in which field generating electrodes such as a pixel electrode and a common electrode are formed, and a liquid crystal layer interposed therebetween.
The liquid crystal display displays an image by applying a voltage to the field generating electrodes to generate an electric field in the liquid crystal layer, thereby determining an orientation of liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer based on the generated electric field and controlling polarization of incident light.
As one of the liquid crystal displays, a technology for implementing a display by forming a plurality of microcavities and filling liquid crystal in the microcavities has been developed. In a conventional liquid crystal display, two sheets of substrates are used, but in this technology, constituent elements are formed on one substrate, thereby reducing weight, thickness, and the like of the device.
In order to maintain the microcavities in the display device, a roof layer is formed. Such a roof layer may be continuously connected between neighboring microcavities. The roof layer may be formed as a complex layer of an inorganic layer and an organic layer.
As described, when the roof layer is formed as the complex layer of the inorganic layer and the organic layer, the number of masks is increased so that processing time is increased.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Liquid crystal display and method of manufacturing the same


Compounds of the structure ##STR1## where A is straight or branched divalent alkylene or divalent cycloalkylene, R.sub.1 is selected from hydrogen; alkylthio; optionally substituted phenylthio; optionally substituted phenylalkylthio; optionally substituted 2-, 3-, and 4-pyridyl; optionally substituted 2-, and 3-thienylthio; and optionally substituted 2-thiazolythio, R.sub.2 is selected from --COOB; --COOalkyl; --COOalkyl(carbocyclic aryl); --CONR.sub.5 R.sub.6 ; --COR.sub.6 ; and --OH, R.sub.3 is selected from phenylalkyl and heteroarylalkyl, and R.sub.4 is selected from optionally substituted alkoxy(carbocyclic aryl); optionally substituted carbocyclic aryloxy; optionally substituted heteroarylalkoxy; and optionally substituted heteroaryloxy are potent inhibitors of lipoxygenase enzymes and thus inhibit the biosynthesis of of leukotrienes. These compounds are useful in the treatment or amelioration of allergic and inflammatory disease states.

5-Lipoxygenase is the first dedicated enzyme in the pathway leading to the biosynthesis of leukotrienes (Samuelsson, B., "Leukotrienes: Mediators of Immediate Hypersensitivity Reactions and Inflammation," Science, 120: 568, 1983; Hammarstrom, S. Leukotrienes, Annual Review of Biochemistry, 52: 355, 1983). This important enzyme has a rather restricted distribution, being found predominantly in leukocytes and mast cells of most mammals. Normally 5-lipoxygenase is present in the cell in an inactive form; however, when leukocytes respond to external stimuli, intracellular 5-lipoxygenase can be rapidly activated. This enzyme catalyzes the addition of molecular oxygen to fatty acids with cis,cis-1,4-pentadiene structures, converting them to 1-hydroperoxy-trans,cis-2,4-pentadienes. Arachidonic acid, the 5-lipoxygenase substrate which leads to leukotriene products, is found in very low concentrations in mammalian cells and must first be hydrolyzed from membrane phospholipids through the actions of phospholipases in response to extracellular stimuli. The initial product of 5-lipoxygenase action on arachidonate is 5-HPETE which can be reduced to 5-HETE or converted to LTA.sub.4. This reactive leukotriene intermediate is enzymatically hydrated to LTB.sub.4 or conjugated to the tripeptide glutathione to produce LTC.sub.4. LTA.sub.4 can also be hydrolyzed nonenzymatically to form two isomers of LTB.sub.4. Successive proteolytic cleavage steps convert LTC.sub.4 to LTD.sub.4 and LTE.sub.4. Other products resulting from further oxygenation steps have also been described.
Products of the 5-lipoxygenase cascade are extremely potent substances which produce a wide variety of biological effects, often in the nanomolar to picomolar concentration range. (Sirois, P., Pharmacology of the Leukotrienes, Advances in Lipid Research, R. Paoletti, D. Kritchevesky, editors, Academic Press, 21: 79, 1985).
Leuokotrienes have been reported to be important mediators in several disease states including: Asthma, Allergic Rhinitis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Gout, Psoriasis, Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Endotoxin Shock, Ischemia-induced Myocardial Injury, Central Nervous Pathophysiology, and Atherosclerosis.
The enzyme 5-lipoxygenase catalyzes the first step leading to the biosynthesis of all the leukotrienes and therefore inhibition of this enzyme provides an approach to limit the effects of all the products of this pathway. Agents capable of abrogating the effects of these potent mediators of pathophysiological processes represent a promising class of therapeutic agents (Brooks, D. W., Bell, R. L., and Carter, G. W. Chapter 8. Pulmonary and Antiallergy Agents, Annual Reports in Medicinal Chemistry, Allen, R. C. ed., Academic Press 1988.)
U.S. Pat. No. 5,095,031 to Brooks, et. al. discloses and claims certain indole derivatives having utility for inhibiting lipoxygenase enzymes.
European Patent Application 87 311031.6 (Publication No. 0 275 667) to Gillard, et. al discloses and claims certain 3-(hetero-substituted)-N-benzylindoles as leukotriene biosynthesis inhibitors. See also 2nd International Conference on Leukotrienes and Prostanoids in Health and Disease, Oct. 9-14, 1988, Jerusalem, Israel, Abstract S5 and recently published, J. Gillard et. al., Can. J. Physiol. Pharmacol. 1989, 67, 456-464.

Indole carboxylate derivatives which inhibit leukotriene biosynthesis


The present invention relates to an uplink power control method and user equipment, which involve determining a power correction factor by considering the number of antenna ports. According to the present invention, even when a base station transmits the same power control information to the user equipment, the user equipment maps the power control information to another power correction factor and determines an uplink transmission power depending on an uplink transmission condition. Thus, uplink power control can be performed in a more efficient manner.

In a wireless communication system, a power control method is used as a method for reducing a path-loss according to a distance between a base station and a user equipment and for reducing inter-cell interference due to an interference from a neighboring cell. A power control method corresponds to a method used by a wireless communication device for controlling transmission power, so that data can be transmitted at a lowest power level, while maintaining a certain quality of service (QoS) level. Most particularly, in a multi cell environment, user equipments that are located at a cell boundary region are mostly affected by path-loss, inter-cell interference, and so on. The user equipment should be capable of transmitting data by deciding an adequate transmission power level, so that the service quality can be prevented from being degraded due to path-loss, while the corresponding user equipment avoids interfering with other neighboring cells.
The conventional user equipment is equipped with only one power amplifier and is capable of only performing uplink transmission through 1 antenna port. Conversely, the conventional base station is equipped with multiple power amplifiers and is capable of performing downlink transmission through 1 antenna port or multiple antenna ports. Accordingly, in the conventional wireless communication system, a peak between uplink and downlink/asymmetry in an overall system throughput is/are considered as crucial drawbacks. Therefore, in order to enhance the uplink peak/asymmetry in the overall system throughput, it is now being considered that transmission through multiple antenna ports should also be adopted in an uplink.

Uplink power control method and user equipment


A lighting fixture configured to expand and collapse, and methods for expanding and collapsing a light fixture are disclosed. Embodiments of the lighting fixture include a lighting fixture with a movable section that collapses into at least one cavity in a base housing for storage and shipment, and extends from the cavity for operation. In the collapsed configuration the lighting fixture fits into a smaller container than when the lighting fixture is in the expanded configuration. In some embodiments a locking member locks the movable section into its extended position and can be retracted by a user by manually disengaging the locking member. Accessories and extenders that can be attached to the lighting fixture can be stored in the one or more cavities into which the movable section is stowed in the collapsed configuration.

Once lighting fixtures are manufactured, they are typically placed in containers such as cardboard boxes for storage or shipping. At least one problem realized by the inventors of the current disclosure is that the lighting fixtures can occupy a lot of space, requiring a lot of space for storing the lighting fixtures or increasing the cost of shipping the lighting fixtures. The inventors noticed this was especially true for lighting fixtures that are relatively large when installed, such as troffer or high bay lights that are frequently used in business environments. As such, the inventors realized that problems exist with the current lighting fixtures and that improvements in the ability to change the size of the lighting fixture, such as for storage or shipping, are needed. Certain features of the present disclosure address these and other needs and provide other important advantages.

Apparatuses and methods for changing lighting fixture dimensions


An electronic device includes a housing and an array of LEDs deposited on a substrate disposed in the housing. The array of LEDs is disposed to form an indicia via which a logo is displayable.

Light-emitting diode (LED) technology provides a lighting means that consumes less energy and is more physically robust, smaller, faster-switching, and longer lasting than previous lighting elements. However, the size, functionality, and configuration of conventional LEDs have constrained the use of LEDs to particular applications. As the desirability of thinness of devices has grown, certain functionalities have been sacrificed in order to preserve slim form factors. For example, some laptops include a logo on the laptop lid that is lit while the laptop screen is lit. In most cases, the logo is lit by the backlight for the liquid crystal display (LCD) of the laptop screen and, accordingly, is unlit when the lid is shut or the LCD backlight is otherwise turned off. Continued illumination of the logo when the lid is shut has not previously been contemplated because keeping the backlight lit while the laptop is in a hibernate mode would be an inefficient use of battery and adding extra lighting elements to illuminate the logo would substantially increase the thickness of the laptop. For similar reasons, second displays or other indicia have not been added to laptop covers, mobile devices, or other objects.


The present invention describes polymer compositions that have enhanced properties as oxygen barriers, as well as manufacturing methods for such oxygen-scavenging polymers and devices composed of such oxygen-scavenging polymers. These oxygen-scavenging polymers offer several benefits over existing materials, including a reduced ability for oxygen and carbon dioxide to permeate the polymer, reduced foaming of beverages stored in containers composed of the polymers, improved moisture absorption, and increased anti-bacterial/anti-fungal properties.

When packaging and storing foods and beverages, several factors must be taken into account to ensure that the flavors and other properties of those beverages and foodstuffs are preserved. One major concern to those in the art of food and beverage preservation is oxidation: the chemical reactions that occur between oxygen and the molecules of the various compounds within the food or beverage. For example, when beer comes into contact with oxygen, molecules such as fusel alcohols, acetaldehyde, and trans-2-nonenal may be created by oxidation reactions, causing the beer to taste stale and improperly flavored (those tasting such a beer may describe it as having stale "cardboard" or "paper" flavors). Such effects are especially pronounced in lighter-bodied, less alcoholic beers, which have a delicate balance of flavors that can quickly be upset by oxidation.
To deal with the issues caused by oxidation, those in the art have developed methods and materials for storing beer (and other foods and beverages) that aim to prevent oxygen from reacting with the beer and disrupting its flavors and tastes, and to reduce oxygen levels to prevent the growth of microorganisms. However, these existing ways of preserving beer (and other foods and beverages) suffer from various drawbacks.
For example, some in the art of food/beverage preservation have developed "oxygen-scavenging" materials that react with oxygen, consuming the oxygen in a storage container to reduce oxygen levels in that container in order to prevent that oxygen from reacting with food stored in the container. However, oxygen-scavenging materials that react immediately with oxygen under any conditions must be used immediately to both construct a container and to store food/beverage in that container—if not, the oxygen-scavenging capability of such materials will be used up while the oxygen-scavenging material is stored in a warehouse or other storage facility, awaiting use. As such, these materials have been found to be unsuitable for use in most food/beverage storage applications for logistical reasons.
With this challenge in mind, to ensure that the oxygen-scavenging capability of a container material is not used up and exhausted before a food or beverage is even stored in that container, those in the art have attempted to develop materials that do not scavenge oxygen until "triggered" by some condition—for example, humidity. Those in the art have experimented with various polyesters, which have oxygen-scavenging properties triggered by humidity, and which are not permeable to gas.
However, these polyester materials suffer from yet another issue, as it takes too long for their oxygen-scavenging capabilities to be triggered by humidity, in some cases several hours. And for certain foods/beverages, a few hours is too long—by that time, the oxidation reactions have already done their damage, negatively altering the flavors that were stored within that container.
In an attempt to develop a container material that does not exhaust its oxygen-scavenging capability until a food and/or beverage is stored within a container made out of that material, but that also does not excessively delay until it begins to scavenge oxygen, some have experimented with cobalt-impregnated polymers to store food or drink. Unfortunately, however, cobalt is toxic at elevated levels, and polymers containing sufficient amounts of cobalt for effective oxygen-scavenging cannot be legally used to store food/drink because of the toxic effects of the cobalt within.
Accordingly, there remains a need for a safe, non-toxic oxygen-scavenging material that can be effectively used to prevent the oxidation of foods or beverages stored in a container that comprises that oxygen-scavenging material.


An ion detector includes collision surfaces for converting both positively and negatively charged ions into emitted secondary electrons. Secondary electrons may be detected using an electron detector, than may, for example include an electron multiplier. Conveniently, secondary electrons (or electrons emitted by the multiplier) may be detected using an electron pulse counter.

Mass spectrometry has proven to be an effective analytical technique for identifying unknown compounds and for determining the precise mass of known compounds. Advantageously, compounds can be detected or analysed in minute quantities allowing compounds to be identified at very low concentrations in chemically complex mixtures. Not surprisingly, mass spectrometry has found practical application in medicine, pharmacology, food sciences, semi-conductor manufacturing, environmental sciences, security, and many other fields.
A typical mass spectrometer includes an ion source that ionizes particles of interest. The ions are passed to an analyser region, where they are separated according to their mass (m)-to-charge (z) ratios (m/z). The separated ions are detected at a detector. A signal from the detector may be sent to a computing or similar device where the m/z ratios may be stored together with their relative abundance for presentation in the format of a m/z spectrum.
Typical ion sources are detailed in "Ionization Methods in Organic Mass Spectrometry", Alison E. Ashcroft, The Royal Society of Chemistry, UK, 1997; and the references cited therein. Conventional ion sources may create ions by atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation (APCI); chemical ionisation (CI); electron impact (EI); electrospray ionisation (ESI); fast atom bombardment (FAB); field desorption/field ionisation (FD/FI); matrix assisted laser desorption ionisation (MALDI); or thermospray ionization (TSP).
Ionized particles may be separated by quadrupoles, time-of-flight (TOF) analysers, magnetic sectors, and Fourier transform and quadrupole ion traps. Most ion sources are capable of producing ionized particles of positive or negative in polarity. For example, ESI transfers ions that are created in an acidic or basic solution directly into the gas phase. These ions are typically products of acid base reactions, such as protonated molecular adducts that tend to have basic sites, or negatively charged ions that are slightly acidic. APCI creates negative or positive ions in the gas phase, through chemical reactions.
The ion detector in a mass spectrometer typically amplifies the ion signal striking a detection surface in order to provide sufficient signal-to-noise to measure intensity as a function of mass. Typical ion detectors include discrete electrodes with a resistive chain or a continuous channel with a resistive surface. Ions strike the first electrode, causing secondary electrons to be emitted from the surface and undergo a cascade of amplification as they are accelerated down the tube. The electron acceleration potential is the difference between the voltage on the first electrode and the last electrode.
The emission of secondary electrons is velocity dependent, with higher velocity ions producing more emission. Ions of different mass-to-charge ratios are accelerated to the same energy (for the same charge state), and since E=1/2 mv2 the velocities and therefore the detection efficiency is mass dependent.
Two common approaches to detection are used: pulse counting and analog current detection. In pulse counting detection, individual ion pulses are amplified, typically with a gain between 1×106 and 100×106, and detected as a current pulse. In analog current detection, the individual ion pulses are amplified with a gain between 1,000 and 10,000 and measured as a DC current.
In some applications such as pharmaceutical drug discovery and drug development, it is desirable to investigate both positive and negative ions generated by one or more ion sources at approximately the same time. Therefore the mass analyser and ion detector must be able to rapidly switch from a mode that samples one polarity (e.g. negative ions) to another (e.g. positive ions).
Such switching typically requires reversal of polarity of large applied voltages. To do so, a power supply having a high voltage range that is capable of quick switching is required. Moreover, extreme care must be taken to limit the noise resulting from power supply switching, and to ensure the output signal is not distorted, and that the detector is not damaged. Typically, providing a suitable supply and integrating it in an ion detector is costly, and complex.
At least one ion detector that may be used to simultaneously detect both positively and negatively charged ions uses two conversion electrodes (also referred to as dynodes). Incoming positive ions strike one conversion electrode, held at high negative voltage, causing ejection of electrons. Incoming negative ions are attracted to, and strike the second conversion electrode, held at high positive voltage, causing ejection of a positive ion. Positive ions, and electrons emitted by the conversion electrodes are attracted to, and strike the inlet of a glass or similar electron multiplier, that is kept at a voltage above that of the conversion electrodes. Incident ions and electrons cause the emission of electrons, within the multiplier. Measurement of emitted electrons and associated energies allows for detection of ions incident on the conversion electrodes.
By design, emitted electrons are detected at ground potential, and may thus be detected by an analog detector. Not surprisingly, conversion of ions to electrons at electrodes is dependent on the mass of the ions. Unfortunately, conversion of negative to positive ions at a conversion electrode is not well understood and may exhibit poor sensitivity for certain compounds. Thus, negative ion detection in such a detector is mass and compound dependent.
Further, as positive ions are heavier than electrons, the electrons are accelerated more quickly to the multiplier, than positive ions. The relatively slow speed of the positive ion can impede high speed operation of the detector.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved ion detector, and method capable of quickly and efficiently detecting both positively and negatively charged ionized particles.

Method and apparatus for detecting positively charged and negatively charged ionized particles


A vascular access system (20) utilizing a catheter (22) having at least one lumen with a bidirectional check valve assembly (24).

The present invention relates to a catheter having a bidirectional check valve proximate the tip for controlling fluid flow into and out of the catheter.
There are many medical requirements for chronic vascular access including neonatal umbilical vein cannulation, hyperalimentation, chemotherapy, permanent intravascular site for portable drug infusion devices, hemodialysis, plasmapheresis, and, repeated blood sampling. These procedures are performed by using either transcutaneous or totally implanted intravascular catheters.
Examples of transcutaneous catheters include the Broviak and Hickman central venous catheters (Evermed, Kirkland, Wash.) as well as many similar products generically termed subclavian catheters. Catheters in this category may be generally described as being plastic or rubber tubes with female luer fittings at one end. Catheter patency is maintained by filling the catheter lumen with a solution containing an anticoagulant (heparin) between uses. Since the anticoagulant consistently diffuses from the lumen and into the bloodstream, the catheter has to be refilled at 2-3 day intervals in order to prevent a clot from forming at the distal tip.
The Shiley Vas-Cath (Shiley, Inc., Irvine, Calif.) is a transcutaneous subclavian catheter which differs from subclavian catheters in that it has a removable lining. In the event that the catheter clots, the lining, which contains the clot, is extracted from the outer sheath and replaced.
Another solution to catheter lumen clotting involves the insertion of a solid flexible plastic rod, called an obturator, into the catheter lumen between uses. The obturator completely occupies the catheter lumen and therefore prevents diffusion of blood components and subsequent formation of a clot.
An alternate obturated design is the Wigness/Anderson U.S. Pat. No. 4,705,501 entitled, "Bidirectional Antireflux Vascular Access System", which features a self-contained flexible obturator which resembles a bladder which runs the length of the catheter lumen and is not removed between uses, but is instead shifted between the "active" state (where the lumen is open) and the "dormant" state (where the lumen is occluded by the obturator).
The advantages offered by an intravascular catheter in which the lumen may be closed and therefore isolated from the blood stream when it is not in use are:
1. It is resistant to occlusion from thrombosis;
2. It decreases the risk of air embolism; and
3. It requires less maintenance (e.g., heparinization and irrigation).
Examples of totally implantable catheters, generically referred to as "ports", include the "Infuse-A-Port" (Shiley-Infusaid, Inc., Norwood, Mass.), the "Q-Port" (Quinton Instrument Co., Seattle, Wash.), and the "Port-A-Cath" (Pharmacia-Deltec, Inc., St. Paul, Minn.). Ports are similar to subclavian catheters except that the female luer fitting is replaced by a metal or plastic manifold which houses the fluid conduits between a rubber access septum and the catheter connector. Although the catheters are routinely filled with a heparin solution between uses, if the time interval between catheter uses is relatively long (weeks instead of days), each therapy session is initiated by blowing a small clot into the vasculature.
Advantages offered by a catheter which furthermore is totally implantable are:
1. Longer useful life due to reduced risk of infection;
2. Fewer recannulations and therefore less discomfort to the patient; and
3. More patient freedom (the patient may shower, bathe or swim without having to perform special catheter maintenance).
Designs featuring removable obturators or replaceable linings cannot be modified to be totally implantable by simply attaching them to a port, since that would require that a relatively large, solid element be passed through the skin, subcutaneous tissue and catheter septum with each use.
In order to achieve total implantability of the previously described Wigness/Anderson obturated catheter, it is attached either to a special manifold (Wigness/Dorman patent application dated Oct. 6, 1987, U.S. Ser. No. 105,740, entitled, "Implantable Intravascular Access System") or two septa--one for the functional lumen, and one which is used for shifting the obturator.
Diffusion or aspiration of blood into the subclavian-type catheters may be prevented by adding a check valve to their intravascular tips. The Dorman U.S. Pat. No. 4,657,536 entitled, "Check Valve Catheter" describes a sleeve type one-way check valve design for this purpose. While this design prevents blood components from clotting the tip, it does not allow withdrawal of a blood sample--a maneuver that is sometimes desirable and commonly carried out with subclavian catheters and ports. A commercially available port with a one-way check valve at the tip is the "Implantofix" (Burron Medical Inc., Bethlehem, Pa.).
One commercially available catheter featuring a slit valve at the tip which allows both aspiration of blood and infusion of fluids and yet precludes the diffusion of blood components into the lumen between therapy sessions is the Groshong Catheter (Catheter Technology Corporation, Salt Lake City, Utah). This catheter is available both as a transcutaneous appliance and also as a port.
The present invention solves many problems associated with the prior art.


A compression method and apparatus identifying candidates for compression by selectively fingerprinting shingles or overlapping subsets of an input dataset and creating a set of characteristic input fingerprints based on fingerprint value. In some cases, the characteristic fingerprints are selected based on the relative value of the fingerprints with respect to other fingerprints in the same cluster. Potential matches may be identified and confirmed by comparing the characteristic input fingerprints with fingerprints associated with a history. Advantageously, some examples according to the current invention may be applied to input data such as: data, files, bit streams, byte streams, packet streams and previously encoded, compressed and/or encrypted data. In some cases, the number of fingerprints selected per cluster, the cluster size, the shingle size or shingle configuration, the size or configuration of the overlap between successive shingles, and the configuration for adding entries to a history, may be adaptively configurable.

1. Field
The present invention relates generally to data compression and more specifically to efficient identification of compressible segments.
2. Related Art
Compression techniques may be used in conjunction with a variety of important application areas. For example, compression techniques may be used to improve speed and/or functionality and/or reduce hardware and/or networking requirements in a variety of application areas such as, but not limited to: storage, back-up and network traffic reduction. However, applying a compression technique may incur costs by introducing a time delay, absorbing computing cycles and/or requiring additional hardware.
Many compression techniques require the identification of matches between an input dataset or dataset segment and an entry in a dictionary or a portion of data history using a substring search mechanism. In some substring search mechanisms, identification of matches may be done using a selective fingerprinting technique for identifying a characteristic set of fingerprints for representing an input dataset. However, according to some selective fingerprinting implementations, unaligned matches may be missed if the fingerprints are selected strictly based on spatial distribution with respect to the input dataset. Selecting a characteristic set of fingerprints based only on the value of the fingerprint may provide a set of characteristic fingerprints which are probabilistically distributed but not necessarily spatially distributed, sometimes leading to unpredictable and/or large missed matches. What is needed is a compression technique capable of efficiently locating matches between an input dataset and a dictionary or history.

Method and apparatus for efficient compression


Various compositions and methods for Quasi-Amadori products and derivatives thereof are contemplated in which a halogenated carbohydrate is reacted with a primary amino group of an affinity ligand. In especially preferred aspects, the Quasi-Amadori product is formed from 2-fluorodeoxyglucose and an affinity moiety that preferentially or selectively binds to a neural cell or neural structure. Where contemplated compounds include 18F, PET imaging using compounds presented herein is especially preferred.

The background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
2-18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) is a well-known compound and has found various uses in medical imaging, and especially in imaging of tumors as 18F-FDG is rapidly absorbed into malignant cells. 18F-FDG is also taken up into various neural tissues and has become one of the preferred imaging agents in PET neuroimaging. Synthesis of 18F-FDG is well-understood and various synthetic pathways are known to obtain labeled product with relatively high isotopic yield.
In addition to FDG or isotopically labeled FDG, certain reaction products of FDG with peptides coupled to the FDG moiety via a hydrazine or hydrazone bond were described in WO 2005/086612. While such compounds are conceptually suitable for targeted radio labeling, the stability in vivo of at least some of the compounds is uncertain and synthesis is often non-trivial. In a similar manner, WO 2008/132541 teaches conjugates of antineoplastic agents with FDG where the antineoplastic moiety is attached to the FDG via specific linker structures. While such compounds may be suitable as chemotherapeutic agents, utility as labeling agents only tends to be reduced due to the toxicity of such compounds. Further known FDG conjugates are described in US 2014/0024803 where FDG is coupled to certain moieties via an amide bond to so produce multivalent radiotracers for targeted cancer imaging. In these compounds, the targeting ligand is conjugated with an NHS ester of a multivalent scaffold. While such compounds may improve at least labeling of at least certain cancers, synthesis is not simple and in vivo stability may be hard to achieve for a reasonable period of time. The above references and all other extrinsic materials discussed herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
The Maillard reaction of sugars and amines results in the formation of glycosylamines and Amadori products, which are frequently of biological significance. Formation of Amadori product typically occurs by reaction of an amine with an aldehyde at the 1-position of glucose to form a Schiff base as exemplarily shown in Prior Art FIG. 1A. The Schiff base is then subject to water loss and rearrangement of the hydroxyl at the 2-position to so form the corresponding ketone. Prior Art FIG. 1B exemplarily depicts the Amadori products desoxyfructoseserotonin and fructoselysine. Notably, it has been shown that glucose reacts with serotonin in a Maillard reaction and produce the Amadori product desoxyfructoserotonin that has been used to elevate brain serotonin levels in mice studies. Other Maillard reaction products have been observed and assessed in aging, diabetes, and Alzheimer's disease pathologies.
Therefore, while numerous reaction products and methods associated with 18F-FDG or F-FDG are already known, there is still a need to provide improved 18F-FDG or F-FDG derivatives, especially where such derivatives have increased in vivo stability and are suitable for labeling of various tissues, and particularly neural tissue.

Compositions and methods for 18F-fluorodeoxyglycosylamines

The Regents of the University of California


A method of using elongate multicellular organisms in conjunction with a specialized flow cytometer for drug discovery and compound screening. A stable, optically detectable linear marker pattern on each organism is used to construct a longitudinal map of each organism as it passes through the analysis region of the flow cytometer. This pattern is used to limit complex data analysis to particular regions of each organism thereby simplifying and speeding analysis. The longitudinal marker pattern can be used to alter signal detection modes at known regions of the organism to enhance sensitivity and overall detection effectiveness. A repeating pattern can also be used to add a synchronous element to data analysis. The marker patterns are established using known methods of molecular biology to express various indicator molecules. Inherent features of the organism can be rendered detectable to serve as marker patterns.

Rapid, high-throughput compound screening assays have revolutionized the field of drug discovery. Automated drug discovery assays measure changes in a variety of biochemical pathways in vitro. For example, microarray assays simultaneously assess the effect of thousands of compounds on a particular biochemical pathway in vitro. However, such automated drug screening assays are not readily available for assessing the in vivo effects of multiple compounds on complex multicellular organisms. In particular, assessing the effect of one or more compounds on the development or physiology of a multicellular organism remains a tedious manual task requiring hundreds of hours of labor by highly skilled technicians.
Intact multicellular organisms, such as the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, or the zebrafish Danio rerio are frequently used as model systems to help understand the function of human genes that have been implicated in disease. Human gene homologs are often identified in these model organisms and provide valuable tools for studying the biological function of the genes in vivo. Such mutations frequently result in an easily observable phenotypic change in the model organism. Furthermore, it has been shown that certain pharmacological compounds collaterally produce optically detectable changes in these mutant organisms. These changes can be used to identify specific compounds that interact with a particular gene product in vivo. The addition of such functional genomic techniques to the repertoire of molecular biology and biochemistry methods can greatly accelerate the drug discovery process.
Mutants of intact organisms are used as a new class of methods for in vivo drug screening of libraries of potential pharmacological compound produced through the use of combinatorial chemical methods. With these organisms, one can identify targets for drug intervention without the need to completely understand the complex biochemical pathways that relate the genome to the phenotype. In addition, investigators can annotate drug libraries for toxicity, non-specific activity, or cell membrane permeability by observing their behavior in intact organisms. In this way, toxic or ineffective libraries and/or library members can be discarded at an early stage of testing without wasting valuable resources. This allows rapid and economical screenings of the compound libraries for new and useful therapeutic compounds, while limiting politically controversial testing on mammals.
While model organisms such as C. elegans, D. melanogaster, and D. rerio have been proven useful in the study of human disease, they have not yet been successfully used in the field of high speed, high throughput drug discovery. This presents a significant hindrance to investigators that need to search through thousands of multicellular organisms for the phenotype of a new mutation or for a response to a panel of sample drugs. For example, with today's molecular biology techniques, a large laboratory can produce deletion mutations in a multicellular test organism at a rate of 20 to 30 per month. In order to evaluate the effect of each member of a chemical compound library (that frequently contains 100,000 discrete compounds) on a single deletion mutant, one must manually manipulate and deposit a precise number of organisms of the mutant strain at the same developmental stage into various containers, such as wells of a microtiter plate array. Wild-type or deviants from the desired mutant strain, or organisms at a different development stage must be eliminated. The use of such slow, manual methods for the selection and deposition of organisms of the proper type greatly delays the entire process of drug discovery. Moreover, manual methods rely on pipettes that dispense accurate volumes of fluid but not accurate numbers of organisms. In many studies, where reproduction rate is altered by the mutation, it is necessary to begin with an exact and known number of multicellular organisms in each well. This is, at best, a daunting requirement.
The effect of a therapeutic compound or toxic environment on the mutant strain or expression system can be determined by identifying changes in the spatial pattern of fluorescence or staining. Fluorescent protein genes are typically used as reporters for gene expression in a wide variety of organisms (Tsien, R. Nature Biotechnology (1999) 17: 956–57). For example, green fluorescent protein (GFP) is used as a reporter gene to indicate that an inserted gene has been expressed. The expression of the fluorescent protein usually occurs in a specific spatial pattern within a multicellular organism. Discrimination of one pattern from another is currently carried out manually using a fluorescent microscope. Like the selection and deposition step, this is an extremely tedious task requiring a significant number of workers that are trained at high academic levels.
Prior art methods of selecting multicellular organisms have relied on instruments that performed a "slit-scan" of whole organisms as they passed through the analysis zone of a laser. Methods of detecting fine detail in slit-scanning have relied on apparatuses that utilize diffraction limited optics to create narrow line focus and image plane masks to act as optical spatial filters. This narrow line of focus is sufficient for analyzing single cells, but is insufficient for detecting and spatially locating a particular feature against the more complex background profile of light scatter and autofluorescence presented by a multicellular organism. For example, the diameter of a mature C. elegans is approximately 70 micrometers. This means that the background autofluorescence from a nematode is approximately ten times that from a white blood cell (about seven micrometers in diameter), while a fluorescence reporter signal from a single C. elegans cell is no greater than that from a single blood cell. In the case of D. melanogaster (fruit fly) larvae, the situation is even worse because the diameter of an advanced stage larva is of the order of one millimeter, which means that autofluorescence is much more than a hundred times greater than in single blood cells. This means that experimentally created, fluorescent features along the axis of a multicellular organism may produce a much weaker optical signal than the autofluorescence background. One can imagine that an axial profile of auto fluorescence with very high peaks and valleys would effectively mask an experimentally created fluorescence feature.
Flow instruments have been used to count the number of nematodes in a fluid volume. Such a device was described by Byerly et al (Byerly,et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum. (1975) May 46(5): 517-22), where a flow cytometer employed sheath flow to orient nematodes along the direction of flow so that their size could be measured and organism-by-organism counts could be made by an electrical impedance method. The device was similar to a commercial Coulter counter. The use of the impedance sensor, which can only estimate overall size, and cannot spatially resolve localized features along the major axis of the organism limits the Byerly et al. instrument. In addition to this limitation, the Byerly et al. instrument could not select and deposit (sort) specific organisms.
U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 6,400,453 issued Jun. 6, 2002, which is incorporated herein by reference, describes an instrumentation system for the rapid analysis and sorting of multicellular organisms using optical characteristics such as light scatter and fluorescence to classify each organism in a flowing stream. A single value of fluorescence intensity at a given emission wavelength is detected and assigned to each organism. However, this instrument reports only the intensity, not the position of fluorescence along the major (long) axis of the organisms.
An optical flow instrument for analyzing elongate organisms such as plankton with widths of 500 μm and lengths over 1000 μm has also been described with sheath flow to achieve orientation of the plankton. (J. C. Peters, G. B. Dubelaar, J. Ringelberg, and J. W. Visser, "Optical Plankton Analyser: a Flow Cytometer for Plankton Analysis, I: Design Considerations" Cytometry Sep. 10, 1989 (5): 522–528; and G. B. Dubelaar, A. C. Groenwegen, W. Stokdijk, G. J. van den Engh, and J. W. Visser, "Optical Plankton Analyser: a Flow Cytometer for Plankton Analysis, II: Specifications", Cytometry Sep. 10, 1989 (5): 529–539). The size range of the plankton used in these optical flow cytometers is similar to that encountered with C. elegans nematodes, fruit fly larvae, and zebrafish embryos; however, there is no provision that avoids the ambiguous light scatter signals that are eliminated by the present invention.
There exists the need for a high-speed system for automatically identifying and physically selecting multicellular organisms with certain spatially distinct, optically detectable, phenotypic characteristics from mixed populations. Such a system must have the ability to locate and measure the intensity and position of experimentally created optical features in the presence of overwhelming autofluorescence.

System for axial pattern analysis of multicellular organisms


A method and apparatus automatically manipulates a digitally compressed video bitstream such that the result is compatible with different bandwidth and error resilience requirements at a receiving point in a heterogeneous communication network. The method and device provide for analysis of bitstream header information to determine its relevant coding syntax parameters. Feedback from the receiving point on the network is then used to identify error robustness requirements for an intermediate bitstream. The bitstream is then manipulated by an error robustness regulator to achieve error protection in the network. The bitrate requirements of the network establish a selection of relevant and irrelevant bits from the bitstream The present method and device include identification of irrelevant and low priority video bits; intentional introduction of packet losses to reduce bitrate while maintaining visual quality; use of replacement tags for irrelevant and low priority components of the bitstream for compatible decoding by a wide array of decoders; and insertion of resynchronization tags and translation of predictively coded video packet bits for the improvement of error resilience.

The present invention relates to automatically managing the delivery of digitally compressed visual data, and more particularly, to a device and method for controlling the bitrate and error robustness of digitally compressed video bitstreams in a heterogeneous communications network.
With the advent of new communication systems, it has become possible to communicate digital visual information and data in addition to just voice services efficiently. Such new communication systems comprise both wireline and wireless networks. In the context of wireline networks, packet and circuit switched communication systems have been developed in both the private and public domains for wide and local area coverage. As part of packet-based communications, a significant amount of data is exchanged between local area networks, such as those which are part of a corporate infrastructure, and wide area networks, such as the public Internet. Services to guarantee Quality of Service (QoS) have emerged in this realm to support visual and multimedia communication.
New wireless systems have also been developed to support the transmission of information at higher bitrates than previously possible. These wireless systems conform to international cellular communication standards, and consist of digital communication air-interface standards using Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA). An example of widely deployed TDMA communication is the Global System for Mobile communication (GSM). CDMA forms the basis for the third generation cellular communication standard IMT-2000.
Most of these communication systems (wireline and wireless) have been designed to allow for the exchange of a maximum amount of information between users connected within the infrastructure of each system and those using devices outside that infrastructure. For example, IMT-2000 protocols can support data communication from wireless terminals to terminals residing on packet switched wireline systems. Moreover, within these communication systems, terminals, or clients, may connect to other terminals, acting as servers, at different bitrates depending on their location in each system. This leads to the concept of heterogeneous communication networks, which are networks consisting of diverse or dissimilar connections yet often communicating similar information.
Problems arise when considering the communication of visual information in heterogeneous networks. A first problematic issue which arises is that visual information, and, in particular, digitally compressed video signals, require substantially more bandwidth than comparable voice signals compressed over similar time intervals. Transmitting visual information between systems designed with different nominal transmission bitrates presents some difficulty because of delays that result from these incompatible bitrates. In addition, varying error characteristics of the different communication systems in a heterogeneous network also present a problem for the transmission of visual information because it is very difficult to mask errors in the visual space.
These problems do not alone make up the difficulties with communicating visual information over diverse systems. Services designed to exploit the communication of visual information in heterogeneous networks must, necessarily, rely on the existence of digitally compressed video. Therefore, not only creating new content, but exploiting existing content is a primary focus for the further development and success of these services. For one-way visual applications, there is already a substantial amount of digitally encoded content for training and entertainment that could be delivered to mobile subscribers on a wireless network, or to clients connected at dissimilar rates on a wireline network. Existing, or xe2x80x9clegacyxe2x80x9d video material is primarily encoded using the ISO MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 standards, although legacy content also exists in the form of the ITU-T H.261 and, to a lesser extent, H.263 standards. This material can have high value to new multimedia services, while at the same time lead to the acceptance and use of new visual coding standards such as ISO MPEG-4.
One problem with the delivery of legacy data over the low bandwidth wired and wireless networks is that the original encoded bandwidth typically exceeds the capabilities of the network, assuming that there is a maximum delay restriction on the delivery of that data. For example, some wireless mobile systems may have multimedia terminals supporting MPEG-1 decoding, but the channel rates to the multimedia enabled mobile terminals may be as low as 64 Kbps. In this case, the MPEG-1 material, encoded at 1.5 Mbps, would require substantial buffering delay time before playback could begin. Unless most of the sequence was to be downloaded first, stalling would occur, as the decoder""s buffer would empty much faster than it would fill. It is also unlikely that a mobile terminal would be able to provide sufficient memory for buffering long sequences. A requirement exists, therefore, to successfully manipulate this type of high bitrate data to a lower rate such that it is compatible with a low bandwidth connection on the network.
As a result of the arrival of new wired and wireless communication systems with the capacity to transmit and exchange visual information, there is a significant need for a method and device designed to manage the visual content being delivered over these networks. In particular, technology is needed to automatically manage the bitrate and error robustness of pre-existing digital video bitstreams so that they can be delivered in a compatible form to users at arbitrary nodes in a heterogeneous network.
Briefly, therefore, this invention provides a method and apparatus for changing a digitally compressed video bitstream at a source point in a network, in an automatic way, such that the resulting bitstream is compatible with different bandwidth and error resilience requirements at a receiving point in a heterogeneous communication network. The novel method consists of analyzing the header information of the original bitstream to determine its coding parameters. Feedback from the receiving point on the network is then used to determine error properties of the network. The bandwidth and error resilience requirements establish a prioritization and selection of relevant and irrelevant bits from the original bitstream, of which the relevant bits are manipulated by a robustness regulator to achieve error protection in the network. The principal inventive components of the method include identification of irrelevant and low priority video bits, intentional introduction of packet losses to reduce bitrate, use of replacement tags for irrelevant and low priority components of the bitstream, and insertion of resynchronization tags for the improvement of error resilience.

Method and device for control and compatible delivery of digitally compressed visual data in a heterogeneous communication network


A HART analog input module with a differential input comprises a plurality of input stage processors respectively connected to a plurality of HART field devices to detect a DC signal and a HART communication signal from an input signal and output the DC signal and a HART communication signal, in a case a signal superimposed with the DC signal and the HART communication signal is inputted from a relevant HART field device, a multiplexer sequentially outputting a DC signal and a HART communication signal respectively outputted from each input stage processor in response to a provided control signal, an A/D conversion processor converting a DC signal of each channel sequentially outputted from the multiplexer to a digital signal, a HART modem demodulating a HART communication signal of each channel sequentially outputted from the multiplexer, and a controller providing a control signal to the multiplexer and processing the digital signal outputted from the A/D conversion processor and the HART modem.

1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a HART analog input module with a differential input stage, and more particularly to a HART analog input module with a differential input stage configured to efficiently perform a HART communication while maintaining a differential structure improved in noise characteristics relative to an analog signal.
2. Description of Related Art
An analog input module is widely used at industrial sites including food packing machines, various industrial furnaces, semiconductor manufacturing devices and plastic forming machines, and concomitant with increased demands on high performance, intelligent transmitters and effective management thereon, a communication function between the transmitter and PLCs (Programmable Logic Controllers) is required of late.
The PLC is a general-purpose control device configured to enable a program control by replacing the relay, timer and counter functions of the conventional control panel with a semiconductor device including integrated circuits and transistors, and by adding an operation function to a basic sequential control function.
A current communication method widely adopted by a transmitter complies with HART (Highway Addressable Remote Transducer) communication protocol. Generally speaking, the HART communication protocol supports a combined digital and analog signal on a dedicated wire or set of wires, in which on-line process signals (such as control signals, sensor measurements, etc.) are provided as an analog current signal (e.g., ranging from 4 mA˜20 mA), and has an excellent improvement effect in information use and management of 2-wire type instruments.
The HART communication protocol supports an output of a measurement value (process variable) measured in an analog signal and added information to a digital signal. The HART communication protocol supports setting-up of various parameters, calibrates a transmitter at a remote area, and even performs fault diagnosis, whereby a field situation can be three-dimensionally monitored from a control room with ample information related to operation of field instruments.
Use of the rapidly developed PLC has gradually expanded into an area of distributed control system of late, and as a result, the HART communication function largely used in the distributed control system is also required in the PLC.
The HART protocol makes use of the FSK (Frequency Shift Keying) standard to superimpose the digital signals at a low level on top of the 4 mA-20 mA analog signals. The HART protocol communicates at 1200 bps without interrupting the 4 mA˜20 mA signals and allows a host application (master) to get two or more digital updates per second from a field device. As the digital FSK signal is phase continuous, and an average value of the HART communication signal is zero, there is no interference with the 4-20 mA analog signals.
Meanwhile, in a case an analog input module used in industrial instrument such as the PLC is connected to various HART field instruments, the product must be equipped with a function of converting an analog signal to a digital signal and a function of performing the HART communication with HART field instruments as well.
Creation and interpretation of a HART communication signal by an analog input module is carried out through a HART modem. In order to normally implement the function, a ground potential of the HART communication signal must be continuously maintained until transmitted from an input terminal of the analog input module to the HART modem.
Although a single-ended type input terminal provides a structure required for this condition, a problem of disrupting an insulation state among channels and a problem of abandoning a differential structure excellent in noise characteristic come to the surface. That is, in order to allow the HART modem to normally recognize a detected HART communication signal, potentials of the HART communication signal must be identical at each element processing the HART communication signal, and a single-ended configuration used for this purpose means that grounds of each HART field device connected to an analog input module are common.
For example, grounds of several HART field devices respectively connected to each channel are all commonly connected to a ground of the analog input module to allow operating on a same ground potential. This means that, in a case a defect occurs on any one of the grounds in the HART field devices, the defect may be transmitted to a ground of a structurally-different HART field device and to a ground of an analog input module.
Furthermore, as is known, a single-ended signal input circuit cannot remove a common mode noise, such that a path of a commonly-grounded circuit into which the common mode noise is introduced increases in proportion with the channels.
As one of the methods structurally solving the abovementioned problems, although each channel may be configured to have an individual signal processing circuit, the number of signal processing components is required as many as the number of channels to disadvantageously increase the manufacturing cost.

HART analog input module with differential input stage