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Radiofrequency (RF) therapy, is a well known non-invasive and outpatient procedure that uses radio waves. Generally, it is used to treat cancer, more particularly for the ablation of tumors from different organs, e.g. breast, colon, lungs, pancreas, prostate, kidney.
In such procedure, electrodes are placed into contact with the tissue to treat and a current, from a RF generator, is applied to the tissue via the electrodes. As the current passes, the tissue between the electrodes heats, a lesion is created, and the corresponding tissue is destroyed.
RF surgical devices are well known. Generally they are monopolar devices.
The device described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,743 may be a monopolar or a bipolar device. In the bipolar form of the device, it comprises one straight and one helical (coiled) electrode, the straight electrode being inside the helix formed by the helical one. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,743, to increase the size of the lesion created, both electrodes are hollow with a plurality of fluid distribution ports to deliver, into or onto the tissue to be ablated, a conductive fluid, such as chemotherapeutic agent or as an isotonic or hypertonic saline solution.
One of the main disadvantages of such RF surgical devices is that no confinement of the lesion is achieved. Furthermore it is very difficult to predict how wide the lesion created will be.
In WO2004/100812, the bipolar RF device is a three elements device wherein at least two of the elements are “dry” electrodes, i.e. not hollow and not able to deliver a conductive fluid. In the bipolar RF device described, the electrodes may be either both helical (coiled) and parallel one to another, or one helical and one straight. The bipolar RF device works by a cage effect allowing some confinement of the lesion created.
One of the main disadvantages of such bipolar RF surgical devices working with a cage effect, is the imprecise confinement of the lesion created as the positioning of the RF electrodes, to effectively ablate the tissue, may be imprecise.
To ensure optimal performance, the axis of each electrode should be parallel; However, due to the piercing resistance of the skin, the tissue, or the organ to treat, and even if Radiofrequency electrodes are sharp and not deformable, the electrodes are prone to touch, or come close, one to another, leading to a misalignment of the electrodes and a reduced performance of RF devices.
In addition, a controlled widening of the confinement is not possible with such bipolar RF surgical devices.
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A mold is tooling that is used to produce parts in a molding process such as injection molding, die casting or other similar technologies. For example, in an injection molding process, a mold may include at least two sections that when engaged together form the mold. While plastic injection molds can have at least two movable sections, alternatively they may be comprised of several movable sections. The interior of the mold has one or more cavities. The cavities have a particular design that is the inverse of the part or parts to be manufactured. In the injection molding process, molten plastic is inserted into the cavities and the part or parts are formed in the cavities upon solidification of the plastic. When the formation of the part or parts is complete, the mold is opened to remove the part or parts.
Molds can vary greatly in size and weight depending on several factors. One such factor is the material from which the mold is created. For example, conventional molds may be constructed from steel, aluminum or other materials. Further, the size and weight of the mold will depend on the part or parts that will be manufactured in the molds. For example, molds can be used to produce small plastic components or extremely large items such as boat hulls. For larger items, the size and weight of the mold can range up to 60 tons or more.
At times it may be necessary to rotate a mold for inspection, disassembly, cleaning, repair, etc. Due to the size and weight of a mold, mold rotators (also called “mold tippers”) may be used to rotate the molds. One advantage of rotating the mold is that the rotated orientation of mold may be much more conducive for disassembly of the mold or removal of the mold from the mold rotator. For example, if a mold is comprised of several sections, the orientation of the mold in the rotated position may allow for the mold sections to be separated much more safely and easily than when the mold is the non-rotated orientation.
Some conventional mold rotators may include hydraulic systems and/or motorized systems to rotate a mold. These conventional mold rotators may include gear systems, roller guides, etc. Such mold rotators are expensive, complicated and cumbersome.
Other conventional mold rotators may not have such complicated systems, however, these simpler conventional mold rotators suffer from the drawback that once the mold rotator has been rotated, the mold cannot be easily and safely removed from the mold rotator. In other words, in such a mold rotator, if the mold is inserted into the mold rotator and then rotated from that first position to a second, rotated position, then the mold cannot be easily and safely removed from the mold rotator, because the mold rotator will self-rotate back to the first position upon removal of the mold. Further, the mold cannot be disassembled while in the more conducive rotated position, because if the weight of the partially disassembled mold becomes too light, the mold rotator will self-rotate back to the first position. This inadvertent rotation of the mold rotator from the rotated position back to the first position can be dangerous to the operator of the mold rotator and also hazardous for both the mold rotator and the mold itself. These simple conventional mold rotators lack a stabilizing system to hold the mold rotator stationary in a rotated position so that the mold can be disassembled or removed from the mold rotator while the mold is in the rotated position which is more conducive to removal or disassembly.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide an inexpensive and simple mold rotator that will allow a mold to be safely rotated and stabilized in either of a first position or a second, rotated position.
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Current internal combustion engines employed to power vehicles generally operate with air intake systems that include a throttle body and intake manifold assembly to control and direct the air flow into the engine. Intake air flow control is important not only for the obvious power output of the combustion chambers in the engine, but also for such things as minimizing noise emanating due to the air flow control system and also adequate long term operation of the system without undesirable concerns arising.
As for noise generation, this portion of the air intake system has generally been made of metal. However, in today's vehicles, an emphasis is placed on fuel economy and exhaust emissions reductions. This has lead to the desire to form the intake manifold and possibly even the throttle body out of plastic types of materials. Plastic arts can be formed which are lighter in weight and can be formed into more complex shapes than equivalent metal parts, allowing for improved air flow and thus improving both fuel economy and engine performance.
Although these improvements are welcome, nonetheless, there are other characteristics of plastics that are less desirable than equivalent metal components. For example, plastic is less dense than metal, which allows for more transmission of sound through it. Consequently, sound generated within the intake manifold, for instance, will more readily pass through into the engine compartment. This sound, then, can radiate to a driver of a vehicle, who may object to it. This is particularly true since, in general, engines are being designed overall to operate more quietly, making any stray noise more noticeable.
One noise generated within the intake manifold of an engine is a whooshing noise generated by the air flow pattern created as the air flows past a butterfly or other throttle valve in the throttle body. This is particularly true for engine conditions such as tip-in or fast opening of the throttle valve. With previous engines, either due to the other background noises produced which drowned out this whooshing noise or because the intake manifold was metal which substantially dampened the noise, vehicle drivers would not hear it. Now with quieter engines and plastic manifolds, it is noticeable and objectionable to some drivers.
Another concern with the intake air flow control system is that over the long term, build up of sludge can occur around the throttle valve, thus interfering with the smooth operation of this valve. One source for the contaminants causing the sludge is an exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) valve that feeds into the intake manifold just downstream of the throttle body. Due to packaging or flow reasons, it is sometimes desirable to locate the EGR valve immediately downstream of the throttle body. However, for these designs, the EGR gasses can end up circulating back toward the downstream side of the throttle valve before flowing downstream through the intake manifold. This allows for contaminates in the EGR gasses to build up on the throttle valve as sludge over time. With a build up of sludge, the throttle valve does not move as freely and can encounter temporary sticking conditions requiring more force when a vehicle operator first presses on the accelerator pedal.
Thus, it is desirable to employ an air intake system for a vehicle engine in which the air flow is controlled such that noise generated by air flow through the throttle body and intake manifold is reduced, thus reducing the noise that a vehicle operator will hear, while also minimizing any backflow of gasses from the intake manifold into the throttle body in order to minimize the chances for sludge build up on the throttle valve.
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This invention relates to heavy duty industrial, mining and general purpose cutting tools, and more particularly to cutting tools of the type having a bonded abrasive element forming the primary working element.
Decorative coatings for appearance, and wear resistant, hard surface coatings for protecting metal substrates against corrosion, thermal shock and the like are both well known in the prior art. The hard surfacing of a certain class of tools having a continuous cutting blade (such as agricultural implements, for instance) has been employed to form a primary, high hardness, working edge that is "self sharpening" during use in that wear of the hard surface material and tool blade continues to present a sharp primary working edge throughout. Such hard surfacing conventionally is accomplished by fusion in high temperature furnaces using high iron content, metal alloys, see Alessi U.S. Pat. No. 3,600,201. Other techniques for hard surfacing metal substrates to provide wear resistant, anti-corrosive metal coatings include flame or plasma spraying, detonation gun applications and the like as discussed in Patel U.S. Pat. No. 4,075,371 and Weatherly U.S. Pat. No. 4,173,685. Moore U.S. Pat. No. 2,857,292 teaches the application of high nickel content surface coatings to protect airplane engine parts and other ferrous alloys from corrosion, weathering and other deteriorating agents. The prior art is devoid, however, of any showing of the hard surfacing of heavy duty "cutting" tools employing abrasive inserts as the principal working element and in which the surface coating itself substantially enhances the working life of the tool by maintaining its integrity during normal wear of the abrasive insert workpiece. In the past a wide variety of industrial or general purpose cutting tools have been designed for numerous "cutting" functions including trenching, boring, drilling, sawing, and crushing. Typical cutting tools may use a single or continuous cutting surface or edge, but more frequently employ a plurality of discrete, replaceable cutting elements or bits either sequentially and angularly arranged on a chain, wheel, caisson or like continuous carrier or being disposed in a predetermined sequence or pattern on a rotary bit or auger of some type. A typical class of cutting tools, to which the present invention is particularly applicable, involves industrial mining equipment utilizing a series of sequentially spaced and angularly disposed "pencil" drill bits of the type disclosed herein, which have carbide or like abrasive inserts or tips to perform the primary cutting function.
In these mining tools the abrasive insert tip conventionally is brazed to the main body of the bit by silver solder to secure a solid bond that will withstand the large striking or impact forces thereon as the bit is carried into striking "cutting" engagement with the work product, such as coal, mineral ores or the like. The high cost, today, of silver solder has caused a search for acceptable, alternative brazing compounds. The industry now extensively uses bronze (or copper) brazing, but this requires substantially high brazing temperatures than silver and above the temperature at which temper (Rockwell hardness) of tool steels is lost, thereby influencing the choice of air or oil hardening processes for re-tempering the tool steel. Obviously, the tempering of tool steels has a direct bearing on metal stress, thermal shock and undetectable fracture lines so that a large number of abrasive inserts and/or bit bases are cracked or otherwise weakened in production with the end result of damage or loss of mining bits and increased production costs due to downtime and replacement expenses during mining operations.
Another problem encountered in such industrial mining equipment is that, with the advent of higher speed equipment and heavier impact forces, rapid tool wear and breakage has appreciably increased thereby causing re-design to heavier, bulkier bit configurations to support the carbide inserts and withstand these forces. However, more massive bits create higher dust levels that are more difficult to control under the stringent mining safety regulations, and non-productive downtime in operations frequently is mandated merely to bring dust levels under specified concentrations.
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This invention relates to improvements in cooling systems and devices. Particularly, the invention relates to portable coolers useful for storing and transporting temperature sensitive items such as medicines, biological tissues and other perishables.
Some temperature sensitive medications require frequent administration and must be transported with the patient when traveling. Some of these, such as certain biologically based medications, in addition to being temperature sensitive are extremely costly. Activities, including travel, can be restricted by the need to medicate. Travel restrictions relate to the duration of travel and to conditions. Leaving some medications in a car during hot weather, even for short periods, may not be possible without degrading the safety, quality or effectiveness of the medication. On long trips medications are subjected to vagaries of travel that can make maintenance of specific temperature conditions doubtful.
Patients have resorted to transporting medications in small beverage containers, in ice or with various cold packs. Insulated water and beverage carriers are commandeered for medications on occasion. These provide a measure of cool storage but not the longevity, degree of cooling or convenience frequently needed. In all these cases the duration of safe storage is limited by the insulating character of the carrier, the amount of cold packing material and the temperature maintenance requirements of a particular medication.
Portable beverage and water coolers have been provided with cooling systems, such as thermoelectric heat transfer modules, that extend cooling times but these operate only when a power source is available. In some circumstances power sources are unavailable, inconvenient or prohibited.
Examples of coolers of the types mentioned above are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,003,318, U.S. Patent Pub. No. US2003/0115902 A1 and U.S. Patent Pub. No. US2009/0049845 A1.
Examples of temperature sensitive medications are insulin and Enbrel®. Insulin, for example, is administered at scheduled times and for many patients also must be more or less continuously available for unscheduled administration. A convenient mode of administering drugs is by a drug administering pen. The pen contains an amount of injectable drug sufficient for one or several doses and delivers a measured dose of medication with each administration. A traveler would need to carry several pens to have a quantity of medication sufficient for a long trip. In such a case medication must be stored and transported for an extended time, frequently including periods without power for operating a cooling system.
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A Wireless Fidelity (Wireless Fidelity, Wifi) system uses an unlicensed spectrum (unlicensed spectrum), and a Long Term Evolution (Long Term Evolution, LTE) system uses licensed 800 M, second-generation (2nd Generation, 2G), and 3.5-generation (3.5 Generation, 3.5G) spectrums.
Considering that licensed spectrum resources used in LTE are limited, an existing technology is as follows: When a Wi-Fi system does not effectively use its spectrum, the LTE system perceives usage of the spectrum of the Wi-Fi system and uses the spectrum. This technology is referred to as an unlicensed LTE (unlicensed LTE, U-LTE) technology.
When an LTE base station fails to effectively perceive a surrounding Wi-Fi AP, a hidden terminal problem (hidden terminal problem, HTP) may occur. For details, refer to FIG. 1.
In FIG. 1, because a signal loss during penetration is relatively large, an outdoor LTE base station fails to detect a signal transmitted by an indoor Wi-Fi AP. The LTE base station communicates with user equipment (User Equipment, UE). However, UE2 is close to the Wi-Fi AP. Consequently, a downlink signal transmitted by the Wi-Fi AP causes interference to communication between the LTE base station and the UE2, affecting communication between the LTE base station and the UE2.
In conclusion, when a network device fails to effectively perceive another network device, but uses a communication spectrum of the another network device to communicate with a terminal, communication between the network device and the terminal may be interfered with by the another network device.
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As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 171986/1986 (JP-A-61-171986), as hoses of this type, there has been known a hose formed by, without a hard steel wire, molding a circumferential wall of a polyethylene or the like such as to be corrugated along the axial direction (so called conduit hoses in this field). Such hoses are not liable to be permanently deformed even if they are treaded.
However, since the wall of the conduit hose is configured such as to become corrugated relatively high to enhance its strength against crush, there has been a problem that when an end of the hose is connected firmly to a joint for a drive unit or a joint for an operation unit for an electric cleaner, a spirally or helically extending concave groove formed inside the circumferential wall acts as an air passageway slightly communicating with the outside and, therefore, inflow air from the outside reduces the suction force. To solve this problem, an annular protrusion is formed along the circumference of the joint, which an end of the hose abuts with, and the gap therebetween is sealed with an adhesive or the like. however, such sealing treatment is troublesome and inefficient.
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A sound reproducing apparatus using an in-ear earphone is compact, highly portable, and useful. On the other hand, since wearing an earphone in an ear blocks an ear canal, there arises a problem that the sound is slightly muffled and that it is difficult to obtain a spacious sound.
For example, let it be assumed that the ear canal of an ear is represented by a simple cylindrical model. When not wearing an earphone in the ear, the cylinder is closed at the eardrum side and is open at the entrance side of the ear, that is, one end of the cylinder is open and the other end is closed ((a) in FIG. 16). In this case, a primary resonance frequency is about 3400 Hz if it is assumed that the length of the cylinder is 25 mm which is an average length of the ear canal of a human. On the other hand, when wearing an earphone 110 in the ear, the cylinder is closed at the eardrum side and the entrance side of the ear, that is, both ends of the cylinder are closed ((b) in FIG. 16). In this case, a primary resonance frequency is about 6800 Hz which is double that in the case of not wearing an earphone.
One of techniques to solve the above problem is a conventional sound reproducing apparatus which corrects a resonance frequency characteristic of an ear canal to reproduce a sound, thereby realizing a listening state equivalent to that in the case of not wearing an earphone (in the case where the ear canal is not blocked), even when, actually, wearing the earphone in the ear (for example, see Patent Document 1).
FIG. 17 shows a configuration of a conventional sound reproducing apparatus 1700 disclosed in Patent Document 1. In the conventional sound reproducing apparatus 1700 shown in FIG. 17, a correction information storage section 1703 stores correction information about an ear-canal impulse response variation, and a convolution operation section 1704 convolves a sound source signal with the correction information, thereby realizing a listening state equivalent to that in the case where the ear canal is not blocked.
Moreover, there is a conventional acoustic-field reproducing apparatus which automatically measures a head-related transfer function of a listening person with use of an in-ear transducer used for both a microphone and an earphone, and convolves an inputted signal with the measured head-related transfer function of the listening person, and which allows the listening person to receive the convolved signal via the in-ear transducer used for both a microphone and an earphone (for example, see Patent Document 2). The conventional acoustic-field reproducing apparatus realizes, through the above processing, the effect of allowing an unspecified listening person to obtain excellent feeling of localization of a plurality of sound sources present in all directions. Patent Document 1 Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-209300 Patent Document 2 Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. H05-199596
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This invention relates to novel multiple gas discharge display/memory panels or units which have an electrical memory and which are capable of producing a visual display or representation of data such as numerals, letters, television displays, radar displays, binary words, etc.
Multiple gas discharge display and/or memory panels of one particular type with which the present invention is concerned are characterized by an ionizable gaseous medium, usually a mixture of at least two gases at an appropriate gas pressure, in a thin gas chamber or space between a pair of opposed dielectric members, the conductor members backing each dielectric member typically being transversely oriented to define a plurality of discrete gas discharge units or cells.
In some prior art panels the discharge units are additionally defined by surrounding or confining physical structure such as by cells or apertures in perforated glass plates and the like so as to be physically isolated relative to other units. In either case, with or without the confining physical structure, charges (electrons, ions) produced upon ionization of the elemental gas volume of a selected discharge unit, when proper alternating operating potentials are applied to selected conductors thereof, are collected upon the surfaces of the dielectric at specifically defined locations and constitute an electrical field opposing the electrical field which created them so as to terminate the discharge for the remainder of the half cycle and aid in the initiation of a discharge on a succeeding opposite half cycle of applied voltage, such charges as are stored constituting an electrical memory.
Thus, the dielectric layers prevent the passage of substantial conductive current from the conductor members to the gaseous medium and also serve as collecting surfaces for ionized gaseous medium charges (electrons, ions) during the alternate half cycles of the A.C. operating potentials, such charges collecting first on one elemental or discrete dielectric surface area and then on an opposing elemental or discrete dielectric surface area on alternate half cycles to constitute an electrical memory.
An example of a panel structure containing non-physically isolated or open discharge units is disclosed in U.S. Letters Pat. No. 3,499,167 issued to Theodore C. Baker, et al.
An example of a panel containing physically isolated units is disclosed in the article by D. L. Bitzer and H. G. Slottow entitled "The Plasma Display Panel - A Digitally Addressable Display With Inherent Memory," Proceeding of the Fall Joint Computer Conference, IEEE, San Francisco, California, Nov. 1966, pages 541-547. Also reference is made to U.S. Letters Pat. No. 3,559,190.
In the construction of the panel, a continuous volume of ionizable gas is confined between a pair of dielectric surfaces backed by conductor arrays forming matrix elements. The cross conductor arrays may be orthogonally related (but any other configuration of conductor arrays may be used) to define a plurality of opposed pairs of charge storage areas on the surfaces of the dielectric bounding or confining the gas. Thus, for a conductor matrix having H rows and C columns the number of elemental discharges units will be the product H .times. C and the number of elemental or discrete areas will be twice the number of such elemental discharge units.
In addition, the panel may comprise a so-called monolithic structure in which the conductor arrays are created on a single substrate and wherein two or more arrays are separated from each other and from the gaseous medium by at least one insulating member. In such a device the gas discharge takes place not between two opposing electrodes, but between two contiguous or adjacent electrodes on the same substrate; the gas being confined between the substrate and an outer retaining wall.
It is also feasible to have a gas discharge device wherein some of the conductive or electrode members are in direct contact with the gaseous medium and the remaining electrode members are appropriately insulated from such gas, i.e., at least one insulated electrode.
In addition to the matrix configuration, the conductor arrays may be shaped otherwise. Accordingly, while the preferred conductor arrangement is of the crossed grid type as discussed herein, it is likewise apparent that where a maximal variety of two dimensional display patterns is not necessary, as where specific standardized visual shapes (e.g., numerals, letters, words, etc.) are to be formed and image resolution is not critical, the conductors may be shaped accordingly, i.e., a segmented display.
The gas is one which produces visible light or invisible radiation which stimulates a phosphor (if visual display is an objective) and a copious supply of charges (ions and electrons) during discharge.
In prior art, a wide variety of gases and gas mixture have been utilized as the gaseous medium in a gas discharge device. Typical of such gases include CO; CO.sub.2 ; halogens; nitrogen; NH.sub.3 ; oxygen; water vapor; hydrogen; hydrocarbons; P.sub.2 O.sub.5 ; boron fluoride; acid fumes; TiCl.sub.4 ; Group VIII gases; air; H.sub.2 O.sub.2 ; vapors of sodium, mercury, thallium, cadmium, rubidium, and cesium; carbon disulfide; laughing gas; H.sub.2 S; deoxygenated air; phosphorus vapors; C.sub.2 H.sub.2 ; CH.sub.4 ; naphthalene vapor; anthracene; freon; ethyl alcohol; methylene bromide; heavy hydrogen; electron attaching gases; sulfur hexafluoride; tritium; radioactive gases; and the rare or inert gases.
In one preferred practice hereof, the gas mixture comprises at least one rare gas, more preferably at least two rare gases, selected from neon, argon, xenon, krypton and radon. Beneficial amounts of mercury and/or helium may also be present.
In an open cell Baker, et al. type panel, the gas pressure and the electric field are sufficient to laterally confine charges generated on discharge within elemental or discrete dielectric areas within the perimeter of such areas, especially in a panel containing non-isolated units.
As described in the Baker, et al. patent, the space between the dielectric surfaces occupied by the gas is such as to permit photons generated on discharge in a selected discrete or elemental volume of gas to pass freely through the gas space and strike surface areas of dielectric remote from the selected discrete volumes, such remote, photon struck dielectric surface areas thereby emitting electrons so as to condition at least one elemental volume other than the elemental volume in which the photons originated. To condition is to provide at least one free electron per elemental volume.
With respect to the memory function of a given discharge panel, the allowable distance or spacing between the dielectric surfaces depends, inter alia, on the frequency of the alternating current supply, the distance typically being greater for lower frequencies.
While the prior art does disclose gaseous discharge devices having externally positioned electrodes for initiating a gaseous discharge, sometimes called "electrodeless discharge", such prior art devices utilized frequencies and spacings or discharge volumes and operating pressures such that although discharges are initiated in the gaseous medium, such discharges are ineffective or not utilized for charge generation and storage at higher frequencies; although charge storage may be realized at lower frequencies, such charge storage has not been utilized in a display/memory device in the manner of the Bitzer-Slottow or Baker, et al. invention.
The term "memory margin" is defined herein as ##EQU1## where V.sub.f is the half amplitude of the smallest sustaining voltage signal which results in a discharge every half cycle, but at which the cell is not bi-stable and V.sub.E is the half amplitude of the minimum applied voltage sufficient to sustain discharges once initiated.
It will be understood that the basic electrical phenomenon utilized in this invention is the generation of charges (ions and electrons) alternately storable at pairs of opposed or facing discrete points or areas on a pair of dielectric surfaces backed by conductors connected to a source of operating potential. Such stored charges result in an electrical field opposing the field produced by the applied potential that created them and hence operate to terminate ionization in the elemental gas volume between opposed or facing discrete points or areas of dielectric surface. The term "sustain a discharge" means producing a sequence of momentary discharges, one discharge for each half cycle of applied alternating sustaining voltage, once the elemental gas volume has been fired, to maintain alternate storing of charges at pairs of opposed discrete areas on the dielectric surfaces.
In accordance with the practice of this invention, there is incorporated into the dielectric of a gas discharge device a beneficial amount of a source of at least one element selected from tin or germanium.
As used herein, the phrase "incorporated into" is intended to comprise any suitable means whereby a source of the selected element is appropriately combined with the dielectric, such as by intimately adding or mixing the source into the dielectric pre-melt batch or to the melt; by ion exchange; by ion implantation; by diffusion techniques; or by applying one or more layers to the charge storage surface of the dielectric, or to the electrode contact surface of the dielectric, or as an internal layer within the dielectric.
In one particular embodiment hereof, the source of the selected element is applied as one or more layers to the charge-storage surface of the dielectric.
As used herein, the term "layer" is intended to be all inclusive of other similar terms such as film, deposit, coating, finish, spread, covering, etc.
It is contemplated that the element source may be applied as a layer over one or more previously applied dielectric layers. Likewise, one or more layers of other substances may be applied over the layer of the element source. Such other dielectric layers may comprise luminescent phosphors and/or any other suitable compounds, especially inorganic compounds of Al, Pb, Si, Ti, Hf, rare earths (e.g., throium), Group IA (e.g., cesium), and/or Group IIA (e.g., magnesium).
The source of the selected element is applied to the dielectric surface (or over a previously applied layer) by any convenient means including not by way of limitation vapor deposition; vacuum deposition; chemical vapor deposition; wet spraying upon the surface a mixture or solution of the layer substance suspended or dissolved in a liquid followed by evaporation of the liquid; dry spraying of the layer upon the surface; thermal evaporation using direct heat, electron beam, or laser; plasma flame and/or arc spraying and/or deposition; and sputtering target techniques.
Each layer of the source of the germanium or tin is applied to the dielectric, as a surface or sub-layer, in an amount sufficient to obtain the desired beneficial result, usually to a thickness of at least about 100 angstrom units, usually within a range of about 200 angstrom units per layer up to about 1 micron (10,000 angstrom units) per layer.
In the fabrication of a gaseous discharge panel, the dielectric material is typically applied to and cured on the surface of a supporting glass substrate or base to which the electrode or conductor elements have been previously applied. The glass substrate may be of any suitable composition such as a soda lime glass composition. Two glass substrates containing electrodes and cured dielectric are then appropriately sealed together, e.g., using thermal means, so as to form a panel.
In one preferred practice of this invention, each element containing layer is applied to the surface of the cured dielectric before the panel heat sealing cycle, with the substrate temperature during the layer application ranging from about 150.degree. F. to about 600.degree. F.
In the practice of this invention it is contemplated using any suitable source of germanium or tin, especially inorganic compounds.
Although insulating or semi-conductor materials are typically used, conductor materials may be used if the material is appropriately isolated within or on the dielectric so as not to be in conductive electrical contact with a source of potential and/or ground.
Likewise if a conductive material such as tin oxide is used in a multiple cell device, the geometric arrangement of the material may be such that no two cells are electrically connected by the conductive material. For example, a conductive material could be deposited as a spot over each discharge site. Likewise, non-conductive materials can be deposited as spots.
The selected source is typically a solid. However, liquid materials may be used, especially if applied in a suitable binder.
Typical inorganic compounds of germanium include germanium dibromide, germanium tetrabromide, germanium dichloride, germanium tetrachloride, germanium difluoride, germanium tetrafluoride, germanium hydride, germanium oxybromide, germanium imide, germanium diiodide, germanium tetraiodide, trigermanium dinitride, trigermanium tetranitride, germanium dioxide, germanium monoxide, germanium oxychloride, germanium selenide, germanium disulfide, germanium monosulfide, bromogermane, chlorogermane, chloro trifluorogermane, dibromogermane, dichlorogermane, tribromogermane, dichlorodifluorogermane, trichlorogermane, and trichlorofluorogermane.
Typical inorganic compounds of tin include tin pyroarsenate, tin dibromide, tin tetrabromide, tin trichloride bromide, tin dibromide dichloride, tin tribromide chloride, tin dibromide diiodide, tin dichloride, tin tetrachloride, tin tetrachloride diamine, tin trichloride bromide, tin dichloride diiodide, tin tetrachloride nitrosyl-chloride, tin chromate, tin ferricyanide, tin difluoride, tin tetrafluoride, tin basic nitrate, tin diiodide, tin tetraiodide, tin nitrate, tin monoxide, tin dioxide, tin methphosphate, tin orthophosphate, tin pyrophosphate, tin monophosphide, tin phosphorus chloride, tin triphosphide, tin selenide, tritintetraphosphide, tin sulfate, tin sulfide, tin sulfide chloride, and tin telluride.
It is also contemplated using elemental germanium or tin, such as distributed within the dielectric or applied as a continuous or discontinuous layer thereon, especially as spots over each discharge unit.
The use of this invention has many potential benefits. For example, sources of the selected element may be used alone or in combination with other elements (such as enumerated hereinbefore) to achieve lower panel operating voltages, thermal stability, more uniform panel operating voltages, decreased aging cycle time, etc.
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Aptamers, which are nucleic acid ligands capable of binding to molecular targets, have recently attracted increased attention for their potential application in many areas of biology and biotechnology. They may be used as sensors, therapeutic tools, to regulate cellular processes, as well as to guide drugs to their specific cellular target(s). Contrary to the actual genetic material, their specificity and characteristics are not directly determined by their primary sequence, but instead by their secondary and/or tertiary structure. Aptamers have been recently investigated as immobilized capture elements in a microarray format. Others have recently selected aptamers against whole cells and complex biological mixtures.
Aptamers are commonly identified by an in vitro method of selection sometimes referred to as Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment or “SELEX”. SELEX typically begins with a very large pool of randomized polynucleotides which is generally narrowed to one aptamer ligand per molecular target. Once multiple rounds (typically 10-15) of SELEX are completed, the nucleic acid sequences are identified by conventional cloning and sequencing. Aptamers have most famously been developed as ligands to important proteins, rivaling antibodies in both affinity and specificity, and the first aptamer-based therapeutics are now emerging. More recently, however, aptamers have been also developed to bind small organic molecules and cellular toxins, viruses, and even targets as small as heavy metal ions.
Chikungunya virus, also referred to as CHIKV, is a member of the alphavirus genus, and Togaviridae family. It is an RNA virus with a positive-sense single-stranded genome of about 11.6 kb. The virus consists of four nonstructural proteins and three structural proteins. The structural proteins are the capsid and two envelope glycoproteins: E1 and E2, which form heterodimeric spikes on the viron surface. E2 binds to cellular receptors in order to enter the host cell through receptor-mediated endocytosis. E1 contains a fusion peptide which, when exposed to the acidity of the endosome in eukaryotic cells, dissociates from E2 and initiates membrane fusion that allows the release of nucleocapsids into the host cytoplasm, promoting infection. The mature virion contains 240 heterodimeric spikes of E2/E1, which after release, bud on the surface of the infected cell, where they are released by exocytosis to infect other cells.
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To utilize solar energy for heating and ultimately for electricity generation it is generally necessary to concentrate the solar radiation to obtain higher temperatures in the energy storage and transport medium.
There are various methods used to concentrate the solar radiation. One method utilizes a circular mirror of parabolic section with the center line of the dish pointing at the sun. The parabolic mirror must be suitably mounted to permit constant movement to follow the arc of the sun through the sky.
Additionally, the alignment of the arc of the sun through the sky will change from day to day as the declination of the sun changes from summer solstice to the winter solstice. Complex mechanisms are required to fulfill these requirements.
In the above method, the solar energy is concentrated into a small single focus point where a suitable heat absorber is mounted and it is difficult to transport this energy to a utilization point.
In another system, long parallel mirrored troughs having a parabolic cross section are aligned with the sun. In this system, the concentration occurs at a focus line parallel with the alignments of the collecting troughs.
The collecting troughs may be aligned in a North-South direction and the troughs are so mounted as to permit them to follow the movement of the sun through the course of the day. Complex mechanisms are also required to fulfill this requirement.
The solar energy is then generally collected in a pipe containing a suitable heat absorbing liquid, the pipe being mounted at the focus line of the parabolic reflecting troughs.
In the trough collecting system, the troughs can also be mounted in an East-West alignment and it is then necessary to align the troughs to the arc line of the sun once each day to allow for change in declination. Complex mechanisms are also required to control this alignment.
In mounting parabolic reflecting troughs in either the North-South or the East-West configuration, the troughs are adjusted to maintain their focus on the sun by pivotally mounting on an axis parallel to the focus line of the collecting mirrors and generally requiring a multiplicity of rotating bearings and associated mounting structures.
It is, of course, important to properly support the reflecting troughs so that they do not bend or break, since such deformations will reduce their ability to reflect the solar energy to the focus line. However, due to the large size of such solar collectors (the amount of energy collected being essentially directly related to the area of the reflectors), such supports can be cumbersome and thereby not only expensive to build but also more difficult to move to maintain proper alignment of the reflectors such as previously discussed.
Also, it is generally necessary to arrange the reflecting surfaces of solar energy collecting apparatus so that they are not subject to the possibility of damage caused by such things as hail. This is often achieved by the use of high quality and consequently expensive toughened glass in the construction of the reflecting mirrors. Further protection against hail could be achieved by turning the mirrored surfaces away from the direction of on coming hail, or the use of large screens which may be moved over the top of the whole mirror system. However, either structure is necessarily complex and expensive, and can require considerable structural support to withstand strong winds.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome or substantially ameliorate the above-described disadvantages.
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Semiconductor memory comprises a plurality of rows of memory cells arranged in columns, the number of which depends on the storage capacity of the storage unit. With the increase of the storage unit, the probability of failure of the memory cell also increases. When a storage unit fails, the semiconductor memory device cannot be used.
Test techniques for memory systems conventionally include the application of predetermined input bit patterns to memory cells of the memory system, and thereafter reading the contents of the memory cells to determine whether the output patterns match the input patterns. If the output patterns do not match the input patterns, it follows that a fault has occurred somewhere in the memory system.
Memory systems, however, are becoming increasingly complex, and the above conventional input/output pattern matching technique does not offer an adequate level of fault isolation for such complex memory systems. What is required, therefore, are test/verification methods and systems which provide a greater degree of fault isolation for complex memory systems.
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1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a bicycle and, more particularly, to an apparatus for attaching an accessory to a bicycle.
2. Related Prior Art
There are various bags such as knapsacks, shoulder bags and hand bags. It is generally inconvenient and dangerous for a rider to carry a knapsack, a shoulder bag or a hand bag.
A rider may tie a bag to a luggage carrier of a bicycle. However, the rider might lose the bag while turning, since the bicycle is tilted, and the area of the luggage carrier is small. The rider has to pay attention to the bag tied to the luggage carrier while turning. This is a distracting and dangerous practice.
Disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,607,327 is a conventional apparatus for carrying luggage on a bicycle. The conventional apparatus includes a bag 50 for containing the luggage, a fixing plate 10 secured to the bag 50, a clipping plate, a pin 40 for pivotally connecting the clipping plate to the fixing plate 10 and a spring 20 for closing the fixing plate 10 and the clipping plate. Thus, the fixing plate 10 and the clipping plate together form a clamp for clamping a rear rod 611 of a backseat 61 installed on the bicycle. As the bicycle is ridden, the bag 50 pivots about the rear rod 611. That is, the bag 50 rattles on the backseat 61. Hence, the fixing plate 10 and the clipping plate could be opened and disengaged from the rear rod 611 so that the bag 50 could be removed from the backseat 61.
Therefore, the present invention is intended to obviate or at least alleviate the problems encountered in the prior art.
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The present invention relates generally to the field of wireless communications and specifically to methods for controlling the operational mode of mobile terminals in a wireless communication system.
Numerous access schemes exist to allow multiple users to share a communication medium. One such access scheme is known as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA). In CDMA systems, multiple users share the same carrier frequency and may transmit simultaneously. Each user has its own pseudo-noise (PN) sequence, which is approximately orthogonal to the PN sequences of other users. Transmissions to or from individual users are imprinted with that user's PN sequence. The receiver selects the desired signal, which combines in the communication with unwanted signals, by correlating the received signal with the PN sequence of the desired signal. All other signals are spread by the PN sequence and appear as noise to the receiver.
CDMA systems are interference-limited systems. Since all mobile terminals operate at the same frequency, internal interference generated within the system plays a critical role in determining system capacity and voice quality. The transmit power from each mobile terminal must be controlled to limit interference while maintaining desired performance objectives, e.g., bit error rate (BER), frame error rate (FER), capacity, dropped-call rate, coverage, etc. Normally a mobile terminal transmits a pilot signal continuously on a reverse pilot channel (R-PICH) to enable closed loop power control by the network.
In some implementation of cdma2000, such as 1xEV-DV and 1xEV-DO systems, the forward link is time-multiplexed and transmitted at the full power available to the base station, but with data rates and slot times that vary depending on forward link channel conditions. The data rate that can be supported by the forward link is proportional to the Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR), which changes continuously. The mobile terminal measures the instantaneous SNR of the pilot signal received from each base station in its active set and requests service from the base station providing the strongest signal. The mobile terminal transmits the SNR value, or equivalently the supportable data rate, for the base station providing the strongest signal on a reverse control channel referred to generically herein as the rate control channel.
It has been proposed to reduce interference and hence increase system capacity by introducing a control hold state for mobile terminals with low transmit activity factors. In the control hold state, the mobile terminal suspends or reduces transmissions on many of the reverse link channels, such as a reverse rate control channel or reverse pilot channel. Gating or suspending transmission on the reverse link channels reduces interference, thus increasing the reverse link throughput and capacity. It also results in lower power consumption at the mobile terminal and thus increased battery life.
One method for identifying which mobile terminals should be placed in a control hold state exploits the phenomenon known as temporal locality. Communications to and from a particular user tend to be grouped in time. A mobile terminal that has very recently sent or received a transmission is more likely to receive or send another transmission in the near term, than is a mobile terminal that has not sent or received a transmission for some time. Following this principle, mobile terminals that have recently successfully received or sent transmissions are maintained in an active mode, and those to and from whom no transmissions have been directed for a predetermined time are commanded to enter a control hold state. A straightforward manner of implementing this approach is to maintain countdown timers for each transmission direction, which are loaded with a predetermined value and started upon each successful transmission. Such timers are referred to herein as the forward link inactivity timer and the reverse link inactivity timer. If an inactivity timer counts down to zero before another transmission in its respective direction, it is said to have expired, or timed-out. If both the forward link and the reverse link inactivity timers for a particular mobile terminal have expired, and if there is no data queued awaiting transmission to that mobile terminal, the network may command the mobile terminal to transition to the control hold state. Traditionally, a base station controller (BSC) in the network maintains and manages both inactivity timers, and controls the operational modes of the mobile terminals.
In some cdma2000 networks, such as 1xEV-DV and 1xEV-DO systems, the forward link is a time-shared channel and the base station transmits to only one mobile terminal at any given time. In systems of this type, a scheduler is usually maintained at each base station to schedule forward link transmissions for all mobile terminals served by that base station. When the serving base station schedules data packets for transmission to a mobile terminal, however, the forward link inactivity timer maintained at the BSC may not be started or reset at the proper time due to scheduling delays at the serving base station, or signaling delays between the base station and the BSC, and thus may not accurately reflect the timing of the last forward link transmission to the mobile terminal. This problem may be further complicated by the fact that, in soft handoff, the mobile terminal may select a different base station in its active set as its forward link serving base station, based on received signal quality. This further complicates the synchronization of message scheduling to the mobile terminal at the base station and the state of the forward link inactivity timer at the base station controller.
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The present invention relates to a drip chamber for transfusion, dialysis, infusion kits, and the like.
Several kinds of drip chamber are commercially known which are meant to be inserted along the circuit of single-use extracorporeal lines such as kits for transfusions, dialysis or the like in order to prevent the passage of any impurities contained in the fluids being conveyed. Conventional drip chambers are composed of a plurality of components, usually at least four, which are glued together so as to form a tubular external enclosure which contains a filtration mesh and is closed at its ends respectively by two plugs provided with a coupling for the tubes for the infeed and discharge of the body fluids and optionally for additional tubes for connection to other lines or instruments, such as for example an injection point or a pressure gauge. The fluid that arrives from the infeed tube passes through the filtration mesh before reaching the outlet. It has been ascertained that drip chambers of this type operate correctly, and considering that they are discarded after a single use, in mass production it is a primary goal to minimize the number of parts required to produce the end product and to simplify the assembly procedure and its complexity.
The aim of the present invention is to obviate the above drawbacks of prior art devices, i.e. to provide a drip chamber for transfusion, dialysis, infusion kits, and the like which can be assembled in a simple manner and uses the smallest possible number of parts.
Within the scope of this aim, an object of the present invention is to achieve the above aim with a drip chamber which is relatively easy to provide in practice, safe in use, effective in operation and relatively low in cost.
This aim, these objects and others are all achieved by the present drip chamber for transfusion, dialysis, infusion kits, and the like, characterized in that it comprises a tubular external enclosure in which a first end is closed by a connector provided with at least one tube for connection to the external circuit and a second end lies opposite said first end, said enclosure accommodating a filtering element which is composed of a substantially cylindrical filtering body which forms an interspace with said enclosure, said filtering body having an end which is internal to said enclosure and is closed by a bottom and an end which is rigidly coupled to a closure element which is inserted in said second end of said enclosure and is provided with a tube for connection to the external circuit, said body and said closure element being monolithic.
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The present invention relates to a technique especially effective for application to a nonvolatile memory having an internal booster, from which stored information can be electrically erased. For example, the invention relates to a technique effective for use in a flash memory employed for a portable electronic device.
In a portable electronic device, a volatile memory such as a DRAM and a nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory are used as memory devices of data. On the other hand, in a portable electronic device, a battery is used as a power source, and there is always a danger of occurrence of a dead battery. Due to this, in the portable electronic devices, a nonvolatile memory of which data is not erased even if the battery runs down is becoming the mainstream.
A flash memory uses, as a memory cell, a nonvolatile memory element comprising a MOSFET of a double gate structure having a control gate and a floating gate. By changing a fixed charged amount of the floating gate, a threshold voltage of the MOSFET is changed, thereby enabling information to be stored. Such a flash memory needs a high voltage (such as xc2x110V or higher) for changing the threshold voltage by pulling/injecting charges from/to the floating gate of the nonvolatile memory element in an operation of writing/erasing data to/from a memory cell. In the flash memory, the high voltage is generally generated by an internal booster provided in a memory chip.
In an operation of writing/erasing data to/from a memory cell in a flash memory having an internal booster, the internal booster is activated to boost an internal source voltage simultaneously with the start of the writing/erasing operation. After the internal source voltage is boosted to a predetermined voltage, a write voltage or an erase voltage is actually applied to a memory cell. Methods of determining a timing of starting an actual writing/erasing operation after the internal source voltage is boosted to a predetermined voltage include a method of determining the timing by monitoring a generated voltage and a method of determining the timing after elapse of a predetermined time on assumption that the internal source voltage has increased to the predetermined potential. In the former method, when the internal source voltage does not reach the predetermined potential for some reason, there is a fear that the program cannot escape from the writing or erasing operation. Conventionally, the latter method of determining the timing on the basis of time is generally employed.
In the method of determining the timing of actually applying the write voltage or erase voltage to the memory cell on the basis of time, however, the time required to boost the internal source voltage depends on the magnitude of an external source voltage, capability of the booster, and the load capacity of word line, bit line, or the like. The capability of the booster and the load capacity can be calculated from a designed circuit, and the external power source is determined in the specification. The timing is determined by calculating an expected time in which the internal source voltage is sufficiently boosted also in the case of performing the writing/erasing operation on a worst capacitor in the circuit in a state where a source voltage of the lower limit value determined in the specification (generally, a voltage lower than a source voltage used by about 10%) is applied.
In recent years, however, the variety of the external power source of the memory is increasing. For example, external power sources operating at 3.3V, 2.5V, 1.8V and the like are in demand. In a system using a memory, which is constructed on a substrate of a stay-at-home apparatus such as a personal computer, the source voltage is fixed. Consequently, there is no problem to determine the timing by calculating a time in which the internal source voltage is expected to be boosted by a booster with the source voltage (Vcc-10%) of the lower limit value determined by the specification. On the other hand, the memory used in the portable electronic device may operate on a DC voltage such as 3.3V converted from AC 100V, on a built-in battery of, for example, 1.8V, or the like.
In this case, even if 1.8V is supplied, when the timing is determined by calculating the time in which the internal source voltage is expected to be sufficiently boosted also in the case of performing the writing/erasing operation on the worst capacity in the circuit, the data writing/erasing operation can be performed with accuracy without a problem. In the case where the internal booster is constructed by using an MOSFET, however, when the operation voltage is 1.8V, the drain current of the MOSFET is about xc2xc of that when the voltage is 3.3V. Consequently, the time required to boost the internal source voltage increases by four times. For example, the data writing operation is finished in 1 mS (millisecond) when the source voltage is 3.3V. It takes, however, 4 mS when the source voltage is 1.8V. In an actual product, the writing/erasing timing is determined on the basis of 1.8V with which the writing operation takes longer time even in the case where the external source voltage is 3.3V in consideration of the possibility where the product is used with the external source voltage of 1.8V. Consequently, a problem such that the time required for the writing/erasing operation when the external source voltage is 3.3V is long more than necessary occurs.
Further, the inventors of the present invention have found that the time required to boost the internal source voltage varies also according to a pattern of write data. Specifically, in association with an increase in packing density of a semiconductor memory, a bit line pitch of the memory array in a semiconductor memory is becoming very high. A parasitic capacitance between neighboring bit lines is becoming larger than a capacitance parasitic on a bit line, which exists between the bit line and the substrate, and a capacitance between the bit line and a line extending above the bit line.
Moreover, since the flash memory generally adopts a method of precharging a bit line in accordance with write data and simultaneously writing all of memory cells connected to one word line (hereinbelow, referred to as one sector), there is a case that 210 bit lines are precharged. In such a case, when all the write data of one sector is xe2x80x9c0xe2x80x9d or only one bit is xe2x80x9c0xe2x80x9d (since when all the write data is xe2x80x9c1xe2x80x9d, the writing operation is not performed), precharging against the parasitic capacitance between neighboring bit lines is not performed. When write data is 1010101 . . . 10, every other bit line is precharged, that is, the charging against all the parasitic capacitance between bit lines is performed. Consequently, the capacitive load on the booster is the heaviest in this case. By the deep examination on a flash memory being developed by the inventors of the present invention, it was found that a variation of about 1 mS at the maximum occurs in the boost time of the internal power source in accordance with the kind of write data.
In the conventional method of determining the write start timing on the basis of time, since the timing has to be determined by using the case of writing the data of xe2x80x9c1010101 . . . 10xe2x80x9d as the worst case regarding the data, the write start timing has to be further delayed. It was clarified that, when the timing is determined in consideration of the worst case with the source voltage of 1.8V, a time allowance of about five times as long as the time necessary to boost the power source voltage to write data of all xe2x80x9c0xe2x80x9d with the source voltage of 3.3V is necessary, so that the write time takes very long.
The inventors then examined the method of monitoring not time but a boosted internal source voltage and, when the internal source voltage reaches a predetermined potential, starting the writing operation. In this case, however, when the internal source voltage does not reach the predetermined potential by the cause such as a leak due to adhesion of a conductive foreign matter on a bit line, it is feared that the program cannot escape from the writing operation. It was also made clear that the method has a drawback that, by providing an internal source voltage monitoring circuit constructed by a resistance dividing circuit and a comparator, an extra resistive load is placed on the booster, and the time required to boost the internal source voltage increases.
An object of the invention is to provide a semiconductor memory having an internal booster such as a flash memory, capable of avoiding a situation that the program cannot escape from the writing operation and promptly finishing the writing operation in accordance with the level of an external source voltage.
The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the description of the specification and the appended drawings.
The outline of a representative one of inventions disclosed in the specification will be briefly described as follows.
There is provided a semiconductor memory having an internal booster, comprising a voltage detecting circuit such as a limiter for detecting whether a boosted voltage has reached a predetermined potential or not and a timer capable of counting predetermined time. A control circuit applies the boosted voltage to a selected memory cell when the voltage detecting circuit detects that the boosted voltage has reached the predetermined potential and, when it is detected on the basis of counting information of the timer that the predetermined time has elapsed since the booster started the boosting operation, the control circuit applies the boosted voltage to the selected memory cell even if the boosted voltage generated by the booster has not reached the predetermined potential yet.
More specifically, there is provided a semiconductor memory having a plurality of memory cells and a booster for generating a boosted voltage on the basis of a source voltage supplied from the outside, for applying the boosted voltage to a selected memory cell when the voltage generated by the booster reaches a predetermined level, comprising: a voltage detecting circuit for detecting whether the boosted voltage has reached a predetermined potential or not; a control circuit capable of controlling start and stop of a boosting operation of the booster; and a timer capable of counting predetermined time. The control circuit applies the boosted voltage to a selected memory cell when the voltage detecting circuit detects that the boosted voltage has reached the predetermined potential and, when it is detected on the basis of counting information of the timer that the predetermined time has elapsed since the booster started the boosting operation, the control circuit applies the boosted voltage to the selected memory cell even if the boosted voltage generated by the booster has not reached the predetermined potential yet.
According to the means, also in the case where the level of an external source voltage is low and a voltage is not so boosted by the booster, after elapse of predetermined time, data is written to a memory cell. Consequently, the situation that the program cannot be escaped from the writing operation since the boosted voltage does not reach a predetermined potential conventionally occurred can be avoided. When the level of the external source voltage is high and the boosted voltage reaches a predetermined potential in short time, the writing operation is started. Consequently, the writing operation can be promptly finished.
Desirably, switching means for supplying or interrupting the boosted voltage is provided. The switching means receives a control signal from the control circuit and applies the boosted voltage to the selected memory cell. With the configuration, when a plurality of boosted voltages of levels different from each other such as the write voltage and a verify voltage are necessary, without changing the level itself of the voltage generated by the booster, the voltage to be applied to a memory cell can be changed only by operating the switch.
Preferably, a clock generating circuit for generating an internal clock signal is provided. By using the circuit, it becomes unnecessary to generate and supply a clock necessary for the operation of the booster on the outside of the chip of the semiconductor memory, so that the burden on designing of the user is lessened.
The booster operates on the basis of a clock signal for boosting generated by the clock generating circuit, and the timer operates on the basis of a clock signal for counting generated by the clock generating circuit. With the configuration, the clock generating circuit can be commonly used to generate the clock signal for boosting and the clock signal for counting.
The semiconductor memory further has a plurality of word lines. Each of the plurality of memory cells is connected to a corresponding word line, and the boosted voltage is applied to a word line to which the selected memory cell is coupled.
Further, the booster has a positive voltage generating circuit for generating a positive high voltage on the basis of a source voltage from the outside and a negative voltage generating circuit for generating a negative high voltage on the basis of the source voltage from the outside. With the configuration, not only the high voltage necessary for writing but also the high voltage necessary for erasing can be also generated on the inside of the chip.
Each of the plurality of memory cells has a threshold voltage corresponding to data to be stored. Consequently, multi-value information can be stored in a single memory cell.
Data is written/erased to/from each of the plurality of memory cells by using a tunnel phenomenon. In the writing/erasing method using the tunnel phenomenon, as compared with a method of injecting hot electrons into a memory cell by passing a drain current, a higher voltage is generally needed, and a burden is caused by the booster. Consequently, by applying the present invention, the effect is enhanced.
Further, according to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a semiconductor memory having a plurality of memory cells each having a threshold voltage corresponding to data to be stored, a plurality of bit lines, a plurality of data latches provided for the bit lines, and a booster for generating a boosted voltage on the basis of a source voltage supplied from the outside, each of the plurality of memory cells being coupled to a corresponding bit line, the boosted voltage being applied to the memory cell selected when the boosted voltage reaches a predetermined potential, and data being rewritten to the memory cell in accordance with data latched by the data latch, comprising: a voltage detecting circuit for detecting whether the boosted voltage has reached a predetermined potential or not; a control circuit capable of controlling start and stop of a boosting operation of the booster; and a timer capable of counting predetermined time, wherein the control circuit applies the boosted voltage to a selected memory cell when the voltage detecting circuit detects that the boosted voltage has reached the predetermined potential and, when it is detected on the basis of counting information of the timer that the predetermined time has elapsed since the booster started the boosting operation, the control circuit applies the boosted voltage to the selected memory cell even if the boosted voltage generated by the booster has not reached the predetermined potential yet.
According to the means, since the data latch is provided for each bit line, the writing operation can be performed in a plurality of times. As described above, even when the writing operation is started after elapse of the predetermined time before the boosted voltage reaches the predetermined potential, by increasing the number of writing times, accurate writing can be guaranteed. Thus, the situation that the program cannot be escaped from the writing operation since the boosted voltage does not reach the predetermined potential can be avoided. In the case where the level of the external source voltage is high, when the boosted voltage reaches a predetermined potential, the writing operation is started. Consequently, the writing operation can be promptly finished.
Desirably, each of the memory cells is constructed to store multi-value information by having any one of a plurality of threshold voltages. With the configuration, without enlarging the area of the memory array, the storage capacity can be increased. In this case, a higher boosted voltage is necessary as compared with the case of binary data. By applying the invention, it can be prevented that the program cannot be escaped from the writing operation when the external source voltage is low.
A second voltage boosted by the booster in accordance with data latched by the data latch is applied to the bit line, and the control circuit reserves activation of the timer until the second voltage reaches the predetermined potential. When the writing operation is started before the potential of the bit line becomes sufficiently high, there is the possibility that a xe2x80x9cdisturbxe2x80x9d failure that the threshold voltage of a not-selected memory cell changes occurs. Since the timer is started after the boosted voltage to be applied to the bit line has reached the potential, even when the writing operation is started after elapse of the predetermined time after that, the level of the boosted voltage to be applied to the bit line is guaranteed, so that the occurrence of the disturb failure can be prevented.
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Techniques for integrating a variety of functional devices in a single integrated circuit by using a common sequence of processing steps are well known in the art. A common approach to forming a capacitor in an MOS process is to replicate the MOS gate structure at some other place on the chip. In this structure the substrate is one capacitor plate and a polysilicon plate, formed during the gate poly deposition, forms the other capacitor plate. In this approach the properties of the capacitor dielectric, e.g. the thickness, is limited by the MOS gate dielectric thickness. Moreover, using this procedure the choice of possible circuit configurations is limited. An additional drawback is that an additional substrate contact is generally required. Alternative approaches are known in which capacitors are formed using a three level metal process. In this case a capacitor can be formed that is electrically distinct from the gate, i.e. can be independently designed and interconnected, but an added metal layer is required in the gate-capacitor structure, i.e. the combination gate/capacitor uses three metal layers. By contrast only two metal layers are required to form the capacitor and the gate structures using the process of this invention.
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Lactobacillus acidophilus is a Gram-positive, rod-shaped, non-spore forming, homofermentative bacterium that is a normal inhabitant of the gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts. Since its original isolation by Moro (1900) from infant feces, the “acid loving” organism has been found in the intestinal tract of humans, breast-fed infants, and persons consuming high milk, lactose, or dextrin diets. Historically, Lactobacillus acidophilus is the Lactobacillus species most often implicated as an intestinal probiotic capable of eliciting beneficial effects on the microflora of the gastrointestinal tract (Klaenhammer and Russell (2000) “Species of the Lactobacillus acidophilus complex,” Encyclopedia of Food Microbiology, 2:1151-1157. Robinson et al., eds. (Academic Press, San Diego, Calif.). Lactobacillus acidophilus can ferment hexoses, including lactose and more complex oligosaccharides, to produce lactic acid and lower the pH of the environment where the organism is cultured. Acidified environments (e.g., food, vagina, and regions within the gastrointestinal tract) can interfere with the growth of undesirable bacteria, pathogens, and yeasts. The organism is well known for its acid tolerance, survival in cultured dairy products, and viability during passage through the stomach and gastrointestinal tract. Lactobacilli and other commensal bacteria, some of which are considered probiotic bacteria that “favor life,” have been studied extensively for their effects on human health, particularly in the prevention or treatment of enteric infections, diarrheal disease, prevention of cancer, and stimulation of the immune system. Lactobacilli have also been studied for their influence on dairy product flavor, and functional and textural characteristics. Genetic characterization of other Lactobacillus species (e.g., L johnsonii and L. rhamnosus) has been described (see e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 6,476,209; U.S. Pat. No. 6,544,772; U.S. Patent Publication Nos. 20020159976, 2003013882 & 20040009490; PCT Publication No. WO 2004/031389; PCT Publication No. 2003/084989; PCT Publication No. WO 2004/020467).
Bacterial growth requires specific transport systems to import nutrients from the external environment. Lactic acid bacteria transport molecules into and out of the cell via three systems: primary transport, secondary transport, and group translocation. In primary transport, chemical (primarily ATP), electrical, or solar energy is used to drive transport. ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters are the most abundant class of primary transport systems in lactic acid bacteria. In this system, ATP hydrolysis is linked with substrate translocation across the membrane for both the import of sugars and compatible solutes and the export of products such as drugs or toxins that are undesirable to the cell, or cellular components that function outside of the cell, such as cell wall polysaccharides. In general, ABC transporters are relatively specific for their substrates, but some are multispecific, such as the multidrug transporters.
Secondary transport systems use electrochemical gradients to provide the energy for sugar translocation. They comprise symporters, which cotransport two or more solutes, uniporters, which transport one molecule, and antiporters, which countertransport two or more solutes. Symporters generally couple the uphill movement of the substrate to the downhill movement of a proton (or ion), antiporters use the ion gradient for excretion of a product, and uniporters do not use a coupling ion (Poolman (2002) Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 82:147-164).
Group translocation involves the phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP)-dependent phosphotransferase system (PTS), which couples the uptake of a carbohydrate or alditol with its phosphorylation (Poolman (2002), supra). The phosphate group originates from the conversion of PEP into pyruvate, and the subsequent phosphorylation involves the energy coupling proteins, Enzyme I and HPr, as well as substrate-specific phosphoryl transfer proteins IIA, IIB and IIC.
Multidrug transporters may be separated into two major classes, secondary multidrug transporters and ABC transporters. Secondary multidrug transporters may be further divided into distinct families, including the major facilitator superfamily (MFS), the small multidrug resistance family (SMR), the resistance-nodulation-cell division family (RND), and the multidrug and toxic compound extrusion family (MATE) (Putman et al. (2000) Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Reviews 64:672-693). Secondary multidrug transporters use the electrochemical gradients, as described herein, to extrude drugs from the cell. ABC-type multidrug transporters use energy from ATP hydrolysis to pump drugs out of the cell (Putman et al. (2000), supra).
Bacteria are able to metabolize various carbohydrates by utilizing transport proteins and enzymes with different carbohydrate specificities, in addition to employing diverse regulatory mechanisms, such as catabolite repression. The isolation and characterization of these proteins allows for the development of essential probiotic products with numerous applications, including those that benefit human and/or animal health, and those concerned with food production and safety. The proteins can also be used in developing transgenic plants with altered growth or survival capabilities.
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Box files of the above type are well known and a popular type of open topped box file is made from a semi-rigid plastics material and consists of a base, vertical side walls and end walls which join the side walls to each other. A major difficulty with box files of this type is that when they are fully loaded and a single paper or file is required from the contents of the box the entire contents needs to be removed from the box to enable the papers or files to be leaved through to locate the required document or file. This having been done, the entire pack of files or papers needs to be compressed into a bundle and reinserted into the box. To again replace the document the tedious process of again removing all of the papers, relocating the withdrawn paper and replacing the papers in the box needs to be performed.
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{
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1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a motor and a guiding structure thereof.
2. Related Art
The headlight for vehicles is usually cooperated with a motor and a guiding structure for adjusting the lighting angle of the headlight. In details, the guiding structure can convert the rotation of the motor into an axial force so as to provide the linear actions on the headlight, such as forward or backward. Thus, the headlight can be pushed to generate lights with different angles.
The conventional guiding structure has a base and the guiding rod. The base has a plurality of elastic sheets, and the inner side of each elastic sheet has a guiding groove. Several guiding ribs are disposed protruding from the edge of the guiding rod. The guiding rod is capable of sliding in the groove, and the elastic sheet can restrict the movement range of the guiding rod.
However, forming the elastic sheet and guiding groove on the side wall of the central opening of the base requires very precise processing technology, and thus the manufacturing cost and time for forming the conventional guiding structure are high.
In addition, since the elastic sheet is formed inside the small central opening of the base, the limitation of the size of the central opening and a certain distance must be provided between the elastic sheet and the side wall of the central opening, the width and thickness of the elastic sheet must be very thin. Therefore, the elastic sheet may be broken or damaged during the movement of the guiding structure, thereby affecting the reliability of the product and causing the trouble of the user. Moreover, the difficulties of manufacturing the mold and processing steps may also be increased, so that the manufacturing cost is increased, too.
Furthermore, the elastic sheet guides the guiding rod by deforming, so that the guiding rod may be unstable during its movement.
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The present invention relates generally to an air tunnel diverter and the method for installing the same in a refrigeration unit. More particularly, though not exclusively, the present invention relates to an air tunnel diverter that can be easily assembled and installed.
Air tunnel diverters are commonly used on refrigeration units, such as household refrigerators. Air tunnel diverters typically have a plurality of pipes and are used to route cool air, usually from a freezer compartment, to various fresh food areas or compartments in the refrigerator compartment. To maximize efficiency, it is desirable to have all of the cooler air come from a single location or pump. This requires a plurality of pipes be merged into a single fitting to receive the cooler air. Current air tunnel diverters attempt to merge several pipes into one fitting using glue.
Glue is messy and often ineffective, failing to properly seal the air tunnel diverters. If the air tunnel diverters are not properly sealed, the foam insulation, which is typically sprayed on, may creep into the interior of the diverter, thereby reducing the diverters"" effectiveness.
Current refrigeration units come in many styles and have a wide variety of specialized compartments. As designs evolve and change, the location of the various compartments also changes. Previously, cooler air was typically routed to these compartments through rigid pipes that were designed for a certain style of refrigerator with compartments in certain specified locations. Designing compartments in new locations also required designing a new air tunnel diverter to route the cooler air to the new locations. It is therefore desirable to have an air tunnel diverter that can be easily adapted or positioned to fit in a variety of refrigeration devices.
Accordingly, a primary feature of the present invention is the provision of an air tunnel diverter and the method for installing the same in a refrigeration unit that overcomes problems found in the prior art.
Another feature of the present invention is the provision of an air tunnel diverter and the method for installing the same in a refrigeration unit that does not require glue for installation.
A further feature of the present invention is the provision of an air tunnel diverter and the method for installing the same in a refrigeration unit that is easily adapted for installation in a variety of refrigeration units.
A still further feature of the present invention is the provision of an air tunnel diverter and the method for installing the same in a refrigeration unit that is easy to install.
Yet another feature of the present invention is the provision of an air tunnel diverter and the method for installing the same in a refrigeration unit that is inexpensive.
These and other features and advantages will become apparent from the following specification and claims.
The present invention generally comprises a refrigeration unit including an air tunnel diverter and the method for installing the same. More specifically, the present invention generally includes an air tunnel diverter having a hub with one or more air tubes extending therefrom. The air tubes are secured to the hub and sealed with an overmold of a soft plastic flexible material. The air tubes are then inserted into the mullion area of the refrigeration unit. Each air tube preferably terminates in a fitting. The flexibility of the air tubes allows the installer to easily position the fittings into the desired locations. Once properly positioned, the air tunnel diverter is secured in place by the surrounding insulation material in the mullion.
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Associative memories, also referred to as content addressable memories, are widely used in the field of pattern matching and identification, expert systems and artificial intelligence. A widely used associative memory is the Hopfield artificial neural network. Hopfield artificial neural networks are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,660,166 to Hopfield entitled “Electronic Network for Collective Decision Based on Large Number of Connections Between Signals”.
Although associative memories may avoid problems in prior back-propagation networks, associative memories may present problems of scaling and spurious memories. Recent improvements in associative memories have attempted to solve these and other problems. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,052,679 to coinventor Aparacio, IV et al., entitled “Artificial Neural Networks Including Boolean-Complete Compartments” provides a plurality of artificial neurons and a plurality of Boolean-complete compartments, a respective one of which couples a respective pair of artificial neurons. By providing Boolean-complete compartments, spurious complement memories can be avoided.
Associative memories also have been marketed commercially. For example, a product known as MemoryAgent marketed by International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) provides a low level set of application programming interfaces that can be used for building embedded learning agents, characterized by the term “Smart Assistance”. See the publication entitled “Report:IBM's Memory Agent”, Intelligence In Industry, Vol. 8, No. 1, January 1999, pp. 5–9. Other vendors, including Haley Enterprises and Intellix A/S also offer associative memory tools. In particular, Haley Enterprises supports a commercial associative memory called “The Intelligent Memory”. See haley.com. Intellix A/S supports another commercial associative memory called “Knowman” using a software framework called SOUL (Self-Optimizing Universal Learner). See intellix.com. Some vendors offer self-organizing feature maps, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,870,729 to Yoda entitled Self-Organizing Neural Network for Pattern Classification; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,943,670 to Prager entitled System and Method for Categorizing Objects in Combined Categories, which also are a form of associative memory. Associative memories also have been applied to electronic commerce, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,619,709 to Caid et al. entitled System and Method of Context Vector Generation and Retrieval. Other applications of associative memories include handwriting recognition in hand-held devices, such as the Palm Pilot, marketed by 3Com. Moreover, memory-based reasoning may now be included in data mining systems such as marketed by SAS Institute, Oracle Corporation and others.
Although associative memories only recently have been marketed commercially, they are expected to rapidly grow for applications that desire personalization and knowledge management. In fact, one expert has predicted that “Building autoassociative memories will be a very large business—some day more silicon will be consumed building such devices than for any other purpose.” See Technology Review, Vol. 102, No. 4, July/August 1999, p. 79.
Unfortunately, there is a fundamental scaling problem that may limit the use of associative memories to solve real world problems. In particular, many associative memories use linear weights. As shown in FIG. 1A, each input can be associated once with each output according to a weight WA–WE. However, the inputs in such linear networks generally do not associate with each other. This can severely limit the ability of such networks to learn and represent possible nonlinearities, such as interactions between the inputs, that may be found in co-requirements or trade-offs between inputs.
An alternative to the linear network of FIG. 1A is the geometric Hopfield network of FIG. 1B. In the Hopfield network, one-to-one connections are provided between all nodes, and a weight is provided for each arch between the nodes. As shown in FIG. 1B, it may be difficult to scale Hopfield networks for real-world applications due to the explosion of weights that is provided between all inputs. Since nonlinear networks generally intercept all inputs with each other, an N2 or geometric scaling function is produced. More specifically, the number of connections between inputs generally is equal to N·(N−1)/2, where N is the number of inputs.
This geometric scaling generally is unreasonable to support applications at the scale of complexity that warrants such technology. For example, for general purpose search and personal modeling, tens of thousands of input variables and millions of models may need to be managed. At the other extreme, machine learning in operating systems may need to be more efficient as client machines become smaller, wireless devices. In such situations, only one user's model may be needed, but the number of contexts and input variables may still be very large. Even at the level of a household with a few individuals, the number of inputs may be on the order of hundreds of thousands. It therefore may be unreasonable to use present techniques in such applications, even in the larger physical memory capacities that are expected in the next few years. Thus, applications of agent-based learning for such environments are now emerging, but the learning technology to support these applications may be difficult to implement due to the scaling problems of learning and using nonlinear associations.
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Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), formerly called feline T-lymphotrophic lentivirus, was first isolated in 1986 from a large multiple cat household in Petaluma, Calif. (Pederson et al., Science (1987) 235:790). FIV infects cats to produce an AIDS-like syndrome. Although FIV is morphologically and pathologically similar to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), it has been shown to be antigenically distinct from HIV. Like HIV, once a cat becomes infected with FIV, the disease progresses from a primary infection (viraemia, fever, general lymphadenitis) to a lengthy asymptomatic phase, followed by severe impairment in immune function caused by a reduction in CD4 lymphocytes, and resulting in heightened susceptibility to secondary infections and ultimately death.
FIV has been classified as a member of the subfamily Lentiviridae in the family Retroviridae, the family that includes human and simian immunodeficiency viruses, equine infectious anaemia, maedi visna of sheep and caprinearthritis encephalitis viruses (CAEV). The genome of FIV is organized like other lentiviruses with three long open reading frames corresponding to gag, pol and env (Talbott et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. (1989) 86:5743; Olmsted et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. (1989) 86:2448). The gag gene codes for the major structural components of the virus, the env gene codes for the envelope glycoprotein, and the pol gene codes for the polymerase protein.
The gag gene is expressed as a 55 kD polyprotein that is processed into three subunits: a p15 matrix protein, a p24 capsid protein, and a p10 nucleocapsid protein. The pol gene encodes three proteins: the protease, reverse transcriptase and a p14.6 protein of unknown function. Autoprocessing by the protease portion of the gene gives rise to all three proteins of the pol region. Additionally, the protease is responsible for the processing of the gag precursor. The pol gene is expressed as a gag-pol fusion protein. The envelope gene is expressed as a 160 kD glycoprotein, gp160. The antigenicity of the FIV core proteins is similar to other lentiviruses.
Several independent viral isolates have been prepared across the world, and a certain number of studies have been carried out in order to demonstrate the structure of the isolated strains: the American strain Petaluma, Talbott et al. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 1989, 86, 5743–5747; Philipps et al., J. Virol., 1990, 64, 10, 4605–4613), the Japanese strains (the TM1 and TM2 strains), Miyazawa et al., Arch. Virol., 1989, 108, 59–68, and the Swiss isolates (FIVZ1 and FIVZ2), Morikawa et al., Virus Research, 1991, 21, 53–63.
The nucleotide sequences of three proviral clones derived from American FIV isolates (Petaluma strain) have been described (clones FIV34TF10, FIV14 and isolate PPR) (Olmsted, et al. 1989; Philipps et al., 1990; Talbott et al., 1989) and compared with two Swiss isolates (Morikawa et al. 1991). This comparison led Morikawa et al. to specify the presence of certain conserved regions and certain variable regions within the env gene of FIV. French strains have also been isolated (strains Wo and Me)(Moraillon et al., 1992, Vet. Mic., 31, 41–45).
The virus replicates optimally in blood mononuclear cells and has a tropism for T-lymphocytes, peritoneal macrophage, brain macrophage and astrocytes. In common with other retroviruses, the genetic material of FIV is composed of RNA and the production of a DNA copy of the viral RNA is an essential step in the replication of FIV in the host. This step requires the enzyme reverse transcriptase that is carried into the host by the invading virus. The DNA version of the viral genome is inserted into the genetic material of infected host cells in which it continues to reside as a provirus. This provirus is replicated every time the cell divides and can code for the production of new virus particles. Cells infected with FIV remain infected for the duration of their lifespan.
The virus appears to be spread naturally by horizontal transmission, predominantly by bite wounds from an infected cat as these animals shed appreciable amounts of virus in saliva (Yamamoto et al., Am. J. Vet. Res. 1988, 8:1246). Vertical transmission has been reported, but is rare.
Current diagnostic screening tests for FIV infection detect serum antibody (Ab) to FIV. Virus detection kits are also available but not as prevalent. A number of diagnostic tests are available to determine the presence of FIV antibody in infected animals. For example, PetChek® FIV Ab test kit and the SNAP® Combo FeLV Ag/FIV Ab test kit (IDEXX Laboratories, Westbrook, Me.) are immunoassay based diagnostic tests for FIV infection.
Detecting FIV infection is becoming increasingly important as studies reveal FIV infection is widespread worldwide. As vaccines have been developed in attempt to combat the disease, it is even more important to be able to detect the effectiveness of a vaccine and to discriminate between vaccinated cats versus naturally infected cats.
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In most inland water ways, conventional buoys that are utilized are nun, can, and danger buoys. Such buoys may, or may not, be lighted. Wherever used, however, it is desirable to ensure that the buoys will resist fracture, puncture, or distortion even when struck by water craft, or when buffeted by waves along the shoreline. It is desirable to have the buoys be virtually unsinkable, yet simple to manufacture.
The buoys according to the present invention fulfill the desired criteria set forth above. Additionally, the buoys according to the present invention are constructed so that it is easy to make any type of buoy from the same basic component parts, and utilizing the same basic procedures. The buoys according to the present invention may simply and easily be made as nun, can, or danger buoys, and according to one aspect of the present invention may be converted from nun buoys to can or danger buoys after construction.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a buoy is provided which comprises: a central pipe having first and second ends; a one-piece outer plastic shell surrounding said pipe, and enclosing said first end of said pipe, said second end of said pipe being open; said outer shell having a first end portion surrounding said pipe first end; an enlarged mid portion, comprising a float spaced from said pipe; and an elongated second end portion, spaced from said pipe over the majority of the length thereof; foam disposed between said pipe and said outer shell; and a counterweight disposed in said pipe at said first end thereof. A collar preferably holds the second end of the outer plastic shell in contact with the central pipe. The collar and the pipe preferably are ABS plastic, while the outer shell is polyethylene and the foam is rigid urethane foam. To anchor the buoy, an eyebolt is provided which completely passes through the pipe and shell below the enlarged midportion of the shell, and above the counterweight. The second end portion of the shell may be tapered to configure the buoy as a nun buoy, and first and second plastic sleeves may be disposed over the second end portion of the shell to alternatively configure the buoy as a can buoy, or a danger buoy, respectively. A cap may be provided at the open second end of the pipe, or a conventional light source placed in association with the buoy at the open second end of the pipe.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a buoy is provided which comprises: a central plastic pipe having first and second means; a one piece outer plastic shell, said shell having a first, tubular, end portion surrounding and completely enclosing said pipe at said first end thereof; and an enlarged body portion, defining a float, surrounding said pipe at a midportion thereof; a counterweight disposed in said pipe at said first end thereof; an upper shell hollow member having interior cross-sectional dimensions larger than outer dimensions of said central pipe including a collar at a first end of said upper shell member, said collar having internal cross-sectional dimensions not significantly greater than exterior dimensions of said central pipe, and said upper shell member at a second end thereof, opposite said first end thereof, having cross-sectional dimensions significantly greater than outer cross-sectional dimensions of said pipe, but less than cross-sectional dimensions of said enlarged portion of said outer plastic shell; means for holding said upper shell member with said second end thereof operatively engaging said enlarged portion of said outer plastic shell, and said first end thereof operatively engaging said central pipe; and buoyancy means disposed between said enlarged portion of said outer plastic shell and said central plastic pipe.
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a durable, effective, simple, versatile and relatively inexpensive buoy. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention from the appended claims.
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Optical signaling and communication systems are widely used in the art today. The optical signals may be transmitted through fiber optical cables or in free space or using mirrors or lenses or combinations thereof. In a typical system, an electrical signal is converted into an optical signal, transmitted through some media to a receiver and then used directly to modulate the properties of some receiving media and/or reconverted back to an electrical signal for further processing.
An important aspect of such optical communication systems is their linearity, that is, the degree to which the optical output of the transmitter or the electrical output of the receiver resembles the original electrical input signal, taking into account all of the harmonics, intermodulation and distortion products produced within the optical communication system. A significant problem with present day analog optical transmission or communication systems is that they are not particularly linear. This arises in part because they often must be operated at high levels in order to obtain sufficient optical output. As a consequence of the non-linearity, the optical signal can contain a significant amount of distortion and/or spurious signals generated within the optical system. This problem is exacerbated by the need to simultaneously generate or transmit several different information streams at the same time, as for example, by amplitude modulating an optical carrier with several different input signals at different average frequencies or on different sub-carriers.
Non-limiting examples of such spurious distortion products are second order harmonics (i.e., cross-modulation) and third-order harmonics (i.e., intermodulation and triplebeats). If a Fourier transform of the modulated optical signal is examined, these distortion products manifest themselves as spurious side-bands lying outside the modulation base-band around the optical carrier or subcarrier. Thus, there is an ongoing need to reduce the distortion products in analog optical generation and/or transmission systems.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a business management techniques, which apply a triangulation principle that combines the issues of management, operation and technology to achieve an optimum improvement in the way a portion of a business operation is managed and operated.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various different business management techniques have been utilized in the prior art. The following six patents and published patent applications are the closest prior art references which are related to the present invention.
1. United States Published Patent Application No. 2002/0128888 to Watsaka Chuangsuvanish on Sep. 12, 2002 for “Reflexzplan” (hereafter the “Chuangsuvanish Published Patent Application”);
2. United States Published Patent Application No. 2003/0033192 to Sergio Zyman et al. on Feb. 13, 2003 for “Strategic Marketing Planning Processes, Marketing Effectiveness Tools And Systems, And Marketing Investment Management” (hereafter the “Zyman Published Patent Application”);
3. United States Published Patent Application No. 2003/0083915 to Diego Gucciardi et al. on May 1, 2003 for “Process Development Process Methodology” (hereafter the “Gucciardi Published Patent Application”);
4. United States Published Patent Application No. 2005/0096950 to Scott Malcom Caplan et al. on May 5, 2005 for “Method And Apparatus For Creating And Evaluating Strategies” (hereafter the “Caplan Published Patent Application”);
5. U.S. Pat. No. 7,035,809 issued to Michael P. Miller et al. and assigned to Accenture Global Services GmbH on Apr. 25, 2006 for “Accelerated Process Improvement Framework” (hereafter the “Miller Patent”); and
6. U.S. Pat. No. 7,251,613 issued to David R. Flores et al. on Jul. 31, 2007 for “System And Method For Generating A Multi-Layered Strategy Description Including Integrated Implementation Requirements” (hereafter the “Flores Patent”).
The Chuangsuvanish Published Patent Application discloses a dynamic software which is comprised of a dynamic financial accounting spreadsheet. The software is developed based on business concepts of generating a prototype workflow of a business process, evaluating the prototype workflow of the process, generating a Process Development Process (PDP) workflow and populating a PDP toolkit using a result of the evaluation of the prototype workflow.
The Zyman Published Patent Application discloses planning tools for guiding marketing professionals. The tools include steps of performing a situation assessment, identifying opportunities, developing growth strategies, developing growth tactics, and developing ways to measure the results of the steps.
The Gucciardi Published Patent Application discloses a method for developing a process comprising the steps of generating a prototype workflow of the process, evaluating the prototype workflow of the process, and generating a Process Development Process (PDP) workflow and populating a PDP toolkit using a result of the evaluation of the prototype workflow.
The Caplan Published Patent Application discloses a method and an apparatus for strategy science methodology involving computer implementation. Some structural elements of the preferred embodiments of the Application include Strategy Situation Analysis, Decision Key and Intermediate Variable Creation, Data Exploration, Decision Model Structuring and Decision Model Quantification.
The Miller Patent discloses a computerized process for accelerating improvement to a more mature software product including the step of maintaining a Software Engineering Process Group (SEPG). The patented invention is a method and related system for assisting and expediting an organization's transformation toward higher levels of the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) or higher derivative maturity models. In particular, the invention provides a method for producing a more mature product. A preferred embodiment of the method comprises the management of an organization developing the product whereby the organizational management comprises managing personnel of the organization and implementing a product improvement process.
The Flores Patent discloses an enterprise strategy management system including three software modules. The first software module formulates a strategy description based on an assessment of environmental data. The second module aligns the strategy description with available enterprise resources and deploys strategy implementation responsibility. The third module measures the execution of the strategy and identifies opportunities to optimize strategic performance.
There is a significant need to provide a method which is based on a triangulation principle to combine the fields of management, operation and technology including the information technology for deriving an optimum business process to thereby achieve results of reduced costs, increased efficiency and improved effectiveness in operating a business.
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This invention relates to high resolution intravascular imaging and more particularly to intraluminal ultrasound imaging and techniques for enhancing image quality.
In intraluminal ultrasound imaging, the production of high resolution images of vessel wall structures requires imaging at high ultrasound frequencies. Vectors are created by directing focussed ultrasonic pressure waves radially from a transducer in a catheter and collecting echoes at the same transducer from the target area. A plurality of radial vectors from the rotated transducer comprises an image frame. The backscatter from blood cells in such an image is a significant problem in high frequency intraluminal ultrasound imaging, since the scattering of ultrasound from blood cells is proportional to the fourth power of the frequency such that the higher the ultrasound frequency the more pronounced is the backscatter from blood. As a result, echoes from blood degrade the lumen-to-vessel wall contrast.
It is desirable to provide imaging over a broad range of frequencies, especially higher ultrasonic frequencies. Therefore, echoes in the ultrasound image due to backscatter from blood must either be removed or suppressed to a level at which wall structures can be distinguished from blood. Since blood is typically in motion relative to the image of interest, an individual frame will contain speckle due to the interference of blood constituents. One technique for enhancing image quality is to average successive image frames thereby to smooth out the impact of speckle (that is, the irregular pattern of backscatter from blood) in the intraluminal ultrasound images. However, such frame averaging is not effective in reducing the mean echo amplitude from the region of blood flow, and it cannot totally remove blood echoes from the image. What is needed is a mechanism for encoding or encrypting blood-induced echoes to allow a display of intraluminal ultrasound images free of blood-induced echoes.
Background information on the subject of intravascular ultrasonography is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,794,931 and related U.S. Pat. No. 5,000,185.
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Aromatic polyester resins typified by polyethylene terephthalate and polybutylene terephthalate are inexpensive resins having both heat resistance and clarity, and if they are stretched to form films, they can be made to exhibit high mechanical strength. Therefore, they are used for various applications such as various industrial materials, packaging materials and optical materials.
On the other hand, in recent years, as means for obtaining polymers with higher functions and higher performance, polymer alloy techniques of alloying (adding/mixing) a main polymer with a dissimilar polymer are popularly used.
The reason is that while the properties required for polymers diversely include mechanical strength, light transmittance, gas barrier properties, heat resistance, moldability, releasability, flame retardancy, ultraviolet light resistance (UV resistance), hydrolysis resistance, electric insulation and the like, it is difficult that a single polymer is made to satisfy these diverse property requirements. That is, multiple polymers are alloyed with each other to achieve required diverse properties in increasing cases.
In this regard, aromatic polyester resins are excellent in mechanical strength, clarity (light transmittance) and heat resistance but are unsatisfactory in gas barrier properties, moldability, releasability, flame retardancy, UV resistance, hydrolysis resistance and electric insulation depending on applications. Therefore, efforts are being made to develop films improved in these properties by alloying with resins capable of covering these properties.
For example, there are a film obtained by alloying an aromatic polyester resin with a polycarbonate resin (JP 2004-107471 A), and a film obtained by alloying an aromatic polyester resin with a styrene-butadiene-styrene resin modified by an epoxy compound (JP 2003-075643 A). In the former case, mechanical strength and heat resistance are enhanced, and in the latter case, a film is monoaxially oriented to be improved in polarization properties.
However, even if the techniques described in JP 2004-107471 A and JP 2003-075643 A are used, there remains a problem that a film remarkably enhanced in gas barrier properties, moldability, releasability, UV resistance, electric insulation and the like cannot be obtained.
Polyolefin resins are more excellent than aromatic polyester resins in gas barrier properties, moldability, releasability, UV resistance, insulation and the like. Therefore, if a polyolefin resin is alloyed with an aromatic polyester resin, it is seemingly expected that a film excellent in gas barrier properties, moldability, releasability, UV resistance, electric insulation and the like can be obtained by using the alloy.
However, the bonding force between an aromatic polyester resin and a polyolefin resin is weak and, therefore, even if the mixture obtained by merely mixing both the resins is stretched to form a film, the aromatic polyester resin and the polyolefin resin are separated at the interfaces in the stretching step, to form many voids inside the film (for example, JP 6-322153 A).
If the voids are formed, the film is remarkably lowered in mechanical strength, moldability, gas barrier properties, light transmittance, insulation and productivity, far from being enhanced in these properties, and is not enhanced in releasability or UV resistance either.
It could therefore be helpful to provide a polyester film excellent in mechanical strength, light transmittance, gas barrier properties, moldability, releasability, UV transmittance, electric insulation and productivity.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor processing. More particularly, the present invention relates to clamp rings for securing a work piece or substrate in a processing chamber.
2. Background of the Related Art
In the manufacturer of integrated circuits and other electronic devices, multiple layers of dielectric, conducting, and semiconducting materials are deposited and etched from the surface of substrates. Typically, substrates are positioned within vacuum processing chambers where plasma reactions are performed to either deposit material on the substrate or etch material from the substrate. In order to protect the edge of substrates and to secure substrates to the support member during processing, clamp rings are sometimes used to contact the edge of the substrate during processing. After many hours of operation, typically hundreds of hours, the upper surfaces of the clamp ring can be eroded by etching processes or can collect deposition material in deposition processes. As a result, the clamp ring must be replaced.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one type of clamp ring used in the field. The clamp ring 100 generally includes downwardly extending flanges 102 that protect portions of a processing chamber in an etching process. The clamp ring also includes tabs 104, otherwise known as "fingers", that engage the edge of a substrate 24 positioned on a support member, such as a pedestal, in a processing chamber. The tabs 104 extend radially inward of the clamp ring and are used to hold the substrate during processing. The clamp ring is mounted on a lift mechanism in the chamber by inserting a fastener, such as a screw, through a hole 108 and a counterbore 106. A cap 110 may be used to cover the fastener and protect the fastener from the etching process. The upper surface 112 of the clamp ring is exposed primarily to the etching process and erodes from continued use and must eventually be replaced.
Unfortunately, in some processes the material from which the clamp ring is made is very expensive. As one example, a VESPEL.RTM. clamp ring is typically used in some etching processes. The clamp ring includes not only a shielding and clamping portion, but also an annular ring portion which serves as a support for the clamp ring and/or as a shield. Difficult machining also adds cost to the clamp ring.
Therefore, there is a need for a clamp ring which can be easily replaced and which does not require difficult machining.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to water heaters, and in particular to an instantaneous gas water heater.
2. Background of the Invention
One of the more important milestones in the evolution of mankind has been the development of delivery systems for on-demand hot water. The advantages and utilities of on-demand hot water are numerous: the ability to wash effectively before eating and at other times during the day has enhanced man's ability to avoid diseases; cooks are able to accelerate cooking chores involving hot water by starting out with pre-heated water; and the task of washing eating and cooking utensils, and other household items, has been rendered more effective and efficient through the use of readily available hot water, thus decreasing disease transmittal. High temperature hot water may be provided at the kitchen sink for immediate use in hot beverage preparation. The very existence of commercial and residential automatic dishwashers depends on hot water heaters. These are only a few examples of hot water heater use--myriad other important uses exist in residential, commercial, and industrial settings.
The most common water heater design comprises a relatively large tank which holds water whose heating may have taken hours. If more hot water is used than is in the tank, the outlet water temperature drops dramatically because office low heating rate of these systems. Since the tank loses heat to the ambient, the water must be re-heated periodically, thus wasting energy. Therefore, currently available tank hot water systems may run out of hot water, and waste energy.
One solution to the problems associated with tank hot water heating systems is the instantaneous hot water heater. Instantaneous water heating systems heat water at a much higher rate than tank systems, thereby avoiding the need to store hot water in a tank. Instantaneous water heating systems transfer heat to water only when a demand for hot water is sensed, and then heat the water at a rate sufficient to provide hot water at the same rate as the hot water is being consumed.
Existing Designs
A number of patents have been granted for instantaneous water heaters. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,604,515, 4,808,793 and 5,020,127 were granted to Davidson, Hurko and Eddas et al. respectively. While these water heaters provided on-demand hot water without the use of a hot water storage tank, these designs incorporated electric heating elements to provide the heat with which to heat the water. Therefore these designs suffered from the problem that natural or low pressure ("LP") gas could not be used to heat the water. In many areas gas is the preferred energy source for water heating due to its low cost and clean combustion characteristics. In addition, electricity is not available in some locations, rendering the use of these electric designs impossible.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,550,689 was granted Wolter for a Gas Instantaneous Water Heater. While this design used gas as the energy source with which to heat water, it suffered from a number of disadvantages. First, the design incorporated three atmospheric burners. The atmospheric burner is the traditional design of choice for gas heaters. In this type of burner, the gas is injected via an orifice into the opening of a venturi, inspirating the air required for combustion to the burner. The air is proportional to the input rate of the burner. Atmospheric burners are used in applications where the back pressure from the flue gasses is minimal and the venturi is capable of providing enough air flow for combustion. However, atmospheric burners suffer from efficiency decreases where the combustion chamber is enclosed and the heated surface is very close to the burning surface (which is the situation in most instantaneous gas water heaters). Under these conditions, a relatively large back pressure is developed by the flue gases, and the venturi used in atmospheric burners is not capable of overcoming the back pressure. In these situations, powered burners are quickly becoming the system of choice.
In a powered burner, the air is supplied to the burner by a mechanical means such as a fan or blower. The current low price and availability of blowers render the powered burner a competitively priced design. The efficiencies of powered burners are higher than these of the atmospheric burner due to increased flue gas velocities. And the design of heat exchangers incorporating powered burners can be more flexible by eliminating concerns of restricting the combustion air.
Second, the multiplicity of burners (three) and serpentine coilings render the Wolter design complex, with attendant cost impact. Finally, the water to be heated does not completely surround the burners, thereby causing energy loss between the coils, negatively affecting heating efficiency.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,501,261 was granted Tsutsui et al. for art Instantaneous Gas Water Heater. While this design used gas for energy, the design was rendered complex through the use of a fan damper which variably adjusted the size of an air supply opening to the combustion chamber, through the incorporation into the design of variable pitch spacing fins on the outer surface of the heat exchange pipe, and through the use of a water flow sensor comprising a vane wheel, magnet and sensor element. These complexities contributed to the cost of the unit. In addition, this design used a two dimensional burner, which only burned gas in a horizontal plane. Therefore the heat transfer efficiency was not as great as if a three dimensional burner were used. The heat transfer rate was further compromised because this design employed only a single trip by the hot air past the heat exchange pipe. Finally, no heat absorbing layer was disclosed on the heat exchanger pipe or fins, thereby reducing the heat transfer efficiency.
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While the present invention is often described herein with reference to a digital video disc, Blu-Ray disc, and video game distribution system, an application to which the present invention is advantageously suited, it will be readily apparent that the present invention is not limited to that application and can be employed in article dispensing systems used to distribute a wide variety of dispensable articles.
The digital video disc (DVD) player has been one of the most successful consumer electronics product launches in history. The market for DVD movie video, Blu-Ray movie video, and video game rentals is enormous and growing. Millions of households have acquired DVDs since they were introduced in 1997. In the first quarter of 2003 alone, it was estimated that well over three million DVD players were shipped to U.S. retailers.
In 2003, brick-and-mortar stores dominated the movie video and video game rental landscape in the U.S. Statistics showed that two brick-and-mortar companies controlled nearly sixty-five percent of the home video rental business. One element repeatedly cited for success of certain brick- and mortar store video rental franchises was perceived high availability of new video releases. Consumers want entertainment on demand, and through stocking multiple units of each new release, successful brick-and-mortar companies meet this consumer demand.
The foregoing indicates that there is a significant market potential for aligning regular routines of consumers (e.g., shopping, getting coffee or gas or going to a convenience store) with their DVD, Blu-Ray, and video game rental activities.
One improved article dispensing machine is disclosed in commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. The invention of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention can function as an article dispensing machine-based distribution system that will typically have multiple units of each new release per article dispensing machine. The dispensing machines of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention can stock up to two thousand DVDs, Blu-Ray, video games, or other discs (movies, games or other entertainment content), making the system competitive with existing brick-and-mortar video rental superstores.
The dispensing machine and system of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention distinguishes itself from such stores by offering major benefits not conventionally offered by such stores, including additional cross-marketing programs (e.g., promotional rentals for a certain amount of dollars spent at the retail location) and convenience (e.g., open always).
The dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention yields a competitive advantage in the DVD, Blu-Ray disc, and video game rental marketplace by offering consumers cross-marketing/promotional programs, convenience of selection (e.g., computer-based searches for movies and recommendations based on consumer profiles), and potentially extended hours. The present invention employs a more cost-effective, convenient platform than brick-and-mortar stores. In addition, with the present invention, dispensing machines can be situated in retail locations having high foot traffic, such as at a popular grocery store, restaurant, drug store, and/or other popular retail location.
The dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention can be operated at a substantial savings over the costs associated with traditional brick-and-mortar video rental stores. For example, the present invention does not require hourly employees manning the dispensing machines or restocking them with inventories, due to the ability of the article transport storage units to be delivered to/picked up from retail locations by third-party delivery services, such as traditional or contracted courier services.
Unlike brick-and-mortar stores, the dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention does not require an on-site store manager because all operational decisions can be made at a centralized location by a management team officed remote from the retail locations. Unlike brick-and-mortar stores, the dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention does not require significant physical space. Unlike brick-and-mortar stores, the dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention has low operating costs because no heating or air conditioning is required for the dispensing machines and they consume a relatively low level of electrical energy. In addition, the dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 has low maintenance costs and downtime.
The dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention addresses the shortcomings of traditional brick-and-mortar stores in a convenient and cost-effective delivery vehicle having the added bonus of serving as an effective promotional platform that drives incremental sales to retail locations. In addition, the dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention overcomes these disadvantages by at least offering more new releases and older selections for any given time period, and lower cost per viewing with significantly more convenience than Internet-based and pay-per-view services.
The dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention is a fully automated, integrated DVD, Blu-Ray, and video game rental and/or purchase systems. It preferably incorporates robust, secure, scalable software that provides a fully personalized user experience and real-time feedback to retail locations and advertisers, scalable hardware that leverages existing technologies such as touch screen, focused audio speakers and video monitors, technology utilizing the Internet through a system website or mobile/consumer electronics device application, and an article transport storage unit that facilitates the exchange of new discs for old discs in each machine with virtually no need for human intervention. These technologies and others fill long-felt needs in the art and give advantages over conventional video distribution options. The dispensing machine of the U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,609 and the present invention functions as much as a promotional platform as it does a rental kiosk.
By utilizing the dispensing machines and the fully-interactive, real-time, linked Internet website or mobile/consumer electronics device application, consumers can rent one or more DVDs, Blu-Ray discs, video games, or other entertainment content directly from dispensing machines as well as indirectly by making a rental reservation through the website or application for later pickup at a conveniently located machine. These dispensing machines are preferably networked with each other, with the inventory control and/or supply office and with the system website or application by phone-line, DSL, wireless network, or other Internet connection at each retail location. Through this linked network, the rental experience for each consumer can be customized based on a profile for each consumer, such as via personalized home pages and rental screens.
With article dispensing machines, there exists the potential for a customer to attempt to rent a particular movie, television show, or video game disc and find that it is out-of-stock or otherwise unavailable. Conventional article dispensing machines may direct the customer to a nearby article dispensing machine that has the particular disc in stock. While this option may be useful to some customers, it may be inconvenient for other customers to travel to another location. Still other customers may abandon their attempt to rent the particular title from the article dispensing machine and instead patronize another media rental company, a video on demand provider, a downloadable video game provider, an online video or video game streaming provider, or other content provider. In this case, the revenue associated with the rental transaction is lost and the customer may be dissatisfied with their experience with the article dispensing machine. In other situations, a customer at a conventional article dispensing machine desires to rent an in-stock DVD, Blu-ray disc, or video game disc but is not informed of other options available through the machine, including renting related titles or obtaining access to a corresponding digital media selection. This could result in a missed opportunity to build or further a customer relationship, and/or to create a rental or purchase transaction.
The present invention permits a customer to substitute digital alternative media for a physical media article at an article dispensing machine, if the media article is available and in-stock or if the media article is unavailable because it is out-of-stock or reserved to another customer. By offering substitute alternative media, the present invention assists in retention of customers and revenue. Moreover, the content provider receives marketing exposure on the article dispensing machine, which may enhance the value of the content provider's subscription packages. The present invention overcomes disadvantages of conventional article dispensing machines by showing alternative media that correspond to the media article at the article dispensing machine. In one aspect of the present invention, an associated content provider is identified using a unique customer identifier that also applies to the article dispensing machine. In another aspect of the present invention, a customer subscription for the associated content provider is accessed so that the alternative media is determined if the customer subscription allows access to the alternative media. In another aspect of the present invention, determining the alternative media corresponding to the media article is based on matching of the metadata of the media article and the alternative media. In yet another aspect of the present invention, the associated content provider is identified by a user through providing a linkage of the associated content provider to a customer account through a user interface or on a website interface. Other features and advantages are provided by the following description and drawings.
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Many different types of rotary devices have been suggested in the past and have been covered by a large number of patents. Only a relatively small number of these have been thoroughly tested. Many rotary devices such as engines are of interest on paper, but practical difficulties arise when prototypes are constructed. In the field of rotary engines, the best known is the Wankel engine that has been in volume production in Mazda automobiles. Even this engine has had considerable difficulties with proper sealing of the rotors, although such problems have been large overcome.
Another type of rotary engine is referred to herein as the “axial vane type”. This type of engine has a cylindrical rotor located within the cylindrical chamber in a stator. A plurality of blade-like vanes extends slideably through the rotor, parallel to the axis of rotation. There are undulating, parallel cam surfaces on each side of the rotor. High portions of the cam surface on one side align with low portions of the cam surface on the other side.
Rotary engines and other rotary devices such as pumps, compressors and expanders, for example, offer many potential advantages including high efficiency, simple construction and lightweight. However, while the theoretical possibilities of such devices have been suggested in the past, many practical difficulties have inhibited their development beyond the stage of the working prototype. As mentioned above, axial vane rotary devices typically employ solid, generally rectangularly shaped vanes that axially slide on the rotor in response to urging by undulating cam surfaces formed on the end walls of the housing that contains the rotor. The cam surfaces are opposed in that high points on the cam surface on one side of the housing are opposed to low point on the cam surface of the opposite end wall. Only one of the outer edges of the vanes will normally contact a cam surface at a time while the opposite edge is spaced slightly from the cam surface thus providing a gap for leakage of compressed fluid. Likewise during operation, centrifugal force may cause the vanes to lift creating a gap between the inner edges of the vanes and the stationary inner housing in which the rotor drive shaft is housed. Some earlier publications fail to disclose any practical system of seals between the rotor, vanes and stator. In the absence of good sealing the efficiency of the rotary devices is substantially reduced especially in the case of pumps, expanders and compressors.
In an attempt to overcome the sealing problems encountered in axial vane rotary devices some designs of such devices includes the vanes that further include spring members to normally urge the vanes are. Examples of such devices are found in U.S. Pat. No. 22,955, granted Feb. 15, 1859 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,489,126, granted Jan. 13, 1970. Despite these designs, leakage continues to be a problem, particularly between the inner edge of a vane and the inner housing of the rotor in which the rotor drive shaft is contained.
Some of the leakage problems caused by poor sealing have been overcome by an improved axial vane device as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,509,793, 5,551,853 and 5,429,084 to Cherry, et al. The axial vane devices of the type described in these patents are used as pumps, expanders and compressors.
However, sealing the axial vanes in an axial vane rotary device adds substantially to the complexity and cost of manufacture and can result in high maintenance costs. Accordingly, it would be highly desirable to provide a vane design for an axial vane rotary device that provides improved sealing and device efficiency while allowing for the reduction of the complexity and number of seals required and resulting reduction of manufacturing cost.
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Existing compensation structures for Electric Power Steering (EPS) systems often use torque loop compensation for an electric motor control system. In such existing EPS systems, a torque compensator, commonly a notch filter, is employed in the torque path to provide phase lead to ensure that the system remains stable. However, application of a torque compensator may make the EPS system sensitive to disturbances that include frequency content near the notch frequency. The compensator may also cause the on-center feel (torque gradient) to feel less precise.
While well suited for its intended purposes, the torque compensator may not provide desired characteristics under all operating conditions. For example, such a system may not provide desired characteristics under all vehicle speed conditions. With the aforementioned considerations, it may be difficult to apply torque compensation in some vehicles and tune the control system to achieve acceptable performance. Therefore, what is needed is a method for modifying the compensation utilized as a function of vehicle operating parameters.
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Coke is a solid carbon fuel and carbon source used to melt and reduce iron ore in the production of steel. During an iron-making process, iron ore, coke, heated air and limestone or other fluxes are fed into a blast furnace. The heated air causes combustion of the coke that provides heat and a source of carbon for reducing iron oxides to iron. Limestone or other fluxes may be added to react with and remove the acidic impurities, called slag, from the molten iron. The limestone-impurities float to the top of the molten iron and are skimmed off.
In one process, known as the “Thompson Coking Process,” coke used for refining metal ores, as described above, is produced by batch feeding pulverized coal to an oven that is sealed and heated to very high temperatures for 24 to 48 hours under closely controlled atmospheric conditions. Coking ovens have been used for many years to covert coal into metallurgical coke. During the coking process, finely crushed coal is heated under controlled temperature conditions to devolatilize the coal and form a fused mass having a predetermined porosity and strength. Because the production of coke is a batch process, multiple coke ovens are operated simultaneously, hereinafter referred to as a “coke oven battery”.
At the end of the coking cycle, the finished coke is removed from the oven and quenched with water. The cooled coke may be screened and loaded onto rail cars or trucks for shipment or later use or moved directly to an iron melting furnace.
The melting and fusion process undergone by the coal particles during the heating process is the most important part of the coking process. The degree of melting and degree of assimilation of the coal particles into the molten mass determine the characteristics of the coke produced. In order to produce the strongest coke from a particular coal or coal blend, there is an optimum ratio of reactive to inert entities in the coal. The porosity and strength of the coke are important for the ore refining process and are determined by the coal source and/or method of coking.
Coal particles or a blend of coal particles are charged into hot ovens on a predetermined schedule, and the coal is heated for a predetermined period of time in the ovens in order to remove volatiles from the resulting coke. The coking process is highly dependent on the oven design, the type of coal and conversion temperature used. Ovens are adjusted during the coking process so that each charge of coal is coked out in approximately the same amount of time. Once the coal is coked out, the coke is removed from the oven and quenched with water to cool it below its ignition temperature. The quenching operation must also be carefully controlled so that the coke does not absorb too much moisture. Once it is quenched, the coke is screened and loaded into rail cars or trucks for shipment.
Because coal is fed into hot ovens, much of the coal feeding process is automated. In slot-type ovens, the coal is typically charged through slots or openings in the top of the ovens. Such ovens tend to be tall and narrow. More recently, horizontal non-recovery or heat recovery type coking ovens have been used to produce coke. Horizontal ovens are described for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,784,034 and 4,067,462 to Thompson. In the non-recovery or heat recovery type coking ovens, conveyors are used to convey the coal particles horizontally into the ovens to provide an elongate bed of coal having a height of about 101 centimeters, a length of about 13.7 meters, and a width of about 3.6 meters.
As the source of coal suitable for forming metallurgical coal has decreased, attempts have been made to blend weak or non-coking coals with coking coals to provide a suitable coal charge for the ovens. One attempt is to use compacted coal. The coal may be compacted before or after it is in the oven. While coal conveyors are suitable for charging ovens with particulate coal that is then partially compacted in the oven, such conveyors are generally not suitable for charging ovens with pre-compacted coal. Ideally, the coal should be compacted to greater than 800 kilograms per cubic meter in order to enhance the usefulness of lower quality coal. It is well known that as the percentage of lower quality coal in a coal blend is increased, higher levels of coal compaction are required up to about 1040 to 1120 kilograms per cubic meter.
However, currently available processes are not suitable for providing a compacted coal charge that has a substantially uniform bulk density throughout the entire depth of an elongate coal charge bed at a relatively high rate of speed and without the generation of substantial amounts of coal dust during compaction. There is a need therefor, for an improved method and apparatus for compacting coal without generating coal dust and for charging coking ovens with pre-compacted coal. There is also a need for an apparatus for minimizing the amount of time required to provide a substantially uniform bed of compacted coal for use in making metallurgical coke.
In accordance with the foregoing and other needs, the disclosure provides relatively high speed methods for increasing the bulk density of coal particles without impacting the coal particles and an apparatus for compacting coal for making metallurgical coke. The method includes depositing coal particles onto a charging plate external to a coking oven. The charging plate has side walls, and at least one movable end wall to provide an elongate bed of dry, uncompacted coal having an upper surface on the charging plate. The uncompacted coal is compacted by passing a vibratory cylindrical compactor along a length of the uncompacted coal for a number of passes sufficient to decrease a thickness of the bed of coal to less than about 80 percent of an original thickness of the uncompacted coal. The vibratory cylindrical compactor has a length to diameter ratio ranging from about 1.4:1 to about 2:1. In another aspect, an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure provides a coal compacting and coke oven charging apparatus. The apparatus has a coal bed transfer plate having side walls, at least one movable end wall, and a transfer plate translating mechanism for transporting compacted coal into the coke oven. A vacuum source is used for degassing the uncompacted bed of coal during the compaction process to provide a dry, compacted coal bed having a bulk density ranging from about 960 to about 1200 kilograms per cubic meter.
In yet another aspect, an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure provides a coal compacting and coke oven charging apparatus The apparatus includes a coal bed charge car comprising a transfer plate having side walls, at least one movable end wall, and a transfer plate translating mechanism for transporting compacted coal into the coke oven. A coal compacting device is provided to compact the coal without impact energy. The coal compacting device includes a vibratory roller mechanism for compacting a bed of uncompacted coal on the transfer plate; a coal bed translation device attached to the vibratory roller mechanism for moving the vibratory roller mechanism along a length of the bed of uncompacted coal; an elevation mechanism on the coal bed translation device for lowering the vibratory roller to be in contact with the uncompacted coal during a compacting step and for raising the vibratory roller out of contact with compacted coal during an oven charging step; and a degassing device for degassing the uncompacted bed of coal during the compacting step.
The method and apparatus described herein provide unique advantages for coking operations including providing coal with a relatively high bulk density in a relatively short period of time. Another advantage of the method and apparatus is that relatively simple mechanical devices may be used to compact the coal and transfer the compacted coal into the coke oven without using a pile-driver-type compaction device that may cause an increase in coal dust during compaction and that may cause damage to structures and equipment during the compaction process. A further advantage is that the resulting coal bed is substantially compacted throughout its depth to about the same uniform bulk density.
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In a control system that includes distributed plural pieces of communication control equipment, time synchronization between the communication control equipment may be required in accordance with an application that realizes the control. In a distributed control system connected to a network, time synchronization is possible by transmission and reception of time synchronization packets via the network.
A time synchronization method using a network includes NTP (NetworkTime Protocol), SNTP (SimpleNetworkTime Protocol), IEEE 1588, etc.
Here, an execution procedure of a time synchronization protocol of IEEE 1588 is explained using FIG. 14 and FIG. 15. IEEE 1588 is applied to master-slave configurations.
FIG. 14 explains the execution procedure of the time synchronization protocol of IEEE 1588. FIG. 15 shows exchange of messages between a master and a slave in IEEE 1588.
First, a master transmits a Sync message to a slave (S060).
At this time, the master records a transmission time t1 of the Sync message (S061).
Upon receiving the Sync message, the slave records a reception time t2 thereof (S062).
The master notifies the transmission time t1 of the Sync message to the slave by use of any of the following methods (S063). In one of the methods, information on the transmission time t1 is placed on the Sync message. In another method, information on the transmission time t1 is placed on a Follow_Up message following the Sync message.
Then, the slave transmits a Delay_Req message to the master (S064).
At this time, the slave records a transmission time t3 of the Delay_Req message (S065).
Upon receiving the Delay_Req message, the master records a reception time t4 thereof (S066).
The master places information on the reception time t4 of the Delay_Req message on a Delay_Resp message and notifies the slave of the reception time t4 (S067).
The slave that has received the Delay_Resp message calculates a communication delay and a time difference between the master and slave from the times t1, t2, t3, and t4 (S068).
The calculation of communication delays is executed on the premise that the forward communication delay and backward communication delay are equal to one another between the master and slave. Therefore, a one-way communication delay td is expressed by Formula (1).td=((t4−t3)+(t2−t1))/2 (1)
A time difference tdiff between the master and slave is expressed by Formula (2).tdiff=((t4−t3)−(t2−t1))/2 (2)
The slave is time-synchronized with the master by use of the tdiff.
When the network includes intermediary equipment such as a network switch, a precision of the time synchronization will decrease. IEEE 1588 is based on the premise that a forward delay and backward delay of a time synchronization packet are equal to one another or that, even when there is a time difference between the delays, the time difference is well known.
When a network is shared by plural pieces of communication control equipment as in a distributed control system, time synchronization packets are queued within intermediary equipment such as a network switch, jitters occur in a time difference between the forward and backward delays. That is, since the forward and backward delays of a time synchronization packet differs from one another and a time difference between the forward and backward delays is unknown, the premise of IEEE 1588 collapses.
In IEEE 1588-2008, “IEEE Standard for a Precision Clock Synchronization Protocol for Networked Measurement and Control Systems,” a transfer delay of a packet within a network device can be measured by use of an end-to-end TC (Transparent Clock) or peer-to-peer TC. By reflecting this measured transfer delay in data in the packet, it is possible to calculate a difference between the forward and backward communication delays. However, to use these methods, a network device corresponding to the end-to-end TC or peer-to-peer TC may be required. Such a network device is high in cost and does not become widespread comparing to general network devices, so they are difficult to obtain, and thus difficult to use.
In JP-A No. 2010-74600, plural delay estimation packets are transmitted at a predetermined transmission interval, reception intervals and predetermined transmission intervals are compared to estimate a queuing delay in a network device. However, in this method, since a time synchronization protocol is executed in both a master and a slave, communication control equipment compliant with a standard cannot be used in both the master and slave. Therefore, it is difficult to configure a system using communication control equipment compliant with the standard. Additionally, since a delay estimation packet is transmitted, an amount of transmission and reception of packets other than time synchronization packets are small. Accordingly, an amount of information transmitted and received in the system is small.
It is desirable to provide communication control equipment that is useful for a network configuration using general network intermediary equipment and that is able to time synchronize with other communication control equipment connected by a network without reducing an amount of information transmitted and received in a system.
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Flash memory is a non-volatile memory that enables data programming and deleting in a system after the system is deployed in the field. Due to the compact size of flash memory, it is commonly used in many consumer devices, such as digital camera, cellular phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), MP3 player, audio recorder, laptop computer, television set-top box, etc. Many such consumer devices are designed to accept flash memory devices and so have a specific flash memory interface, such as a flash memory connector or slot, in which flash memory devices may be inserted. This interface controls the data flow between the host device and the flash memory.
However, the amount of data that can be stored through the flash memory interface is limited to the capacity of the flash memory device. A currently available flash memory may be able to store up to about one gigabyte (1 GB) of data, which is significantly lower than a currently available disk drive that may be able to store a few hundred gigabytes of data. Therefore, there is a need for an apparatus and method to couple a disk drive to a host device having a flash memory interface.
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Vehicle emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) are of increasing concern as CO2 is a principal greenhouse gas for global warming. In an effort to reduce the amount of CO2 emitted from a vehicle several systems and methods have been developed. However, as there are many ongoing legislative efforts to mandate significant reduction in CO2 emissions in vehicles new technologies are needed in addition to the previously known developments.
One such method for reducing the emission of CO2 is known as an engine start-stop strategy. Start-stop technology reduces CO2 by deactivating the engine of a vehicle when the vehicle brakes or when it comes to a stop. The engine restarts once the vehicle ceases braking or begins accelerating from a stopped position.
Another technology that achieves CO2 reduction is known as an intelligent speed adaptation (ISA). ISA systems monitor the current speed of a vehicle and compare the current speed to the speed limit of the vehicle's current location or a speed limit based on current road or traffic scenarios. The system provides either a warning to the driver when the vehicle speed exceeds the speed limit and/or performs active speed control of the vehicle. As the speed of a vehicle and emissions produced are directly related, limiting the maximum speed of the vehicle affords some reduction in the emissions produced. However, current ISA applications are primarily used as a safety system to prevent vehicles from exceeding a speed limit, and, as such, are configured to limiting a maximum speed rather than reducing CO2 emissions.
Neither the engine start-stop systems nor ISA systems take into account additional driving factors that can contribute to a reduction in CO2 emissions, such systems merely discontinue the operation of the engine or limit the maximum speed. Accordingly, it is desirable to have a system which can contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions that result from driving factors not addressed by previously known methods. Further, it is desirable to have a system which can be used in combination with previously known CO2 reduction methods which would result in additional CO2 reduction.
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This invention relates generally to the field of offshore platform structure design and construction and, in particular, to a novel method for mating a production and/or drilling deck with a self-floating substructure.
Offshore platforms have been used to expand oil and gas exploration and production to various offshore environments. As platforms have been placed in deeper water and in more hostile environments, designs have been modified to adapt to those environments, often involving larger substructure and decks. In order to reduce construction and commissioning time and costs for increasingly complex decks, the deck portion of a platform may be constructed separately from the substructure and then the two sections xe2x80x9cmatedxe2x80x9d to complete the platform construction.
Much of the current technology for mating a deck with a self-floating substructure was developed in the early 1970s with the introduction of North Sea gravity based structures (GBS). A GBS is a large structure designed to be towed to the installation location, where it is ballasted down and held in place on the sea floor by the force of gravity. Generally, North Sea GBSs support large production facilities that are not economically feasible to install by conventional lifting methods developed for steel jacket structures. The smaller production equipment for steel jackets, such as are used in the Gulf of Mexico, is often lifted into place with crane barges once the jacket is in place. In the North Sea, the large production modules and the severe wave environment made it impossible to use early conventional lifting methods for deck installations-crane barges capable of significantly heavier lifts are now available. As a consequence of this difficulty, the GBS concept evolved.
One of the main features of the GBS concept is its capacity for carrying large deck payloads during the ocean tow to the installation site. Decks used with GBSs generally consist either of production and drilling equipment modules along with a module support frame (MSF) or of an integrated deck that combines the equipment with the deck structure into an integrated unit. The deck assembly typically takes place on a pier or on purpose-built supports. Once completed, two to four special barges lift the deck off the pier or supports by deballasting the barges and then transport the deck to deeper water where the partially or wholly submerged GBS is ready for the deck transfer. Transfer to the support towers of the GBS is accomplished by deballasting the GBS and/or ballasting the barges. After the deck is transferred, the GBS is deballasted to the tow draft and prepared for the ocean tow.
The disadvantages of the North Sea GBS deck installation method are: 1) the cost associated with the use of the deck transport barges; 2) costs associated with construction of temporary piers and supports; 3) potential cost penalties associated with strengthening of the MSF or integrated deck to accommodate load reversals as a result of the deck transfer to the GBS; 4) potential construction delays when appropriate deck transport barges are not readily available; and 5) restricted weather conditions for towing multi-barge units.
In other situations, topsides facility installations have involved lifting of decks or modules onto the substructure once the substructure has been installed at the desired location. These lifts are generally performed by heavy-lift crane vessels, which, due to limited availability, can be very expensive and difficult to schedule, especially for larger decks. Following the lifts, offshore hook-up and commissioning activities may require several months for completion. Decks designed for crane-lift installation require significantly more steel in the MSF to withstand the lifting forces.
The integrated deck concept was developed to reduce the time and cost of offshore construction by building the deck as a single integrated unit and completing the majority of hook-ups prior to mating the deck with the substructure. Various techniques for such mating have been developed, including the Brown and Root Hi-deck and other float-over installation concepts. Float-over installation concepts in general involve loading the completed deck structure onto a transport barge, positioning the barge between the legs of the platform substructure, ballasting the barge down to mate the deck with the substructure, and removing the barge. Much engineering effort has gone into developing methods for reducing the load shifts caused by barge movement during the mating. A deck installed with one of the float-over methods requires less steel than is required to accommodate lifting stresses, but some extra structural steel is still required to accommodate the load shifts during both the initial loading onto a barge and the subsequent transfer of the load between the barge and the platform substructure.
While many applications of the integrated deck concept involve bringing a barge in between the legs of an offshore platform, another alternative for deck installation has been the use of catamaran and U-shaped vessels and barges to support the deck for mating with a single-column or other comparatively narrower substructure. Jacks may be used to raise the deck above the top of the substructure, allowing it to then be lowered into the desired installation position. As with the other float-over techniques, the barge is subsequently removed.
While the currently available techniques have reduced platform construction costs, there is still a need for a more cost-effective way to mate a production and/or drilling deck with a self-floating substructure.
This invention provides a method for constructing an offshore platform by combining a self-floating substructure with a self-floating deck structure. First, a self-floating offshore platform deck structure constructed with a mating surface on the bottom and a self-floating platform substructure with a mating surface on the top are obtained. In the preferred embodiment, mating is achieved by at least partially submerging the substructure, positioning the self-floating deck section above it, and then adjusting the buoyancy of either or both sections to create a bearing force between the upper and lower mating surfaces. Once mated, the substructure may be raised for towing to the installation site, at which it may be installed as either a bottom-founded or a floating platform.
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The present invention relates generally to image reading (or readable) devices and methods, and more particularly to a double-sided image readable device and method. A double-sided image readable device means a device that serves to read front and rear surfaces of a document simultaneously. The present invention is suitable for double-sided readable image scanners, copiers, facsimile machines, electrophotographic devices having flat bed unit and automatic document feed ("ADF") unit (or a sheet feed unit). A flat bed unit means a type that uses an optical system to read a document statically placed on a glass board, while an ADF unit means a type that automatically and mechanically feeds a document paper so as to read it using a static optical system.
As recent demands for effective use of resource have increased opportunities to use documents having images on its both sides, high-speed and high-resolution double-sided readable image scanners that may read the images on both document sides have been sought. An image scanner converts data indicative of lightness and density for each pixel color that has been obtained by scanning, into digital data as a result of comparison with white and black reference data. A double-sided readable image scanner typically includes flat bed and ADF units, a first optical system at the flat bed unit side, a second optical system at the ADF unit side, first and second white reference boards, and first black reference board. These white and black reference boards are fixed onto a housing. The first optical system reads one document surface, whereas the second optical system reads the other surface of the document. Each optical system includes a fluorescent lamp and CCD sensor, and reads the document by emitting lamplight onto the document and converting the reflection light into an electronic signal using the CCD sensor. The first white and black reference boards are arranged apart from a document feed path, and used as white and black references, respectively, for the first optical system. The second white reference board is located below the document feed path and used as white and black references for the second optical system.
In general, an image scanner corrects white and black reference data at the beginning of reading and at an appropriate intermission during a reading of a large amount of pages (for instance, every 50-page reading) in order to correct a change in quantity of lamp's light and the sensitivity dispersion of photosensitive pixels in the CCD sensor. According to the conventional correction method of white and black reference data, the first optical system, which is movable, moves to the first white and black reference boards and reads them while the lamp turns on. The second optical system, which is not movable, reads the second white reference board just below the feed path while the lamp turns on and sets the resultant value as a white reference. In addition, the second optical system reads the second white reference board while the lamp turns off and sets the resultant value as a black reference.
White and black reference values are generated as one line pixel data from the read white and black reference data, and stored in a memory. In reading the document, these white and black reference values are used for correction of image data (which is referred to as "shading correction").
However, external leakage light that reaches the second white reference board even when the fluorescent lamp turns off would cause the second white reference board to be incomplete or whitish black. Light black set as a black reference, or recognition of white as black would cause a read image to be more blackish than an actual image, disadvantageously preventing a high-resolution image reading.
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Intragastric balloons are well known in the art as a means for treating obesity. One such inflatable intragastric balloon is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,084,061 and is commercially available as the BioEnterics Intragastric Balloon System (sold under the trademark BIB® System). These devices are designed to provide therapy for moderately obese individuals who need to shed pounds in preparation for surgery, or as part of a dietary or behavioral modification program.
The BIB System, for example, comprises a silicone elastomer intragastric balloon that is inserted into the stomach and filled with fluid. Conventionally, the balloons are placed in the stomach in an empty or deflated state and thereafter filled (fully or partially) with a suitable fluid. The balloon occupies space in the stomach, thereby leaving less room available for food and creating a feeling of satiety for the patient. Clinical results with these devices show that for many obese patients, the intragastric balloons significantly help to control appetite and accomplish weight loss.
Placement of such balloons is temporary, and such balloons are typically removed after about six months. One means of removing the balloon is to deflate it by puncturing the balloon, and either aspirating the contents of the balloon or allowing the fluid to pass into the patient's stomach. This means of removing fluid from the balloon requires surgical intervention, through the use of a gastroscopic instrument. Alternatively, if the balloon is left in place beyond its designed lifetime, the acids present in a patient's stomach may erode the balloon to the point where it self deflates. When this occurs, the deflated balloon may pass naturally through the patient's digestive system and be expelled through the bowel. For instance, McGhan, U.S. Pat. No. 6,733,512, describes a self-deflating intragastric balloon that includes a biodegradable inflation valve. After a certain residence time in the stomach, the valve starts to leak and eventually the balloon deflates and passes though the patient's digestive tract.
Despite the advances in the design of intragastric balloons, there remains a need for improved intragastric balloon systems and methods.
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The present invention relates to the field of measuring departures from planeness in the surfaces of road and highway pavements, and of all paths on which vehicles of any type travel, including runways.
Departures from planeness in road or highway pavements, in traffic paths of all types, and in runways, give rise to significant drawbacks for users and also for the works themselves. For users, numerous studies have shown that the comfort, safety, and costs of using vehicles are influenced to a very great extent by the vibrations induced by departures from planeness. So far as the works themselves are concerned, these defects give rise to additional stresses which shorten their lifetime.
As a result, regulations require minimum quality standards to be satisfied when the works are constructed, both for satisfying users and for ensuring long life for the work. An evaluation of the planeness qualities of a work is also one of the major parameters used during periodic inspections thereof for maintenance purposes.
The advantage of having means for measuring departures from planeness is therefore manifest, both for contractors and for authorities.
In conventional road terminology, it is the practice to use the terms xe2x80x9cprofilexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cdepartures from profilexe2x80x9d rather than xe2x80x9cdepartures from planenessxe2x80x9d, and apparatus capable of providing an image of the real profile of the road surface by sampling along one or more substantially parallel lines in a given direction, and capable of being included in ordinary traffic, is referred to as a xe2x80x9cdynamicxe2x80x9d profilometer, as contrasted with xe2x80x9cstaticxe2x80x9d profilometers which require the road under test to be closed to traffic.
It should be observed that all existing profilometers give an image that approximates to the real profile, firstly because they do not observe the entire surface but only a finite number of lines, and secondly because they filter the real profile, deforming it both in amplitude and in phase within wavelength bands where their response differs from unity, and generally in phase even in frequency bands where their amplitude response is indeed unity.
So far as roads are concerned, the following are generally distinguished:
microtexture for wavelengths shorter than 0.5 millimeters (mm);
macrotexture for wavelengths lying in the range 0.5 mm to 50 mm;
megatexture for wavelengths lying in the range 50 mm to 0.5 meters (m); and
smoothness (or conversely roughness) for wavelengths lying in the range 0.5 m to 50 m.
Present dynamic profilometers can be classified in two broad categories:
profilometers using an inertial reference making use of an inertial type artificial horizon as a reference plane, and measuring variations in height relative to said reference plane in order to estimate profile; by construction such devices are sensitive to measurement speed and to the quality of their reference plane; and
profilometers using a pure geometrical reference, which starting from a known position enable profile to be reconstructed by moving a ruler with precision; by construction, these devices are sensitive to the precision with which the ruler is moved and also to measurement errors, where the influence of such errors generally increases exponentially with distance.
The state of the art is illustrated by document WO 98/24977 published on Jun. 11, 1998 which shows a profilometer on board a vehicle, the profilometer having three contactless distance-measuring sensors mounted at the front of the vehicle chassis and aligned transversely in a direction perpendicular to the travel direction of the vehicle, together with a system for measuring the positions of the sensors relative to an artificial horizon, said system comprising in particular an accelerometer for measuring vertical acceleration and inclinometers for measuring the inclinations of the chassis relative to the artificial horizon, both in terms of roll and in terms of pitch. Each sensor provides a measurement of its height above the pavement. By using a computer that is connected to the various devices, that profilometer makes it possible to reconstruct the profile along three lines drawn along the pavement, one line to the right of the vehicle, one line to the left of the vehicle, and a central line.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,571,695 describes a device whose intended purpose is to measure the smoothness of a pavement, i.e. its deformation in the absence of any load relative to an ideal surface, and it also seeks to measure pavement deflection, i.e. deformation under the effect of a load relative to its state in the absence of load.
Given the principle on which it works, the device described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,571,695 requires four sensors referenced 10, 20, 30, and 40 in its FIGS. 1 and 2. That document describes measuring smoothness with the help of a memory system, requiring extreme accuracy in the positioning of one measurement relative to another. The term xe2x80x9cmemory systemxe2x80x9d is used to designate a measurement system in which the value of measurement n depends on the value of measurement k where k less than n. Such systems present at least two particular features: firstly, any error in measurement k induces an error in measurement n and entrains error propagation, and secondly it is generally necessary to make assumptions about the first measurement or to apply a posteriori corrections on the set of measurements, even if they do not include any error, in order to compensate for the lack of any antecedents for the first measurement. Thus, in the measurement method described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,571,695, the height of each measurement point is a function of previously measured points and the pitch at which measurement points are sampled is determined by the relative position of the various sensors along the beam which they use as a support.
The present invention thus seeks to provide a method of reconstituting the profile of a line drawn on a pavement that makes it possible to ignore the oscillations of the support for the measuring devices (body movements if the support is a road vehicle), variations in speed, speeds of the support, and problems of phase, of the influence of the shape of support beam on the sampling pitch, and of the need to use the preceding points in order to calculate the current point.
The method of the invention is characterized by:
moving over the pavement three contactless distance-measuring sensors that are equidistantly in horizontal alignment in the direction of motion;
simultaneously measuring the height of each of the three sensors above the pavement;
measuring the distance travelled by one of said sensors; and
substracting twice the height measured by the middle sensor from the sum of the heights measured by the end sensors.
It can be shown by calculation that the result of the subtraction is proportional to the function that represents the profile, and that it is independent of the position of the artificial horizon used in conventional methods of calculation. This is shown below in the present specification. In addition, the coefficient of proportionality does not include a phase term. As a result, if a direct Fourier transform is applied to the signal representative of the result of the subtraction, and if a simple multiplying coefficient is applied to the real and imaginary portions of the transform, then the initial profile can be obtained by performing the inverse Fourier transform.
The three contactless measurement sensors preferably pick up the distance between themselves and the pavement simultaneously. This operation is repeated each time the sensors have travelled through a selected distance. This distance is fixed for any one series of measurements.
The travel distance pitch is fixed for a series of measurements corresponding to a sample or to a portion of the pavement, but this travel distance pitch can be modified at will. It can be made longer when it is desired to measure the smoothness or the megastructure of the pavement, or shorter when it is desired to measure the microtexture or the macrotexture of certain lengths of the pavement.
The contactless distance-measuring sensors are preferably of the laser type using a triangulation principle or a method based on defocusing, as explained in EP 0 278 269. It is also possible to envisage using ultrasound sensors operating at high frequency or conventional telemetry devices of precision enabling resolution of about 10 microns to be obtained.
The invention also provides apparatus for implementing the method.
The apparatus is characterized by the fact that it comprises:
a carrying vehicle suitable for being moved along the pavement;
a longitudinal beam carried by said vehicle in such a manner as to be substantially horizontal;
three contactless distance-measuring sensors that are mounted equidistantly in horizontal alignment on said beam and that are suitable for delivering signals representative of their heights above the pavement;
a device for measuring the distance travelled by the vehicle; and
a computer receiving signals from the device for measuring the distance travelled by the vehicle and from the contactless distance-measuring sensors.
Because of the principle on which calculation is based, the proposed apparatus does not introduce any phase distortion in profile measurement. As a result it enables the true profile to be reconstituted easily by using simple signal processing methods.
The proposed apparatus does not use an inertial reference. It can thus easily be used in traffic at varying speed, e.g. in an urban area, without that affecting the result of the measurements taken.
The proposed apparatus is not of the type having a pure geometrical reference. It is thus less sensitive to measurement errors and less demanding concerning the quality of the distance reference used.
Since the proposed apparatus uses contactless sensors and delivers results that are independent of the movements of its carrying apparatus, it can be used during the operations of building the structures mentioned in the introduction.
The proposed apparatus is equally suitable for dynamically measuring smoothness and megatexture, or alternatively statically measuring microtexture and macrotexture.
It should be observed that the carrying vehicle can be the chassis of a conventional road vehicle.
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Hardware and software vendors offer platforms that allow a single physical machine (e.g., a host computer) to be partitioned into multiple independent network components (e.g., virtual machines). A virtual machine (VM) also referred to as an endpoint is typically software executed on a host machine (e.g., a node) in a communications network. A logical or virtual network connects a plurality of VMs, where different virtual networks may co-exist over the same infrastructure, comprising of networking equipment and physical hosts. A VM is generally associated with a single tenant over a virtual network implemented for that tenant. The virtual network is operated according to a set of service level agreements (SLAs) negotiated by the respective tenant. The SLA defines the level of service that will be provided to the tenant, which is characterized by the level of resources that may be utilized by the tenant's virtual network.
Multi-tenant virtual environments are configured to rely on an infrastructure in which resources are shared in order to achieve a higher profit margin by leveraging the economy of scale. Virtualized solutions that offer full consolidation of resources have been deployed to provide processing and storage resources, and more recently to deliver networking services. In a virtualized multi-tenant environment, it is desirable to provide different levels quality of service (QoS) for different tenants depending on the provisions of a tenant's SLA. To accomplish this, different types of traffic may be defined according to throughput and latency guarantees, such that services associated with a higher QoS, per a tenant's SLA, are given priority over a service associated with a lower QoS.
The above implementation ensures that a tenant with a more expensive or higher level subscription gets the proper priority and service. In the context of networking services, generally, network traffic and data communications bandwidth is managed using a best effort approach by simply transmitting data to the extent that bandwidth is available. Many protocols and mechanisms have been developed to provide different levels of QoS guarantees on top of the best effort approach. Such mechanisms can be configured to monitor and control the QoS either by controlling flow of communication between two network nodes, or by controlling transmission of data packets over a communications network based on the category or class to which the data packet belongs (i.e., flow QoS v. class QoS).
Currently, there is no enabling mechanism in a multi-tenant communications network for a tenant to differentiate between the traffic types associated with the tenant or to apply different services levels for the different types of traffic in the same manner as it is possible in a traditional single tenant environment. This is due to the fact that, at the network infrastructure level, data transmission generated or designated for the different virtual networks, potentially owned by different tenants, the same resources are used by the different virtual networks, where the virtual networks compete with each other for resource allocation.
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At present, most of the more that 600,000 tons of regulated biomedical waste generated by hospitals, laboratories, clinics and medical offices in the United States are disposed of through means of off-site incineration. Such incineration, whether on-site or off-site gives rise to problems concerning compliance with the Federal Clean Air Standards Act which, as a result, have often raised capital and operating costs associated therewith to prohibitive levels.
Accordingly, some effort has been directed toward the creation of industrial sized autoclaving. However, this approach has been questioned because it cannot be assured that steam penetration will occur throughout an entire load of medical waste, given the variables of packaging and fluid volumes which may exist within any particular batch of medical waste. Further, autoclaving does not render the medical waste unrecognizable or reduce its volume. Thusly, it is unsuitable for disposal in already overcrowded landfills.
Most importantly, the storing costs and liability have caused increasingly more health care institutions to turn away from having their waste hauled to off-site treatment. However, the problem of satisfactory means of on-site treatment, by whatever means, still exists.
Prior art approaches to medical waste fragmentation and disposal, other than the approaches of autoclaving and incineration include efforts at encapsulating the contaminated waste, typically in a thermoplastic compound. Such efforts are taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,979,683 to Busdeker, entitled Portable Small Scale Medical Waste Treatment Machine and U.S. Pat. No. 4,992,217 (1991) to Spinello, entitled Apparatus and Method For Sterilizing, Destroying And Encapsulating Medical Implement Wastes.
There is further known in the art, a number of special purpose medical waste grinders having potential value in smaller or portable type disposal systems. Such grinding approaches are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,971,261 (1990) to Solomons, entitled Medical Waste Fragmentation and Disposal System, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,994 (1991) to Maitlen, et al, entitled Medical Waste Grinder.
The use of microwaves in the disinfecting of medical waste, which comprises one aspect of the present system, is shown, with reference to the treatment of sludge in U.S. Pat. No. 5,003,143 (1991), entitled Microwave Sludge Drying Apparatus and Method. Further, the use of microwaves in a medical disinfectant system for the treatment of medical waste exists in a system commercially available from ABB Sanitec, Inc., Division of Asea Brown Boveri, known as the ABB Sanitec Microwave Disinfection System. The Sanitec system has been used in Europe since 1984 and in the United States since 1990. The Sanitec system employs two basic steps--the first that of shredding the medical waste and the second that of steam-treating the ground waste while exposing the same to microwaves.
The Sanitec system suffers from a number of problems that have limited its use in the United States. One of these is that many states do not permit infectious waste to be ground prior to treatment because such grinding creates an additional risk of exposing hospital workers to infection. It is asserted by many state regulators that when medical material containing infectious agents are manipulated and disrupted, such waste, particularly waste containing aerosols, containing micro-organism are released, people can become infected through the mouth, nose and eyes as well as transdermally. A second difficulty with the Sanitec system is that its normal operating temperature, in the microwave portion thereof, is that of 203 degrees Fahrenheit. This specialists in the applicable field (which is known as epidemiology), have asserted is inadequate to confidently kill the test organism Bacillus strarochermophilus. Accordingly, the prior art of medical waste disposal and disinfection systems which employ microwaves have suffered from problems at the input stage regarding the possible release of infectious agents during the grinding step and, as well, at the output thereof because of inadequate temperature.
The instant invention addresses the above shortcomings of microwave and other prior art approaches of to medical waste disposal. In so doing there is provided a system concept applicable to various sized system including one that can easily be used within most doctors offices and, one that can be used on-site at a hospital and, finally, an industrial sized system which can be used off-site at designated medical waste disposal locations.
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Electrolytic recovery of metals from solution is well known. Such electrolytic recovery is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,785,950; 3,535,218; 1,839,905; and 3,579,431.
The present invention is particularly suited for the removal of metals from solution of low metal content where the metal will deposit on a cathode in a powdery form. An example of this is the removal of copper from etching solutions used on printed circuit boards and the invention will be described in that environment. In the etching of printed circuit boards using one common etchant, copper is introduced in the etchant and cupric or cuprous ammonium chloride is produced. Copper can be efficiently recovered from this used etchant solution and also etchants which contain concentrations of cupric or cuprous ammonium salts. By removing the copper electrolytically, the etching solution can be substantially regenerated. However, the processed etchant still contains some copper in solution and the solution may be objectionable as an etchant. In one copper recovery technique, a cell containing a plurality of alternate anodes and cathOdes is utilized where the electrolyte is ammoniacal ammonium chloride. The anodes are made of graphite and the cathodes of copper. Oxygen is liberated at the anode and the following effective reaction occurs at the cathode. EQU Cu(NH.sub.3).sub.4 Cl.sub.2 +H.sub.2 =Cu+2NH.sub.4 Cl+2NH.sub.3
The outflowing solution, therefore, becomes a regenerated etchant, but, however, still contains some copper in solution.
In the described recovery process, copper is deposited in powdery form on the cathode due to the electrolysis occurring within the cell and the outflowing solution becomes a regenerated printed circuit board etchant of substantially reduced copper content. The copper powder builds up on the cathodes, and occasionally, the adhered powder falls to the bottom of the cell. The copper powder collected in the bottom of the cell is occasionally removed by pumping, or any other conventional method. A system of the type described will provide an electrolyte output containing approximately two grams/litre copper while the etchant introduced into the cell to be treated contains about one hundred and twenty grams per litre.
The present invention provides a system for secondary treatment of the etchant which will remove additional copper in powdered form and provide a clarified etchant having less than one part per million copper. The finally treated etchant, after NH.sub.3 addition, is essentially equivalent to a virgin etchant.
The metal content of a solution may be reduced by primary treatment using other techniques such as ion exchange, hydrogen reduction and solvent extraction, as well as electrolysis.
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In a large production environment, hundreds of machines or stations may make up a production line. The buffer between stations is a storage area such as a conveyor, transport (i.e. forklift, cart, truck, etc.), silo (either manual or automatic), or simply a place within the flow of product. Every station is configured to generate event codes and transmit event data for analysis. Event codes are generated for many different reasons, for example, when a machine is broken, is starved (no parts are available to process), is blocked (unable to unload a completed part), the machine or station takes to long to complete the manufacturing process and the machine or station requires a tool change.
Production efficiency, throughput, is high when a minimum number of parts are on the line or in a specific buffer such as is required only to maintain continuous flow of products through the manufacturing line at the intended speed. If a station breaks down or becomes inoperable, upstream and downstream stations may be quickly affected. Stations upstream may be blocked if buffers they feed are full. Stations downstream may become starved if buffers they draw from are empty.
A breakdown can occur for a number of different reasons. There may be thousands of possible fault codes associated with a machine. When a breakdown occurs, information about the breakdown is stored in the Production Monitoring and Control (PM&C) system. Commonly this includes a reason for the breakdown (called an event code or a fault code) and the duration. The duration might be further subdivided into a response time, a diagnostic time (time to diagnose the problem), an order time (time to order or acquire the replacement part), and the actual time to repair the machine. Other types of subdivisions for times might be appropriate as well.
The term “breakdown” as used herein may include any number of other conditions of a machine. It truly may be a non-operating machine, or inoperable or become offline. However, it may also be non-functional for many different reasons unrelated to the machine itself. In certain situations, stock may become unavailable. For example, an assembly line that receives components to be mounted on the product (crankshafts and pistons for an engine assembly line) from feeder lines may become slowed if components arrive at a machine late. A shortage of these parts also interrupts production, but this situation should not normally occur on a manufacturing line. Also utilities, such as water, electricity, or compress air may become unavailable.
The categories of reasons for a machine not producing parts may vary from line to line and for different types of lines. A manufacturing line has frequent tool changes that cause the interruption of production but which do not normal occur on an assembly line. Other words, including “down” or “downed” may be jargon for any type of inoperability. As used herein, any of the terms or others discussed above are interchangeable. The flow or progress of a line, its throughput, is impacted whether a machine is inoperable, ceases to function or is waiting for parts.
A production facility may have a communications network connecting the stations to a centralized unit. Sensor for determining a station's status and sensors for determining the flow or progress of product making its way through a line may be connected to the centralized unit by wires or they may be wireless. Machine controller may also be connected to the centralized unit. An error or fault code may be generated by sensors or controllers and sent to the centralized unit when a station breaks down or stops operating for any reason. The fault code identifies the reason for the stoppage so that when the fault code and time stamp are available, the time and reason of the breakdown may be determined. A supervisor may be alerted by the centralized unit when a station has stopped operating. Maintenance personnel may be alerted to attend to the downed station. If adjacent buffers become full or empty, other stations may also stop operating. Once a station that has had a breakdown becomes again operational, the line will thereafter start up again. The starved stations will begin receiving product and the blocked stations will be able to process product. However, some stations may be slow to recover after such a problem or fault occurrence.
When all the breakdown data are available, the average duration or MTTR (mean time to repair) and the MCBF (mean count between faults) or MTBF (mean time between faults) and other useful measures can be calculated. Sometimes a curve fit to an analytical function is made. Other times the analytical function is assumed to be a negative exponential.
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This invention relates to a novel synthetic crystalline molecular sieve material, MCM-37, which may contain framework +3 valence element, e.g. aluminum and +5 valence element, e.g. phosphorus, or with an additional +4 valence element, e.g. silicon, and to use thereof in catalytic conversion of organic compounds. The crystalline material can easily be converted to catalytically active material. It can also be used as a support material.
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Fiber optic cables are widely used for transmitting telecommunications signals. It is common to produce fiber optic cables for transmitting such signals by surrounding one or more optical fibers within a loose fitting buffer tube in order to isolate the fibers from bending and tensile stresses imparted on the cable. It is also known that the cable may be strengthened by including one or more steel strength members within the cable. In this regard, several prior patents have proposed cables comprising a number of optical fibers disposed loosely within a buffer tube and having at least one strength member outside the buffer tube and incorporated within the cable. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,420,220 Dean et al., 5,029,974 Nilsson, and 5,138,685 Arroyo et al. disclose such cables.
In circumstances in which telecommunications signals are transmitted over long distances, signal repeaters are oftentimes employed to boost the effective transmission distance of the cable. Conventionally, these signal repeaters are powered by electrical current transmitted via the cable. In an emerging telecommunications architecture, however, fiber optic cables are replacing more traditional copper facilities. In addition, the local telephone company also typically provides power to a subscriber's telephone via the pair of copper wires which also carry the telecommunications signals. Accordingly, it may be desirable to distribute electrical power over a fiber optic cable either directly to a subscriber or to other electronic components, such as signal repeaters, remaining along a copper portion of the network.
It is also known that fiber optic cables can be produced which include electrical conductors in order to supply power to signal repeaters or other electronic components. The electrical conductors can also be used to carry communication messages themselves. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,189,718 to Barrett et al. discloses the use of electrical conductors in conjunction with a fiber optic cable wherein the electrical conductors are contained within a separate tube attached to the tube containing the optical fibers.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a zoom lens and, more particularly, to a solid-state two-group type retrofocus zoom lens that can be used in small image capturing devices such as camcorders and digital still cameras.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, the trend in image capturing devices has been for miniaturization. Because zoom lenses are key components of the image capturing devices, the trend has also been for small size, lightweight, and cheap lenses.
In the prior art, the design of the two-group type zoom lens used in a camera can generally be classified into two categories. The first is the telephoto type, which is a two-group type lens having a front group with a positive diopter and a rear group with a negative diopter. The air gap between the two groups is used to change the focal length. The telephoto type zoom lens is characterized by a shorter rear focal length by moving forwards the rear principal plane of the lens.
The second is the retrofocus type, which is a two-group type lens having a front group with a negative diopter and a rear group with a positive diopter. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,179,473 disclosed a retrofocus zoom lens with a zoom ratio that cannot exceed 2 but only reaches 1.8, thus being not able to meet the requirement of the high zoom ratio of recent image capturing devices. Retrofocus zoom lenses are also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,155,629 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,820, respectively. Because the size of a zoom lens strongly depends on the image sensor size, the ratio of the total track of the zoom system to the image sensor size is a key miniaturization parameter for the size of a zoom lens. This ratio should be made as small as possible. However, this ratio is about 10 in U.S. Pat. No. 5,155,629, and it is even larger than 16 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,820. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,1759,473, this ratio also reaches 14.
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This invention relates to a conductive sheet for shielding electromagnetic waves, for protecting electrical wires from the effects of electromagnetic waves outside the confines of the wire, and for preventing the leaking of electromagnetic waves that are generated within an electrical wire.
Conventionally, as a conductive sheet for shielding electromagnetic waves, for protecting electrical wires from generated electromagnetic waves, and for preventing the leaking of electromagnetic waves that are generated in the wire, the lamination of a conductive layer and an insulating synthetic resin sheet is well known. The conductive layer forms a cylindrical interwoven component of a metal foil or wire, for example, an aluminum foil.
One requirement for a shielding member of an electrical wire is shielding. In order to protect the wire from electromagnetic waves, or to prevent electromagnetic waves generated within the wire from leaking, the wire must be wound with a conductive layer, both edges of said conductive layer must be contacted electrically to form a cylindrical shape, and the conductive layer must be electrically grounded. The conventional member used to shield electromagnetic waves can not electrically ground both edges of the conductive layer without additional means. The cylindrical interwoven component of a metal wire tends to revert to its forms linear shape, and fails to keep a cylindrical shape. Further, a metal foil such as an aluminum foil and the like is so rigid that the contact area of both edges can not be significant.
Another requirement for the shielding member of an electrical wire is high flexibility, especially so in the same direction as that of the flexibility of the wire. However, the lamination of the cylindrical interwoven component of a metal foil or wire and the insulating synthetic resin sheet of the known design do not always have preferable flexibility in the same direction as the wire.
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As integrated circuit technology continues to advance, system-level designers are finding that in many cases they can implement most or all of particular system on a single integrated circuit. For example, numerous different functional blocks along with peripherals formerly attached to a processor at the card level are integrated onto the same die as the processor. Thus, a great deal of effort has been put into the development of system-on-chip (SoC) design methodologies, architectures, design tools, and fabrication techniques. Since SoCs are integrated circuits that combine the major functional elements of a complete end-product into a single chip using intellectual property (IP) blocks, they enable products with a broad and growing diversity of applications (e.g., communication networks, storage networks, set-top boxes, games, embedded devices, etc.) to be realized with higher performance and lower cost.
Many SoC solutions used in applications today are designed as custom integrated circuits, each with its own internal architecture and perhaps specialized software. Logical units within such an integrated circuit are often difficult to extract and reuse in different applications. Consequently, the same function is often redesigned from one application to the next. Consequently, to promote efficient SoC design and reuse, a variety of strategies are used. Since a typical SoC contains numerous functional blocks representing a very large number of logic gates, such designs can be realized through a macro-based approach targeting one or more specific hardware platforms, e.g., specific field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or specialized IP core libraries designed to be easily implemented in existing semiconductor fabrication processes. Macro-based design provides numerous benefits during logic entry and verification, and greatly facilitates IP reuse. From generic I/O ports to complex memory controllers and processor cores, each SoC typically uses many of these common macros.
While SoC design offers many advantages, there are still the familiar challenges of designing a complex system, now on a chip. For example, because of increasing design complexity, system architects are often encouraged to explore more and more of their system's performance and behavior in system-level modeling environments. The fidelity of the data obtained from simulating a model depends on the degree of accuracy to which it was modeled. Typically, designers must trade off the extra effort required to create a detailed (low level of abstraction) model and also the extra computational effort required to simulate the detailed model against the level of fidelity in the performance data recovered from it.
Consequently, it is common in the system level design community to suggest creating multiple models of the same system. The system architect selects which aspects of the system to emphasize and can use different formalisms to capture the system model in simulatable form more quickly. Generally speaking, any single model will operate at a single, predefined level of detail. Hybrid models that combine elements of the system described at different levels of detail have been proposed, but once the levels of detail have been selected, they remain fixed for at least the runtime of the model and, commonly, for the duration of the model's existence.
Accordingly, it is desirable to have integrated circuit modeling tools and techniques, and particularly system level modeling tools and techniques, that allow users the flexibility to vary the level of detail for various model components during simulation.
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a) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a solidifying material for cell or battery (hereinafter collectively called xe2x80x9ccellxe2x80x9d) electrolyte solution and a cell comprising the solidifying material as a constituent element. The term xe2x80x9ccell electrolyte solutionxe2x80x9d may hereinafter be referred to simply as an xe2x80x9celectrolyte solutionxe2x80x9d, and the term xe2x80x9csolidifying material for an electrolyte solutionxe2x80x9d may hereinafter be referred to simply as xe2x80x9csolidifying materialxe2x80x9d.
b) Description of the Related Art
As a cell electrolyte is conventionally in a liquid form, it is sealed in a case from the standpoint of safety. To safely hold the electrolyte solution over a long time, the case is required to be strongly built. As a result, it has heretofore been difficult to form a cell into a thin structure. It has recently been proposed to have an electrolyte solution absorbed in a high molecular substance such that the electrolyte is solidified. This approach is expected not only to avoid leakage of the electrolyte solution from cells and to provide the cells with improved safety but also to achieve higher design tolerances on cell configurations, cell thickness reductions, improvements in durability, and higher outputs owing to increases in area.
The conventional high molecular substances for solidifying electrolyte solutions have crosslinked structures, are insoluble in solvents, and do not melt under heat. Accordingly, they cannot be formed into thin films of uniform thickness. Use of a solid electrolyte in the form of a thin film is indispensable for the construction of a cell of smaller dimensions, especially of a reduced thickness. Because the above-described high molecular substances cannot be formed into thin films, it has heretofore been difficult to obtain a solid electrolyte in the form of a thin film of uniform thickness.
An object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide a solidifying material for a cell electrolyte solution, which can be formed into a thin film or sheet (which may hereinafter be collectively called xe2x80x9cfilmxe2x80x9d) of uniform thickness and can easily absorb and solidify the electrolyte solution.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a cell making use of such a solidifying material.
The above-described objects can be achieved by the present invention as will be described hereinafter.
Described specifically, the present invention, in a first aspect thereof, provides a solidifying material for a cell electrolyte solution, characterized in that the solidifying material is a block copolymer comprising, as segments A, a polymer non-compatible with the cell electrolyte solution and, as segments B, a polymer compatible with the cell electrolyte solution, and absorbs and solidifies the cell electrolyte solution, a smallest unit of the block copolymer is A-B-A, and to each of the segments B, at least one group selected from the group consisting of a carboxyl group, an ester group, a hydroxyl group, a sulfonic group, an amino group, a cyclic carbonate group and a polyoxyalkylene group is bonded via a xe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94 bond or a xe2x80x94Cxe2x80x94 bond; and a cell comprising the solidifying material as a constituent element.
The present invention, in a second aspect thereof, also provides a solidifying material for a cell electrolyte solution, characterized in that the solidifying material is a graft copolymer comprising, as segments A, a polymer non-compatible with the cell electrolyte solution and, as segments B, a polymer compatible with the cell electrolyte solution, and absorbs and solidifies the cell electrolyte solution, and to each of the segments B, at least one group selected from the group consisting of a carboxyl group, an ester group, a hydroxyl group, a sulfonic group, an amino group, a cyclic carbonate group and a polyoxyalkylene group is bonded; and a cell comprising the solidifying material as a constituent element.
The present invention, in a third aspect thereof, also provides a solidifying material for a cell electrolyte solution, characterized in that the solidifying material comprises a film or sheet of a polymer having properties that the polymer is insoluble in the cell electrolyte solution but the polymer absorbs and solidifies the cell electrolyte solution, and a backing reinforcing the film or sheet, and the backing is a woven fabric, a nonwoven fabric or a porous film; and a cell comprising the solidifying material as a constituent element.
The solidifying materials according to the present invention can be dissolved or finely dispersed in appropriate solvents or can be caused to melt by heat, so that they can be formed into films each of which has a desired thickness. Namely, the solidifying materials according to the present invention can be formed into thin films of uniform thickness, and can easily absorb and solidify cell electrolyte solutions. As these films can be provided with enhanced strength by reinforcing them with backings, these films can each be formed with a still reduced thickness. These film-shaped solidifying materials can conveniently absorb and solidify electrolyte solutions, and the thus-solidified electrolyte solutions have good electrical conductivity and are useful as solid electrolytes for cells. Upon absorption of electrolyte solution in each of these films, the volume of the film increases in the direction of its cross-section, in other words, toward an associated electrode, so that the contact between the electrode and the film is rendered closer an surer. Especially when a woven fabric is used as a backing, a reduction in electrical conductivity can be minimized because the woven fabric has adequate strength despite its large opening area and moreover, a solidifying material having a large particle size can also be used for the preparation of a coating formulation which is useful for forming a film.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of automatic material folding machines and, more particularly, to laundry-related machines for making multiple folds on flat cloth articles such as towels, diapers and pillow cases.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A major cost associated with institutional, industrial and commercial laundering is folding of the laundered articles so they may be easily handled, neatly stored and rapidly dispensed. Manual folding, when large quantities of the laundered articles are involved, as is often the situation, is very time-consuming and thus very expensive. There is, consequently, a substantial need for machines for automatically folding the laundered articles in a continuous flow manner. One such type apparatus is disclosed by the applicant in his prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,138. In accordance with such patent, workable and widely-accepted machines have been built and sold by applicant, for example, the "Iron Woman" automatic folding machine for small articles which will automatically make a center fold or a French fold and then a cross fold, and which is adaptable for use with laundered articles having sizes up to about 2 feet by 4 feet. These machines are particularly useful when large quantities of a single type and single-sized article, for example, towels, napkins and diapers, are involved. Unfolded laundered items are continuously fed into one end of the machine, and folded items are continuously dispensed or delivered from the other end of the machine.
There is, however, often a need or desire for an additional cross fold to be made in the articles, either for appearance or to further reduce the size of the folded article. Often a single cross fold, as accomplished by the present machine, is required for articles of a given type for one customer and an added cross fold is required for similar articles to be supplied to another customer.
Presently, provision for such an additional cross fold or provision for such an additional cross fold on an optional basis does not exist. Therefore, fully automatic folding is sometimes not available, and the benefits of the existing machines are somewhat diminished, the final folding necessarily having to be done manually.
Not only is it very desirable that new machines have such an optional additional cross fold provision as a feature thereof, but also that means be provided for modifying many of the existing machines, which are in use throughout the world, to make provision for such an added cross fold.
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U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,098 discloses an arrangement wherein the legs of the spring, in the region of their guiding portions, extend parallel to each other over the entire length. The point of contact of the pawl pin is in the direction of rotation of the fan wheel behind a plane between the axis of rotation of the rotor and an axis of the pawl pin which defines a guide pin. After starting and during operation, the spring clip may thus rotate counterclockwise as a consequence of the occurring vibrations. This can cause the pawl to pivot radially outwardly and thereby engage the teeth of the fan wheel rotating at high speed. This causes wear of the pawl end and eventually shortens the pawl such that in the starting process it will pivot outwardly by a correspondingly larger angle which may result in breakage of the rotor or a failure of the pawl to engage with the teeth. As a result, the tool such as a chain saw or the like cannot be started.
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Web cameras, digital cameras, microphones, or other digital recording devices have become pervasive, particularly in peoples' homes. Typically, such devices are utilized to participate in digital communications with remote locations. Software may be linked to these devices that allows for gesture or voice command recognition. In such a system, it may be desirable to have devices that listen or receive a video feed to monitor an environment for a gesture or voice command. However, it may be difficult for a user to determine when the system is in this monitoring state or when it is actively communicating or storing information.
Some current systems include an indicator that indicates if an input device has power. If the device has power, for example, a LED may be illuminated and indicate to the user that the device is on. However, such an indicator cannot show when data being gathered by an input device is used in compliance with a privacy policy, e.g., the data is used only internally, or if the date is being sent to a remote site without the authorization of the system user.
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1. Technical Field
One or more embodiments of the present invention described herein generally relate to a system and method for controlling torque based on driver status.
2. Background Art
Controlling and limiting motor vehicle operation has become a challenge for vehicle drivers, parents, vehicle owners, businesses, and others having an interest in how a motor vehicle is operated. One area of concern is vehicle safety. Individuals often seek new vehicle designs and features to reduce the risk of accidents. In addition, individuals often seek new vehicle designs and features to lower insurance costs and operating expenses. The manner in which elderly drivers, inexperienced drivers, physically challenged drivers, and others having reduced mental capacity operate a vehicle is of special concern. This is a challenge not only for vehicle owners, but also for the general public. Changing how a driver operates a motor vehicle to prevent avoidable accidents and to make vehicle transportation safer is one way to control motor vehicle operation.
Preventing and abating vehicle misuse, abuse, and theft is another area of concern. Vehicles typically are a considerable expense for many individuals and damaged vehicles pose a safety risk to future occupants of the vehicle. Vehicle owners often lend a vehicle to a person with a desire that the vehicle is neither misused, abused, or stolen. The person borrowing the vehicle may be a child, friend, relative, valet driver, assistant driver, or another person entrusted with the owner's vehicle. Similarly, companies seek new ways to prevent undesirable vehicle use by vehicle renters and company employees. Furthermore, individuals and companies would like to minimize fuel, maintenance, and repair costs.
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1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to current-limiting devices and, more particularly, to current-limiting devices including a current-limiting material, such as a conductive polymer, which exhibits a sharp increase in electrical resistance at a threshold current, and also including electrodes, which electrically engage the current-limiting material.
2. Background Information
Current-limiting polymer compositions, which exhibit positive temperature coefficient (PTC) resistive behavior, and electrical devices comprising current-limiting polymer compositions have been widely used. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,614,881. The current-limiting polymer compositions generally include conductive particles, such as carbon black, graphite or metal particles, dispersed in a polymer matrix, such as a thermoplastic polymer, elastomeric polymer or thermosetting polymer. PTC behavior in a current-limiting polymer composition is characterized by the material undergoing a sharp increase in resistivity as its temperature rises above a particular value known as the switching temperature. Materials exhibiting PTC behavior are useful in a number of applications such as, for example, electrical circuit protection devices, in which the current passing through a circuit is controlled by the temperature of a PTC element forming part of that circuit.
Electrical circuit protection devices comprising current-limiting polymer compositions typically include a current-limiting polymer device having two electrodes embedded in a current-limiting polymer composition. When connected to a circuit, the circuit protection devices have a relatively low resistance under normal operating conditions of the circuit, but are tripped, that is, converted into a high resistance state, when a fault condition or persistent overcurrent condition occurs. Under such conditions, when the circuit protection device is tripped, the current passing through the PTC element causes it to resistively self-heat to its switching temperature, Ts, at which a rapid increase in its resistance takes place.
The residual current, which flows through the current-limiting device, allows a series circuit breaker to absorb any stored residual energy (e.g., the majority of such energy is absorbed by the circuit breaker arc chamber during the switching transient and during recovery/reclosing to reestablish the power distribution system voltage) in the power distribution system. Typically, an external current-limiting device engages the load-side terminals of the circuit breaker. For example, a conductive polymer of the current-limiting device is coupled in series with the mechanical circuit breaker separable contacts, in order to limit fault current as those contacts open.
Previous materials used for current-limiting applications in conjunction with low voltage circuit breakers (e.g., less than about 600 VAC) generally consisted of a very brittle blend of conductive filler (i.e., carbon black) of a thermoplastic binder with two spring-loaded metal plates employed as electrodes. These electrodes serve to allow current to flow through the current-limiting material. In this arrangement, approximately 80% of the total device resistance resulted from contact resistance, while only about 20% resulted from bulk material resistance.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,253 discloses a metal electrode, such as an electrodeposited copper or nickel foil electrode having a microrough surface, which is in direct physical contact or which is secured to the surface of a conductive polymer element. U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,253 states that columnar electrodes, such as solid or stranded wires, having a microrough surface are embedded in a PTC conductive polymer.
Known high power prior art current-limiting devices, for example, up to about 600 VAC with a rated current of greater than several amperes (e.g., about 10 A to about 63 A), which employ current-limiting polymers (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,861,795), also employ a parallel electrical (e.g., wire) shunt to protect the current-limiting material from overvoltage and from the stored system energy (e.g., generally magnetic system energy resulting from system inductance). However, the shunt increases the volume of the package for the current-limiting device and the cost of the overall device.
Typically, relatively low power prior art current-limiting devices, for example, up to typically about 12-24 VDC or higher, with a rated current of less than several tens of milliamperes, which employ current-limiting polymers, do not employ a parallel electrical shunt to protect the current-limiting material.
There is room for improvement in terms of the current-limiting material and electrodes employed in current-limiting devices.
The present invention provides improvements in the operation of current-limiting devices by providing a non-uniform pressure distribution between one or both of the first and second electrodes and the current-limiting material therebetween. in accordance with the invention, a current-limiting device comprises a current-limiting material; first and second electrodes structured for carrying current through the current-limiting material, with the first electrode electrically engaging a first portion of the current-limiting material, and the second electrode electrically engaging a second portion of the current-limiting material; and means for providing a non-uniform pressure distribution between at least one of the first and second electrodes and the current-limiting material.
The means for providing a non-uniform pressure distribution preferably includes a spring having a predetermined spring rate of about 100 to about 7000 pounds per inch. Highly preferred predetermined spring rates range from about 100 to about 700 pounds per inch, with a predetermined spring rate of about 300 pounds per inch being especially preferred.
Preferably, the first and second electrodes are solely electrically connected by the current-limiting material.
The means for providing a non-uniform pressure distribution may include a pair of supports for edges of at least one of the electrodes, and means for applying a force to the supports, in order to provide the non-uniform pressure distribution.
As one aspect of the invention, the electrodes have a first surface and a second surface which engages the current-limiting material; and the means for providing a non-uniform pressure distribution includes a rubber spring member having a plurality of openings and positioned on the first surface of one of the electrodes, a plate positioned on the rubber spring member, and means for applying a clamping force between the plate and the first surface of the other one of the electrodes, in order to provide the non-uniform pressure distribution.
As another aspect of the invention, the electrodes may have a first portion, a second portion and a third portion. The means for providing a non-uniform pressure distribution includes a first clip and a second clip which engage the first portion and the third portion of the electrodes, respectively, in order to apply a force thereto without engaging the second portion of the electrodes, in order to provide the non-uniform pressure distribution.
Preferably, the first and third portions are side portions of the electrodes, and the second portion is an intermediate portion between the side portions.
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Entities can maintain networks with one or more connections to the Internet and/or Intranet. Networks can include a plurality of resources connected by communication links, and can be used to connect people, provide services—both internally and externally via the Internet and/or Intranet—and/or organize information, among other activities associated with an entity. An example network can include a software-defined network (SDN).
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Asthma is a relatively common illness worldwide. In 2009, the Centers for Disease Control estimated the asthma prevalence rate in the U.S. to be 8.2% of the population or 24.6 million people. Worldwide the burden of asthma is large, with an estimated prevalence of over 300 million cases and this number is expected to grow by more than 100 million cases by 2025.
Asthma is one of the country's most costly illnesses. The annual U.S. expenditures for health and lost productivity due to asthma are estimated at over $20 billion. In 2006 and 2007 in the U.S. there were approximately 3500 asthma-related deaths per year and over 250,000 deaths worldwide.
Asthma severity is classified according to the frequency and severity of symptoms, or “attacks”, the results of pulmonary function tests and the level of medications required to gain control of symptoms (NIH, “Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma, 2007”). Approximately 30% of asthma patients have mild, intermittent symptoms of asthma with normal pulmonary function tests. Another 30% of asthma patients have mild, persistent symptoms (two or more episodes per week) with normal pulmonary function tests. Forty percent of asthma patients have moderate-to-moderate-severe, persistent daily or continuous symptoms of asthma with abnormal pulmonary function tests. It is estimated that over 80% of the asthma-related health care costs are due to 20% of individuals with moderate-to-moderate-severe persistent and/or milder, treatment-refractory asthma. Thus, treatment-refractory asthma remains a significant unmet medical need.
Modulating the immune system has been pursued as a desirable approach to treat asthma, as well as a variety of other diseases and disorders, including, but not limited to, autoimmune disease, infection, allergy, inflammatory conditions, spontaneous abortion, pregnancy, graft versus host disease and cancer. T cells have been a target of such modulation. T cells are lymphocytes that participate in multiple immune system functions. Subsets of T cells such as helper T cells, cytotoxic T cells and suppresser T cells, mediate different immunologic functions. Natural killer T (NKT) cells are a subset of T lymphocytes that share surface markers and functional characteristics with both conventional T cells and natural killer (NK) cells. Unlike T cells, they recognize glycolipid antigens rather than peptide antigens.
NKT cells can be divided into three subsets: Type 1 which express an invariant T cell receptor and are CD1d-restricted (iNKT), Type 2 (NKT) which express varied T cell receptors, but are CD1d-restricted, and Type 3 which express varied T cell receptors and are not CD1d-restricted (NKT-like). Type 1 iNKT cells express a uniquely rearranged, highly conserved, semi-invariant TCR-α chain (Vα24-Jα18 in humans and Vα14-Jα18 in mice), which preferentially pairs with specific TCR-β chains (Vβ11 in humans or Vβ8.2, Vβ7 and Vβ2 in mice). They are highly conserved throughout animal phylogeny. This is in contrast to most T cell subpopulations, which have diverse sequences for their T Cell Receptors (TCRs). The invariant TCR of iNKT cells reacts with glycolipid antigens presented on the MHC-I-like protein CD1d on the surface of antigen presenting cells. A hallmark of iNKT cells is their capacity to rapidly produced a mixture of cytokines, including IL-4 and IFNγ, which are signature cytokines otherwise produced by T helper type I (Th1) and Th2 cells, respectively. Invariant NKT cells are sometimes referred to as “Classical NKT Cells”.
A unique feature of iNKT cells is that they recognize the marine sponge-derived glycolipid, α-Galactosyl-Ceramide (α-GalCer), presented on CD1d. This has been utilized to monitor mouse, non-human primate (NHP), and human iNKT cells by flow cytometry, by using α-GalCer-loaded CD1d tetramers. The mouse monoclonal antibody 6B11, which binds to the invariant loop of the human-iTCR, has also been used to monitor human and NHP iNKT cells.
iNKT cells represent a very small subset of the total T cell population in human and non-human peripheral blood. Their relative numbers can vary over one hundred-fold between normal individuals, representing anywhere from 0.01% to over 1% of CD3+ cells in humans, where the low end of the range represents the majority of humans.
Conventional T cells require exposure to foreign antigen in order to mature and acquire memory phenotype. Clonally-expanded populations of conventional memory T cells that are depleted through pathological events, or by pharmacological intervention, can only recover when new thymic emigrants, with identically rearranged TCRs, are exposed to similar or identical foreign or pathogenic antigen as the original insult. Such depletion of T cells can create a “hole” within the immune repertoire for a given individual. Unlike conventional T cells, iNKT cells have a continuous regenerative capacity. In humans, iNKT cell regeneration has been studied following bone marrow transplantation. Full recovery of iNKT cell numbers to baseline has been observed one month following peripheral blood stem cell transplant rescue for ablative therapy. iNKT cell depletion therapy, therefore, could be less risky than depleting other T cells.
iNKT cells develop in the thymus, similar to other T cells. Studies in mice show that iNKT cells, unlike conventional T cells, acquired a memory phenotype during their natural development by recognizing hitherto unknown, endogenous antigens presented on CD1d molecules, and without requiring prior exposure to foreign or pathogenic antigens. Due to their memory phenotype, they can be rapidly activated and expand within the peripheral immune compartment in response to exposure to foreign or endogenous glycolipid antigens presented by antigen-presenting cells (APCs).
iNKT cells share characteristics of both the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system and thus play a unique role by modulating T and B cell responses as well as innate immunity (1). iNKT cells are rapid-onset which is a feature of the innate immune system. They also display features of the adaptive immune system because they share properties of other T cells such as antigen specific responses. As such, they serve as a bridge between the two systems where they can play both pro-inflammatory and immuno-regulatory roles either to enhance or attenuate developing immune responses, respectively (2).
The properties of iNKT cells has prompted investigations into the manipulation of iNKT cell function as a treatment for disease (3, 4, 5, 6). Numerous studies have shown that iNKT cells can regulate the balance between Th1 and Th2 responses. These cells are postulated to play a role in the response to pathogens, in immune surveillance in cancer, and in the regulation of autoimmunity. For most of these conditions, the iNKT cell defect has only been partially characterized and in some cases has been disputed by contradictory studies. Human studies, in particular, are constrained by two important limitations. First, most human studies have used suboptimal methods for the identification of iNKT cells. Second, most human studies are qualitative only, and little human data exists respecting the functional consequences of modulation of iNKT cell numbers, ratios, or function.
iNKT cell function has received significant attention concerning its potential role in asthma. Inhibition of iNKT cell function, either through genetic ablation of iNKT cells, or through pharmacologic blockade, blocks the development of airway hyper-responsiveness (AHR) in mice (7, 8). This is seen with both ovalbumin- and ozone-induced AHR (9). iNKT cells increase in the lungs of wild type mice following exposure to ovalbumin or ozone. In mice that are genetically devoid of iNKT cell function, through knockout of the gene encoding a portion of the invariant T cell receptor, adoptive transfer of iNKT cells restores the ability for allergens to induce AHR (9). Conversely, activation of iNKT cells in the airways with the potent iNKT cell agonist, α-GalCer, induces a response indistinguishable from AHR in both mice and non-human primates (10, 11). Mice genetically devoid of iNKT cells are also resistant to development of pathologic changes in the airways in a chronic Sendai virus model of COPD (12). Similar to the findings from the murine models, in humans, iNKT cells are not present in the lungs of healthy individuals, but they are present in the lungs of patients with mild-to-moderate asthma, and they increase further after allergen or viral challenge (3, 13, 14). There appears to be little or no correlation between the levels of iNKT cells in the BAL fluid and the peripheral blood of patients with asthma. The prior art has not established whether iNKT cells are causally connected to asthma or are the result of asthma or whether a therapy aimed at blocking iNKT cell function could be a treatment for asthma.
The mouse monoclonal antibody 6B11, which recognizes the human invariant T cell receptor, is the subject of US published application No. 2007/0160600. This antibody selectively binds human iNKT cells, being able to distinguish iNKT cells from other lymphocytes and other human tissue types. The application offers conflicting statements as to whether the 6B11 antibody would enhance or suppress an immune response. The application indicates at one point that the antibody stimulates proliferation of iNKT cells, suggesting that the antibody is an agonist of iNKT cells. The application suggests at another point that an increase in iNKT activity can result in a suppression of an immune response. At still another point, the application indicates that interfering with iNKT activity will suppress an immune response. In particular, the application suggests that an antibody should be coupled to a toxin to deplete iNKT cells in order to suppress an immune response. This application, therefore, does not make clear the medical circumstances in which use of the 6B11 antibody would be desirable.
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Child restraint systems are commonly used to conveniently and safely seat and transport infants and small children. Many states require that children below a certain age and/or weight be placed within a child safety seat when riding in an automobile and the use of restraint systems in these child safety seats can further protect children in the event of an incident (e.g., accident, sudden deceleration and/or sudden acceleration).
Such restraint systems typically include a child safety seat that includes a seat shell and a harness system (e.g., one or more safety belts) to secure the infant or child in the seat shell of the child safety seat. A child can be positioned within the seat shell and then the harness system can be coupled together and tightened to fit the size and shape of the particular child. Portions of the harness system can run along one or both of the back side and the bottom side of the seat shell. When the harness system is tightened, these portions of the harness system that run along the back and/or bottom sides of the seat shell can experience a higher than desired level of friction due to these portions of the harness system rubbing along the back and/or bottom sides of the seat shell. This increased level of friction on the harness system can make it difficult to tighten the harness system around the child. In certain situations, this can result in the harness system being left too loose around the child and reducing the effectiveness of the harness system during an incident. In other situations, excess force may be applied to a tightening strap of the harness system to try and overcome the increased level of friction. This can result in the harness system being tightened too much on the child, which can also increase the risk of injury to the infant or child.
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The skin is the largest organ in the human body and is in a state of constant turnover. This is accomplished by the outward movement of the basal layer keratinocytes at a rate that varies with age, sex, position on the body and other conditions. Psoriasis, an affliction of the epidermis, is a common disorder present in approximately 6.4 million people in the United States according to the National Psoriasis Foundation. The frequency of the disease varies with race, age, skin location and other conditions. The characteristic feature of psoriasis is hyperproliferation of the keratinocytes, first described by Van Scott and Ekel..sup.1 There is evidence of significant shortening of the epidermal cell cycle (36 hours versus 311 hours for normal tissue) in the involved skin of patients with psoriasis. In addition there is a doubling of the proliferative cell population and it appears that in psoriatic skin 100% of the germinative cells of the epidermis enter the growth fraction, compared to 60 to 70% for normal skin of non-psoriatic patients. It is felt that as a result of these changes there is an increase in size and in cohesiveness of corneocytes..sup.2 Transplantation studies of normal and psoriatic human skin to congenitally athymic nude mice have found that, although epidermal proliferation remains above normal in the transplanted psoriatic skin, the absence of clinical lesions (erythema, induration and scaling) suggests that epidermal proliferation does not itself give rise to psoriasis.
The fundamental cellular and metabolic defects underlying psoriasis are not well understood. Endothelial cells, mast cells and fibroblasts have been implicated in the pathogenesis of the disease..sup.3 Granulocytes are present in the spongioform microabscesses that constitute a hallmark of psoriasis and activation of isolated peripheral granulocytes correlates with disease severity.
Dermal fibroblasts are potent producers of cytokines and lipid mediators that may influence epidermal proliferation as well as the inflammatory reaction seen in psoriasis. Studies of the activity of membrane messenger systems have demonstrated that such systems are activated in psoriatic fibroblasts taken from lesional skin. In these studies the activity of membrane bound but not cytosolic phospholipid/Ca dependent protein kinase C (PKC) was significantly elevated..sup.4
Peptide mediators are involved in the inflammatory cascade which takes place in the psoriatic skin. Complement split products, cytokines, interleukins and transforming growth factor alpha are found to be elevated in psoriatic skin..sup.5 They form part of the body's (defective) skin repair mechanism.
The cyclic nucleotides are not thought to be part of the basic molecular aberration in psoriasis, although it is now agreed that two basic alterations in the second messenger systems occur in psoriatic skin: (1) cyclic GMP levels are elevated in psoriatic lesions, and (2) stimulation of epidermal cells with a beta agonist leads to lower levels of cyclic AMP in the epidermis of lesional skin than in normal or uninvolved skin..sup.6
The protease/antiprotease system has also come under scrutiny as increased protease activity has been noted in lesional skin. Proteases have the ability to regulate cell proliferation in other cell systems and can generate inflammatory mediators via the complement cascade..sup.7
Utilization of fatty acids by keratinocytes appears to be fundamental to the development of psoriasis and is of relevance to the present invention. In particular, arachidonic acid and linoleic acid are polyunsaturated fatty acids which appear to be destined for different purposes in keratinocytes. Arachidonic acid is metabolized via the cyclooxygenase pathway predominantly into prostaglandins, such as PGE2, PGF2 Alpha, and PGD2, which modulate normal skin physiological processes at low concentrations and inflammatory reactions at high concentrations. Arachidonic acid is also metabolized via the lipoxygenase pathway into 15-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (15-HETE) and other leukotrienes which function as potent inflammatory mediators. These mediators appear to play a role in producing the abnormalities typical of psoriatic lesions, such as infiltration of epidermal cells and epidermal hyperplasia as well as erythema and induration..sup.8
The lipoxygenase pathway metabolizes linoleic acid into 13-hydroxy-9, 11-octadecadienoic acid (13-HODE). 13-HODE exerts anti-proliferative properties in keratinocytes, possibly via selective suppression of protein kinase C-beta isozyme activity..sup.9
It appears that modulation of the cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase metabolic pathways may influence psoriasis symptoms. For example, in some patients administration of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory medications (NSAIDS), which are known to inhibit the cyclooxygenase pathway, is associated with the onset or worsening of psoriasis symptoms. It may be that NSAIDS increase the amount of arachidonic acid substrate available to shunt down the lipoxygenase pathway, resulting in increased leukotriene production. By contrast, benoxaprofen, a drug that somewhat selectively blocks the lipoxygenase pathway, has been demonstrated to improve psoriatic symptoms in about 75% of patients studied.
Other findings suggest a possible link between fatty acid metabolism in skin cells and development of psoriasis. Dietary deficiencies of the essential fatty acids linoleic acid and gamma-linoleic acid are associated with increased levels of arachidonic acid and decreased PGE2. Moreover, deficiency of linoleic acid and gamma-linoleic acid has been shown to result in increased DNA synthesis and formation of a scaly dermatosis in some individuals. Also of interest is the finding that human skin fibroblasts preferentially increase linoleic acid incorporation into lipids (80% into phospholipids) and decrease arachidonic acid utilization as they age..sup.10 This may suggest an increased need for linoleic acid (and a heightened sensitivity to a deficiency thereof) as the fibroblasts age. This finding correlates with the clinical progression of psoriasis. Although psoriasis varies from patient to patient, the overall tendency is for the disease to gradually increase in severity as the patient ages.
Although the exact molecular disruption underlying psoriasis remains elusive, recent studies suggest that psoriasis is an immune-mediated disorder. Early and late onset psoriasis has been associated with certain HLA antigens which may help explain the inheritance pattern of the disease. Activated T cells are present in abnormally large quantities in active psoriatic skin. T cell derived cytokines are postulated to be candidates for inducing psoriatic changes as IL-2 therapy for malignancy in psoriatic patients has caused severe psoriatic exacerbation. Some therapies which suppress T cell development, such as administration of cyclosporin or psoralen plus Ultraviolet A (PUVA), have proven effective in clearing psoriasis lesions. While such therapies are effective in treating psoriasis, they also affect other cellular systems so the T cell changes may be but one of a number of factors in the pathogenesis of the disease.
Most current treatments for psoriasis act by regulating the immune system or otherwise attenuating the inflammatory response. Internal medications such as cyclosporin, methotrexate and retinoids all have potentially serious side effects such as liver and kidney damage, nausea, birth defects and increased cancer risk. Other common psoriasis treatments are also undesirable for long-term management of the disease. Extended use of topical corticosteroid creams may cause thinning of the skin, stretch marks and suppression of the patient's own cortisol production. Moreover, psoriatic symptoms tend to recur rapidly after cessation of corticosteroid use. Phototherapy can result in skin aging and increased risk of skin cancer.
The need has therefore arisen for a non-toxic, long-term treatment for psoriasis which does not merely attenuate inflammatory symptoms but endeavours to remedy local cellular nutritional deficiencies underlying the disease.
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The present invention relates generally to a clock cell for an integrated circuit, and, more particularly, to a gated clock gating cell.
Digital circuits use clock signals for synchronizing operations between different functional blocks. A functional block may refer to multiple storage elements including flip-flops and latches that generate an output based on the clock signals. However, the storage elements are not always required to alter their output states during operation and providing a continuous clock input signal at clock input terminals of the storage elements causes repetitive charging and discharging of the capacitive load associated with the clock input terminals, which can lead to high power consumption.
To reduce power consumption, clock input signals are switched using clock gating circuits or cells to obtain gated clock input signals. The gated clock input signals toggle only when logic states of the storage elements need to be changed.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of a conventional clock gating cell 100. The conventional clock gating cell 100 includes a latch 102 that has an input terminal 104, a clock input terminal 106, an output terminal 108. An AND gate 110 is connected to the output terminal 108. An input signal (D) is provided at the input terminal 104 and a clock input signal (CLK) is provided at the clock input terminal 106. The clock input signal CLK toggles between logic high and low states. When the clock input signal CLK goes low, the latch 102 latches the input signal D, i.e., an output signal (Q) is generated at the output terminal 108. When the clock input signal CLK goes high, the output signal Q remains latched to in the previous state. The output signal Q and the clock input signal CLK are provided at input terminals of the AND gate 110, which generates a gated clock signal (GATE_CLK). Since the clock input signal CLK is gated using the output signal Q, the gated clock signal GATE_CLK toggles only when the state of the output signal Q changes. Thus, the gated clock signal GATE_CLK toggles only when an enable signal (provided as the input signal D) switches to a logic high.
However, the clock input signal CLK continues to toggle at the clock input terminal 106 of the latch 102 irrespective of changes in the output state of the latch 102, which leads to continuous charging and discharging of input capacitance at the clock input terminal 106, which increases the power dissipation and power consumption of the conventional clock gating cell 100.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a clock gating cell that reduces the toggling of the clock input signal CLK at the clock input terminal of the latch, that has low dynamic power dissipation and consumption, and that overcomes the above-mentioned limitations of conventional clock gating cells.
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Dynamic frequency scaling is a technique that automatically adjusts the frequency of a processor at runtime. An increase in the operating frequency of a processor can ramp up the computing performance. However, a frequency increase means that power consumption of the processor also increases, as the power consumption in an integrated circuit is computed as: P=C×V2×F, where P is the power, C is the capacitance being switched per clock cycle, V is the voltage and F is the frequency. Some modern computer systems have a built-in management framework to manage the tradeoff between performance and power consumption. For example, the management framework may determine at runtime whether to increase or decrease the operating frequency, and whether to activate or deactivate a processor core, in order to satisfy system performance requirements or to save power.
In a multi-cluster system that has multiple processor types, the management framework needs to take into consideration both power consumption and performance of each processor type. If only one processor type is allowed to operate at a time, the processing capacity of the other processor types is under-utilized and may not satisfy a high workload demand. In a system that allows multiple processor types to operate at the same time, the management framework needs to have a strategy for optimizing efficiency and low power operations.
Therefore, there is a need to improve the power and performance management in a multi-cluster system that has multiple processor types.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to service activation, and more particularly to systems and methods for simplified provisioning and multiple data store authentication.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, a user purchasing services associated with a device needs to register with a service provider to provide specific information about the user. The service provider often has a customer service center that assists the user with registration for various services associated with the wireless device. For instance, the customer service center can record personal information about the user in order to provide wireless Internet services. The service provider typically requires billing information from the user in order to identify the user and collect monies from the user for the services being provided.
When the user activates various services, the service provider may program various databases with the user's personal information, as well as information associated with the device the user is using to access the services. This process may be referred to as “provisioning.” Often, the user spends time on the phone with a representative of the service provider in order to provide the information the service provider requires in order to program the various databases. Alternatively, the user may spend time on a device associated with the user in order to provide the requisite information for the provisioning. In exchange for providing the information to the service provider, the user obtains access to certain resources made available by the service provider.
Collecting the user's personal information and storing the information in the databases is frequently done in order to maintain security and ensure that each user pays for the resources being requested. However, users often resent the time it takes to register for access to the resources. Further, users may register many times with the same service provider for different resources available via the service provider. Numerous minutes or hours spent entering information required by the service provider may deter users from subscribing to the various resources offered by the service provider. There is, therefore, a need for a system and method for simplified provisioning.
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A conventional CMP machine includes a rotating polishing pad, a wafer carrier that is coupled and a conditioning disk. During CMP processing, liquid slurry of abrasive particles in a fluid is poured onto the rotating polishing pad and a semiconductor wafer is placed in the wafer carrier. The wafer carrier presses the wafer against the slurry and the rotating polishing pad while the carrier arm moves the wafer across the width of the polishing pad. The chemical reaction with the slurry and the physical erosion due to the contact with the abrasive particles causes material to be removed from the wafer and evens out any irregular topography, making the exposed wafer surface planar. The conditioning disk generally includes a diamond abrasive surface that is moved and rotated against the polishing pad. The conditioning disk keeps the particles removed from the wafer from accumulating on the polishing surface and maintaining the uniform abrasive character of the polishing pad.
As wafers are processed, the polishing pad is also worn down and eventually must be replaced. A problem with the CMP process is that the polishing surface of the pad can become uneven during wafer processing. An uneven polishing surface cannot polish a wafer properly and may result in uneven or defective wafer processing. Accordingly, what is needed is a CMP system control system that monitors the uniformity of the polishing surface and prevents uneven wear of the CMP polishing pad.
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The invention relates to an apparatus for physically processing and/or heating media, in particular liquids.
The pretreatment of liquid and gaseous media in technologies that work with water and with other chemical compounds (methane, alcohol, ethanol, and others), elemental substances (pure hydrogen gas, gaseous helium, and others), homogeneous compounds (air, seawater, aqueous solutions, such as saline solution, copper vitriol solution, and others), colloidal compounds (milk, blood, and others), heterogeneous compounds (suspension, emulsion, foam, aerosols), is known. These excitation devices are used in biochemistry, in petrochemical technologies, in chemical technologies, and others, in which the media are of an organic, inorganic, polar, nonpolar, natural, or synthetic type.
Present technologies that work with liquid or gaseous media (whether as material to be processed, or as adjuvant material that improves the technological conditions) are defined by energy bonds in the molecule and between the molecules. The magnitude of their decisive properties, such as fluidity, electrical conductivity, surface tension, etc., depends on those energy bonds. Because of their broad application and because they are so numerous, these technologies cannot be specified concretely within the scope of this invention. They involve liquids and gases in the full scope of their molecular composition, such as water, soda, acid, organic and inorganic liquids, hydrocarbons, in particular fuels, crude oil, gasoline, kerosene, mineral oils, liquid fertilizer, and so forth.
The technologies that have to do with the media listed, such as burning, combustion, heating, cooling, the preparation of solutions and colloids, and segregation, such as distillation, refining, evaporation, sedimentation, and the like, are energy-, time- and material-consuming.
Present technologies that require a temperature change (heating, cooling) of the medium are implemented by means of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels, electrical energy, sunlight, heat from the earth (geothermia), heat pumps, and so forth.
The disadvantage of present methods is their high energy consumption. Moreover, in combustion, fuels have adverse effects on the environment. In the case of automotive traffic, air traffic, and ship traffic, the effects are multiplied and worse.
If water is used as a heating medium or in the production of steam, for instance for driving a turbine, this medium requires complex processing in order to reduce some or all of the elements. Possible ventilation, especially because of the formation of crusts, must also be provided. In this processing, damage occurs to the surface of the technical systems, the functional surfaces of combustion chambers, and the machines, such as radiators, heat exchangers, heating equipment, and heaters.
In heating with water in accordance with the PCT application WO 2007/045487, the heating is slow, and sometimes unwanted. This reference was the subject of further research, especially because of unexpected interactions in the type of heating, which was directed to changes in the treated medium. The physical changes found led to use in further implementation, such as in distilled water, demineralized water, geothermal water, alcohol, oils, gases, crude oil, gasoline, kerosene, methane, biogas and other media named in the aforementioned application.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,427,544, a magneto-electrochemical reactor for water preparation is described, which is located on a nonmagnetic pipeline having an inlet and an outlet. A DC source is mounted on the outside of the pipeline. In the interior, there is a rotating turbine, which is disposed on ferromagnetic rods that are supported in the pipeline. The rotating turbine generates electric current, which acts on the formation of lime in the pipeline and which, in energy equipment and heat exchangers, forms a protective layer that prevents crusts from forming.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,384,627 shows a method and an apparatus for electrolytic treatment of materials; the material to be treated is stored in an electrolyte on which an electromagnetic field acts. On the surface of the material to be treated, this field triggers electromagnetic and electrokinetic forces, which are capable of generating chemical and physical changes in the material to be treated. This involves, for one thing, a reactor, supplemented with an electrolyte, that has treatment materials, such as ions, acids, bases, and the like, with an optimal pH value, and also has a takeup electrode or a mixing device and a reducer. The reactor has a number of possible embodiments, and the takeup electrode is connected to a cathodic metal. This method is employed for cementing the surfaces of the material to be treated.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,061,551 shows a method for extracting gallium from alkaline solutions. This involves a method for obtaining gallium from solutions for further use, for instance, as components for semiconductor elements of thermometers and the like. It also involves an apparatus, which comprises a container with an anode and a liquid metal cathode, and the electrolyte contains a gallium solution. An electromagnetic field speeds up the displacement of gallium from alkali electrolytes to the electrodes.
US Patent Application 2007/0029261 shows a method and an apparatus for water preparation by electromagnetic waves for the sake of removing lime. It involves part of a pipleline with an electromagnetic induction winding, which is connected to the source of the electromagnetic signal. The electromagnetic field is generated in the interior of the pipeline.
German patent disclosure DE 888537 shows a method for separating solids out of solutions, in order to avert the formation of deposits on the heating and cooling bodies in conjunction with an anode and a cathode. The technology is implemented using the action of magnets, whose magnetic fields, whether DC or AC, are generated or formed by a permanent magnet. In an alternative embodiment, the effect is augmented with a high-frequency field.
British patent GB 2 433 267 shows an apparatus with an electrostatic electromagnetic field and an induction field. This involves an electrostatic reduction device, with a combined electromagnetic generator that is connected to a winding. The winding is formed on the outside over the entire circumference of a container in which a reactant is disposed. The AC generator is connected in the container to the AC electrode. The AC generator is connected to the base of the container, and the reactant has both a liquid and a solid aggregate state.
Moldovan patent disclosure MD 4055 shows a method and an apparatus for softening natural mineral water. In the apparatus, there is a separate chamber for affecting water by means of a hollow cathode with a water inlet. The cathode is disposed on a winding, which is connected to a converter, a source of high-frequency magnetic impulses. The water treated by the cathode can be let out through a valve. However, the water can also flow in the opposite direction over the outer circumference of the cathode and be let out via a second, continuous outlet. Between the anode and the cathode is a ceramic membrane; a separate anode chamber has its own inlet and outlet and is connected to the positive pole of a DC source. The negative pole of the DC source is connected to the cathode. This disclosure also describes the parameters for the electrochemical treatment of the mineral water in that apparatus.
The common objective of all the aforementioned documents is to prevent the formation of a crust on the pipelines by the action of a magnetic or electromagnetic field on the water, in conjunction with static or moving components in the flow direction. A further group of documents relates to the changes upon the takeup of negative and positive ions by electrodes, or the material to be treated with an enrichment of the surface with these elements, with the goal of achieving cementation or the formation of an antioxidation protective layer, or the recovery of elements from the solutions (electrolytes).
The object of the invention is the processing of a medium, whether in liquid or gaseous form, in order to alter changes in force and energy in the molecule and between the molecule and the medium, changes that are the cause of physical and/or chemical properties of the medium.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method, which apply color conversion processes to image data, and a lookup table generation method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Upon outputting an image in an image processing apparatus, it is a common practice to convert input image data expressed on a device-independent color space such as an sRGB space into image data expressed on a device-dependent color space which can be reproduced by an image output unit.
In this case, an apparatus of a CMYK color system such as a printer has to further convert the image data on the device-dependent color space into data of color material colors represented by inks or toners. Furthermore, after the conversion into the color material color data, conversion required to correct tone characteristics to fit those of an apparatus in an output unit is often required.
In the aforementioned case, in order to generate output data from input data, a conversion process from data expressed on a device-independent color space into data expressed on a device-dependent color space is executed first. Then, a conversion process from the data expressed on the device-dependent color space into color material color data is executed. Finally, a conversion process required to correct the tone characteristics of the color material color data is executed. In this way, the three stages of color conversion processes are executed in turn.
Upon sequentially processing such large number of color conversion processes, corresponding conversion mechanisms have to be prepared, and a time is required to execute all these conversion processes. In order to solve this problem, a method of combining the plurality of conversion processes into one process has been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 05-502781).
In case of a conversion process which has a strong nonlinearity and is hardly expressed by unique mathematical expressions, a color conversion method using a lookup table (LUT) is generally used. In this case, the LUT is a table which defines input colors and corresponding output colors. The LUT defines the predetermined number of grids on a predetermined color space before color conversion, and stores colors after color conversion at these grid points. For example, when input data is defined on an RGB color space and output data is defined on a CMYK color space, if R, G, and B values corresponding to each grid point are input, four C, M, Y, and K values stored in correspondence with that point are output. When a color which does not correspond to any grid point of the LUT is input, it is a common practice to calculate an output value by linear interpolation such as tetrahedral interpolation from surrounding grid points or interpolation based on other nonlinear functions.
When the nonlinearities of color spaces before and after color conversion are strong, the number of grid points has to be increased to attain conversion with sufficiently high precision. As a result, the capacity of a memory or HDD required to store such LUT is increased. In order to solve this problem, for example, a method of unevenly designating grid intervals to have dense grid intervals for an area important in a color conversion process has been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 08-194817).
However, when the LUTs having the strong nonlinearities are combined as in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 05-502781, the nonlinearities are further enhanced. As a result, compared to sequential execution of the color conversion processes, the interpolation precision may drop, thereby decreasing the conversion precision. Also, in order to generate a LUT having uneven intervals as in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 08-194817, complicated processes are required, and hardware or software required to generate such LUT has to be configured and operated. Upon combining LUTs having uneven intervals, when important areas on the respective LUTs to be combined are different, and grid point intervals are used in correspondence with one of these LUTs, the important area of another LUT cannot be covered. As a result, the conversion precision after combination unwantedly drops.
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A communication or computing network is composed of several or many devices that are physically connected through a communication medium, for example a metal or fiber optic cable. One type of device that can be included in a network is a concentrator. For example, a large-scale time-division switching network may include a central switching network and a series of concentrators that are connected to input and output terminals of other devices in the switching network.
Concentrators are typically used to support multiport connectivity to a network. A concentrator is a device that is connected to a plurality of shared communications lines that concentrates information onto fewer lines. Concentrators inherently reduce the capacity of an interconnect path by increasing the occurrence of blocking and data loss, or by calling for storage of information in buffers.
A persistent problem that arises in massively parallel computing and in communications occurs when moving the data to the processors and users. This problem is exacerbated in systems that incorporate concentrators due to the inherent reduction in capacity.
What is needed is a concentrator structure that rapidly routes data and improves information flow by avoiding blockages, that is scaleable virtually without limit, and that supports low latency and high throughput.
An interconnect structure substantially improves operation of an information concentrator through usage of single-bit routing through control cells using a control signal. The terms xe2x80x9ccellxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9ccontrol cellxe2x80x9d refer to a simple switching element. The term xe2x80x9cnodexe2x80x9d refers to a cell or group of cells that operate as a unit. The interconnect structure and operating technique support wormhole routing and flow of messages. Message packets entering the structure are never discarded, so that any packet that enters the structure is guaranteed to exit.
In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, an interconnect structure includes a ribbon of interconnect lines connecting a plurality of nodes in nonintersecting paths. The ribbon of interconnect lines winds through a plurality of levels from the source level to the destination level. The number of turns of a winding decreases from the source level to the destination level. The interconnect structure further includes a plurality of columns formed by interconnect lines coupling the nodes across the ribbon in cross-section through the windings of the levels. A method of communicating data over the interconnect structure incorporates a high-speed minimum logic method for routing data packets down multiple hierarchical levels.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inverted staggered type thin film transistor (hereinafter, referred to as TFT) substrate applied to an active matrix display.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, in the field of display using semiconductor devices, liquid crystal displays for energy saving and space saving have rapidly come into wide use instead of the known CRT displays. In such liquid crystal displays, a plurality of electrodes, wirings, and elements are provided on a transparent insulating substrate. Specifically, switching elements such as thin film transistors (TFT) having a scanning wiring, a signal wiring, a gate electrode, a source electrode, and a drain electrode are provided in array, and an active matrix type TFT array substrate applying a video signal independent from an electrode to each display pixel is widely used.
Since a large number of processes are necessary to manufacture the active matrix type TFT array substrate, there is a problem in productivity, for example, increase of the number of manufacturing devices and increase of the incidence of inferior goods. As a general manufacturing method, there is a manufacturing method (hereinafter, referred to as 5-mask process) performing a photolithography process five times (see JP-A-11-242241).
In addition, recently, as a method for reducing the number of sheets used to form a thin film transistor substrate, there is a method of applying halftone exposure (hereinafter, referred to as gray tone exposure) to a back channel portion of TFT (see JP-A-2000-164886). This method is a so-called “four-mask process”. In an inverted staggered type TFT forming process of the method, a gate insulating film, a semiconductor layer, and a source wiring material are continuously formed after forming a gate electrode, and the gray tone exposure is applied to exposure of a back channel forming region of TFT. The method is an influential method to reduce a manufacturing cost, and thus technical development for practical use has been promoted.
However, in the case of using the gray tone exposure, when a film thickness (hereinafter, referred to as “GT resist film thickness) of resist in a region where halftone exposure illumination is applied is not regularly controlled, it has an influence on subsequent processes and a desired pattern cannot be obtained. The reason why the film thickness of the resist cannot be regularly controlled is a foundational condition of the region where the halftone exposure illumination is applied, in addition to process factors such as uniformity of exposure intensity on the substrate and uniformity of a thickness of the coated resist on the substrate (see JP-A-2002-141512 and JP-A-2008-33330). Hereinafter, an influence of the foundation on the film thickness of the resist formed by the gray tone exposure, and a problem according thereto will be described.
The case of forming the TFT substrate of the active matrix type display will be described by way of example. Mostly, the TFT is used as a switching element for sending a display signal of each pixel coming through a source signal line, to a predetermined pixel. However, recently, to improve functions and productivity of displays, a circuit for increasing an added value may be mounted in the TFT substrate, or a circuit for test may be mounted outside a pixel display region. In this case, electrodes in the display may have different purposes and limitations. Accordingly, even when the electrodes are formed as the same layer, the electrode patterns have various sizes and shapes different from each other.
FIG. 9 shows a schematic view for explaining pattern size dependency of a gate wiring as a foundation. FIG. 10(a) to (c) shows cross-sectional views in a process of forming a source wiring with respect to regions I to III corresponding to the line C-C. FIG. 10(a) shows the region I where there is a relative narrow gate wiring 12a on a glass substrate 1. FIG. 10(b) shows the region II where there is a gate wiring 12b wider than the gate wiring 12a. FIG. 10(c) shows the region III where there is no gate wiring. Herein, the term of “gate wiring” is used as wide means including a gate electrode where a general thin film transistor is formed.
Generally, a width of a gate wiring of TFT used in a switching element in a pixel region is about 10 to 30 μm, and a structure at the time of patterning a source wiring intersecting above the gate wiring is as shown in FIG. 10(a). In FIG. 10(a), a gate insulating film 13, a semiconductor layer 14, and a conductive layer 15 as a source wiring or a drain wiring are formed to cover the gate wiring 12a patterned on the glass substrate 11. In addition, a resist 16 to pattern the conductive layer 15 and the semiconductor layer 14 is formed. In this case, the following relationship is formed between a film thickness T12 of the resist on the gate wiring 12a and a resist film thickness T11 at a part where there is no gate wiring.T11>T12 (Expression 1)
There are many cases that a gate wiring having a relative wide area is formed outside a pixel display region, as the aforementioned circuit for increasing an added value, the circuit for test, and the like. For example, it is necessary to form a TFT having a high current capacitance, that is, a wide channel width, as a test circuit for shortening a test time, since it is necessary to supply signals at once to all pixels connected to one source signal line. In such a case, it is necessary to widen the area of the gate wiring.
For example, when the area is wider than about 100×100 μm, as shown in FIG. 10(b), a resist film thickness T13 on the gate wiring 2b becomes substantially equal to a resist film thickness T14 in FIG. 10(c) showing a region where there is no gate wiring, or the resist film thickness T11 shown in FIG. 10(a).T11=T13=T14 (Expression 2)
The following relationship can be obtained from the relationships of the above-described two Expressions. That is, when a the pattern size of the gate wiring is large, the film thickness of the resist thereon tends to be large as compared with a case of a small pattern size, and the following relationship is formed.T12<T13 (Expression 3)
As described above, when the thickness of the coated resist is not uniform by the condition of the foundational pattern, the thickness of the remaining resist does not become uniform even if the gray tone exposure is performed uniform on the entire surface of the substrate perfectly. That is, the film thickness of the resist as the halftone exposure illumination region becomes thinner than a film thickness of a resist of a non-exposure portion (i.e., region where a pattern remains as a wiring). However, the film thickness may become larger than a predetermined value by the foundational condition. In this case, when the resist of the thin film thickness region is removed, the resist cannot be completely removed. Accordingly, necessary etching is not performed by subsequent etching, the back channel portion of the TFT is not formed, and the source and the drain of the TFT form a short circuit.
The resist can be completely removed by means of extending an ashing time. However, in this case, a part of a resist as a mask layer for forming a source/drain wiring is removed. Accordingly, a width of the source/drain wiring becomes smaller than a desired value, and disconnection or cutoff occurs at a part where the resist becomes thin at a part of intersecting with the gate wiring.
To solve such problems, it is conceivable to apply the means described in JP-A-2008-33330. However, in this case, it is necessary to form parts having various transmissivity on the mask side, thereby increasing a cost for manufacturing the mask.
When the means described in JP-A-2000-164886 is applied, a line/space combination or mesh-shaped pattern equal to or less than resolution limit can be formed on the mask, as a method for controlling transmissivity on the mask. However, the pattern equal to or less than the resolution limit needs to be controlled by a grid of about 0.05 μm. For this reason, the channel length of TFT in the region I may be different from the channel length of TFT in the region II, and thus the uniformity of TFT characteristics in the whole panel may be broken down.
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Dr. Keiji Fukuda, Assistant Director-General for the World Health Organization, warned in 2014 that no new types of antibiotics have been developed in the past 30 years. Some pathogens have evolved to such an extent that existing antibiotics are helpless to resist them. Accordingly, it is urgent and necessary to develop new types of antibacterial agents. Currently, some international pharmaceutical companies have started to develop some new type materials with more potential. Biomedical material including nano-scale silver (Ag) particles is one of the most important development in this field.
Because the nano-scale Ag particles have high specific surface area and reactivity, the biomedical material including these particles is capable of inhibiting the growth of bacteria or viruses. With respect to this kind of the biomedical material, the diameter of the nano-scale Ag particles relates to the antibacterial effects, in which the diameter is preferably less than 10 nm. However, when the diameter of the nano-scale Ag particles is less than 10 nm, it has the problems of easily causing cytotoxicity to the organism, easily oxidizing, and easily causing aggregations resulted from the secondary bonding of the nano-scale Ag particles. In addition, the production capability of the colloidal silver product manufactured by the sol-gel technique presented in the market is small, the price of the product is high, and it cannot be effectively reused.
Therefore, the Applicant has disclosed a ceramic material having a positive slow release effect, a method for manufacturing the same, and a system comprising the same to improve the problems of the prior art mentioned above.
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1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to global positioning system devices and navigation receivers and more specifically to methods and apparatus for providing accurate position, velocity, and time solutions in high-acceleration, low-signal applications using only two receiver channels.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A unique direct-sequence spectrum-spreading code modulates each global positioning system (GPS) satellite signal by alternating the signal's phase by one hundred eighty degrees. The receiver commonly despreads the signal by multiplying it by a replica of the transmitted code. The despread signal is the sum of a component in phase with a real or hypothetical local-oscillator signal and of a second component ninety degrees out of phase with that local oscillator, which components together constitutes a two-dimensional signal vector whose angle corresponds to the despread signal's phase.
A data message carrying data that describe the satellites' positions and carry other information about the GPS system also modulates the signal by modulo-two addition with the spreading code at a fifty-hertz rate. Since the data message's content is not generally known in advance at the receiver, the receiver design commonly assumes the transmitted signal to be coherent for only the twenty milliseconds of each bit time.
In effect, the satellite's and the receiving antenna's relative motion further modulates the phase of the GPS signal, but in a continuous way rather than in steps of one hundred eighty degrees. The antenna's relative velocity therefore has the effect of a frequency modulation, or Doppler shift. The receiver commonly makes measurements of this motion-caused phase modulation, either as it affects the phase of the spreading-code modulation or the phase of the despread carrier or both.
The receiver commonly tracks the phase of the spreading code by inducing small code misalignments and measuring their effect in order to maximize the amplitude of the despread signal. The receiver also commonly measures or tracks the phase of the despread signal, whether or not those phase measurements also contribute directly to the navigation solution, in order to compute the Doppler shift, by manipulating the frequency or phase or both of the local-oscillator signal. The Doppler shift, which is the rate of change of the signal phase, must be known to tune the receiver, since the possible Doppler shift of many kilohertz is much greater than the narrow bandwidth needed to receive each despread GPS signal.
The receiver commonly averages over time to reduce the noise of phase measurements, either before or after the nonlinear phase-detection operation of measuring the signal vector's phase angle. Because of this operation's nonlinearity, the signal must dominate the noise at the phase detector if the receiver is to recover useful phase information from the signal. This effect, in which signal-to-noise ratios below a certain detection threshold at the antenna cause substantial loss of information, is common to angle-modulation systems, including common frequency-modulation broadcasting.
Detecting phase first in a wide bandwidth to create a phase function .phi.(t), then averaging over a time T which coincides with or is within the twenty-millisecond data-bit time during which the signal is coherent ##EQU1## has the advantage of eliminating the need to synchronize any pre-detection averaging or band-limiting with the bit edges, since the duration of the contamination of the phase function by the incoherence at each data-bit edge is a negligible fraction of the bit time. This technique is therefore often used when a high signal-to-noise ratio can be relied upon.
Averaging the signal vector first for as long a time as it is coherent, that is, for the twenty-millisecond bit time, ##EQU2## has the advantage of significantly lowering the detection threshold, for example, by a substantial thirteen decibels when the predetection averaging is lengthened from one millisecond to the full twenty milliseconds. This allows use of much noisier signals. Although the scaling shown is correct for the vector average, the scaling of this or any predetection averaging is actually irrelevant since phase detection discards amplitude information.
Except in special cases in which time, altitude, or other position information is known, a GPS navigation receiver must track at least four satellites to find its antenna's position in three dimensions. A receiver that has enough channels can dedicate a channel to tracking each satellite. When there are more satellites to track than channels to track them, receivers ordinarily resort to time-sharing strategies. Deliberately providing only a few channels to be shared among the satellites tracked reduces size, hardware complexity, and cost, at the expense of loss of signal power or risk of loss of carrier-phase lock.
A "multiplexing" receiver, as referred to herein, completes at least one cycle of channel-sharing during each twenty-millisecond bit time. It operates otherwise much like a multi-channel receiver, receiving phase and data almost continuously from all satellites tracked. However, a four-satellite multiplexing receiver averages the signal for no more than one-fourth of the bit time, and therefore pays a six-decibel detection-threshold penalty.
A "sequencing" receiver, as referred to herein, dwells on each satellite for one or more bit times. Sequencing receivers usually include two channels, one to sequence among the satellites for navigation and one to dwell on one satellite for a longer time to accumulate data, since the sequencing channel misses most of the data bits from any one satellite.
A sequencing receiver that dwells on each satellite for the one bit time needed for optimum linear processing is a "fast-sequencing" type, as used herein. Assuming that it can visit four satellites within one hundred milliseconds, the largest step that a nineteen meter-per-second-per-second acceleration can produce in that 100-millisecond cycle time is ninety-five millimeters or one-half wavelength at the L1 carrier frequency of 1.5754 gigahertz. Thus acceleration of 1.94 times that of earth's gravity, or 1.94 G, is needed before the phase uncertainty exceeds the maximum that can be identified unambiguously.
This does not mean however that it is possible to track carrier phase under two-G acceleration with a single GPS receiver channel. Even though the carrier phase can be determined in a single 100-millisecond interval, the Doppler shift due to velocity is still unknown. So, without a way to remove the effect of the present velocity from the next measurement, the phase-shift due to further acceleration will add to that due to present velocity. The quickest way to measure velocity from phase measurements every one hundred milliseconds is by differencing successive phase measurements to get the average velocity between them. The greatest velocity change that a 0.97 G or 9.5 meter-per-second-per-second acceleration can produce in the one hundred milliseconds between the centers between velocity measurements is 950 millimeters per second, which velocity corresponds to a phase change of ninety-five millimeters in the one hundred milliseconds between phase measurements or one-half wavelength at the L1 frequency. The practical result is to preclude tracking carrier phase per se across the gaps in each satellite's reception except for the most sedate applications with accelerations under one G.
Consequently, sequencing receivers have commonly been designed to reacquire each satellite for each new cycle of the sequence. Such a receiver ordinarily needs about five seconds to sequence a channel around to all the satellites being tracked. Thus it is a "slow-sequencing" type as used herein. The signal strength needed to acquire or reacquire a satellite is much greater than that needed to maintain continuous tracking. Thus the signals must be strong; so conventional slow-sequencing receivers, like multiplexing receivers, are particularly hampered by low signal levels. In summary, slow-sequencing receivers sequence slowly because they must reacquire the satellites; and they must reacquire the satellites because so much time elapses between successive measurements due to their slow sequencing.
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Blocking of the terminal hydroxyl groups and changing the molecular weight of polyorganosiloxanes having one hydroxyl group in each of the terminal units is well known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,203,913 to Burkhardt et al. describes a process in which .alpha.,.omega.-dihydroxypolydiorganosiloxanes are reacted with .alpha.,.omega.-bis-trimethylsiloxypolydiorganosiloxanes in the presence of phosphonitrile chlorides. Also, German Offenlegungsschrift No. 3,524,484 (J. Burkhardt, Wacker-Chemie GmbH), describes a method for replacing terminal hydroxyl groups of .alpha.,.omega.-dihydroxypolyorganosiloxanes by reacting the .alpha.,.omega.-dihydroxypolyorganosiloxanes with hexaorganodisilazane in the presence of phosphonitrile chlorides.
Therefore, is an object of the present invention to provide a process for blocking the terminal hydroxyl groups of polyorganosiloxanes (.alpha.,.omega.-dihydroxypolyorganosiloxanes) having hydroxyl groups in the terminal units. Another object of the present invention is to provide a process for blocking the terminal hydroxyl groups of the polyorganosiloxanes with a composition having a low volatility at the pressures and temperatures employed in the blocking reaction. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a process for blocking the hydroxyl groups and changing the molecular weight of .alpha.,.omega.-dihydroxypolyorganosiloxanes. A further object of the present invention is to provide a process for blocking the hydroxyl groups and changing the molecular weight of .alpha.,.omega.-dihydroxypolyorganosiloxanes which makes it posible to use less catalyst at a comparable space-time yield. A still further object of the present invention is to provide a process for blocking the hydroxyl groups and changing the molecular weight of .alpha.,.omega.-dihydroxypolyorganosiloxanes which suppresses the formation of cyclic organosiloxanes and reduces the amount of catalyst-deactivating agent.
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A problem of increasing importance in computer technology is the extraction of information from images which are represented as arrays of pixels (picture element intensity values). On the one hand, computer technology has successfully automated the acquisition, storage, and transmission of images of documents; on the other hand, it has even roe successfully automated the storage and manipulation of information represented by strings of digital codes representing text characters.
What has been much less successfully automated is the conversion of character information in images into character-string data. Often, the same technique is used as was used to convert character information on pieces of paper into character-string data: a data entry clerk reads the image and uses a keyboard to enter character-string data equivalent to the information on the image into a data base. The difficulties with this procedure are obvious: it is expensive, slow, and error-prone.
An important component of the technology of extracting information from images is image segmentation, i.e., the division of an image into portions having different properties. FIG. 1 shoes how apparatus which performs image segmentation is used in a system 101 for extracting character information from images. Image 103 is an image which is represented in the memory of a data processing system as an array of pixels. It serves as an input to segmenter 107, a program executing in a processor of the data processing system. Segmenter 107 produces a segmentation of image 103 in which text columns 105 are separated from non-text 106. A text column in the present contest is one or more lines of text. In the case of a multi-line column, the lines making up the column are arranged with reference to a common vertical line. Non-text 106 may be white space or it may be illustrations, ornamental borders, patterns, or the like. The output from segmenter 107 is text column images 109, which are portions of image 103 which contain only text columns 105. Text column images 109 are then used as input to text column analyzer 111, another program executing in a processor of the data processing system. Given images of text columns, text analyzer 111 is able to interpret the images as characters, words, and lines and output digital character codes 113 corresponding to the text in the text images. The digital character codes 113 are then generally output to a text file 115. The digital character codes produced by text analyzer 111 may of course be manipulated by the data processing system in the same fashion as any other character codes. A state-of-the-art text column analyzer 111 is described in Henry S. Baird, "Global-to-Local Layout Analysis", in Proceedings of the IAPR Workshop on Syntactic and Structural Pattern Recognition, Pont-a-Mousson, France, 12-14 Sep. 1988, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Segmenter 107 is a necessary component of system 101 because text column analyzer 111 presumes that the images it is receiving represent exactly one column of text. Consequently, if text column analyzer 111 receives more than one text column 105 or non-text 106 as input, it may fail. If the input is multiple text columns 105, text column analyzer 111 may not be able to locate the lines of text, and even if it does, it will not read them in the correct order. If the input is non-text 106, text column analyzer 111 may interpret illustrations, ornamental borders, other non-textual material, or even spots of "dirt" as text. In the best case, text column analyzer 111 will fail, and will merely have wasted time and processing resources. In the worst case, text column analyzer 111 will succeed. When that happens, text column analyzer 111 may add non-existent characters to the text being extracted from the image or may even completely misinterpret the text in the image.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates broadly to the art of extracting information from images represented as arrays of pixels and more specifically to the art of segmenting such images in order to simplify the extraction of information from them. The techniques of the invention are particularly useful for segmenting images which contain text.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A recent survey of techniques for segmenting images which contain text, S. N. Srihari and G. W. Zack, "Document Image Analysis", Proceedings, 8th International Conference on Pattern Recognition, Paris, France, October 1986, pp. 434-436, divides fully-automatic segmentation techniques into two broad categories: top-down and bottom-up. Top-down techniques begin by making high-level hypotheses about the location of text in the image (for example, that there will be double-column text with a header). They then make trees of lower-level hypotheses based on the high-level hypotheses, and continue thus downward until they reach a level where the correctness of a hypothesis may be determined by examining the document image. If the document image does not support the hypothesis, the top-down techniques back up in the tree until they reach a level which was not demonstrated false by the document image and attempt another branch of the tree. As is obvious from the foregoing, if there; is a bad match between the high-level hypotheses and the actual form of the document, it will take a program using top-down techniques a great deal of time to determine the location of the text.
Bottom-up techniques begin by locating images of characters. They then form characters into words, words into lines, lines into columns, and so forth. The problem with these techniques is that they have no global view of the text in the document, and therefore often make mistakes concerning what characters make a word, what words make a line, what lines make a column, and so forth. The art has attempted to deal with these problems by using rules to prevent certain classes of mistakes. What is needed, and what is provided by the apparatus and methods disclosed herein, are techniques for segmentation which combine the simplicity and speed of the bottom-up techniques with the global view of the top-down techniques.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data compression system for a liquid crystal display (LCD), and more particularly, to a data compression system and related power saving method capable of selecting a data transmission path according to an operation mode.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The liquid crystal display (LCD), which has advantages of thin appearance, low power saving and low radiation, etc. has widely been applied in various electronic products such as a computer screen, mobile telephone, personal digital assistant (PDA), flat television, and other communication/entertainment equipment. The principle of LCD is to vary the arrangement of liquid crystal molecules in a liquid crystal layer by varying the voltage difference between two terminals of the liquid crystal layer. The transparency of the liquid crystal layer may change accordingly, which is further incorporated with the light source provided by a backlight module to display images.
The LCD includes a drive chip. After data is transmitted from a host to the drive chip, the data may be compressed by a compression circuit and stored in a compression memory. The drive chip then utilizes a de-compression circuit to transmit the data to the display area. When the drive chip is operated in some particular modes, information related to complete color gamut may not be required. Thus, compressing the information data of complete color gamut via the compression circuit may generate unnecessary power consumption.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to pouring tubes for use with continuous strip-casting equipment. More particularly, the invention relates to pouring tubes which are designed for the introduction of a metallic melt into the cavity of the mold through lateral discharge ports located below the normal operational surface level of melt in the mold.
2. Summary of the Prior Art
In the continuous casting of metallic strip, particularly steel or aluminum strip, it is well understood that melt must be supplied to the cavity of the mold in sufficent quantity to allow the maintenance of efficient casting speeds. It is also well understood that the non-uniform distribution of melt within the cavity of the mold can detrimentally effect the quality of the strip being cast. The introduction of desirable quantities of melt into the cavity of the mold in a manner which maintains the required uniformity of distribution of melt within the mold, however, has heretofore presented serious problems to the art. For example, the so called "free-pouring" method has been found to be unsuitable for the continuous casting of steel strip. This method results in a melt distribution within the mold which is not uniform. Accordingly, acceptable product quality cannot be assured. Further, the "free pouring" method introduces unacceptable heat loss and re-oxidation problems in the continuous casting context.
Attempts have been made to solve this problem by introducing melt below the normal operational melt surface level in a continuous strip-casting mold. For this purpose, molds for the continuous casting of metallic strip have been developed having an enlarged pouring area which tapers inwardly and downwardly from the to of the mold centrally between the broad side walls and the narrow side walls which form the cavity of the mold. Pouring tubes for use with these molds have also been developed. These pouring tubes extend from a melt container to the mold cavity, and include a discharge portion (adjacent to their free ends) which extends into the volume of the enlarged pouring area below the normal operational melt surface level in the mold. The discharge portion of such pouring tubes is closed axially, and includes a lateral exit port facing each of the narrow side walls of the mold. The melt flows from the container through the pouring tube to its free end. At the free end of the tube, the melt is deflected outwardly through the lateral exit ports, toward the narrow side walls of the mold. The resulting melt stream flow into the melt already present in the mold cavity radially from the pouring tube toward the inner surfaces of the narrow side walls of the mold. Since the melt in each of these streams has a high kinetic energy (i.e., the flow is fast in order to assure that an adequate quantity of melt for efficient strip casting reaches the cavity of the mold), the identifiable currents created by the inflooding melt within the melt already present in the cavity extend from the pouring tube all the way to the walls of the mold. This results in erosion of the strand shell under formation along the walls of the cavity. The presence of an appropriate strand shell is important to the casting of strip having acceptable structure and a uniform, fault free surface. Hence, the damage to (and/or the impediment to the formation of) the strand shell in such prior art devices must, if possible, be strictly controlled. This means that melt introduction rates must be held below optimum levels, thus reducing the efficiency of the entire casting operation.
Similarly, since the volume of melt normally present within the cavity of the mold is not large (particularly in cases wherein strip having thin cross-sectional height, for example, less than 60 mm, is being cast), and since that volume cannot readily absorb the energy of the incoming melt streams, the streams flowing outwardly from the discharge ports towards the narrow side walls also tend to create non uniform distributions of melt within the cavity of the mold, i.e., an excess of melt (standing waves) adjacent the narrow side walls of the cavity. This excess melt is forced upwardly (adjacent the narrow side walls) because it is confined by the broad side walls, a narrow side wall, the melt below it, and the incoming stream of melt behind it. Therefore, the surface of the melt in the cavity is raised adjacent each of the narrow side walls relative to its normal level, creating a trough in the area adjacent the pouring tube. This can cause deviations from the preferred flow characteristics of the melt through the mold which are detrimental to the formation of acceptable strip. It also may cause metal to become caked on the walls of the mold above the normal level of the melt therein. In extreme cases, the energy of the streams may be great enough to cause splashing of the melt adjacent the narrow side walls of the mold. Melt splashing is particularly problematic during the start-up phase, when the melt in the cavity of the mold has not yet had a chance to reach its normal operational level.
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Treatment of slaughtered animals by introducing (e.g., injecting) a treatment solution into the circulatory system of the slaughtered animals provides for improved meat quality and improved yield. Such processing, also called “rinsing,” involves the removal of the blood from the animal and the introduction of the treatment solution into the circulatory system. Rinsing processes can be performed on various animals including, but not limited to, cattle, horses, hogs, poultry, deer, buffalo, and sheep.
Treatment of slaughtered animals is complicated by a number of factors, and rinsing often must be performed under exacting conditions in order to provide for maximum meat quality while complying with health regulations.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a flash electrically programmable read-only-memory (EPROM) and, in particular, to an increased-density flash EPROM that requires less area to form the metal bit line- to-drain contacts.
2. Description of the Related Art
A flash electrically programmable read-only-memory (EPROM) is a non-volatile memory that, like conventional EPROMs and electrically-erasable, programmable, read-only-memories (EEPROMs), retains data which has been stored in the memory when power is removed. Although flash EPROMs are architecturally similar to conventional EPROMs and EEPROMs in a number of ways, one characteristic which differentiates flash EPROMs from conventional EPROMs and EEPROMs is that the metal bit lines of the array are utilized to directly contact the drain regions.
FIG. 1 shows a plan diagram of a portion of a conventional flash EPROM array. FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional diagram taken along lines 1A--1A of FIG. 1. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional flash EPROM array includes a series of metal bit lines MBL1-MBLn which are formed so that each metal bit line MBL contacts each of the drain regions in one column of drain regions.
One of the major goals in the design of a flash EPROM array is to increase the density of the array. Historically, the density of flash EPROM arrays has been increased by reducing the dimensions of the individual cells of the array. One dimension which has proved to be particularly difficult to reduce in size, however, is the area required by each of the metal bit line-to-drain contacts.
The principle reason for this difficulty is the excess area which is required to compensate for any masking alignment error which can occur during the fabrication of the metal bit line-to-drain contacts. As shown in FIG. 2, the metal bit line-to-drain contacts are typically formed by forming a contact mask over a layer of insulation material ILD to define a series of metal contact openings, etching the unmasked portions of the layer of insulation material ILD until a portion of each drain region is exposed, depositing a layer of aluminum which forms the metal bit line-to drain contacts, and then masking and etching the layer of aluminum to form each of the individual metal bit lines.
As can be seen in FIG. 2, if the contact mask is misaligned, the subsequent etching of the layer of insulation material ILD can result in a portion of the word line and poly1 floating gate being etched away, thereby destroying the cell. As a result, the drain regions of the array must be formed to be larger than necessary to insure that, if the contact mask is misaligned, a portion of the word line and floating gate will not be etched away during the formation of the metal contact openings.
Another reason that it is difficult to reduce the area required by each of the metal bit line-to-drain contacts is that aluminum is a non-conformal material. Thus, as the area of the metal contact openings are reduced in size, the non-conformal nature of aluminum prevents the aluminum from reliably flowing into the metal contact openings and forming an electrical contact with the drain regions.
Therefore, there is a need for an increased-density flash EPROM that requires less area to form the metal bit line-to-drain contacts.
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Strip lighting systems using fluorescent lights exist, but they are limited by the omnidirectional and less efficient radiation nature of fluorescent tubes in comparison to the unidirectional and more efficient nature of solid-state light emitting devices such as Light Emitting Diode (LED) devices with particular beam angles. Strip lighting systems using LEDs also exist, but they suffer from a number of limitations. Individual luminaires of such systems are cost constrained and limited in length by the type of circuit boards used to power the LEDs. A typical printed circuit board (PCB) material, FR-4, has a maximum practical length of approximately 22 inches, and producing luminaires of longer lengths typically requires the use of multiple PCB sub-boards. This results in increased cost and manufacturing complexity (due to interfaces and connectors). Use of PCBs also does not easily allow for the production of luminaires at a variety of lengths on demand. Separate heat sinks and reflectors are also typically required, thus increasing the cost of such systems. Additionally, current systems employ dedicated controllers and power supplies that are included within each luminaire, thus increasing manufacturing cost. Current systems also do not allow for adjustment of the beam angle provided by the luminaires Accordingly, there is a need for an easy to manufacture, low cost solid-state light emitting device strip lighting system.
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1. Field
The exemplary embodiments generally relate to active vibration control and, more particularly, to actuator mounting brackets for active vibration control systems.
2. Brief Description of Related Developments
Generally active vibration control systems in aircraft use shakers or actuators (e.g. active vibration elements) to vibrate a structural component at a discrete frequency to cancel the input disturbance (noise/sound and/or vibration), solely related to rotating axis of an aircraft engine. These actuators are mounted to a portion of the aircraft using brackets that generally do not provide easy installation or removal of the actuators and/or brackets especially in retrofit applications.
It would be advantageous to have an active vibration control system actuator mounting bracket that provides substantially unhindered installation and removal of the actuators.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electron microscope, especially of a type capable of functioning also as a scanning type electron microscope.
2. Description of Prior Arts
Recently, various attempts have been made to provide a normal electron microscope with a function of scanning type electron microscope.
In one example of such attempts, a specimen is disposed within a magnetic field of an objective lens capable of producing an intense magnetic field.
An electron beam is focussed on the specimen by the magnetic field distributed over an area at the incident side of the specimen, which magnetic field is produced by the objective lens and referred to as "fore magnetic field". At the incident side of the fore magnetic field, i.e. at one side of that field closer to an electron gun, there is provided a deflector for deflecting the focussed electron beam so that the specimen is scanned with the focussed electron beam two-dimensionally. Although this type of microscope has a high resolution, due to the short focal length of the lens formed by the fore magnetic field, the magnetic field is inconveniently disturbed resulting in an astigmatism, when the specimen is ferromagnetic, to deteriorate the resolution unfavourably.
In addition, the depth of focus is small, due to an extremely large convergent angle of the incident electron beam, so that a field of three dimensions as can be obtained in the usual scanning microscope's secondary electron image is not obtainable.
Another disadvantage is that the size of the specimen is inevitably limited by the size of the magnetic pole of the objective lens.
In another attempt for imparting the scanning function to the electron microscope, the specimen is positioned not in the magnetic field of the objective lens but at the emitting side of the objective lens, as is the case of usual electron microscope specifically designed for scanning.
In this case, the electron beam is focussed on the specimen by a relatively less intense excitation of the objective lens, while the specimen is scanned with the focussed electron beam which is deflected by a deflector disposed at incident side of the specimen.
Although this type of microscope can overcome above described shortcomings inherent in the first mentioned example, the resolution of the scanning electron microscope is largely decreased, due to an increased coefficient of spherical abberation. This is due to the fact that the distance between the objective lens and the specimen is large, partly because the upper and the lower magnetic poles for forming objective magnetic field are made to project closer to the axis of the beam than other portion of the objective lens, and partly because the projecting portions are not located at the emitting end of the objective lens.
Under these circumstances, the present inventors have noted that the distance between the objective lens and the specimen can be decreased by positioning the magnetic field of the objective lens at the emitting end of the objective lens, through forming the lower magnetic pole of the objective lens in a flat plate-like shape.
However, in usual electron microscope, in order to preserve its performance, the objective lens must have the value of IN/.sqroot.E (IN denotes ampere turn, and E means acceleration voltage) as large as 15 to 16.
Thus, the study by the present inventors has been focussed on whether the above value is met or satisfied, when the objective magnetic field is positioned at the emitting end of the objective lens by making the lower pole in the flat plate-like form.
As a result, it has been concluded that the IN/.sqroot.E value as large as 15 to 16 is not obtainable, due to a magnetic saturation of the objective lens.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to quartz tubing and, more particularly, to quartz tubing used in coupling glass and silica capillary elements together.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,185,883 (Chown et al) discloses an optical fiber coupling element which includes a glass sleeve secured to a length of optical fiber. The optical fiber is placed in the glass sleeve, and the sleeve is heated so that it collapses around the fiber to hold the fiber in place.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,745 (Flaming) discloses a micropipette puller which includes a mirror that is oscillated to move energy of a laser along a selected portion of a glass tubing. The mirror varies the amount of heat transmitted to the glass tubing as the tubing is being pulled.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,921,522 (Flaming) discloses a variation of the '745 Patent. The '522 Patent is a Continuation-in-Part of the '745 Patent. A concave mirror is used in the '522 Patent to direct the energy from a laser against glass tubing being pulled.
It will be noted that none of the above described patents refers to providing a linear taper in the glass or quartz tubing elements involved in the patents.
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{
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The present invention relates to a pneumatic tire having an asymmetric tread pattern wherein a right and a left half of a tread portion on both sides of the tire equator have different patterns, and more particularly to a pneumatic tire that a difference in performances depending on the rotation direction of the tire is reduced.
Various tread patterns formed by tread grooves, including a circumferential groove extending in the circumferential direction of the tire and a lateral groove extending in a direction intersecting with the circumferential groove, have been proposed in order to enhance a wet performance of tires. As one type of the tread patterns is known, for example, an asymmetric pattern such that patterns on the both sides of the tire equator are different, as disclosed in JP-A-2004-155416.
A tire with an asymmetric pattern has the advantage that both dry and wet performances can be achieved at high levels, since a land proportion for an outer area of the tread surface which lies on a vehicle outer side with respect to the tire equator when the tire is fitted to a vehicle can be made larger than a land proportion for an inner area of the tread surface which lies on a vehicle inner side with respect to the tire equator. The reason is that the vehicle outer side area has a large influence on the steering stability since a load applied to the vehicle outer side area becomes relatively large as compared with the vehicle inner side area at the time of cornering or lane change and, therefore, the dry performances can be improved by increasing the land proportion of the vehicle outer side area to thereby enhance the pattern rigidity and to increase the ground contact area, while maintaining the wet performances as a whole tire, particularly drainage performance, at a high level by the vehicle inner side area which has a smaller land proportion.
However, as shown exaggeratingly in FIG. 6, in the case that tires having such an asymmetric pattern are fitted to a vehicle, the tread pattern is directed in opposite directions with respect to the rotation direction of the tires between a tire T1 on a right wheel and a tire T2 on a left wheel. That is, explaining with reference to FIG. 6, lateral grooves a1 in the outer area of the right wheel tire T1 extend from a tire equator C side toward a tread edge Te side and are inclined in a backward direction with respect to the rolling direction of the tire, whereas lateral grooves a1 in the outer area of the left wheel tire T2 extend from the tire equator C side toward the tread edge Te side and are inclined in a forward direction with respect to the tire rolling direction.
In this case, the right wheel tire T1 can exhibit a high drainage performance, since water on a road flows in a direction of discharge from the tread edge Te. In contrast, the left wheel tire T2 is inferior in the drainage performance, since water on a road flows toward the tire equator C. Like this, tires with an asymmetric pattern have a problem that as to the drainage performance, a difference may occur due to inclination of lateral grooves between the tire mounted on the right wheel and the tire mounted on the left wheel.
In particular, since the vehicle inner side area has generally a small land proportion, in other words, since the vehicle inner side area has a large groove area and accordingly exhibits a high drainage performance, an influence of the vehicle inner side area onto a difference in the drainage performance between the right and left wheel tires is small, but the vehicle outer side area has generally a large land proportion and accordingly has a large influence on the difference in the drainage performance between the right and left wheel tires.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a pneumatic tire which has an asymmetric tread pattern such that the land proportion of the vehicle outer side area is larger than the land proportion of the vehicle inner side area, but which is capable of suppressing occurrence of a difference in drainage performance between the tire fitted to a right wheel and the tire fitted to a left wheel of a vehicle to improve the steering stability of the vehicle.
This and other objects of the present invention will become apparent from the description hereinafter.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of superfinishing the cylindrical surface of parts intended to be mounted in circular guides and to be moved in translation along their axis relative to said guides.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many machine parts move in translation, such parts being mounted with their cylindrical surfaces in circular guides (translation bearings). One illustrative example of a part of this kind is an automobile vehicle steering rack.
The cylindrical surfaces of such parts are generally straightened before they are subjected to a superfinishing operation, for example lapping, if necessary. All such machining operations carried out with the parts rotating form on the parts more or less fine circular or helicoidal scratches or striations, the orientation of the scratches or striations being conditioned by the relative movement of the part and the tool during machining.
Such striations or scratches, even if they are very fine, cause unwanted noise, friction and vibration when the parts move in axial translation relative to their guides.
To remedy this drawback, i.e. to eliminate the circular or helicoidal striations or scratches, it has already been proposed to submit the cylindrical surface of such parts to xe2x80x9clongitudinal superfinishingxe2x80x9d which consists of machining it with the lateral surface of an abrasive wheel driven in rotation about its axis, which is oriented perpendicularly to the axis of the part, and by moving the wheel or the part in translation along the axis of the part. This xe2x80x9clongitudinal superfinishingxe2x80x9d eliminates the circular or helicoidal striations or scratches resulting from conventional straightening or superfinishing at the cost of producing longitudinal striations or scratches which, because they are parallel to the axis of the part, cause much less vibration, friction and noise when the part is afterwards moved in axial translation relative to its guide.
In the longitudinal superfinishing method used until now, a plurality of successive passes are performed on the cylindrical surface to be machined, each pass machining a segment of the cylindrical surface of the part, which is not rotated and is offset angularly between two successive passes until the whole of the cylindrical surface has been machined by means of a plurality of successive axial passes.
The prior art method is relatively slow and difficult to automate.
Also, longitudinal superfinishing by the prior art method is effected by direct contact between a flexible abrasive wheel and the surface to be machined, which leads to relatively fast wear and soiling of the abrasive wheel.
The present invention is aimed at a method of xe2x80x9clongitudinal superfinishingxe2x80x9d of the cylindrical surface of parts which enables the parts to be machined faster and which can be extensively automated.
The invention is also aimed at a xe2x80x9clongitudinal superfinishingxe2x80x9d method which reduces the propensity to wear and soiling of the prior art method.
The method in accordance with the invention of superfinishing the cylindrical surface of a part which is intended to be mounted in circular guides and to be moved in translation along its axis relative to the guides consists of placing an abrasive applicator wheel so that its axis is perpendicular to the axis of the part and its lateral surface is pressed against the cylindrical surface, driving the wheel in rotation about its axis and moving the part and/or the wheel so that the cylindrical surface of the part is abrasively machined longitudinally in its entirety, characterized in that the wheel and/or the part is simultaneously moved in translation along the axis of the part and rotated about the axis at speeds such that the whole of the cylindrical surface is abrasively machined longitudinally along a helical trace whose successive turns overlap.
The cylindrical surface of a part can therefore be machined all at once in a single pass, and thus in an operation that is easy to automate.
From the point of view of implementing the method, it is simpler to rotate the part about its axis and to move the abrasive applicator wheel in translation along the axis of the part.
In accordance with the invention, the abrasive is preferably applied by a wheel at least the outside lateral surface of which is flexible.
The outside lateral surface of the wheel preferably includes a circumferential groove having a circular arc profile whose radius is substantially equal to the radius of the cylindrical surface of the part to be machined.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention the abrasive is applied by passing an abrasive strip over the lateral surface of the wheel and the strip is caused to perform a continuous forward movement during machining by rotating the wheel.
Although an abrasive strip of finite length can be used in the context of the invention, paid out from a pay-out spool and rewound onto a take-up spool, an endless abrasive strip is advantageously used.
The wheel is preferably pressed with a controlled constant force against the cylindrical surface to be machined.
The machining method according to the invention and one example of a machine for implementing the method are described in more detail hereinafter with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid-discharge recording apparatus and, more particularly, to a liquid-discharge recording apparatus having the mechanism to maintain a viscosity of an ink to be emitted so as to be fitted for emission at least when the ink is emitted.
2. Description of the Prior Art
According to liquid-discharge recording apparatuses, a recording liquid (for example, ink) is held in an ink vessel, the ink is led to a recording head unit from this ink vessel, a nozzle provided in the recording head unit is driven in response to a print pattern signal, and at the same time the ink is emitted from a discharge opening at the head of the nozzle, thereby performing the recording such as the printing or the like on a recording material such as a paper or the like. The ink emitted forms a jet liquid droplet and is deposited on the recording material.
As methods of emitting the ink onto the recording material, the method whereby an electromechanical converter such as, e.g., a piezoelectric device or the like is used, the method whereby an electrothermal energy converter is used, and the like are known. According to the method whereby the electrothermal energy converter is used, the ink in the nozzle is heated by the electrothermal energy converter to cause a change in pressure of the ink, thereby emitting the ink.
In the liquid-discharge recording apparatuses to which the above-mentioned emitting methods and other conventional emitting methods are applied, it is a general manner that the discharge opening at the head of the nozzle to emit the ink is always open into the open air irrespective of whether the apparatus is operating or not. Therefore, in the case where the recording is not performed for a long time, the water and volatile organic solvent or the like which are the components of the ink evaporate into the open air from the inks remaining at the discharge opening and in the portion near the discharge opening. Thus, the viscosity of the residual ink increases and exceeds a range of viscosity necessary for emission, causing a problem such that no ink is emitted in spite of the fact that a print signal is applied immediately after the apparatus operated and the recording was restarted.
In addition, there is also another problem such that a temperature of the ink decreases at low temperatures in winter season or the like, so that the viscosity of the ink also increases.
To solve the problem of the increase of the viscosity of the ink mentioned above, there has been proposed the method whereby the ink is heated just before the recording is restarted, namely, just before the ink is again emitted, and the temperature of the ink is increased, thereby reducing the viscosity and maintaining it to a predetermined viscosity range.
However, for such a preheating, the heating condition is largely changed due to the circumstances under which the recording apparatus is used. Namely, there is a drawback such that if the preheating condition is determined so as to obtain good emission of the ink droplets even under low temperature environment (for example, 5.degree. C.), the viscosity of the ink becomes too low due to the heating under high temperature environment (e.g., 35.degree. C.), so that the ink viscosity is out of the range necessary for good emission. On the contrary, in the case where the preheating condition is set so as to derive a good ink viscosity under high temperature environment, the necessary viscosity cannot be derived under low temperature environment.
Further, even when the environmental temperature is constant, the heating condition is also largely changed depending on the use state of the recording apparatus. Namely, due to the use of the recording apparatus, all of the thermal energy applied from the electrothermal energy converter to emit the ink droplets from the discharge opening, for example, is not necessarily used to form the ink droplets but a part of this thermal energy increases the temperature of the peripheral members of the electrothermal energy converter. Therefore, the temperature of the portion where the discharge opening is formed immediately after the completion of the recording is largely changed as compared with the temperature before the start of the recording, so that there is a problem such that, for instance, when the ink is heated at the restart of the recording just after the end of the recording, the ink is overheated and the viscosity overdecreases.
As another method for preventing the occurrence of the problem due to the increase of the viscosity of the ink, there has been proposed the method whereby the ink is always heated when the apparatus is used and the ink temperature is always kept constant in consideration of a change in temperature of the external environment and thereby to cope with the foregoing problem (Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 187364/1983). As the ink heating means in this case, there are considered the method whereby the electrothermal energy converter which is used to form the flight ink droplets is used, and the method whereby another electrothermal energy converter is separately provided to always heat the ink.
However, the use of only the above methods also causes the problem such that it takes a time to heat the ink when the recording is restarted. Namely, in the case of using the electrothermal energy converter provided to form the ink droplets, it is possible to apply the electrical signal only within a range such as not to form any ink droplet. Therefore, an electrical signal of a high level cannot be applied and the heating time inevitably becomes long. In the case of using the electrothermal energy converter separately provided, such a limitation does not occur; however, since the heat is concentrated to only a single portion, the peripheral portion is influenced by the heat and the durability deteriorates. Thus, even in this case as well, an electrical signal of a fairly high level cannot be applied.
In addition to the foregoing heating methods, there has been further proposed the method whereby the recording head provided with the discharge opening in the recording apparatus is located at the home position when the recording is interrupted and this discharge opening is covered by a cap at the home position.
However, the use of both the heating of the ink and the capping of the discharge opening causes the viscosity of the ink to exceed the viscosity range necessary to emit the ink, so that the emission of the ink and the formation of the ink droplets are not always accurately performed. Further, in the case where the recording is interrupted for a long time, there is a risk such that the evaporation portion of the ink which is likely to be evaporated due to the heating of the ink leaks from the cap, so that the concentration of the ink near the discharge opening rather increases.
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A lumen in a human or animal body, such as a blood vessel or a urinary tract, can require internal support to ensure proper flow of fluid in the lumen. For example, a lumen can become at least partially occluded, and support can be required to reestablish sufficient internal bore in the lumen for flow of fluid.
Support for a lumen can be provided by implantation of a stent in the lumen. In many situations, this can allow a patient to resume normal activities without dependence on medical help, at least temporarily and in many situations indefinitely.
It can also be desirable to provide support in a lumen temporarily, without necessarily implanting a stent in the lumen. This can be achieved by means of a catheter which can be inserted into a lumen, and which has a portion which can be inflated by means of fluid supplied to the inflatable portion through a hollow bore of the catheter. This technique is referred to as "balloon angioplasty" when applied to blood vessels.
In processes in which inflatable catheters are used, the occlusion and the walls of the lumen are expanded and stretched by inflation of the catheter. The walls then remain in the stretched condition so as to remove or at least to reduce the occlusion, and to establish an increased flow of fluid in the lumen.
Once inflated, the catheter completely blocks the lumen against flow of liquid. The expansion process must therefore be carried out quickly, and then the catheter must be deflated quickly to reestablish flow of fluid. This is particularly critical in blood vessels on or near the heart which, if deprived of blood flow for even short periods (sometimes less than 30 seconds) can give rise to the condition known as "heart attack".
The present invention provides an expander assembly which includes a shape memory alloy component, which exhibits a shape memory effect. Shape memory alloys are discussed in an article by L. McDonald Schetky in the Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology (edited by Kirk-Othmer), volume 20, pages 726 to 736. Subject matter disclosed in that document is incorporated in this specification by this reference to the document. Such alloys can exist in martensite and austenite phases. An article formed from the alloy while in the austenite phase can be deformed, after it has been cooled so that the alloy is in the martensite phase. If the temperature of the article is subsequently increased so that the alloy transforms back to the austenite phase, the article reverts to the configuration which it had before it was deformed. The transformation from austenite phase to martensite phase takes place over the temperature range M.sub.s to M.sub.r, and the transformation from martensite phase to austenite phase takes place over the temperature range A.sub.s to A.sub.f.
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{
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In international patent application PCT/AU98/00550, the present applicant has proposed an ink jet printing device which utilizes micro-electro mechanical (MEMS) processing techniques in the construction of a print head driven by thermal bend actuator devices for the ejection of fluid such as ink from an array of nozzle chambers.
Devices of this type have a number of limitations and problems.
It is an object of the present invention to provide various aspects of an inkjet printing device which overcomes or at least ameliorates one of or more of the disadvantages of the prior art or which at least offers a useful alternative thereto.
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{
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This invention is a device for two-way multiplication of force, from linear to dynamic and visa-versa, to be used for moving industrial equipment or in any other application requiring one or two simultaneous movements of dynamic and linear force. The subject matter of this application uses the force of a lever and its counterweight, the power of which can be adjusted by varying its size. Furthermore, the device can be manufactured with one or more stages, according to the needs of the application.
Considering that the invention in question is a device that uses the force multiplication capability of a lever together with a counterweight that moves linearly along its surface, we know of no reference to other devices or equipment using this technology.
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{
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To provide high-speed data services, network developers have expanded the optical distribution network infrastructure to be closer to the subscriber premises. Fiber To The Home (FTTH) networks based on Passive Optical Networks (PON) and Radio Fiber over Glass (RFoG) deployments based on Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) are just some examples to satisfy the above mentioned bandwidth demand. This increases the available bandwidth for subscribers. However, even with the increased amount of bandwidth, it is possible that future subscriber requirements may still run out of capacity. For example, when multiple users are sharing the available bandwidth at a specific subscriber location, the capacity available for each user may be reduced below the desired quality of service (QoS) because a high number of users may be simultaneously running data-consuming applications.
Some recent standards, such as data over cable service interface specification (DOCSIS) 3.1, segment available spectrum, such as in orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) channels and orthogonal frequency division multiplexing access (OFDMA) channels, to manage downstream (DS) and upstream (US) bandwidth. OFDMA is a multi-user version of OFDM that is used in the upstream direction. However, the segmented available spectrum in DOCSIS 3.1 (in OFDM channels—“bundles”) has not been completely exploited for an efficient management of US/DS bandwidth. On the other hand, the physical connections to the network at subscriber premises are typically implemented in the form of coaxial transmission cables or Wi-Fi links. Both of these technologies may have limitations. For example, when the coaxial cable infrastructure is used to connect devices at subscriber premises, such as a multimedia over coaxial alliance (MoCA), the cable bandwidth is shared among DS and US signals, which limits the ability to upgrade the DS and US networks to the full available spectrum of DOCSIS 3.1. Also, when operating in a Wi-Fi environment, the location of the Wi-Fi gateway is not always efficient, and attenuation around the customer premises causes signal issues and imminent reduction of available bandwidth for devices where mobility is not a concern.
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{
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This invention is related to a portable practice golf driving range tee mat, and more particularly to a platform having a first high tech grass mat from which the ball is driven. A second mat, on which the golfer places his feet, cooperates with a third mat in locating the golfer's feet with respect to the striking position of the ball, depending upon the club being swung.
Golfers are concerned with the proper location of their feet when holding a club for striking a ball. Proper foot placement depends upon several factors. A primary factor is the nature of the club being swung, that is, whether it is an iron or a wood club, and further what type of iron or wood club is being swung. Typically a wood club requires a wider stance than an iron used for chipping or pitching. Further, the distance the golfer places his feet from the ball depends upon the nature of the club. An iron or a wedge requires a closer stance than a wood or a driver.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a suspension of a vehicle wheel in a vehicle such as an automobile, and more particularly, to a suspension device of the type constructed by a combination of a plurality of links.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As a very common structure of the link type vehicle wheel suspension it is known, as diagrammatically shown in FIG. 1, to support a carrier 10 for supporting a vehicle wheel 12 to be rotatable about a central axis of rotation thereof such as A by an upper arm such as an A-type arm 16 connected with an upper portion of the carrier 10 at an outboard end thereof via a pivot joint 18 to be pivotable relative to one another about at least one substantially horizontal and longitudinal axis of revolution also connected with a body 24 of the vehicle at an inboard end thereof via pivot joints such as 20 and 21 provided at the free ends of the two leg portions of the A-type arm to be pivotable relative to one another about a substantially horizontal and longitudinal axis of revolution, and a lower arm 26 connected with a lower portion of the carrier 10 at an outboard end thereof via a pivot joint 28 to be pivotable relative to one another about at least one substantially horizontal and longitudinal axis of revolution and also connected with the body 24 of the vehicle at an inboard end thereof via a pivot joint 30 to be pivotable relative to one another about a substantially horizontal and longitudinal axis of revolution and to have at least a certain small freedom of revolution about a substantially vertical axis of revolution, wherein forward and rearward movements of the outboard end of the lower arm 26 are restricted by a strut member 48 firmly connected with an outboard portion of the lower arm 26 at a rear end thereof and connected with the body 24 of the vehicle at a front end thereof via a pivot joint 54 to be pivotable relative to one another about a substantially horizontal and longitudinal axis of revolution. When the vehicle wheel supported by such a suspension device is a steering vehicle wheel, the carrier 10 is also pivotable relative to the upper arm 16 and the lower arm 26 about a substantially vertical axis of revolution via the pivot joints 18 and 28 which may be ball joints, and the carrier 10 is steered by a knuckle arm 32 mounted thereto being operated by a steering tie rod not shown in the figure.
In such a suspension device, in order to obtain a condition that an instant center of movement of the vehicle wheel is stably maintained at a certain point in the bounding and rebounding movement of the vehicle wheel so that the bounding or rebounding of the vehicle wheel does not cause any abrupt change of orientation of the axis of rotation of the vehicle wheel which would cause a dynamic instability due to the Coriolis' effect of the like, the link mechanism constructed by the carrier 10, the upper arm 16, the lower arm 26, the strut member 48 and the vehicle body 24 is generally so arranged that a phantom straight line such as K passing the pivot points 30 and 54 traverse substantially the axis of revolution in the pivotal connection between the upper arm 16 and the vehicle body 24 which is substantially horizontal and longitudinal as indicated by H at a point such as O which provides the instant center of the bounding and rebounding movement of the vehicle wheel. Herein it is conditioned that the line K traverses substantially the line H, because although two straight lines having different inclinations will exactly traverse one another in a plane geometry, in a three dimensional geometry applied to an actual product of suspension device, it requires a very high precision for any two straight lines to traverse exactly one another beyond a degree practically available and enough for certain objects, functions and advantages desired to be accomplished. Therefore, the concept of "substantially traversing" is used with regard to two straight lines in the present application to provide an allowance for an exact geometric traversing of two straight lines within a range which does not substantially affect the objects, functions and advantages of the invention.
When the vehicle wheel supported by such a suspension device is a front vehicle wheel, it is desirable that the instant center of the bounding and rebounding movement of the vehicle wheel, i.e., O, is relatively close to the axis of rotation of the vehicle wheel, A, from the view point of improving the anti-nose diving performance in the braking of the vehicle, in which the mass of a front portion of the vehicle body under the inertia would ride on the braked vehicle wheel by turning about a point of contact T of the vehicle wheel with the ground surface G as supported from the vehicle wheel by a phantom arm R expanded between the point T and the point O, as if the mass of the front portion of the vehicle body were centralized at the point O, thereby generating a greater force for pushing up the front portion of the vehicle body against the nose diving as an angle of inclination j of the phantom arm R from the ground surface G is greater. In order to dispose the point O relatively close to the center of the vehicle wheel, A, as is more readily understood in FIG. 3 showing also diagrammatically the suspension mechanism shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the inboard side thereof, the pivot joint 30 is required to be as high as possible, while the pivot joint 54 is required to be as low as possible. However, it is often difficult to dispose the pivot joint 30 as high as required because of certain interference thereof with other parts of the vehicle such as a steering gear box, particularly when the vehicle wheel is a steering vehicle wheel. On the other hand, it decreases the bottom height of the vehicle to lower the pivot joint 54.
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{
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The present invention relates to a waste treatment device and, more particularly, to a waste treatment device that turns waste into disposable and usable products.
After the treatment of wastewater is performed, biosolids and the associated contaminants are removed. Biosolids are a solid, semisolid, or liquid residue. Biosolids that are used beneficially must be treated to reduce pathogens and vector attraction. Distribution and marketing of Class AA biosolid products is regulated by governments. Class AA biosolids are considered to be the highest quality of biosolids produced and may be utilized as fertilizer through commercial distribution and marketing.
Traditionally, biosolids (sludge) disposal involves trucking the sludge into rural areas and dumping the sludge onto fields. This may cause major health concerns. Other methods of disposal may include incineration, adding chemicals or dumping into landfills. However, concerns about contaminants, runoff, air pollution, tipping fees, and rising transportation costs have resulted in cities and municipalities seeking alternative and more efficient methods to handle the removal of wastewater biosolids.
Others have attempted various methods of biosolid pasteurization, but each method has shortcomings. For example, solar drying in greenhouses does not dry or heat sewage sludge and septic waste to a safe level. Gas drying or alkaline stabilization have high processing costs for energy, fuel and chemicals.
As can be seen, there is a need for efficient methods of treating wastes.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to dancing machines, and more particularly to a hand-operated dancing machine wherein hand-operated percussion instruments such as a tambourine, bongo, conga, etc. are configured in an electronic manner to be operated for entertainment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As well known, conventional dancing machines are mostly operated by the user""s feet, such as with dance dance revolution (DDR).
However, because the user operates such a conventional dancing machine using only his feet, he hardly uses his body, more particularly its upper half. Further, the user cannot help playing a very monotonous game, in that he only dances to a specific music rhythm.
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a hand-operated dancing machine wherein hand-operated percussion instruments are configured in an electronic manner to be operated for entertainment and generate a variety of sounds such as a tambourine sound, bongo sound, conga sound, etc., so that the user can frequently use the upper half of his body while he plays various games.
In accordance with the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by a provision of a hand-operated dancing machine comprising a plurality of tub input units for inputting corresponding hit signals from the user""s hands; an auxiliary input unit for inputting a hit signal from the user""s feet; a coin manager for managing the input of coins; a graphic controller for controlling the configuration of an image on a screen of a monitor; a sound controller for controlling the arrangement of percussion instruments"" sounds and music through a speaker; an illumination controller for controlling the intensity of illumination of decoration lamps; a central processing unit for centrally controlling the graphic controller, sound controller and illumination controller in response to output signals from the tub input units or an output signal from the auxiliary input unit for the control of the image configuration, the percussion instruments"" sounds and music arrangement and the illumination intensity; an auxiliary memory for storing a variety of music data and percussion instrument sound data under the control of the central processing unit; a random access memory loaded with the music data and percussion instrument sound data stored in the auxiliary memory under the control of the central processing unit; and a read only memory for storing a system operating program.
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{
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to moving objects and devices for use therewith, and more particularly, to methods and devices for accelerating and decelerating moving vehicles.
2. Prior Art
Along many highways, exits are provided for runaway trucks or other types of vehicles. Once a vehicle takes such an exit, it enters a stretch of a road that is filled with relatively fine sand of an appropriate depth. As the runaway vehicle enters the sand-filled portion of the road, it quickly begins to decelerate and slow down and after a relatively short distance it comes to rest. The deceleration of the vehicle is caused primarily by the process of “sinking” the vehicle tires into the sand, and forcing it to continuously “climb the height of the sand in front of it, i.e., a height equal to the sinking depth of the tire. The kinetic energy of the vehicle is absorbed primarily by the friction forces generated within the displacing sand. This process is fairly similar to an uphill travel of a vehicle, which would decelerate a non-powered vehicle and eventually bring it to rest. The amount of deceleration, i.e., the rate of slow-down, is dependent on the uphill slope. For the case of a sand-filled road, the amount of deceleration that can be achieved is dependent on the depth of the sand and the mechanical characteristics in terms of the amount of resistance that it can provide to its displacement by the tires.
As the vehicle travels along the sand-filled road, the vehicle usually experiences a fairly bumpy ride, since the sand cannot be made and maintained perfectly flat and perfectly homogeneous or protected from contaminants carried by the wind and rain and also by an uneven absorption of moisture. Another major disadvantage of the sand is that due to the relatively small friction that it provides between the tire and the roadway, the tires can easily skid sideways and slip, particularly if the driver attempts to use the brakes, and the vehicle may easily be rendered minimally controllable while slowing down. As a result, accidents, such as overturning and jackknifing, can occur while the vehicle is being brought to rest. The skidding, slipping and partial loss of control becomes increasingly more probable with increased initial speed of the vehicle as it enters the stretch of sand-filled road.
In addition, a depth of sand that is most appropriate for a certain vehicle weight, number of tires, and/or tire size may not be appropriate for other vehicles having a significantly different weight, number of tires, and/or tire size. For example, a road with a depth of sand that is appropriate for a heavy truck will decelerate a light vehicle too fast and can therefore result in injury to the passengers due to the rapid deceleration and/or most likely due to the vehicle loss of control. The optimal depth of the sand is also dependent on the initial speed of the vehicle. If a vehicle enters the sand-filled road with a relatively slow speed, then it would be best for the depth of sand to be relatively small, so that the vehicle is brought to stop as slowly as the length of the sand-filled road allows. Other factors also contribute to the optimal design of such sand-filled roads such as the weight of the vehicle, the number and size of the tires, etc. In short, to achieve an optimal condition, a sand-filled road has to be tuned to the type of the vehicle, its entering weight and initial velocity. In addition, the road and sand conditions have to be regularly monitored and maintained. Such conditions cannot obviously be met for roads that are constructed for general use and are subject to various environmental conditions. Such sand-filled roads are in use in numerous highways and are particularly located where the downward slope of the road is high and heavier vehicles such as trucks are prone to run away and are used as the means of last resort.
Such sand-filled roads are not, however, suitable for fast moving vehicles such as airplanes. For the case of airplanes, other issues may also arise. For example, the load on each tire is usually much larger than road vehicles; the relative distance between the tires may be smaller than those of road vehicles, thereby rendering them more uncontrollable; the center of mass of the plane may be higher than that of road vehicles, thereby making them more prone to tipping over; etc. In addition, and particularly for fast moving planes, the load applied to the tires keep varying due to the suspensions and the lift action, and therefore may cause a ripple to be formed on the surface of the sand-filled road, thereby making the ride even more bumpy and uncontrollable. In addition, the sand-filled section of the runway needs to be re-leveled after each use. In short, sand-filled roads are not appropriate and practical for fast moving vehicles in general and for airplanes in particular.
To overcome the aforementioned shortcomings for airplanes, runway segments have been added to the end of test runways that are constructed with a special type of concrete that collapses in a more or less controlled manner under the load of the airplane tire. Such runway segments solve some of the aforementioned problems of sand-filled roadways. However, such runway segments leave some of the major aforementioned problems unsolved and they even create some new problems and hazards. For example, the problem of lack of control is only partially solved by reducing the skidding potential caused by the sand. However, the collapsed concrete tends to constrain the tire to travel, more or less, in the generated “groove,” making it difficult for the plane to maneuver (turn) sideways due to the resistance that the uncrushed “concrete wall” provides against the tire as it attempts to turn sideways. In addition, the concrete material cannot be formed such that it is sufficiently homogeneous to prevent bumpy rides. In addition, the collapsible concrete runway can only be optimally formulated and constructed for a certain airplane with a certain total weight and certain initial velocity as it reaches the collapsible segment of the runway.
Furthermore, once the collapsible segment of the runway is used by a “runaway” plane during landing or takeoff, the damaged segment has to be repaired before the runway can be opened to traffic. Otherwise, the damaged segment would pose a hazardous condition for the next runaway plane or even for a plane that could have stopped if a regular runway segment was present in place of the collapsible segment. In addition, while the repair crew is repairing the damage, any takeoff or landing would pose a hazardous condition for the repair crew and the plane. The use of the runway must therefore wait for the completion of the repairs, including the time required for the proper setting of the added or replaced sections of the concrete and inspection of the final condition of the runway. In short, the operation of the airport must be significantly curtailed for a significant length of time, and if the airport has only one runway, the entire operation of the airport has to be suspended until the damaged sections of the collapsible runway has been repaired. In short, such collapsible runway segments have major technical difficulties for safe operation and even those technical problems are one day solved, they are still effectively impractical due to the required relatively long periods of closure after each use and the related economical costs involved.
A need therefore exits for reusable runways and driveways that can slow down or bring to stop a “runaway” vehicle. For high-speed approaches, particularly for airplanes, it is also essential that the ride be as smooth as possible and that the vehicle stays fully controllable during the entire time it is being decelerated. It is also highly desirable that the runway or driveway parameters be readily adjustable to optimally match the type, weight and initial speed of the vehicle. Such adaptable runway segments are particularly important for planes for the aforementioned reasons and in practice, the parameters of the runway segment can be readily adjusted by the air traffic controller or even by the pilot since all the required information about the plane and its flight conditions is known prior to landing and takeoff. The information may even be automatically transmitted from the plane by a wireless means to a central processor. In addition, if the plane is experiencing some type of malfunction or is damaged, the runway segment may be adjusted for optimal performance with each specific condition. Such changes in the runway parameters may be achieved manually or automatically before the plane reaches the runway segment or even as it is traveling along the runway.
Such runway segments may even be placed along the entire length or a portion of the runway (or other road surface) to routinely assist in the deceleration of aircraft (or other vehicles), thereby reducing their tire and brake wear. The equipped runway segments may also be kept inactive, thereby acting as a regular (solid) segment of the roadway surface, and be activated only when needed, such as in an emergency.
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The present invention relates to a process for preparing optically-active amino acid (di)benzyl esters, to a process for preparing optically-active amino acid (di)benzyl ester sulfonates, and to optically-active amino acid (di)ester tartramic acids and a process for preparing them.
Optically-active amino acid benzyl esters, optically-active amino acid dibenzyl esters and their sulfonates are useful for materials for medicines and agricultural chemicals, and the present invention relates to processes for preparing amino acid benzyl esters and amino acid dibenzyl esters of high optical purity through simple operations not lowering the optical purity of the optically-active amino acids. Notonly optically-active xcex1-amino acid ester tartramic acids and optically-active xcex1-amino acid diester tartramic acids are useful for materials for medicines and agricultural chemicals, but also they are easy to optically resolve as having a plurality of asymmetric carbon atoms, and, in addition, their optical purity can be accurately determined through HPLC analysis with ordinary reversed-phase columns.
A method of producing optically-active amino acid benzyl esters by reacting an optically-active amino acid with excessive benzyl alcohol in benzene in the presence of paratoluenesulfonic acid monohydrate therein in a mode of continuous azeotropic dehydration (Dean-Stark reaction) is known from long ago. (Journal of Organic Chemistry, Vol. 22, page 1515 (1957).) For thermally unstable amino acids, also known is a method of producing optically-active amino acid benzyl esters, which comprises adding benzyl alcohol and dimethylaminopyridine to an optically-active amino acid of which the amino group is protected with a tertiary butoxycarbonyl group (Boc group) or the like, dehydrating it with 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide with stirring in a solvent of dichloromethane at 0xc2x0 C. to thereby prepare an N-protected amino acid benzyl ester, and thereafter removing the protective group from it. (Journal of Organic Chemistry, Vol. 47, page 1962 (1982).) On the other hand, optically-active xcex1-amino acid ester tartramic acids, and optically-active xcex1-amino acid diester tartramic acids are novel compounds, and no one knows how to produce them.
However, the method of continuous azeotropic dehydration (Dean-Stark reaction) of reacting an optically-active amino acid with excessive benzyl alcohol in benzene in the presence of paratoluenesulfonic acid monohydrate therein is accompanied by racemization. Especially for amino acids that require high temperature and take long time for esterification, benzyl esters of high optical purity are difficult to obtain from them. The method of first esterifying an optically-active amino acid of which the amino group has been protected, with benzyl alcohol and then removing the protective group from the resulting ester is not accompanied by racemization as the condition for esterification therein is mild, but it requires complicated operations. Therefore, the method is problematic, if used for producing amino acid benzyl esters and amino acid dibenzyl esters of high optical purity on an industrial scale.
The problem with the present invention is how to produce amino acid benzyl esters and amino acid dibenzyl esters of high optical purity through simple operations on an industrial scale, not lowering the optical purity of optically-active amino acids used as starting materials. Optically-active amino acid ester tartramic acids and optically-active amino acid diester tartramic acids are novel substances.
In producing optically-active amino acid benzyl esters or optically-active amino acid dibenzyl esters by reacting an optically-active amino acid with a benzyl alcohol in the presence of an acid catalyst, when a hydrazine is present in the reaction system, or when the reaction is effected in the absence of oxygen, or when a hydrazine is present in the reaction system and the reaction is effected in the absence of oxygen, then optically-active amino acid benzyl esters or dibenzyl esters of high optical purity can be obtained.
In addition, when an optically-active diacyltartaric anhydride is reacted with an optically-active amino acid ester or diester, or is reacted with a racemic amino acid ester or diester and then optically resolved, then optically-active amino acid ester tartramic acids or optically-active amino acid diester tartramic acids can be produced.
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Certain types of data needs to be available both on a wide geographic scale and in a highly performant manner. For example, certain types of data communications systems maintain subscriber profiles that include data that defines various attributes regarding how communication with subscribers is to be performed. A subscriber profile for unified communications might, for instance, contain data indicating a subscriber's current location and availability. This type of data often needs to be available across a large geographic area, such as a country, a continent or even the entire world. This data should also be available nearly instantaneously in order to support fast call completion and/or other real or near real-time communications functions. Making data available both in a wide geographic area and in a highly performant manner can, however, be very complex.
The disclosure made herein is presented with respect to these and other considerations.
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Wounds created by surgery require understanding, careful management and surgical technique to avoid infection thus enhancing the healing response. This is particularly so of wounds created in the mucosal surfaces, for example the mouth where sterility and effective wound dressing is problematic. Treatment of the skin with an antiseptic prior to surgery is effective in reducing the bacterial load to below critical colonisation levels. Accordingly, infection in surgery can be reduced, for example, by painting the skin with iodine or chlorhexidine solutions prior to making an incision. This is more difficult in the mucosa, particularly the mouth, where secretion of biological fluids such as saliva constantly washes and potentially contaminates a treated area. Therefore, the mouth is prepared for surgery by physically cleaning an area to remove biofilm, with the application of topical antiseptics, generally as a mouthwash.
Antiseptics are used to reduce the levels of microorganisms on the skin and mucous membranes. The skin and the mucous membranes of the mouth, nose, gastro-intestinal and genito-urinary tracts are home to a large number of relatively harmless, commensal microorganisms. However, when the skin or mucous membranes are damaged or breached in surgery, antiseptics can be used to disinfect the area and reduce the chance of infection. The antiseptics include alcohols, quaternary ammonium compounds, iodine and phenol compounds. The alcohols used are commonly ethanol, 1-propanol, 2-propanol or mixtures of these alcohols. Quaternary ammonium compounds include the compounds benzalkonium chloride, cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide, cetylpyridinium chloride and benzethonium chloride.
A further class of antiseptics is the bis-biguanide compounds. The bis-biguanide compounds are well known compounds whose activity is as a chemical antiseptic. They are known to be effective on both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The compound most commonly used is chlorhexidine. It is often formulated in oral rinses and skin cleansers, and is used in small quantities as a preservative. It may also be used orally in gel form. Chlorhexidine has both bactericidal and bacteriostatic mechanisms of action. The mechanism of action is thought to involve membrane disruption. Examples of bis-biguanide compounds and their use as antiseptics are provided by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,670,592, 4,666,896 and 5,164,107.
Iodine may be used in an alcoholic solution, called a tincture of iodine. Iodine is also used as a complex with povidone, a water soluble polymer containing triiodide ions. Further, antiseptics include octenidine dihydrochloride, a cationic surfactant, phenol, sodium chloride and sodium bicarbonate.
However, antiseptics of the type traditionally used to sterilise wounds are cytoirritants which induce macrophages. Macrophages are cells produced by the differentiation of monocytes in tissues. Macrophages function in both non-specific defence as well as in helping initiate specific defence mechanisms. Macrophages play a critical role in inflammatory and immunological processes, various phenotypes being involved in both damaging inflammation as well as tissue repair. The divergent effects of macrophages may be explained by their classification into two main interchangable groups. M1 macrophages, or classically activated macrophages, are immune effector cells that are aggressive against microbes and can engulf and digest effective cells. M1 macrophages are activated by lipopolysaccharides and interferon-gamma. Alternatively activated macrophages, designated as M2 macrophages, are a phenotypic grouping involved in wound healing and tissue repair as well as turning off damaging inflammatory, immune system activation by producing anti-inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-10. M2 macrophages however do not impede immune competence i.e. non immunosuppressive but act via non-inflammatory pro-resolving routes; they also possess powerful pain down-regulation properties, the mediators being in the picogram to nanogram range. Cytokines, such as Maresins [macrophage mediator in resolving inflammation] are part of a group of specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators which are actively biosynthetised during the resolution phase of acute inflammation and are potent agonists, controlling the magnitude and duration of inflammation.
Alternatively activated macrophages are activated by interleukin-4. M1 macrophages produce nitric oxide and reactive oxygen species, making them cytotoxic. Furthermore, they secrete high amounts of pro-inflammatory cytokines, for example IL-12, that promote inflammation. Conversely, M2 macrophages produce anti-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-10, thereby reducing inflammation. Alternatively activated macrophages also produce high levels of fibronectin and matrix-associated proteins, and they promote fibrogenesis from fibroblastoid cells. The induction of arginase in these cells may lead to polyamine and proline biosynthesis, promoting cell growth, collagen formation and tissue repair. A wide range of specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators [SPMs] have been identified i.e. they act to restore of tissue homeostasis with the resolution of aggressive inflammation. This process is highly regulated.
Early in the innate immune response, macrophages produce reactive oxygen species and pro-inflammatory cytokines to drive inflammation. At this stage, the macrophages are classically activated macrophages. During resolution of inflammation, they switch to an alternatively activated phenotype and contribute to debris scavenging, angiogenesis and wound healing. Macrophage differentiation can also be skewed during differentiation in vitro through provision of alternative cytokines (IL-10 or IL-12) per the previous discussion.
As antiseptics of the type traditionally used to sterilise wounds are cytoirritants, there is an inherent tension in treating the area around a wound with an antiseptic; the antiseptic will have cytoirritant effect and therefore tend to induce inflammation. Classically activated macrophages will be present in the surgical wound in view of the disruption of the tissue. Thus, the inflammation effect is enhanced and wound healing is slowed when antiseptic is applied. It would be desirable to provide a composition which is effective in preventing sepsis but which does not increase damaging inflammation with enhancement of epidermal and mucosal healing, reduction of pain with resolution of inflammation
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It can be appreciated that pyrotechnic controls have been in use for years. Typically, pyrotechnic controls are comprised of electrical firing systems that rely on switches or contact closure thrown by the operator or contact closures initiated by computer control, and systems which are either wired directly from the main controller to the pyrotechnic devices or connected via wireless link or wireless local area network from a main controller to a slave device which is, in turn, wired directly to the pyrotechnic devices.
A problem with existing pyrotechnic controls is that most pyrotechnic controllers operate in a master-slave architecture. Pyrotechnic devices are prepared with electric matches for ignition, and the electric match is wired through a series of field modules and cables to a master control switchboard. The exact nature of the wiring boxes, cables, and switchboard varies and is not significant. At a predetermined point of time, either the operator or a timing control device activates a switching circuit to allow current to flow through one or more electric matches or effectors.
Some current systems provide techniques for generating an event list that references an audio/video data structure. In such known techniques, once the event is associated, the audio stream structure provides the timing reference to initiate the event. Unfortunately, this only works in a master-slave environment or when all devices that must interpret events have access to the timing stream or signal. This same problem occurs when an explicit timing signal such as SMPTE timing track is used to initiate the events.
Two examples of current decentralized systems are next briefly described. The first example teaches an array of “intelligent” effectors linked by a 2- 3- or 4-wire communications bus, where the master controller does not have complete control over the effector's firing, but the effector may be equipped with sensors whose condition is checked before functioning is permitted to occur. The second example teaches an array of intelligent sensors with two interlinked processors, one for real-time processing and another for non-real time processing.
In known systems, activation control may be hardwired directly from the battery to the ignition device, or through a coded electrical signal. In either of these cases, the master firing panel initiates the communication burst or event that causes ignition. If more than one match or sets of matches (cues) must be fired simultaneously, there is often a delay as the master firing panel must initiate separate communication or electrical events. This results in delays and latency as each initiator is fired sequentially. In addition, if wireless communication is employed between the master controller and slave devices, which perform the switching function, radio interference can cause significant delays in each transmitted packet further delaying the timing of the operation. These delays seriously disrupt the critical synchronicity of the music and pyrotechnic effect reducing the enjoyment of the audience. In pyrotechnic displays, it is not unusual to try to simultaneously launch hundreds of devices at the same moment across a wide area facing the audience or “front”. These delays seriously degrade this effect producing uneven firing patterns. In blasting operations, resonance effects require precise timing between initiator events, which would be critically destabilized by these delays and rendered ineffective. Similarly, in special effects work, the pyrotechnic event is often synchronized to sound or visual effects, and any delay in the firing would detract from the realism the operator is trying to achieve.
Another problem with conventional pyrotechnic controls is that existing controllers operate on a fixed voltage, current, and time specification. For example, a controller might apply to the electric match(es) when connected 12 volts at a maximum of 5 Amperes of current, for a period of 12.5 milliseconds. While this specification might be fine for most series wired electric matches, more time might be required if the matches are wired in parallel or inferior match production causes them to require more than 12.5 mS for ignition. In addition, if the operator wishes to control something other than a pyrotechnic device, a mechanical actuator for example, then a different voltage, current, and time pulse might be desired. Existing systems do not have the capability to automatically vary all of these parameters.
Yet another problem with the existing art is when wireless links are employed, a phenomenon known as shadowing occurs. When an object larger than the wavelength of the radio signal exists between the line-of-sight path of the transmitter and receiver, the signal may be seriously diminished or blocked completely. If the operator is holding the transmitter and changes position, different receivers may become shadowed, and other receivers may regain direct connections to the transmitter. Existing systems do not have the ability to maintain contact with a diverse array of receivers when the transmitter moves. Some current systems provide techniques for utilizing a local queue manager to deliver messages to diverse recipients; however, in the pyrotechnic field there is a need for the ability to instantly adapt to changing configurations.
While the foregoing devices may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they are generally not as suitable for creating a firing system where zero latency, accurate timing, flexible output, and operator movement must be achieved.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of pyrotechnic controls now present in the prior art, there is a need for a new method for zero latency distributed processing of timed pyrotechnic events.
Unless otherwise indicated illustrations in the figures are not necessarily drawn to scale.
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The present invention relates to catalytic polymerization, in general, and, tactic catalytic polymerization, in particular, of alpha-olefin monomers using an active non-metallocene pre-catalyst featuring a diamine diphenolate complex, and a corresponding method using the disclosed pre-catalyst.
Currently, there is significant interest relating to methods and systems of catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers based on a xe2x80x98pre-catalystxe2x80x99 featuring a metal bound to one or more spectator ligands, where the pre-catalyst may be soluble in a liquid phase solvent, or is adsorbed on a solid surface, and where alpha-olefin monomer reactant may be liquid or gas phase. In such methods and systems, typically, the pre-catalyst is activated by at least one xe2x80x98co-catalystxe2x80x99, where the combination of the activated pre-catalyst and the at least one co-catalyst functions as a single chemical entity, or complex xe2x80x98catalystxe2x80x99, for polymerization of the alpha-olefin monomer. The field of catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers is of significant industrial importance, as more than 50 million tons of poly(alpha-olefin) products, such as polyetheylenes and polypropylenes, are produced each year, involving metal based catalytic processes and systems.
Hereinafter, the term xe2x80x98pre-catalystxe2x80x99 refers to a chemical entity, in general, and to a chemical compound, in particular, which, when activated by at least one xe2x80x98co-catalystxe2x80x99, becomes part of a xe2x80x98catalystxe2x80x99 functional for catalytic polymerization of an alpha-olefin monomer, under proper polymerization reaction conditions. In general, without the presence of at least one co-catalyst, a pre-catalyst is ineffective for catalytic polymerization of an alpha-olefin monomer, and consequently exhibits essentially no catalytic activity for polymerization of an alpha-olefin monomer. Here, when referring to catalytic activity during a polymerization reaction, reference is with respect to the catalytic activity of a pre-catalyst, and it is to be understood that the pre-catalyst functions in concert with at least one co-catalyst for effecting catalytic polymerization of an alpha-olefin monomer. It is noted, however, that there are rare exceptions of a particular pre-catalyst functioning without first being activated by a co-catalyst, for effecting catalytic polymerization of an alpha-olefin monomer. Thus, the present invention focuses on a new and novel pre-catalyst compared to pre-catalysts currently used for catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers.
Currently, one of the major goals in this field is to produce a variety of new types of poly(alpha-olefin) products, for example, tactic polymers made from alpha-olefin monomers featuring more than two carbon atoms, having well defined bulk or global physicochemical properties, such as mechanical strength, elasticity, melting point, and chemical resistance, applicable for manufacturing a diversity of end products. This may be achieved by controlling the polymer tacticity and polymerizing different types of alpha-olefin monomers, in order to produce a variety of homo-polymers and co-polymers, with varying degrees of monomer incorporation.
Bulk or global physicochemical properties of polymers are directly related to, and are controllable by, molecular or local physicochemical characteristics of the polymer units making up the bulk polymer. Three notable molecular physicochemical characteristics are polymer molecular weight, polymer molecular weight distribution, and polymer tacticity.
Polymer molecular weight and polymer molecular weight distribution are highly relevant with respect to producing different types of polymers. For example, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), having an average molecular weight above 3,000,000, has the highest abrasion resistance of thermoplastics and a low coefficient of friction. Unlike synthesis of small molecules, however, polymerization reactions involve random events characterized by formation of polymer chains having a range of molecular weights, rather than a single molecular weight. Typically, polymers are better defined and characterized in relation to narrow molecular weight ranges.
The accepted parameter for defining polymer molecular weight distribution is the polydispersity index (PDI), which is the weight average molecular weight, Mw, divided by the number average molecular weight, Mn, or, Mw/Mn. Depending upon the actual application, ideally, a catalytic polymerization system features xe2x80x98livingxe2x80x99 polymerization in which the rate of initiation is higher than the rate of propagation leading to a PDI of close to 1, and involving a single catalytic active site, and the rate of termination reactions is negligible relative to propagation. This has been achieved in very few systems for catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers. A PDI of 2.0, signifying xe2x80x98non-livingxe2x80x99 polymerization, is often found in metallocene catalytic systems, also involving a single catalytic active site. Classical heterogeneous Ziegler-Natta catalytic systems usually lead to a broader range of molecular weights with a PDI of about 5. One current challenge is to design alpha-olefin polymerization pre-catalysts, and catalytic systems including such pre-catalysts, leading to poly(alpha-olefin) products with low values of PDI.
Another current challenge in the field of catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefins is to design alpha-olefin polymerization pre-catalysts, and catalytic systems including such pre-catalysts, leading to poly(alpha-olefin) products having controllable and classifiable degrees of polymer tacticity. Polymer tacticity is another very significant molecular physicochemical characteristic of a polymer which can dramatically determine and influence bulk physicochemical properties of a polymer, such as a poly(alpha-olefin) polymer. The term xe2x80x98polymer tacticityxe2x80x99 refers to the particular micro- or local structural configuration of the substituents on the polymer backbone, or equivalently, stereo-regularity of the polymer chain, as to whether a polymer is, for example, isotactic, syndiotactic, or, atactic. Polymer tacticity is typically used in reference to a hydrocarbon polymer derived from polymerization of a monomer having more than two carbon atoms, such that the polymer has a side chain on every other carbon atom of the polymer backbone. Moreover, there are different particular forms or types of xe2x80x98polymer tacticityxe2x80x99 according to the particular micro- or local structure in terms of the relative orientations of the side chains bound to the polymer backbone.
A polymer in which all the side chains extend or protrude from the same side or plane of the polymer backbone is referred to as an xe2x80x98isotactic polymerxe2x80x99 which is obtained from an xe2x80x98isotacticxe2x80x99, or equivalently, an xe2x80x98isospecificxe2x80x99 polymerization process. A polymer in which the side chains alternately extend or protrude from opposite sides of the polymer backbone is referred to as a xe2x80x98syndiotactic polymerxe2x80x99 which is obtained from a xe2x80x98syndiotacticxe2x80x99, or equivalently, a xe2x80x98syndiospecificxe2x80x99 polymerization process. A polymer in which the side chains randomly extend or protrude from either side of the polymer backbone is referred to as an xe2x80x98atactic polymerxe2x80x99, which is obtained from an xe2x80x98atacticxe2x80x99 polymerization process. Furthermore, extent or degree of a particular form or type of polymer tacticity is also used in reference to polymer tacticity. For example, a polymer may be classified as being eighty percent isotactic and twenty percent atactic. Another example is a hemi-isotactic polymer, in which every second side chain extends or protrudes from the same side or plane of the polymer backbone, whereas the rest of the side chains randomly extend or protrude from either side of the polymer backbone. Typically, extent or degree of tacticity of a polymer, or a polymerization process, is determined by subjecting the polymer, or products of the polymerization process, to NMR spectroscopic analysis, more particularly, 13C NMR.
An illustrative example showing the dramatic influence polymer tacticity has on bulk physicochemical properties of a polymer is tactic polymerization of propylene. Isotactic polypropylene is solid and semi-transparent at room temperature with a melting point in the range 150-165xc2x0 C., syndiotactic polypropylene is a transparent solid at room temperature with a melting point of about 145xc2x0 C., and atactic polypropylene is a viscous oil at room temperature.
Metallocene pre-catalysts, featuring a metal complex including a metal atom, for example from Group IV transition elements such as titanium, zirconium, and hafnium, bound to two ligands from the well known cyclopentadienyl (Cp) family of ligands such as pentamethylcyclopentadienyl, indenyl, or fluorenyl, were introduced during the last two decades for the purpose of catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers. The most common type of metallocene pre-catalyst is a neutral complex including a metal in oxidation state of +4, bound to two anionic ligands in addition to two standard Cp ligands, for example, bis(cyclopentadienyl)titanium dichloride, also known as titanocene dichloride. A particular group of metallocene pre-catalysts is known as ansa-metallocene complexes, in which the two Cp type ligands are covalently bonded to each other. A related group of complexes is xe2x80x98constrained geometryxe2x80x99 pre-catalysts, featuring a metal bound to both a single Cp type ligand and a second anionic group, where the Cp ligand and second anionic group are covalently bonded to each other.
Using metallocene and metallocene type pre-catalysts in catalytic processes and systems for polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers affords better control of molecular weight and narrower molecular weight distribution, associated with lower values of PDI, relative to the classical Ziegler-Natta family of pre-catalysts such as titanium trichloride using a trialkyl-aluminum co-catalyst. Moreover, the group of ansa-metallocene pre-catalysts is useful for producing polymers with controllable and classifiable degrees of polymer tacticity. Metallocene and metallocene type pre-catalysts, processes, and systems are well known and taught about in the art. These pre-catalysts, processes and systems are, however, limited in many respects relating to the above discussion.
Foremost, with respect to catalytic activity, metallocene type pre-catalysts typically exhibit relatively moderate activity for polymerizing a small variety of alpha-olefin monomers. With respect to poly(alpha-olefin) product types and variety, alpha-olefin monomers polymerized by metallocene pre-catalysts are mostly short chain ethylene and propylene, which are already well taught about. Metallocene pre-catalysts are limited in terms of availability and versatility. Metallocene type pre-catalysts are relatively difficult to synthesize, a fact which limits the possibility of developing new varieties of metallocene type alpha-olefin polymerization pre-catalysts.
Due to continued searching for new poly(alpha-olefin) products exhibiting selected well defined bulk physicochemical properties and molecular physicochemical characteristics, combined with the above limitations associated with metallocene pre-catalysts, there is growing interest in developing non-metallocene alpha-olefin polymerization pre-catalysts, and related catalytic processes, and systems. The main emphasis is on obtaining new alpha-olefin polymerization pre-catalysts which are readily available, exhibit relatively high stability, and can be used for improving control over industrially important polymer parameters such as molecular weight, molecular weight distribution, product types and variety, and, controllable and classifiable polymer tacticity.
The principle of controlling polymer tacticity by ligands design was first demonstrated for various catalytic systems featuring the group of ansa-metallocene complex pre-catalysts, as reviewed by Brintzinger, H. H. et. al. in Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. Engl. 34, 1143, 1995. Catalytic systems described therein usually lead to a PDI not less than 2.0, and suffer from the above described disadvantages and limitations of metallocene systems.
An example of a xe2x80x98half sandwichxe2x80x99 pre-catalyst, featuring a complex including one Cp type ligand and a heteroatom donor, is described by Sita, L. R., in J. Am. Chem. Soc. 122, 958, 2000. This half metallocene catalytic system is active with regard to polymer isospecificity and living polymerization of alpha olefin monomers. However, this system involves operating at commercially undesirable reaction conditions, such as at xe2x88x9210 degrees Celsius.
A non-metallocene alpha-olefin polymerization catalytic system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,852,146, and features a bis(hydroxy aromatic nitrogen ligand) transition metal pre-catalyst, functioning with an activating methylaluminoxane (MAO) co-catalyst. Relatively high catalytic activity of about 4,000 grams/(mmole-pre-cat. hr) is reported for polymerization of ethylene only. Moreover, MAO is needed in large quantities as co-catalyst, which, in general, poses notable limitations relating to cost and containment. MAO used in large quantities is costly, and needs to be properly disposed of with regard to environmental considerations.
Living polymerization of 1-hexene is described by Schrock, R. R., in J. Am. Chem. Soc. 119, 3830, 1997, and is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,889,128. One of the non-metallocene pre-catalyst compositions described therein comprises a dimethyl complex in which the metal atom is chelated to a tridentate spectator ligand, which is activated by a non-MAO boron salt co-catalyst. However, only atactic polymeric products are obtained from this system.
Living polymerization of 1-hexene is also described by McConville, D. H., in J. Am. Chem. Soc. 118, 10008, 1996. They describe an active non-metallocene polymerization pre-catalyst, involving activation of a pre-catalyst featuring a dimethyl metal complex of a bis(amide) ligand, with a non-MAO boron Lewis acid as co-catalyst under room temperature, for producing atactic polymers.
Another active non-metallocene living 1-hexene polymerization pre-catalyst functioning with a non-MAO co-catalyst, is reported by Kim, K., in Organometallics 17, 3161, 1998. Similar to other teachings, the described catalytic system yields only atactic polymers.
A non-metallocene diphenolate pre-catalyst is reported by Schaverien, C. J., in J. Am. Chem. Soc. 117, 3008, 1995. Use of the disclosed pre-catalyst leads to highly isotactic poly(1-hexene), however, the polymerization process is not living.
Recently, the present inventors, in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/394,280, filed Sep. 20, 1999, disclosed of an ultra-high activity non-metallocene pre-catalyst featuring an amine diphenolate complex and a corresponding method for catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers using this pre-catalyst. However, only atactic polymers are obtained using the disclosed pre-catalyst at the indicated polymerization conditions.
In view of the above discussed limitations for polymerization of alpha-olefins, to one of ordinary skill in the art, there is thus a need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have an active non-metallocene pre-catalyst and corresponding method for catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers, not limited to activation by large quantities of a co-catalyst such as MAO, and also characterized by high stability, readily obtained or synthesized, and capable of producing different types and varieties of poly(alpha-olefin) products having high molecular weight and low molecular weight distribution, and, controllable and classifiable degrees of polymer tacticity. Moreover, there is a need of such a pre-catalyst and methods for producing alpha-olefin polymers other than polyethylenes and polypropylenes, having industrially applicable properties and characteristics.
The present invention relates to catalytic polymerization, in general, and, tactic catalytic polymerization, in particular, of alpha-olefin monomers using an active non-metallocene pre-catalyst featuring a diamine diphenolate complex. Moreover, the present invention features a general method for catalytic polymerization, including a particular method for tactic catalytic polymerization, of alpha-olefin monomers, using the disclosed diamine diphenolate pre-catalyst.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide general structures and general formulas of an active non-metallocene pre-catalyst for catalytic polymerization, in general, and tactic catalytic polymerization, in particular, of alpha-olefin monomers.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide general structures and general formulas of an active non-metallocene pre-catalyst for catalytic polymerization, in general, and tactic catalytic polymerization, in particular, of alpha-olefin monomers, wherein the pre-catalyst is a diamine diphenolate complex featuring variability of the metal atom, ligands, aromatic groups, aromatic group substituents, a bridging group, and bridging group substituents.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for catalytic polymerization, in general, and tactic catalytic polymerization, in particular, of alpha-olefin monomers featuring the use of an active diamine diphenolate pre-catalyst, wherein the pre-catalyst features variability of the metal atom, ligands, aromatic groups, aromatic group substituents, a bridging group, and bridging group substituents.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for catalytic polymerization, including tactic catalytic polymerization, of alpha-olefin monomers featuring the use of an active diamine diphenolate complex, whereby the polymerization process is essentially a living system.
Thus, according to the present invention, there is provided a compound having a general structure selected from the group consisting of structure 1 and structure 2:
wherein each structure 1 and structure 2: each single solid line represents a covalent bond; each double solid line represents a bond having varying degrees of covalency; each dashed line represents a bond having a varying degree of covalency and a varying degree of coordination; the M is a metal atom covalently bonded to each O oxygen atom, and bonded with varying degrees of covalency and coordination to each N nitrogen atom; the X1 and the X2 are each a univalent anionic ligand covalently bonded to the metal atom; the X3 is a single anionic ligand covalently bonded to the metal atom; the R1 and the R2 are each a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the N nitrogen atoms; the R3 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to the C carbon atom of the xe2x80x94CHR3xe2x80x94 of the (C6)1xe2x80x94CHR3xe2x80x94Nxe2x80x94 bridging unit; the R4 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to the C carbon atom of the xe2x80x94CHR4xe2x80x94 of the xe2x80x94Nxe2x80x94CHR4xe2x80x94(C6)2 bridging unit; each of the R5 through R8 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the C carbon atoms of the (C6)1 first aromatic group; each of the R9 through R12 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the C carbon atoms of the (C6)2 second aromatic group; and the Y is a divalent radical covalently bonded to and bridging between both of the N nitrogen atoms.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a compound of a general formula selected from the group consisting of: [{OR5R6R7R8(C6)1(CHR3)NR1YNR2(CHR4)(C6)2R9R10R11R12O}MX1X2] and [{OR5R6R7R8(C6)1(CHR3)NR1YNR2(CHR4)(C6)2R9R10R11R12O}MX3], wherein each general formula: the M is a metal atom covalently bonded to each O oxygen atom, and bonded with varying degrees of covalency and coordination to each N nitrogen atom; the X1 and X2 are each a univalent anionic ligand covalently bonded to the metal atom; the X3 is a single anionic ligand covalently bonded to the metal atom; the R1 and R2 are each a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the N nitrogen atoms; the R3 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to the C carbon atom of the xe2x80x94CHR3xe2x80x94 of the (C6)1xe2x80x94CHR3xe2x80x94Nxe2x80x94 bridging unit; the R4 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to the C carbon atom of the xe2x80x94CHR4xe2x80x94 of the xe2x80x94Nxe2x80x94CHR4xe2x80x94(C6)2 bridging unit; each of the R5 through R8 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of said C carbon atoms of said (C6)1 first aromatic group; each of the R9 through R12 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the C carbon atoms of the (C6)2 second aromatic group; and the Y is a divalent radical covalently bonded to and bridging between both of the N nitrogen atoms.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for catalytic polymerization of an alpha-olefin monomer, the method comprising the steps: (a) providing a diamine diphenolate pre-catalyst having a general structure selected from the group consisting of:
wherein each structure 1 and structure 2: each single solid line represents a covalent bond; each double solid line represents a bond having varying degrees of covalency; each dashed line represents a bond having a varying degree of covalency and a varying degree of coordination; the M is a metal atom covalently bonded to each O oxygen atom, and bonded with varying degrees of covalency and coordination to each N nitrogen atom; the X1 and the X2 are each a univalent anionic ligand covalently bonded to the metal atom; the X3 is a single anionic ligand covalently bonded to the metal atom; the R1 and the R2 are each a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the N nitrogen atoms; the R3 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to the C carbon atom of the xe2x80x94CHR3xe2x80x94 of the (C6)1xe2x80x94CHR3xe2x80x94Nxe2x80x94 bridging unit; the R4 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to the C carbon atom of the xe2x80x94CHR4xe2x80x94 of the xe2x80x94Nxe2x80x94CHR4xe2x80x94(C6)2 bridging unit; each of the R5 through R8 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the C carbon atoms of the (C6)1 first aromatic group; each of the R9 through R12 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the C carbon atoms of the (C6)2 second aromatic group; and the Y is a divalent radical covalently bonded to and bridging between both of the N nitrogen atoms; (b) preparing a first chemical entity featuring a particular form of the pre-catalyst of Step (a); (c) providing a co-catalyst suitable for activating the pre-catalyst of Step (a); (d) preparing a second chemical entity featuring the co-catalyst of Step (c); (e) forming a catalytic polymerization reaction system for the catalytic polymerization of the alpha-olefin monomer by mixing the first chemical entity featuring the pre-catalyst with the second chemical entity featuring the co-catalyst with the alpha-olefin monomer to be polymerized, whereby the co-catalyst activates the pre-catalyst for becoming a catalyst effecting the catalytic polymerization of the alpha-olefin monomer for producing at least one type of poly(alpha-olefin) product; (f) terminating the catalytic polymerization of the alpha-olefin monomer; and (g) isolating the at least one type of the poly(alpha-olefin) product.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for catalytic polymerization of an alpha-olefin monomer, the method comprising the steps: (a) providing a diamine diphenolate catalyst having a general structure selected from the group consisting of:
wherein each structure 1 and structure 2: each single solid line represents a covalent bond; each double solid line represents a bond having varying degrees of covalency; each dashed line represents a bond having a varying degree of covalency and a varying degree of coordination; the M is a metal atom covalently bonded to each O oxygen atom, and bonded with varying degrees of covalency and coordination to each N nitrogen atom; the X1 and the X2 are each a univalent anionic ligand covalently bonded to the metal atom; the X3 is a single anionic ligand covalently bonded to the metal atom; the R1 and the R2 are each a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the N nitrogen atoms; the R3 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to the C carbon atom of the xe2x80x94CHR3xe2x80x94 of the (C6)1xe2x80x94CHR3xe2x80x94Nxe2x80x94 bridging unit; the R4 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to the C carbon atom of the xe2x80x94CHR4xe2x80x94 of the xe2x80x94Nxe2x80x94CHR4xe2x80x94(C6)2 bridging unit; each of the R5 through R8 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the C carbon atoms of the (C6)1 first aromatic group; each of the R9 through R12 is a univalent radical covalently bonded to a different one of the C carbon atoms of the (C6)2 second aromatic group; and the Y is a divalent radical covalently bonded to and bridging between both of the N nitrogen atoms; (b) preparing a first chemical entity featuring a particular form of the catalyst of Step (a); (c) forming a catalytic polymerization reaction system for the catalytic polymerization of the alpha-olefin monomer by mixing the first chemical entity featuring the catalyst with the alpha-olefin monomer to be polymerized, whereby the catalyst effects the catalytic polymerization of the alpha-olefin monomer for producing at least one type of poly(alpha-olefin) product; (d) terminating the catalytic polymerization of the alpha-olefin monomer; and (e) isolating the at least one type of the poly(alpha-olefin) product.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for isotactic and living catalytic polymerization of 1-hexene monomer for forming isotactic poly(1-hexene) product, the method comprising the steps: (a) providing diamine diphenolate pre-catalyst [{N,Nxe2x80x2-bis(3,5-di-tert-butyl-2hydroxophenylmethyl)-N,Nxe2x80x2-dimethylethylenediamine}zirconium dibenzyl]; (b) preparing a first chemical entity featuring the diamine diphenolate pre-catalyst of Step (a); (c) providing boron Lewis acid co-catalyst [B(C6F5)3] suitable for activating the pre-catalyst of Step (a); (d) preparing a second chemical entity featuring the boron Lewis acid co-catalyst of Step (c); (e) forming an isotactic and living catalytic polymerization reaction system for the isotactic and living catalytic polymerization of the 1-hexene monomer by mixing the first chemical entity featuring the pre-catalyst with the second chemical entity featuring the co-catalyst with the 1-hexene monomer to be polymerized, whereby the co-catalyst activates the pre-catalyst for becoming a catalyst effecting the isotactic and living catalytic polymerization of the 1-hexene monomer for producing the isotactic poly(1-hexene) product; (f) terminating the catalytic polymerization of the 1-hexene monomer; and (g) isolating the isotactic poly(1-hexene) product.
The present invention introduces several benefits to the field of catalytic polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers, which, until now have been unattainable. For example, particular forms of the diamine diphenolate pre-catalyst of the present invention, when activated by a co-catalyst under mild reaction conditions, enable achieving isotactic (isospecific) polymerization of a variety of alpha-olefin monomers, such as polymerization of long chain alpha-olefin monomers, for example, 1-hexene or 1-octene, for forming a variety of poly(alpha-olefin) products such as poly(1-hexene) or poly(1-octene), having high molecular weight and low molecular weight distribution. Moreover, such catalytic systems can additionally be characterized as living. Furthermore, such isotactic and living catalytic polymerization systems can be implemented at practical commercial reaction conditions, including, in particular, operating at room temperature.
The diamine diphenolate pre-catalyst of the present invention is relatively stable under commercially applicable conditions for polymerization of alpha-olefin monomers. Moreover, the pre-catalyst, and related forms of the pre-catalyst, of the present invention are relatively simple to synthesize, primarily due to simple syntheses of the corresponding diamine di(2-hydroxyarylmethyl) ligand precursors, from a variety of commercially available inexpensive starting materials, compared to syntheses of metallocene type pre-catalysts.
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Typically, one or more special drawers of a kitchen cabinet are "organizers", having compartments for silverware, knives, and miscellaneous small tools. Some of these special drawers have permanent dividers. Others may have replaceable organizer trays which are available in a wide variety of compartment configurations, one example being shown in U.S. Design Pat. No. 301,590 issued June 13, 1989 to Rubbermaid Incorporated on "Drawer Organizer Tray".
Whether the compartments are permanent, or are in a replaceable organizer tray, they generally occupy only the lower space portion of the drawer, leaving a substantial upper space portion unused.
Attempts have been made to utilize this wasted upper space portion by fitting an additional, movable, auxiliary organizer tray in it. This has required tools and permanent installation of special guide rails which, if removed, leave the drawer side defaced with nail holes or other imperfections. An example is shown in Swiss Patent No. 269758 filed 28 Oct. 1948 where an auxiliary tray 3 is supported for movement on permanent rails 5, 5 in the upper portion of a cash drawer 1. Removal of these permanent rails would require special tools and would mar the inner surfaces of the drawer.
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Electronic compass assemblies are often used in vehicles to indicate to a driver or passenger of the vehicle a direction that the vehicle is facing or traveling. A typical electronic compass assembly includes magnetic sensors that detect a magnetic field of the Earth along a first axis and a second, orthogonal axis. A microprocessor represents the magnetic field detected along the first axis and the second, orthogonal axis as a magnetic field data point having X and Y coordinates and plotted on a reference coordinate system, where a positive Y-axis direction represents magnetic north. A line between the magnetic field data point and the center of the reference coordinate system forms an angle with the positive Y-axis. The microprocessor determines the direction that the vehicle is facing or traveling based upon the angle. The direction is displayed to an occupant of the vehicle as one of North, South, East, West, Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, and Southwest.
The magnetic conditions of the vehicle and surrounding environment of the vehicle typically change over time. As a result, the magnetic sensors are periodically calibrated to correct the magnetic field data for these magnetic changes. Calibration typically includes collecting magnetic field data from the magnetic sensors through a 360° turn of the vehicle (or a predetermined percentage of a 360° turn). The collected magnetic field data is generally in ellipse-shaped pattern. The microprocessor utilizes a statistical fitting procedure to produce a curve that corresponds to the magnetic field data pattern, an elliptical curve for example. The curve is then mathematically adapted to and centered in a reference system. A reference system where the elliptical curve is transformed into a centered circle is typically used. The reference curve provides a reference correction factor for mathematically adapting, or correcting, magnetic field data points. An angle corresponding to a corrected magnetic field data point therefore takes into account the changed magnetic conditions and provides the basis for determining a more accurate vehicle direction.
The microprocessor continually tracks incoming magnetic field data to identify when the vehicle makes another 360° turn. When another 360° turn is identified, the microprocessor uses the data collected during the 360° turn to compute a new reference correction factor. If the new reference correction factor passes a validity check, it replaces the previous reference correction factor and is then used by the microprocessor to correct magnetic field data points for vehicle heading computation.
One typical method for identifying a 360° turn is commonly referred to as bin tracking. Bin tracking includes estimating a tracking angle from a magnetic field data point without first correcting the magnetic field data point for changed surrounding magnetic conditions using the reference correction factor (e.g., an ellipse). The tracking angle may not be useful for determining an accurate vehicle direction, however, it is useful to determine when the vehicle completes a 360° turn.
The microprocessor separates the 360° turn into “bins.” Typically, each bin represents a 12° increment of the 360°. Bin #1 might include the increment 1–12°, bin #2 13–24° and so on up to 360°. The microprocessor catalogues the tracking angles in the bins. When all of the bins (or a selected number of the bins) have a cataloged angle, the microprocessor knows that the vehicle has completed a 360° turn (or selected percentage of the 360° turn).
One typical method of estimating a series of tracking angles without first correcting the magnetic field data points includes plotting an uncorrected magnetic field data point on a reference coordinate system (e.g., a coordinate system of the magnetic sensors). For an initial uncorrected magnetic field data point, an offset point lying on a line between the uncorrected magnetic field data point and the center of the reference coordinate system and at a given distance from the uncorrected magnetic field data point is also plotted. The angle between the line and a north reference line that extends from the offset point parallel to the Y-axis is used as the tracking angle for the uncorrected magnetic field data point.
A subsequent tracking angle is determined the same way by plotting a subsequent uncorrected magnetic field data point on the reference coordinate system. If the magnetic field data point lies within a threshold (the given distance plus or minus a percent of the given distance) of the initial offset point, the initial offset point is still used to compute the tracking angle corresponding to the subsequent uncorrected magnetic field data point. If the subsequent uncorrected magnetic field data point lies outside the threshold of the initial offset point, a second offset point is determined. The second offset point lies on a line between the subsequent uncorrected magnetic field data point and the previous offset point. The angle between the line and a north reference line that extends from the second offset point parallel to the Y-axis is the subsequent tracking angle. Thus, for each new incoming uncorrected magnetic field data point, a new corresponding tracking angle is computed, based on the formerly determined offset point or a new one depending on the fact that the new incoming uncorrected magnetic field data point lies within or without the threshold of the last computed (current) offset point.
Disadvantageously, this typical method allows magnetic field data to be collected that is unsuitable for the statistical fitting procedure. When the vehicle has completed a 360° turn (or selected percentage of the 360° turn), the generally ellipse-shaped pattern of the collected magnetic field data is often unsuitable if the elliptical pattern is too flat (i.e., the ratio of the minor axis to the major axis of the elliptical pattern is relatively small for example). In extreme conditions, the generally ellipse-shaped pattern resembles a line rather than an elliptical shape. As a result, the statistical fitting procedure is unable to accurately or reliably calculate an elliptical curve from the line-shaped magnetic field data pattern, which in turn can result in an erroneous calibration.
Accordingly, there is a need for an electronic compass assembly and method that more reliably tracks vehicle rotation in order to identify suitable magnetic field data when the vehicle rotates a desired amount. This invention addresses those needs and provides enhanced capabilities while avoiding the shortcomings and drawbacks of the prior art.
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to devices and methods for depositing layers of material upon substrates, and more particularly to electric arc vacuum deposition devices and methods.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Devices and methods to perform electric arc vapor deposition are known in the prior art, however there are problems with prior art devices which the present invention overcomes.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,511,593, entitled Vapor Deposition Apparatus and Method, by Henry E. Brandolf, the substrate temperature during the deposition process increases due to direct heat and energized particle radiation from the source or from re-radiation of heat from a line of sight deposition shield. The heat radiated on the substrates causes the substrate temperature to rise, and this high temperature limits the application of this prior art device to only substrates that do not melt or outgas at those prevalent deposition temperatures. Also, in many situations, the deposition films may break away from the substrates due to film layer stress when the substrate temperature is decreased after the deposition process.
In other prior art devices, the sources may require significant cooling. U.S. Pat. No. 4,622,452, entitled Electric Arc Vapor Deposition Electrode Apparatus, by Bergman, et al., improves this source cooling problem somewhat by making the source itself form a wall of the cooling chamber and mounting the source to the cathode assembly by a central stud. A drawback of the Bergman invention is that if the source is not securely and uniformly tightened to cathode body to form a water tight engagement with a peripheral seal, water or water vapor will leak into the vacuum chamber, and any water leakage into the chamber is detrimental to the chamber vacuum and the deposition process. Also, with some prior devices, the film that is deposited on the substrate is generally sparse and characterized by columnar crystal growth that is separated by voids. This means that the film is not a good barrier against the diffusion of solids, liquids and gases through the film.
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