text
stringlengths 2
806k
| meta
dict |
|---|---|
The invention relates to a circuit arrangement for actuating an air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner in a vehicle. Here, the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner can be switched on or off when the engine is operating. Moreover, the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner is switched off if the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner is switched on when the engine is operating and the engine is subsequently switched off. Additionally, when the engine of the vehicle is stationary, the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner continually possesses a function via which the residual heat of the engine is utilizable.
Presently, vehicles are being increasingly equipped with air-conditioning systems. Such air-conditioning systems have a compressor with which air can be cooled. In an air-conditioning system, the power of the compressor is directly set by the driver of the vehicle or an occupant of the vehicle. Here, it is the interior temperature of the vehicle which is controlled. If the temperature of the interior of the vehicle does not correspond to the expectations of the driver or the occupant, the driver or the occupant will change the power setting of the compressor appropriately.
The interior temperature of the vehicle is thus controlled in a closed-loop manner. Similarly, it is known to continuously control such an air-conditioning system in a closed-loop manner so that the air-conditioning system thus becomes an automatic air conditioner. In such an automatic air conditioner, the driver or the occupant of the vehicle must enter the interior temperature setpoint of the vehicle. Using at least one temperature sensor, the power of the compressor is then set in such a way that the temperature setpoint in the interior of the vehicle is maintained. Additionally, or as an alternative, a temperature is also maintained while taking into account other ambient conditions such as, for example, solar radiation. The driver or occupant of the vehicle can expect this temperature to corresponding to the setpoint temperature while accounting for the ambient condition.
Because of the comparatively large power requirement of the compressor, the operation of such an air-conditioning system or such an automatic air conditioner is permitted only if its power is provided by the engine for the vehicle. The air-conditioning system and/or the automatic air conditioner can therefore basically be switched on and off by the driver of the vehicle or an occupant of the vehicle. Here, it is possible to activate the air conditioning system and/or the automatic air conditioner only if the engine is running.
Moreover, it is also known to equip an air-conditioning system or an automatic air conditioner with a further function with which the residual heat of the engine can be utilized to heat the interior of the vehicle. Here, in a manner comparable to the heat exchanger of a conventional heater of a vehicle, heat is then obtainable from the coolant of the engine. With this function, the residual heat of the engine is utilized when the engine is not operating. In the prior art, the on/off switch of the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner and the switch for the residual heat utilization function are different (i.e., separate) switches.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a circuit arrangement for actuating an air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner in a manner such that its control is simplified and the expenditure (in terms of components) is minimized.
This and other objects and advantages are achieved by the circuit arrangement according to the invention, in which at least one function of the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner, which is manually switchable when the engine is operating, is switchable via the same control element utilized to activate and deactivate the function of utilizing the residual heat when the engine is stationary.
Here, in comparison to the prior art, an advantage is achieved by eliminating the use of one control element. Since the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner is switched off automatically when the engine is switched off, the control element with which the at least one manually switchable function can be switched on or off when the engine is operating can be used (when the engine is stationary(off)) to switch the function in which the residual heat is utilized. This is because at least one function can be switched only when the engine is operating. On the other hand, the function of utilizing the residual heat can be switched only if the engine is not operating. As a result, via this double assignment of the control element, in comparison to the prior art, it is possible to eliminate the use of one control element.
In an embodiment of the circuit arrangement according to the invention, the at least one function of the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner, which is manually switchable when the engine is operating, is the activation and deactivation of the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner when the engine is operating.
Via this refined embodiment of the invention, the use is simplified insofar as one control element is provided with which different functions can be switched on or off. This proves advantageous insofar as, in the two cases in which the engine is operating and in which the engine is switched off, this control element has a switching-on and switching-off function, i.e., in the switching on/off of the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner, and in the other case the switching on/off of the function where the residual heat of the engine is utilized. Therefore, by virtue of the fact that the control element is not used to set any variables, but rather a switching on/off function is implemented, the device is simple for the user to operate (in terms of the control). This is particularly advantageous in view of the comparatively large number of control elements of an air-conditioning system and an automatic air conditioner.
In another embodiment of the circuit arrangement according to the invention, the control element is a switch. In a switch, haptic feedback (i.e., information learned by touching the switch) of the switched state is easily provided. This enables the user to determine which switched state the switch is in.
In yet another embodiment of the circuit arrangement according to the invention, the control element is a pushbutton switch. The actuation of a pushbutton switch can be input by a controller or microprocessor in a simple manner. This is advantageous insofar as it is in any case necessary to use a controller or microprocessor for the open-loop or closed-loop control of the air-conditioning system or automatic air conditioner. Here, in an advantageous manner, it is possible to feed into the controller or microprocessor the external signals in a particularly simple way when pushbutton switches are used.
In a still further embodiment of the circuit arrangement according to the invention, there is at least one display element with which it is possible to display which of the functions can be switched by the control element. As a result, the operation of the device by the user becomes easier. This is because it is always possible to determine which of the functions can be switched via the control element. For example, in each case a designation of the two switchable functions can be printed onto the control element itself. Assignable to each of these designations is a light-emitting diode. Here, the light-emitting diodes is driven in accordance with the operating state of the engine. As a result, it is always possible to determine which function can be switched. Additionally, it is also possible to provide a corresponding display in a display device. Further, the control circuit arrangement can be implemented via software, hardware or some combination thereof, with reference to the controller or microprocessor.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
With the advancement of the computer technology, different problems and demands in people's lives can be solved and satisfied, respectively, by running particular software on various intelligent apparatuses. However, after codes of software have been written, how to perform an overall test on the codes to ensure that the software can operate normally is a quite important issue.
Code coverage is a common measure in current software testing and it describes the proportion of the code that is tested and to which degree the code is tested. Generally speaking, if the content of the code is not complex, then usually the program writer can detect the code on his/her own or determine whether all sections in the code would be executed by inputting simple parameters; however, if the code is relatively complex or the number of functions forming the code is too large, then the program writer usually detects the proportion of the code that is executed and to which degree the code is executed using software which is capable of testing code coverage. Higher code coverage means that the code will be executed as expected and errors are less likely to be generated.
Plenty of testing software based on code coverage rate is available nowadays, and the code test mechanism of most of the testing software is to generate test benches continuously, and use the generated test benches one by one as input parameters of the code to run the code until the code coverage rate reaches an intended value. However, in such a testing mechanism, before the code coverage rate reaches the intended value, a quite large number of test benches may be generated and the operation of executing the code may be repeated for many times, and this is quite time-consuming and most of these generated test benches may have the same effect in improving the code coverage (i.e., using one test bench has the same effect as using several test benches in improving the code coverage).
Accordingly, an urgent need exists in the art to provide a code test mechanism, which can effectively reduce the number of test benches that are used to execute the codes, thereby reducing the software testing time needed for the code coverage rate to reach the intended value. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present application relates to a compressed natural gas injector which provides armature needle dampening during closing of the fuel valve.
2. Description of the Related Art
Compressed natural gas (hereinafter sometimes referred to as xe2x80x9cCNGxe2x80x9d) is becoming a common automotive fuel for commercial fleet vehicles and residential customers. In vehicles, the CNG is delivered to the engine in precise amounts through gas injectors, hereinafter referred to as xe2x80x9cCNG injectorsxe2x80x9d. The CNG injector is required to deliver a precise amount of fuel per injection pulse and maintain this accuracy over the life of the injector. In order to maintain this level of performance for a CNG injector, certain strategies are required to help reduce the effects of contaminants in the fuel.
Compressed natural gas is delivered throughout the country in a pipeline system and is mainly used for commercial and residential heating. While the heating systems can tolerate varying levels of quality and contaminants in the CNG, the tolerance levels in automotive gas injectors is significantly lower.
These contaminants, which have been acceptable for many years in CNG used for heating, affect the performance of the injectors to varying levels and will need to be considered in future CNG injector designs. Some of the contaminants found in CNG are small solid particles, water, and compressor oil. Each of these contaminants needs to be addressed in the injector design for the performance to be maintained over the life of the injector.
The contaminants can enter the pipeline from several sources. Repair, maintenance and new construction to the pipeline system can introduce many foreign particles into the fuel. Water, dust, humidity and dirt can be introduced in small quantities with ease during any of these operations. Oxides of many of the metal types found in the pipeline can also be introduced into the system. In addition, faulty compressors can introduce vaporized compressor oils which blow by the seals of the compressor and enter into the gas. Even refueling can force contaminants on either of the refueling fittings into the storage cylinder. Many of these contaminants are likely to reach vital fuel system components and alter the performance characteristics over the life of the vehicle.
In general, fuel injectors require extremely tight tolerances on many of the internal components to accurately meter the fuel. For CNG injectors to remain contaminant tolerant, the guide and impact surfaces for the armature needle assembly require certain specifically unique characteristics.
In addition to fuel contamination problems using CNG, the fuel injectors inherently present additional problems. For example, the problems inherent to dampening or lack of dampening of the needle/armature assembly upon closing as well as upon opening of the fuel valve are unique to fuel injectors utilizing CNG.
The CNG injector is required to open and close very quickly. This quick closing creates a relatively severe impact between the armature and the seat. In the CNG injector, the factors which affect impact velocity between the armature and inlet connector are more severe than in a gasoline injector. The CNG injector has high lift, and lower viscosity (CNG) fluid when compared with a gasoline injector.
A CNG injector requires much higher flow area to get the same amount of energy flow through the injector during a given pulse. This is caused by the lower density of the gaseous CNG when compared to standard liquid fuels such as gasoline. This requires that the lift for a CNG injector valve needle be greater than that of a standard gasoline injector.
The increased lift creates two problems. First, the increased lift increases the amount of energy stored in the spring. This high potential energy stored in the spring is required to allow the injector to operate consistently as the viscosity of the fuel changes. Second, the velocity reached during the longer flight times can be high, creating higher impact forces. We have invented a fuel injector which incorporates a flow restricting orifice device which assists in dampening of the armature/needle assembly upon closing in a manner which improves performance of the engine, particularly when utilized in a fuel injector having several fuel flow paths therethrough, a feature which avoids the problems inherent with contaminated compressed natural gaseous fuels.
An electromagnetically operable fuel injector for a gaseous fuel injection system of an internal combustion engine is disclosed, the injector having a generally longitudinal axis, which comprises a ferromagnetic core, a magnetic coil at least partially surrounding the ferromagnetic core, and an armature magnetically coupled to the magnetic coil and being movably responsive to the magnetic coil. The armature actuates a valve closing element which interacts with a fixed valve seat of a fuel valve and is movable away from the fixed valve seat when the magnetic coil is excited. The fixed valve seat defines an aperture of predetermined dimension for passage of fuel therethrough. The armature has a generally elongated shape and a generally central opening for axial reception and passage of gaseous fuel from a fuel inlet connector positioned adjacent thereto. The fuel inlet connector and the armature are adapted to permit a first flow path of gaseous fuel between the armature and the magnetic coil as part of a path leading to the fuel valve. An orifice device is positioned downstream of the fuel valve and defines an orifice for reception of fuel from the fuel valve, the orifice being of lesser dimension than the aperture of the fixed valve seat.
In a preferred embodiment, an electromagnetically operable fuel injector for a compressed natural gas fuel injection system of an internal combustion engine is disclosed, the injector having a generally longitudinal axis, which comprises a ferromagnetic core, a magnetic coil at least partially surrounding the ferromagnetic core, and an armature coupled to the magnetic coil and movably responsive to the magnetic coil, the armature having a first upper end face and a lower end portion. A valve closing element is connected to the lower end portion of the armature and is interactive with a fixed valve seat which defines a fuel passage aperture to selectively permit fuel to pass through the aperture as the valve closing element is moved to a valve open position by the armature. An orifice device is positioned adjacent and downstream of the fuel valve, the orifice device having an orifice in general alignment with the fuel passage aperture and being dimensioned less than the aperture to restrict the flow of fuel from the fuel valve to thereby provide dampening of the valve closing element upon closing. A fuel inlet connector extends in a generally longitudinal direction above the armature and defines a path for fuel to enter the fuel inlet connector to be directed toward the armature, the fuel inlet connector having a lowermost end portion having a lowermost surface spaced above the armature to define a working gap through which the armature is movable. The armature has a fuel reception portion for receiving fuel directed from the fuel inlet connector. The armature further defines a generally axial fuel passage and at least a first fuel flow aperture extending through a wall portion thereof for directing fuel from the fuel inlet connector through the generally axial fuel passage and into the aperture toward the fixed valve seat for entry into an air intake manifold for the engine. The fuel flow aperture is oriented generally transverse to the longitudinal axis.
A method of directing gaseous fuel through an electromagnetically operable fuel injector for a fuel system of an internal combustion engine is also disclosed, the injector having a generally longitudinal axis, and including a fuel inlet end portion and a fuel outlet end portion, a fuel inlet connector positioned at the fuel inlet end portion and having a fuel inlet end portion. An armature is positioned adjacent the fuel outlet end portion of the fuel inlet connector, the armature being spaced from the fuel inlet connector to define a working gap to permit movement of the armature toward and away from the fuel inlet connector to selectively open and close a fuel valve by providing upward and downward movement of a valve closing element to selectively permit gaseous fuel to pass therethrough to an air intake manifold. The method comprises directing the gaseous fuel to pass axially through the fuel inlet connector, directing the gaseous fuel to pass from the fuel inlet connector to the generally elongated central opening of the armature in an axial direction toward the fuel valve, and restricting the passage of fuel exiting from the fuel valve so as to provide dampening of the valve closing element upon closing of the fuel. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field
The present invention relates generally to communications, and more specifically to a novel and improved method and apparatus for W-CDMA modulation.
2. Background
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication such as voice, data, and so on. These systems may be based on code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), or some other modulation techniques. A CDMA system provides certain advantages over other types of systems, including increased system capacity.
A CDMA system may be designed to support one or more CDMA standards such as (1) the “TIA/EIA-95-B Mobile Station-Base Station Compatibility Standard for Dual-Mode Wideband Spread Spectrum Cellular System” (the IS-95 standard), (2) the “TIA/EIA-98-C Recommended Minimum Standard for Dual-Mode Wideband Spread Spectrum Cellular Mobile Station” (the IS-98 standard), (3) the standard offered by a consortium named “3rd Generation Partnership Project” (3GPP) and embodied in a set of documents including Document Nos. 3G TS 25.211, 3G TS 25.212, 3G TS 25.213, and 3G TS 25.214 (the W-CDMA standard), (4) the standard offered by a consortium named “3rd Generation Partnership Project 2” (3GPP2) and embodied in a set of documents including “TR-45.5 Physical Layer Standard for cdma2000 Spread Spectrum Systems,” the “C.S0005-A Upper Layer (Layer 3) Signaling Standard for cdma2000 Spread Spectrum Systems,” and the “C.S0024 cdma2000 High Rate Packet Data Air Interface Specification” (the cdma2000 standard), and (5) some other standards. A system that implements the High Rate Packet Data specification of the cdma2000 standard is referred to herein as a high data rate (HDR) system. The HDR system is documented in TIA/EIA-IS-856, “CDMA2000 High Rate Packet Data Air Interface Specification”. Proposed wireless systems also provide a combination of HDR and low data rate services (such as voice and fax services) using a single air interface.
Modern CDMA system specifications, such as those referenced above, incorporate a variety of requirements and prescribe various signaling schemes in order to achieve the advantages attributed to them. As additional requirements and signaling schemes grow, so does the complexity and quantity of resources needed to support them. However, in a mobile wireless environment, it is desirable to minimize hardware and current consumption, in an effort to produce user equipment that is cost-effective and power-efficient in a compact form factor.
Modulators and demodulators are commonly deployed in wireless communication systems. Modulators format and process various kinds of data, such as voice, video, internet, or other data, using various techniques to prepare it for transmission. These techniques include CRC generation, ciphering, channel coding, interleaving, rate matching, channelization, scrambling, etc. Demodulators are designed to extract the data from the formatted transmission after it is received. The W-CDMA standard provides requirements and delineates certain processing techniques for modulation of data according to that standard. The W-CDMA standard is no less complex than its predecessors, and the desire for cost-effective and power-efficient devices within W-CDMA systems is ever present.
As such, there is a need in the art for modulators that effectively implement the requirements of complex standards while minimizing associated hardware costs, power consumption, and complexity of system design. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Conventionally, when reception status of a broadcast program currently viewed or listened to on a broadcast reception device mounted on a mobile object deteriorates, it is necessary for a viewer/listener to search through channels of broadcast waves by manual operation and to find a channel of another broadcast wave that is currently broadcasting a program (hereinafter also referred to as an “identical program”) of the same contents as the currently viewed/listened program. To eliminate the need of such manual operation, Patent Reference 1 proposes a digital broadcast reception device that finds a channel of another broadcast wave currently broadcasting an identical program on the basis of electronic program guide information and automatically selects this channel when the reception status of the currently viewed/listened program deteriorates.
Further, Non-patent Reference 1 mentions that a reception device for continuously receiving broadcast services from affiliated terrestrial broadcasters at the time of mobile reception for receiving a digital terrestrial television broadcast extending over a plurality of broadcast areas is capable of judging whether or not it is an affiliated broadcast from information of “affiliation_id” (affiliation identifier) in extended broadcaster descriptor, and information on respective broadcast frequencies of a currently received transport stream is included in program specific information (PSI). Furthermore, Non-patent Reference 2 mentions that information on respective broadcast frequencies of a currently received transport stream (TS) is included in program specific information. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Wafer level manufacturing processes are employed for example in manufacturing integrated circuits, image sensors, micro lens arrays, etc. Such parallel wafer level manufacturing uses a limited number of process steps to simultaneously obtain thousands of such devices, reducing their manufacturing cost. However, the fabrication and assembly of arrayed wafer level manufactured LCL devices remain as some of the most challenging process steps. Tailored approaches must be developed for each specific manufacturing process.
Electrically controllable (tunable), gradient index, liquid crystal lenses (TLCL's) are known in the art. As an example, see Applicant's international PCT patent application publication WO2009/153764 dated Dec. 23, 2009. Wafer-scale manufacturing of such TLCL's is known from Applicant's international PCT patent application publication WO2010/075627 dated Jul. 8, 2010.
Contamination of the liquid crystal material by resin material used to form reservoir walls is a problem during manufacturing. In the mentioned WO2010/075627, this problem is mitigated by the use of a pre-cured inner reservoir wall and an outer wall that is less cured, so as to allow for a good bond between substrates, while reducing the risk of liquid crystal contamination. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
(1) Field of the Invention
(2) Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
The disclosure and prior art relates to barrier devices and more particularly pertains to a new barrier device for separating users during sleep. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The following description provides a summary of information relevant to the present disclosure and is not a concession that any of the information provided or publications referenced herein is prior art to the claimed invention.
The SELEX process is a method for the in vitro selection of nucleic acid molecules that are able to bind with high specificity to target molecules and is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,475,096 entitled “Nucleic Acid Ligands” and U.S. Pat. No. 5,270,163 (see also WO 91/19813) entitled “Nucleic Acid Ligands” each of which is specifically incorporated by reference herein. These patents, collectively referred to herein as the SELEX Patents, describe methods for making an aptamer to any desired target molecule.
The basic SELEX process has been modified to achieve a number of specific objectives. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,707,796, entitled “Method for Selecting Nucleic Acids on the Basis of Structure” describes the use of the SELEX process in conjunction with gel electrophoresis to select nucleic acid molecules with specific structural characteristics, such as bent DNA. U.S. Pat. No. 5,580,737, entitled “High-Affinity Nucleic Acid Ligands That Discriminate Between Theophylline and Caffeine” describes a method for identifying highly specific aptamers able to discriminate between closely related molecules, termed Counter-SELEX. U.S. Pat. No. 5,567,588, entitled “Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment: Solution SELEX” describes a SELEX-based method which achieves highly efficient partitioning between oligonucleotides having high and low affinity for a target molecule. U.S. Pat. No. 5,496,938, entitled “Nucleic Acid Ligands to HIV-RT and HIV-1 Rev” describes methods for obtaining improved aptamers after SELEX has been performed. U.S. Pat. No. 5,705,337, entitled “Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment: Chemi-SELEX” describes methods for covalently linking an aptamer to its target.
The SELEX process encompasses the identification of high-affinity aptamers containing modified nucleotides conferring improved characteristics on the ligand, such as improved in vivo stability or improved delivery characteristics. Examples of such modifications include chemical substitutions at the ribose and/or phosphate and/or base positions. SELEX process-identified aptamers containing modified nucleotides are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,985, entitled “High Affinity Nucleic Acid Ligands Containing Modified Nucleotides” that describes oligonucleotides containing nucleotide derivatives chemically modified at the 5′- and 2′-positions of pyrimidines. U.S. Pat. No. 5,580,737, see supra, describes highly specific aptamers containing one or more nucleotides modified with 2′-amino (2′-NH2), 2′-fluoro (2′-F), and/or 2′-O-methyl (2′-OMe).
Further modifications of the SELEX process are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,763,177, 6,001,577, and 6,291,184, each of which is entitled “Systematic Evolution of Nucleic Acid Ligands by Exponential Enrichment: Photoselection of Nucleic Acid Ligands and Solution SELEX”; see also, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 6,458,539, entitled “Photoselection of Nucleic Acid Ligands”. These patents, collectively referred to herein as “the PhotoSELEX Patents” describe various SELEX methods for selecting aptamers containing photoreactive functional groups capable of binding and/or photocrosslinking to and/or photoinactivating a target molecule. The resulting photoreactive aptamers are referred to as photocrosslinking aptamers or photoaptamers.
Although these SELEX and photoSELEX processes are useful, there is always a need for processes that lead to improved properties of aptamers generated from in vitro selection techniques. For example, a need exists for aptamers to target molecules with better binding affinities than those achieved with naturally occurring DNA or RNA nucleotides, as well as methods for producing such aptamers. For many applications, such as for example, in vitro assays, diagnostics, therapeutic, or imaging applications, it is of interest to produce aptamers with slow dissociation rates from the aptamer/target affinity complex. Several techniques have been proposed for producing such reagents (see, e.g., WO 99/27133 and US 2005/0003362). However, these selection processes do not discriminate between the selection of reagents that have fast association kinetics with the target (i.e., fast on-rates) and the selection of reagents that have slow dissociation kinetics with the target (i.e., slow off-rates). Thus, there is a need for novel processes and techniques that favor the selection of slow off-rate aptamers while inhibiting the selection of aptamers that simply have a fast association rate with the target.
Finally, there is a need for aptamer constructs that include different built-in functionalities. These functionalities may include tags for immobilization, labels for detection, means to promote or control separation, etc. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Storage devices may use a data cache to store certain types of data (e.g., frequently accessed and/or recently accessed data) and to reduce a total number of data storage reads and/or writes to a main storage area. Although different types of storage media support cache storage regions, some storage devices store cache data on a volatile memory (e.g., DRAM, SRAM) because volatile memory can, in general, be accessed more quickly than non-volatile memory. However, one drawback to volatile memory is that data cannot be maintained within the volatile memory if power is lost. Therefore, many existing devices with volatile data cache regions are unable to ensure full data recovery responsive to unexpected power-loss scenarios. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to handheld dehiders and powered skinning knives used to remove the hide of a carcass in a meat processing facility. More specifically, the present invention relates to reducing the vibration of dehiders that use a pair of cutting disks driven in opposed cutting oscillations.
2. Description of Related Art
Handheld dehiders are used in processing facilities to remove the hide from an animal carcass. The most common type of dehider includes a pair of adjacent cutting disks or blades that are driven in opposed cutting oscillations by a corresponding pair of pushrods. The basic design is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,122,092 assigned to Jarvis Products Corporation, the assignee of the present invention. Similar dehider designs are shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,368,560, 3,435,522 and 2,751,680.
In the dehider design described in the patents above, each cutting blade includes teeth around its perimeter. The adjacent disk blades are driven in opposed cutting oscillations by a pair of pushrods connected to an eccentric drive mechanism operated by a pneumatic motor mounted in the handle of the tool.
The motor rotates a pinion gear, which turns a main drive gear oriented at ninety degrees to the axis of the motor. The main drive gear turns the eccentric shaft to oscillate the pushrods. During each oscillation, the teeth on one disk blade move past the teeth on the adjacent and oppositely moving disk blade. This produces a shearing and cutting action that quickly removes the hide from the carcass.
Although this dehider design has proven effective, the oscillating nature of the eccentric-driven pushrods and blades results in substantial vibration. A known method of reducing this vibration is to use a counterbalance mass on the main drive gear, however, this solution is only partly effective. In order to avoid interference with the oscillating pushrods, the main drive gear and any counterbalance mass connected thereto must be vertically offset from the plane of the pushrods. The offset between the moving mass of the pushrods and the oppositely moving mass of the counterbalance on the main drive gear produces a wobbling motion.
Initially, the magnitude of this wobbling motion is quite limited and the tool can be used comfortably for long periods of time. However, over time, the wobbling motion produces significant excess wear. As the bearings and moving parts begin to wear, the wobble increases in amplitude until it produces an extremely objectionable vibration. Moreover, the wear produced by this motion shortens the lifetime of the component parts in the tool.
Bearing in mind the problems and deficiencies of the prior art, it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a handheld dehider with less vibration that can be comfortably used for long periods of time.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a handheld dehider that wears less rapidly due to reduced vibration.
A further object of the invention is to provide a counterbalanced eccentric shaft for a handheld dehider with an integrated counterbalance mass.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a counterbalance cup for a handheld dehider with an integrated counterbalance mass.
Still other objects and advantages of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part be apparent from the specification. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
A great many number of illumination applications use optical lightguides to deliver luminous radiation from a source to a specific target or region of space. For examples, light guides are used in backlight display systems, general illumination (e.g., luminaries), and medical devices, such as endoscopes. For example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,775,460, 5,949,933, 6,474,827, 6,002,829, 6,948,832, 5,136,480, 5,613,751, and 6,910,783. The lightguides or light directing optical elements describe in these patents rely on either triangular or trapezoidal shaped surfaces, microprism or microlense arrays, undulating ribbon-like structures, prismatic surface indentations, or rounded notches, to extract light. Although useful with their respective light sources in their particular applications, these light directing optical elements do not efficiently use total internal reflection to deliver light such as realized from structures of the present invention. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
With the advent of improved weather tracking and forecasting systems, flooding caused by rising rivers and streams, excess run-off and severe rain storms can now often be predicted hours or days in advance. This allows for precautions to be taken to protect structures such as houses and office buildings that are located in the path of a looming flood. For example, sandbags are sometimes placed around a structure to slow, but not altogether stop, the entry of water into a structure while pumps are provided for removing the water from within the ring of sandbags. Other times, valuables located within a structure are moved to higher elevations within the structure to minimize the overall damage caused by flood waters. However, if sufficient advance notice is provided more effective precautions can be taken such as erecting temporary dams or barriers around structures that are capable of preventing all water from passing therethrough. Thus, there is needed a temporary dam or barrier system that can be quickly erected around buildings for providing a barrier against flood waters. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Engineers developing digital systems find themselves increasingly more interested in digital word flow than in the waveforms of particular signals. For example, instruction and address sequences in a microprocessor are usually of more interest to the designer and diagnostician than the waveform on a signle address or instruction line.
Some past efforts have been directed towards providing digital instruments which are capable of producing trigger pulses in response to the detection of selected digital words. This trigger pulse can be used to trigger an oscilloscope or other display device. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,805,255 by C. Mark Baker entitled "Scanning Light Emitting Diode Display of Digital Information." Other recent efforts have provided a listing of sequential binary words. See, for example, the Hewlett-Packard Journal of January 1974. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates to an apparatus for drying hoses in a fire hall.
When returning from a fire, the fire truck or pumper truck carries hoses which are at least wet on the interior and exterior surfaces and in a worst condition can be frozen with the layer of ice filling the hose and thus forming a blockage. Hoses of this type are generally approximately fifty (50) feet in length with suitable quick release couplings at either end for connection to the pumper truck or other equipment at the outer end. It is of course therefore essential that when the hoses are returned to the fire hall they be properly dried before storage to avoid deterioration of the hose and also to ensure that the hose is fully available for use at the next occasion.
Some fire halls include a tower which is at least fifty feet in height in which case one end of the hose can be attached to a suitable support which is then pulled up to the tower allowing the remainder of the hose to hang downwardly for draining and drying.
Many fire halls and particularly those designed recently do not include a tower of this type and hence cannot accomodate the hoses suspended in vertical orientation.
One arrangement which has been proposed as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,216,931 (Harless) in which a frame structure includes a plurality of brackets each for supporting a respective hose so that a centre portion of the hose can be looped over the bracket and then the whole support raised vertically to a height of at least twenty five feet so that the hoses are draped and hang downwardly in two halves. This arrangement is unsatisfactorY in that it will be difficult to hang the hoses over the brackets while the support is at ground level since the hoses must be draped across the floor. Secondly, the action of simply folding the hose around a single pin can cause wear or damage to the hose structure at the central location leading to a reduced life. Thirdly many fire halls do not even have the capability of lifting a device through the height of twenty five feet so this arrangement is not possible.
A further proposal has been made in which there are provided a series of racks or shelves along one wall of the fire wall which project outwardlY from the wall in parallel overlying relationship. The hoses can then be laid onto the shelves so that a number of hoses lie parallel along the shelves. The length of the shelf is approximately fifty feet to receive the full length of the hose. This arrangement has however the disadvantage that it does not act to properly dry the hose and significant of water quantities can remain in the hose thus increasing the weight and difficulty in handling the hose and also leading to the possibility of degradation of the hose and a reduced life. In this case a shallow angle of inclination can be provided along the length of the hose but this is not sufficient to allow all the water to properly drain from the lower end. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field
The present invention relates to image processing technology, and more particularly to a method and an apparatus for reducing image noise.
2. Description of the Related Art
In digital cameras, ISO is a parameter that indicates image sensor gain. An image captured when ISO is set relatively low has less noise and vivid colors, but the captured image tends to blur due to slow shutter speed. An image captured when ISO is set relatively high and brightness is relatively low has higher image sensor gain, and is seldom affected by blurring, but is more easily subject to the influence of noise as compared with the case in which ISO is set relatively low.
As should be noted, the foregoing introduction to the background of the art is merely meant to facilitate a clear and complete explanation to the technical solutions of the present invention, and is enunciated in an effort to make easier the comprehension by persons skilled in the art. It should not be construed so, that these technical solutions were publicly known to persons skilled in the art simply because they have been enunciated in the Background of the Related Art of the present invention. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of Invention
This invention relates generally to advanced orbit control and maintenance techniques for both individual satellites as well as for multiple satellites in a constellation, in which Modern Feedback Control is used for providing precise autonomous on-board navigation and control. The basic functions of this control system can place any satellite in any orbit position in a constellation, including the acquisition of the initial distribution for the constellation after satellite separation from launch vehicles, and can also maintain the constellation distribution, including station relocation and station keeping.
2. Description of Related Art
The orbital control of satellites, in both geostationary (GEO) and low-earth orbits (LEO), has primarily been ground-based. Orbit maintenance and station keeping have historically required involvement of Control Center personnel in all phases of operation. The computational burden for satellite control, including orbit analysis, maintenance and stationkeeping, has been on the ground computers. The ground computers provide both the off-line functions of orbit determination and maneuver planning as well as the on-line functions of commanding and telemetry processing.
Current geostationary satellite operations have evolved by taking advantage of the stationary nature of the satellite position relative to the ground stations. For example, the geostationary geometry provides a continuous window for ranging, tracking, and commanding, thereby minimizing the computational burden on the processors on-board the satellites. Low-earth orbit satellites have generally been equipped with more on-board processing capability than geostationary satellites to provide increased autonomy in navigation, command and control. This is because LEO satellites have intermittent ground station contacts of relatively short duration, resulting in limited ability to send commands to the satellites in real time.
The standard design for orbit control is based on the analysis of orbital mechanics, which provides the relationship among the orbital elements, orbit velocity changes and orbital behavior under the perturbing forces. Based on these relationships, orbit control is classified into individual control systems, for example, "orbit control", "orbit eccentricity control", "east-west position control", "drift or velocity drift control" and "orbit inclination control." These individual control laws reflect only partial relationships between individual orbit elements and control actions. However, while two-body orbit initial problem theory provides an analytical relationship between the six orbital elements, for example the semimajor axis (a), the eccentricity (e), the inclination (i), the right ascension of ascending node (.OMEGA.), the argument of perigee (.omega.), and the mean anomaly (M),and the initial state vector, this relationship is non-linearly coupled. When this coupling is neglected, the accuracy of any control system based on these individual models will be limited, and the efficiency of the control system will be low.
Various methods have been studied for control of satellite navigation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,109,346 to Wertz discloses autonomous navigation control using Global Positioning Satellites (GPS) for orbit determination, and a method for providing orbital corrections. Because Wertz uses a non-feedback control system, this system is subject to unstructured uncertainty. Additionally, Wertz is limited to orbit and attitude determination. Furthermore, position finding using GPS is known, as described for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,667,203 to Counselman, III.
Historically, control systems were designed as proportional-integral-derivative (PID) compensators using a variety of frequency response techniques. However, the PID design requires trade-offs with conflicting design objectives such as the gain margin and closed-loop bandwidth until an acceptable controller is found. When the dynamics are complex and poorly modeled, or when the performance specifications are particularly stringent, more powerful control tools are necessary.
These more powerful design tools result in a higher level of satisfaction only if a solution exists to the problem being solved. Achieving both satisfactory performance limits and ascertaining the existence of a satisfactory controller involves using an optimization theory. Use of an optimization theory eliminates the need to search for solutions to problems for which there are no solutions. A further benefit of optimization is that it provides an absolute scale of merit against which any design can be measured. These more powerful design tools utilize modern advanced multivariable feedback control techniques.
It is an object of the present invention to utilize modern advanced multivariable feedback control techniques in the design of a navigation and control system. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention is related to an integrated apparatus to concomitantly cool, dry and filtrate compressed air.
In industry, when to cool, dry and filtrate compressed air, it is normally to induce the compressed air to flow through a cooling apparatus, a drying apparatus and a filtering apparatus to let the compressed air be cooled, dried and filtrated step by step. Although the compressed air can be well treated through said step-by-step operation, said three independent systems of apparatus are heavy and require a big space to install, of which the assembly is more complicated and the cost is very expensive.
In view of said problem, a 3-in-one apparatus of the present invention is thus created to provide multiple functions to cool, dry, and filtrate compressed air concomitantly. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image formation apparatus, a color conversion program embodied on a computer readable medium, and a color conversion method, and more particularly to an image formation apparatus converting data generated to be printed on a first printer into data to be printed on a second printer, a color conversion program embodied on a computer readable medium to be executed in the image formation apparatus, and a color conversion method.
2. Description of the Related Art
The color management system is known as a technique for adapting to differences in color reproducibility among different devices. The ICC (International Color Consortium) profile, which describes color-related characteristics for each device, is used in the color management system. A color conversion lookup table is generated using the ICC profile of an input device and the ICC profile of an output device thereby to facilitate conversion from color data for output on the input device into color data for output on the output device.
In the color conversion lookup table, in order to relate a predetermined plurality of lattice points in a device space (color system) of an input device with a predetermined plurality of lattice points in a device space of an output device, output data converted for the output device using the color conversion lookup table should be interpolated in a case where first color data generated for the input device is located between a plurality of lattice points. Japanese Examined Patent Publication No. 58-16180 discloses a method of color conversion using four lattice points that constitute the vertexes of a triangular pyramid enclosing a pixel of color data to be subjected to color conversion, among a plurality of lattice points in a device space of an input device as defined by a three-dimensional lookup table. The conventional color conversion method can be applied not only to a case where color data is three-dimensional but also to a case where it is N-dimensional (where N is an integer equal to or larger than four).
On the other hand, the color space for use in image data is generally a three-dimensional device space in RGB color system. Therefore, an output device is installed with existing hardware or program for operating the above-noted interpolation when color data is converted from the three-dimensional device space into the device space of the output device. The existing hardware or program is hardware or a program for executing an interpolation process for relatively low dimensions, for example, as in the expression (8) shown later.
However, when the device space of color data is not three-dimensional, the conventional color conversion method has to be used, and the existing hardware or program that the device originally has cannot be used.
Furthermore, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-307911 discloses a technique for determining a lattice point to be interpolated in three-dimensional interpolation and a weight coefficient in the interpolation operation by sorting lower-order bits of input data in descending order. However, when the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-307911 is applied to input data having dimensions larger than three dimensions, the number of times operations are performed is increased due to the sorting processing, thereby increasing the processing time. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Three point hitches designed in accordance with ISO 730 have been used for many years and are universally accepted for attaching implements or trailing attachments to tractors or other work vehicles. The ISO 730 hitch requires precise alignment of the tractor to the implement so that the implement may be attached easily, usually by backing up the tractor. However, it may be difficult to precisely align the tractor to the implement. As a result, attaching the implement often requires two persons.
Three point hitches may be raised and lowered using switches remote from the operator station of the tractor. For example, electrical or electro-hydraulic controls for a three point hitch may be located adjacent the rear of the tractor, typically on the tractor's right or left rear fenders. These control devices make it more convenient for the operator to hook up rear mounted implements while off the tractor.
For example, a pair of switches may be located adjacent the rear of the tractor, one switch to supply a signal to a valve or valves to raise the hitch, and the other switch to supply a signal to lower the hitch. Even with the controls mounted on the fender, however, changing rear mounted implements on a three point hitch can be labor intensive because of the difficulty and time required to accurately position the tractor with respect to the implement.
Quick attaching couplers also have been developed to allow faster attachment of three point hitches to rear mounted implements from the operator station of the tractor. A quick attaching coupler may be an inverted U-shape arch that is attached to the conventional three points of a tractor hitch. The frame of a quick attaching coupler may have an upper hook with a long, tapered point and two lower coupling hooks or jaws with a latching and unlatching arrangement to hold the implement hitch pins. To hook up a quick attaching coupler to an implement, the hitch may be lowered and the tractor backed into place near the implement. Then the hitch may be raised with the hydraulic system so that the upper hook engages the upper pin on the implement. Further lifting causes the weight of the implement to force the lower hitch pins to enter the lower hooks.
Quick attach and auto hitch systems have not eliminated the inherent difficulty in attaching some implements. For example, an operator may need to back up the tractor several times to get in exactly the right position for the implement. After each attempt, the operator may need to dismount from the tractor operator station and try completing the attachment process. Additionally, quick attaching couplers may not be useful or suitable for many older attachments, nonstandard attachments, and attachments that do not sit level on the ground surface when detached. It may be difficult for an operator to complete attachment of some implements because it may require repositioning the tractor.
For these reasons, there is a need for greater operator safety and ease of use when hooking up a tractor to implements and other trailing attachments. A system is needed to make changing rear mounted implements easier for the operator. A system is needed to reduce the repeated back up positioning of the tractor to the implement, and to help accurately position the tractor. A system is needed that lets an operator complete the attachment process without repeatedly dismounting from the tractor. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device, a physical quantity sensor, an electronic apparatus, and a moving object.
2. Related Art
Currently, physical quantity sensors capable of detecting various physical quantities, such as an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration and a gyro sensor that detects angular velocity, are broadly used in various systems and electronic apparatuses. In recent years, very high reliability is required of various physical quantity sensors as these physical sensors are installed on automobiles. To secure high reliability, it is necessary to detect a failure (defect) of a semiconductor device (IC) that processes an output signal from a sensor element, with a probability of almost 100% in the inspection process. As a technique for efficiently detecting a wiring failure (defect) in a digital circuit included in the semiconductor circuit (IC), a scan test is widely known in which flip-flops included in the digital circuit are scanned, a test pattern generated by an ATPG (auto test pattern generation) tool is serially inputted to the scanned flip-flops (scan chain), then the scan chain is canceled so that the digital circuit operates normally, the scan chain is configured again and a signal taken into the flip-flops in normal operation is serially outputted outside, and the signal is compared with an expected value to determine whether there is a failure or not. In a scan test, a failure detection rate of approximately 90% is easily achieved. However, a certain measure needs to be taken in order to achieve a failure detection rate closer to 100%. For example, the failure detection rate can be made closer to 100% by inserting observation flip-flops into all the nodes where a logical change cannot be detected despite its presence. However, this technique leads to a significant increase in circuit scale due to the insertion of a large number of flip-flops.
Meanwhile, JP-A-11-271401 proposes a technique in which, when a scan test is carried out, the logic state in another combinational circuit is taken into a flip-flop for forming a shift register in a sequential circuit to be a test target. According to this technique, a flip-flop for forming a shift register is used as an observation flip-flop at the time of the scan test, without adding a new flip-flop. Therefore, the failure detection rate can be improved while an increase in circuit scale can be restrained.
However, the technique disclosed in JP-A-11-271401 lacks versatility because a flip-flop used as an observation flip-flop is limited to a flip-flop forming a shift register. Moreover, in the technique of JP-A-11-271401, in addition to a scan selection signal that causes a flip-flop to operate as a scan circuit shift register, a scan mode signal for supplementary observation operation in order to take in the logic state in a combinational circuit to be observed in the test needs to be additionally provided, and the selection logic of the input signal and the control signal of the selector need to be changed between the flip-flop forming the shift register and the other flip-flops. Therefore, the scan test design becomes complicated, leading to design errors. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates to an electronic component cooling apparatus, and more particularly to an apparatus for cooling electronic components incorporated in an electronic appliance such as a microprocessor unit (MPU) or the like.
Recently, a microprocessor unit tends to be increased in integration so that performance thereof may be enhanced. Unfortunately, this causes generation of heat from the microprocessor unit to be substantially increased, so that it is required to cool the unit. In order to solve the problem, an electronic component cooling apparatus called an MPU cooler is employed for forcibly cooling the microprocessor unit per se.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 15982/1991 discloses an electronic component cooling apparatus, wherein a fan mounting plate is mounted on a heat sink and then an axial fan commercially available is mounted on the fan mounting plate. The axial fan commercially available is so constructed that an impeller which includes a plurality of blades and is mounted on a rotor of a motor is fully housed in a casing provided therein with a cylindrical air duct.
Also, U.S. Pat. No. 5,309,983 discloses an electronic component cooling apparatus including a heat sink formed with a fan holding recess, in which a commercially available fan is fittedly held.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,288,203 discloses an electronic component cooling apparatus, wherein a fan specially designed in such a manner that an impeller is not enclosed with a casing or the impeller is partially enclosed with or partially exposed from the casing is mounted on a heat sink. A portion of the casing exposed from the casing is received in a space defined by a plurality of radiation fins fixed on the heat sink, wherein the casing is fixed directly to the heat sink.
Direct fixing of the casing for the fan to the heat sink is carried out by adhesion techniques or by means of a plurality of fitting and/or engagement structures. The engagement structure is typically disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 339244/1994 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 15914/1995. In Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 15914/1995, an engagement structure is disclosed wherein a casing for a fan and a heat sink are rotated relatively to each other for releasing engagement therebetween. In the structure, it is required to provide a space which permits the fan casing and heat sink to be rotated relatively to each other.
However, the prior art constructed as described above fails to permit the fan casing and heat sink to be disengaged or separated from each other after assembling of the electronic component cooling apparatus or mounting of the electronic component cooling apparatus on an electronic appliance. Even when the apparatus may be constructed to separate both from each other, it requires the above-described space for rotation. Also, relative rotation between the fan casing and the heat sink causes wearing at a contact region therebetween. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The invention relates generally to agricultural implements, and more specifically, to a system for positioning gauge wheels of an agricultural row unit.
Generally, planting implements (e.g., planters) are towed behind a tractor or other work vehicle via a mounting bracket secured to a rigid frame of the implement. These planting implements typically include multiple row units distributed across the width of the implement. Each row unit is configured to deposit seeds at a desired depth beneath the soil surface, thereby establishing rows of planted seeds. For example, each row unit may include an opener assembly having a ground engaging tool or opener (e.g., an opener disc) that forms a seeding path for seed deposition into the soil. In certain configurations, the opener assembly also includes one or more gauge wheels positioned a vertical distance above the opener to establish a desired furrow depth for seed deposition into the soil. As the implement travels across a field, the opener excavates a furrow (e.g., trench) into the soil, and seeds are deposited into the furrow (e.g., via a seed tube positioned reward of the opener assembly). In certain row units, the opener assembly is followed by a closing device such as a set of closing discs or wheels that direct the soil back into the furrow and/or a packer wheel that packs the soil on top of the deposited seeds.
In certain planting implements, the opener assembly of each row unit includes multiple opener discs that penetrate the soil to form the furrow. Moreover, the opener discs rotate as the row unit travels across the field, thereby excavating the furrow. As a speed of the row unit increases, a speed of rotation of the opener discs also increases. Consequently, the opener discs may displace soil an undesirable distance away from the furrow. As a result, the effectiveness of the closing discs and/or packer wheel, which are configured to direct the soil back into the furrow to cover the seeds deposited in the furrow, may be reduced. Therefore, uneven seed covering may occur, which may be detrimental to the growing conditions for the seeds, thereby reducing overall crop yields. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The sodium salt of (S)-2-(6-methoxy-2-naphthyl)propionic acid is a commercially available anti-inflammatory agent with the generic name of naproxen sodium.
A process used for the production of naproxen sodium involves reacting (S)-2-(6-methoxy-2-naphthyl)propionic acid dissolved in toluene with an aqueous sodium hydroxide solution, with subsequent removal of water by heating the slurry to an ending temperature of 100.degree. C. and a pressure of 1 atmosphere. The resultant anhydrous naproxen sodium has an average particle size in the range of about 30 to about 70 microns, and is in the form of small needle-like particles typically having an aspect ratio of about 10, with the length being approximately 200 to 300 microns and the width ranging from about 15 to about 45 microns. To achieve the required high chiral purity naproxen sodium (99% minimum), it has been necessary to use long cycle times and to form and use (S)-2-(6-methoxy-2-naphthyl)propionic acid of relatively high chiral purity (97% minimum).
A highly desirable contribution to the art would be the provision of forms of sodium (S)-2-(6-methoxy-2-naphthyl)propionate having an average particle size significantly larger than about 70 microns, especially if such material could have a chiral purity of at least 98% (S)-enantiomer, and a process technology enabling the production of such material. The achievement of these objectives would be of inestimable value from the standpoints, inter alia, of processing time, plant capacity and product handling operations.
This invention is deemed to constitute such a contribution to the art, as it enables the achievement of the foregoing objectives. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a structure of a filter element of an air cleaner unit of an open element type built in an engine of an automobile and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Although a typical air cleaner unit built in an air suction system of an automobile engine is of a covered type in which a filter element is housed in an air cleaner case connected to a suction duct, an air cleaner unit of an open element type, in which a filter element itself is directly connected to a suction duct without any cover such as an air cleaner case, is also known as one of options or replacement parts.
In such an open-element air cleaner unit, since the filter element is exposed outside, the air suction efficiency is higher than that of the covered type, by which an output increase effect of the engine can be obtained. Therefore, the open-element air cleaner unit is often substituted for an existing one in, for example, a sports car. However, since the mount space in an engine room is limited, the shape and structure of the filter element are so designed as to achieve high air suction efficiency.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing an example of a conventional air cleaner unit 10 of the above-mentioned open element type. A filter element 11 is shaped like a tapered cylinder with a filter wall made of an adequate filter material, such as paper, cloth and nonwoven cloth, and having a zigzag shaped cross section. A ring-shaped connecting member 12 made of synthetic rubber and having a suction duct connecting opening 12a, and an edge member 13 made of synthetic rubber with a metallic blank cap member 13a, are respectively integrally connected by vulcanization adhesion to ends of major and minor diameter side openings of the filter element 11. The air cleaner unit 10 is mounted in an engine by fixing the suction duct connecting opening 12a in engagement with a joint fitting 20 connected through a joint collar 21 made of rubber and the like, and connecting the collar 21 to an inlet pipe 22 on the side of the engine.
Only a peripheral part of the blank cap member 13a of the air cleaner unit 10 and the edge member 13 may be combined into one rubber ring.
In the conventional air cleaner unit 10 shown in FIG. 2, the filter element 11 is formed as a tapered air suction plane having a zigzag shaped cross section, by which a large air suction area can be secured even if the occupation capacity, that is, the outer dimensions thereof, are relatively small. Accordingly, it is possible to efficiently suck more air with the filter element 11 having small outer dimensions.
However, it is pointed out that turbulent flow arises almost just under the blank cap member 13a when air is sucked through the tapered cylindrical filter wall of the filter element 11 in the above-mentioned conventional air cleaner unit 10, and that the turbulent flow makes the air suction sound louder and causes a considerable loss of sucked air. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Keeled kites are well known and dual control line kites wherein kite lines are attached to the kite on opposite sides of its center line are known as, for example, in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,832 to Tabor. Four or quad line kite control is also known as in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,006 to Hadzicki. Heretofore there has not been a kite which has been constructed to enable its control alternatively by either two lines, i.e. "dual line" control or four line, i.e. "quad line" control.
The broad object of the invention is to provide such a kite.
It is another object of the invention to provide improved construction of a keeled delta wing kite for dual or quad line control. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to methods and compositions for the reduction of xenotransplantation rejection. Specifically, the present invention relates, first, to transgenic cells, tissues, organs and animals containing transgenic nucleic acid molecules that direct the expression of gene products, including, but not limited to enzymes, capable of modifying, either directly or indirectly, cell surface carbohydrate epitopes such that the carbohydrate epitopes are no longer recognized by natural human antibodies or by the human cell-mediated immune response, thereby reducing the human immune system response elicited by the presence of such carbohydrate epitopes. In a preferred embodiment, the transgenic cells, tissues, organs and animals express nucleic acid molecules encoding functional recombinant xcex1-Galactosidase A (xcex1GalA) enzyme which modifies the carbohydrate epitope Galxcex1(1,3)Gal. In a more preferred H embodiment, the transgenic cells, tissues, organs and animals expressing the functional recombinant xcex1GalA are transgenic pig cells, organs, tissues and/or animals. Second, the present invention relates to methods for xenotransplantation comprising introducing the transgenic cells, tissues and/or organs into human recipients so that a lower level of hyperacute rejection (HAR) is observed in the human recipients relative to the level of HAR observed in human recipients having received non-transgenic cells, tissues and/or organs. The invention is demonstrated by way of the Examples presented in Sections 6-11, below, which, for example, describe the expression of functional recombinant xcex1GalA in transgenic cells and the corresponding dramatic reduction of cell surface Galxcex1(1,3)Gal carbohydrate such expression causes (Sections 7 and 10), further demonstrate that transgenic cells expressing functional recombinant xcex1GalA elicit a significantly reduced level of complement-mediated cytoxicity (Section 9), and still further demonstrate that transgenic xcex1-galA dramatically reduces the level of Galxcex1(1,3)Gal in vivo.
The severe shortage of human organs available for transplantation purposes has led to a great interest in the use of animal-to-human organ transplants, termed xe2x80x9cxenotransplantsxe2x80x9d. Extensive studies now exist regarding such xenotransplantations. See, e.g., Sandrin et al. (Sandrin, M. S. et al., 1994, Transplant. Rev. 8:134), which discusses studies involving the use of pig organs for xenotransplantation to humans.
The body""s first reaction to a foreign tissue, known as hyperacute rejection (HAR), is a rapid and severe one, and represents one of the largest obstacles to the success of xenotransplantation techniques. HAR is for the most part, is mediated by antibodies and complement, there being natural human antibodies, predominantly IgG and IgM subclasses, which react with numerous molecules on xenotransplant cells, particularly endothelial cells, in vascularized transplants (Cooper, D. K. C. et al., 1994, Immunol. Rev. 141:31; Sandrin, M. S. and McKenzie, I. F. C., 1994, Immunol. Rev. 141:169). It is now generally accepted that all or most of the HAR reaction is due to the presence of human antibodies directed against the carbohydrate epitope Galxcex1(1,3)Gal. This has been shown by absorption studies, particularly with Gal+ transfected cells, and by the fact that Galxcex1(1,3)Gal carbohydrates can block the reaction in vitro and in vivo (Sandrin, M. S. et al., 1994, Xenotransplantation 1:81).
Attempts to eradicate HAR have included removal or neutralization of complement in various procedures, using Cobra venom factor or transgenic animals expressing human complement regulatory molecules (e.g. CD46, CD55 and CD59). Other approaches have included the logistically difficult removal of antibody (Oriol, R. et al., 1993, Transplantation 56:433), and attempts to alter the antigen itself. With respect to this latter approach, the gene encoding the pig xcex1(1,3)galactosyltransferase, which is necessary for the production of the GAlxcex1 (1,3) Gal carbohydrate, has been isolated with the aim of performing gene knockout studies by homologous recombination. Unfortunately, such procedures cannot be done in the pig. See Sandrin et al. (Sandrin, M. S. et al., 1994, Transplant. Rev. 8:134) for a review of other approaches to prevent the expression of the Galxcex1(1,3)Gal, which include the use of anti-sense constructs but these have met with variable, in general disappointing results.
Another approach which has been attempted makes use of the enzyme xcex1-Galactosidase A which cleaves a terminal xcex1-linked galactosyl residue (Oriol, R. et al., 1993, Transplantation 56:433). Treatment of red blood cells, lymphocytes and endothelial cells with xcex1-Galactosidase A inhibits their reaction with human serum and Cairns et al have demonstrated a similar phenomenon in vivo. A meeting report has reported that perfusion of tissue prior to transplantation with the bacterial xcex1-Galactosidase A enzyme delayed the onset of HAR (Cairns, T. et al., 1994, Transplant. Proc. 26:1279). These enzyme treatment approaches, however, are difficult. For example, the enzymes are expensive and perfusion with an enzyme prior to transplant would be difficult, in reality, to accomplish, particularly in a manner which would ensure total eradication of the epitope.
In summary, therefore, while xenotransplantation represents a potential solution to the severe shortage of human donor organs which currently exists, the problem of hyperacute rejection continues to be a major obstacle to the successful use of xenotransplantation.
The present invention relates to methods and compositions for the reduction of xenotransplantation rejection.
Specifically, the present invention relates, first, to transgenic cells, tissues, organs and animals containing transgenic nucleic acid molecules representing functional carbohydrate epitope-modifying genes which direct the expression of gene products that, either directly or indirectly, bring about modification of cell surface carbohydrate epitopes, including, but not limited to the Galxcex1(1,3)Gal cell surface carbohydrate epitope, in a manner which reduces the human immune system response elicited by the resulting modified epitope relative to that response elicited by the unmodified Galxcex1(1,3)Gal epitope. Such gene products can include, but are not limited to, carbohydrate epitope-modifying enzymes capable of modifying cell surface carbohydrate epitopes such that the carbohydrate epitopes are no longer recognized by either natural human antibodies or the human cell-mediated immune system, thereby reducing the human immune system response elicited by the presence of such carbohydrate epitopes.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the transgenic cells, tissues, organs and animals express transgenic nucleic acid molecules encoding functional recombinant xcex1-Galactosidase A (xcex1GalA) enzyme which modifies the carbohydrate epitope Galxcex1(1,3)Gal by cleaving the terminal xcex1-linked galactose from the carbohydrate epitope prior to its transfer to the cell surface on different molecules, thus producing cells which are phenotypically Galxcex1(1,3)Gal minus. In a more preferred embodiment, the transgenic cells, tissues, organs and animals expressing the functional recombinant xcex1GalA are transgenic pig cells, organs, tissues and/or animals. In yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, xcex1GalA and H transferase genes are co-expressed in the transgenic cells, tissues, organs and animals of the invention.
Second, the present invention relates to methods for xenotransplantation comprising introducing the transgenic cells, tissues and/or organs into human recipients so that a lower level of hyperacute rejection (HAR) is observed in the human recipients relative to the level of HAR observed in human recipients having received non-transgenic cells, tissues and/or organs, thereby reducing the level of xenotransplantation rejection.
The invention is demonstrated by way of the Examples presented in Sections 6-11, below, which describe the expression of functional recombinant xcex1GalA in transgenic cells and the corresponding dramatic reduction of cell surface Galxcex1(1,3)Gal carbohydrate such expression causes (Sections 7 and 10), further demonstrate that transgenic cells expressing functional recombinant xcex1GalA elicit a significantly reduced level of complement-mediated cytoxicity (Section 9), and still further demonstrate that transgenic xcex1-galA dramatically reduces the level of Galxcex1(1,3)Gal in vivo.
The transgenic cells, tissues, organs and animals of the invention can serve a variety of functions. For example, the transgenic cells, tissues and organs of the invention can be used as xenotransplants for introduction into human recipients. The transgenic animals of the invention can be used as sources for xenotransplant material to be introduced into human recipients or, alternatively, as sources for the production of transgenic cell lines. Alternatively, specific transgenic cells of the invention, namely bone marrow cells, may be used to produce red blood cells exhibiting an altered ABO phenotype, that is, can convert blood group B erythrocytes into erythrocytes of universal donor group O.
The term xe2x80x9cfunctional carbohydrate epitope-modifying genexe2x80x9d, as used to herein, refers to a nucleic acid sequence which encodes and directs the expression of a gene product that, either directly or indirectly, brings about modification of a cell surface carbohydrate epitope, including, but not limited to, the Galxcex1(1,3)Gal cell surface carbohydrate epitope, in a manner which reduces the human immune system response elicited by the resulting modified epitope relative to that response elicited by the unmodified Galxcex1(1,3)Gal epitope.
The term xe2x80x9cfunctional carbohydrate epitope-modifying enzymexe2x80x9d, as used to herein, refers to an enzyme, encoded by a functional carbohydrate epitope-modifying gene, which modifies a cell surface carbohydrate epitope, including, but not limited to the Galxcex1(1,3)Gal cell surface carbohydrate epitope, in a manner which reduces the human immune system response elicited by the resulting modified epitope relative to that response elicited by the unmodified Galxcex1(1,3)Gal epitope.
The term xe2x80x9cfunctional xcex1GalAxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cfunctional recombinant xcex1GalAxe2x80x9d, as used to herein, refers to an xcex1GalA enzyme which modifies the cell surface carbohydrate epitope Galxcex1(1,3)Gal in a manner which reduces the human immune system response elicited by the resulting modified epitope relative to that response elicited by the unmodified Galxcex1(1,3)Gal epitope. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The availability of public and private telephony communication has become so universal in the United States and in other developed countries that it has become critical to the functioning of modern society. At the same time, its very popularity and multipurpose use have led to demands that tax the efficient operation of the varied systems that provide that universality. While multiple types of networks are used for providing telephone service it is not always appreciated to what a large extent those different networks are interrelated. Thus, the very efficacy of one of the interrelated systems in optimizing one parameter may cause the overload or breakdown of an interrelated system, which is necessary to provide end to end service. In order that the nature of these problems may be fully appreciated, it is necessary to have an understanding not only of the factors which determine the inherent parameters of the individual networks, but also the factors which impose limitations on the interlinked networks. To that end there is here presented a brief description of the two networks which are most currently involved. These are the Internet and the public switched telephone network (PSTN).
The Internet is an interconnected global computer network of tens of thousands of packet-switched networks using the Internet protocol (IP). It is a network of networks. For purposes of understanding how the Internet works, three basic types of entities can be identified. These are end users, Internet service providers, and backbone providers. End users access and send information either through individual connections or through organizations such as universities and businesses. End users in this context include both those who use the Internet primarily to receive information, and content creators who use the Internet to distribute information to other end users. Internet service providers (ISPs), such as Netcom, PSI, and America Online, connect those end users to Internet backbone networks. Backbone providers, such as MCI, UUNet, and Sprint, route traffic between ISPs, and interconnect with other backbone providers.
This tripartite division highlights the different functionalities involved in providing Internet connectivity. The actual architecture of the Internet is far more complex. Backbone providers typically also serve as ISPs; for example, MCI offers dial-up and dedicated Internet access to end users, but also connects other ISPs to its nationwide backbone. End users such as large businesses may connect directly to backbone networks, or to access points where backbone networks exchange traffic. ISPs and backbone providers typically have multiple points of interconnection, and the inter-relationships between these providers are changing over time. It is important to appreciate that the Internet has no “center,” and that individual transmissions may be routed through multiple different providers based on a number of factors.
End users may access the Internet though several different types of connections, and unlike the voice network, divisions between “local service” providers and “long-distance” providers are not always clear. Most residential and small business users have dial-up connections, which use analog modems to send data over plain old telephone service (POTS) lines of local exchange carriers (LECs) to ISPs. Larger users often have dedicated connections using high-speed ISDN, frame relay or T1 lines, between a local area network at the customer's premises and the Internet. Although the vast majority of Internet access today originates over telephone lines, other types of communications companies, such as cable companies, terrestrial wireless, and satellite providers, are also beginning to enter the Internet access market.
The roots of the current Internet can be traced to ARPANET, a network developed in the late 1960s with funding from the Advanced Research Projects Administration (ARPA) of the United States Department of Defense. ARPANET linked together computers at major universities and defense contractors, allowing researchers at those institutions to exchange data. As ARPANET grew during the 1970s and early 1980s, several similar networks were established, primarily between universities. The TCP/IP protocol was adopted as a standard to allow these networks, comprised of many different types of computers, to interconnect.
In the mid-1980s, the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded the establishment of NSFNET, a TCP/IP network that initially connected six NSF-funded national supercomputing centers at a data rate of 56 kilobits per second (kbps). NSF subsequently awarded a contract to a partnership of Merit (one of the existing research networks), IBM, MCI, and the State of Michigan to upgrade NSFNET to T1 speed (1.544 megabits per second (Mbps)), and to interconnect several additional research networks. The new NSFNET “backbone,” completed in 1988, initially connected thirteen regional networks. Individual sites such as universities could connect to one of these regional networks, which then connected to NSFNET, so that the entire network was linked together in a hierarchical structure. Connections to the federally-subsidized NSFNET were generally free for the regional networks, but the regional networks generally charged smaller networks a flat monthly fee for their connections.
The military portion of ARPANET was integrated into the Defense Data Network in the early 1980s, and the civilian ARPANET was taken out of service in 1990, but by that time NSFNET had supplanted ARPANET as a national backbone for an “Internet” of worldwide interconnected networks. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, NSFNET usage grew dramatically, jumping from 85 million packets in January 1988 to 37 billion packets in September 1993. The capacity of the NSFNET backbone was upgraded to handle this additional demand, eventually reaching T3 (45 Mbps) speed.
In 1992, the NSF announced its intention to phase out federal support for the Internet backbone, and encouraged commercial entities to set up private backbones. Alternative backbones had already begun to develop because NSFNET's “acceptable use” policy, rooted in its academic and military background, ostensibly did not allow for the transport of commercial data. In the 1990s, the Internet has expanded decisively beyond universities and scientific sites to include businesses and individual users connecting through commercial ISPs and consumer online services.
Federal support for the NSFNET backbone ended on Apr. 30, 1995. The NSF has, however, continued to provide funding to facilitate the transition of the Internet to a privately-operated network. The NSF supported the development of three priority Network Access Points (NAPs), in Northern California, Chicago, and New York, at which backbone providers could exchange traffic with each other, as well as a “routing arbiter” to facilitate traffic routing at these NAPs. The NSF funded the vBNS (Very High-Speed Backbone Network Service), a non-commercial research-oriented backbone operating at 155 megabits per second. The NSF provides transitional funding to the regional research and educational networks, as these networks are now required to pay commercial backbone providers rather than receiving free interconnection to NSFNET. Finally, the NSF also remains involved in certain Internet management functions, through activities such as its cooperative agreement with SAIC Network Solutions Inc. to manage aspects of Internet domain name registration.
Since the termination of federal funding for the NSFNET backbone, the Internet has continued to evolve. Many of the largest private backbone providers have negotiated bilateral “peering” arrangements to exchange traffic with each other, in addition to multilateral exchange points such as the NAPs. Several new companies have built nationwide backbones. Despite this increase in capacity, usage has increased even faster, leading to concerns about congestion. The research and education community, with the support of the White House and several federal agencies, recently announced the “Internet II” or “next-generation Internet” initiative to establish a new high-speed Internet backbone dedicated to non-commercial uses.
As of January 1997 there were over sixteen million host computers on the Internet, more than ten times the number of hosts in January 1992. Several studies have produced different estimates of the number of people with Internet access, but the numbers are clearly substantial and growing. A recent Intelliquest study pegged the number of subscribers in the United States at 47 million, and Nielsen Media Research concluded that 50.6 million adults in the United States and Canada accessed the Internet at least once during December 1996—compared to 18.7 million in spring 1996. Although the United States is still home to the largest proportion of Internet users and traffic, more than 175 countries are now connected to the Internet.
According to a study by Hambrecht & Quist, the Internet market exceeded one billion dollars in 1995, and is expected to grow to some 23 billion dollars in the year 2000. This market is comprised of several segments, including network services (such as ISPs); hardware (such as routers, modems, and computers); software (such as server software and other applications); enabling services (such as directory and tracking services); expertise (such as system integrators and business consultants); and content providers (including online entertainment, information, and shopping).
The value of networks to each user increases as additional users are connected. For example, electronic mail is a much more useful service when it can reach fifty million people worldwide than when it can only be used to send messages to a few hundred people on a single company's network. The same logic applies to the voice telephone network.
However, this increasing value also can lead to congestion. Network congestion is an example of the “tragedy of the commons:” each user may find it beneficial to increase his or her usage, but the sum total of all usage may overwhelm the capacity of the network. With the number of users and host computers connected to the Internet roughly doubling each year, and traffic on the Internet increasing at an even greater rate, the potential for congestion is increasing rapidly. The growth of the Internet, and evidence of performance degradation, has led some observers to predict that the network will soon collapse, although thus far the Internet has defied all predictions of its impending doom.
Two types of Internet-related congestion may occur; congestion of the Internet backbones, and congestion of the public switched telephone network when used to access the Internet. These categories are often conflated, and from an end user standpoint the point of congestion matters less than the delays created by the congestion.
Congestion of the Internet backbones results largely from the shared, decentralized nature of the Internet. Because the Internet interconnects thousands of different networks, each of which only controls the traffic passing over its own portion of the network, there is no centralized mechanism to ensure that usage at one point on the network does not create congestion at another point. Because the Internet is a packet-switched network, additional usage, up to a certain point, only adds additional delay for packets to reach their destination, rather than preventing a transmission circuit from being opened. This delay may not cause difficulties for some services such as E-mail, but could be fatal for real-time services such as video conferencing and Internet telephony. At a certain point, moreover, routers may be overwhelmed by congestion, causing localized temporary disruptions known as “brownouts.”
Backbone providers have responded to this congestion by increasing capacity. Most of the largest backbones now operate at 155 Mbps (OC-3) speeds, and MCI has upgraded its backbone to OC-12 (622 Mbps) speed. Backbone providers are also developing pricing structures, technical solutions, and business arrangements to provide more robust and reliable service for applications that require it, and for users willing to pay higher fees.
Internet backbone congestion raises many serious technical, economic, and coordination issues. Higher-bandwidth access to the Internet will be meaningless if backbone networks cannot provide sufficient end-to-end transmission speeds. Moreover, the expansion of bandwidth available to end users will only increase the congestion pressure on the rest of the Internet. This has significant implications to local exchange carriers. Most residential subscribers reach their ISPs through dial-up connections to LEC networks. A modem at the customer premises is connected to a local loop, which is connected to a switch at a LEC central office. ISPs also purchase connections to the LEC network. In most cases, ISPs either buy analog lines under business user tariffs (referred to as “1 MBs”) or 23-channel primary rate ISDN (PRI) service. When a call comes into an ISP, it is received through a modem bank or a remote access server, and the data is sent out through routers over the packet-switched Internet. Both subscribers and ISPs share usage of LEC switches with other customers.
It is becoming increasingly apparent that the current flat charge pricing structure for Internet access contributes to the congestion of LEC networks. Switch congestion can arise at three points in LEC networks—the switch at which the ISP connects to the LEC (the terminating switch), the interoffice switching and transport network, and the originating end user switch. The point of greatest congestion is the switch serving the ISP, because many different users call into the ISP simultaneously.
LECs have engineered and sized their networks based on assumptions about voice traffic. In particular, several decades of data collection and research by AT&T, Bellcore, and others has shown that an average voice call lasts 3-5 minutes, and that the distribution between long and short calls follows a well-established curve. Because very few people stay on the line for very long periods of time, there is no need for LEC switches to support all users of the switch being connected simultaneously. Instead, LEC switches are generally divided into “line units” or “line concentrators” with concentration ratios of typically between 4:1 and 8:1. In other words, there are between four and eight users for every call path going through the switch. Call blockage on the voice network tends to be negligible because a significant percentage of users are unlikely to be connected simultaneously.
The distribution of Internet calls differs significantly from voice calls. In particular, Internet users tend to stay on the line substantially longer than voice users.
Because LEC networks have not been designed for these longer usage patterns, heavy Internet usage can result in switches being unable to handle the load (“switch congestion”). Internet connections tie up a end-to-end call path through the PSTN for the duration of the call. When the average hold time of calls through a switch increases significantly, the likelihood of all available call paths through the switch being in simultaneous use also goes up. If a particular line unit has an 8:1 concentration ratio, only one eighth of the subscriber lines into that line unit need to be connected at one time in order to block all further calls.
Because of the relatively short average duration of voice calls, the primary limiting factor on the capacity of current digital switched for voice calls is the computer processing power required to set up additional calls. Computer processing power can be expanded relatively easily and cheaply, because modern switch central processing units are designed as modular systems that can be upgraded with additional memory and processing capacity. However, Internet usage puts pressure not on the call setup capacity of the switch, but on the number of transmission paths that are concurrently open through the switch.
As may be appreciated from the foregoing the traffic problems that exist with respect to providing reliable telephony communications, particularly long distance communications, involves intertwined limitations that exist separately and in combination in the Internet and in the public switched telephone network. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In recent years, Raman spectrometry devices, in which spectrometry is performed for Raman scattered light, have been widely used (Patent literature 1). For example, in the evaluation of a manufacturing process for semiconductor devices such as Si, a stress is measured by using a Raman microscope. The stress is obtained based on the peak position(s) of a Raman spectrum. To obtain a stress in the order of 100 MPa, it is necessary to determine the peak position with relatively high accuracy, e.g., accuracy in the order of 0.1 cm−1. In order to determine the peak position without being affected by fluctuations in the room temperature and the like, a method using an argon laser plasma line as a reference light is disclosed (Patent literature 2).
The configuration of Patent literature 2 is explained with reference to FIG. 8, Laser light emitted from a laser light source 201 is expanded by a beam expander 202. Then, the laser light passes through a half mirror 203 and enters an objective lens 204. The objective lens 204 concentrates the laser light on a measurement sample 221. Then, Raman scattered light generated on the measurement sample 221 is incident on the half mirror 203 through the objective lens 204. The half mirror 203 reflects the Raman scattered light toward a lens 205. The lens 205 concentrates the Raman scattered light onto a slit 206 of a spectroscope 207. Then, the Raman scattered light, which has passed through the slit 206, is dispersed by the spectroscope 207 and detected by a CCD detector 208, in this way, it is possible to measure a Raman spectrum. Then, the temperature is obtained based on the peak position of the Raman spectrum.
However, in this method, it is necessary to use a relatively large argon laser, and thus causing a problem that downsizing of the apparatus is very difficult. As another method, a method for obtaining reference light by splitting laser light is disclosed (Patent literature 3). In this method, the peak position is obtained by using a reference light. Further, the method uses shutters that are used to block the exciting light and the reference light respectively. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
A typical electronic cigarette includes a liquid storing component, a liquid absorbing component, and a heating wire. The heating wire is wound around the liquid absorbing component. The liquid absorbing component is usually made of glass fiber material. The liquid absorbing component is configured for absorbing tobacco liquid from the liquid storing component via capillary action. The heating wire heats the tobacco liquid to vaporize. However, the glass fiber material may be bad for human's body.
What is needed, therefore, is an atomizing core and an electronic cigarette using same, which can overcome the above shortcomings. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The conventional method for training muscular strength is known well as disclosed in the following patent document 1. In this training method, a load is applied to the muscle for causing fatigue in the muscle. A fastening belt is wound around the desired muscles at the proximal part close to the heart. The circumference of this fastening belt is shortened by pulling the belt end for tightening the limb. Thereby, venous return is restricted.
And also, another conventional method for training muscular strength is known well as disclosed in the following patent document 2. In this training method, an exercise is performed while the venous return is restricted by an inflatable pneumatic cuff. This inflatable cuff is comprised of a rubber tube and a baffle plate provided along the outside of the tube in the cuff. This cuff is wound around the desired muscle at the part close to the heart for fastening the limb. In this state, air is compressed into the tube until the pressure reaches the desired value. Thus, an accurate compression force can be applied to the muscle. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to input and display systems and more particularly to input and display systems that include touch screens.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Touch screens are input and display devices that enable detecting touch in the display area, so that they operate both as display systems as well as input systems integrated in a single platform. Touch screens are commonly and widely used, for example in automated teller machines (ATMs) enabling the user to select options presented to him through the screen by pressing areas where they are presented.
One problem that occurs is that most touch screen only allow detecting of one touch at a time carried out in one touch point and therefore are limiting to applications requiring multiple simultaneous touch points. Some applications (such as drawing and hand writing related application) require identification of the instrument used to input the drawing/text (e.g. finger, whole hand, stylus, etc.). inputting touch points by hovering (without actually touching the screen surface) may also be problematic in these known touch screen since they require a completely different system for detection, while the hovering input technique may be extremely hygienic and beneficial, especially for touch screen publicly used (such as in ATMs).
There are known touch screens that allow identification of multiple touch points, which allow inputting touch points and drawings by using various inputting instruments such as finger, multiple fingers and styluses, which include invisible conductive lines arranged within the touch screen, where touch is identified by identifying changes in the conductivity and/or changes is signal(s) transmitted through those lines. This method may cause various problems since the conductive lines may change their quality of conducting the signals over time. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to an improved distributed data processing system and, in particular to an improved method and apparatus for creating applications. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for creating client applications.
2. Description of Related Art
Distributed data processing systems involve data transfers between clients and servers (also know as services). Typically, a client locates a server, initiates a session with a server and requests the server to perform some service. The server expects requests from a client to arrive in a particular format. A server is more complex than a client because the server typically handles a large number of clients simultaneously, often fetches and stores information from a large database, creates additional transactions for other services, performs business logic, and returns information formatted according to each client channel. For example, data will be specified in a particular message format. A particular transmission protocol will deliver the message to the server. The server accepts the message protocol as its application programming model (API) to its services and returns a result. A variety of software systems, such as Enterprise Java Beans (EJB), Servlets, Java Server Pages (JSP), and XML have been implemented to enhance the development of client and server-side software.
Client applications perform a number of different functions. For example, the application on the client side handles the user interface and may provide program logic for processing user input. Additionally, a client application must match the requirements of a particular server to provide communications with the particular server. Clients are packaged and distributed according to the services provided by the server.
A graphical user interface (GUI) exists in the client application to handle what the user views on the screen. Events resulting from user input, such as mouse clicks or keyboard strokes, are detected and handled using xe2x80x9clistenerxe2x80x9d processes in the application. The events are processed by program logic. The program logic may result in requests being sent to a server.
Communication with the server is provided using processes that use protocols, such as hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), secure sockets (SSL), or Remote Method Invocation (RMI).
Client software can be either xe2x80x9cthickxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cthinxe2x80x9d. A thick client is typically a large client-installed application that may access a database directly and apply business logic. They typically have dependence on the client operating system and require manual support to install and configure. By contrast a thin client is typically a small application downloaded on request from a server and accesses the database through an intermediate application server. This is known as a multi-tier application. A number of different usage scenarios for clients are present, resulting in a variety of client needs being present. For example, it is typical that in an global enterprise Intranet, the client configuration is controlled by the business but the large number of clients includes older machines with slow networks (e.g. 9600 baud). Likewise, in the Internet, there is little configuration control by the business and it is estimated that a large percentage of clients worldwide still use 14.4K connections that result in very slow network speeds and downloads. A typical user will become very frustrated if downloads take longer than a minute or two. Further, mobile users require compact software that can be customized and packaged to fit on machines and operate disconnected from the network. Subsequent automated support to connect to the network is needed.
At the other end of the spectrum, power users with high speed connections expect screen refresh times in the sub-second range and xe2x80x9cinstantaneousxe2x80x9d echoing of typed characters to provide the look and feel of processing in a local environment. In a multi-tier computing environment, the primary role of the client is to present and gather information quickly. The client application is considered a business asset independent of the network topology and server function. In these environments, it is desirable to be able to use the same client processing code for different user types and interface channels, such as automated teller machines (ATM), Kiosks, Internet [hypertext markup language (HTML)/applets], and regional office clients (applications).
Consequently, a common thin or thick client development environment for developing clients may be used to solve these problems, especially when the size and speed of the application download, integration and operation is important. Any software development environment should be based on sound software engineering principles.
Object-oriented languages have been employed in creating thin clients. Object-oriented programming environments have been presented as providing software reuse, which is a desirable feature in creating thin clients and reducing development time. In reality, the present object-oriented programming environments for developing thin clients are unable to provide enough object reuse and repeatability for quickly developing thin clients. Nor do they specify how to readily support additional message formats, protocols, data models and servers, mobile disconnected users, and caching.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have an improved method and apparatus for a client development architecture that facilitates creating thin clients in a manner in which component reuse is increased while client development time is reduced, and multiple message formats, protocols, data models and servers, mobile disconnected users and caching can be readily integrated.
The present invention provides an architectural pattern for creating applications for a data processing system. A graphical user interface is created in which the graphical user interface includes a plurality of components. Processes for presenting the plurality of components and receiving user input are handled by a first set of graphical objects, wherein in response to selected user input, a first event is generated. An application object is created in which the application process controls an order in which the graphical objects present the set of components and process the event and wherein the application generates a second event. A transport object is created in which the transport object processes the second event and forwards the second event for processing to a destination within the plurality of destinations. A plurality of destination objects are created in which each destination object within the plurality of destinations objects handles accessing a destination within the plurality of destinations.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for refreshing data in an application. A call is received to update data in the application, wherein the data is destined for a component in the application. A data type is identified for the data. Responsive to the data type being a handled data type, the data is formatted and a refresh is called on the component.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for displaying a component or container. The container is displayed within a display using a first component. A location of the component or container is controlled within the display using a second component, wherein the second component controls the location and geometry of the component or container in response to receiving an event. The component or container is selectively displayed using a third component, wherein the third component generates the event.
The present invention provides a process in a data processing system for managing services in a desktop environment from an object oriented-environment. A presentation of a graphical user interface is controlled using a view controller, wherein the view controller handles user input to the graphical user interface. Responsive to a selected user input, the selected user input is sent from the view controller to an application mediator. Responsive to receiving the selected user input at the application mediator, the selected user input is processed at the application mediator. Responsive to the application mediator determining that a service is required in the desktop environment, an event is generated. Responsive to detecting the event at a listener object, a method is executed in the listener object to perform the service in the desktop environment.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for managing transactions. A request event is received at a transporter object. The request event includes a target and an indication of how to handle the request event. A destination object is identified within the plurality of destination objects using the request event to form an identified destination object. The request event is sent to the identified destination object, wherein the identified destination object handles the request using the indication and accesses the target.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for displaying a graphical user interface. A container is displayed in a graphical user interface from a set of containers, wherein a display of the container handled by a view controller from a set of view controllers. Each view controller handles the display of an associated container within the set of containers and user input for the associated container. A display of the set of containers is altered by an application mediator, wherein the set of containers are displayed in an order determined by the application mediator.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for performing validation of user input. User input is received in a container displayed in a graphical user interface, wherein presentation of the container and the user input to the container are handled by a view controller. Responsive to receiving the user input, a call is sent to a validation object by the view controller. Responsive to the call, the validation object tests the user input using a criteria, wherein the rule is separate from the view controller.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for managing permissions in an application. A user input is received at a container handled by a view controller, wherein the user input requests a change in permissions in the application. This user input, may be, for example, a change in security in an application through a login process. A view event describing the user input is generated. The view event is received at an application mediator. Responsive to receiving the view event, by the application mediator, a request event is generated and a permission corresponding to the user input is received. The permission alters an item, which may be in either of both the view controller and the application mediator.
The present invention provides a process and apparatus in a data processing system for presenting a view to a client. At an application mediator, a view event is received from a view controller, wherein the view event describes an action on a displayed container handled by the view controller. Responsive to a requirement that a change in a placement of the displayed container is required, a placement event is generated by the application mediator. A determination is then made by a placement listener, as to whether the placement event includes an indication that an alternate view is to be generated. Responsive to a determination that an alternate view is to be generated, a call is sent to a method in the view controller to generate the alternate view.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for processing user input in a graphical user interface. A graphical user interface is presented using a view controller, wherein the view controller handles the user input to the graphical user interface. Responsive to a selected user input, an event is sent to a first application mediator. Responsive to the first application mediator being unable to process the event, the event is sent to a second application mediator for processing, wherein the first application mediator and the second application mediator handle an order in which a set of displays are displayed by a view controller.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for presenting a set of screens in a graphical user interface. A first screen within a set of screens is presented, wherein the set of screens are presented using a set of view controllers. Responsive to a selected user input to the first screen, an event is generated by a view controller within the set of view controllers identifying the user input to the first screen, which is handled by the first view controller. Responsive to detecting the event generated by the view controller, a second screen from the set of screens is selected, by an application mediator, for display by sending a response to a view controller handling the second screen.
The application mediator is initialized from reading a state machine file and control processing of view event received from virtual controllers.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for serializing data. A serializer receives a data element for serialization, wherein the data element includes a class name string. Responsive to receiving the data element, the serializer replaces the class name string with a code having a smaller size than the class name string to form a modified data element. Responsive to forming the modified data element, in which the serializer serializes the modified data element. This serialized data is transmitted and deserialized by a deserializer, which replaces the indicator with the class name.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a data processing system for providing an interface to an application for monitoring execution of the application. An event generated by a view controller is detected, wherein the view controller handles presentation of a container in a graphical user interface. A determination is made as to whether the event is an event selected for monitoring. Responsive to the determination that the event is an event selected for monitoring, a request event is generated, wherein the request event includes data from the event and a destination.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for a data processing system for accessing classes and methods in an object oriented system. Responsive to receiving a selected user input to a container, a view event is sent from a view controller o an application mediator. The view event identifies an action taken to generate the selected user input. A request is selectively generated based on the view event, wherein the request event includes a major code identifying a class name as a destination and a minor code identifying a method name a function to be invoked. The request event is sent to a transporter. The transporter acts as a router to send the request event to an appropriate destination object from a plurality of destination objects. Responsive to receiving the request event at the transporter, the request event is sent to a destination object within a plurality of destination objects based in the class name. The destination object formats the request event into a form recognizable by the destination associated with the destination object. The destination may be located on a remote data processing system. The request event is used to access the class or method identified in the request event. The access may be, for example, an invocation of the method. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates generally to vending machines and more particularly to vending machines of a type including helical members for moving and dispensing articles or packages.
There have been many different structures used to connect such helix to a drive shaft for facilitating selective rotation of such helix. Examples of structures are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,861,561; 3,883,039; 3,929,255; 3,986,637; and 3,989,163.
Most of such prior art connections have been solid connections made by rivets or the like, to a plate which is then connected to a drive shaft, especially in the helix structures which are formed of flat wire rather than wire of a round cross section. One problem with such prior art structures is that they cannot be adjusted easily, for example to change the rotary position of the helix with respect to the drive shaft.
Another problem with prior art structures is the excessive time and expense of construction and the excessive time needed for disassembly and re-assembly when necessary.
Consequently there is a need for an improved connection structure between the helix and drive shaft of vending machines. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates to a pneumatic hammer tool and more particularly, it is concerned with the pneumatic drive therefor. The drive has a cylinder and a differential piston which is slidably received in the cylinder and which has a piston rod projecting outwardly of the cylinder for cooperating with a tool bit, such as a chisel-shaped member. A pressure-controlled valve arrangement alternatingly routes compressed air in the two cylinder chambers at the one and the other side of the piston for causing reciprocation thereof. The cylinder wall is provided with at least one discharge opening which, controlled by the land of the reciprocating piston, alternatingly connects the one and the other cylinder chamber with the atmosphere to depressurize and release the compressed air from the respective cylinder chamber after the compressed air has displaced the piston.
Pneumatic hammers of the above-outlined type are known; they have a high impact rate and a superior output but are disadvantageous in that they operate with substantial noise. Swiss Pat. No. 580,476 discloses a pneumatic hammer in which a significant noise suppression is achieved by providing the piston at each end with conical chamfers which cooperate with discharge slots of very substantial length (as measured in a direction generally perpendicular to the direction of reciprocation of the piston). It has been found, however, that the long discharge slots cause substantial wear because the cylinder has, at the height level of the long slots, a relatively small surface that slidingly supports the piston. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
For transmission of video signals, a format of non-compressed video signals developed by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) 125M standard. FIG. 5 illustrates a 525/60 TV video signal, in which auxiliary data areas H, D, and V are capable of being multiplexed with auxiliary data. A full line period, except switching points, of video samples 1444 to 1711 is assigned as the auxiliary data area H. A period of video samples 0 to 1439 at lines after effective video area and before the switching point is assigned as the auxiliary data area V. And at lines after the switching point to succeeding effective video area is assigned as the auxiliary data area D.
A format of an auxiliary data packet to be multiplexed in the auxiliary data areas is shown in the SMPTE 291M standard. FIG. 6 illustrates the format of the auxiliary data packet of the SMPTE 291M standard where one word consists of 10 bits. As shown in FIG. 6, the auxiliary data packet includes three words (000h, 3FFh, and 3FFh) of an auxiliary data flag (ADF), one word of a data identification (DID), one word of second data identification (SDID), one word of a data count (DC), 0 to 255 words of a user data word (UDW), and one word of a check sum (CS).
Another format of a compressed video signal is shown in the SMPTE 314M standard. FIG. 7 illustrates a data structure of a 50M mode compressed video signal of the SMPTE 314M standard where hatching areas represents areas capable of being multiplexed with data. In either a digital interface (DIF) block data area in a video auxiliary (VAUX) section or a reserve data are in a video section, the data can be multiplexed. One word consists of 8 bits.
As the location where the auxiliary data packets are multiplexed in a non-compressed video signal is not particularly specified, the auxiliary data packets are hardly restored at their original location during the conversion of the compressed video signal into its non-compressed signal. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor processing technology and, in particular, concerns an electronic module comprised of multiple chip stacks assembled into a single electronic package having improved heat dissipation.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor manufacturers continually strive to increase the packaging density of integrated circuit chips, which has led to the development of high-density electronic packaging modules such as three-dimensional multi-chip structures. Multi-chip structures typically comprise a plurality of integrated circuit chips that are adhered together in a stack so as to reduce the amount of space that the chips occupy inside a system. Typically, each chip in the stack has a plurality of conductive input/output contacts that are exposed on at least one lateral surface of the chip. The exposed contacts provide conductive interconnection between the chips in the stack and external circuitry.
As a result of the increased device density of VLSI (Very-Large-Scale Integration) and ULSI (Ultra-Large-Scale Integration) integrated circuitry, wiring interconnective metallurgy between input/output terminals of stacked integrated circuit chips has become increasingly more complex. A higher packaging density likely requires an increase in the number of conductors, which likely reduces the space between adjacent conductors. Unfortunately, such dimensional reductions tend to increase the capacitance between adjacent conductors, thereby possibly increasing signal propagation delays and signal cross-talk. The limitations brought about by capacitive coupling between adjacent conductors has become a significant impediment to achieving higher wiring density.
The capacitive coupling effect is particularly apparent in high-density electronic packaging modules, such as three-dimensional multi-chip structures. In some multi-chip structures, the conductive leads on the integrated circuit chips are closely spaced, and adjacent leads may sometimes be separated by less than 1 micron. Consequently, reducing the distance between adjacent leads may adversely impact the functionality of the multi-chip structure due to an increase in the capacitive load between adjacent conductors. In addition, stacking the chips in close proximity to one another as required in multi-chip structures may also increase the capacitive coupling effect between conductors of adjacent chips.
Many integrated circuit chip designers have tried to address the problem of increased capacitive coupling between adjacent conductors by utilizing insulative materials that have lower dielectric constants than conventional dielectrics such as silicon-dioxide (SiO2), which has a dielectric constant of about 4.5. In some cases, polymers, such as polyimides, which have a dielectric constant of about 2.8-3.5, have been used in place of SiO2. However, the polyimides provide limited improvement for the capacitive coupling problem and, therefore, do not provide a significant advantage in use.
Alternatively, interconnects incorporating an air bridge structure have also been developed and are described in prior art references such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,891,797 to Farrar. Air bridge structures generally comprise suspended conductors that are surrounded by an air gap instead of the more conventional insulators. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,324,683 to Fitch et al. describes the formation of an air bridge structure in an integrated circuit by removing all or a portion of the dielectric layer between conductors so that the conductors are surrounded and insulated by an air gap. Air has a dielectric constant of approximately 1.0, which is substantially less than the dielectric constants of conventionally used insulators such as SiO2 or various polymides. As such, the air-gap insulator provides some improvement for the capacitive coupling effect associated with the increased wiring density of integrated circuit chips.
Although air bridge structures permit an increase in the integrated circuit wiring density, the use of air bridges introduces some new problems such as the effective removal of heat from the air bridge structures. Generally, increasing the integrated circuit wiring density leads to a decrease in the cross-sectional area of the conductors. As the cross-sectional area of an air bridge conductor decreases, the electrical resistance of the conductor increases, which results in an increase of the operating temperature of the conductors.
Excessive heat generation is particularly apparent in high-density multi-chip electronic packages, such as multi-chip modules or three-dimensional multi-chip structures. As the number of components in a multi-chip electronic package increases and the packaging density becomes more compact, the ability of heat to dissipate efficiently diminishes, which increases the risk of self-overheating and may reduce the reliable life of the semiconductor device. Moreover, integrated circuit and device functional characteristics may also depend on ambient temperature within the multi-chip electronic package. Therefore, as the ambient temperature of the package increases due to excessive heat generated by the conductors, hot spots within the multi-chip electronic package may form and adversely affect the performance of the integrated circuit.
Hence, from the foregoing, it will be appreciated that there is a need for an electronic module having higher wiring density combined with an efficient cooling system that effectively removes heat from the module. What is proposed herein is a densely packed electronic module having improved heat dissipation efficiency and a process of manufacturing the same.
In one aspect, the preferred embodiments of the present invention provide an electronic packaging module comprising a plurality of first integrated circuit chips stacked and secured together to form a first chip stack having a first lateral face that is comprised of a first portion of each chip. The module further comprises a plurality of second integrated circuit chips stacked and secured together to form a second chip stack having a first lateral face that is comprised of a first portion of each chip. The first lateral face of the first chip stack is attached to the first lateral face of the second chip stack so as to form a single, electronic module. Preferably, at least one of the chip stacks is electrically interconnected to external circuitry. Furthermore, a plurality of exterior chips can be mounted to the remaining exposed faces of the chip stacks. In one embodiment, the chips within the chip stacks comprise memory chips while the exterior chips comprise non-memory chips such as processor chips and logic chips. In another embodiment, the module is enclosed inside an enclosure, wherein the enclosure is configured to receive and enclose a thermally conductive fluid having a thermal conductivity greater than that of air at one atmosphere.
In another aspect, the preferred embodiments provide an electronic packaging module comprising a plurality of chip stacks. Each chip stack comprises a plurality of outer faces, wherein the chip stacks are attached together to form a single module in a manner such that at least one outer face of each chip stack is bonded to the outer face of another chip stack. Preferably, electrical contacts are formed on at least some of the outer faces of at least some of the chip stacks so as to establish electrical contact between at least some of the chip stacks. Preferably, at least one of the chip stacks is interconnected to external circuitry. In one embodiment, the module further comprises an enclosure enclosing the chip stacks, wherein the enclosure is configured to receive and enclose a thermally conductive fluid having a thermal conductivity greater than that of air at one atmosphere, wherein said thermally conductive fluid contacts the chip stacks and transfers heat therefrom.
In yet another aspect, the preferred embodiments of the present invention provide a method of forming an electronic packaging module. The method comprises securing a first plurality of integrated circuit chips in a first chip stack, wherein the first chip stack comprises a first lateral face wherein the first lateral face comprises a portion of each chip. Furthermore, a second plurality of integrated circuit chips are secured in a second chip stack, wherein the second chip stack comprises a first lateral face wherein the first lateral face comprises a portion of each chip. The method further comprises bonding the first lateral face of the first chip stack to the first lateral face of the second chip stack so as to form a single module and, preferably, electrically interconnecting the module to a bonding substrate, wherein the bonding substrate comprises external circuitry. In one embodiment, the method further comprise enclosing said module inside an enclosure and introducing a thermally conductive fluid to said enclosure, said thermally conductive fluid has a thermal conductivity greater than that of air at one atmosphere, wherein said thermally conductive fluid contacts the chip stacks and transfers heat therefrom.
Advantageously, the preferred embodiments of the present invention provide an electronic module that is comprised of multiple chip stacks combined into a single, compact module that can be easily installed and removed. Furthermore, the preferred embodiments also provide a cooling system that effectively facilitates heat dissipation from the densely packed module. These and other advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an anchoring system for securing a medical article to a patient. More specifically, this invention relates to an anchoring system which retains a dialysis catheter in position upon a patient without crimping and which may be used with catheters that remain in position for extended periods.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is common in kidney dialysis procedures to use a catheter inserted into a major vein near the heart to facilitate the blood exchange necessary for dialysis. Because dialysis procedures must generally be performed on a regular basis, it is not uncommon for such a catheter to be left in place in between dialysis sessions. This may reduce the potential risks to the patient associated with having to reintroduce such a catheter prior to each session.
Other risks, however, arise when leaving such a catheter in position for extended periods of time. It can be very dangerous for the patient if the catheter moves substantially in either axial direction. Inadvertent withdrawal of the catheter may lead to bleeding, either internally or externally, and axial advancement of the catheter may press the catheter tip into the heart or other sensitive internal tissue.
Furthermore, leaving such a catheter in position on the patient traditionally requires a taped dressing near the insertion site. The use of such adhesives at the insertion site may retain dirt or other contaminant particles, potentially leading to infection of the patient. Additionally, removal of taped dressings may itself cause undesired motion of the catheter upon the patient.
An additional drawback to using taped dressings near the insertion site is that they require periodic changes. The frequent, often daily, removal and reapplication of adhesive tape to the skin of the patient can excoriate the skin in the area around the dressing. This is especially problematic for dialysis patients, as their skin tends to be more fragile and sensitive to abrasion due to collagen deficiency common to renal conditions. Such repeated applications of tape over the catheter may also lead to the build up of adhesive residue on the outer surface of the catheter. This residue can result in contaminants adhering to the catheter itself, increasing the likelihood of infection of the insertion site. This residue may also make the catheter stickier and more difficult to handle for medical attendants.
For these reasons, a need exists for an improved dialysis catheter retainer which may be used on patients where the catheter remains in place over an extended period of time. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Remote client access platforms and systems, such the Terminal Service™ provided by the Microsoft Corporation, allow computers to remotely access application programs that are hosted by and resident at an application server. In remote client access systems, client computers typically rely on a server computer to provide computing functionality through application programs resident at the server computer. Examples of application programs include word processing, multimedia, and data management programs.
The application server computer may be referred to as a host computer or terminal server. The client computer may be referred to as a remote terminal, remote client, or a thin client. The client computer primarily is used for user interface: interaction with a user and device I/O. Software on the client computer is typically generic or not application specific, generally consisting of an operating system and general purpose software—including software to support the remote client access environment. Software at the server computer typically includes specific-purpose application software that provides particular functionality, such as database access, word processing, drafting, and many other types of applications. Data communicated between the client computer and the application server mostly includes commands and data relating to user interface, such as graphics data, keystrokes, mouse movements, etc., as well as commands and data relating to hardware devices located at the client computer.
The application server and clients typically communicate or pass information with one another using a predefined communication protocol such as the remote desktop protocol (RDP) as defined by the Microsoft Corporation. Lower level network protocols such as TCP/IP are also involved.
Benefits of remote client access systems are that the client computers can be relatively low-powered since most functionality and computation takes place at the server computer. Although the application server is often more expensive than a typical desktop computer, one application server computer can service many less expensive clients.
Another advantage in some systems is that data can reside at the physical location of the server computer, and can be acted upon at that location by application programs without having to be transferred over relatively slow communications links to the client computers—only the user interface is implemented at the physical locations of the client computers.
Client computers often have USB (universal serial bus) ports to which peripheral devices are attached. Such devices often relate to the user interface, as in the case of USB keyboards. In many cases, applications executing at the server computer need to access and interact with such USB devices. Other examples of USB devices include digital cameras, document scanners, external disk drives, and media readers. Various applications hosted by the application server may need to interact with these hardware devices.
In a typical Windows®-based desktop environment, local applications communicate with USB devices through a series of drivers, referred to as a driver stack. Different responsibilities are divided among components of the stack for purposes of organization and re-usability. For example, some of the drivers are generic to all or certain general classes of USB devices and can be used or re-used to communicate with many different devices. Other drivers implement functionality that is specific to certain devices, and are often designed specifically to accompany certain hardware.
FIG. 1 illustrates a typical USB architecture implemented within a computer acting as a standalone computer—not as a client of an application server. FIG. 1 shows logical communications between hardware and software components.
The system of FIG. 1 includes a computer 100 and a USB device 105. USB device 105 is connected to computer 100 through a physical USB port (not shown). An application program 110 executes on the computer and interacts with USB device 105 through a driver stack 115. The driver stack 115 in this example has three USB drivers.
At the lowest level of the driver stack 115, a USB host controller driver 120 communicates directly to the USB hardware (not shown) in the computer, and through that hardware to the USB device 105. Above that, a low-level USB bus driver 125 (also referred to as a hub or hub driver) communicates with USB host controller 120, and manages USB device power, enumeration, and various USB transactions. Both of these drivers are part of the Windows® operating system and are generic to all USB devices; these drivers do not have to be replaced or modified as a function of the type of USB devices that are connected to the computer 100.
Driver stack 115 also includes a USB function driver 130. The USB function driver 130 is customized for a particular device or class of devices. As a result, a different function driver is loaded depending on the actual USB device being used. USB function drivers are also referred to as USB device function drivers, class drivers, or custom drivers.
Although FIG. 1 shows only a single application program 110, computer 100 typically has a plurality of application programs, any one or more of which may be configured to interact with USB device 105 through the single driver stack 115 shown. Application program 110 may be a word processing program, a game program, or any of various other types of programs.
FIG. 2 shows a similar example in which a computer 200 has a plurality of application programs 205 and 210 and a plurality of USB devices 215, 220, and 225. In this example, application program 205 interacts with USB device 215, while application program 210 interacts with USB devices 220 and 225.
As in the previous example, communications are implemented by a USB driver stack 230. The USB driver stack 230 includes a USB host controller 235 and a USB bus driver 240 that communicate with each of USB devices 215, 220, and 225. The USB driver stack 230 further includes a plurality of USB function drivers 245, 250, and 255 corresponding to each of USB devices 215, 220, and 225. As already described, each of these USB function drivers 245, 250, and 255 is selected and loaded based upon the particular type or class of USB device.
As shown, an application program can interact with more than a single USB device. If multiple USB devices are installed, they commonly use the same host controller driver and bus driver, although it is possible for a single computer to have more than one USB driver stack. If different kinds of USB ports are used, different port and “mini-port” drivers may be loaded; however, in general the overall USB driver stack remains the same.
FIG. 3 illustrates use of USB devices in a prior art remote client/server architecture. In this example, a client computer 300 has one or more USB devices 305(1)-305(N) connected to its USB ports. It also has operating system or other low-level support for such USB devices. In particular, remote client computer 300 includes a USB host controller 310 that connects with USB devices 305.
Client computer 300 performs user interaction in response to commands and data transferred between itself and a server computer 315. One or more application programs 320 reside at server computer 315 and execute thereon. In order to support remotely located USB devices 305, the operating system or other support software of server computer 315 includes USB support. In particular, server computer 315 includes USB function device drivers 325(1)-325(N), a USB bus driver 330, and a USB host controller 335.
USB function device drivers 325 perform similar functions as USB function device driver 130 described above. USB function device drivers 325 communicate with a USB bus driver 330. Likewise, USB bus driver 330 performs similar functions as USB bus driver 125 described above. Server computer 315 further includes a USB host controller 335 connected to or communicating with USB host controller 310 of client computer 300. Communication between USB host controller 310 and USB host controller 335 may be through a direct physical connection or include an intermediate network connecting the two. USB host controller 335 through communication with USB host controller 310 communicates with and accesses USB devices 305. In this example, client computer 300 relies completely on server computer 315 to provide all the needed functionality through application programs 320 for USB devices 305.
In contrast to the operation of the standalone computer shown in FIG. 1, in the client server arrangement of FIG. 3, all functionality in the form of application programs 320 is provided at the server computer 315. In other words, the client computer 300 relies on server computer 315 for all functionality for USB devices 305. In this arrangement, client computer 300 does not provide, or is not allowed to provide, any functionality to any of the USB devices 305. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to write-once, read-only semiconductor memory arrays and, more specifically, to lower power write-once, read-only semiconductor memory arrays including semiconductor devices and fabrication methods therefor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the past, manufacturers of semiconductor write-once, read-only (PROM) memory arrays have sought ways of producing lower power semiconductor memory arrays in order to permit users of these arrays to operate them with much lower power.
One recent technique that has been implemented by some semiconductor circuit manufacturers to provide low power semiconductor circuits has been to use high resistivity resistors in place of conventional resistors used in the circuit in order to reduce the power needed to operate the circuits. However, prior attempts to improve circuit operation by developing semiconductor circuits that operate with lower power have not been very satisfactory due to the difficulty in forming high resistivity, shallow semiconductor resistor regions. For example, diffused semiconductor resistors were found to be undesirable due to the fact that the graded diffused region after diffusing through an opening in the silicon dioxide layer into the bare silicon generally created very deep semiconductor regions which reduced the resistivity of these resistor regions because resistivity is inversely proportional to region thickness.
Prior attempts to produce high resistivity ion implanted semiconductor resistor regions have not been successful because these ion implanted semiconductor resistor regions were performed through openings in the silicon dioxide surface layer thereby causing relatively deep semiconductor resistor regions which lowered the resistance of these semiconductor regions.
Attempts at making shallow P type diffused or implanted regions with Boron through openings in the silicon dioxide layer were not successful because of the fact that Boron outdiffused into the thermally grown silicon dioxide layer thereby resulting in the loss of the initially formed, shallow, high resistivity Boron doped resistor region.
Accordingly, a need existed to provide a low power programmable read-only semiconductor memory array which would have very shallow, high resistivity semiconductor resistor regions or structures to thereby lower the power needed to operate the semiconductor PROM. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to rotary screw compressors, and more particularly to a compressor and a method of operation that will provide automatic compensation against axial thrust forces imposed on the compressor rotor bearings.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Rotary screw compressors comprise a housing with working fluid inlet and outlets, rotor bores and a rotor assembly mounted on bearings for rotation in the rotor bores. The rotor may comprise a single rotor or male and female screw-type rotors having intermeshed lands and grooves. Rotation of the rotor causes a working fluid to be taken from the low pressure inlet or suction side, and gradually compressed in chambers created by the lands and grooves. The high pressure fluid is then discharged through the high pressure outlet.
The capacity of the compressor and the volume ratio of the compressor, sometimes called compression ratio, are controlled by various types of valve arrangements. One type of valve arrangement used to regulate the capacity and volume ratio is termed a slide valve. If a slide valve is used, the compressor housing is provided with a slide valve receiving recess which connects the rotor bores in fluid communication with the low pressure inlet. The slide valve is mounted and operative to either close this recess or open it thereby providing a variable size bypass opening to bypass some compressed fluid back to this inlet to control the compressor capacity.
The volume ratio of the compressor depends upon the period of time fluid remains trapped in the rotor chambers. As the rotors rotate, the rotor chambers become progressively smaller which reduces the volume of the fluid therein and increases its pressure. Therefore, the longer the period of time that fluid remains trapped in the rotor chambers, the smaller its volume becomes. The slide valve is adjustable to regulate the period of time fluid is trapped in the rotor chambers and increasing or decreasing retention time increases or decreases the compressor volume ratio.
An inherent differential pressure .DELTA.P exists between the low pressure inlet and the high pressure outlet sides of the compressor. This .DELTA.P pressure acts against the end faces of the rotors and generates axial thrust forces tending to move the rotors toward the low pressure inlet side. These axial thrust forces must be absorbed by the bearings and such forces can generate extremely high axial bearing loads which overload the bearings under many normal operating parameters. However, under other operating parameters very little or no axial thrust force may be generated with the consequence that the bearings are substantially under loaded.
It has long been known that high axial bearing loads produce greater friction and higher operating temperatures on the thrust bearings which greatly reduce their operating life. For example, at face-to-face bearing loads of 10,000 lbs, the bearing life will be under 2000 hours, or less than three months. Replacement of these bearings is extremely expensive in bearing cost, labor cost, and compressor downtime. It has also been known that to guarantee satisfactory performance of both roller and ball bearings, they must always be subject to a given minimum load especially if they run at high speeds such as in compressors where the inertia forces of the bearing elements and cage, and friction in the lubricant, may cause damaging sliding movements to occur between the bearing elements and their raceways. Therefore, both the absence of a minimum load and the presence of a high axial bearing load can damage and drastically shorten the bearing life.
The problem of a short bearing service life in compressors has been recognized for decades and many solutions to solve it have been suggested. The prior art teaches that the high axial thrust forces should be opposed by a counterbalancing force acting in the opposite direction. To accomplish this, U.S. Pat. No. 3,161,349 issued Dec. 15, 1964 to L. B. Schibbye teaches that a counterbalancing piston should be mounted on the rotor in a compartment that is connected to a source of pressurized compressor lubricating oil provided by a pump driven by the compressor. The lubricating oil pressure, in function, reflects the discharge pressure of the compressor and thus generates a counterbalancing force which is a function of the differential pressure .DELTA.P of the compressor. This counterbalancing piston will exert a force on the bearing that is counter to the axial thrust force. However, as shown in FIG. 4, developing a force that references discharge pressure produces a force WDPT which is a straight line over the output capacity of the compressor as indicated by the 0-100 psia range of suction pressures shown.
Refrigeration and air conditioning compressors are equipped with some type of valve arrangement as previously discussed for varying the capacity of the compressor between maximum and minimum levels. The axial thrust force on the rotor will vary as the capacity of the compressor varies. The resulting axial bearing load at a minimum capacity will be about one-half of the axial bearing load that exists at a maximum capacity. Because, as discussed above, a bearing must always have a minimum loading to prevent failure, a dilemma always exists between two design parameters. First, for long bearing life a counterbalance force applying piston must be sized (areawise) to be as large as possible to offset as much of the axial thrust force as possible at maximum capacity. Second, for long bearing life a counterbalance force applying piston must be sized small enough to prevent overbalancing against the axial thrust force at minimum capacity to prevent underloading the bearing. Therefore, if one sizes the counterbalancing piston to meet the second parameter, there is not enough counterbalancing force at maximum capacity and the bearing life is shortened. If one sizes the counterbalancing piston to meet the first parameter, the bearings will be unloaded at certain minimum capacity conditions and the bearing life is shortened because the required minimum bearing load is not maintained.
This dilemma is illustrated in FIG. 4. Plot FW/OCB (force without counterbalancing) shows that during operation the force varies at maximum capacity from approximately 3920 to 9800 lbs at a constant .DELTA.P of 100 psi. If one references discharge pressure for counterbalancing, the force WDPT available for counterbalancing is approximately 1335 lbs for a typically sized counterbalancing piston for a particular size rotor no matter what the suction pressure is as long as the .DELTA.P is constant. Therefore, at maximum capacity and 10 psi suction pressure (WR1) the net axial force FDPT-1 available for counterbalancing would be 4400-1335=3065 lbs. The bearing load resulting from this force would result in acceptable bearing life. However, at minimum compressor capacity (FIG. 5), the axial force without counterbalancing would be as shown at WR1 in FIG. 5 and the net bearing load FDPT-1 would be 2200-1335=895 lbs. This loading is far below the bearing manufacturer's recommended minimum load of 2000 lbs and will result in unacceptable bearing life. Referring back again to maximum capacity (FIG. 4), at a 90 psia suction pressure (WR2), the net axial force FDPT-2 would be 9100-1335=7765 lbs. This allows a bearing load that is far too high and would result in a bearing life of less than one year. At minimum compressor capacity (FIG. 5) at 90 psia (WR2), the net bearing load FDPT-2 (from FIG. 5) would be 4550-1335=3215 lbs. This would be an acceptable minimum bearing load.
The following is Table 1 which lists typical values of relevant operating parameters of a compressor of conventional prior art design at .DELTA.P=100 psi wherein discharge pressure of the compressor is sensed and used to provide a pressure for application to a counterbalancing piston. These typical values are for a particular size of standard compressor, balance piston, and bearing arrangement.
TABLE 1 ______________________________________ .DELTA.P = 100 psi Prior Art (Discharge Pressure) ______________________________________ Suction Pressure 10 10 90 90 Compressor Capacity Min Max Min Max Axial Force 2200 4400 4550 9100 FW/OCB Counterbalance Force 1335 1335 1335 1335 WDPT Net Bearing Load 895 3065 3215 7765 FW/OCB - WDPT ______________________________________
There have been many arrangements suggested by the prior art to reduce the adverse effects of these problems. U.S. Pat. No. 3,388,854 issued Jun. 18, 1968 to Olofsson et al uses a spring 35 acting on the thrust bearings. This spring exerts axial thrust on the rotor in the opposite direction to the axial force exerted by the thrust counterbalancing piston to distribute axial thrust more evenly.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,811,805 issued May 21, 1974 to Moody, Jr. et al recognizes that the thrust balance pistons can exert a counterbalancing force that overcompensates for the axial thrust forces. Moody, Jr. et al states that the adverse effects can be overcome by providing a hydrodynamic fluid bearing between the end faces of both female and male screws and a fixed thrust surface of the housing. An oil film is maintained between these two components to reduce wear but this does not fully address the problem of overloading or underloading the bearings.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,089 issued Dec. 25, 1979 to Webb also correlates the biasing of the thrust balance pistons to the discharge pressure of the compressor. Webb uses a valve structure in the high pressure lubrication oil line to attenuate the pressure applied to the thrust balance piston so that it will be approximately 20 psi below whatever the compressor discharge pressure is. However, the basic problem of overloading and underloading is not solved.
U.S. Pat. No. Reissue 32,055 issued Dec. 24, 1985 to Schibbye et al discloses that high pressure lubricating oil should be supplied to the thrust balance piston on the low pressure end of the male rotor; that a mean lubricating oil pressure should be applied to the high pressure ends of both the male and female rotors; and that an axial connection passage be provided from the high pressure end of the female rotor to the female rotor balancing piston at the low pressure end thereof to keep both ends at the mean pressure. Thus, the low pressure end of the male rotor is at a high thrust balancing pressure and the low pressure end of the female rotor is at a lower mean thrust balancing pressure to help increase service life of the bearings but does not fully address the problem of underloading and overloading the bearings.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,964,790 issued Oct. 23, 1990 to Scott states that in the prior art "the balancing pressure on the pistons is not responsive to the various operative parameters other than outlet pressure of the rotary compressor." Scott discloses a complex system using a microprocessor control for computing a net counterbalancing force in response to inputs or sensed parameters relating to the pressure of gas at the inlet and outlet of the compressor, and regulates a variable valve of an oil pump responsive to the microprocessor signal to control the amount of thrust balancing oil pressure applied to the counterbalancing pistons.
All of the thrust balancing systems of the prior art are either unduly complex in construction and function and therefore expensive to manufacture and service, or do not supply a counterbalancing force which correlates the axial bearing load through the full range of suction pressures existing between a minimum and maximum compressor working range as illustrated by plots WR1and WR2 of FIGS. 4 and 5.
Therefore, what is needed is a compressor having a simple, reliable, low cost thrust bearing force compensation arrangement and a method for its operation to produce a counterbalancing force correlated to the axial force on the rotors. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
A typical coaxial cable connector has a metal outer shell, an inner dielectric insert, and a central contact pin to carry the signal which is secured within the inner dielectric insert. The outer metal shell is crimped to the outer metal braid of the coaxial cable to provide an electrical connection between the shielding of the cable and the connector. The central contact is crimped to the central conductor of the coaxial cable to provide connection for the signal pathway.
In a particular coaxial cable connector, the outer metal shell has a wider internal forward end to receive the mating electrical connector therein. The outer metal shell also has a narrower portion into which the dielectric insert will be secured. There is a right angle shoulder between the wider mating end and the narrower portion for receiving the dielectric insert therein. Once the dielectric insert is inserted within the outer metal shell, it is staked within the outer metal shell. This is accomplished by a special tool which is pushed down within the outer metal shell to engage the shoulder. The tool has a special shape to deform the shoulder and to force portions of the shoulder over the end of the dielectric insert thereby securing the dielectric insert within the outer metal shell.
What is needed is a more reliable method for securing the dielectric insert within the outer metal shell. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional bed 10′ for diagnosis. FIG. 2 is an enlarged, cross-sectional view of a conventional bed taken along line 1—1 of FIG. 1.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the conventional bed 10′ for diagnosis comprises a substantially rectangular metal plate 2′, a plurality of supporting legs 3′ which extend downward at a particular distance from four corners of the metal plate 2′ to fix the metal plate 2′ at a particular height, connection members, 4′ for fixing and connecting the supporting legs 3′ with each another, and an upper plate 7′ mounted over the metal plate 2′ and consisting of a sponge 6′ and an outer cover 5′ such that a patient can sit or lie down.
It is known that groundwater flowing below the ground generates water veins having complicated waveforms. Water veins adversely influence humans and particularly patients, because various minerals dissolved in the groundwater gather into the water veins to cause changes in a magnetic charge. In other words, water veins cause changes in terrestrial magnetic force and electric current, thereby influencing, life on the earth. Water vein with great destructibility may damage buildings and precise machinery, as well as humans and animals. It is also known that water veins influence even the top floor of a skyscraper. Particularly, living things are greatly influenced by water veins while sleeping, although hardly influenced while moving.
As stated above, a conventional bed for diagnosis comprises an upper plate simply having a sponge and an outer cover over a metal plate. The conventional bed lets a patient exposed to the hazardous environment of water veins.
If there is a water vein under the conventional bed, the patient on the bed will directly receive an adverse impact from the water vein. As a result, there may be such problems that recovery from pain will be delayed, drugs will be ineffective, or pains will become more serious.
Moreover, the conventional bed cannot produce a thermotherapy effect which is an optimum treatment condition for patients. The conventional bed does not have various functions for improving health.
Electric mats may have been used to give a thermotherapy effect to the patient laying on the conventional bed. However, electric mats generate large amounts of electromagnetic waves that cause lassitude, insomnia, nervousness, headache, bad sleep, or the like.
Electromagnetic waves may also cause leukemia, lymphoma, brain cancer, central nervous system cancer, breast cancer, dementia, abortion and delivery of a malformed child. Electromagnetic waves are known to be particularly hazardous to pregnant women.
In addition, the conventional bed for diagnosis does not have a function of generating far-infrared and ultra-long waves which are helpful in the recovery of health. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electrostatic flocking apparatus for electrostatically applying flock to a piece of work having an adhesive layer formed thereon (hereinafter referred to as the workpiece) when the workpiece is passed through an electrostatic flocking chamber at high speed in a condition in which the workpiece is electrically grounded, so that a so-called “electrostatic flocking process” is conducted, wherein the flocking process is followed by a drying process serving as an after treatment as is in ordinary process conducted to produce a flocked product.
2. Description of the Related Art
An electrostatic flocking apparatus has an essential construction in which: a flocking electrode for creating a high voltage electrostatic field is supported inside a housing through an insulation member, wherein the housing forms an electrostatic flocking chamber; a workpiece is oppositely disposed from, i.e., space a certain distance apart from the flocking electrode, and electrically grounded in a condition in which the workpiece is coated with an adhesive layer and disposed either above or below the flocking electrode, or disposed in the same plane or level as that of the flocking electrode; the electrostatic field is created between the flocking electrode and the workpiece, so that short fibers or fibrils are electrostatically floated and driven to fly parallel to the electric lines of force in the electric field toward the workpiece, whereby the short fibers are implanted in the adhesive layer of the workpiece. Then, the workpiece is subjected to an after treatment through which the workpiece is dried to become a flocked product. In fabrication, it is not unusual for the workpiece to be electrically grounded when the workpiece is supported on a shelf or suspended from an appropriate suspension member, provided both the shelf and the suspension member are electrically grounded. Further, it is also not unusual for the workpiece to be moved from an inlet opening of the housing to its outlet opening in a condition in which any supporting member for supporting the workpiece is used.
Provided in a ceiling portion of the housing is a ventilating apparatus provided with a filter, which filter prevents the floating short fibers from escaping outside from the housing in the electrostatic flocking operation.
Disposed on the side of the inlet opening of the housing is an adhesive applicator apparatus for applying an adhesive to a surface of the workpiece to form an adhesive layer thereon, through the adhesive applicator apparatus the workpiece is introduced into the housing.
Disposed on the side of the outlet opening of the housing is a drying apparatus for drying the flocked workpiece to perform an after treatment thereof when the flocked workpiece passes through the drying apparatus.
The drying apparatus is provided with: a heating unit for drying the adhesive layer having been formed on the surface of the workpiece; and, an exhaust port for discharging vapors or moisture contained in the adhesive layer of the flocked workpiece.
The drying apparatus is followed by a product receiving apparatus which receives the flocked products.
Now, the electrostatic flocking operation of the workpiece performed in a conventional electrostatic flocking apparatus will be described using a system called “up-system” as an example, in which up-system a short fiber reservoir portion is disposed below the housing.
The so-called “workpiece” is prepared by the use of the adhesive applicator apparatus disposed in front of the inlet opening of the housing, in which applicator apparatus an adhesive is applied to the surface of a piece of work being electrostatically flocked, so that an adhesive layer is formed on the work, whereby the work having been coated with the adhesive layer, i.e., the so-called “workpiece” is prepared.
The thus prepared workpiece having the adhesive layer formed thereon is supported by a member having been electrically grounded, introduced into the housing through the inlet opening thereof, and disposed inside the housing. In other words, the workpiece is disposed inside the housing in a condition in which the workpiece is electrically grounded.
At this time, a high-voltage is applied to the flocking electrode so that a high voltage electrostatic field is created. Consequently, due to the presence of this electrostatic field, electric lines of force extend from the flocking electrode to the electrically grounded workpiece.
A moisture bearing air is blown from the outside into the reservoir portion so that the short fibers having been stored in the reservoir portion are floated in the electrostatic field. Due to this, the short fibers thus floated in the housing are electrically charged and therefore strongly driven to rush for the workpiece. As a result, the short fibers have their front end portions stuck into the adhesive layer having been applied to the surface of the workpiece, so that the entire surface of the adhesive layer is uniformly covered with the short fibers.
Floating short fibers, which are left over to form excess fibers, reach the ceiling portion of the housing, and are trapped in a filter disposed in the ceiling portion of the housing, while the moisture bearing air is discharged to the outside through an exhaust unit.
The workpiece having subjected to the above operations emerges from the housing through its outlet opening, and then passed through the drying apparatus provided with the heating unit so that the moisture contained in the adhesive of the adhesive layer is evaporated, whereby the short fibers thus stuck in the adhesive layer are firmly implanted in the workpiece in this state.
After completion of the above process, the workpieces (i.e., completed products) are collected.
Consequently, in order to apply flock to the workpiece in the housing, it is necessary for the adhesive layer formed on the surface of the workpiece to have an appropriate viscosity which enables the front end portions of the short fibers (flock) to easily stick into the adhesive layer, wherein the short fibers always fly from the electrode to the workpiece in the housing. In other words, it is necessary for the adhesive layer to be always wet so as to keep its appropriate viscosity described above.
However, the interior of the housing is often heated to increase in temperature when the flocking operation is performed in the housing. Due to this, the moisture in the adhesive layer formed on the workpiece tends to evaporate. Such evaporation of the moisture results in formation of a stressed skin on the adhesive layer, which makes it difficult for the front end portions of the short fibers to stick into the adhesive layer. Consequently, under such circumstances, it is impossible to obtain good quality flocked product even when the workpiece is subjected to the electrostatic flocking operation.
Further, the short fibers floating in the housing tend to escape out of the housing through its inlet and its outlet opening under the influence of the air blown during the electrostatic flocking operation. This is one of disadvantages of the conventional housing. In order to prevent the short fibers from escaping out of the housing through its inlet and its outlet opening, an air curtain unit is provided in each of the inlet and the outlet opening of the housing.
However, heretofore, there is no idea that a suitable device for surmounting the above disadvantage should be provided in the housing. More specifically, there is no idea that such device should be realized by modifying the air curtain unit in a manner such that the air curtain unit also serves as the above device. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to a security system.
In a typical exemplary security system, in a facility where base stations are provided in a distributed manner, when a person moves with a wireless mobile sensor node, the wireless mobile sensor node communicates with its nearest base station. Then, it is detected that the base station communicating with the wireless mobile sensor node switches to another, and the person's behavior is being kept under observation.
On the other hand, in a typical examplary electronic business card system, the electronic business card device downloads the user ID, personal information, and face photograph data corresponding to the ID of the electronic business card device from the server and displays the user ID and the face picture on a display unit. In this system, a visitor has his/her own electronic business card device and personal information etc. of an interviewer who deals with the visitor, upon arrival of the visitor at the interviewer, are to be transmitted to and displayed on the visitor's electronic business card. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The invention relates to a prosthesis for a lower limb comprising: an element for receiving a thigh stump fitted on a support part, a leg assembled on said support part by a pivot link forming a knee joint to enable flexion or extension of the leg with respect to the element for receiving, an absorbing system to absorb the flexion or extension efforts. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Image capturing devices are widely used to capture scenes, persons, events, settings, etc. Image capturing devices, such as digital still cameras, typically include a camera-back display, such as an LCD screen. The camera-back display may be used to display captured images. The camera-back display may also be used to display a continuous sequence of images in a live view mode, wherein the user can press the shutter button at any time during the live view mode in order to capture an image.
The user may monitor camera status information during any type of image capturing in order to keep track of camera operating characteristics. The status information may include a battery power level, an image resolution setting, a flash status, etc. The user may need to monitor the status information before an image capture in order to determine that the image resolution is on a desired setting, to check the battery level, to determine whether the camera is in a proper flash mode, etc. Therefore, the user may often look at the status display before or during an image capturing session.
FIG. 1 shows a status display LCD according to the prior art. The prior art approach to monitoring camera status information has typically been done through such a display on the top of the camera. The prior art status display is typically an LCD display and is included in addition to a camera-back display, which is typically also an LCD display.
The status display according to the prior art has several drawbacks. The prior art status display is located at the top of the camera. The prior art places the status display on the top of the camera regardless of how inconvenient or undesirable this may be to the user. As a result, it is not easily viewed during an image capturing operation. The placement of the prior art status display is inconvenient because the user is looking through the view finder or at the camera-back display when the camera is in use, and not at the top of the camera. In addition, the prior art status display is not easily viewed during an image review mode, where the user is looking at the camera-back display. Moreover, there is no user control over the inclusion or placement of the prior art status display. Furthermore, the prior art status display requires duplicate LCD display devices and therefore is more costly to manufacture.
Therefore, there remains a need for improvements in image capturing devices. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a plasma display panel and, more particularly, to a plasma display panel that is capable of increasing an aperture ratio and facilitating alignment.
2. Description of the Background Art
In general, a plasma display panel (PDP) displays an image including a character or a graphic by allowing light to be emitted from a phosphor by a vacuum ultra violet (VUV) of 147 nm which is generated when a gas such as He+X3, N3+X3, H3+Ne+Xe is discharged. With its advantage of being easily thin and large, the PDP attracts much attention as a large-scale flat panel display.
FIGS. 1A and 1B show the structure of a 3-electrode alternating current (Ac) type PDP in accordance with a conventional art.
As illustrated, the PDP includes a lower glass substrate 1; an address electrode 2 formed on a certain portion of the lower glass substrate 1; a lower dielectric layer 9 formed at the entire surface of the lower glass substrate 1 and of the address electrode 2; a barrier rib 3 defined at a certain portion on the lower dielectric layer 9 to divide a plurality of discharging cells; a fluorescent layer 8 formed with a certain thickness on the barrier rib 3 and emitting visible rays of red, green and blue upon receiving an ultraviolet ray; an upper glass substrate 7; a scan electrode 6-1 and a sustain electrode 6-2 formed at a certain portion of the upper glass substrate 7 and intersecting the address electrode 2 in a vertical direction; an upper dielectric layer 5 formed at an entire surface of the scan electrode 6-1, the sustain electrode 6-2 and the upper glass substrate 2; and a passivation layer 4 formed on the upper dielectric layer 5 to protect it.
The scan electrode 6-1 consists of a transparent electrode 6-1A formed at a certain portion of the upper glass substrate 2; and a metal bus electrode 6-1B formed at a certain portion of the transparent electrode 6-1A.
The sustain electrode 6-2 consists of a transparent electrode 6-2A formed on a certain portion of the upper glass substrate 2; and a metal bus electrode 6-2B formed at a certain portion on the transparent electrode 6-2A.
The scan electrode 6-1 and the sustain electrode 6-2 are called a pair of sustain electrodes 6-1 and 6-2, and the metal bus electrodes 6-1B and 6-2B of the scan electrode 6-1 and the sustain electrode 6-2 are installed in a discharge space of one cell.
The operation of the conventional plasma display panel will now be described.
First, the upper glass substrate 7 and the lower glass substrate 1 are disposed in parallel with a certain space therebetween. A mixed gas is injected to a discharge space between the upper and lower glass substrate 1 and 7. When the mixed gas is discharged, the fluorescent layer 8 is coated on the barrier rib 3.
On the upper glass substrate 7, the upper dielectric layer 5 and the passivation layer 4 are sequentially stacked. The pair of sustain electrodes 6-1 and 6-2 consisting of the metal bus electrodes 6-1B and 6-2B and the transparent electrodes 6-1A and 6-2A are formed side by side between the upper glass substrate 7 and the upper dielectric layer 5 in a perpendicular direction to the address electrode 2.
The transparent electrodes 6-1A and 6-2A are formed on the upper glass substrate 7, and the metal bus electrodes 6-1B and 6-2B are formed on a certain portion of the transparent electrodes 6-1A and 6-2A.
The address electrode 2 is formed on the lower glass substrate 1, and the lower dielectric layer 9 is stacked at the entire surface of the lower glass layer 1 and the address electrode 2. The barrier ribs 3 are formed with the address electrode 2 therebetween on the lower dielectric layer 9.
The barrier rib 3 formed on the lower dielectric layer 9 cuts off an electric and optical interference between cells and is formed between the upper and lower glass substrates 1 and 7 to form a discharge space inside the cell.
The fluorescent layer 8 coated on the barrier rib 3 is excited by a vacuum ultraviolet with a short wavelength generated when a gas is discharged in the discharge space and generates three color visible rays. Accordingly, red, green and blue lights, three primary colors, are emitted from each cell.
The upper and lower dielectric layers 5 and 9 serve to store electric charges when the gas is discharged. The passivation layer 5 serves to protect the upper dielectric layer 5 against a sputtering phenomenon of plasma particles, and is mainly made of magnesium oxide (MgO).
Following the address discharge, discharge is sustained in the pair of sustain electrodes 6-1 and 6-2 as a voltage is applied thereto to cause the discharging. The transparent electrodes 6-1A and 6-2A of the pair of sustain electrodes 6-1 and 6-2 are made of a transparent conductive material with a light transmittance of above 90% (i.e., Indium-Tin-Oxide (ITO)) and pass through most of visible rays emitted from the fluorescent layer 8. However, in spite of the high light transmittance, such a substance as ITO has a low conductivity and thus has a very high resistance value, failing to efficiently transmit power. In order to solve this problem, the metal bus electrodes 6-1B and 6-2B made of a material with a high conductivity such as Ag or Cu are installed on the transparent electrode 6A. By doing that, the metal bus electrodes 6-1B and 6-2B lower down a resistance value of the pair of sustain electrodes 6-1 and 6-2 and prevent a voltage drop caused due to a high resistance of the transparent electrodes 6-1A and 6-2A.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,838,106 registered on Nov. 17, 1998, the U.S. Pat. No. 6,242,859 registered on Jun. 5, 2001 and the U.S. Pat. No. 6,344,080 registered on Feb. 5, 2002 disclose plasma display panels and their fabrication methods.
However, the conventional PDP has a problem that since the metal bus electrodes 6-1B an 6-2B are formed at an upper portion of the discharge space of one cell, a portion of the visible ray emitted in the discharge space is interrupted, which deteriorates a luminance and efficiency of the PDP.
In addition, forming the metal bus electrodes 6-1B and 6-2B at the upper portion of the discharge space of one cell also causes a problem of reduction of an aperture ratio. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multilayer resonator and a multilayer filter, each including a resonant circuit in a multilayer body defined by a laminate including a plurality of dielectric layers.
2. Description of the Related Art
A multilayer filter having a plurality of LC resonant circuits in a multilayer body defined by a laminate including a plurality of dielectric layers is used as a high-frequency filter. The LC resonant circuit may include a capacitor defined by opposed internal electrodes and an inductor defined by a via (for example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication (Translation of PCT Application) No. 2000-165171).
FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate a known multilayer filter. FIG. 1A is a perspective view of the filter and FIG. 1B is a sectional view of the filter.
A laminate including six layers of insulating sheets 162A-162E is arranged as the multilayer filter 161. Vias 163A-163C are arranged in the insulating sheet 162A. Vias 164A-164C are arranged in the insulating sheet 162B. Vias 165A-165C, and coupling capacitors 166A and 166B are arranged in the insulating sheet 162C. Capacitor electrodes 167A-167C are arranged in the insulating sheet 162E. A capacitor electrode 168 is arranged on the insulating sheet 162D. A ground electrode 169C extending from the front surface (not shown) of the multilayer filter 161 to the rear surface (not shown) of the multilayer filter 161 via the top surface is also provided. An input-output terminal 169A is arranged on the left end surface of the multilayer filter 161 and an input-output terminal 169B is arranged on the right end surface of the multilayer filter 161.
In the multilayer filter 161, capacitor electrodes 167A and 167C are connected to the input-output terminals 169A and 169B and define resonant circuits at input-output stages. With this arrangement, routing lines for connecting the capacitor electrodes 167A and 167C to the input-output terminals 169A and 169B are required. The routing lines function as open stubs, and provide a parasitic inductive component to the LC resonator. For this reason, the multilayer filter 161 has an unwanted spurious component in frequency characteristics thereof, and has degraded attenuation characteristics.
When the ground electrode 169C is formed on the outer surface of the multilayer filter 161 by plating or other suitable method, loss in the vias 163A-163C increases due to corrosion of the vias 163A-163C. There is a risk that the frequency characteristics of the multilayer filter 161 will be degraded. During use, the vias 163A-163C are influenced by an external magnetic field of the multilayer filter 161. There is also a risk that the frequency characteristics of the multilayer filter 161 will be degraded. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Gene expression in cells depends upon the sequential processes of transcription and translation. Together, these processes produce a protein from the nucleotide sequence of its corresponding gene.
Transcription involves the synthesis of mRNA from DNA by RNA polymerase. Transcription begins at a promoter region of the gene and continues until termination is induced, such as by the formation of a stem-loop structure in the nascent RNA or the binding of the rho gene product.
Protein is then produced from mRNA by the process of translation, occurring on the ribosome with the aid of tRNA, tRNA synthetases and various other protein and RNA species. Translation comprises the three phases of initiation, elongation and termination. Translation is initiated by the formation of an initiation complex consisting of protein factors, mRNA, tRNA, cofactors and the ribosomal subunits that recognize signals on the mRNA that direct the translation machinery to begin translation on the mRNA.
Once the initiation complex is formed, growth of the polypeptide chain occurs by the repetitive addition of amino acids by the peptidyl transferase activity of the ribosome as well as tRNA and tRNA synthetases. The presence of one of the three termination codons (UAA, UAG, UGA) in the A site of the ribosome signals the polypeptide chain release factors (RFs) to bind and recognize the termination signal. Subsequently, the ester bond between the 3′ nucleotide of the tRNA located in the ribosome's P site and the nascent polypeptide chain is hydrolyzed. The completed polypeptide chain is released, and the ribosome subunits are recycled for another round of translation.
Mutations of the DNA sequence in which the number of bases is altered are categorized as insertion or deletion mutations (frameshift mutations) and can result in major disruptions of the genome. Mutations of the DNA that change one base into another are labeled missense mutations and are subdivided into the classes of transitions (one purine to another purine, or one pyrimidine to another pyrimidine) and transversions (a purine to a pyrimidine, or a pyrimidine to a purine).
Insertions, deletions, transition and transversion mutations can all result in a nonsense mutation, or chain termination mutation, in which the base mutation or frameshift mutation changes an amino acid codon into one of the three stop codons. These premature stop codons can produce aberrant proteins in cells as a result of premature translation termination. A nonsense mutation in an essential gene can be lethal and can also result in a number of diseases, such as, cancers, lysosomal storage disorders, the muscular dystrophies, cystic fibrosis and hemophilia, to name a few.
In bacterial and eukaryotic strains with nonsense mutations, suppression of the nonsense mutation can arise as a result of a mutation in one of the tRNA molecules so that the mutant tRNA can recognize the nonsense codon, as a result of mutations in proteins that are involved in the translation process, as a result of mutations in the ribosome (either the ribosomal RNA or ribosomal proteins), or by the addition of compounds known to alter the translation process (for example, cycloheximide or the aminoglycoside antibiotics). The result is that an amino acid will be incorporated into the polypeptide chain at the site of the nonsense mutation, and translation will not prematurely terminate at the nonsense codon. The inserted amino acid will not necessarily be identical to the original amino acid of the wild-type protein; however, many amino acid substitutions do not have a gross effect on protein structure or function. Thus, a protein produced by the suppression of a nonsense mutation would be likely to possess activity close to that of the wild-type protein. This scenario provides an opportunity to treat diseases associated with nonsense mutations by avoiding premature termination of translation through suppression of the nonsense mutation.
The ability of aminoglycoside antibiotics to promote readthrough of eukaryotic stop codons has attracted interest in these drugs as potential therapeutic agents in human diseases caused by nonsense mutations. One disease for which such a therapeutic strategy may be viable is classical late infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (LINCL), a fatal childhood neurodegenerative disease with currently no effective treatment. Premature stop codon mutations in the gene CLN2, encoding the lysosomal tripeptidyl-peptidase 1 (TPP-I), are associated with disease in approximately half of children diagnosed with LINCL. The ability of the aminoglycoside gentamicin to restore TPP-I activity in LINCL cell lines has been examined. In one patient-derived cell line that was compound heterozygous for a commonly seen nonsense mutation (Arg208Stop) and a different rare nonsense mutation, approximately 7% of normal levels of TPP-I were maximally restored with gentamicin treatment. These results suggest that pharmacological suppression of nonsense mutations by aminoglycosides or functionally similar pharmaceuticals may have therapeutic potential in LINCL (Sleat et. al., Eur. J. Ped. Neurol. 5:Suppl A 57-62 (2001)).
In cultured cells having premature stop codons in the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) gene, treatment with aminoglycosides led to the production of full length CFTR (Bedwell et. al., Nat. Med. 3:1280-1284 (1997); Howard et. al. Nat. Med. 2: 467-469 (1996)). In a mouse model for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, gentamicin sulfate was observed to suppress translational termination at a premature stop codon resulting in full length dystrophin (Barton-Davis et. al., J. Clin. Invest. 104:375-381 (1999)). A small increase in the amount of full length dystrophin provided protection against contraction-induced damage in the mdx mice. The amino acid inserted at the site of the nonsense codon was not determined in these studies.
Small molecule therapeutics or prophylactics that suppress premature translation termination by mediating the misreading of the nonsense codon would be useful for the treatment of a number of diseases. The discovery of small molecule drugs, particularly orally bioavailable drugs, may lead to the introduction of a broad spectrum of selective therapeutics which can be used against disease caused by nonsense mutations. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to organosilicon compounds, to anti-corrosion and/or adhesion promoting coating compositions made therefrom and methods for their application to metals and to metals possessing anti-corrosion and/or adhesion promoting coatings based on organosilicon compounds.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Most metals are susceptible to some form of corrosion, in particular atmospheric corrosion, resulting in the formation of various types of rust. Such corrosion may significantly affect the quality of a metal. Although superficial corrosion can usually be removed from metal surfaces, processes for its removal tend to be time consuming, costly and may have a negative impact on the integrity of the metal. Where coatings are applied to metal surfaces, corrosion of the metal may result in inadequate or ineffective adhesion between the coating and the metal surface. A reduction in adhesion between a coating and metal surface to which the coating has been applied may likewise lead to corrosion of the metal.
Metals of many kinds, including metal alloys, metal laminates, metal composites, and, the like, are widely used in manufacturing and construction. Certain types of metal, particularly ferrous metals such as iron and steel, often develop rust during storage and shipment. Rust (also called “storage stain”) is typically caused by moisture which condenses on the surface of the metal there to react with the metal or metal coating on the metal. Rust is aesthetically unappealing and often impairs the ability of the metal to directly undergo subsequent processing operations. Thus, prior to conducting any subsequent processing operations, rust often needs to be removed from the surface of metal and the metal surface treated to prevent rust from reforming. Various methods are currently employed to not only prevent the formation of rust during shipment and storage, but also to prevent the formation of rust after the metal has undergone subsequent processing operations.
It is well known that prevention of rust on metals during their storage, shipping and use can be achieved by applying to their surfaces a thin film such as one of chromate. While chromate coatings do provide resistance to the formation of rust, chromium is highly toxic and environmentally undesirable. Furthermore, a chromium layer will not necessarily improve the adhesion of any subsequent layer applied thereto.
The rusting of metal can also be prevented or inhibited during storage, shipment and use by applying an aqueous solution of a hydrolyzable silane to the surface of the metal and thereafter curing the silane to provide a durable, adherent protective coating. Such a coating, however, may generate one or more volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and/or Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) during hydrolysis of the silane. VOCs and HAPs are environmentally undesirable and governmental agencies have implemented regulations intended to limit the amounts of VOCs and HAPs materials. These regulations often require the purchase, installation and maintenance of expensive air purification equipment. Exposure to VOCs and HAPs can also be detrimental to the health and safety of workers due to their potential toxicity and flammability.
Therefore, there exists a need for a coating composition and a coating method for the protective treatment of metals that does not utilize chromium and that generates essentially no, or at most, very little VOCs or HAPs while still imparting desirable anti-corrosion and adhesion properties to the treated metals. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a refrigerator for discharging cool air from a door by using an air curtain generating device, and more particularly to a refrigerator having a device for generating an air curtain for shutting off the opening of a cooling compartment when the door is opened and a door duct for supplying the cooling compartment with the cool air provided from the device when the door is closed.
2. Prior Art
FIG. 1 shows a conventional refrigerator, which shows a refrigerator having a device for generating an air curtain for shutting off the opening of a cooling compartment. The refrigerator has, as shown in FIG. 1, a cabinet 10 forming a freezing compartment 21 and a fresh food compartment 22 which are partitioned from each other by a wall 27, and a freezing compartment door 24 and a fresh food compartment door 25 which open/close the freezing compartment 21 and fresh food compartment 22, respectively. The doors 24, 25 are hingedly mounted on the cabinet 10.
A compressor 23 is installed in a lower rear part of the cabinet 10, and an evaporator 29 is installed in a rear part of the freezing compartment 21 for generating cool air by evaporating refrigerant supplied from the compressor 23. A cooling fan 19 for blowing the cool air generated by the evaporator 29 is installed at the upper side of the evaporator 29 so as to supply the freezing compartment 21 and the fresh food compartment 22 with the cool air.
A device 20 for generating an air curtain is provided in the upper side of the fresh food compartment 22. The air curtain generating device 20 comprises a cool air duct 13 provided in the upper side of the fresh food compartment 22, and a blowing fan 11 for blowing the cool air from the evaporator 29 into the cool air duct 13. The cool air duct 13 is formed with a cool air discharge port 15 at one end thereof which is opened downward at the area adjacent to an opening of the fresh food compartment 22. The cool air blown into the cool air duct 13 is discharged downward, by which the air curtain for shutting off the opening of the fresh food compartment 22 is generated.
In the fresh food compartment 22, a sensor (not shown) for sensing the opening/closing of the fresh food compartment door 25 is provided, and the blowing fan 11 is controlled to operate only when the opening of the door 25 is sensed by the sensor. Thus, the air curtain is generated only when the door 25 is opened so as to prevent leakage of the cool air through the opening of the fresh food compartment 22 when the door 25 is opened.
A plurality of cool air ports 16, 18 are formed at the rear surfaces of the freezing compartment 21 and the fresh food compartment 22. When the door 25 is closed, the cool air from the evaporator 29 is blown by the cooling fan 19 so as to be supplied into the freezing compartment 21 and the fresh food compartment 22, and accordingly the foodstuffs stored in the freezing compartment 21 and the fresh food compartment 22 are frozen and refrigerated, respectively.
However, in such a conventional refrigerator, although the leakage of the cool air is prevented by the air curtain, since the cool air in the area adjacent to the door 25 comes in contact with exterior air when the door 25 is opened and leaks through a gap between the door 25 and the cabinet 10 when the door 25 is closed, there is a problem that the temperature of the fresh food compartment 22 in the area adjacent to the door 25 may fall in comparison with the temperature at the other areas in the fresh food compartment 22. Furthermore, according to the tendency for the refrigerator to become larger in size, since the distribution of temperature in each area in the fresh food compartment 22 may become more uneven, the foodstuffs stored in the fresh food compartment 22 may be over cooled or under cooled. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In recent years, various kinds of electronics and information technology products such as portable telephones and personal computers have rapidly permeated into everyday life. On the other hand, to solve environmental issues and energy issues, electronics products are also expected to have high energy efficiencies. The center of such electronics products is formed by semiconductor integrated circuits having logical devices and storage devices integrated on semiconductor substrates, and the improvements of the performance, functions, and integrations achieved by miniaturization of those devices have supported the growth of electronics industry for decades. However, in view of the recent progress in miniaturization affected by the rapid increase in production costs and of requests for lower power consumptions, making a new breakthrough is critical.
As a technology to make a breakthrough, “nonvolatility” is described. When the power supply to a SRAM (Static Random Access Memory) mounted as a storage device on a semiconductor integrated circuit is switched off, stored information is lost. Therefore, current needs to be flowed to maintain data. On the other hand, nonvolatility means a function not to lose information even when the power supply is switched off. If a SRAM can be equipped with a nonvolatile function, the power supply could be switched off after information storage until the next information reading. Accordingly, power consumptions would be dramatically lowered.
To lower power consumptions, there are large expectations for nonvolatile memory development, and such development is accelerated around the world. Examples of nonvolatile memories include MRAM (Magnetic Random Access Memory), FeRAM (Ferroelectric Random Access Memory), PRAM (Phase change Random Access Memory), and ReRAM (Resistive Random Access Memory). Of those nonvolatile memories, only MRAM can be rewritten an infinite number of times, and characteristically has high writing and reading speeds. Accordingly, MRAM has a potential to realize nonvolatile working memory.
Among MRAMs, attention is drawn to MTJ (Magnetic Tunnel Junction) devices utilizing the spin-injection magnetization switching method and perpendicular magnetization film, because the write current of such MTJ devices is much lower than that of existing MRAMs. However, where spin-injection MRAM that has been developed as an alternative to nonvolatile SRAM and uses perpendicular magnetization film is considered, the writing speed poses a grave problem. According to the spin-injection magnetization switching method, when the writing time is 1 to 10 nanoseconds or shorter, the writing speed exceeds the magnetization switching speed, and accordingly, the write current rapidly increases. The increase in the write current poses grave problems, causing breaking of the tunnel barrier layer of each MTJ device and hindering high-speed operations. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Many attempts have been made effectively to utilize the reaction between magnesium and silicon dioxide for the manufacture of incendiaries. All such attempts, however, have included the use of other oxidizers to initiate the burning of the magnesium. Oxidizers such as potassium perchlorate in the presence of polyphenoxysiloxane rubber have a three-fold drawback. First, the resultant material is too sensitive for use in high set-back applications such as artillery shells. Second, the quantity of silicon dioxide produced was insufficient to react with a substantial quantity of the magnesium oxide that was formed. Third, the mixing of such ingredients with the elastomer required a solvent and the use of the more expensive spheroidally shaped magnesium granules.
It is an object of this invention to overcome the above disadvantages. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Customized printing on framing mattes, invitations, awards, and the like can be accomplished by a variety of means, such as, stamping, ink printing, foil stamping, serial printing, embossing, debossing, steel stamping, or letterpress printing. Typically, these operations involve individual print die physically contacting the print media. Custom print shops often charge for the task of changing out the print die to create customized text. This task is typically labor intensive and makes customized printing for small orders cost prohibitive. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to a lock assembly of a DIN type connector, which includes a first cover and a second cover associated with a coupling to provide a lock system for locking the connector.
In the prior art, most DIN type connectors do not provide any means for locking the connection elements. Parts of the prior art connectors are always loosened by vibration or an external force, and the connectors are therefore made unusable because of improper contact. There have been a few improvements made to provide an external lock to connect the parts firmly, but these lock systems have been too large to be practical. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Visible light absorbing colorants (e.g., dyes, in particular pigments) have been incorporated into contact lenses to enable the consumer to easily locate the lens in a clear solution within a lens storage, disinfecting or cleaning container. Dyeing a lens for this purpose is termed “visibility tinting” the lens.
Visibility tinting may be accomplished by applying a colorant to a portion of the surface, or by applying a colorant to the full front surface of the lens. Alternatively, a colorant may be incorporated into the full body of the polymer matrix of the lens. There have been a number of patents and published patent applications relating to tinting contact lenses. However, the known processes are not yet totally satisfactory. For instance, a pigment dispersion, especially a lens-forming formulation with pigments having submicron particle size may not be stable over an extended long period of time, for example, at least four days or longer. Consequently, the production efficiency and/or the quality of the products obtained can be adversely affected by such problem.
Therefore, there is still a need for a method of making a visibility tinted, i.e., full-body tinted, contact lens with an improved efficiency by, for example, providing a lens-forming formulation including pigment particles with an increased stability. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
An integrated circuit (IC) is fabricated according to a set of layouts usable to form corresponding masks for selectively forming or removing various layers of features, such as active regions, gate electrodes, various layers of isolation structures, and/or various layers of conductive structures. Many fabrication processes are available to increase the spatial resolution of various layers of features and thus allow layout patterns to have a finer spatial resolution requirement in a corresponding layout. Some approaches usable for increasing the spatial resolution include using one or more fabrication processes such as ultraviolet lithography, extreme ultraviolet lithography, electron-beam lithography, and/or multiple-patterning. However, in many applications, a fabrication process offering a finer spatial resolution often comes with a higher cost, lower yield, and/or longer processing time. Having every layer of features of an IC fabricated by processes offering the same spatial resolution is not always economically feasible. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In an operating room environment, where a surgeon is to perform a procedure involving use of an electrosurgical apparatus, a problem arises of maintaining sterile procedures in the use of such apparatus. Some electrosurgical apparatus contain a single electrical outlet for providing by cable electrosurgical currents to a handpiece held by the surgeon, The handpiece is sterile but the electrosurgical apparatus is not sterile. If it becomes necessary to change the instrument in the course of the procedure, then the surgeon is unable to make the change because he or she is not allowed to touch any non-sterile objects, Hence, an assistant, who does not have to maintain sterile conditions, must be present to, for example, remove the handpiece and cable from the outlet at the electrosurgical apparatus and plug in a different handpiece and cable under the supervision of the surgeon to make sure that the proper instrument and current has been selected. This can cause problems, as well as undesirable delays. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to gaming devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to a gaming device having a multiple pay slot game.
Gaming device manufacturers provide known gaming machines such as slot machines employing a plurality of reels, wherein the reels each have a plurality of symbols. In these games, the player activates or spins the reels, which produce a random generation of a combination of symbols. If the generated combination, or a portion of the combination, matches one of a number of predetermined award producing or winning combinations, the player receives an award. The award is commonly one or more credits that the player can use to play or redeem for money.
Gaming device manufactures also provide known video poker games that generate credits for the player. The player can either use the awarded credits to play more poker hands or redeem the credits for money. These examples as well as many other types of gaming machines award credits to the player.
In general, primary games and secondary games that are visually dynamic tend to capture the player's attention and increase the enjoyment and excitement associated with the game. Moreover, games having increased levels of player interaction also tend to be popular. For example, primary or secondary games wherein the player makes multiple selections and has multiple opportunities to win or accept an award tend to be fun and exciting. An example of such a game is the TOP DOLLAR® gaming machine, which is produced by the assignee of the present invention.
To increase player enjoyment and excitement, and to increase the popularity of the gaming machines, gaming device manufacturers constantly strive to make their gaming devices as fun, exciting and attractive as possible. Manufacturers also attempt to provide games that are relatively simple and intuitive. A continuing need therefore exists to provide new and different primary or secondary games for gaming devices that are visually dynamic, intuitive and provide a high level of player interaction. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is a third-generation (3G) mobile phone technology standardized first by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and now by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). UMTS carries both circuit switched (CS) and packet switched (PS) traffic using Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA) as its air interface. The description of the network components and protocols used in UMTS are well known to those of ordinary skill in the art and are available to the public from 3GPP, ETSI, and other sources. The UMTS network architecture consists of three domains: Core Network (CN), UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN), and User Equipment (UE).
The Core Network provides switching and routing for user traffic and provides network management functions. The Core Network architecture is based on the GSM network with GPRS. The UTRAN provides the air interface access to subscribers' UE. Base stations in the UTRAN are referred as Node-Bs, and the control equipment for the Node-Bs is called a Radio Network Controller (RNC). The UMTS User Equipment communicates via the WCDMA air interface to the Node-Bs. The UE may be attached to either the PS domain or CS domain or both. The UE is capable of simultaneously using PS services and CS services.
The Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) is used for data transmission in UMTS. The ATM layer multiplexes and demultiplexes and routes ATM cells, and ensures their sequence from end to end. The ATM Adaptation Layers (AAL) are responsible for the creation and reception of payloads through the lower layers of ATM on behalf of different applications. ATM Adaptation Layer type 2 (AAL2) handles circuit-switched connections and packet connection protocol AAL5 is designed for data delivery.
One disadvantage of the prior art is the difficulty in evaluating service levels for individual subscribers. Because multiple UEs are communicating with Node Bs and RNCs at the same time, thousands of data and control messages per second can be passed between a Node B and an RNC and between RNCs. These messages follow several different protocol formats depending upon the purpose of the message. As a result, the messages passing on interfaces in the UTRAN do not provide sufficient information to determine which messages are related to the same subscriber.
A second disadvantage of the prior art is the lack of a capability to compile messages for a specific UE call into a single call record in real-time or near real-time. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates to an externally threaded, fiber-reinforced plastic member and a method of producing the same. More particularly, the present invention is concerned with an externally threaded, fiber-reinforced plastic member comprising a shank and an integral thread on the exterior surface on the shank and having a unique interior structure in which most of the resin-impregnated fiber-filaments existing within the thread and extending substantially in a plane including a cross-section of the threaded member are those extending continuously from and laterally of the shank into the thread, and also is concerned with a method producing the same.
Metals or metal alloys such as iron and stainless steel are widely employed as a material for forming threaded members such as bolts and nuts. Metal bolts and nuts are employed as a fastening means in a wide variety of applications including manufacture of playthings and building of large-scale industrial or commercial constructions. However, the use of metal bolts and nuts inevitably encounters serious problems. One of such problems is corrosion. At present, metal bolts and nuts are still often used in corrosive environments. The use of metal bolts and nuts in chemical plants, water or sewage treating plants and the like often leads to fatal dangers. Further, it is noted that metal bolts and nuts are unsuitable for use in marine constructions such as a boat, an artificial reef construction, etc., since they are caused to incessantly come in contact with the sea water, leading to destruction of the constructions. Another important problem resides in electrical and thermal conductivity of the metal bolts and nuts. There are a number of applications where bolts and nuts are required not to be thermally and electrically conductive. Representative examples of such applications are the manufacture of heavy electrical devices or equipment, and construction of electrically-powered transportation devices such as cars for an electrically-powered train, street car, etc. For such applications, metal bolts and nuts must be coated with an insulating material. However, the currently employed insulated metal bolts and nuts are still unsatisfactory.
With respect to corrosion-resistant metals which can be used as a material for bolts and nuts, it is well known that titanium is a metal which is comparatively resistant to corrosion. Further, due to its small specific gravity, titanium is considered to be useful for forming bolts and nuts. However, titanium is not only expensive but also poor in processability. For this reason, the use of titanium-made bolts and nuts are restricted to special fields, for example the aero-space industry. With respect to non-conductive bolts and nuts, there have recently been proposed bolts and nuts made of ceramics due to the rapid progress of the ceramics industry. However, satisfactory ceramic made bolts and nuts have not yet been produced.
In order to cope with the problem of corrosion, bolts and nuts made of a synthetic resin have been proposed. Such resin-made bolts and nuts, however, are very poor in mechanical strength as compared with those made of a metal, and, hence, cannot be an effective substitute for metal bolts and nuts in the application field where a high mechanical strength is required. Therefore, the application of the resin-made bolts and nuts is restricted to a field where the corrosion resistance is strongly required but the mechanical strength is not a matter of importance.
In the field of manufacture of heavy electrical devices or equipment, as a bolt which is required to have excellent mechanical strength and insulating properties, bolts made of fiber-reinforced plastic (hereinafter often abbreviated as "FRP") have been proposed. For example, there has been proposed a FRP made bolt prepared by impregnating a plurality of rovings of about 2000 to about 10000 Tex with a thermohardening resin, drawing the thus obtained resin-impregnated rovings into a mold, curing the resin impregnated rovings in the mold to obtain a rigid rod, and threading the external surface of the rigid rod. This bolt cannot be advantageously used due to such a drawback that since the thread is formed by cutting the external surface of the rod comprising resin-impregnated rovings arranged only longitudinally of the axis of the rod, the rovings left within the thread are fiber filaments cut into extremely short lengths and have no interconnection with the rovings within the shank and, therefore, the thread is poor in mechanical strength and cannot be resistant to the shearing forces imposed thereon.
In order to increase the mechanical strength of the thread of a bolt or the like to a desired level, there has been proposed externally threaded FRP members produced by impregnating with a thermohardening resin, such as an epoxy resin, a yarn cloth made of reinforcing filaments, subjecting the thus obtained resin impregnated yarn cloth to thermohardening in a mold to prepare a rod, and threading the surface of the rod. For example, when an externally threaded FRP member with a diameter larger than about 20 to 25 mm is intended, such a threaded member may be produced by a method comprising impregnating a yarn cloth with a solution of a thermohardening resin in a solvent therefor, heating the above-obtained resin impregnated cloth to remove the solvent, thereby, to obtain a half-cured, substantially non-tacky sheet (hereinafter referred to as "prepreg"), rolling the thus obtained prepreg, heating and pressing the rolled prepreg in a mold to prepare a rigid rod having a circular cross-section, and threading the surface of the rigid rod. On the other hand, when an externally threaded FRP member with a diameter less than about 20 to 25 mm is intended, the threaded member may be produced as follows. According to the so-called prepreg-press method, a predetermined number of the above-mentioned prepregs 1 are piled up as shown in FIG. 1(A) which will be mentioned later, the piled-up prepregs are softened by heating, and the piled-up prepregs are subjected to molding by means of a split die 2 as shown in FIG. 1(B), which will be mentioned later, to prepare a rod 3. The rod thus prepared is subjected, on its peripheral surface, to threading to obtain an FRP made threaded member. As is apparent from the above, both the above-mentioned threaded members are each composed of a thermohardened resin and a yarn cloth comprising a plurality of first strands of fiber filaments arranged substantially in parallel and extending longitudinally of the axis of the shank and a plurality of second strands of fiber filaments arranged substantially in parallel and substantially in perpendicular relation to said first strands. However, in the former, namely, in the externally thread member made of a rolled prepreg, as viewed in a cross-section perpendiacular to the axis of the shank, only one first strand extend from the center of the shank into the thread in a rolled manner and, therefore, the reinforcing effect of the fiber filaments of the strand cannot be attained at the thread portion. On the other hand, in the latter, namely, in the externally threaded member produced by the so-called prepreg-press method, in substantially only both diametrically opposite portions of the externally threaded member corresponding to the boundary portions of the die halves of the split die (see FIG. 1(B)) there concentratedly exist second strands extending continuously from and laterally of the shank into thread. The fiber reinforcing effect of the fiber filaments of the strands at the thread portion has been improved to some extent as compared to that of the above-mentioned threaded member of the rolled prepreg. However, in producing the above-mentioned threaded member, the preparation of prepregs and the molding of the prepregs require troublesome procedures. Therefore, the threaded member thus produced is very expensive so that the production of it needs 3 to 4 times the cost for customary FRP made threaded member.
On the other hand, there has recently been proposed a bolt which is obtained by threading the surface of a rod of dual structure. The rod of dual structure is prepared by impregnating a plurality of glass fiber rovings of about 8000 Tex with a resin, pultruding said plurality of glass fiber rovings through a heated mold to prepare a core rod, winding on the surface of the core rod a chopped strand mat made of 1 to 2 inch cut glass fibers, and subjecting the resulting chopped strand matwound core rod to pultrusion or press-molding to obtain a rod of dual structure. This kind of bolt, however, has such disadvantages that the process for producing the same requires complicated procedures and that the bolt thus produced tends to easily separate between the chopped strand mat layer and the core rod. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to prosthetic apparatus and methods, and more particularly to a computerized electronic hand prosthesis apparatus and method utilizing configurable input, feedback, control, and operating systems to transmit feedback signals representing the gripping force back to the wearer in the form of vibratory stimuli which changes in vibratory pattern and amplitude at selective grip forces and allow precise positioning and gripping force control for a specific wearer.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Although the mechanical hand is more acceptable than other prosthetic terminal devices, the problems associated with using a conventional mechanical hand prosthesis limits its usefulness and ultimately affects the wearer's acceptance of the prosthesis.
A person with a conventional mechanical hand prosthesis has the ability to control the grip of an object based only on visual or aural feedback. This is a problem because the wearer must discern the amount of pressure to apply to objects based on the deflection of a surface, the sound of the hand drive motor, or guessing on trial and error. If the grip is too tight, the object may be crushed or break, or, if too light, the object may be dropped. If the wearer is distracted or forgets that the hand is still holding the object, the lack of feedback could create a dangerous or embarrassing situation.
Most conventional electric control systems that drive the mechanical hand are simple designs which allow two conditions, either full speed or off. This makes it difficult for the wearer to accurately position the hand which affects gripping ability.
Conzelman, Jr. et al, U.S. Pat. No. 2,656,545, discloses a prosthetic device having a sensory apparatus for transmitting to the wearer of the artificial device an indication of contact that is made by the artificial member. In one embodiment, a bladder on the end of the finger of the prosthesis is connected by a flexible tube to a second bladder held by a harness to a normally sensitive part of the skin of the stump of the amputee. In another embodiment, a switch on the end of the finger of the prosthesis closes an electrical circuit in response to finger tip pressure and a vibrator disc held by a harness to a normally sensitive part of the skin vibrates in intensity relative to the finger tip pressure.
Patterson et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,808,187, discloses a tactile stimulus receptor for use with a myoelectric prosthesis having a piezoelectric transducer positioned on the gripping fingers of the prosthesis which senses pressure resulting from gripping and converts the sensed pressure into electrical signals proportional to the pressure to a hydraulic motor and cylinder which is connected by a tube to a pressurizable cuff mounted on the wearer's forearm. The cuff constricts the forearm upon increased pressurization and reduces constriction upon reduced pressurization.
Fletcher et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,751,733, discloses a prosthetic device including a socket for mounting the frame of the device on the stump of the amputee. A piezoelectric transducer and a temperature transducer are provided in flexible digits of the hand for sensing pressure and temperature. The transducers detect tactile stimuli and are connected through a power circuit to a pair of solenoids and a resistance heating element supported by a strap buckled about the stump. Tactile stimuli detected at the sensing devices are reproduced and applied to the skin of the appendage as a pinching and heating or cooling sensation for stimulating sensory organs.
Barry, U.S. Pat. No. 4,571,750, discloses the use of acoustic signals generated by muscles during contraction to generate signals responsive to muscle activity. The invention relates to a complex method of analyzing a human body and controlling prosthetic devices which use acoustic signals obtained from skeletal muscles alone and in combination with myoelectric signals.
Barkhordar et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,650,492, relates to an artificial hand that comprise a palm member and thumb and finger members movable by an actuator. A microphone is used to pick up pressure waves resulting from a stick/slip motion of the object being picked up along the surface of the hand.
Giampapa, U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,662, discloses sonic frequency generators in electrical communication with pressure transducers in the digits of an artificial hand. Output signals in the form of voltage and sonic frequency are transferred to a bone stump and transmitted to the brain via the spinal column.
The present invention is distinguished over the prior art in general, and these patents in particular by a computerized electronic hand prosthesis apparatus and method utilizing input, feedback, control, and operating systems configurable to provide precise control and gripping forces corresponding to the particular capabilities and requirements of an individual wearer. An articulated prosthesis capable of exerting a mechanical gripping force contains a programmable microcomputer. Electrodes on the prosthesis contact muscles of the remnant portion of a limb and produce an electric command signal responsive to the myoelectric signal created by the wearer contracting and relaxing the muscles in the remnant portion. A drive motor in the prosthesis causes the prosthesis to exert a mechanical gripping force responsive and proportional to the electric command signal. Force sensors in the digits of the prosthesis detect the force exerted and produce an electric sensor signal responsive and proportional thereto. A motor driven vibratory device on the prosthesis engages the remnant portion of the limb adjacent sensory nerves and produces a feedback signal perceptible to the wearer which changes in vibratory pattern and amplitude at various selective grip forces. A communication port on the prosthesis is releasably connected to peripheral devices for exchanging data, diagnosing, correcting, or setting the operational parameters of the prosthesis. The electrodes, drive motor, force sensors, vibratory device, and communication port are controlled by the microcomputer. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Traditional spray devices already exist in the form of a pushbutton for mounting on a fluid dispenser (a pump, a valve, . . .) connected to a tank.
Fluid, and in particular liquid, is taken from the tank and then sprayed in the form of a spray of microdroplets after being dispersed in a head that includes an expansion chamber into which the ejection orifice of the dispenser opens out and which communicates with a nozzle via at least one outlet duct.
The nozzle is constituted by an add-on part which is generally in the form of a cup having a central orifice and which is mounted on the head.
The nozzle co-operates with elements of the head against which it bears to define a network of swirl-inducing channels.
Unfortunately, it often happens that the nozzle is not properly assembled to the head, and consequently that the network of channels includes leaks giving rise to losses of head or to reductions in the characteristics of the spray (asymmetrical spray, direct jets, increase in the size of the micro-droplets, increase in size dispersion).
Assembly faults are mainly due to poor positioning of the nozzle, which poor positioning is not accommodated or compensated by the corresponding elements of the head because of their rigidity and because they are not removable. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In state of the art UMTS, after channel decoding, the data are collected as (hard) bits into so-called transport blocks (TB). The contents of these transport blocks are compared with the attached cyclic redundancy check (CRC) fields (which can have a size between 8 and 24 bits) in order to check whether the transport block is corrupted or not. Thereupon, the CRC field is deleted, and the information whether the CRC was “good” or “bad” is contained in a one-bit indicator called CRCI. Then, the transport blocks belonging to one channel's transmission timing interval (TTI) or to the TTI of one set of coordinated channels are collected into an uplink frame protocol (FP) data frame together with their corresponding CRCIs, regardless whether the data is corrupted or not.
In each FP frame, for each transport channel, the radio network controller (RNC) receives a transport format indicator (TFI), which indicates the actual number of transport blocks in the transport channel and their size (all transport blocks in a transport channel are of equal size). The TFI may change from one FP frame to the next frame containing data of the same transport channel.
Via fixed links, e.g. between a base station and an RNC, the complete uplink FP data frames are sent to the RNC. In UMTS (or any other CDMA system), one connection may involve more than one Node B, in which case the connection is indicated to be in “soft handover” state. At the RNC, for a connection being in “soft handover” state, uplink transport blocks come in parallel from each Node B involved. Based on quality estimate (QE) and CRCI information, “selective combining” takes place, comprising the selection of one transport block while rejecting all other transport blocks for the some transport channel and the same transport time interval (TTI).
A simplified FP data frame of the state of the art is shown in FIG. 4. The data frame starts with a data frame header DFH. This is followed by a number of fixed size transport format indicators TFIs for each dedicated channel DCH. Then the transport blocks TBs (hard bits) for each dedicated channel DCH follow, the size of which depends on the TFIs. Fixed size quality estimate QE information is provided before the cyclic redundancy check indicators CRCIs of each dedicated channel DCH, where the size of the cyclic redundancy check indicators CRCIs of each dedicated channel DCH also depends on the transport format indicators TFIs of the respective DCH.
In the state-of-the-art scheme, for each single transport block, the RNC receives the user data (either error-free or knowingly corrupted) and the one-bit CRCI “good” or “bad” information.
This means that, although the state of the art provides for a silent mode, which suppresses complete data frames to be transmitted on the interface when during a transmission time interval no data is available for a given transport channel, when data frames are transmitted, they are always transmitted in full length, containing even in full length those transport blocks known to be disturbed. In many cases a receiver rejects disturbed data and requests for repeated transmission. However, the unnecessary transmission of the corrupted transport blocks inevitably occupies interface resources and thus, it reduces the effective data rate of the interface between a base station and a network controller. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Commercial transport aircraft typically include service galleys for preparing meals and refreshments for passengers and crew. A typical service galley includes a number of electrical appliances or “inserts” such as ovens, coffee makers, trash compactors, and air chillers. Each of the appliances is independently connected to a power feeder that receives electrical power from an aircraft power source. Although most galley appliances operate in a cyclic nature, or for only short periods of time, the electrical power feeder must be sized to support a worst-case load event in which all of the appliances are operating at the same time. Sizing the power feeder for this worst-case scenario results in a relatively heavy and relatively expensive power feeder.
Conventional transport aircraft typically allocate a preset amount of electrical power for galley operations. For example, a typical passenger jet may allocate between 90 and 100 KVA (Kilovolt-Amperes) for such operations. If a particular airline customer selects a suite of galley equipment that could potentially exceed the allocation of electrical power, then interlocks are incorporated into the galley power circuit to prevent an overload. Interlocks are switches that allow flight attendants to make power available to one appliance or one group of appliances, but not another appliance or another group of appliances. In this way, power is available for only a subset of the galley appliances at any given time, thereby preventing the possibility of exceeding the power allocation. One downside of interlocks, however, is that they result in customization of the aircraft galley and additional complexity. Further, they require flight attendants to manually coordinate usage of various galley appliances. Having to manually coordinate appliance usage in this way often impacts the ability of the flight attendants to provide in-flight service in an efficient manner. In addition, this coordination increases flight attendant workload and may increase flight attendant training requirements.
Electric power to galley systems on a conventional jet aircraft is typically cut off when the aircraft experience a significant power shortage. This event is referred to as a “load shed.” When power is restored, the galley appliances may or may not, depending on the specific type of appliance, resume operation. One downside associated with load sheds is that flight attendants must guess at how to reset oven timers and other appliance settings to complete food preparation once power has been restored.
Conventional transport aircraft typically use engine bleed air to drive hydraulic pumps, cabin pressurization equipment, anti-ice systems, and other aircraft systems. Running these systems on electric power from the engines, however, instead of engine bleed air may increase the fuel efficiency and thus lower the operating cost of the aircraft. However, increasing the number of aircraft systems using electric power may reduce the amount of electric power available for galley operations. For example, if a typical jet transport aircraft today allocates between 90 and 100 KVA for galley operations, in the future a comparable “more electric” aircraft may only allocate between 40 and 70 KVA for such operations. Accordingly, developing galley systems that use less aircraft power is an important step in the development of fuel efficient “more electric” aircraft. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for driving an STN liquid crystal display device, and particularly to a driving method for preventing a printed phenomenon of a display on an image plane.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When a fixed image pattern such as a figure, a character, a picture, etc. is continuously displayed on a STN (Super Twisted Nematic) liquid crystal display device for a long period of time, a so-called printed phenomenon occurs in which even if a display is changed, a pattern having been displayed for a long period of time remains visible without completely disappearing. This phenomenon conspicuously appears particularly at a high temperature.
For this reason, when the device is used under severe conditions such as in motor vehicles, the display printed phenomenon comes into question. It has been desired to develop countermeasures to this phenomenon. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Top unloading silo unloaders are used to remove a variety of feed materials from tower silos. These materials include silage and haylage ranging from hard binding material, padded and interlocked fibrous material, to loose light and soft material. During the cold season in northern geographic areas, the material adjacent the silo wall becomes a hard frozen mass. This hard frozen material is cut up and chipped from the silo wall with power-driven wall cleaners located on the wall end of the unloader. Different types and densities of material stored in tower silos make it difficult to efficiently remove the material from the silos.
Top unloading silo unloaders have the greatest material removing efficiency when they are operated in a generally horizontal level position and move around the silo wall at a constant or even speed. Under these operating conditions, the gathering and the flow of material through the unloader is uniform and at maximum capacity. Uneven material flow and large bunches of material reduce capacity of the unloader and can plug the unloader.
Large diameter tower silos, 20 to 30 feet, require large silo unloaders with long collectors. These collectors handle a large volume of material which must be evenly fed into the impeller. Maintaining the collector in a selected operating position, as a horizontally level position or at a slight angle and driving the collector around the silo wall at an even speed is desirable to insure even feeding of the material so that a high volume of material can be efficiently handled by the unloader.
Prior top unloading silo unloaders have the outer ends of the collectors in engagement with the top of the material when the unloader is not operating. These unloaders have high starting torque because they are started under partial load. In very cold conditions, top unloaders can freeze up if they are not cleared of material. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Most individuals and organizations, such as businesses and governmental agencies, utilize computers on a daily basis to perform a variety of functions. These functions may include, for example, email, internet access, word processing, computer-aided design, media streaming, and many others. Indeed, individuals and organizations not only utilize their own computers to perform these functions, but since many of the functions are “cloud-based” most individuals and organizations utilize servers in data centers around the globe to perform many of these functions.
As organizations grow, the number of users and, thus, computers and associated devices, such as file servers, email servers, routers, etc., increase as well. Hence, many organizations utilize Information Technology Operations Management (ITOM) tools to manage such systems. The ITOM tools may include policies, processes, and procedures to design and maintain the computers and associated functionalities for an organization. For example, ITOM tools may keep track of user computers and associated software, servers, routers, etc., within an organization so that administrators can determine when users have been added or removed, when equipment has been added, removed, or needs to be upgraded, when software needs to be updated, etc.
When dealing with individuals or small organizations, such tasks can be relatively straight forward and easy to perform. However, as organizations and their associated information technology (IT) infrastructure grows, designing and maintaining such systems can be a difficult task. To facilitate the management of IT systems in such organizations, discovery services are available to provide administrators a process by which devices, software, and associated functionalities may be discovered and mapped. Some of these discovery services may be cloud-based where an ITOM service provider maintains one or more datacenters that can facilitate discovery services within an organization's network or networks to perform such discovery services, while other discovery services may be performed “on-premises” by IT administrators utilizing discovery software residing within the organization's computer network.
The resulting map of devices, software, and associated functionalities produced by the discovery service may be utilized by IT administrators to design and maintain an organization's computer network. For example, using a map produced by a discovery service, an IT administrator can monitor the status of the hardware or software connected to provide a software service of the computer network. Such discovery services may require that an IT administrator configure how the discovery service will operate, for example, by manually creating a discovery profile used to identify aspects of IT systems to be discovered. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The recent trend in the semiconductor technology is toward wafers having a larger diameter and a reduced thickness. Accordingly, resin materials having higher functions are required to meet the demand for electronic materials of reduced size and higher precision. Because of their adhesion, heat resistance and moisture resistance, epoxy base materials are frequently used as the resin material for semiconductor devices and electronic parts. It is desirable that epoxy and phenolic resins having adhesion, heat resistance and moisture resistance are endowed with insulation and flexibility of silicone. Patent Document 1 proposes to modify a (meth)allyl-containing epoxy compound with a silicone. However, reaction of a compound having at least three glycidyl groups and at least three (meth)allyl groups in the molecule is unknown.
Patent Document 2 discloses a compound having epoxy and allyl groups, represented by the following formula:
which is commercially available under the trade name of RE-810NM from Nippon Kayaku Co., Ltd. A polymer formed by linking allyl groups on the compound is linear, and thus poor in heat resistance and bond strength when exposed to high temperature atmosphere. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
It may be necessary to run two or more systems concurrently, simultaneously, or in parallel, such as when migrating users from a legacy software system to a new, more modern, software system, when comparing the operation of equivalent applications that run on different computer platforms, or when measuring relative efficiency of programs that perform similar functions by means of different algorithms. In such cases, each system may comprise a combination of one or more software applications, computer systems, other computerized entities, other electronic entities, or one or more components of one or more communications infrastructures.
During such operation, it may be necessary to synchronize the operation of the two or more systems such that the two or more systems perform equivalent functions, store identical or equivalent repositories of information, or both produce equivalent or otherwise predictable output in response to equivalent input.
Synchronization may comprise functions like resolving differences between a pair of data models that each represent one or more data structures of one of the systems, resolving inconsistencies between each system's repository of production data, or ensuring that, when fed identical or analogous input, a component of one system and an analogous component of an other system correctly produce identical, similar, or analogous output.
One means of synchronization is a mechanism by which a monitoring entity detects revisions to production data stored by one or more of the systems being synchronized or detects revisions to a data model that represents a data structure or data organization associated with one of the systems being synchronized. This monitoring entity may be a hardware or software component of one of the systems being synchronized or it may be a distinct “intermediary” hardware or software entity that monitors the operation of the systems to be synchronized.
Such a monitoring entity may respond to a detection of a first revision to a first system by making a second revision or set of revisions to one or more other systems, in order to synchronize the operation of or the production data of the one or more other systems with the operation or data of the first system.
In such a case, the details or method of the second revision or set of revisions may be determined by one or more synchronization rules that tell the monitoring entity how to respond to a certain type of revision to the first system in order to synchronize the one or more other systems to the revised first system. A synchronization rule may also similarly describe how to translate a change to a data model or other data representation of the first system into an analogous change to a data model or other data representation of the one or more other systems. Such translations may not be trivial or obvious, especially when a data model or other data representation of the first system differs in a significant way from a data model or other data representation of the one or more other systems.
These synchronization rules may be difficult to generate and maintain with accuracy. Components of each system may be added, removed, patched, or otherwise modified in different ways and at different times, and each modification may necessitate revising, deleting, or creating one or more of the synchronization rules associated with the system. If the rules are not promptly updated to accommodate such changes, a rule may not identify a correct synchronization procedure when a monitoring entity identifies a need for synchronization. When synchronizing complex systems that require large numbers of rules, the tasks of generating and maintaining those rules may be complicated, vulnerable to error, and resource-intensive. There is thus a need for a way to automatically create, verify, and maintain synchronization rules in order to ensure that the rules are accurately and promptly created, deleted, or revised whenever necessary, and to confirm that the rules continue to correctly synchronize the systems. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
A single event upset (SEU) can be an unintended change of state in a memory element (e.g., cache memory) of a hardware device. For example, a SEU can be an unintended bit flip in a logic memory element of a hardware device. Generally, a SEU can result from charge in storage elements being unintentionally discharged, for example, as a result of ionizing radiation. A failure event in a memory element of a hardware device can also occur as a result of one or more other vulnerabilities in a hardware device such as, for example, another vulnerability of the memory element, during transmission of data via a data bus of the hardware device, on a processor of the hardware device, etc. As such, it is desirable to detect and/or correct a SEU and/or a failure event with respect to a memory element of a hardware device. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In some implementations of a fluid ejector, a substrate, such as a silicon substrate, includes a fluid pumping chamber, a descender, and a nozzle formed therein. Fluid droplets can be ejected from the nozzle onto a receiver, such as in a printing operation. The nozzle is fluidly connected to the descender, which is fluidly connected to the fluid pumping chamber. The fluid pumping chamber can be actuated by a transducer, such as a thermal or piezoelectric actuator, and when actuated, the fluid pumping chamber can cause ejection of a fluid droplet through the nozzle. The receiver can be moved relative to the fluid ejection device. The ejection of a fluid droplet from a nozzle can be timed with the movement of the receiver to place a fluid droplet at a desired location on the receiver.
Multiple fluid ejectors can be placed along a holder, such as a bar, which can allow for page-wide printing. It is desirable for each fluid ejector to be aligned with other fluid ejectors along the bar in order to provide uniform deposition of fluid droplets on the receiver. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to a USB connector structure; in particular, to a double-sided US connector structure.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventional USB connectors are connector devices used for electrically connecting cables, circuit boards and other circuit units, and are widely applied in electronic products such as cell phones, tablets, laptops, PDAs, etc. A conventional USB connector includes an insulating body and a plurality of terminals disposed on the insulating body. When coupling to another connector, the USB connector must be correctly oriented in order to achieve mating.
Hence, the present inventor believes the above mentioned disadvantages can be overcome, and through devoted research combined with application of theory, finally proposes the present disclosure which has a reasonable design and effectively improves upon the above mentioned disadvantages. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to improved communications and in particular to improved notification of an availability of a user to communicate via a particular communication medium. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to automatically inferring an availability status of a user with whom communication is requested based on current system level events indicating a user's activity within a computer environment.
2. Description of the Related Art
The number of mediums of communication continue to increase. Wireless telephones, for example, now enable voice, text, graphic, and picture communications. Computing systems connected to a network may provide communication via electronic mail (email), instant messaging (IM), and chat sessions, for example.
As the number of mediums of communication continue to increase, so too do the number of communication requests that can interrupt a person during the day. For example, a person may be interrupted by a ringing telephone, a flashing instant messaging window, and a beep indicating a new email.
While there may be a number of mediums of communication through which a person can be reached and interrupted, that person may not always be available or may only be available to a particular degree, to communicate via a particular medium. Some mediums of communication, such as an IM controller, allow a user to choose from an availability status, such as available, off-line, or do not disturb, that is broadcast to those seeking to communicate with the user. An IM controller may also detect when a user is off-line and automatically set the user's status to off-line or detect that a user has not interacted with a computer system for a particular period of time and automatically set a user's status to away.
While automatically setting a user's availability status based on whether the user is on-line or off-line or active or away provides some indication of a user's status, merely setting status based on network accessibility or general computer activity is limited. In particular, a user's actual availability to communicate may fluctuate based on what the user is actually doing while on-line, however current IM controllers do not automatically set a user's availability beyond an on-line status or active status.
In addition, a limitation of current communication mediums is that for a user to control communication request interruptions, the user must specifically select whether request interruptions can be received. For example, a user must select to block all IM requests or receive all IM requests. In reality, a user's actual availability to be interrupted with communication requests may fluctuate according to requester and according to what a user is currently actually doing.
In view of the foregoing, it would be advantageous to provide a method, system, and program for automatically inferring an availability status and an interrupt status of a user receiving a communication request. In particular, it would be advantageous to infer an availability status and interrupt status for each particular request for communication with a user based on the identity of the requester of the information and what the user is actually doing. While pre-defined calendaring events may give some indication of what a user might be doing during a particular time, it would be advantageous to determine what a user is actually doing based on current user activity. In particular, it would be advantageous to infer what a user is actually doing based on a user's interactions within a computing environment as indicated by system level events. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to laser scanning systems, and more particularly to an automatic bar code symbol reading system in which an automatic hand-supportable laser scanner can be interchangeably utilized as either a portable hand-held laser scanner in an automatic "hands-on" mode of operation, or as a stationary laser projection scanner in an automatic "hands-free" mode of operation.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Bar code symbols have become widely used in many commercial environments such as, for example, point-of-sale (POS) stations in retail stores and supermarkets, inventory and document tracking, and diverse data control applications. To meet the growing demands of this recent innovation, bar code symbol readers of various types have been developed for scanning and decoding bar code symbol patterns and producing symbol character data for use as input in automated data processing systems.
In general, prior art bar code symbol readers using laser scanning mechanisms can be classified into two categories.
The first category of bar code symbol readers includes systems having lightweight, portable hand-held laser scanners which can be supported in the hand of the user. The user positions the hand-held laser scanner at a specified distance from the object bearing the bar code symbol, manually activates the scanner to initiate reading, and then moves the scanner over other objects bearing bar code symbols to be read. Prior art bar code symbol readers illustrative of this first category are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,387,297 to Swartz; 4,575,625 to Knowles; 4,845,349 to Cherry; 4,825,057 to Swartz, et al.; 4,903,848 to Knowles; 5,107,100 to Shepard, et al.; 5,080,456 to Katz, et al.; and 5,047,617 to Shepard et al.
The second category of bar code symbol readers includes systems having stationary laser scanners supported on or built into an immovable structure such as a supermarket counter. These laser scanners are referred to as countertop scanners and typically utilize a moving laser beam to create a laser scan pattern. Each object bearing a bar code symbol to be read is oriented by the user and then moved through the laser scan pattern in order to read the bar code symbol. Prior art bar code symbol scanners illustrative of this second category are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,086,476 to King; 4,960,985 to Knowles; and 4,713,532 to Knowles.
While prior art hand-held and stationary laser scanners have played an important role in the development of the bar code symbol industry, these devices have, however, suffered from a number of shortcomings and drawbacks. For example, hand-held laser scanners, although portable and lightweight, are not always convenient to use in assembly-line applications where the user processes bar coded objects over an extended period of time, or where the user requires the use of both hands in order to manipulate the objects. In some applications, hand-held laser scanners are difficult to manipulate while simultaneously moving objects or performing other tasks at a point-of-sale terminal. Stationary laser scanners, on the other hand, provide a desired degree of flexibility in many applications by allowing the user to manipulate bar coded objects with both hands. However, by their nature, stationary laser scanners render scanning large, heavy objects a difficult task as such objects must be manually moved into or through the laser scan field.
Attempting to eliminate the problems associated with the use of hand-held and stationary laser scanners, U.S. Pat. No. 4,766,297 to McMillan discloses a bar code symbol scanning system which combines the advantages of hand-held and stationary fixed laser scanners into a single scanning system which can be used in either a hands-on or hands-free mode of operation.
The bar code symbol scanning system in U.S. Pat. No. 4,766,297 includes a portable hand-held laser scanning device for generating electrical signals descriptive of a scanned bar code symbol. In the hands-on mode of operation, a trigger on the hand-held laser scanning device is manually actuated each time a bar code symbol on an object is to be read. The system further includes a fixture having a head portion for receiving and supporting the hand-held laser scanning device, and a base portion above, which the head portion is supported at a predetermined distance. In the hands-free mode of operation, the hand-held laser scanning device is supported by the fixture head portion above the fixture base portion in order to allow objects bearing bar code symbols to pass between the head and base portions of the fixture. In order to detect the presence of an object between the head and base portions of the fixture, the fixture also includes an object sensor operably connected to the hand-held laser scanning device. When the object sensor senses an object between the head portion and the base portion, the object sensor automatically initiates the hand-held laser scanning device supported in the fixture to read the bar code symbol on the detected object.
While the bar code symbol scanning system of U.S. Pat. No. 4,776,297 permits reading of printed bar code information using either a portable "hands-on" or stationary "hands-free" mode of operation, this system suffers from several significant shortcomings and drawbacks as well.
In particular, in the hands-on mode of operation, scanning bar code symbols requires manually actuating a trigger each time a bar code symbol is to be read. In the hands-free mode of operation, scanning bar code symbols requires passing the object bearing the bar code between the head and base portions of the fixture. However, in many instances where both hands are required to manipulate a bar coded object, the object is too large to be passed between the head and base portions of the fixture and thus scanning of the bar code symbol is not possible.
Thus, there is a great need in the bar code symbol reading art for a bar code symbol reading system which overcomes the above described shortcomings and drawbacks of prior art devices and techniques, while providing greater versatility in its use. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The invention relates to a half-bridge module for the switching of electrical outputs, which is arranged in a housing containing an electrically insulating cooling liquid and in which at least two semiconductor switches are connected in series, forming a half-bridge. Each semiconductor switch comprises a control input for connection to a triggering device. The first semiconductor switch is capable of being connected by its source terminal to a high voltage potential, and the second semiconductor switch is capable of being connected by its drain terminal to a low voltage potential. For the purpose of forming an output, the drain terminal of each first semiconductor switch is connected to the source terminal of the respective second semiconductor switch. In addition, at least one capacitor arrangement is arranged between the high voltage potential and the low voltage potential. Such a half-bridge module is known from German Patent Publication DE-A-42 30 510.
Half-bridge arrangements of such a type are used for the purpose of forming inverters for highly diverse fields of application, e.g. for feeding induction machines, permanent-magnet motors and similar applications. (See also, for example, German Patent Publication DE-A-40 27 969).
From U.S. Pat. No. 5,132,896 an inverter arrangement is known which, with a view to reducing the effect of distributed inductances of the conductors that are used for connecting the capacitors and the semiconductor switches, comprises lamellar supply lines having a large area. By this means, large damping capacitors for compensating the line inductances are avoided. In addition, the dissipation of heat can be improved by virtue of the large-area design of the lamellar supply lines. Furthermore, the lamellar supply lines are designed in such a way that the magnitude and the direction of the current flow through the lamellar supply lines minimizes the effect of the distributed inductances.
However, with this inverter arrangement the large-area supply lines serve merely to lessen interfering inductances and are employed as supply lines leading to large electrolytic capacitors.
In order to increase further the power density of the half-bridge module described in the introduction and in order to make it still more suitable, in particular, for large-scale use the half-bridge module claimed herein has been developed such that respective first semiconductor switches are arranged with their source terminal on a common first metallic conductor rail which is capable of being connected to the high voltage potential, and respective second semiconductor switches are arranged with their source terminal on a common second metallic conductor rail constituting the output, the second conductor rail being arranged alongside the first conductor rail, spaced therefrom. Moreover, each second semiconductor switch is connected by its drain terminal to a common third metallic conductor rail which is capable of being connected to the low voltage potential and is arranged alongside the first and second conductor rails, spaced therefrom. The capacitor arrangement comprises a backup capacitor which is connected to the first and third conductor rails by terminals and which overlaps the first and second semiconductor switches in such a manner that the semiconductor switches are spatially located between the corresponding conductor rails and the backup capacitor. In addition, the control input comprises a terminal for connection to the triggering device in the region of a first front side of the conductor rails, and the output comprises a terminal for connection to an electrical load in the region of a second front side of the second conductor rail located opposite the first front side.
By virtue of the structure, according to the present invention, of the half-bridge module, a particularly compact arrangement is achieved which enables a packaging density that cannot be equalled by previous solutions. As a consequence, the requisite volume of cooling liquid, relative to the total volume, is kept small. Moreover a miniaturization of the overall arrangement is achieved that permits use of the present invention to become very economical in mobile applications. In this regard a significant benefit is further enjoyed by the fact that, by virtue of the structure utilising the third dimension, a spatial separation of the power-conducting lines (or conductor rails) and terminals, on the one hand, and of the triggering lines, on the other hand, is made possible. This considerably enhances immunity to interference. A further significant aspect of the present invention is the modular structure, which permits problem-free expansion and adaptation of the half-bridge module in line with the particular requirements.
In a preferred embodiment the semiconductor switches are constituted by fast-switching, low-loss field-effect transistors (FETs) or by fast-switching, low-loss bipolar transistors with insulated gate terminal (IGBTs). In particular, MOSFETs with integrated freewheeling diodes or additional external freewheeling diodes connected to the transistors in parallel can be employed. These external freewheeling diodes are advantageously arranged in the same manner as the semiconductor switches and in the immediate vicinity of the latter on one of the conductor rails.
Electrically conducting spacers are arranged on the first and third conductor rails, in particular for the mechanical and electrical parallel connection of several half-bridge modules. Hence half-bridge modules of the same type can be rigidly coupled to one another, and at the same time the supply of the high and low potentials to all the half-bridge modules that have been coupled in such a manner can be achieved in a straightforward way. In one embodiment of the present invention the spacers are realised as separate components, with which the respective conductor rails are connected (screw-coupled, riveted, welded etc). As an alternative to this, the spacers may also be integral with the conductor rails, so that the requisite spacing between the individual half-bridge modules comes about and is also kept constant by a direct joining of the respective conductor rails.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention the first, second and third conductor rails are firmly connected to one another mechanically by an electrically insulating carrier board. As an alternative to this, the first, second and third conductor rails may be firmly connected to one another mechanically by electrically insulating crossmembers which are arranged between the individual conductor rails. The carrier board may also serve to receive conductor tracks in order to supply control signals to the semiconductors or in order to lead out test points or measuring points. The carrier board also serves to receive interconnecting lines between the respective control inputs of the semiconductor switches and the terminal for connection to the triggering device.
In this case the carrier board is preferably provided with recesses which are dimensioned in such a way that the semiconductors (transistors and diodes) that are directly applied on the conductor rails are exposed at least with their contacting pointsxe2x80x94that is, they are not covered up by the carrier board. This has the result that the effective overall heights of the semiconductors and of the carrier board are not added. Rather, both are connected directly (at the same level) to the conductor rails. Hence the carrier board serves both for the mechanical connection of the conductor rails amongst themselves and for the electrical wiring arrangement. The connection of the conductor tracks that are arranged on the carrier board to the contacting points of the semiconductors is preferably established by bonding wires.
As an alternative to this, instead of the carrier board, an electrically insulating foil is arranged in the conducting rails, with interconnecting lines between the respective control inputs and the terminal for connection to the triggering device. Since a foil is not suitable to establish a mechanically rigid or firm connection between the individual conductor rails, with a view to producing the necessary strength of the conductor-rail arrangement an additional connection should be formed on the lateral faces of the conductor rails facing one another. This can be achieved by means of the aforementioned crossmembers or by means of an electrically insulating adhesive.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention the electrically insulating carrier board or the foil carries current-limiting resistors in the triggering lines for the semiconductor switches, said (gate) resistors being provided between the respective control inputs and the terminal for connection to the triggering device.
In accordance with the present invention, at least two half-bridge modules of the type described above are assigned to one another mechanically and are electrically connected in parallel in order to form a half-bridge arrangement. By virtue of the modular concept according to the present invention an increase in power output is easily achieved. By a simple parallel connection of an appropriate number of half-bridge modules or an expansion of a half-bridge arrangement through additional half-bridge modules it is also possible to provide a higher power output or to increase the number of phases.
Accordingly, the present invention also relates to a power output stage of a triggering device for a multiphase electric motor, wherein a half-bridge arrangement is provided for each phase of the electric motor, the half-bridge arrangements being arranged alongside one another. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention a power output stage of a triggering device for a multiphase electric motor is provided, a control-electronics module being spatially assigned to the power output stage and arranged in the same housing. By this arrangement both the control-electronics module and the power output stage with their plurality of half-bridge arrangements or half-bridge modules are accommodated in the same cooling medium. This creates a particularly compact structure of a functional overall arrangement, and the control lines may also be routed so as to be very short and rendering them less susceptible to interference.
The semiconductors that are used within the invention are preferably constituted by fast-switching, low-loss field-effect transistors (FETS) or by fast-switching, low-loss bipolar transistors with insulated gate terminal (IGBTs). In this case several pairs of semiconductor switches connected in series may be connected in parallel. In addition, the semiconductor switches may be constituted by a large number of individual semiconductor-switch modules with, in each case, low switching capacities. Through the use of many semiconductor-switch elements with, in each case, a relatively low switching capacity which are, however, easy to connect in parallel, effective cooling can be achieved, since the many individual components can be reached well by the cooling medium. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In the commercial production of rubber modified resins of the type wherein rubber particles of alkadiene rubber grafted with a styrene-type monomer and acrylonitrile-type monomer are generally uniformly dispersed in a matrix of a copolymer of styrene-type monomer and acrylonitrile-type monomer, which resins are commonly called ABS resins, it has heretofore been a common commercial practice to use either suspension or emulsion polymerization procedures for the preparation thereof. A given product resin is produced either as a result of a single batch polymerization or as a result of several batch polymerization followed by a physical blending procedure involving mixture of preformed graft copolymers with other graft copolymers or with ungrafted copolymer. Because of the inherent cost, complexity and sensitivity associated with such manufacturing technology, the art has recently been attempting to develop different techniques which would permit one to manufacture such resins using cheaper, less complex, highly reliable procedures and equipment. A particularly promising different technique would involve the use of mass polymerization which avoids such problems as product separation and recovery from the water used for suspension or emulsion polymerization.
To prepare ABS resins by all-mass polymerization technology has been heretofore proposed, but the practical realization of such a manufacturing route on a commercial scale is full of problems because of the difficulties of producing a product resin which is cheap enough to be competitive and still has the necessary and desirable physical properties for molding and extruding and for formed, manufactured product applications. Because of these difficulties, the art has combined some of the mass polymerization technology with some of the emulsion and/or suspension technology in an overall process.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,950,455 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,957,912 have disclosed such hybrid processes wherein the rubbers are grafted in aqueous emulsion as grafted crosslinked rubber particles and extracted from the aqueous phase by monomers into a monomer phase having said grafted rubber particles. The monomer phase is then separated from the aqueous phase and mass polymerized to an ABS resin.
Various methods have been used to control the color of such resins such as antioxidants and the like or closer control of the styrene and acrylonitrile monomer compositions during polymerization to control compositional drift leading to color chromophones in the resin. Such methods have proven costly and difficult to control.
It has now been discovered unexpectedly that chromophoric development during the mass polymerization of monovinylidene aromatic monomers and alkenenitrile monomers having a dispersed alkadiene rubber grafted with said monomers dispersed therein can be inhitied by carrying the mass polymerization in the presence of sufficient carbon dioxide to provide an ABS resin having a substantially white color. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a cylinder head gasket formed of a plurality of metal plates.
In manufacturing a steel laminate gasket, metal plates for constituting the gasket are prepared separately to have holes for cylinder bores, water holes and so on. In case a curved portion and a flange are formed in a metal plate around a hole to be sealed, the flange and the curved portion are, at first, bent perpendicular to the plate, and then the flange is further bent to be located above a base portion of the metal plate.
In this case, when the flange is bent above the base portion of the metal plate, a space is generally formed between the flange and the base portion around the cured portion. The metal plate with the space around the curved portion may be assembled with other metal plates for constituting a steel laminate gasket.
Although the space provides resiliency at the curved portion, when the gasket is used for a while, the curved portion may gradually be flattened to thereby loose resiliency at the curved portion. Accordingly, the metal plate with the space around the curved portion may be further processed to be flattened over the base portion.
In case the plate with the flattened flange is to be prepared, after the flange is bent over the base portion, the flange is compressed further against the base portion. The plate with the flattened flange may be assembled with other plates to form a steel laminate gasket.
In the conventional metal gasket, the metal plate with the flattened flange or the metal plate with the space around the curved portion may be assembled with other metal plates. However, these plates are simply assembled with other metal plates, and are not processed further or assembled to have specific function.
Accordingly, one object of the invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a cylinder head gasket, wherein the steel laminate gasket can be efficiently assembled together.
Another object of the invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a cylinder head gasket as stated above, wherein the steel laminate gasket can be assembled to provide resiliency for sealing around a hole.
A further object of the invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a cylinder head gasket as stated above, wherein the steel laminate gasket can be easily and economically manufactured.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates in general to tire uniformity machines and more particularly relates to a control system for controlling the raising and lowering of the lower chuck of a tire uniformity machine to reduce cycle time while protecting the chuck against damage. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The inventive concepts described herein relate to semiconductor devices, and more particularly to a method of powering-off semiconductor devices.
In system-on-chips (SoCs), dozens of power sources may be supplied from a power management integrated chip (PMIC) typically having complicated power supply configuration. The dozens of power sources are individually controlled over units of micro-seconds or units of a given time when powered-on.
The reason for controlling the power sources at such a fine level when powered-on is to prevent inrush current and to stably supply power to individual power sources.
However, it is difficult to control the power sources at fine levels during a power-off operation. Since voltage levels of the power sources decrease due to discharge when powered-off, the amount of time to completely power-off the power sources may be delayed differently by an amount of charge charged in capacitors of the power sources, a magnitude of a resistance to be discharged, a magnitude of an external capacitance, or the like.
If power-off control is performed following all the sequences as in a power-on operation, the power-off time may become slower than the power-on time by dozens to several hundred times. This may cause issues such as poor responsiveness or poor reaction speed. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to filter assemblies and, more particularly, a return line filter assembly which is at least partially submerged in a fluid reservoir.
II. Description of the Prior Art
There have been a number of previously known return line filters adapted for connection with a fluid system and, particularly, hydraulic systems. Such return line filters typically comprise a housing at least partially submerged within a fluid reservoir while a filter element is positioned within the interior of the housing. A fluid inlet on the housing is fluidly connected to the return line from the fluid system while passage means formed through the housing connect the inlet to one side of the filter element. Fluid flow into the housing inlet thus flows through the fluid passage means and through the filter so that the filtered fluid enters the fluid reservoir.
These previously known return line filters, however, have all suffered from a number of disadvantages. One disadvantage of many of the previously known return line filters is that the filter element could not be removed for cleaning or replacement without shutting down the entire fluid system. This is particularly disadvantageous when frequent changes of the filter element are required.
A still further disadvantage of many of these previously known filter assemblies is that the filter assemblies were often operated during the inadvertent or even intentional omission of a filter element from the filter assembly. The omission of the filter element, of course, enabled debris and other foreign matter to undesirably enter the fluid system. Moreover, detection of omitted filter elements required the opening of the housing for visual inspection of the filter element.
A still further disadvantage of many of these previously known return line filter assemblies is that removal of the filter element from the filter assembly in turn undesirably removed a portion of the fluid from the reservoir due to the suction of the filter element. This removed fluid oftentimes splashed on the floor and created an undesirable and unsafe working environment.
A still further disadvantage of many of these previously known return line filters is that splashing of the fluid during either the filtering operation or, alternatively, when the filter element was removed from the housing, oftentimes introduced air bubbles into the fluid. Such air bubbles can enter the fluid system and adversely affect the operating efficiency of the system. Moreover, in the case of a hydraulic system, such air bubbles can cause pump cavitation and even create air pockets within the hydraulic system. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The invention relates to a strain relief apparatus for cables, in particular fiberoptic cables with Kevlar fibers.
In particular in the case of fiberoptic cables with Kevlar fibers (aramid fibers) as mechanical supporting elements there is the problem of mechanically fastening the cable. Cable ties, for example, are used for this purpose or the Kevlar fibers are clamped separately. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In a tire testing machine such as a tire uniformity measuring apparatus measuring uniformity of a tire, a tire balance measuring apparatus measuring the balance of tires, or the like, a testing rim assembly, which is divided in a tire widthwise direction, is used. Then, a tire is fitted and measured in a state in which the rim assembly is assembled as an upper rim and a lower rim.
Tires to be measured have different diameters and widths depending on their kinds. Accordingly, the testing rim assemblies are also exchanged depending on the tires subjected to the testing based on their bead diameters or bead widths (for example, see Patent Literature 1).
Here, as a plurality of rim assemblies are set to a rim exchange apparatus and the rim assemblies are also automatically exchanged according to the kinds of tires, a test time can be reduced. However, identification of the size and kind of the rim assembly placed on a specific table of the rim exchange apparatus depends on an operator of the rim exchange apparatus.
Here, as a device configured to identify the rim or the tire, it is known that an electronic label such as a transponder, a ROM or RAM type memory device, or the like is installed on the rim or the tire to identify the rim or the tire (see Patent Literature 2). | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Portable phones are widely used for communicating and transmitting information between users. Portable phones include cordless phones which receive signals from a base station controlled by a user over a relatively short range, typically on a frequency of 900 MHz, 2.4 Ghz or 5.8 GHz. Portable phones also include cellular phones for a greater range, which typically receive signals from a telecommunications network using various platforms, such as ANALOG, CDMA, TDMA and GSM. Portable phones also include satellite phones, where the portable phone is in direct transmission to and from a communications satellite orbiting the earth, such as the “GLOBAL STAR” system and the “IRIDIUM” system.
Some portable phones employ a handset configured for holding in one hand and placement against the user's head. A conventional handset for a portable phone includes a speaker configured for placement proximate to the ear, and a microphone configured for placement proximate to the mouth.
The handset can also include a face having a key pad, and a direct view display configured to display a visual image of data in an alphanumeric or video format. Some types of data that can be visually displayed on the direct view display are “caller waiting ID” data. Moreover, the data can be displayed, even when the user is conducting a two way conversation with the handset held against the head. For example, during a two way conversation, the data can include the originating phone number of an incoming call.
One limitation of a conventional handset is that the direct view display cannot be seen by the user with the handset held against the head. During a two way conversation, in order to view the data, the user must hold the handset away from the ear, and place the direct view display at least several inches in front of the eyes. This requires interrupting a two way conversation to read data from a third party during the conversation, such as caller waiting ID data. Although this problem can be avoided by speaker phones, this approach has limitations, in that confidentiality and sound fidelity are reduced, and the transmission of environmental noises is increased.
The present invention is directed to a portable phone having a data projection system configured to generate and project a visual image of data onto a viewing surface which is in close proximity to the user, and easily viewable by the user. This permits the visual image to be ergonomically viewed by the user even with the handset held against the head. Two way phone conversations can thus be carried out without interruption, and without the limitations of speaker phones. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates to processes of electrochemical milling. More particularly, the invention addressed itself to electrochemical milling where the material being removed covers an electrically nonconductive material which cannot withstand elevated temperatures, such as an explosive or rocket propellant.
The process of electrochemical milling and the use of maskants in the application of such a process to prevent material removal and thereby prescribe the shape of the etch are all known in the prior art; see U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,376,365 and 3,380,863 and the subject Electrochemical Metal Removal in VAN NOSTRAND'S SCIENTIFIC ENCYCLOPEDIA copyright 1968. This process has been used to dissect solid propellant rocket motors, or other metal encased highly flammable materials, to allow analysis of the interior materials or structure. In the specific case which led to the invention disclosed herein, rocket motors were being periodically sampled and dissected to evaluate the effects of storage time and environment upon the propellant composition. Electrochemical milling was chosen because it is generally considered relatively safe and is less expensive than other metal removal techniques such as grinding.
The etching was generally performed by first completely covering the rocket motor case with a maskant, a moisture proof tape, and then removing adjacent circumferential or axial strips of the tape in succession, allowing the exposed metal beneath each strip to be completely etched away before the next strip was removed. Depending on the nature of the motor, such removal and etching would continue until either the whole case was etched away or just sufficiently to allow the case to be separated and propellant removed.
Although not to the extent encountered with the other metal removal techniques, the use of electrochemical milling has produced a significant number of accidental propellant ignitions, resulting in the destruction of the dissection equipment and risk of injury to facility personnel. Analysis of the ignition mechanisms and recognition of causes was not straight forward, in the normal sense, since the accidental ignitions followed no prescribed pattern, reasonable modifications in the electrochemical processes did not prevent ignitions and, foremost, once ignition occurred the reaction was so violent that very little of the hardware remained for analysis.
The forementioned attempts at modification involved reductions in the area exposed to the etching electrolyte solution at any one time, careful monitoring of the etching process, and changes in the electrical potential being applied. None proved to be entirely successful and accidental ignition would sometimes occur. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In rotating a rolling bearing incorporating a resin-made cage at a high speed, a centrifugal force generated owing to a high-speed rotation acts on a cage. As a result, the cage deforms. Owing to the deformation of the cage, the friction between the cage and balls held by the cage becomes high, and the torque of the rolling bearing becomes high. An increase of the friction therebetween causes the bearing to generate heat. Further owing to the deformation of the cage, the cage may contact an outer ring of the bearing. Resin melts owing to frictional heat caused by the contact between the cage and the outer ring. Thereby there may be a case where the rolling bearing is prevented from rotating. Thus the resin-made cage to be incorporated in the rolling bearing which is used at a high-speed rotation is an important bearing member.
To restrain the cage from deforming when the rolling bearing rotates at a high speed, it is necessary to increase the mechanical strength and elastic modulus of a resin composition for the cage. To this end, normally this problem is dealt with by increasing the mixing amount of a fibrous reinforcing material such as glass fiber in the resin composition.
A “crown-type cage” is used as the resin-made cage of a deep groove ball bearing which is a kind of the rolling bearing. At a production time of the crown-type cage by injection molding, it is necessary to perform “forcible drawing” to take out a molded article from a semicircular molding die for forming a ball-holding space by spreading claws of the molded article immediately after injection molding finishes. The problem with the forcible drawing is that it is impossible for a resin composition containing a large mixing amount of the fibrous reinforcing material and thus having a low bending strength and a low bending strain (elongation property), particularly the resin composition consisting of polytrimethylene terephthalate (hereinafter referred to as PTT) to permit its own deformation which occurs at the time of the forcible drawing. As a result, troubles such as crack and whitening may occur on the inner-diameter surface of the pocket of the crown-type cage. Similar problems may occur at the time of forming a resin-made seal by injection-molding a resin material. Thus in forcibly drawing a lip from a molding die at a molding time, the resin material for the resin-made seal is incapable of permitting its own deformation and thus cannot be molded owing to the occurrence of the whitening and the crack.
As a measure for dealing with the forcible drawing, an example in which the configuration of the cage is devised to decrease a load at the time of the forcible drawing is reported (see patent document 1). But the cage having the proposed configuration cannot necessarily be so designed that the cage has a high strength. Another problem is that decreasing the load at the time of the forcible drawing in molding the resin material into the cage is synonymous with decreasing a steel ball-holding force of the cage incorporated in the bearing and is thus unpreferable. Therefore there is a demand for the development of a resin material having a high elastic modulus and a high elongation property to such an extent that the resin composition allows the forcible drawing to be accomplished at the molding time. Until now such a resin material does not exist.
The biodegradable plastic composition whose biodegradation speed is adjusted by adding the polycarbodiimide compound to the biodegradable plastic material is known (see patent document 2).
To improve the resistance to hydrolysis in a high-temperature acid medium, the polyamide resin composition containing the polyamide resin and the aliphatic or alicyclic carbodiimide added by 0.01 to 20 parts by mass to 100 parts by mass of the polyamide resin is known (see patent document 3).
To improve the resistance to the hydrolysis, oil, and halogenated metal salts in the high-temperature acid medium, the polyamide resin composition containing the polyamide resin and the aliphatic carbodiimide compound added thereto is known (see patent document 4).
To provide a resin composition excellent in the resistance to the hydrolysis, oil, and heat aging property, the thermoplastic copolymerized polyester resin composition containing the thermoplastic copolymerized polyester resin and the monocarbodiimide compound and/or the polycarbodiimide compound added by 0.01 to 10 parts by weight to 100 parts by weight of the thermoplastic copolymerized polyester resin is known (see patent document 5).
Conventionally the carbodiimide compound is contained in the resin composition to improve its chemical properties such as hydrolyzability. It is not known so far that the addition of the carbodiimide compound to a resin allows the production of a resin composition which has a high elastic modulus and a high elongation property to such an extent that resin composition receives a load applied thereto to a low extent at the time of the forcible drawing in molding it into the cage or the like and thus can be used as a bearing member. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Computed tomography (CT) systems and methods are widely used, particularly for medical imaging and diagnosis. CT systems generally create projection images through a subject's body at a series of projection angles. A radiation source, such as an X-ray tube, irradiates the body from one side. Images of the subject's body can be reconstructed from the projection data (i.e., the projection images acquired at various projection angles), using various reconstruction techniques such as filtered back-projection, iterative reconstruction, etc.
Many clinical applications can benefit from spectral CT technology, which can provide improvement in material differentiation and beam-hardening correction. Spectral CT data can be obtained using one of several technologies, including: direct X-ray detection using semiconductor-based photon-counting detectors, dual-source systems to perform dual-energy scans, kVp-switching systems to perform dual-energy scans, performing sequential scans at different X-ray energies, and using layered detectors capable of simultaneously measuring multiple energies to simultaneously realize a dual-energy scan. When a spectral CT system uses energy scans performed at different times, motion of the patient in between scans can introduce errors and artifacts into the material decomposition. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to a curable polymer mixture, preferably a curable polymer concrete mixture comprising 1.) as coupling additive at least one at least oligomeric addition product a) of at least one amino silane and/or thiosilane having at least one hydrolysable silane group and at least one compound having at least two terminal, ethylenically unsaturated double bonds and/or at least one at least oligomeric addition product b) of at least one isocyanate silane and/or epoxy silane having at least one hydrolysable silane group and at least one oligomeric compound with at least three structured units and having at least one terminal hydroxy group or terminal amino group and at least one terminal ethylenically unsaturated double bond, 2.) a system which can be cured by radical polymerisation and comprises at least one ethylenically unsaturated polymer and/or a (meth)acrylic resin, at least one ethylenically unsaturated monomer, at least one radical initiator and optionally at least one cross-linking agent as binder 3.), at least 20% by weight, preferably at least 40% by weight, more preferably at least 60% by weight, based on the total weight of the compounds 1.) to 4.) of the polymer mixture, of inorganic, preferably multiparticulate, fillers as aggregates and 4.) optionally conventional auxiliaries.
Curable polymer mixtures of different compositions have various applications, such as for the production of polymer concrete.
Polymer concretes are known materials which, unlike normal concrete, have a polymer as binder which holds the rock grains, what are known as aggregates, together. The aggregates can have the most varied rock grain size and are usually used ranging from the finest to a coarse grain size. Depending on the mixture of the various grain sizes, this allows filling degrees of up to 95% by weight. Ethylenically unsaturated polymers are preferably used as polymeric binders in order to produce polymer concretes by curing polymer matrix in which the aggregates are distributed. It is important for the quality of a polymer concrete that it has outstanding mechanical properties, such as flexural strength, tensile strength, compressive strength and impact strength, in addition to an adequate E modulus, which are only obtained by a very effective interaction, i.e. adhesion, between the polymer matrix and the aggregates which are joined by the polymer matrix. The more effective this interaction, the higher the quality of the polymer concrete. This also applies to other curable polymer mixtures with, in particular, a high filling degree. Moreover, it is of crucial significance that the polymer concrete mixture which has not yet cured spreads rapidly, i.e. it has an excellent slump which can be achieved, inter alia, by a sufficiently low viscosity of the polymer mixture. In spite of an excellent slump, a rapid curing of the polymer mixture to be cured should, however, also be possible.
The known polymer concrete mixtures do not have the aforementioned desirable processing properties or the polymer concretes obtained therefrom do not always exhibit satisfactory values in the aforementioned mechanical properties for many fields of application.
An object of the present invention was therefore to provide curable polymer mixtures, preferably curable polymer concrete mixtures which, due to their low viscosity, ensure an improved processing, i.e. an increased slump, and the cured polymer compositions produced therefrom, preferably the polymer concretes, have improved mechanical properties compared to the previously known products. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The disclosure proceeds from a system with a measuring bar and a measuring device as described herein.
A system with a measuring bar and a measuring device which has at least one arithmetic logic unit, an inclination measuring means and an electronic distance measuring means has already been proposed. The measuring bar and the measuring device are integrally formed in this case. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to thermoplastic elastomer blends of polymers that have been prepared by dynamic vulcanization. The polymer blends comprise a crystalline polyolefin plastic matrix, such as polypropylene, and two crosslinked elastomeric polymers wherein one elastomer is butyl or halobutyl rubber and the other is an ethylene-propylene copolymer-based rubber.
2. Background
This invention relates to polymer blends which have a combination of both elastic and thermoplastic properties and which are of significant commercial interest. Such thermoelastic compositions are generally obtained by blending an elastomeric composition with a thermoplastic composition in a way such that the elastomer is intimately and uniformly dispersed as a discrete phase within a continuous phase of the thermoplastic composition. These polymer blends have been given the generic designation of Thermoplastic Olefins ("TPO"). They exhibit some of the properties of a cured elastomer as well as the reprocessibility of a thermoplastic resin. The elastomeric characteristics are enhanced if one component of the blend is a vulcanizable elastomer which is wholly or partially cross-linked.
The earliest work in the curing of a TPO composition was by Gessler and Haslett; see U.S. Pat. No. 3,037,954. That patent teaches the concept of "dynamic curing" wherein a vulcanizable elastomer is dispersed into a resinous thermoplastic polymer and the elastomer is cured while continuously mixing and shearing the polymer blend. The resulting blend is a micro-gel dispersion of cured elastomer in an uncured matrix of resinous thermoplastic polymer which is known as a dynamically vulcanized alloy ("DVA").
Gessler, '954 discloses compositions comprising polypropylene and a rubber such as, inter alia, butyl rubber; chlorinated butyl rubber, polybutadiene, polychloroprene and polyisobutene. Compositions of about 50 to 95 parts polypropylene and about 5 to 50 parts of rubber are disclosed.
The commercially useful DVAs are known to include butyl-based DVA's and EP/EPDM-based DVAs. The tensile strength of butyl-based DVAs has typically been lower than that of EP/EPDM-based DVAs when compared at the same Shore A hardness or polyolefin resin content. Thus, efforts have been directed towards improving the physical properties of butyl-based DVAs.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,758,643 and 3,806,558 disclose TPO type polymer blends comprising an olefin thermoplastic resin and an olefin copolymer rubber wherein the rubber is dynamically cured to a partial cure state. The compositions are reprocessible and result in molded products having good surface appearance. However, the potential applications of such blends are limited by their high compression set and/or low softening temperature resulting from only a partial cure of the rubber. Furthermore, the partial peroxide cure utilized in such blends is difficult to control from the standpoint of completeness of reaction, resulting in batch to batch variations in product properties.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,639,487 to Hazelton, et al. is directed to heat shrinkable DVAs including an ethylene copolymer resin blended with a butyl or halogenated butyl rubber. The butyl rubber should be at least partially dynamically vulcanized to a cured state in the presence of the copolymer. The invention is restricted in that peroxide cure systems are specifically excluded. These DVA compositions are said to possess exceptional resiliency, high coefficient of friction surfaces and low compression set.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,212,787 to Matsuda, et al., however, allows the use of peroxide cure systems and is directed to the production of partially cured DVA compositions which include 40-100 wt. % of a peroxide curable copolymer (such as EPDM); 0-60 wt. % of a peroxide decomposing copolymer (such as PE and PP); and 5-100 wt. % of a peroxide non-curable rubber, either polyisobutylene or butyl rubber. One of the objects of the Matsuda invention is to produce a DVA having improved surface appearance. This is effected by improving the fluidity of the DVA, relative to blends as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,806,558, without degradation of the heat resistance, tensile strength, flexibility, rebound-elasticity, etc.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,202,801 to Petersen relates to the partial dynamic curing of a blend of a monoolefin copolymer rubber, such as saturated EPM or EPDM; a polyolefin resin such as PP or PE, with a conjugated diene rubber such as polybutadiene or polychloroprene. Crystalline polyolefin resin may be used. The cure systems useful for the invention include the peroxides. More than one monoolefin copolymer rubber, conjugated diene rubber and polyolefin resin may be used in combination. The DVAs of this invention are said to provide low compression set and high tensile strength at elevated temperatures.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,340,684 to Bohm, et al. discloses a DVA composition which is said to have very good physical properties, especially tear strength, tensile strength, elongation at break, low temperature impact resistance, minimum creep at high temperatures, and smooth surfaces when injection molded. The compositions, which may be partially cured or uncured, comprise a blend of from about 10 to about 50 wt. % of a crystalline 1-olefin polymer, from about 80 to about 15 wt. % of a styrene-butadiene rubber, and from about 5 to about 55 wt. % of a highly saturated elastomer. The 1-olefin polymer may be polypropylene. The highly saturated elastomer is selected from the class consisting of hydrogenated polybutadiene, polyisobutylene and copolymers thereof such as butyl rubber, ethylene-propylene rubber (EPM), copolymers of ethylene-vinyl acetate, copolymers of ethylene-ethylacrylate, ethylene-propylene-diene monomer (EPDM), a hydrogenated "triblock copolymer of styrene-butadiene-styrene" and combinations thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,607,074 to Hazelton, et al. is directed to a thermoplastic composition which comprises a polyolefin resin and two rubber components. The first rubber component is selected from the group consisting of polyisobutylene and ethylene-propylene copolymer and ethylene-propylene-diene copolymer. The second rubber component is selected from the group consisting of halogenated butyl rubber and polychloroprene. The invention requires the use of a cure system which vulcanizes one rubber but not the other. This results in a TPO having good physical strength characteristics coupled with excellent processability, low hardness and low compression set suitable for use in the manufacture of molded and extruded articles such as gasketing materials, boot seals, tubing, and the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,480,074 discloses DVA compositions said to exhibit improved surface characteristics and fabricability wherein the compositions are prepared by blending an unvulcanized, but vulcanizable, monoolefin rubber with a blend containing cured polyolefin rubber with crystalline polyolefin and subsequently vulcanizing such that the final blend comprises about 15-45 parts by weight of crystalline polyolefin and 85-55 parts by weight of vulcanized rubber. EPDM is taught as both the vulcanized polyolefin rubber and the unvulcanized but vulcanizable rubber in the disclosed blends. Dynamic vulcanization utilizing peroxide cure systems, phenolic resin systems, phenylene-bismaleimide and diamine curatives, etc., is disclosed.
Japanese patent application 85,530/87 discloses a TPO composition having excellent mechanical strength, thermal stability, moldability, gas impermeability and damping characteristics. The TPO of the '530 application includes a crystalline polypropylene as a matrix and two elastomers: a bromobutyl rubber and an olefin copolymer rubber such as EPM or EPDM rubber. The composition also includes conventional additives such as process oil. All of the components are combined and vulcanized in a single batch with a peroxide cure system but there is no indication of the inclusion of a peroxide co-agent such as m-phenylene bismaleimide (HVA-2) or the like. The '530 application's inventors found that while butyl and chlorobutyl rubbers are not cross-linkable with peroxide cures, bromobutyl rubbers are. Moreover, the '530 application's inventors explain that the enhanced physical properties claimed are due to the olefin copolymer rubber which provides flexibility to the TPO and also acts as a binder at the interface between the polypropylene and the bromobutyl rubber. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
A number of systems have been used in the past to detect and/or monitor the effects of an impact from an object, for example a projectile on a body. In a laboratory environment plastina clay has typically been used when trialling or testing the ballistic type effects of an impact from a projectile, such as a bullet for example, on a body whereby the plastina clay simulates body composition. Using this type of system it is not possible to measure the actual back face velocity of an armour plate for example that is placed in front of the plastina clay. Therefore, measurements relating to the impact of the projectile on the body are inferred by indirect methods as a result of an analysis undertaken on deformation of the plastina clay.
Detecting the penetration of impacts on a body may also be measured by using a mesh fabric incorporating fibre optics placed on armour worn by a user. When a fibre is broken, it is assumed to be caused by a penetrating impact. However, this type of system is generally very fragile and cannot be used to accurately determine a ballistic impact from a rip or tear in the armour fabric caused by other sources.
Other ballistic impact detection systems incorporate peizo electric film sensor elements attached to body armour for example. The peizo film sensors detect acoustic vibration patterns caused by impacts and convert them into a voltage. The voltage is passed through a circuit which determines if the impact has the frequency and amplitude characteristics that have become associated with typical impacts that cause injuries. The voltage output from the peizo film sensors feed a battery powered analogue or digit circuit which has to be carried by the user or combatant. The circuitry is used to isolate the high energy acoustic signatures produced by ballistic impacts and discerns the approximate impact location on the body. This type of system requires a considerable amount of signal processing and filtering of the acoustic signatures in order to discriminate impact signature information from noise for example in order to provide useable impact data output.
There is therefore a need for an impact detection system for detecting and monitoring the effects of impacts on a body and in particular but not exclusively, impacts that might cause injury.
In this specification if reference has been made to patent specifications, other external documents, or other sources of information, this is generally for the purpose of providing a context for discussing the features of the invention. Unless it is specifically stated otherwise, reference to such external documents is not to be construed as an admission that such documents, or such sources of information, in any jurisdiction, are prior art or form part of the common general knowledge in the art.
It is an object of the present invention to provide improved impact detection system for detecting and measuring impact related characteristics on a body, or at least to provide industry or the public with a useful choice. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a brilliant toner, an electrostatic charge image developer, and a toner cartridge.
2. Related Art
In recent years, for the purpose of forming an image having brilliance similar to metallic luster, the use of brilliant toners including a brilliant pigment has been examined. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates to an X-ray tube and more particularly an X-ray tube equipped with a control grid located between a cathode and an anode to control electrons emitted from the cathode.
Generally, a cathode of a control grid-equipped X-ray tube has a cathode body on which is mounted a focusing electrode means having first and second focusing electrodes and a filament. The control grid is disposed between the first and second focusing electrodes. The grid and second focusing electrode are electrically connected to the first focusing electrode, and the second focusing electrode has an opening toward which the filament extends and through which electrons emitted from the filament passes. The first and second focusing electrodes and control grid are made at the same potential level and upon application of a grid bias an electric current in the tube is controlled, thereby causing electrons passing through an opening of the second focusing electrode to impinge upon an anode target under a controlled fashion. As a result, a desired X-ray is obtained from a focus on the anode target. During the use of the tube, however, an ionization current of a residual gas in the tube flows into a grid circuit, tending to change the grid bias. When the bias voltage is changed, no same potential is obtained from the filament and first and second focusing electrodes and in consequence the focusing state of electrons passing through the opening of the second focusing electrode is varied. In this case, a focus pattern on the anode target is varied, making it impossible to positively obtain a desired X-ray. Furthermore, a bias voltage becomes positive due to the ionization current of the residual gas in the tube. In this case, it is impossible to provide a stable grid control and in the worst case the X-ray tube suffers damage.
To eliminate such drawbacks a control grid equipped X-ray tube is known in which the grid is insulated from the first focusing electrode, first and second electrodes are made at the same potential level with that of a filament, and a bias voltage is applied to the grid. Since the first focusing electrode is small, for example, 25 to 30 mm in diameter and 10 to 15 mm in thickness, however, a greater insulator can not be disposed between the grid and the first focusing electrode. When a high grid bias of -2000 to -3000V is applied it is impossible to entirely insulate the grid from the first focusing electrode and in consequence it is impossible to provide a stable grid bias. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Typically, fall restraint equipment and its components are manufactured by cutting and welding stock pieces of material together. The stock material commonly exhibits a predefined configuration, size, and arrangement. As a result, the stock material must be plasma cut to the desired shape and/or size. The resulting pieces are then welded together to form a component. To accomplish this, a surface of one piece is placed flat against a surface of another, and the connection between the two is then welded. As a result, the strength of the formed component is limited at least in part by the weld holding the two pieces together. Once the component is formed, it is attached to other components that have been formed in the same manner by welding the two components together. Similarly, the strength of the resulting equipment is limited at least in part by the weld holding its components together.
Additionally, manufacturing equipment in this manner is both time-consuming and costly. Moreover, the drilling and cutting of the stock materials must be accomplished with precision in order to create a stable end product. Variances greater than an acceptable level render the smaller pieces unusable, which are typically discarded as it is often unfeasible to use them in another product once they have been drilled or cut. Moreover, if other parts cannot be cut or drilled from the remaining portions of the stock materials, they too are discarded. Further, different types and sizes of the metal stock material must be kept on hand in order to form the components to be welded together. The inefficient yet inescapable use of stock material also increases the costs associated with manufacturing fall restraint equipment. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to a liquid-vapour distribution device for use in two-phase concurrent down-flow vessels. In particular, the invention concerns a liquid distribution device in form of a common header combining multiple vapour lift tubes (referred to as a BOXVLT) that improves distribution of liquid and vapour phases when a plurality of these BOXVLTs are assembled over a cross sectional area of a vessel in order to achieve thermal and compositional equilibrium in catalytic reactions. The device is in particular useful in hydroprocessing reactors.
The known designs of liquid distribution devices fall into one of five categories. The first is a series of troughs and overflow weirs to systematically subdivide the liquid into multiple streams before it contacts a catalytic bed. This type is often used in liquid contractors or countercurrent absorbers. An example of this type is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,192,465.
A second type of liquid distribution devices is a perforated horizontal tray. This may or may not have notched weirs around the perforations. The tray may also have chimneys for vapour flow. This type of distribution device can be used for rough liquid distribution in conjunction with a more sophisticated final liquid distribution tray. Examples of this type are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,989.
The third common type of liquid distribution devices is a chimney tray. This device uses a number of standpipes laid out typically on a regular square or triangular pitch pattern on a horizontal tray. The stand pipes typically have holes in the sides for the passage of liquid. The tops of the standpipes are open to allow vapour flow down through the centre of the chimneys. Some designs use special vapour down-corner chimneys to handle the bulk of the vapour flow. This type is known from U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,126,540 and 3,353,924.
The fourth type of liquid distribution devices is a bubble cap tray. This device uses a number of bubble caps laid out on a regular-pitched pattern on a horizontal tray. The bubble cap is formed with a cap centred concentrically on a standpipe. The sides of the cap are slotted for vapour flow. Liquid flows under the cap and, together with the vapour, flows upward in the annular area and then down through the centre of the standpipe as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,158,714.
The known trough type distribution device is mechanically complex and very sensitive to levelness. Depending on the design of the transitions between troughs, the quality of the distribution may also be susceptible to fouling.
The known perforated plate design is similar to the chimney design. The chimney design is preferred since it can be designed for a wider range of liquid/vapour loadings and is less susceptible to fouling.
A further known type of liquid distribution devices is perforated tray provided with vapour lift tubes in form of a long legged down-corner fitted with one or more short legged upcomers creating an up-flow zone and down-flow zone within the tube. The sides of the short legged upcomer are slotted and liquid flowing concurrently with vapour is lifted by means of the vapour flow upwardly in an up-flow zone and evenly distributed together with the vapour through the down-flow zone to an underlying catalyst bed as further described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,942,162.
The advantage of a vapour lift tube device over a chimney type design is the significantly wider turndown range possible with the vapour lift tube. As the liquid flow decreases, a properly designed chimney must either become taller or have smaller holes drilled in the side. Due to fabricating tolerances, care of installation and deflection due to operating load, not all of the distribution devices will be at the same level in the vessel. At some level of turndown, some holes will be covered with liquid and others will not. This results in uneven liquid distribution over the surface below the tray. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Hand held computing devices (i.e., hereinafter referred to as “hand held devices” or “handheld devices”) are very popular for storing and maintaining information. Although PDAs may be connected to a desktop personal computer or other PDAs via infrared, direct wire, or wireless communication links, PDAs and similar hand held devices, can be linked to remote networks, such as the Internet, or local wireless resources, such as RF broadcasts, through available wireless communications techniques.
The most advanced data- and video-enabled wireless communication devices currently available in the marketplace take the form of a PDA (e.g., iPhone, Windows CE compatible hand held computers, Android, and hand-held gaming devices). Unlike personal computers, which are general-purpose devices geared toward refining and processing information, PDAs are designed to capture, store and display information originating from various sources. Additionally, while a certain level of skill is required to use a personal computer effectively, PDAs are designed with the novice and non-computer user in mind.
Attempts have been made to provide venue-based, interactive entertainment to enhance the fan experience at live events. Such attempts utilize touch-screen technology integrated directly into seats at outdoor or indoor arenas. Audience members, however, due to their integration with the viewer seat, can easily damage such devices. Systems that incorporate such devices are also expensive because they literally require miles of cable. The present invention attempts to solve these problems through the use of wireless hand held devices and the Internet.
The Internet, like so many other high tech developments, grew from research originally performed by the United States Department of Defense. In the 1960s, the military had accumulated a large collection of incompatible computer networks. Because of their incompatible data structures and transmission protocols, many of these computers could not communicate with other computers across network boundaries.
In the 1960s, the Defense Department wanted to develop a communication system that would permit communication between these different computer networks. Recognizing that a single, centralized communication system would be vulnerable to attacks or sabotage, the Defense Department required that the communication system be decentralized with no critical services concentrated in vulnerable failure points. In order to achieve this goal, the Defense Department established a decentralized communication protocol for communication between their computer networks.
A few years later, the National Science Foundation (NSF) wanted to facilitate communication between incompatible network computers at various research institutions across the country. The NSF adopted the Defense Department's protocol for communication, and this combination of research computer networks would eventually evolve into the Internet.
Internet Protocols
The Defense Department's communication protocol governing data transmission between different networks was called the Internet Protocol (IP) standard. The IP standard has been widely adopted for the transmission of discrete information packets across network boundaries. In fact, the IP standard is the standard protocol governing communications between computers and networks on the Internet.
The IP standard identifies the types of services to be provided to users and specifies the mechanisms needed to support these services. The IP standard also specifies the upper and lower system interfaces, defines the services to be provided on these interfaces, and outlines the execution environment for services needed in the system.
A transmission protocol, called the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), was developed to provide connection-oriented, end-to-end data transmission between packet-switched computer networks. The combination of TCP with IP (TCP/IP) forms a suite of protocols for information packet transmissions between computers on the Internet. The TCP/IP standard has also become a standard protocol for use in all packet switching networks that provide connectivity across network boundaries.
In a typical Internet-based communication scenario, data is transmitted from an originating communication device on a first network across a transmission medium to a destination communication device on a second network. After receipt at the second network, the packet is routed through the network to a destination communication device. Because standard protocols are used in Internet communications, the IP protocol on the destination communication device decodes the transmitted information into the original information transmitted by the originating device.
TCP/IP Addressing and Routing
A computer operating on a network is assigned a unique physical address under the TCP/IP protocols. This is called an IP address. The IP address can include: (1) a network ID and number identifying a network, (2) a sub-network ID number identifying a substructure on the network, and (3) a host ID number identifying a particular computer on the sub-network. A header data field in the information packet will include source and destination addresses. The IP addressing scheme imposes a consistent addressing scheme that reflects the internal organization of the network or sub-network.
A router, agent or gateway is used to regulate the transmission of information packets into and out of the computer network. Routers interpret the logical address contained in information packet headers and direct the information packets to the intended destination. Information packets addressed between computers on the same network do not pass through the router to the greater network, and as such, these information packets will not clutter the transmission lines of the greater network. If data is addressed to a computer outside the network, the router forwards the data onto the greater network.
The Internet protocols were originally developed with an assumption that Internet users would be connected to a single, fixed network. With the advent of cellular wireless communication systems, such as mobile communication devices, the movement of Internet users within a network and across network boundaries has become common. Because of this highly mobile Internet usage, the implicit design assumption of the Internet protocols (e.g. a fixed user location) is violated by the mobility of the user.
In an IP-based mobile communication system, the mobile communication device (e.g. cellular phone, pager, computer, etc.) can be called a Mobile Node. Typically, a Mobile Node maintains connectivity to its home network through a foreign network. The Mobile Node will always be associated with its home network for IP addressing purposes and will have information routed to it by routers located on the home and foreign networks. The routers can be referred to by a number of names including Home Agent, Home Mobility Manager, Home Location Register, Foreign Agent, Serving Mobility Manager, Visited Location Register, and Visiting Serving Entity. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the operation of transit doors.
2. Description of Related Art
There are several conventional approaches to vehicular door systems (of the type typically used in bus or rail mass-transit systems). Commonly used approaches include the following.
Swing doors: These are simple double panel doors which swing outward.
Slide-glide doors: Alternatively known as “inward retracting” doors, slide-guide doors have a mechanism that rotates the double door panels outward (similarly to the “swing doors”) but simultaneously retract the door panels into the vehicle. The ideal result is that the door panels are seated flat against the entryway perimeter but with the interior surface of the doors exposed rather than the outside surface (allowing handrails and other “interior” hardware to be accessible when the vehicle is stopped and the doors are in the open position, but not exposed on the exterior of the vehicle when the vehicle is in operation).
In each type of door, along each vertical door frame is positioned driven door shafts which through various linkages drive the opening and closing of the adjacent door panels. A number of transit buses have a significant curve back at the top of the front end of the bus such that the upper end of the forward most door panel must also be curved back. In the past, in order to accommodate the curve back of the door, the driven door shaft is comprised of two offset vertical drive shafts 20, 21 joined by an intermediate shaft 23 that has universal joints 24, 25 at each end as shown in FIG. 1. The intermediate shaft 23 has a sliding spline 26 on one end that interfaces a complementary spline on one of the universal joints. This allows the two universal joints to be installed at various distances from each other, thereby accounting for the production tolerances present in the frame of the bus. Arms 27 fixed to the drive shafts 20 operate the door panels to open and close.
There are also situations wherein rectangular doors have two coaxial drive shafts due to the configuration of the walls adjacent the door and/or obstructions between the upper and lower shafts.
Referring to FIG. 2, a rotary actuator 30 drives connecting rods 31, 32 which drive door shaft levers 33, 34 to open and close the doors.
Unfortunately, each universal joint and the spline connection are sources of backlash which must be accounted for in the design of the door. Moreover, each of these elements must be periodically lubricated. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
There are various devices known for positioning or controlling the movement of a cursor on a computer display screen. The most common in use is the conventional "mouse" device, in the form of a hand-sized housing which is moved over a flat desktop. Motion over the desktop is sensed by means of a mechanically rotating ball or optically reflective sensor, and digital data are generated which translate into corresponding motion of the cursor on the display screen. Other cursor positioning devices include the graphics input tablet, consisting of a flat sensor pad and a hand-held pointing stylus, which translates the analog motion of the pointing stylus into digitized data used to control the location of the cursor on the display screen. Still other cursor movement devices rely on focused light sources, held by the user or fixed on the user's person, as on a pilot's helmet. As the user aims the light beam, sensors mounted around a display screen track the movement of the beam and translate this movement into a corresponding movement of the cursor on the display screen.
Devices such as those discussed above are basically effective, although they suffer from certain disadvantages. Most cursor positioning and controlling devices require a fixed, generally level surface upon which to operate, or must operate in conjuction with a stationary sensor of some type; that is, motion is sensed with respect to a fixed medium and positional data signals are generated and presented to a computer for translation into a corresponding cursor movement. The need for a fixed surface or stationary sensor constrains how the user may interact with the display device. The user must normally sit close to the display screen and be provided with ample level desk space for placement of the graphics tablet or movement of the "mouse." In the case of the stationary sensor, the user must confine movement to keep the light beam within range of the sensor array and aimed appropriately.
Still another disadvantage of many present-day cursor movement devices is that they require a level of manual dexterity for their effective use. This requirement has its greatest impact in the area of the physically disabled. To operate a computer, a disabled person may find that a mouse, a graphics tablet, or even a keyboard is useless to him.
The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art devices, such as the requirements of a flat desktop, aiming of a light source, or the manual dexterity of the user. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Cancer is the second leading cause of human death next to coronary disease in the United States. Worldwide, millions of people die from cancer every year. In the United States alone, as reported by the American Cancer Society, cancer causes the death of well over a half-million people annually, with over 1.2 million new cases diagnosed per year. While deaths from heart disease have been declining significantly, those resulting from cancer generally are on the rise. Cancer is soon predicted to become the leading cause of death.
Cancer is an abnormal state in which uncontrolled proliferation of one or more cell populations interferes with normal biological functioning. The proliferative changes are usually accompanied by other changes in cellular properties, including reversion to a less differentiated, more developmentally primitive state. The in vitro correlate of cancer is called cellular transformation. Transformed cells generally display several or all of the following properties: spherical morphology, expression of fetal antigens, growth-factor independence, lack of contact inhibition, anchorage-independence, and growth to high density.
Immunotherapy involves evoking an immune response against cancer cells based on their production of target antigens. Immunotherapy based on cell-mediated immune responses involves generating a cell-mediated response to cells that produce particular antigenic determinants, while immunotherapy based on humoral immune responses involves generating specific antibodies to cells that produce particular antigenic determinants.
Immunotherapies for preventing, ameliorating and/or treating cancer and tumors by means of using whole cell vaccines have the advantage of being multivalent with respect to tumor-antigens. However whole cell vaccines are usually only weakly immunogenic. Thus, a need remains for methods to increase the immunogenicity of this type of cancer vaccine. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to novel compounds which make it possible to transfer nucleic acids into cells. More precisely, these novel compounds are lipid derivatives of polythiourea. They are useful for the in vitro, ex vivo or in vivo transfection of nucleic acids into various cell types.
With the development of biotechnology, the possibility of effectively transferring nucleic acids into cells has become a necessity. It may involve the transfer of nucleic acids into cells in vitro, for example, for the production of recombinant proteins, or in the laboratory for studying the regulation of the expression of genes, the cloning of genes, or any other manipulation involving DNA. It may also involve the transfer of nucleic acids into cells in vivo, for example for the creation of transgenic animals, the production of vaccines, labeling studies or also therapeutic approaches. It may also involve the transfer of nucleic acids into cells ex vivo, in approaches including bone marrow transplants, immunotherapy or other methods involving the transfer of genes into cells collected from an organism for the purpose of their subsequent readministration.
Several methods have been proposed for the intracellular delivery of exogenous genetic material. One of them, in particular, is based on the use of nonviral vectors which constitute a highly advantageous alternative to the viral methods which are not completely risk free. These synthetic vectors have two main functions: to complex and to compact the nucleic acid to be transfected, and to promote its passage across the plasma membrane and possibly across the nuclear envelope.
Several families of synthetic vectors have thus been developed, such as for example polymers or alternatively biochemical vectors (consisting of a cationic protein combined with a cellular receptor ligand), but a major advance has in particular been made with the development of lipofectants and more particularly of cationic lipids. It has thus been demonstrated that cationic lipids, because of their overall positive charge, spontaneously interfere with DNA which is globally negative, forming nucleolipid complexes capable both of protecting the DNA against nucleases and of binding to the cellular membranes for intracellular release of the DNA.
Various types of cationic lipids have been synthesized to date: lipids comprising a quaternal ammonium group (for example DOTMA, DOTAP, DMRIE, DLRIE, and the like), lipopolyamines such as for example DOGS, DC-Chol or alternatively the lipopolyamines disclosed in Patent Application WO 97/18185, lipids combining both a quaternary ammonium group and a polyamine such as DOSPA, or alternatively lipids comprising various other cationic entities, in particular amidinium groups (for example ADPDE, ADODE or the lipids of patent application WO 97/31935).
However, the use of these cationic lipids as transfection agent still poses numerous problems, and their efficiency remains to be improved. In particular, it has been observed that to obtain efficient and stable nucleolipid complexes, it is in general necessary for these complexes to be highly cationic. However, it would be desirable to be able to have available vectors which are not cationic so as to form, with the nucleic acid, particles which are globally neutral or negative. Indeed, it has been observed that the globally cationic complexes formed between the nucleic acid and the cationic lipids tend to be captured by the reticuloendothelial system, which induces their elimination. In addition, the plasma proteins tend to become adsorbed at their surface because of the overall positive charge of the complexes formed, and this results in a loss of the transfection power. Furthermore, in a context of local injection, the presence of a large overall positive charge prevents the diffusion of the nucleic acid complexes away from the site of administration because the complexes become adsorbed onto the extracellular matrices; the complexes can therefore no longer reach the target cells, which consequently causes, a decrease in the transfer efficiency in relation to the injected quantity of complexes. Finally, it has also been observed, in many instances, that cationic lipids have an inflammatory effect.
The object of the present invention is precisely to provide novel transfecting compounds which are innovative by virtue of their polythiourea functional group and which are capable of being efficiently used for the in vitro, ex vivo or in vivo transfection of nucleic acids. These novel compounds are particularly advantageous because:
the absence of positive charges from their structure makes it possible to solve the many problems raised by the use of cationic vectors discussed above,
just like cationic lipids, they are capable of complexing and compacting nucleic acids and of promoting their transfection.
A first subject of the present invention is thus transfecting compounds characterized in that they consist of a polythiourea part linked to a lipid via a spacer.
In particular, the subject of the present invention is transfecting compounds of general formula (I):
in which:
l is an integer chosen from 0 and 1,
n is an integer chosen from 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6,
m is an integer chosen from 2, 3 and 4, it being possible for m to take different values within the different groups xe2x80x94[NHxe2x80x94CSxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94(CH)m]xe2x80x94,
Rxe2x80x2 represents a group of general formula (II):
xe2x80x83in which q is an integer chosen from 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, and p is an integer chosen from 2, 3 and 4, it being possible for p to take different values within the different groups xe2x80x94[(CH2)pxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94CSxe2x80x94NH]xe2x80x94,
R represents either a hydrogen atom or a group of general formula (II) as defined above, it being understood that when n is 1 and l is 0, then at least one group R is of formula (II),
X, in the formulae (I) and (II), represents a saturated or unsaturated, linear or cyclic aliphatic group, comprising 1 to 8 carbon atoms, a mercaptomethyl (xe2x80x94CH2SH) group, or alternatively a hydrophilic chain chosen from the groups:
xe2x80x94(CH2)xxe2x80x94(CHOH)uxe2x80x94H with x an integer chosen from 1 to 10 and u an integer chosen from 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, or alternatively,
xe2x80x94(OCH2CH2O)vxe2x80x94H with v an integer chosen from 1, 2 and 3, it being understood that no more than one substituent X, both in the formulae (I) and (II), represents a hydrophilic chain,
Y represents a spacer,
and L represents:
either a group xe2x80x94N(R1)R2 with R1 and R2 which represent, independently of each other, a hydrogen atom or alternatively a fatty aliphatic chain, or alternatively a group of formula xe2x80x94(CH2)txe2x80x94OZ with t representing an integer chosen from 11, 12, 13, 14 or 15 and Z represents a sugar, a polyol or a PEG, it being understood that at least one of R1 and R2 is different from hydrogen,
or a group xe2x80x94OR3, with R3 which represents a steroid derivative.
According to the present invention, the term xe2x80x9cspacerxe2x80x9d is understood to mean any chemical group which makes it possible both to provide the linkage between the polythiourea part and the lipid part of the molecule, and to keep these two parts apart so as to attenuate any undesirable interruption between them. Preferred spacers may for example consist of one or more chemical functional groups chosen from alkyls having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, ketone, ester, ether, amide, amidine, carbamate or thiocarbamate functional groups, glycerol, urea, thiourea, or else aromatic rings. For example, the spacer may be chosen from the groups of formula:
xe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94C(O)xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94
or:
xe2x80x94(CH2xe2x80x94)ixe2x80x94Wxe2x80x94(CH2)jxe2x80x94
in which i and j are integers chosen between 1 and 6 inclusive and W is a group chosen from ketone, ester, ether, amide, amidine, carbamate or thiocarbamate functional groups, glycerol, urea, thiourea, or alternatively aromatic rings.
For the purposes of the present invention, the expression xe2x80x9cfatty aliphatic chainsxe2x80x9d is understood to mean alkyl groups containing 10 to 22 carbon atoms which are saturated or unsaturated and optionally containing one or more heteroatoms, provided that said fatty aliphatic chains exhibit lipid properties. Preferably, they are linear or branched alkyl groups containing 10 to 22 carbon atoms and 1, 2 or 3 unsaturations. Preferably, said alkyl groups comprise 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 or 22 carbon atoms. There may be mentioned more particularly the aliphatic groups xe2x80x94(CH2)11CH3, xe2x80x94(CH2)13CH3, (CH2)15CH3 and xe2x80x94(CH2)17CH3.
The term xe2x80x9csugarxe2x80x9d is understood to mean, for the purposes of the invention, any molecule consisting of one or more saccharides. There may be mentioned, by way of example, sugars such as pyranoses and furanoses, for example glucose, mannose, rhamnose, galactose, fructose or alternatively maltose, lactose, saccharose, sucrose, fucose, cellobiose, allose, laminarabiose, gentiobiose, sophorose, melibiose, and the like. Preferably, the sugar(s) are chosen from glucose, mannose, rhamnose, galactose, fructose, lactose, saccharose and cellobiose. Furthermore, it may also involve so-called xe2x80x9ccomplexxe2x80x9d sugars, that is to say several sugars which are covalently coupled to each other, each sugar being preferably chosen from the list cited above. As suitable polysaccharides, there may be mentioned dextran, xcex1-amylose, amylopectin, fructans, mannans, xylans and arabinans. Some preferred sugars may in addition interact with the cell receptors, such as for example certain types of lectin.
According to the invention, the term xe2x80x9cpolyolxe2x80x9d is also understood to mean any linear, branched or cyclic hydrocarbon molecule comprising at least two hydroxyl functional groups. There may be mentioned by way of example glycerol, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, tetritols, pentitols, cyclic pentitols (or quercitols), hexitols such as mannitol, sorbitol, dulcitols, cyclic hexitols or inositols, and the like (Stanek et al., The Monosaccharides Academic Press, pp. 621-655 and pp. 778-855). According to a preferred aspect; the polyols are chosen from the alcohols of general formula:
for which s is chosen from 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.
When the compounds of general formula (I) according to the invention contain a polyethylene glycol (PEG) group, the latter generally comprises between 2 and 120 xe2x80x94OCH2CH2Oxe2x80x94 units, and preferably between 2 and 80 xe2x80x94OCH2CH2Oxe2x80x94 units. This may include simple PEGs, that is to say whose chain ending ends with a hydroxyl group, or else PEG whose terminal group is chosen from alkyls, for example methyl.
For the purposes of the present invention, the expression xe2x80x9csteroid derivativesxe2x80x9d is understood to mean polycyclic compounds of the cholestane type. These compounds may be natural or otherwise and are more preferably chosen from cholesterol, cholestanol, 3-xcex1-5-cyclo-5-xcex1-cholestan-6-xcex2-ol, cholic acid, cholesteryl formate, chotestanyl formate, 3xcex1,5-cyclo-5xcex1-cholestan-6xcex2-yl formate, cholesterylamine, 6-(1,5-dimethylhexyl)-3a,5a-dimethylhexadecahydrocyclopenta[a]cyclopropa[2,3]cyclopenta[1,2-f]naphthalen-10-ylamine, or cholestanylamine.
According to a preferred variant of the invention, the transfecting compounds have the general formula (lII):
in which X, m, n and Y are as defined above in general formula (I), with the exception of n which is different from 1, and R1 and R2 represent, independently of each other, a hydrogen atom or else a fatty aliphatic chain, it being understood that at least one of R1 and R2 is different from hydrogen.
More preferably still, the transfecting compounds of the invention have the general formula (IV):
in which m, n and Y are as defined above in general formula (I), with the exception of n which is different from 1, and R1 and R2 represent, independently of each other, a hydrogen atom or else a fatty aliphatic chain, it being understood that at least one of R1 and R2 is different from hydrogen.
It is understood that the present invention also relates to the isomers of the products of general formula (I) when they exist, as well as mixtures thereof.
The preparation of the compounds of general formula (I) according to the present invention is carried out using the following steps, in the order presented or according to any other known and equally suitable variant, using conventional organic synthesis techniques, in solution or on solid supports, which are well known to a person skilled in the art:
1) Production of the Lipid Part L
When the lipid part L of the compounds of general formula (I) is represented by a group xe2x80x94N(R1)R2 with R1 and/or R2 which represent a fatty aliphatic chain, the amine of formula HN(R1)R2 is first of all formed. Said amine may be obtained by condensing a carboxylic acid and an amine, one containing the substituent R1 and the other the substituent R2, to form the corresponding amide, followed by reduction of said amide thus obtained.
Amide formation is advantageously carried out by mixing constituents and melting, by heating at a temperature of greater than the melting point of the substances involved, in general between 20xc2x0 C. and 200xc2x0 C., followed by elimination of the water produced by dehydrating the medium; or more advantageously in the presence of a desiccating agent such as for example phosphorus pentoxide or any other substance which can absorb water. The formation of this intermediate amide may also be carried out using a variant of this method or another method for forming an amide (such as for example peptide-coupling type) involving carboxylic acids or derivatives thereof, and varying conditions and reagents [R. C. Larock, Comprehensive Organic Transformations, VCH Publishers] well known to a person skilled in the art.
The reduction of the amide previously obtained to an amine of formula HN(R1)R2 may be carried out for example using a reducing agent such as lithium aluminum hydride, or any other hydride or reducing agent effective in this case. The procedure is then preferably carried out in an aprotic solvent (for example tetrahydrofuran or ethers) at a temperature below the boiling point of the solvent or under a dry and/or inert atmosphere.
According to another variant, the lipid part designated as HN(R1)R2 may be commercially available.
When R1 and/or R2 represent(s) a group of formula xe2x80x94(CH2)txe2x80x94OZ, the procedure is carried out as described above for forming the alkyl part, followed by simple coupling with a commercial PEG, polyol or sugar according to conventional techniques known to a person skilled in the art.
When the lipid part L of the compounds of the general formula (I) is represented by a group xe2x80x94OR3, the latter is preferably chosen from commercially available products.
2) Grafting of the Spacer Y
The spacer Y is then attached to the lipid part L obtained in the preceding stage according to conventional techniques known to a person skilled in the art. According to a preferred variant, an amide bond is made by N-acylation of the lipid part L in an appropriate solvent such as dichloromethane, chloroform, tetrahydrofuran, or any other ether, at a temperature below the boiling point of the solvent, and under a dry and/or inert atmosphere. This reaction is preferably carried out in the presence of an amine-containing base such as N,N-dimethylaminopyridine, or in the presence of this base mixed with non-nucleophilic amine-containing bases such as triethylamine or else ethyl diisopropylamine. Pyridine may also be used, alone or mixed with another base, diluted with one of the solvents mentioned or used itself as solvent.
3) Formation of the Polythiourea Chain
The third part of the synthesis of the compounds of general formula (I) consists in the successive introduction of the thiourea units. This will be carried out in a series of reactions which may be repeated as many times as necessary in order to obtain the desired polythiourea part. According to a preferred method, the procedure is carried out in the following manner:
A) There is first of all grafted onto the Yxe2x80x94C(O)xe2x80x94L obtained in the preceding stage the first part of the unit in the form of a member xe2x80x94HNxe2x80x94(CHR)mxe2x80x94 group. For that, the procedure is advantageously carried out starting with a diamine-containing member of formula H2Nxe2x80x94(CHR)mxe2x80x94NH2 in the presence of a coupling agent, for example 1-benzotriazolyloxytris(pyrrolidino)phosphonium hexafluorophosphate (PyBOP), 1-benzotriazolyloxytris(dimethylamino)phosphonium hexafluorophosphate (BOP), O-(1H-benzotriazol-1-yl)-N,N,Nxe2x80x2,Nxe2x80x2-tetramethyluronium hexafluorophosphate or tetrafluoroborate (HBTU or TBTU), dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC), 1-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-3-ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC), or else 1-(3-trimethylammoniopropyl)-3-ethylcarbodiimide iodide, supported or otherwise. This coupling is carried out in a suitable solvent, for example dichloromethane, chloroform, tetrahydrofuran or any other ether, at a temperature below the boiling point of a solvent, and under a dry and/or inert atmosphere. The procedure is also carried out in the presence of a non-nucleophilic amine-containing base, for example ethyldiisopropylamine, triethylamine or else triisopropylamine. If the nature of the lipid part and of the spacer is compatible, a sequence of the SCNxe2x80x94(CHR)mxe2x80x94 type, or a precursor, may be grafted, thus making it possible to continue the synthesis through a stage such as that described below in C),
B) The product obtained in the preceding stage is then converted, according to a preferred technique, to isothiocyanate by treating with carbon disulfide (CS2), or with any other reagent known to the person skilled in the art for obtaining such a functionality [H. Ulrich, Chemistry and Technology of Isocyanates, Wiley (1996). The Chemistry of Cyanates and their Thio Derivatives, S. Patai Ed., Wiley (1977). S. Ozaki, Recent Advances in Isocyanate Chemistry, Chem. Rev. 72, 457 (1972)]. The reaction is advantageously carried out in a solvent such as for example tetrahydrofuran, or any other compatible ether solvent, at a temperature varying between that of the cooling mixtures and about 20xc2x0 C. The procedure is also carried out in the presence of an agent capable of promoting the reaction and/or of trapping the hydrogen sulfide released during the reaction, for example dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC).
C) The thiourea unit is then formed from the isothiocyanate obtained in the preceding stage so as to allow, where appropriate, the introduction of another segment of formula xe2x80x94CHR)mxe2x80x94. Advantageously, a diamine of formula H2Nxe2x80x94(CHR)mxe2x80x94NH2, optionally protected, is reacted, in its neutral form or in the form of an acid salt, with the isothiocyanate obtained in the preceding stage. This reaction is optionally carried out in the presence of a non-nucleophilic amine-containing base, for example triethylamine, ethyldiisopropylamine, triisopropylamine or else 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU). The procedure is preferably carried out in a suitable solvent such as dichloromethane, chloroform, tetrahydrofuran or any other compatible ether or solvent, at a temperature which may be between that of the cooling mixtures and the reflux temperature of the solvent.
Stages B) and C) described above are then repeated sequentially and in the required order until the desired structure is obtained, so as to introduce the desired unit in n copies. To obtain branched structures, the procedure is carried out in a similar manner by introducing, at the appropriate time, the molecule(s) required to obtain a substitution R as described by formula (II).
4) Ending of the Polythiourea Part by Introducing the Substituent X
The last stage allowing the ending of the polythiourea-type chain(s) consists in introducing the substituent X. For that, conventional grafting methods known to a person skilled in the art, chosen according to the nature of the substituent X, are used. For example, when X represents an alkyl, the procedure is carried out by reacting an alkyl isothiocyanate, in the presence, when necessary, of a non-nucleophilic amine-containing base such as for example triethylamine, ethyldiisopropylamine, triisopropylamine or else 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU). The reaction is performed in a suitable solvent, for example dichloromethane, chloroform, tetrahydrofuran or any other compatible ether, at a temperature between the temperature of the cooling mixtures and the reflux temperature of the solvent.
Naturally, when the various substituents can interfere with the reaction, it is preferable to protect them beforehand with compatible radicals which can be put in place and removed without affecting the remainder of the molecule. For that, the procedure is carried out according to conventional methods known to a person skilled in the art, and in particular according to the methods described in T. W. Greene, Protective Groups in Organic Synthesis, Wiley-lnterscience, in McOmie, Protective Groups in Organic Chemistry, Plenum Press, or in P. J. Kocienski, Protecting Groups, Thieme.
Moreover, each stage of the method of preparation may be followed, where appropriate, by stages for separating and purifying the compound obtained according to any method known to a person skilled in the art.
Preferred compounds according to the present invention are:
The 3-(2-{3-[2-(3-{2-[3-(ditetradecylcarbamoyl)propionylamino]ethyl}thioureido)ethyl]thioureido}ethyl)-1-methylthiourea, designated herein as DTTU or as DT-3TU, corresponds to the general formula (I), wherein X=xe2x80x94CH3; m=2; R=H; n=3; l=0; Y=NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2; and L=xe2x80x94N(R1)R2 où R1=R2=C14H29. Designation of this compound as DT-3TU, refers to the three thiourea groups comprised therein; in addition, examples of this nomenclature include, DT-4TU comprising four thioureas, DT-2TU comprising two thioureas, etc.
The 3-(2-{3-[2-(3-{2-[3-(2-{3-[ditetradecyl-carbamoyl]propionylamino}-ethyl)-thioureido]-ethyl}-thioureido)-ethyl]-thioureido}-ethyl)-1-methylthiourea or DT-4TU is according to the general formula (I), wherein X=xe2x80x94CH3; m=2; R=H; n=4; and l==0; Y=NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2; and L=xe2x80x94N(R1)R2 where R1=R2=C14H29.
The DT-3TU diol or Synthesis of [2-(3-{2-[3-(2-{3-[2-(3-(ditetradecyl-carbamoyl)propionylamino)-ethyl]-thioureido}ethyl)-thioureido]-ethyl}-thioureido)-ethyl]-propane-1,2-diol, is according to the general formula (I), wherein:
m=2
R=H
n=3
l=0
Y=NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2; and
L=xe2x80x94N(R1)R2 where R1=R2=C14H29.
The DT-2TU diol or [2-(3-{2-[3-(ditetradecyl-carbamoyl)propionylamino]-ethyl}-thioureido)-ethyl]-propane-1,2-diol Where according to the general formula (I), wherein
m=2
R=H
n=2
l=0
Y=NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2; and
L=xe2x80x94N(R1)R2 where R1=R2=C14H29
Another subject of the invention relates to the compositions comprising a transfecting compound according to the invention and a nucleic acid. The respective quantities of each component may be easily adjusted by a person skilled in the art according to the transfecting compound used, the nucleic acid and the desired applications (in particular the type of cells to be transfected).
For the purposes of the invention, the expression xe2x80x9cnucleic acidxe2x80x9d is understood to mean both a deoxyribonucleic acid and a ribonucleic acid. They may be natural or artificial sequences, and in particular genomic DNA (gDNA), complementary DNA (cDNA), messenger RNA (mRNA), transfer RNA (tRNA), ribosomal RNA (rRNA), hybrid sequences such as DNA/RNA chimeroplasts or synthetic or semisynthetic sequences, and oligonucleotides which are modified or otherwise. These nucleic acids may be of human, animal, plant, bacterial or viral origin and the like. They may be obtained by any technique known to persons skilled in the art, and in particular by the screening of libraries, by chemical synthesis or by mixed methods including the chemical or enzymatic modification of sequences obtained by the screening of libraries. They may be chemically modified. In general, they contain at least 10, 20, 50 or 100 consecutive nucleotides, and preferably at least 200 consecutive nucleotides. More preferably still, they contain at least 500 consecutive nucleotides.
As regards more particularly deoxyribonucleic acids, they may be single- or double-stranded, as well as short oligonucleotides or longer sequences. In particular, the nucleic acids advantageously consist of plasmids, vectors, episomes, expression cassettes and the like. These deoxyribonucleic acids may carry a prokaryotic or eukaryotic replication origin which is functional or otherwise in the target cell, one or more marker genes, sequences for regulating transcription or replication, genes of therapeutic interest, anti-sense sequences which are modified or otherwise, regions for binding to other cellular components, and the like.
Preferably, the nucleic acid comprises one or more genes of therapeutic interest under the control of regulatory sequences, for example one or more promoters and a transcriptional terminator which are active in the target cells.
For the purposes of the invention, the expression gene of therapeutic interest is understood to mean in particular any gene encoding a protein product having a therapeutic effect. The protein product thus encoded may in particular be a protein or a peptide. This protein product may be exogenous, homologous or endogenous in relation to the target cell, that is to say a product which is normally expressed in the target cell when the latter has no pathological condition. In this case, the expression of a protein makes it possible, for example, to palliate an insufficient expression in the cell or the expression of a protein which is inactive or weakly active because of a modification, or to overexpress said protein. The gene of therapeutic interest may also encode a mutant of a cellular protein, having increased stability, modified activity and the like. The protein product may also be heterologous in relation to the target cell. In this case, an expressed protein may, for example, supplement or provide an activity which is deficient in the cell, allowing it to combat a pathological condition, or to stimulate an immune response.
Among the therapeutic products for the purposes of the present invention, there may be mentioned more particularly enzymes, blood derivatives, hormones, lymphokines and cytokines as well as their inhibitors or their antagonists: interleukins, interferons, TNF, antagonists of interleukin 1, soluble receptors for interleukin 1 or TNFxcex1, and the like (FR 92/03120), growth factors, neuro-transmitters or their precursors or synthesis enzymes, trophic factors (BDNF, CNTF, NGF, IGF, GMF, aFGF, bFGF, NT3, NT5, HARP/pleiotrophin and the like), apolipoproteins (ApoAI, ApoAIV, ApoE, and the like, FR 93/05125), dystrophin or a minidystrophin (FR 91/11947), the CFTR protein associated with cystic fibrosis, tumor suppressor genes (p53, Rb, Rap1A, DCC, k-rev, and the like, FR 93/04745), genes encoding factors involved in coagulation (Factors VII, VII, IX), the genes involved in DNA repair, suicide genes (thymidine kinase, cytosine deaminase), the genes for hemoglobin or other protein carriers, metabolic enzymes, catabolic enzymes and the like.
The nucleic acid of therapeutic interest may also be a gene or an anti-sense sequence or a DNA encoding an RNA with ribosome function, whose expression in the target cell makes it possible to control the expression of genes or the transcription of cellular mRNAs. Such sequences can, for example, be transcribed in the target cell into RNAs which are complementary to cellular mRNAs and thus block their translation to protein, according to the technique described in Patent EP 140 308. The therapeutic genes also comprise the sequences encoding ribozymes, which are capable of selectively destroying target RNAs (EP 321 201).
As indicated above, the nucleic acid may also comprise one or more genes encoding an antigenic peptide, which is capable of generating an immune response in humans or in animals. In this specific embodiment, the invention allows the production of vaccines or the carrying out of immunotherapeutic treatments applied to humans or to animals, in particular for treating or preventing infections, for example viral or bacterial infections, or cancerous states. They may be in particular antigenic peptides specific for the Epstein-Barr virus, the HIV virus, the hepatitis B virus (EP 185 573), the pseudo-rabies virus, the syncitia forming virus, other viruses, or antigenic peptides specific for tumors (EP 259 212).
Preferably, the nucleic acid also comprises sequences allowing the expression of the gene of therapeutic interest and/or the gene encoding the antigenic peptide in the desired cell or organ. They may be sequences which are naturally responsible for the expression of the gene considered when these sequences are capable of functioning in the infected cell. They may also be sequences of different origin (responsible for the expression of other proteins, or even synthetic). In particular, they may be promoter sequences of eukaryotic or viral genes. For example, they may be promoter sequences derived from the genome of the cell which it is desired to infect. Likewise, they may be promoter sequences derived from the genome of a virus. In this regard, there may be mentioned, for example, the promoters of the E1A, MLP, CMV and RSV genes, and the like. In addition, these expression sequences may be modified by the addition of activating or regulatory sequences, and the like. The promoter may also be inducible or repressible.
Moreover, the nucleic acid may also comprise, in particular upstream of the gene of therapeutic interest, a signal sequence directing the therapeutic product synthesized in the secretory pathways of the target cell. This signal sequence may be the natural signal sequence of the therapeutic product, but it may also be any other functional signal sequence, or an artificial signal sequence. The nucleic acid may also comprise a signal sequence directing the synthesized therapeutic product towards a particular compartment of the cell.
The compositions according to the invention may, in addition, comprise one or more adjuvants capable of combining with the transfecting compound/nucleic acid complexes and of improving the transfecting power thereof. In another embodiment, the present invention therefore relates to compositions comprising a nucleic acid, a transfecting compound as defined above and at least one adjuvant capable of combining with the transfecting compound/nucleic acid complexes and of improving the transfecting power thereof. The presence of this type of adjuvant (lipids, peptides, proteins or polymers for example) may make it possible advantageously to increase the transfecting power of the compounds. In this regard, the compositions of the invention may comprise, as adjuvant, one or more neutral lipids, which possess in particular the property of forming lipid aggregates. The term xe2x80x9clipid aggregatexe2x80x9d is a generic term which includes liposomes of any type (both unilamellar and multilamellar) as well as micelles or else more amorphous aggregates.
More preferably, the neutral lipids used within the framework of the present invention are lipids containing two fatty chains. In a particularly advantageous manner, natural or synthetic lipids which are zwitterionic or lacking ionic charge under physiological conditions are used. They may be chosen more particularly from dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine (DOPE), oteoylpalmitoyl-phosphatidylethanolamine (POPE), di-stearoyl, -palmitoyl, -myristoylphosphatidyl-ethanolamines as well as their derivatives which are N-methylated 1 to 3 times, phosphatidylglycerols, diacylglycerols, glycosyldiacylglycerols, cerebrosides (such as in particular galactocerebrosides), sphingolipids (such as in particular sphingomyelins) or asialogangliosides (such as in particular asialoGM1 and GM2). Advantageously, the lipid adjuvants used in the context of the present invention are chosen from DOPE, DOPC or cholesterol.
These different lipids may be obtained either by synthesis or by extraction from organs (for example the brain) or from eggs, by conventional techniques well known to persons skilled in the art. In particular, the extraction of the natural lipids may be carried out by means of organic solvents (see also Lehninger, Biochemistry).
Preferably, the compositions of the invention comprise from 0.01 to 20 equivalents of adjuvants for one equivalent of nucleic acid in mol/mol and, more preferably, from 0.5 to 5 molar equivalents.
According to another alternative, the adjuvants mentioned above making it possible to improve the transfecting power of the compositions according to the present invention, in particular the peptides, proteins or certain polymers, such as polyethylene glycol, may be conjugated with the transfecting compounds according to the invention, and not simply mixed. In this case, they are covalently linked either to the substituent X in the general formula (I), or to the end of the alkyl chain(s) R1 and/or R2 when the latter are fatty aliphatic chains. It is also advantageous to use as adjuvant, a polyethylene glycol covalently linked to cholesterol (chol-PEG). In effect, when such adjuvant is used with transfectant compositiosn according to the present invention, resulting particles have a smaller size, thereby decreasing aggregation thereof, and increasing their half-life in the blood circulation. Amount of transfectant DT-3TU used according to the present invention is such that particles have a size inferior to 500 nm. Preferred amount of DT-3TU used is at least equal to 40 nmol of lipids DT-3TU/xcexcg of DNA (See Examples 11, 13, and 14 herein below).
According to a particularly advantageous embodiment, the compositions of the present invention comprise, in addition, a targeting element which makes it possible to orient the transfer of the nucleic acid. This targeting element may be an extracellular targeting element which makes it possible to orient the transfer of the nucleic acid toward certain cell types or certain desired tissues (tumor cells, hepatic cells, hematopoietic cells and the like). It may also be an intracellular targeting element which makes it possible to orient the transfer of the nucleic acid toward certain preferred cellular compartments (mitochondria, nucleus and the like). The targeting element may be mixed with the transfecting compounds according to the invention and with the nucleic acids, and in this case, the targeting element is preferably covalently linked to a fatty alkyl chain (at least 10 carbon atoms) or to a polyethylene glycol. According to another alternative, the targeting element is covalently linked to the transfecting compound according to the invention either at the level of the substituent X or on the spacer Y, or else at the end of R1 and/or R2 when the latter represent fatty aliphatic chains. Finally, the targeting element may also be linked to the nucleic acid as was specified above.
Among the targeting elements which may be used within the framework of the invention, there may be mentioned sugars, peptides, proteins, oligonucleotides, lipids, neuromediators, hormones, vitamins or derivatives thereof. Preferably, they are sugars, peptides, vitamins or proteins such as for example antibodies or antibody fragments, ligands of cell receptors or fragments thereof, receptors or receptor fragments. For example, they may be ligands of growth factor receptors, cytokine receptors, cellular lectin-type receptors, folate receptors, or RGD sequence-containing ligands with an affinity for the receptors for adhesion proteins such as the integrins. There may also be mentioned the receptors for transferin, HDLs and LDLs, or the folate transporter. The targeting element may also be a sugar which makes it possible to target lectins such as the receptors for asialoglycoproteins or for sialydes, such as the Sialyl Lewis X, or alternatively an Fab fragment of antibodies, or a single-chain antibody (ScFv).
The subject of the invention is also the use of the transfecting compounds as defined above for transferring nucleic acids into cells in vitro, in vivo or ex vivo. More precisely, the subject of the present invention is the use of the transfecting compounds according to the invention for the preparation of a medicament intended for treating diseases, in particular diseases resulting from a deficiency in a protein or nucleic product. The polynucleotide contained in said medicament encodes said protein or nucleic product, or constitutes said nucleic product, capable of correcting said diseases in vivo or ex vivo.
For uses in vivo, for example in therapy or for studying the regulation of genes or the creation of animal models of pathological conditions, the compositions according to the invention can be formulated for administration by the topical, cutaneous, oral, rectal, vaginal, parenteral, intranasal, intravenous, intra-muscular, subcutaneous, intraocular, transdermal, intratracheal or intraperitoneal route, and the like. Preferably, the compositions of the invention contain a vehicle which is pharmaceutically acceptable for an injectable formulation, in particular a direct injection into the desired organ, or for administration by the topical route (on the skin and/or the mucous membrane). They may be in particular isotonic sterile solutions, or dry, in particular freeze-dried, compositions which, upon addition, depending on the case, of sterilized water or of physiological saline, allow the constitution of injectable solutions. The nucleic acid doses used for the injection as well as the number of administrations may be adapted according to various parameters, and in particular according to the mode of administration used, the relevant pathological condition, the gene to be expressed, or the desired duration of treatment. As regards more particularly the mode of administration, it may be either a direct injection into the tissues, for example at the level of the tumors, or an injection into the circulatory system, or a treatment of cells in culture followed by their reimplantation in vivo by injection or transplantation. The relevant tissues within the framework of the present invention are, for example, the muscles, skin, brain, lungs, liver, spleen, bone marrow, thymus, heart, lymph, blood, bones, cartilages, pancreas, kidneys, bladder, stomach, intestines, testicles, ovaries, rectum, nervous system, eyes, glands, connective tissues, and the like.
Another subject of the present invention relates to a method of transferring nucleic acids into cells comprising the following steps:
(1) bringing the nucleic acid into contact with a transfecting compound according to the present invention, to form a complex, and
(2) bringing the cells into contact with the complex formed in (1).
The invention relates, in addition, to a method of treating the human or animal body comprising the following steps:
(1) bringing the nucleic acid into contact with a transfecting compound according to the present invention, to form a complex, and
(2) bringing the cells of the human or animal body into contact with the complex formed in (1).
The cells may be brought into contact with the complex by incubating the cells with said complex (for uses in vitro or ex vivo), or by injecting the complex into an organism (for uses in vivo). In general, the quantity of nucleic acid intended to be administered depends on numerous factors such as for example the disease to be treated or to be prevented, the actual nature of the nucleic acid, the strength of the promoter, the biological activity of the product expressed by the nucleic acid, the physical condition of the individual or of the animal (weight, age and the like), the mode of administration and the type of formulation. In general, the incubation is preferably carried out in the presence, for example, of 0.01 to 1000 xcexcg of nucleic acid per 106 cells. For administration in vivo, nucleic acid doses ranging from 0.01 to 50 mg may for example be used. The administration may be carried out as a single dose or repeated at intervals.
In the case where the compositions of the invention contain, in addition, one or more adjuvants as defined above, the adjuvant(s) may be mixed beforehand with the transfecting compound according to the invention and/or the nucleic acid. Alternatively, the adjuvant(s) may be administered before the administration of the nucleolipid complexes.
According to another advantageous alternative, the tissues may be subjected to a chemical or physical treatment intended to improve the transfection. In the case of the physical treatment, the latter may use electrical pulses as in the case of electrotransfer, or else mechanical forces as in the case of sodoporation.
The present invention thus provides a particularly advantageous method for transferring nucleic acids in vivo, in particular for the treatment of diseases, comprising the in vivo or in vitro administration of a nucleic acid encoding a protein or which can be transcribed into a nucleic acid capable of correcting said disease, said nucleic acid being combined with a transfecting compound according to the invention under the conditions defined above.
The transfecting compounds of the invention are particularly useful for transferring nucleic acids into primary cells or into established lines. They may be fibroblast cells, muscle cells, nerve cells (neurons, astrocytes, glial cells), hepatic cells, hematopoietic cells (lymphocytes, CD34, dendritic cells, and the like), epithelial cells and the like, in differentiated or pluripotent form (precursors).
Another subject of the present invention also relates to the transfection kits which comprise one or more transfecting compounds according to the invention and/or mixtures thereof. Such kits may be provided in the form of a packaging which is compartmented so as to receive various containers such as for example vials or tubes. Each of these containers comprises the various elements necessary to carry out the transfection, individually or mixed: for example one or more transfecting compounds according to the invention, one or more nucleic acids, one or more adjuvants, cells, and the like.
In addition to the preceding arrangements, the present invention also comprises other characteristics and advantages which will emerge from the examples and figures below, which should be considered as illustrating the invention without limiting its scope. In particular, the applicant proposes, without limitation, an operating protocol as well as reaction intermediates which may be used to prepare the transfecting compounds according to the invention. Of course, it is within the capability of persons skilled in the art to draw inspiration from this protocol or intermediate products to develop similar methods so as to arrive at these same compounds.
EtBr: ethidium bromide
DCC: dicyclohexylcarbodiimide
DPPC: 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine
DTTU: 3-(2-{3-[2-(3-{2-[3-(ditetradecylcarbamoyl)propionylamino]-ethyl}thioureido)ethyl]thioureido}ethyl)-1-methylthiourea (also designated DT-3TU)
EPC: L-xcex1-phosphatidylcholine 95% (egg)
PyBOP: benzotriazol-1-yloxytripyrrolidinophosphonium hexafluorophosphate
TBE: tris-borate-EDTA
TFA: trifluoroacetic acid
THF: tetrahydrofuran | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Subsets and Splits
No saved queries yet
Save your SQL queries to embed, download, and access them later. Queries will appear here once saved.