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This application claims priority to the German Application No. 10139953.7 filed Aug. 21, 2001 in Federal Republic Germany.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a material for a metal strip for manufacturing electrical contact components.
2. Description of Related Art
Plug contact connections are widely used in electrotechnical applications. By this is understood, basically, a mechanical device made of a plug and a plug sleeve for opening and closing an electrically conducting connection. Plug contact connections are used in the most varied application fields, as, for example, in the automotive electrical field, messaging technology or the electronics of industrial plants.
A usual manufacturing method of such plug contact elements is to stamp out blanks from a copper or copper alloy strip, and to process these further into plug contact elements. Copper has a high electrical conductivity. To protect against corrosion and wear, as well as for increasing surface hardness, the copper or copper alloy strips are first tinned. Because of its good resistance to corrosion, tin is particularly suitable as a coating material for copper. The application of the coating by hot dipping is a standard technical procedure.
In this context, the most widely different tin alloys are known for surface coating the base material, in particular also tin-silver alloys, since these count among the very good contact materials.
It is known from European patent document 0 443 291 B1 that one may coat the base material of one plug element of a plug connector pair with pure tin or a tin-lead alloy, while the other plug element has a harder surface coating, applied in a molten fashion, made of an alloy containing up to 10% by weight of silver. Aside from silver, a number of other alloying metals is proposed. This approach points in the direction of producing qualitatively high-grade plug connectors having durably low contact resistance and requiring plugging and unplugging forces that are as low as possible.
DE 36 28 783 C2 describes an electrical connecting piece made of a copper alloy having 0.3 to 2% by weight of magnesium as well as 0,001 to 0.1% by weight of phosphorus. The electrical connecting pieces are distinguished by their strength, their electrical conductivity and voltage relaxation properties at raised temperatures. They demonstrate satisfactory application properties, even when made in compact sizes and complicated shapes.
On account of DE 43 38 769 A1, a copper alloy for producing electrical plug contacts also counts among the related art, which has a composition of essentially 0.5 to 3% by weight of nickel, 0.1 to 0.9% [by weight] of tin, 0.08 to 0.8% by weight of silicon, 0.1 to 3% by weight of zinc, 0.007 to 0.25% by weight of iron, 0.001 to 0.2% by weight of phosphorus, as well as 0.001 to 0.2% magnesium, the main component of the rest being copper and including unavoidable impurities.
The known metal strips, or rather the plug contacts made from them have proven themselves in practice. However, technical and qualitative requirements on the contact components, with respect to mechanical and electrical properties are rising increasingly. This applies particularly to the use of contact components under difficult or aggressive environmental conditions, such as for plug contacts in automotive electrical systems, and here above all in motor electronics. Under such difficult application conditions, requirements, above all with respect to temperature stability, relaxation stability, resistance to corrosion and adhesive strength of the coating may appear, with respect to which the known contact components come right up to their limitations. This may lead to peeling of the surface coating.
It is an object of the invention to create in an economically advantageous manner a material for a metal strip, for manufacturing electrical contact component parts, which combines good electrical and mechanical properties with improved adhesion between the base material and the coating.
These and other objects of the invention are attained by a material for a metal strip for manufacturing electrical contact component parts, which, expressed in percent by weight, has the following composition:
The remainder is copper and includes impurities caused by smelting. | {
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The present invention relates to floor buffing machines, and more particularly to a unique, high speed floor buffing machine utilizing a specially designed buffing pad and pad holder for reducing motor load and for controlling dust and debris.
A search of the prior art failed to uncover any prior art reference which discloses the high speed buffing machine of the present invention. The following patents were uncovered which disclose buffing machines or similar rotary equipment of varying design and complexity: U.S. Pat. Nos. 548,201; 3,417,420; 3,619,954; 3,974,598; 4,148,110; 4,358,868; and 4,365,377.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 548,201; 3,417,420; and 3,619,954 disclose a sweeping brush, buffing pad and sanding disc, respectively, having a generally X-shaped configuration. However, because of the material or design, none of those buffing pad devices are suitable for high speed floor buffing.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,974,598 and 4,148,110 each disclose rotary scraping or sanding tools having air foil blades mounted on the rotary discs for expelling dust and debris from a workpiece. Those devices are also not suitable for buffing, particularly for floor buffing, because they are too small and are suitable only for scraping or sanding.
The following additional U.S. patents were cited by the examiner in the parent application Ser. No. 632,235, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,598,440:
______________________________________ 935,558 2,415,372 3,678,532 1,093,820 2,668,976 4,178,658 1,763,365 2,949,619 4,307,480 1,857,240 3,619,849 4,322,866 ______________________________________
Conventional floor buffing equipment utilizes flat, circular buffing pads, which, when powered by an electric motor, revolve at speeds usually between about 175 and 1000 RPM, although some operate at speeds as high as 2000 RPM. For a standard electric motor to operate a conventional buffing pad at the high range of rotational speed, only a slight pressure can be exerted upon the floor by the pad without straining the motor or causing the motor to draw excessive current.
In order to obtain a superior finish on a waxed floor when dry buffing, i.e., buffing a previously waxed floor without adding new wax, it is necessary to generate enough friction and heat to actually melt the top layer of wax on the floor. The amount of friction and the resulting heat generated is proportional to the rotary speed at which the buffing pad operates and the pressure the pad exerts on the floor.
However, the load and resulting power draw of an electric buffing machine motor depends, not only on the combination of the speed at which the pad rotates and the pressure exerted on the floor by the pad, but also on the area of contact between the buffing pad and the floor, i.e., the size of the buffing pad. Since the power draw of a conventional electric buffing machine motor is limited to what can reasonably be supplied from a 110-volt wall outlet, there is a finite limit to the size or area of a buffing pad that can generate sufficient friction and heat to actually melt the top layer of wax. With state-of-the-art electric motors, only a small area pad of conventional, i.e., circular, design can achieve a superior finish. Since a small area pad would result in a prohibitively long time to buff a large floor, conventional electric floor buffing machines are not designed to operate at speeds and pressures high enough to achieve a superior finish on waxed floors in a reasonable time. In essence, quality of finish is generally sacrificed for speed.
A further problem with the conventional circular buffing pads is that they generate a significant amount of air currents and loose debris. Unfortunately, the air currents are not well directed and usually blow the loose debris away from the buffing machine to generally inaccessible areas, such as underneath shelving and tables where it is difficult to collect. | {
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This invention relates generally to apparatus and methods for measuring beams of electromagnetic radiation or particles and, more particularly, to a new apparatus and method for measuring the intensity profile of beams in connection with the production of three-dimensional objects by stereolithography.
In recent years, "stereolithography" systems, such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,575,330 entitled "Apparatus For Production Of Three-dimensional Objects By Stereolithography," have come into use. The disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 4,575,330 is hereby incorporated by reference, as if fully set forth herein. Basically, stereolithography is a method for automatically building complex plastic parts by successively printing cross-sections of photocurable polymer or the like on top of each other until all of the thin layers are joined together to form a whole part. With this technology, the parts are literally grown in a vat of liquid plastic. This method of fabrication is extremely powerful for quickly reducing design ideas to physical form and for making prototypes.
Photocurable polymers ("photopolymers") change from liquid to solid in the presence of light and their photospeed with ultraviolet light (UV) is fast enough to make them practical model building materials. The material that is not polymerized when a part is made is still usable and remains in the vat as successive parts are made. An ultraviolet laser may be used which generates a small intense spot of UV light. This spot is moved across the liquid surface with a galvanometer X-Y mirror scanner. The scanner is driven by computer generated vectors or the like. Precise and complex patterns can be rapidly produced with this technique.
The laser scanner, the photopolymer vat, and an elevator, along with a controlling computer, combine together to form a stereolithography apparatus, referred to as an "SLA." An SLA is programmed to automatically make a plastic part by "drawing" one cross-section at a time, and building it up layer by layer.
Stereolithography represents an unprecedented way to quickly make complex or simple parts without tooling. Since this technology depends on using a computer to generate its cross-sectional patterns, a natural data link to CAD/CAM exists.
To be effective, a stereolithography system must have information about the focus, laser beam oscillation mode, beam power, intensity distribution or profile, and scanning system drift of the drawing laser in order to carry out the accurate and efficient production of parts (objects made by stereolithography are known as "parts"). The beam must be in relative focus at the surface of the working photopolymer fluid. The laser mode, intensity distribution, and beam power are important to the depth and width of cure of the working fluid, as well as the scan speed. The "drift" of the scanning system must be measured and corrected periodically.
Beam profile (a profile of the intensity of the beam) measurements provide useful information about the beam because they can help accomplish the following purposes: 1. Focus optics and correct astigmatism and other aberrations; 2. Measure the power of the beam (needed on a day to day basis); 3. Study the laser mode and changes of the mode; 4. Compensate for drift of the laser scanning system; 5. Allow recording of the drift for later analysis of changes; 6. Automatically calibrate the scanners; 7. Allow easy control of beam position for making other measurements (e.g. to independently measure the beam power in order to find the system's power calibration factor); and 8. Permit the prediction of the size and shape of the cured plastic trace.
Accordingly, a need exists for an apparatus and method to rapidly determine the profile of the beam, particularly in connection with a stereolithographic apparatus. | {
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The invention relates to a light-transmissive substrate having a light-transmissive, low-ohmic coating and in particular to a cathode ray tube comprising a display screen having an electroconductive coating.
The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing an electroconductive coating on a substrate.
Electroconductive coatings are used inter alia, as anti-static layers on display screens of display devices, in particular cathode ray tubes (CRTs). Said layers have a sheet resistance of, for example, 106 to 1010 xcexa9/xe2x96xa1 and are thus sufficiently electroconductive to ensure that a high electrostatic voltage present on the outside surface of the display screen is removed within a few seconds. Thus, the user does not experience an unpleasant shock if he touches the screen. Besides, the attraction of atmospheric dust is reduced.
Since it may be hazardous to health, shielding from electromagnetic radiation is becoming ever more important. Devices provided with cathode ray tubes, such as display tubes for TVs and monitor tubes, comprise a number of radiation sources which may be hazardous to the user""s health if he is exposed to said sources for a long period of time. A substantial part of the electromagnetic radiation generated can be screened off with metal in a simple manner via the housing of the cathode ray tube. However, radiation emitted via the display screen may substantially add to the amount of radiation to which the user is exposed.
This problem is solved by applying a well-conducting coating on the surface of the display screen. Said coating must also be sufficiently transparent in the wavelength range from 400 to 700 nm, i.e. the transmission should be at least 60%. A well-known material which can be used for a transparent and well-conducting coating which meets said requirements is indium-doped tin oxide (ITO). Such a layer can be provided by means of vacuum evaporation or sputtering. Said method requires, however, expensive vacuum equipment. ITO layers can also be manufactured by firing spin-coated or sprayed layers of solutions of indium-tin salts. Said firing operation should be carried out at a temperature of at least 300xc2x0 C. This temperature is much too high to be used with a complete display tube which, in order to preclude damage to parts of the display tube, can withstand temperatures of typically 160xc2x0 C.
In German Patent Application DE-A-4229192, a description is given of the manufacture of an anti-static coating for, inter alia, a display screen, said coating being made from poly-3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene and a trialkoxysilane to improve the adhesion. By way of example, a coating is manufactured by providing a desalinated aqueous solution of poly-3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene, polystyrene sulphonic acid and 3-glycidoxypropyl trimethoxysilane on a glass plate, whereafter said glass plate is dried. Said poly-3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene is previously prepared by oxidatively polymerizing the monomer 3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene by means of an Fe(III) salt in water in the presence of polystyrene sulphonic acid to preclude precipitation. The anti-static layer thus obtained has a thickness of 0.6 xcexcm (600 nm) and a sheet resistance of 50 kxcexa9/xe2x96xa1. This sheet resistance is sufficient to bring about an antistatic effect.
A disadvantage of said known layer is that such layers have relatively poor mechanical properties, especially a low scratch resistance, and they are not well suited to be used in anti-reflection coatings because of the relatively low index of refraction of said layer.
It is an object of the invention to provide, inter alia, a substrate, like a display screen of a cathode ray tube, having a coating, said coating providing an effective shield against electromagnetic radiation and exhibiting good optical and mechanical properties. A further object of the invention is to provide a simple method of manufacturing such light-transmissive well-conducting optical coatings, while it is preferably possible, in particular, to carry out said method at relatively low temperatures (typically up to 170xc2x0 C.) at which no damage is caused to parts of a cathode ray tube.
A coated substrate as described in the opening paragraph is characterized in that the coating is provided on a substrate containing SiO2, as a major component the coating comprising a first layer and a second layer adjacent to each other, each of the first and second layers comprising SiO2 as a major component, wherein the first layer comprises a high index material having an intrinsic index of refraction which is higher than the index of refraction of the substrate, and the second layer has an index of refraction which is lower than the index of refraction of the substrate and comprises a conductive polymer, the coating having a sheet resistance below 10 kxcexa9/xe2x96xa1.
In accordance with the above-mentioned requirements, such a layer provides an excellent shield against electromagnetic fields. The conductivity of the coating is primarily due to the conductive polymer. A major component of the substrate, the first and second layer is SiO2 (in this respect it is remarked that, within the framework of the invention SiO2 is to be broadly interpreted and includes glasses comprising SiO2 in whatever form, such as float glass and screen glass used for and in cathode ray tubes). This allows a good adhersion of the layers to each other and to the substrate. The thermal coefficients of expansion of the layers and the substrate are comparable because a major component is the same. As regards layers of pure ITO deposited on glass, this increases the adhersion between the glass and the layer and reduces the occurrence of thermal tensions during or after manufacturing. Coatings of pure conductive polymer lack sufficient scratch resistance. However, the conductive coating in accordance with the invention, comprises a layer of mainly SiO2 and is much more scratch-resistant. In the coating in accordance with the invention, the first layer has an index of refraction which is higher than the index of refraction of the substrate, due to the material having an intrinsic (i.e. as a bulk material) index of refraction which is higher than the index of refraction of the substrate, whereas, due to the conductive polymer, the index of refraction of the second layer is lower than that of the substrate. The combination of a first layer having an index of refraction which is higher than the substrate, and a second layer having an index of refraction which is lower than the substrate allows good anti-reflective properties to be attained. Preferably one of the layers comprises a light-absorbing material. In this manner, it is possible to control the light absorbing properties of the coating. Preferably both the first and the second layer comprise an alkoxy compound. The alkoxy-compound provides a strong mechanical coupling between the coating and the substrate and between the layers. Coatings according to the invention can be applied by means of a wet-coating method, not requiring high temperatures. Metal oxide particles, and in particular ATO, ITO and TiO2 particles are suited for use in the first layer. Particularly useful are particles with a very high index of refraction, i.e. higher than 2.0. The index of refraction of the first layer is thereby substantially increased, which increases the possible use of such layers in anti-reflection coatings. Preferably, each layer is a xc2xcxcex layer, i.e. for each layer the product of the index of refraction of the layer and the thickness of the layer is xc2xcxcex (plus or minus 25%) of the wavelength of visible light (380-780 nm). A suitable thickness range for each of the first and second layers between 50 nm and 150 nm.
ITO and ATO are preferred in those circumstances where a charge build-up of the outer layer of the coating is to be prevented. The at least partly conductive nature of ITO and ATO particles prevents electrical charge from accumulating.
An electroconductive coating in accordance with the invention, optionally with one or more additional layers can also be suitably used as a touch screen coating on a CRT or LCD display screen. By touching a certain part of the touch screen coating on the display screen, a local change in resistance is induced which is translated, via electronic controls, into a localization and a subsequent action, such as opening a menu, turning pages, etc. It is alternatively possible to write on the display screen with a pen, whereafter the writing is identified and processed.
For the additional layer, use may be made of a silicon dioxide layer having a thickness of 50 nm to 250 nm. Using a tetra alkoxysilane, such as TEOS, as the precursor, such a layer can be provided in a simple manner by means of a sol-gel process, followed by curing at a relatively low temperature (about 160xc2x0 C.).
The object of providing a simple method of manufacturing a transmissive electroconductive coating on a substrate (like a display screen of a cathode ray tube) is achieved in an embodiment in that the coating is manufactured by
providing the substrate with a porous layer comprising high index material (such as ITO or ATO) having an index of refraction which is higher than the substrate
subsequently applying a coating solution of a monomer of which the polymer is conductive and an Fe(III) salt on the substrate, whereafter a treatment at an increased temperature is carried out, thereby forming a layer comprising a conductive polymer, (such as poly-3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene) and an Fe(II) salt, after which the double layer is rinsed with an ethanolic solution (e.g. an ethanolic SiO2 precursor, such as e.g. a tetra alkoxysilane like TEOS) which is capable of extracting Fe salts, thereby forming the electroconductive coating. Optionally an organic base can be added to stabilize the system.
The ethanolic solution penetrates the porous layer forming a first layer comprising mainly SiO2, and at the same time extracts the Fe salts from the layer comprising the conductive polymer forming the second layer. This ensures a good adhesion between the first and the second layer and a good adhesion between the first layer and the substrate.
In general, polymers are slightly soluble. In order to obtain a processable polymeric solution, the polymerization reaction is often carried out in the presence of a large quantity of a stabilizing polymer, such as polystyrene sulphonic acid. Said polymer, however, leads to an increase of the sheet resistance. In a preferred embodiment of the method in accordance with the invention, a solution of the monomer instead of a solution of the polymer, is provided on the surface of the display screen. The monomer is subsequently converted to the polymer. The monomer 3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene is converted to the corresponding polymer by means of oxidation with an Fe(III) salt. Fe(III) salts are very suitable because of the redox potential (Ered=0.77 V at room temperature) which is very favorable for this reaction. Fe(III) salts of organic sulphonates are very suitable because of their high solubility in alcohols and low crystallization rate in the liquid layer to be provided. Examples of said salts are Fe(III)-p-toluene sulphonate and Fe(III)-ethylbenzene sulphonate.
Solutions of 3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene monomers and Fe(III) salt, which is necessary for the polymerization reaction, are unstable. When said components are mixed, a polymer soon forms in the solution, as a result of which the pot-life of the coating solution becomes impractically short. Surprisingly, it has been found that the reaction rate of the polymerization reaction is decreased by adding small quantities of a soluble organic base to the coating solution. Dependent on the concentration of the base, the reaction at room temperature can be suppressed completely. In the case of an efficacious base concentration, solutions comprising monomers and the Fe(III) salt can remain stable at room temperature for at least 24 hours: polymerization does not take place. These stable solutions can be used to apply thin layers to the display screen by, for example, spin coating. After heating of the layer, electroconductive poly-3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene is formed. Besides, it has been found that the addition of the organic base has a favorable effect on the conductivity of the polymer and hence on the sheet resistance of the conductive coating. Presumably, the organic base forms a complex with the Fe(III) salt, which results in a reduction of the redox potential at room temperature. This leads to a reduction of the reaction rate, so that a more controlled polymerization at an increased temperature takes place and the specific conductivity increases by approximately a factor of two.
Suitable soluble bases for this method include, for example, imidazole, dicyclohexylamine and 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU).
Said compounds can readily be dissolved in various alcohols, such as isopropanol and 1-butanol. A solution of said compounds, for example, in 1-butanol is used as the coating solution and has a pot-life of approximately 12 hours. Before the coating solution is used, it is preferably filtered over an 0.5 xcexcm filter.
The coating solution can be provided on the substrate, like a CRT or LCD display screen, by means of customary methods, such as spraying or atomizing. The solution is preferably spin-coated onto the display screen. This results in a smooth, homogeneous and thin layer. During spin coating, the layer provided is dried and subsequently heated to a temperature of typically up to 170xc2x0 C. by means of a furnace, a jet of hot air or an infrared lamp. At a temperature between 100xc2x0 C. and 150xc2x0 C., the polymerization reaction is completed within 2 minutes. The increased temperature initiates the polymerization reaction in which the Fe(III) salt is converted to the corresponding Fe(II) salt. The color of the coating changes from yellow to bluish green. The eventual thickness of the coating depends on the number of revolutions during spin-coating and on the concentration of the dissolved compounds.
The Fe(III) and Fe(II) salts must be removed from the polymerized coating to prevent a dull layer as a result of crystallization. In addition, the Fe(II) salt leads to an increase of the sheet resistance of the coating by a factor of ten. The Fe salts are removed by rinsing the coating with a suitable solvent. In this process, the Fe salts are extracted from the coating. This leads to a strong reduction of the thickness of the coating, increasing the density of the conducting polymer and substantially increasing the conductance of the coating. Surprisingly, rinsing with an ethanolic SiO2 precursor like TEOS results in a mixed Polymer/SiO2 layer having attractive optical (anti-reflective) mechanical (scratch resistance) and electrical (conductance) properties. | {
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When roofing tiles are formed from cement and sand mixture, they are produced in very large numbers and in order to reduce the number of moulding pallets to a minimum, the tiles are steam cured and removed from the pallets as quickly as possible. However they are of an awkward shape to automatically handle because of the existence of the troughs and lugs, and further because different pallets produce tiles of slightly varying shape, and because the tiles require handling before they have attained their 28 day strength. In addition to this, when the tiles move in a factory, they are usually transported edgeways, while "on flat", by a conveyor belt, but to reduce breakages, they are finally stacked "on edge" in face to face juxtaposition. This means therefore that the speed of movement at stacking must be reduced to a small fraction of the speed of movement of the edgeways conveyor belts, since tiles in face to face juxtaposition occupy less conveyor length than when in edge to edge juxtaposition.
It is therefore the main object of this invention to provide a method and a machine whereby tiles can be conveyed firstly on flat, with one edge leading another (at relatively high speed), and subsequently placed "on edge" in close proximity to one another, in face to face juxtaposition.
Tiles are not always released at identical speeds, nor at equal spacings, and it is often necessary to have them spaced from one another. It is another object of this invention to provide a machine which is capable of stacking tiles notwithstanding variations in spacings between them while they are released and conveyed on flat edgeways.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a machine and a method of stacking tiles which enables them to be stacked with a minimum of handling by operators. | {
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Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sheet processing apparatus, a method of controlling the same, and a storage medium.
Description of the Related Art
In conventional sheet processing apparatuses, during production of saddle-stitched books, a folding position for center-fold processing is sometimes displaced from the center of a sheet. The displacement of the folding position from the middle of a sheet is caused e.g. by an assembly error of a sheet processing apparatus, variation in sheets between production lots of the sheets, and a change in sheets due to changes in environmental conditions, such as humidity and temperature.
To cope with this, conventionally, several copies are printed for test printing before final production of saddle-stitched books so as to check whether or not a folding position is at an expected position. Then, if the folding position is displaced from the expected position, fine adjustment is performed physically or by software such that the folding position is arranged at the expected position.
In relation to this, there has been proposed a sheet processing apparatus that is capable of correcting displacement of a folding position within approximately ±1 mm, by providing two setting items for adjusting the folding position and the stitched position such that they are accurately arranged in the middle of each sheet during production of saddle-stitched books (see e.g. Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-206626).
The two setting items are an item which can be set only by a service technician for correcting the above-mentioned displacement due to an assembly error, and an item which can be set by a user for correcting displacement due to a sheet.
This makes it possible to prevent the position on which saddle-stitch processing and center-fold processing are performed from being displaced from the middle of a sheet.
For production of saddle-stitched books, in some cases, processing operations up to center-fold processing are performed by a sheet processing apparatus, and subsequent processing operations including saddle-stitch processing are performed using another sheet processing apparatus (off-line apparatus) which is different from the above-mentioned sheet processing apparatus. Further, the off-line apparatuses include one configured to feed sheets one by one by pinching an extending portion (portion of a sheet, which does not overlap when being folded) of an end of a sheet with rollers. In the off-line apparatus of this type, if a sheet is folded in the middle, an extending portion of an end of the sheet is not generated, and as a result, the off-line apparatus cannot accurately feed the sheet (fold section, i.e. signature).
A production method in which saddle-stitch processing and processing steps thereafter are performed using an off-line apparatus is generally determined from the viewpoint of productivity, based on related factors, such as a difference in the number of sheets which can be bound, a level of the accuracy of binding, and a level of speed at which the off-line apparatus can perform processing.
When producing saddle-stitched books using the above-mentioned production method, a print product generated by the sheet processing apparatus is required to have a center-folding position shifted from the center of a sheet by a predetermined length.
The sheet processing apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-206626 is capable of performing fine adjustment for correcting the displacement of a folding position from the center of a sheet, caused by the above-mentioned assembly error, and displacement of a folding position from the center of a sheet, caused by the above-mentioned variation in sheets.
On the other hand, the sheet processing apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-206626 does not take into consideration shifting of a folding position from the center of a sheet, and further, is not capable of performing adjustment large enough to create a fold section, a fore edge of which is generally required to have a length of 5 mm to 10 mm, demanded by the above-mentioned production method.
Further, when shifting a folding position from the center of a sheet, it is necessary to adjust the position of an image to be printed on the sheet in accordance with the adjustment of the folding position. In the sheet processing apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-206626, however, the image position adjustment is not taken into consideration. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
The invention herein pertains to access plugs and particularly to threaded access plugs which may be removed to drain fluids such as oils, fuels or lubricants from equipment such as pans, sumps, transmissions, pumps and the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art and Objectives of the Invention
Equipment owners in the past have suffered damage due to access plugs such as drain plugs being improperly tightened and torqued upon replacement, such as during oil changes. Inexperienced or unskilled attendants often partially replace an access plug, and forget to torque the plug to prevent it from loosening due to the vibrational forces created as the equipment is operated. Once an access plug sufficiently loosens, oil leakage occurs which left untightened over a period of time can cause engine failure. In certain equipment other fluid-containing plugs are also necessarily torqued to prevent inadvertent vibrational removal.
Various types of compression members and expandable plugs have been devised in the past to prevent inadvertent removal as by vibration, some of which require special tools, washers or steps to tighten, such as seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,231,544, 4,986,502 and 5,184,698.
While such prior art devices have been somewhat successful in certain instances, there remains a need for a simple, inexpensive means for preventing inadvertent plug removal by the forces created by vibration during equipment operation.
Thus, with the disadvantages and complexities of prior art access plugs, the present invention was conceived and of its objectives is to provide a simple, inexpensive threaded access plug which will prevent inadvertent vibrational removal or excessive loosening, even if improperly tightened.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide an access plug which can be used in equipment oil pans or otherwise to securely contain fluid.
It is also an objective of the present invention to provide an access plug, which in the preferred form, includes a filler formed from a dense, heavy metal such as lead.
It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a weight imbalanced access plug which can be easily substituted for a conventional plug yet which will prevent inadvertent rotational loosening movement due to its weight imbalance.
It is also an objective of the present invention to provide an access plug which can be easily used without special training or tools.
Various other objectives and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art as a more detailed description is set forth below. | {
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Mobile communication devices have become increasingly common in current society for providing wireless communication services. The prevalence of these mobile communication devices is driven in part by the many functions that are now enabled on such devices. Increased processing capabilities in such devices means that mobile communication devices have evolved from being pure communication tools into sophisticated mobile multimedia centers that enable enhanced user experiences.
Fifth-generation (5G) new radio (NR) (5G-NR) wireless communication systems have been widely regarded as the next wireless communication standard beyond the current third-generation (3G) communication standard, such as wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), and fourth-generation (4G) communication standard, such as long-term evolution (LTE). The 5G-NR wireless communication system is expected to provide a significantly higher data rate, improved coverage range, enhanced signaling efficiency, and reduced latency compared to wireless communication systems based on the 3G and 4G communication standards. Moreover, the 5G-NR communication system is an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) based wireless system designed to operate across a wide range of radio frequency (RF) bands, which include a low-band (below 1 GHz), a mid-band (1 GHz to 6 GHz), and a high-band (above 24 GHz).
A portion of the 5G-NR RF bands, particularly the low-band and the mid-band, overlaps with the RF bands currently used by the 3G and/or the 4G wireless communication systems. As such, the 5G-NR wireless communication systems are designed to provide greater scalability across all the 5G-NR RF bands. For example, the 5G-NR wireless communication system can scale down to operate in the 3G/4G RF bands based on the 3G/4G wireless communication standard for lower throughput applications and/or in suburban locations, and scale up to operate in the 5G-NR RF bands based on the 5G-NR communication standard for higher throughput applications and/or in urban/indoor locations. Notably, the mobile communication devices may be subject to different power requirements when transmitting RF communication signals in the 5G-NR RF bands and/or the 3G/4G RF bands. In this regard, the mobile communication devices typically employ power amplifier circuits to generate the RF communication signals at the required power levels. As such, it may be desirable to configure the power amplifier circuits to operate according to a wide range of power requirements without sacrificing efficiency and increasing a footprint of the power amplifier circuits. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
The field of invention relates to oil absorbing devices, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved beach protection apparatus wherein the same provides an organization to remove oil from contaminated waves and permit drainage of the water from the waves back to the beach shoreline.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various beach protection apparatus has been provided in the prior art. Heretofore, however, such organizations have not availed themselves to remove oil contamination and the like from wave water directed onto the beach in a convenient and expedient manner as set forth by the instant invention. Examples of prior art include U.S. Pat. No. 4,692,059 to Juutilainen wherein an elongate web-like textile is directed into and along a beach front, wherein oil drawn from the shoreline is arranged to adhere to the textile fabric.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,770,626 to Ayers sets forth an absorbent body directed to orient water therethrough and cause pollutants to float into the free-flow passage to increase contact with absorbent body moving a polluting liquid from a water surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,642,185 to Turner, et al. sets forth a device for recovering oil floating on water in a plurality of disks rotatably mounted wherein disks immersed in water are associated with a scraper to remove oil from the rotary disks.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,681,680 to Delons provides recovery of hydrocarbons in the form of a sheet or nap at a surface of an aqueous medium to effect removal of the polluting hydrocarbons from the water medium.
As such, it may be appreciated that there continues to be a need for a new and improved beach protection apparatus as set forth by the instant invention which addresses both the problems of ease of use as well as effectiveness construction and in this respect, the present invention substantially fulfills this need. | {
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The present invention relates to a semiconductor device such as a data processor, a microprocessor or a microcomputer, which includes a CPU and a signal-processing circuit. More particularly, the present invention relates to an effective technique adapted to generation of a side tone in a hand telephone (a cellular phone) or the like
Apparatuses such as a hand phone for transmitting and receiving an audio signal in duplex communications have a side-tone function. The side-tone function is a function to combine a voice of the user input from a microphone with a voice received from a communication partner and output the combined voices to a speaker during a conversational communication. For example, in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 7-240782, there is disclosed a hardware technology whereby an audio signal to be transmitted from an A/D converter is supplied to a variable-gain amplifier, being converted into a side tone added to a voice received from a communication partner during a conversational communication before being output to a speaker through D/A conversion. In addition, a processor is also capable of carrying out side-tone processing by execution of software as is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 9-284364.
With the hardware technology for generating a side tone as described above, however, external circuit components such as an amplifier to be added externally to a processor are required, making it virtually impossible to apply the technology to fields like a hand phone where requirements such as a low cost, a small size and thinness are demanded. In the case of the software for side-tone processing, on the other hand, the inventors of the present invention discovered a problem that the processor or a CPU embedded in the processor is occupied by side-tone processing for each audio data so that it is feared that other software processing becomes stagnant. Examples of the other software processing include encoding and decoding processes, compression and error correction based on a control by the CPU. | {
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In microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), rotating hinges may be produced by etching a silicon substrate to form long, narrow beams. In the context of MEMS, as well as in the present description and in the claims, a “long, narrow” element has transverse dimensions (i.e., dimensions measured transversely to the longitudinal axis of the element) that are less than one tenth of the length of the beam. Such hinges are used, inter alia, in scanning micromirrors, such as those described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 7,952,781, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference. This patent describes a method of scanning a light beam and a method of manufacturing, which can be incorporated in a scanning device.
As another example, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2012/0236379 describes a LADAR system that uses MEMS scanning. A scanning mirror includes a substrate that is patterned to include a mirror area, a frame around the mirror area, and a base around the frame. A set of actuators operate to rotate the mirror area about a first axis relative to the frame, and a second set of actuators rotate the frame about a second axis relative to the base.
As yet another example, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2013/0207970, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a micromirror that is produced by suitably etching a semiconductor substrate to separate the micromirror from a support, and to separate the support from the remaining substrate. After etching, the micromirror (to which a suitable reflective coating is applied) is able to rotate in the Y-direction relative to the support on spindles, while the support rotates in the X-direction relative to the substrate on further spindles. (Such a support is also referred to as a gimbal, and the spindles are a type of hinges.) The micromirror and support are mounted on a pair of rotors, which are suspended in respective air gaps of magnetic cores. An electrical current driven through coils wound on the cores generates a magnetic field in the air gaps, which interacts with the magnetization of the rotors so as to cause the rotors to rotate or otherwise move within the air gaps.
As an alternative to the sorts of etched silicon hinges described above, Fujita et al. describe hinges made from polymeric material, in “Dual-Axis MEMS Mirror for Large Deflection-Angle Using SU-8 Soft Torsion Beam,” Sensors and Actuators A 121 (2005), pages 16-21. This article describes a MEMS galvano-mirror with a double gimbal structure having soft torsion beams made of the photosensitive epoxy resin SU-8. This approach is said to give large deflection angles (over ±40°) for small driving power. | {
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The present invention is related to a ladder support device which mounts to a hitch of a vehicle. More specifically, the present invention is related to a ladder support device which positively secures a ladder in a fixed position without the necessity of tethers.
There are many instances wherein a need to work at an elevated height exist. Many times, such as against a damaged tree or the gutter of a house, there is not a sufficient resting position for the upper extent of a ladder. Often the ground is uneven which makes secure placement of the feet difficult. Therefore, there is a long felt need for a ladder support device which is stable and which can be used in a variety of situations.
The use of a vehicle is particularly attractive due to the stability offered by the vehicle. There are a myriad of ladders in the art which mitigate some of these problems by securing a ladder to a vehicle. Unfortunately, they all have deficiencies.
Some of the devices require tethers to secure the ladder to the vehicle. Tethers are difficult to employ and they only provide security in the direction wherein the ladder draws against the spanned tether. If an event occurs which would cause the ladder to move towards the tether there is no securing force provided by the tether in that direction.
Other devices utilize dedicated vehicle features such as bumper modifications, mounted racks and the like which limits the use of the invention to a single vehicle or a single type of vehicle.
There is a long felt need for a ladder support device which is secure, easy to operate and which is adaptable to virtually any style vehicle. Such a device is provided by the present invention. | {
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Amperometric electrochemical sensors are used in a variety of areas for the determination of the partial pressure and/or the concentration of gases dissolved in fluids. The gases can be dissolved in liquids as well as in gases. The known state of the art includes sensors for the determination of ozone, chlorine, hydrogen and oxygen, among others. These sensors are used in different areas such as the chemical industry, the food industry, and in the field of biotechnology, for example to monitor processes or also for waste water analysis.
The measuring principle of amperometric electrochemical sensors is based on measuring the electrical current that flows between at least two electrodes in an electrochemical cell when a specific bias voltage or polarization voltage is applied. The sensor in many cases also includes a thin, gas-permeable membrane which separates the test medium from the electrochemical cell and allows only certain volatile or gaseous substances, e.g. oxygen, to pass through. However, there are also sensors without a membrane of this kind.
The electrochemical cell has at least two electrodes and an electrolyte solution in which the electrodes are immersed. At least one of the electrodes is a working electrode and at least one is a counter-electrode. In addition, there may also be a reference electrode. The counter-electrode as well as the reference electrode are immersed in an ion-conducting electrolyte solution that is also in contact with the working electrode. Through appropriate means, the working electrode is operated at a specific voltage which is often negative in relation to the counter-electrode. In other words, the working electrode is often configured as cathode.
In an amperometric electrochemical sensor with an oxygen-permeable membrane, i.e., in an oxygen sensor, oxygen dissolved in the medium migrates through the membrane to the cathode. At the cathode, oxygen is electrochemically reduced to water in accordance with the following chemical equation:O2+4H++4e→2H2O
The counter-electrode, in most cases configured as anode, is often constituted by a silver/silver-chloride electrode. At a counter-electrode of this type, silver is oxidized into silver chloride as described by the following chemical equation:4Ag+4Cl−→4AgCl+4e
If a constant voltage is applied to the electrochemical cell, the chemical reactions at the electrodes will cause a measurable electrical current to flow between the anode and the cathode. The measured current is in direct proportion to the partial pressure and, accordingly, to the concentration of the substance that is dissolved in the medium if the oxygen that is present at the cathode is consumed completely so that the partial pressure of oxygen at the cathode equals zero. With the exception of the partial pressure, almost all of the characteristic parameters of a sensor are dependent on the temperature, so that one needs to state all measurement values and characteristic parameters as functions of temperature or to put them into relation to a standard temperature. The measurements are therefore generally made with temperature compensation, with the actual temperature being determined by means of at least one temperature sensor.
The driving force for the electrode reaction is supplied by the oxygen diffusion through the gas-permeable membrane, in which the partial-pressure differential at the membrane is the determining factor. If all of the oxygen present at the cathode is reduced, the oxygen flow is controlled exclusively by the difference in the partial pressures at the membrane.
Amperometric electrochemical oxygen sensors are generally operated with voltage control, with the applied voltage being referred to as polarization voltage. In a typical voltammogram, i.e., a diagram of current vs. voltage, for the reduction of dissolved oxygen the current as a function of a decreasing negative voltage rises at first up to a plateau where the current remains substantially constant over a certain voltage range, beyond which the current increases further with a continuing decrease in voltage.
The plateau in the voltammogram is characteristic of a voltage range in which the oxygen reduction is controlled by the rate of diffusion and the partial pressure at the cathode equals zero.
In general, the polarization voltage of the sensor is selected so that the partial pressure of oxygen inside the sensor, more specifically at the cathode, equals zero and all of the oxygen that is present at the cathode is being reduced. This optimum level for the polarization voltage should be located approximately in the middle of the plateau in a typical voltammogram. The measured current is in this case voltage-independent and directly proportional to the partial pressure and the concentration of the oxygen dissolved in the medium.
If the polarization voltage deviates from the optimal polarization voltage, i.e., if the polarization voltage no longer lies in the middle of the plateau or if it lies even outside of the plateau, one of the two electrode reactions will occur with preference over the other. A polarization voltage that is too low has the effect that less oxygen is reduced to water, while a polarization voltage that is too high will have the effect that even water is reduced to hydrogen. Thus, a polarization voltage that deviates from the optimal polarization voltage leads to errors in the measurement results for the current.
The optimal polarization voltage and with it the shape and location of the plateau in the voltammogram depend on a variety of factors. The ability of the sensor to function correctly is influenced by these factors which include, among others, the temperature, the geometry of the sensor, the age of the sensor, as well as a variety of properties of the electrolyte solution in the sensor and of the test medium, such as for example the pH value, the oxygen concentration, as well as the presence of interfering substances such as carbon dioxide or other volatile components that can pass through the membrane and enter into a chemical reaction at the electrodes.
The different fields of application of amperometric electrochemical sensors impose strong requirements on the ability of a sensor to function correctly. A variety of methods are known for checking the function of amperometric electrochemical sensors.
A method of checking the function of an electrochemical sensor, in particular a conductivity sensor or pH sensor, is disclosed in German published application 102 44 084 A1 (8 Apr. 2004). A perturbation quantity is applied temporarily to the sensor, and the dynamic change of the sensor signal is captured during application and/or removal of the perturbation. This change in the sensor signal as a function of time is used as a measure for the changes of different characteristic sensor parameters. The perturbation quantity used in this case is constituted by an external auxiliary voltage. In the case of a pH sensor, the measuring electrode and the reference electrode are simply short-circuited with each other.
In an amperometric electrochemical oxygen sensor, the foregoing method has the disadvantage that a perturbation quantity such as, e.g., a voltage variance has to be relatively large in order to allow a dynamic dependency of the sensor signal to be observed. The voltage variance has to be sufficiently large to take the chemical system out of its equilibrium, and it should therefore lie outside of the plateau in the voltammogram. The time that elapses until the chemical equilibrium is restored, i.e., until the partial pressure at the cathode returns to zero, is relatively long and could influence the acquisition of measurement values which during a chemical process often occurs at very short time intervals. Short-term changes of the measuring system or of the medium cannot be captured during the function check of the sensor.
A method of determining the polarization voltage of an oxygen sensor is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,761,817 B2 to Connery (13 Jul. 2004). A measuring system which includes a sensor that is normally operated under voltage control is modified in such a way that the sensor can be operated with voltage control as well as current control. In order to check the polarization voltage, the sensor is switched to a current-controlled mode and the voltage responses are measured for a level of current that is raised and for another level of current that is lowered in comparison to the initial value. The voltage response in this case is represented by the voltage value measured at a specific preset level of current. The deviations from the initial current are in this case fixed, given values, and the voltage responses are determined at these two constant current levels. The optimal polarization voltage corresponds in this case approximately to the mean value of the two voltages, the specifically stated value being 56%.
This 56%-principle which is used to find the optimal polarization voltage has to be determined empirically and depends on the sensor geometry as well as on the oxygen concentration in the medium. This means that the optimal polarization voltage can only be determined if the medium and/or the measuring system are not changing during the determination process.
The given levels of current are selected so that they lie in the areas that form the limits of oxygen electrochemistry. In the practice of this method, the sensor is operated at levels of current that lie outside the plateau of a typical voltammogram, although this has the consequence that the chemical equilibrium can be disturbed for example by hydrogen being produced in the reduction of water, which causes a delay in reaching the chemical equilibrium following the process of determining the polarization voltage. After the polarization voltage has been determined, the sensor is switched back to the voltage-controlled mode, and the new semi-empirically determined polarization voltage is set. Depending on how strongly the sensor has been disturbed, an extended waiting period has to be observed until stable measurement values can be determined.
However, especially in sensitive areas such as the food industry and/or the field of biotechnology it is extremely important that changes in the medium are continually monitored. Even small changes or fluctuations of the concentration can have an influence on the product in sensitive processes.
Consequently, the task presents itself to develop a method and a measuring system for monitoring the ability of an amperometric electrochemical sensor to function properly, and to design the method and the measuring system in such a way that the method can be performed quickly, that it is independent of the composition of the medium and that it can also be used in processes with a variable composition of the medium. | {
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In general, the invention relates to vehicle navigation. More specifically, the invention relates to a method of locating a given destination and in particular, to provide a brief summary of directions to a destination and location of a destination to a person who has some knowledge of the general geographical area.
Current navigation systems require the user to input a starting point and a destination. Based on these two points, the navigation software accesses an existing map database, attempts to calculate the best route and provide detailed maneuvering instructions to meet the destination from the starting point.
Such detailed driving directions can be cumbersome, and a driver who may be familiar with the general area may only be interested in converting an address into a physical location. The driver may know approximately where the destination is located, and only require final maneuvers once the general area is reached. The driver may also possess additional information that is not included in the map database, such as areas of road construction to avoid for example, that may lengthen the trip.
Unable to take certain variables into account, many existing navigational systems may not return the fastest route. A system would be desirable that provides the precise physical location of the destination with respect to known landmarks, allowing the driver to navigate the best route. This method would reduce the number of calculations to be made and the amount of data required to be transmitted to the vehicle by utilizing the driver""s existing knowledge base.
Thus, there is a significant need for a method for improving vehicle navigation so that physical address resolution can be more easily realized.
One aspect of the invention provides a method for providing vehicle navigation instructions. A system may include at least one database comprising of location coordinates. A destination may be received by the system and geocoded into a latitude/longitude location. The at least one database is searched to determine if at least one main intersection exists within a first radius extending from the destination. If at least one main street intersection exists within the first radius, the main intersection closest to the destination may be determined. The at least one database may also be searched to determine if at least one freeway exit exists within a second radius extending from the destination. If at least one freeway exit exists within the second radius, the freeway exit closest to the destination may be determined. Vehicle maneuver instructions may be provided from the closest intersection or the closest freeway exit or both.
Another aspect of the invention provides a method of increasing the first radius if a main intersection is not found within the first radius. The at least one database may be searched again using the new first radius.
Another aspect of the invention provides a method of increasing the second radius if no freeway exits are found within the second radius. The at least one database may be searched again using the new second radius.
Another aspect of the invention provides a method of converting the location of the destination into a user understandable format. The distance and direction of the destination from the closest intersection or freeway exit may be determined, and a sentence may be constructed based on the location of the destination and on the combination of existing intersections and freeway exits.
Another aspect of the invention provides a computer usable medium including a program for providing vehicle navigation instructions.
The program may include computer program code to receive the destination, computer code to calculate the at least one first radius and at least one second radius, computer code to search the database for main intersections and freeway exits, computer code to determine the distance between the destination and each main intersection and freeway exit, and computer code that increases either or both of the first radius and second radius independently.
The program may also contain computer code to determine a maximum first radius and a maximum second radius. | {
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The majority of currently-approved small molecule drugs are absorbed across the mucosa of the small intestine to provide delivery to the systemic circulation. In fact, small molecule drugs are selected based upon their stability and efficient absorption across intestinal mucosae. A similar oral delivery of biologically-active polypeptides (referring to a polymer composed of amino acid residues; typically defined as a protein or peptide) has been a long-standing goal of the pharmaceutical industry. As the gastrointestinal (GI) tract is designed to digest dietary proteins and peptides, there are numerous physical, physiological, and biological barriers that limit the feasibility of therapeutic proteins and peptides uptake from the intestine in a manner similar to that achievable with small molecules; Mahato, R. I., et al., Crit Rev Ther Drug Carrier Syst, 20(2-3): p. 153-214 (2003).
A number of technologies have been identified that can be used to protect therapeutic proteins and peptides through the stomach, allowing them to reach the absorptive surface of epithelial cells in the small intestine and separating them from the gastric and intestinal environments that function to destroy dietary proteins and peptides. Unfortunately, however, the efficient transport across this simple, single layer of cells remains a substantial barrier due to the intracellular trafficking to destructive lysosome compartments after endosomal uptake of polypeptides at the luminal surface; Woodley, J. F., Crit Rev Ther Drug Carrier Syst, 11(2-3):p. 61-95 (1994). Indeed, this barrier is designed to inhibit uptake of proteins and peptides until these macromolecules can be sufficiently degraded for absorption through amino acid and di- or tri-peptide transporters. In this regard, a number of efforts have been examined to overcome the physical, physiological, and biological barriers of the intestinal mucosae.
There are two basic routes across the simple epithelium that constitutes the cellular barrier of the intestinal mucosae. Specifically, once across the covering mucus layer, a molecule could move between adjacent epithelial cells (paracellular route) or move through cells (transcellular route) via a series of vesicles that traffic within, but do not mingle, contents with the cytoplasm; T. Jung et al., Eur J Pharm Biopharm, 50:147-160 (2000). In other words, in both routes, a transport protein or peptide therapeutic does not enter into the cell but rather stays in an environment external to the cell's cytoplasm.
The primary barrier to casual movement of therapeutic protein and peptide movement through the paracellular route is a complex of proteins at the apical neck of these cells known as the tight junction (TJ). While transient opening and closing of TJ structures can facilitate transport of peptides across intestinal epithelia, this approach has key limitations: e.g., it does not work well for molecules above ˜5 kDa; it has the potential for non-selective entry of materials into the body from the intestinal lumen; and it represents a route that involves only a small fraction of the surface area of the intestinal epithelium.
The primary barrier to casual migration of protein or peptide therapeutics across cells via the transcellular route is a default vesicle trafficking that delivers the contents of these vesicles to a destructive (lysosomal) pathway. As compared to the paracellular route, movement through the vesicular transcellular route can accommodate materials as large as 100 nm in diameter, involves essentially the entire epithelial cell surface, and can be highly selective in uptake of materials through the use of receptor-ligand interactions for vesicle entry. Thus, the transcellular route is very appealing for the epithelial transport of protein or peptide therapeutics if the destructive pathway can be avoided.
Some pathogens have solved the trafficking barrier problem, as demonstrated by the efficient transcytosis of secreted polypeptide virulence factors which function to facilitate and/or stabilize infection of a host. Exotoxins represent a class of proteins released by a variety of microorganisms which function as potent virulence factors. Exotoxins function on multi-cellular organisms with the capacity to acts as potent toxins in man; Roszak, D. B., and Colwell, R. R., Microbiol Rev 51:365-379 (1987). These proteins commonly kill or inactivate host cells through mechanisms that involve selective disruption of protein synthesis. Accordingly, only a few molecules are required to kill, consistent with the observation that bacterial exotoxins are some of the most toxic agents known. A subset of these proteins comprised of the family of proteins that consists of diphtheria toxin (DT) from Corynebacterium diphtheria, exotoxin A from Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PE), and a recently identified protein termed Cholix from Vibrio cholera function to intoxicate host cells via the ADP-ribosylation of elongation factor 2 (EF2); Yates, S. P., et al., Trends Biochem Sci, 31:123-133 (2006). These exotoxins are synthesized as a single chain of amino acids that fold into distinct domains that have been identified as having specific functions in targeting, entry, and intoxication of host cells.
The biology of exotoxin A from Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PE) has recently been described; Mrsny, R. J., et al., Drug Discov Today, 7(4): p. 247-58 (2002). PE is composed of a single chain of 613 amino acids having a theoretical molecular weight (MW) of 66828.11 Da, an isoelectric point (pI) of 5.28, and that functionally folds into three discrete domains, denoted domain I (Ala1Glu252), domain II (Gly253-Asn364), domain III (Gly405-Lys613, and which contains a ADP-ribosyltransferase activity site), and a short disulfide-linked loop linking domains II and III which is known as the Ib loop (Ala365-Gly404) The organization of these domains at pH 8.0 have determined from crystal diffraction at a resolution of ˜1.5 Å; Wedekind, J. E. et al., J Mol Biol, 314:823-837 (2001). Domain I (Ia+Ib) has a core formed from a β-stranded β-roll, domain II is composed of six α-helices, and domain III has a complex α/β-folded structure. Studies have supported the idea that the modular nature of PE allows for distinct domain functions: domain I binds to host cell receptors, domain II is involved in membrane translocation, and domain III functions as an ADP-ribosyltransferase. It appears that PE is secreted by P. aeruginosa in close proximity to the epithelial cell apical surface, possibly in response to environmental cues and/or cellular signals; Deng, Q. and J. T. Barbieri, Annu Rev Microbiol, 62:p. 271-88 (2008). Once secreted, internalization into cells occurs after domain I of PE binds to the membrane protein α2-macroglobulin, a protein which is also known as the low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) or CD91; see, e.g., FitzGerald, D.J., et al., J Cell Biol, 129(6):p. 1533-41 (1995); Kounnas, M. Z., et al., J Biol Chem, 267(18): p. 12420-3 (1992). Following internalization, PE avoids trafficking to the lysosome and is instead efficiently delivered to the basolateral surface of the cell where it is released in a biologically-active form; Mrsny, R. J., et al., Drug Discov Today, 7(4): p. 247-58 (2002). Once across the epithelium, PE functions as a virulence factor by entering into CD91-positive cells within the submucosal space (macrophage and dendritic cells) where it then intersects with an unfolding pathway that leads to the cytoplasmic delivery of domain III; see, e.g., Mattoo, S., Y. M. Lee, and J. E. Dixon, Curr Opin Immunol, 19(4): p. 392-401 (2007); Spooner, R. A., et al., Virol J, 3: p. 26 (2006).
Vibrio cholerae bacterium is best known for its eponymous virulence agent, cholera toxin (CT), which can cause acute, life-threatening massive watery diarrhea. CT is a protein complex composed of a single A subunit organized with a pentamer of B subunits that binds to cell surface GM1 ganglioside structures at the apical surface of epithelia. CT is secreted by V. cholera following horizontal gene transfer with virulent strains of V. cholerae carrying a variant of lysogenic bacteriophage called CTXf or CTXφ. Recent cholera outbreaks, however, have suggested that strains of some serogroups (non-01, non-0139) do not express CT but rather use other virulence factors. Detailed analyses of non-01, non-0139 environmental and clinical data suggested the presence of a novel putative secreted exotoxin with some similarity to PE.
Jorgensen, R. et al., J Biol Chem, 283(16):10671-10678 (2008) reported that some strains of V. cholerae did, in fact, contain a protein toxin having similarity to PE and which they termed Cholix toxin (Cholix). Compared to PE, Cholix has a slightly larger theoretical MW (70703.89 Da) and a slightly more acidic theoretical pI (5.12). The crystal structure of the 634 amino acid Cholix protein has been resolved to ˜2 Å. The domain structure and organization was found to be somewhat similar to PE: domain I (Val′-Lys265), domain II (Glu266-Ala386), domain III (Arg426-Lys634) and a Ib loop (Ala387-Asn425). Additional structural similarity to PE includes: a furin protease site for cellular activation; a C-terminal KDEL sequence that can route the toxin to the endoplasmic reticulum of the host cell; and an ADP-ribosyltransferase activity site within domain III.
Remarkably, PE and Cholix share no significant genetic and limited similarity by amino acid alignment. Searching the genome of V. cholera for PE-like nucleotide sequences fails to result in a match of any kind. It is only at the protein sequence level is there the hint that an PE-like protein could be produced by this bacterium. Even here, there is only a 32% homology between the amino acid sequences of PE and Cholix with similarities (42% homology) being focused in the ADP ribosylation elements of domain III, and with low levels of amino acid homology (˜15-25%) for most segments of domains I and II for the two proteins. Moreover, this overall arrangement of Cholix relative to PE is even more striking since these two proteins with similar elements were derived from two distinct directions: P. aeruginosa is a GC-rich bacterium while V. cholera is AT-rich. That these two toxins evolved from two different genetic directions to arrive at nearly the same structure but with only 32% amino acid homology suggests that structural and functional similarities of Cholix and PE are likely based upon similar survival pressures rather than through similar genetic backgrounds. The very low amino acid homology of domains I and II for these two proteins stress the functional importance of the folded structures of these two proteins and not their amino acid sequences.
The C-terminal portion of Cholix and PE appear to function in the intoxication of cells through ADP-ribosylation of EF2 in comparable ways. Recent studies where the latter half of Cholix (domain I deleted) targeted to cancer cells through conjugation to an antibody directed to the transferrin receptor suggests that the C-terminal portions of PE and Cholix involved in ADP-ribosylation of EF2 are indeed functionally similar; Sarnovsky, R., et al., Cancer Immunol Immunother 59:737-746 (2010). While this distal portion of Cholix is 36% identical and 50% similar to PE, polyclonal antisera raised in animals as well as sera from patients having neutralizing immune responses to this same distal portion of PE failed to cross-react with this latter portion of Cholix. Similarly, antisera raised to this Cholix failed to cross-react with PE. This data suggests that while both PE and Cholix share a capacity to intoxicate cells through a similar mechanism and that these two proteins share a common core structure, there are striking differences in their elements that are expressed at the surface of these proteins.
As previous studies using PE have demonstrated that this toxin readily transports across polarized monolayers of epithelial cells in vitro and in vivo without intoxication; Mrsny, R. J., et al., Drug Discov Today, 7(4): p. 247-58 (2002), the present inventors have commenced research to further evaluate the properties and biology of Cholix, with a particular focus on the functional aspects of the proximal portions of Cholix; specifically, the use of domains I and II to facilitate transport across intestinal epithelial monolayers. As domains I and IIa appeared to be the only essential elements of PE required for epithelial transcytosis, it was particularly important to examine these same domains in Cholix. As stated previously, there is only ˜15%-25% amino acids homology over most of the regions that would be considered to be part of domains I and IIa. The present inventors examined the domains though a series of studies: monitoring the biological distribution of Cholix following application to epithelial surfaces in vivo, assessment of Cholix transcellular transport characteristics across polarized epithelial cell monolayers in vitro, and delivery of a biologically-active cargo genetically integrated into the Cholix protein at its C-terminus. Preliminary data generated by genetically fusing the first two domains of Cholix (amino acids 1-386) to green fluorescent protein (GFP) or chemically coupling these expressed domains to 100 nm diameter latex beads demonstrated that Cholix attached to 100 nm latex beads were observed to transport across intestinal epithelial monolayers in vitro and in vivo. That the GFP cargo retained its fluorescent character during and after the transcytosis process also support the contention that Cholix utilizes a non-destructive (or privileged) trafficking pathway through polarized epithelial cells. This outcome bodes well for its (repeated) application as a tool to deliver biologically active cargos across epithelial barriers of the body, such as those in the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts.
Also of important note from the preliminary studies is the observation which suggests an apparent cell receptor interaction difference between PE and Cholix. As stated previously, PE enters into epithelial cells after domain I of PE binds to the membrane protein α2-macroglobulin, a protein which is also known as the low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) or CD91. While the exact identity of the surface receptor for Cholix has not been established, preliminary studies suggest that Cholix does not intoxicate some cell lines that express CD91 but intoxicates some cell lines that do express CD91. It is currently unclear what other receptors, beyond CD91, might be involved epithelial transcytosis of PE. Nevertheless, Cholix and PE appear to have distinct cell receptor interactions, demonstrating clear differences that are sufficient to suggest very different and unanticipated applications for both oral biologics and the intracellular delivery of bioactive agents. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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The present disclosure relates generally to a switch mode power converter, and more specifically, to a power converter controller operating with variable reference voltages.
A switch mode power converter—commonly used in low power AC-DC power supplies—includes a transformer, a power switch, and a controller. The controller regulates power delivered to a load by controlling actuation of the power switch. The controller typically provides a switch control signal to control a state of the power switch either in an ON or OFF state so as to regulate power delivered to the load based on, for example, pulse width modulation (PWM) or pulse frequency modulation (PFM) control. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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The present invention refers to an optical device, more particularly for a reflection detector, comprising an emitter optic for projecting a light beam onto an object and a receptor optic for projecting the reflected light onto a detector.
Reflection detectors require emitter and receptor optics disposed side by side on the front side. Their construction is particularly difficult in the case of compact sensors intended for enclosures having a cross-section of a centimeter or less. Anterior solutions use optical elements molded of synthetic materials which offer very little resistance to aggressive environments and whose surfaces are deteriorated by cleaning. The use of windows or of optical elements of glass complicates the assembly and further reduces the optical aperture and thus the luminous intensity. This is particularly disadvantageous in the case of the mentioned detectors of small dimensions as a limitation of the performance and consequently of the possible applications are the results.
If optical fibers are grouped for producing compact reflection detection systems, the performance of the latter is limited by the angle of aperture. In the case of step-index fibers, which are often used in industrial applications, the angle of aperture is generally close to twice 30xc2x0. The fast light dispersion does not allow to distinguish small objects at a distance of some centimeters.
It is therefore necessary to provide a focusing optic at the ends of these fibers, and no satisfying solution has been found for reflection tips smaller than some millimeters. In fact, optical systems including multiple elements are difficult to integrate into tips having a circular opening. Not even the use of relatively expensive index gradient lenses has provided a simpler solution or led to a significant industrial production.
On the background of this prior art, it is a first object of the present invention to allow the production of an optical device of small dimensions using simple and inexpensive optical elements. A second object is to provide a maximum utilization of a circular opening and thus the highest possible luminous intensity of the optical system, thereby ensuring an optimum performance of the reflection system. A third object is to provide an optical system of a simple construction in order to facilitate its industrial manufacture and to reduce its costs. These objects are attained by an optical device wherein the emitter optic and the receptor optic each comprise a dome disposed in such a manner that the light beam passes through the dome in a plane that is at least approximately parallel to the plane surface of the dome.
In one embodiment, the invention allows to produce a focusing optic disposed at the end of the emitter and receptor fibers and forming a reflection detection tip of some millimeters in diameter. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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The present invention relates to the presentation of audiovisual information via one or more large format common displays in a collaborative workspace and more specifically to a fast and intuitive controller allowing a meeting participant with a laptop computer to quickly and easily control the presentation of laptop information on common displays.
Small group conference tables usable as collaborative workspaces have been designed with one or more large video displays such as a LCD flat-panel monitor or a wall suitable for having images projected thereon, connected to or adjacent the conference table. The basic intent behind such workspace designs is to provide information at or near a table edge for attendees to refer to during discussions and presentations. In many cases, the video display is connected to and driven by a dedicated computer.
Oftentimes, more than one attendee needs to be able to control the information presented on the video display at different times during a conference. One way to allow several attendees to present information on a video display screen is to have each presenter sequentially connect their laptop computer directly to the display or projector with a dedicated audio/video cable. Though straightforward and simple, having to repeatedly disconnect and connect the cable from one laptop computer to another takes time and is disruptive.
Another way of enabling several attendees to share audiovisual information from their own laptop computers via a common large video display screen is to provide separate audio/video cables for each presenter and connect each of the laptops to an audiovisual switching device that enables the attendees to take control of the common display screen via selection of a button associated with each of the audio/video cables.
While such an arrangement provide a relatively quick transition between presenters, such arrangements typically require a separate controller or control program and a number of less-than-intuitive steps that must be followed to transition from one presenter to another. Further, known such arrangements do not provide a quick and intuitive indication as to which presenter is sharing their information via the video display screen. As a result, meeting presenters and participants may experience confusion and delay between transitions. Such user experiences may result in a loss of productivity and in general, can be significant impediments to the successful collaboration between conference participants and willingness of participants to use the system.
Thus, while solutions for managing and controlling the flow of information from interconnected computing devices have been developed, known solutions do not provide simple and intuitive steps for selecting which information is shared via the video display and for indicating which of several video/audio resources currently control presented information. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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It is important for a computing environment to provide a simple and effective way to find, organize, and be reminded about content and data. This is, of course, a complicated and difficult problem; one the industry has been struggling with for almost 40 years. By finding, we are actually referring to re-finding something that has already been seen—intentional/conscious retrieval. This a bit different from the task of web searching for something new. Reminding refers to the establishment and use of cues (usually visual) that assist or supplement memory—opportunistic retrieval. Some have referred to the problem as that of “keeping found things found.”
Some functional evaluation frameworks classify three types or sets of information: 1) ephemeral—has a short shelf life and includes items such as unread electronic mail messages (emails), “to do” lists, note pads, memos, calendars, items to print out, forms to fill out, bills to pay, and news articles downloaded from databases; 2) working—is frequently-used information that is relevant to the user's current work needs and that has a shelf life that depends on the lifetime of the project, such as a day or two, a week, or months; and 3) archived—strictly speaking has no shelf life, but is only indirectly relevant to the user's current work, and is infrequently accessed. These items do not go away or become worthless, but they fade from relevance gradually. These functional evaluation frameworks have also identified a number of factors that may be used to evaluate information retrieval systems: 1) portability of information, 2) number of access points, 3) persistence of information, 4) preservation of information in its current state, 5) currency of information, 6) context, 7) reminding, 8) ease of integration, 9) communication and information sharing, and 10) ease of maintenance.
Most computing environments offer a number of tools that attempt to address aspects of the general problem. These often include: desktop (folder), places (folders or collections), search functions, recently used lists, a file manager (e.g., Explorer or Finder), file open/save dialogs (also referred to as file chooser dialogs). Other studies have shown that email, although originally designed as a communications application, has increasingly been used for task management and personal archiving. Some email applications define a few types of information that are kept around and not dealt with immediately, including to-do items, to-read items, items of indeterminate status, ongoing items over a period, and record or history. These may be viewed as another formulation of the three types or sets of information described above.
Conventional computing environments typically store files in file directories of a file system. These conventional computing environments provide a file manager, such as Explorer or Finder, to allow a user to access, view, open, save, create, or modify files in the file system. These conventional computing environments typically provide a desktop view, which is a visual representation of files that are stored in a desktop folder in the file directory. These desktops may be helpful for permanently or temporarily storing files of interest. In general, there are three types of users in these computing environments: 1) “no filers”—never file or categorize information into folders; 2) “spring cleaners”—attempt to file information (often ineffectively) after the organization system has broken down; and 3) “frequent filers”—make strenuous efforts to organize information. Organization information in these computing environments, however, has a number of problems with filing in general. In particular, it is a cognitively difficult task, there are desires to postpone filing judgments, folders may be too small, folders may be too big, folders may be too numerous, and may drastically reduce the reminding function. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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This invention relates to a mailer and method and apparatus for making and, more particularly, to a mailer production utilizing two sheets which are superposed prior to being folded.
The invention is particularly useful in connection with a non-impact printed sheet (such as those printed by laser, ink jet, etc.) and which can be seen in greater detail in my U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,754,915 and 4,889,278.
The mailer made possible by the invention is advantageous in combining a computer printed form with one or more additional sheets such as a return envelope, insert, label, coupon or an outer envelope.
After processing the computer printed form on the computer for business systems information, personalization or simply addressing, the form is folded and glued on a commercial folder. According to the invention, the method provides the step of adding additional material to the mailing piece immediately before folding or directly into the nip of the folding rollers or other folding mechanism.
The computer generated form can be a simple, single ply without attachments during the computer printing operation which is particularly desirable when using laser printers. It is then possible to include additional materials in the finished mailer that would not be possible if they were added before computer printing due to the limitations of the printers.
The development of the laser printers for computer printout has provided new capabilities that are desired in business and promotional graphic systems.
The much higher speed capability of the laser printer continues the progress for ever faster printout capabilities needed to match the faster computers. Other desired capabilities of laser printers are the ability to printout in an infinite number of type sizes and styles including MICR, optical characters, bar codes, and even pictures. These special features make the future of laser printing very bright for both high speed systems and smaller slower speed but still versatile computer printers for smaller business systems.
These highly desirable features are accompanied by limitations uncharacteristic of previous computer systems. The laser printer is non-impact, thus eliminating carbon copies, carbonless imaging and multiple copies in general. The higher transport speeds of the business form in the computer complicate feeding and refolding problems which have traditionally been troublesome. The heating of the web required to fuse the image causes distortions and permanent changes to the paper which have caused feeding, refolding, and stacking problems. Finally, the laser printer tends to be envisioned as a single ply printer and requires a level surface of uniform thickness in the imaging area if high quality is to be achieved.
The requirements of business and promotional forms are at odds with these limitations. Although these systems are enhanced by the advantages of laser printers, they are also enhanced by features such as additional plies, return envelopes, folded over portions, attachments such as labels, coupons, etc.
It is the purpose of this invention to provide for these additional requirements without complicating the form to be processed on the computer printer.
There are many large and important business and promotional systems that can be met satisfactorily with a mailer using a single ply of computer printer, for instance, the issuing of checks for savings, mutual funds, and corporate dividend payments. Often these checks do not require more information to accompany them than can be provided in a single ply mailer. These requirements can be met by the mailers of my inventions U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,754,915 and 4,889,278. But it is also a common need even in relatively simple business systems to include additional sheets of information when some unexpected notice is required. In these cases, it is inconvenient, expensive, and even impractical due to time limitations to go back to the forms printer for a run of special forms.
In other systems, it is always advantageous to provide a return envelope, a label or such that is not practical to be attached to the form as it is being laser printed.
This invention concerns the folding of mailers from laser printed blanks which also has provision for adding inserts, labels, coupons, return envelopes, outgoing envelopes and the like to the single ply computer generated form before or during the folding operation. The added pieces could be in the form of individual cut pieces or from rolls or packs of continuous forms. For instance, it may be more convenient to feed return envelopes as individual pieces but pressure sensitive labels, notices, coupons and such from a continuous series supplied in rolls or fanfolded packs.
It may also be advantageous to add some of these items before the first folding operation. In this case, these items can be held by glue or other fastenings such as static electricity, crimping, or stapling or they may be friction fed along with the laser printed blanks.
In still other cases, it may be advantageous to feed the additional item directly into the folding rollers thereby achieving accurate positioning of the item on the mailing piece without requiring any fastening.
It is another purpose of this invention to provide a mailer through a method and an apparatus of adding the above-mentioned items with much less restrictions on their design and construction than would be required if the items were to be transported through the laser printer during the printing operation. The method includes providing at least two series of sheets in juxtaposed relation and introducing the forward end of at least one sheet of one series into folding means and thereafter folding one or both sheets along parallel lines. The apparatus includes a computer printer, rotating rolls defining sequential nips therebetween, buckle folder chutes between the nips, and means for feeding a pair of superposed sheets sequentially through the nips and chutes, one of the sheets being generated by the computer printer. This results in a mailer assembly including a relatively elongated outer ply having at least two transverse folds each providing a fold pocket, and an insert ply positioned in the fold pockets and extending therebetween. | {
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This disclosure relates to thermoplastic compositions, in particular laser-weldable thermoplastic compositions, methods of manufacture, and articles thereof.
Thermoplastic compositions are used in the manufacture of a wide variety of products, including laser-welded products. Near-infrared (NIR) laser-welding of two polymer articles by transmission welding requires one of the polymer articles to be at least partially transparent to laser light, and the other to absorb a significant amount of the laser light. An additional key requirement is that there is good physical contact between the parts during a welding process; a smooth surface is beneficial in this respect. The laser passes through the first laser transparent layer and is absorbed by the second polymer layer, generating heat in the exposed area. External pressure is applied to ensure uninterrupted contact and heat conduction between the parts resulting in the melting of both the absorbing and the transmitting polymers, thus generating a weld at the interface.
The level of NIR transmission in the upper part should allow sufficient laser density at the interface to facilitate effective welding. Otherwise, the joining of the two materials by laser transmission welding is either impossible or restricted to slow scan speeds, which is not very attractive as it lengthens the part assembly cycle time. Crystalline, or partially crystalline materials, such as PBT, are materials that can easily disperse the incoming radiation. Consequently, the extent of the laser energy at the joining interface is dramatically diminished and the adhesion between the two layers is reduced. Scattering effects are greatly enhanced when fillers such as glass fibers are present especially when the upper layer thickness is greater than 1 mm. Therefore, the laser-welding of crystalline material and particularly glass filled versions, is restricted if not impossible in a lot of cases. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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The present invention relates to a clamping band capable of clamping a member to be clamped which is a connector for a gas hose, car boot, etc.
FIG. 24 is a drawing illustrating a state of clamping for a conventional clamping band. This clamping band 1 is used when a member 8 to be clamped such as a rubber tubing is connected to a pipe 9.
A band piece 2 is formed in a ring, both ends thereof are overlapped with each other, and on one end section 2a positioned outside, a clamping ear 3 is the form of a gate is formed projecting outwardly. This clamping ear 3 is a known means for diameter reduction called an Octiker ear. The clamping band 1, including the band piece 2 and the clamping ear 3, is made of metal.
When the band piece 2 is wound on a member 8 to be clamped, the other end section 2b of the band piece 2 goes into the inside of the end section 2a with overlapping. In this clamping band 1, the band piece 2 is reduced in diameter by deforming the clamp ear 3 to tightly clamping member 4 to be clamped.
However, since the clamping band 1 is made of metal, a slight return, i.e., spring-back, occurs even the clamping ear 3 has been deformed with a pair of pliers and thus it is impossible to maintain strong clamping over a long term. This spring-back is due to the elasticity inherent in metallic materials, and this property cannot be removed.
The clamping band is for clamping a hose of a material such as rubber, and after clamping a force in the direction toward diameter enlargement is exerted on the clamping band due to the elasticity of the member to be clamped or the pressure of the fluid passing inside the member to be clamped, and thus a long-term use will yield a looseness and result in decrease in sealing capacity. This is because the maintenance of the clamping state of the clamping band depending upon the elastic deformation of the clamping ear. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to inventory control systems, and particularly to inventory control systems of the type wherein the inventory consists of products dispensed from containers. Most particularly, the invention pertains to an inventory control system for alcoholic beverages dispensed from bottles intended for use in bars, restaurants, entertainment clubs and the like.
2. Prior Art
The sale of alcoholic beverages at bars in restaurants, taverns, entertainment establishments and the like yields hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenue. Typically, the alcoholic beverages are in bottles displayed in at the back of the bar, with drinks being dispensed directly from the bottles, usually by the ounce, the price per ounce varying depending upon the type and brand of alcoholic beverage being dispensed. Payment for the drinks is usually received by the bartender directly from the customer, waiter or waitress in the form of cash.
A restaurant or tavern may employ one or more bartenders who collectively dispense hundreds of drinks containing alcoholic beverages and who collect cash receipts totalling hundreds of dollars. In a typical establishment, business is continuous, proceeding without interruption even during changes in bartenders. In such establishments, the opportunities for theft are many. If, for example, a bartender pours a drink and retains the cash payment therefor without recording the drink on the register, the theft is difficult to detect. Even if the proprietor eventually realizes that the cash receipts do not match the alcoholic beverages dispensed, such as would be apparent from a shortage in inventory vis-a-vis cash receipts, the proprietor may be unable to identify the offending bartender, as it is difficult, if not impossible, to determine the shift during which the theft occurred. Consequently, bartenders or other personnel responsible for these shortages often go undetected until the proprietor has been deprived of large sums of money and/or inventory. Cash receipts are also lost when a patron brings his own bottle into an establishment without protest from the bartender. It is estimated that these losses collectively amount to many millions of dollars each year.
Another problem for establishments dispensing alcoholic beverages is maintaining sufficient inventory. Typically, as noted above, the alcoholic beverages at the bar are in bottles displayed at the back of the bar Depending upon the popularity of the beverage, one or several bottles may be displayed. In addition, full bottles must be maintained at a separate inventory site in the establishment for replacing the bottles at the bar as they are depleted. Accordingly, it is important for the proprietor to maintain an accurate inventory for each different type and brand of alcoholic beverage to avoid an unintentional depletion of stock.
Some of the prior art approaches for reducing bar theft, and their drawbacks, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,863,724 which itself is directed to such an apparatus. The apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,863,724 includes a plurality of weight sensing mechanisms, one disposed beneath each of the several bottles of alcoholic beverages displayed at the bar. The output from each weight sensing mechanism is communicated to a computer, which senses the weight of the bottle on each respective mechanism at two different time intervals, e.g. at the beginning and at the end of a particular bartender's shift. The difference in weight at the beginning and at the end of the shift indicates the quantity of alcoholic beverage dispensed from the bottle placed on that mechanism, which can then be translated to expected cash receipts from that bottle for that shift.
A major drawback of the system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,863,724 is that it assumes that the same bottle will always be placed on the same weight sensing mechanism. Unfortunately, this is not a valid assumption. In a busy bar, several bottles may be temporarily removed form their weight sensing mechanism simultaneously as alcoholic beverages are dispensed. If these bottles are then placed back on different weight sensing mechanisms, the system described in the patent is rendered essentially useless. More to the point, a dishonest bartender could defeat the system by intentionally moving the bottles from one weight sensing mechanism to another.
An inventory control system for alcoholic beverages is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,563,739. This system includes a hand-carried portable unit having a weight sensing mechanism and a bar code reading wand for reading a bar code affixed to each bottle, each code being unique to the brand and bottle size to which it is affixed. Consequently, this system can both determine the weight of the bottle placed on the weight sensing mechanism and, by reading the bar code, identify the type of alcoholic beverage contained in the bottle. While this system may prove useful for inventory tracking, it is too labor intensive for use in monitoring expected cash receipts, as it requires each bottle behind the bar to be placed on the scale at the end of each shift--a time consuming process. Also, it is not seen how this system can distinguish between several bottles of the same brand and bottle size. Furthermore, use of the system described in this patent requires the bar code reading want to be scanned across the bar code on the bottle at a substantially uniform rate to insure that the bar code is properly read, thereby introducing a human error factor. Still further, such system is not automatic.
As will be apparent from the foregoing, the prior art does not teach an effective inventory control system for alcoholic beverages which is suitable for monitoring stock and expected cash receipt with minimum human intervention. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to valves for pneumatic tires and the like. More specifically, it relates to valves usable with off-highway vehicles such as large earth-moving equipment and mining and agricultural equipment. It has special application to large diameter high pressure tires equipped with fast filling and discharging fittings commonly called "super bore" connections.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art abounds with references showing valves for pneumatic tires. These valves are of virtually every description but by far the majority require a spring forcing the valve to the closed position and have valve pin bridges of considerable width supporting the valve pin. In commercial use, valves of the art are of relatively small diameter. These factors, the presence of the springs, substantial pin bridges and the small diameter, have underlined the deficiencies of prior devices for use in tires on heavy equipment. Flow rates during filling and discharge have been slow because of the destruction of these structures. Further, in connection with certain prior valves of the core housing type, fast deflation has been achieved by removal of the entire core housing. There has been a hazard in deflating such tires in that the core and/or core housing will literally be "shot" out of the valve stem, pressured by the tire air pressure where pressure is often in excess of 100 lbs. per square inch. Removal of such a core housing has also, of course, required special tools.
Herein the word "tire" is used for simplicity to include tires, bags, tanks and other gas and air containers with which the valve may be used. | {
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The invention relates to an apparatus for producing low-birefringent and/or low stress plastic film or sheet having a high surface-polish and is suitable for optical media applications as well as low stress film for non optical applications either one using a continuous extrusion process. Optical media applications include such items as compact discs (CD), digital video discs (DVD), liquid crystal displays (LCD) or any other optical media applications which require a transparent substrate with low birefringence low stress and a high surface-polish. Non optical applications using low stress film or sheet for use in such applications as automobile dash board overlays or other uses for opaque film or sheet which require tight graphics registration. Birefringence is not measurable in opaque film or sheet.
More particularly, this invention relates to a particular calendering or process finishing roll stack wherein the structure of at least one of the finishing rolls is comprised of an inner steel shell, a resilient covering thereover and a multi layer metal sleeve outer covering. Film or sheet produced using the roll structure of this invention has low-birefringence, low stress and is highly polished on at least one surface i.e. a surface having a low roughness of 4 microinches or less which film or sheet is suitable for optical media applications or opaque film or sheet for such other non optical applications. Such film or sheet is produced in a one step continuous extrusion process.
Currently, polycarbonate is used as the polymeric material for optical media applications such as CD""s and are made by injecting molding. The process is relatively slow and expensive. In addition, it is difficult to produce CD""s of very low-birefringence which will be required to reach higher data densities in the future. CD""s currently produced today have a retardation value of 25-30 nm. (nanometers), which is birefringence times thickness. Stress and birefringence are inherent in injection molding CD""s because the melt starts to solidify on the inside mold wall as the mold is filling, and then additional melt is forced into the mold cavity to compensate for shrinkage of the disc as it solidifies. In opaque film or sheet, birefringence is not measurable but low stress is wanted for applications in vehicles, computer housings, etc. that require tight (0.4 mm/MAX) graphics registration.
Birefringence is defined as the difference between the refractive indices along two perpendicular directions as measured with polarized light along these directions. It results from molecular orientation, and the measurement of birefringence is the most common method of characterising polymer orientation. It is determined by measurement of the retardation distance by either a compensation or a transmission method. Positive birefringence results when the principal optic axis lies along the chain; negative birefringence when transverse to the chain. In Cartesian coordinates there are three birefringences, two being independent. Thus xcex94xy=nxxe2x88x92ny, the differences in refractive indices along the x and y axes. Uniaxial orientation only requires one of these to describe the orientation. Therefore, in order to obtain a uniform homogeneous polycarbonate, the lower the birefringence (the differences between the refractive indices) the more homogeneous the polymer composition of the product and thus the more uniform properties of the product. This is critical, particular on CD""s, DVD""s or LCD wherein the Laser read out must have minimal or zero distortion. The lower birefringence, the less is the variation in polymer homogeninity and Laser distortion.
Another parameter for optical materials is Cg which is the stress-optical coefficient of material in the glassy state. It can be measured with a molded part such as a small bar or disc. Birefringence can be measured by the method described above. When a stress is applied to the bar, the birefringence will change by an amount B. The stress-optical coefficient, which has units of Brewsters, is given by:
B=Cg xcex4
The stress-optical coefficient (Cg) should be less than or equal to about 70 Brewsters.
Improvements in optical data storage media, including increased data storage density, are highly desirable, and achievement of such improvements is expected to improve well established and new computer technology such as read only (ROM), write once, rewritable, digital versatile and magneto-optical (MO) disks.
In the case of CD ROM technology, the information to be read is imprinted directly into a moldable, transparent plastic material, such as bisphenol A (BPA) polycarbonate. The information is stored in the form of shallow pits embossed in a polymer surface. The surface is coated with a reflective metallic film, and the digital information, represented by the position and length of the pits, is read optically with a focused low power (5 mW) laser beam. The user can only extract information (digital data) from the disk without changing or adding any data. Thus, it is possible to xe2x80x9creadxe2x80x9d but not to xe2x80x9cwritexe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cerasexe2x80x9d information.
The operating principle is a write once read many (WORM) drive is to use a focused laser beam (20-40 mW) to make a permanent mark on a thin film on a disk. The information is then read out as a change in the optical properties of the disk, e.g., reflectivity or absorbance. These changes can take various forms: xe2x80x9chole burningxe2x80x9d is the removal of material, typically a thin film of tellurium, by evaporation, melting or spalling (sometimes referred to as laser ablation); bubble or pit formation involves deformation of the surface, usually of a polymer overcoat of a metal reflector.
Although the CD-ROM and WORM formats have been successfully developed and are well suited for particular applications, the computer industry is focusing on erasable media for optical storage (EODs). There are two types of EODs: phase change (PC) and magneto-optic (MO).
Generally, amorphous materials are used for MO storage and have a distinct advantage in MO storage as they do not suffer from xe2x80x9cgrain noisexe2x80x9d, spurious variations in the plane of polarization of reflected light caused by randomness in the orientation of grains in a polycrystalline film. Bits are written by heating above the Curie point, TC, and cooling in the presence of a magnetic field, a process known as thermomagnetic writing. In the phase-change material, information is stored in regions that are different phases, typically amorphous and crystalline. The film is initially crystallized by heating it above the crystallization temperature. In most of these materials, the crystallization temperature is close to the glass transition temperature. When the film is heated with a short, high power focused laser pulse, the film can be melted and quenched to the amorphous state. The amorphized spot can represent a digital xe2x80x9c1xe2x80x9d or a bit of information. The information is read by scanning it with the same laser, set at a lower power, and monitoring the reflectivity.
In the case of WORM and EOD technology, the recording layer is separated from the environment by a transparent, non-interfering shielding layer. Materials selected for such xe2x80x9cread throughxe2x80x9d optical data storage applications must have outstanding physical properties, such as moldability, ductility, a level of robustness compatible with particular use, resistance to deformation when exposed to high heat or high humidity, either alone or in combination. The materials should also interfere minimally with the passage of laser light through the medium when information is being retrieved from or added to the storage device.
As data storage densities are increased in optical data storage media to accommodate newer technologies, such as DVD and higher density data disks for short or long term data archives, the design requirements for the transparent plastic component of the optical data storage devices have become increasingly stringent. Materials displaying lower birefringence at current, and in the future progressively shorter xe2x80x9creading and writingxe2x80x9d wavelengths have been the object of intense efforts in the field of optical data storage devices.
Birefringence in an article molded from polymeric material is related to orientation and deformation of its constituent polymer chains. Birefringence has several sources, including the structure and physical properties of the polymer material, the degree of molecular orientation in the polymer material and thermal stresses in the processed polymer material. For example, the birefringence of a molded optical article is determined, in part, by the molecular structure of its constituent polymer and the processing conditions, such as the forces applied during mold filling and cooling, used in its fabrication which can create thermal stresses and orientation of the polymer chains.
The observed birefringence of a disk is therefore determined by the molecular structure, which determines the intrinsic birefringence, and the processing conditions, which can create thermal stresses and orientation of the polymer chains. Specifically, the observed birefringence is typically a function of the intrinsic birefringence and the birefringence introduced upon molding articles, such as optical disks. The observed birefringence of an optical disk is typically quantified using a measurement termed xe2x80x9cin-plane birefringencexe2x80x9d or IBR, which is described more fully below.
For a molded optical disk, the IBR is defined as:
IBR=(nrxe2x88x92nxcex8)d=xcex94nrxcex8dxe2x80x83xe2x80x83(3)
where nr and nxcex8 are the refractive indices along the r and xcex8 cylindrical axes of the disk; nr is the index of refraction seen by a light beam polarized along the radial direction, and nxcex8 is the index of refraction for light polarized azimuthally to the plane of the disk. The thickness of the disk is given by d. The IBR governs the defocusing margin, and reduction of IBR will lead to the alleviation of problems which are not correctable mechanically. IBR is a property of the finished optical disk. It is formally called a xe2x80x9cretardationxe2x80x9d and has units of nanometers.
In applications requiring higher storage density, such as DVD recordable and rewritable material, the properties of low birefringence and low water absorption in the polymer material from which the optical article is fabricated become even more critical. In order to achieve higher data storage density, low birefringence is necessary so as to minimally interfere with the laser beam as it passes through the optical article, for example a compact disk.
Materials for DVD recordable and rewritable material require low in-plane birefringence, in particular preferably less than about +/xe2x88x9240 nm single pass; excellent replication of the grooved structure, in particular greater than about 90% of stamper; and reduced water uptake as compared to BPA polycarbonate.
Another critical property needed for high data storage density applications, in particular DVD recordable and rewritable material, is disk flatness. The disk flatness is dependent upon the flatness of the polycarbonate substrate immediately after the injection molding process as well as the dimensional stability of the substrate upon exposure to high humidity environments. It is known that excessive moisture absorption results in disk skewing which in turn leads to reduced reliability. Since the bulk of the disk is comprised of the polymer material, the flatness of the disk depends on the low water solubility and low rate of water diffusion into the polymeric material. In addition, the polymer should be easily processed in order to product high quality disks through injection molding.
There is a distinct economic advantage of producing said film and sheet for discs for optical media applications via a continuous film extrusion process, whereby a continuous plastic web of 4-8 feet wide could be produced at speeds of 10-60 feet/minute from which discs could be cut out. Extrusion casting, where a melt is extruded through a slot die and deposited on a polished metal roller to solidify, can produce low-birefringence films but the top surface of the film is not smooth enough. Extrusion calendering, on the other hand, whereby a second polished metal roll is added to form a nip between the two rolls to squeeze the plastic on both sides as is solidifies, is widely used to produce very uniform and smooth-surface films. However, the flow in the nip between rigid rolls induces very high stresses and such films have retardation values of hundreds to thousands of nanometers. A resilient elastomeric cover has been put on one of the rolls to produce textured films that have lower stress, but the texture is unacceptable for optical media applications.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,756,760 teaches the use of a single metal outer sleeve of nickel over a rubber-covered roller to accommodate and smooth the non-uniformity of the extrudate from an extrusion die upon delivering melt to the calendering nip. It does not disclose how to use this to control stress in the film and birefringence. In addition, such a sleeve is too fragile to be of practical use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,987 discloses producing optical quality extrusion film by calendering the film between a ground elastic roller and a high gloss steel roller to produce a film having a high gloss surface and a matte surface, or producing a film having a high gloss on both surfaces, by coating the matte surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,149,481 discloses extruding a sheet or film into the roll gap of a smoothed upper roll and a lower roll wherein the temperature of the upper roll is below the glass transition temperature of the plastic and the lower roll is maintained at a temperature in the plastic state domain of the plastic sheet or film.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,242,742 is similar to U.S. Pat. No. 5,149,481 except that it discloses a sheet or film having a birefringence of less than 50 nm and preferably less than 20 nm.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,925,379 discloses a process for producing a plastic sheet, wherein at least one layer is a polyurethane layer, by extrusion and pressing at a temperature higher than the softening point of the polyurethane.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,436 is a division of U.S. Pat. No. 5,242,742 and claims a sheet or film having a birefringence equal to or less than 50 nm, a low surface roughness and low variation in thickness.
All of the above references do not disclose or teach the particular finishing roll of the instant invention or a low birefringence, low stress highly polished film or sheet by a continuous extrusion process.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to produce a low birefringence, low stress, highly surface polished thermoplastic film or sheet on at least one surface thereof.
Another object of this invention is to provide means for producing a low birefringence, low stress, highly surface polished thermoplastic film or sheet on at least one surface thereof.
Still another object of this invention is provide a low birefringence transparent film or sheet suitable for optical media applications.
Yet, another object of the invention is to provide a one step continuous extrusion process for producing a low birefringence, low stress, highly surface polished transparent thermoplastic film or sheet.
These and other objects will become apparent from the following description of this invention.
The present invention is directed to products, apparatus and process for preparing thermoplastic film or sheet for optical media applications or non optical applications in the case of opaque film or sheet. The apparatus for producing a low birefringence, highly surface polished thermoplastic film or sheet comprises a calendering roll stack wherein at least one roll being of a particular novel construction in order to produce the product of this invention as well as a one step continuous extrusion process for producing the product of this invention which product is a low birefringence, low stress, highly polished transparent film or sheet or a low stress highly polished opaque film or sheet.
It has been surprisingly discovered that the novel structure of the calendering roll of this invention comprises at least a three component calendering roll structure comprised of an inner metal shell, an intermediate resilient elastomeric cover over the inner metal shell and a multi-layer metal sleeve outer covering. The multi-layer metal sleeve outer covering comprises at least two layers and preferably a three layer metal sleeve outer covering. The novel calendering roll of this invention and an opposing calendering roll form a calendering nip or gap through which thermoplastic film or sheet is continuously extruded. This process is also known as a continuous film or sheet extrusion process. As used herein, the terms xe2x80x9cfilmxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9csheetxe2x80x9d are used interchangeably and refer to thermoplastic material having a final thickness of about 0.001 to about 0.060 inches but may be thicker, if so desired, depending on the final application. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a transmission casing for an automotive vehicle and, more particularly to a transmission casing which comprises a front casing and a rear casing.
2. Description of Related Art
Typically a transmission casing for containing a transmission mechanism therein comprises a front part casing and a rear part casing which are connected. As shown in FIG. 12, a transmission casing "a" for containing a transmission mechanism "b" and a clutch "c" therein is divided into two parts, namely, a front part casing "a.sub.1 " and a rear part casing "a.sub.2." The transmission mechanism "b" includes an input shaft "d," a main shaft "e" and a counter shaft "f" on which a plurality of gears and a synchro-mesh mechanism are mounted so as to provide a plurality of gear ratios. The transmission mechanism further includes a control rod "g" for actuating the synchro-mesh mechanism as well as a shift mechanism. The shaft mechanism cooperates with a detent mechanism and a mis-shift prevention mechanism. A large portion of these elements is arranged within the transmission casing "a." The clutch "c" has a relatively large diameter and is placed within a front portion of the front part casing "a.sub.1." In order to receive compactly the clutch "c", which has a large diameter, the front part casing "a.sub.1 " as a front portion, shaped as a frustum of a, steeply inclining cone steeply inclining, and a cylindrically shaped rear portion.
If such a transmission casing has low structural stiffness, the transmission casing tends to generate noise due to vibration transmitted thereto. Consequently, the transmission casing must have a high structural stiffness. From the standpoint of structural stiffness, the transmission casing "a," which has a cylindrical shape from a middle portion to the rear part casing, is not always advantageous. Because the transmission includes a number of mechanical elements therein, the transmission casing is generally bulky and, accordingly, must be improved so as to be compact in size or geometry. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an aluminum salt of an aromatic sulfonic acid formaldehyde condensate, its preparation and use.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Aluminum salts of aryl or alkylaryl sulfonic acids formaldehyde condensates are not easily prepared by reaction of sulfonic acids with aluminum oxides in the form of corundum, hydroargillite, bayerite or amorphorous Al.sub.2 O.sub.3..times.H.sub.2 O or with the hydroxide AlO(OH) in the form of boehmite or diaspore.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,080,217--Falcoz et al, issued Mar. 21, 1978, describes preparation of aluminum salts of calcium aryl or alkylaryl sulfonates. These aluminum salts may be prepared (1) by reaction of a solution of an aluminum aryl or alkylaryl sulfonate with a milk of lime solution; (2) by reaction of a solution of a calcium aryl or alkylaryl sulfonate on anhydrous tricalcium aluminate; or by reaction of monocalcium aluminate or a lime solution and a calcium aryl or alkylaryl sulfonate. The resulting alumino calcium compositions are useful as water reducing agents for hydraulic binders. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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The conventional direct-lit backlight module used for a display comprises a plurality LEDs and is directly disposed onto a display panel. The current commercial available LED die bonder and wire bonder have very narrow limitation of the sample holder size, which can only adapt PCB substrate or other substrates no larger than the width equal to 60 mm and the length equal to 250 mm. Therefore, for a final lighting device at A4 size, i.e. 210 mm×300 mm, or larger, a method for the panelization of a multiple PCB substrates becomes necessary. Given the above, a lighting device with a large size lighting panel needs to be developed in this field. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to topical formulations for treatment of damaged skin, such as irradiated skin in combination with wound treatment. In particular, the invention relates to topical formulations useful for the treatment of skin damaged by the harmful effects of radiation and radioactive substances, such as used in the treatment of cancer or exposure to the sun, open sores, wounds and abrasions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
According to the American Cancer Society's Cancer Facts and FIGS.-1991, at the current rate, about 76 million Americans now living will eventually have cancer. It will strike three of four families. Cancer strikes at any age. It kills more children of age 1 to 14 in the United States than any other disease and occurs more frequently with age. Based on current medical technology over half of these cancer patients will undergo some form of radiation therapy.
In the 1930's, less than one in five was alive at least five years after treatment. In the 1940's, it was one in four, and in the 1960's, it was one in three. Today about 440,000 Americans, or 4 of 10 patients who get cancer, will be alive five years after diagnosis. The gain from 1 in 3 to 4 in 10 represents about 77,000 persons this year.
The primary goal of the medical community has been to prolong the life of cancer patients. Until recently, and in relation to the growing number of cancer patients that can expect to survive five years or more, the quality of life of the cancer patient has received attention.
The onset of radiodermatitis as a result of irradiation in cancer patients is well documented. It is characterized by congestive or exudative redness of the skin caused by hyperthermia. Therefore, there is a need for substances effective for treating irradiated skin damage or radiodermatitis.
The topical use of anti-inflammatory agents to alleviate radiodermatitis is known. Such compositions contain combinations of one or more steroidal anti-inflammatories, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, as well as "natural" anti-inflammatories, such as an extract of aloe vera.
The "greying of America" is also well documented. People are living longer and have expectations for a quality life as well as a long life. People afflicted with long term illness run the risk of getting bed sores, pressure sores and a myriad of skin irritations due to incontinence.
Looking at the treatment figures for pressure ulcers, just a small part of the entire market, one can quickly see that there is a need to develop products that will effectively treat patients with long term illnesses.
As part of a study using AMA data on admissions to acute hospitals to derive the number of patients at risk of pressure ulcers, the statistics and forecasts are as follows:
TABLE 1 ______________________________________ Pressure Ucleration in U.S. Hospitals PATIENTS (1000's) 1989 1990 1995 2000 2005 ______________________________________ STAGE 1 539 547 596 656 718 STAGE 2 779 790 861 947 1037 STAGE 3 180 182 199 219 239 STAGE 4 180 182 199 219 239 TOTAL 1677 1701 1853 2040 2233 ______________________________________
Therefore, there is a need for a substance which will reduce bed sores or ulceration.
The bradykininase activity or ability to reduce swelling which is present in cold-processed aloe vera, with yellow sap and aloin removed, is clinically proven when used in high concentrations. See, K. Fujita, R. Teradair, and T. Nagatsu, Biochem. Pharm., Vol. 25, 205, 1976.
However, some extracts of aloe vera have been found to be toxic and the applicability of aloe vera for treatment of skin disorders is not generally accepted or understood. Winters et al. conducted a study to determine the toxicity of yellow sap and aloin on human skin cells (fibroblast) that were obtained from human foreskin. The cells were grown in MEM supplemented with 5 percent human serum. The yellow sap was tested at 1, 10, 15, and 30 percent and compared to untreated control cells. There was a 100 percent cell kill recorded at all levels when yellow sap was applied to fibroblast. I. Danhof, Ph.D., M.D. and B. McAnalley, Ph.D., "Stabilized aloe vera: Effect on human skin cells", D&CI, 4-5, 105-106, (August 1983).
Several prior art patents disclose cosmetic/therapeutic formulations including aloe vera. DeNavarre, "Non-irritating Antiperspirant" U.S. Pat. No. 4,302,443 discloses the use of aloe vera to prevent irritation. DeNavarre does not claim to use fresh aloe vera that has been filleted with the outer rind, yellow sap and aloin removed by a cold-process to produce a substantially anthraquinone-free fillet that is ground, homogenized and processed into a stable aloe vera extract. There is also no combination in DeNavarre with allantoin and lavender essential oil, or any claim for the treatment of irradiated skin, open sores, wounds or abrasions.
Mihalovits, "Cosmetic Facial Preparation Containing Aloe Vera" U.S. Pat. No. 4,369,180 discloses the use of aloe vera in combination with cornstarch or cosmetic clay, albumin, allantoin, vitamin A, vitamin D2, and vitamin E. Mihalovits also does not claim to use fresh aloe vera that has been filleted with the outer rind, yellow sap and aloin removed by a cold-process to produce a substantially anthraquinone-free fillet that is then ground, homogenized and processed into a stable aloe vera extract. Mihalovits teaches the use of allantoin, but only in formulations at 0.5% by weight, which is significantly less than the present invention, and makes no claims for the use of lavender essential oil. Mihalovits further makes no claims as a treatment for irradiated skin, open sores, wounds or abrasions.
Millard, "Skin Treatment Preparation" U.S. Pat. No. 4,505,902 discloses a formulation which uses aloe vera juice in combination with mineral oil, apricot kernel oil, avocado oil, and cod liver oil. Millard does not claim to use fresh aloe vera that has been filleted with the outer rind, yellow sap and aloin removed by a cold-process to produce a substantially anthraquinone-free fillet that is then ground, homogenized and processed into a stable aloe vera extract. There is no teaching to combine it with allantoin and lavender essential oil, and no claims as a treatment for irradiated skin, open sores, wounds or abrasions.
Trenzeluk, "Skin Therapeutic Mixture Containing Aloe Vera Extract" U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,328 discloses a formulation using the dried leaves of the aloe vera plant as the therapeutic agent for the treatment of acne, psoriasis, burns, pimples, blackheads, and open sores. Trenzeluk directs the use of dried leaves of the aloe vera plant and does not claim to use fresh aloe vera that has been filleted with the outer rind, yellow sap and aloin removed by a cold-process to produce a substantially anthraquinone-free fillet that is then ground, homogenized and processed into a stable aloe vera extract. There is not teaching relating to the combination with allantoin and lavender essential oil.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a phase stable topical formulation, which uses the extract from cold-processed aloe vera gel, with yellow sap and aloin removed, combined with allantoin and lavender essential oil, the use of which will provide treatment of radiodermatitis and the chronic effects of radiation exposure without interfering with the radiation therapy, treatment of open sores, wounds or abrasions.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a phase stable cleansing composition, which uses the extract from cold-processed aloe vera gel, with yellow sap and aloin removed, combined with allantoin and lavender essential oil, the use of which will provide a method for relieving the deleterious effects of radiation without interfering with the radiation therapy, treatment of open sores, wounds or abrasions. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display including circular or polygonal polarizing plates each whose absorption and transmission axes have an improved precision in direction.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional laptop personal computers, mobile television receivers, cellular phones and the like include a rectangular display screen configured of a liquid crystal display.
As shown in FIG. 1, the liquid crystal display is provided with a rectangular polarizing plate 2 on the front surface of a substrate 1A, and similarly provided with the other rectangular polarizing plate (not illustrated; hereinafter referred to as a “rear polarizing plate”) on the unillustrated rear surface of the substrate 1B.
An absorption axis 2FK of the polarizing plate 2 is arranged vertical to an absorption axis 2RK of the rear polarizing plate. FIG. 1 illustrates the longest ones, arranged diagonally to each other, of the absorption axes 2FK and 2RK. The lengths of such absorption axes as well as the transmission axes vertical to the respective absorption axes are relatively long.
In general, under a high-temperature or high-temperature/high-humidity condition, PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) layers respectively of the polarizing plate 2 and the rear polarizing plate contracts in a direction of the absorption axes of the polarizing plate.
When phase difference plates are respectively attached to the polarizing plate 2 and the rear polarizing plate, the axial directions of each phase difference plate and the axial directions of the corresponding polarizing plate are misaligned from each other to a large extent, especially in a periphery of the display screen due to contraction of the PVA layer of the polarizing plate. As a result, display becomes uneven in the periphery (what is termed as a “picture frame”) of the display screen.
FIG. 2 shows the absorption axes 2FK and 2RK each arranged to stretch along either side of the display. The absorption axes 2FK and 2RK as well as their corresponding transmission axes are equal to each other in length, and are shorter than those shown in FIG. 1, and therefore the PVA layers contract to a smaller extent.
When a phase difference plate is attached to the polarizing plate 2 and the rear polarizing plate, a misalignment between the axial directions of each phase difference plate and the axial directions of the corresponding polarizing plate becomes small, the misalignment being caused by contraction of the PVA layer of the polarizing plate. As a result, it is possible to reduce display unevenness in the periphery (picture frame) of the display screen.
Recently, on the other hand, for the purpose of achieving higher contrast and resolution, there has been an increasing demand for improving the precision in the directions of transmission and absorption axes in polarizing plate relative to a liquid crystal layer.
When a rectangular polarizing plate is used, an inspection is performed to check whether a desired angle is formed between one side of the rectangle as a reference (hereinafter referred to as a “reference side”) and each of the absorption and transmission axes of the polarizing plate. After a polarizing plate which has passed this inspection is attached to the substrate, a similar inspection is performed to check whether a desired angle is formed between a reference direction of the substrate and the reference side of the polarizing plate.
Through these inspections, the precision in the directions of the respective absorption and transmission axes can be ensured.
Recent models of cellular phone often include a display screen in the shape of a circle or a polygon with five or more angles. Such a display screen is provided, for example, in the rear of the rectangular display screen.
In addition, there is a tendency in automobiles that display screens configured of a liquid crystal display are provided for indicators and front panel. For this reason, it is expected that display screens with various shapes will be demanded soon.
However, when a circular polarizing plate is used, the above-described inspections can not be performed because the circular polarizing plate has no reference side. As a result, it is likely that the direction of the absorption axis of the polarizing plate or the direction of transmission axis thereof may not be ensured with high precision.
Likewise, when a polygonal polarizing plate is used, the inspections can not be performed unless a reference side is defined. As a result, it is likely that the direction of the absorption axis of the polarizing plate or the direction of transmission axis thereof may not be ensured with high precision.
The present invention has been made with the foregoing points being taken into consideration. An object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal display including circular or polygonal polarizing plates each whose absorption and transmission axes have an improved precision in direction. | {
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The Internet comprises a vast number of computers and computer networks that are interconnected through communication links, with information being exchanged using various services such as electronic mail, FTP, Gopher, and the World Wide Web (also referred to as the “Web”). In addition to merely providing access to information, the Web has increasingly become a medium that is used to search for, shop for and order items (such as products, services and/or information) that are for purchase, rent, lease, license, trade, evaluation, sampling, subscription to, etc. In many circumstances, a user can visit the Web site of a Web merchant (or a “Web store”) or otherwise interact with an online retailer or electronic marketplace that provides one or more items, such as to view information about the items, give an instruction to place an order for one or more items, and provide information needed to complete the purchase (e.g., payment and shipping information).
After receiving an order for one or more items, a Web merchant then fulfills the order by providing the ordered items to the indicated recipient. Some product items may be available to be delivered electronically to a recipient (e.g., music downloaded over the Internet), while other product items (e.g., paperback books) may instead be delivered through physical distribution channels (e.g., shipment via a governmental postal service or private common carrier). Similarly, some service items may be provided electronically (e.g., providing email service), while others may be provided physically (e.g., performing cleaning services at the purchaser's house). The order fulfillment process typically used by Web merchants for product items that are to be physically provided shares similarities with other item ordering services that ship ordered items (e.g., catalog-based shopping, such as from mail-order companies), such as to deliver ordered items from one or more physical distribution or fulfillment centers operated by or on behalf of the Web merchant.
One area of commerce of increasing popularity involves providing various types of content to consumers in digital form, with the digital content then able to be used by the consumers on consumer devices that provide corresponding capabilities. For example, consumers are increasingly purchasing portable digital music player devices on which the consumers can store digital music (e.g., MP3 song files) and then later play it back—such player devices may store the digital music in flash memory and/or on a local hard disk, with some such player devices able to store thousands of music files. Digital music files are typically loaded onto such digital music player devices by consumers using a companion personal computer (e.g., via a physical cable between the player device and the personal computer) that has access to such files, such as by copying the music from a music CD loaded in an appropriate drive of the computer and/or by having downloaded the music files from one or more online music services (e.g., Napster.com, Apple Computer's iTunes, RealNetworks' RealPlayer Music Store, etc.). For some fee-based online music services, each music file may be individually purchased for a specified fee and then played by the consumer as desired (e.g., on the computer to which the file was downloaded or on other portable player devices, and without restrictions on the number of times or the amount of time for which the music file may be accessed). For other fee-based online music services, a consumer may access music files using a subscription to the music service that allows the consumer to download and use an unlimited number of music files, but with the music files usable only under specified conditions, such as only while the subscription continues to be valid, and in some situations only on specified types of devices that allow the continued subscription validity to be verified (e.g., devices using Microsoft Corporation's Janus Windows Media DRM (“Digital Rights Management”) 10 technology). In a similar manner, consumers may load and use various other types of non-executable digital media (e.g., videos, photos and other images, e-books and other textual information, etc.) on corresponding digital media player devices (e.g., digital photo display devices, digital video player devices, e-book reader devices, etc.).
Although consumers' ability to load and use various types of digital media on various types of consumer devices provides a variety of benefits, various problems exist. One such problem results from the difficulties faced by consumers in loading appropriate content on their digital media player devices, such as due to the content loading process being extremely time-consuming. For example, when downloading content from an online service to be loaded onto a consumer device, the consumer typically must first manually identify digital media items of interest, wait for the digital media items to be downloaded to a networked computer, and then wait while the digital media items are transferred to a player device. For digital music, for example, this downloading process can take many hours when downloading thousands of music files, even with a high-speed broadband network connection and high-speed connection between the computer and player device, and downloading a video file is typically even more time-consuming than downloading a music or other audio file. Moreover, the process of manually loading hundreds of CDs into one or more computer drives and then copying music files from the CDs will typically take even longer than downloading the music, and manually copying video files from DVDs would similarly be a labor-intensive and time-consuming process. Accordingly, it would be beneficial to provide capabilities to assist consumers in more easily obtaining appropriate digital media that is loaded on their consumer devices, as well as other described capabilities. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to clock mechanisms and in particular to an analog clock mechanism wherein the hours and minutes are indicated by elements moving along the annular extent of a chapter ring.
2. Description of the Background Art
It is conventional in clock mechanisms to provide hands which sweep over the annular surface of a chapter ring which is suitably marked with hours and minutes designations so as to provide an analog designation of the time as a result of the hands being moved at preselected rates in their sweeping movement. One such clock is the astronomical clock disclosed by John L. Blair in U.S. Pat. No. 246,061 which further includes a disk, or sphere, representing the earth to which is imparted an independent rotation as it passes around the sun and about which representation of the earth is a stationary ring laid off with a double set of figures for the hours of night and day which, with the earth, gives the longitude and time while the moon is made to revolve around the earth with an independent revolution.
Another analog clock of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,668,858 of Rudiger Hartwig, wherein the clock is provided with planetary gear wheels provided with inner teeth engaging stationary elements with outer teeth to obtain uniform rotation for successive gear stages. An eccentric drive of one stage necessary for engagement is directly effected by the eccentric shape of the rotating element of the preceding stage. The rotating elements belonging to each stage act as moving elements and an indicating elements due to their markings.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,493, Alain Billet discloses a watch having epicyclic speed reduction gearing to drive the hour hand from the minute hand with a quick hour setting device to change the hour hand without affecting the timekeeping function being measured by the minute hand. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a laser irradiation method using a laser beam and a laser irradiation apparatus for performing the laser annealing (apparatus including a laser and an optical system for guiding a laser beam output from the laser to a member to be processed). Further, present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device fabricated by the steps including the laser annealing step. Note that the semiconductor device mentioned through the specification includes an electro-optical device such as a liquid crystal display device or a light emitting device and an electronic device including the electro-optical device as its component.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a wide range of researches have been made as to the art of applying laser annealing to a semiconductor film formed on an insulating substrate such as a glass substrate to crystallize the semiconductor film or to improve the crystallinity thereof. Incidentally, in the present specification, a crystalline semiconductor film assumes a semiconductor film having a crystalline region including a semiconductor film that entire surface is crystallized.
As compared with synthetic quartz glass substrates, glass substrates have the advantages of being inexpensive and rich in workability and of facilitating fabrication of large-area substrates. The reason why lasers are preferentially used for crystallization is that the melting points of glass substrates are low. Lasers can give high energy to semiconductor films without increasing the temperatures of substrates to a great extent. In addition, lasers are remarkably high in throughput compared to heating means using electric heating furnaces.
Since a crystalline semiconductor film formed by the application of laser annealing has high mobility, the crystalline silicon film is used to form thin film transistors (TFTs). For instance, the thin film transistors are widely used in an active matrix type liquid crystal display device in which TFTs for pixel portion and TFTs for pixel portion and driving circuits are fabricated on one glass substrate.
A laser beam oscillated from an excimer laser or the like is often used as the laser beams. The excimer laser has the advantages of can be high output and irradiate repetitively at a high frequency. Further, laser beams emitted from the excimer laser has the advantages of having a high absorption coefficient with respect to silicon films, which is often used as a semiconductor film. In the laser irradiation, a method in which a laser beam is formed by an optical system so as to have a rectangular shape on an irradiation surface or on an periphery thereof, and then irradiation of laser beam is performed as moving the laser beam (or the irradiation position of the laser beam is made to move relative to the irradiation surface) is preferably used because it has good productivity and is industrially superior. Note that, in this specification, a laser beam having a rectangular shape on an irradiation surface or a periphery thereof is called a rectangular shape beam and a laser beam having a dot shape is called a dot shape beam.
In the other hand, the use of large-area substrate is advanced increasingly. The reason is why a semiconductor device such as a plurality of liquid crystal display device panels is fabricated by using a large-area substrate is that high throughput is obtained and the reduction of the cost can be realized. For instance, a substrate of 600 mm×720 mm, a circular substrate of 12 inches (approximately 300 nm in diameter) or the like are used as the large-areas substrate. In addition, it is thought that a substrate of 1 m×1 m or more is be used in the future.
To form the laser beam, KrF (of wavelength 248 nm) and XeCl (of wavelength 308 nm) are used as exciting gases with respect to the excimer laser used for a laser annealing in general. However, gases such as Kr (krypton) and Xe (xenon) are very expensive and encounter the problem that as the frequency of gas replacement becomes higher, a greater increase in manufacturing cost is incurred.
Attachments such as a laser tube for effecting laser oscillation and a gas purifier for removing unnecessary compounds generated in an oscillation process need to be replaced every three or six years. Many of these attachments are expensive, resulting in a similar problem of an increase in manufacturing cost.
As described above, a laser irradiation apparatus using an excimer laser beam surely has high performance, but needs extremely complicated maintenance and also has the disadvantage that if the laser irradiation apparatus is used as a production-purpose laser irradiation apparatus, its running costs (which mean costs occurring during operation) become too high.
Therefore, it is thought that laser annealing of a semiconductor film is performed by using a solid state laser that the maximum output is highly improved recently. The solid state laser is basically capable of outputting laser beam provided that a solid state crystal, a resonance mirror, and a light source for exciting the solid state crystal are present and therefore there is very little maintenance time and effort compared to excimer lasers. Namely, the running cost is extremely low compared to that of an excimer laser, and therefore it becomes possible to greatly lower the manufacturing costs of semiconductor devices. Further, the availability ratio of a mass production line is increased if the amount of maintenance decreases, and therefore the overall throughput in the manufacturing process increases. This also greatly contributes to a reduction in the manufacturing costs of semiconductor deices. In addition, the surface area occupied by the solid state laser is small compared to that occupied by excimer lasers, and this is advantageous in design of the manufacturing line.
Furthermore, a YAG laser (normally means Nd: YAG laser), a YVO4 laser, a YLF laser, a YAlO3 laser, a glass laser, a ruby laser, an alexandride laser, a Ti:sapphire laser, etc. are used as this solid laser. A YAG laser is explained as an example of the solid laser here. It is known that the YAG laser outputs a laser beam having a wavelength of 1065 nm as the fundamental wave. The absorption coefficient of this laser beam with respect to silicon films is extremely low, and therefore the laser beam as it is cannot be used in the crystallization process of the amorphous silicon film, which is one of the silicon films because of the large energy loss and bad efficiency. However, the laser beam can be modulated into having a shorter wavelength by using a non-linear optical element. Due to the modulated wavelengths, the laser beam is named a second harmonic (wavelength 532 nm), a third harmonic (wavelength 355 nm), a fourth harmonic (wavelength 266 nm), and a fifth harmonic (wavelength 213 nm). The absorption coefficients of these harmonics with respect to amorphous silicon films are very high, and therefore these harmonics are used for crystallization of the amorphous silicon films. | {
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1. Field
The following description relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to facilitating scheduling policy filtering for distributed dynamic selection of clustering strategies for downlink coordinated multi-point (CoMP) wireless environment.
2. Background
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content, such as voice content, data content, and so on. Typical wireless communication systems can be multiple-access systems capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power, . . . ). Examples of such multiple-access systems can include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, and the like. Additionally, the systems can conform to specifications such as third generation partnership project (3GPP), 3GPP long term evolution (LTE), ultra mobile broadband (UMB), or multi-carrier wireless specifications such as evolution data optimized (EV-DO), one or more revisions thereof, etc.
Generally, wireless multiple-access communication systems can simultaneously support communication for multiple mobile devices. Each mobile device can communicate with one or more base stations via transmissions on forward and reverse links. The forward link (or downlink) refers to the communication link from base stations to mobile devices, and the reverse link (or uplink) refers to the communication link from mobile devices to base stations. Further, communications between mobile devices and base stations can be established via single-input single-output (SISO) systems, multiple-input single-output (MISO) systems, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems, and so forth. In addition, mobile devices can communicate with other mobile devices (and/or base stations with other base stations) in peer-to-peer wireless network configurations.
Traditionally, in a wireless communication network with multiple base stations and multiple mobile devices, each mobile device is typically associated with or served by one of the multiple base stations. For instance, a mobile device can be associated with a given base station as a function of various factors such as signal strength, Channel Quality Indicator (CQI), and so forth. Thus, the mobile device can be served by the given base station (e.g., uplink and downlink transmissions can be exchanged there between, . . . ), while other base stations in a vicinity thereof can generate interference. If the given base station comprises multiple transmit or receive antennas, wireless communication between the given base station and the mobile device can involve multiple input or multiple output strategies, beamforming, and so on. However, interference still results from the other base stations, particularly where no cooperation between the given base station and such other base stations exist.
Recent changes in wireless communications have evolved to mitigate inter-cell interference. One example includes the strategy of fractional resource re-use. In fractional resource re-use, adjacent base stations share resource scheduling for upcoming time slots, and can reduce power or blank resources to reduce interference in an adjacent cell. Other strategies involving inter-base station coordination exist as well, typically designed also to improve communication quality for mobile devices on a cell boundary. In addition, development of these strategies has laid potential groundwork for other cooperation techniques for improving wireless performance, increasing overall throughput, increasing load capacity, and so on. | {
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With the advancement of the electronics industry, many medical devices that rely on some form of electric power may be adapted to contain most, if not all, of the required components within the medical device. More specifically, some medical devices may be adapted to use an internal or attachable power source instead of requiring the device to be plugged into an external power source by a cable. Merely exemplary devices that may be adapted to include a portable power source are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,500,176 entitled “Electrosurgical Systems and Techniques for Sealing Tissue,” issued Dec. 31, 2002, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 7,416,101 entitled “Motor-Driven Surgical Cutting and Fastening Instrument with Loading Force Feedback,” issued Aug. 26, 2008, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 7,738,971 entitled “Post-Sterilization Programming of Surgical Instruments,” issued Jun. 15, 2010, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2006/0079874 entitled “Tissue Pad for Use with an Ultrasonic Surgical Instrument,” published Apr. 13, 2006, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2007/0191713 entitled “Ultrasonic Device for Cutting and Coagulating,” published Aug. 16, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2007/0282333 entitled “Ultrasonic Waveguide and Blade,” published Dec. 6, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2008/0200940 entitled “Ultrasonic Device for Cutting and Coagulating,” published Aug. 21, 2008, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2009/0209990 entitled “Motorized Surgical Cutting and Fastening Instrument Having Handle Based Power Source,” published Aug. 20, 2009 (now U.S. Pat. No. 8,657,174, issued Feb. 25, 2014), the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; and U.S. Pub. No. 2010/0069940 entitled “Ultrasonic Device for Fingertip Control,” published Mar. 18, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,023,071, issued May 5, 2015, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. Similarly, various ways in which medical devices may be adapted to include a portable power source are disclosed in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/410,603, filed Nov. 5, 2010, entitled “Energy-Based Surgical Instruments,” the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
Electrically powered medical devices such as those referred to herein may require an internal or otherwise integral power source (e.g., a battery or battery pack, etc.) to be charged or recharged immediately before use, during use, or otherwise. In some settings (e.g., those where a charging device is re-used several times, etc.), it may be desirable to provide some degree of isolation between a charging device and the medical device to thereby reduce the likelihood that the charging device will contaminate the medical device and/or to reduce the likelihood that the medical device will contaminate the charging device. Similarly, it may be desirable to facilitate charging or recharging of the power source within relatively close proximity to the location at which the medical device will be used in a medical procedure (e.g., within an operating room, etc.). While several systems and methods have been made and used to charge or recharge power sources, it is believed that no one prior to the inventors has made or used the invention described in the appended claims.
The drawings are not intended to be limiting in any way, and it is contemplated that various embodiments of the technology may be carried out in a variety of other ways, including those not necessarily depicted in the drawings. The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification illustrate several aspects of the present technology, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the technology; it being understood, however, that this technology is not limited to the precise arrangements shown. | {
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The development of a non-volatile storage device provided with a memory cell array where memory cells are arranged three dimensionally is progressing. For example, a structure which includes a silicon substrate, a plurality of word lines which are stacked on the silicon substrate, and memory cell strings which penetrate these word lines is known. In the manufacturing of a non-volatile storage device having such structure, a memory film is formed on an inner wall of a memory hole which penetrates the plurality of word lines, and a semiconductor film is formed on the memory film in the memory hole. With such a configuration, a plurality of memory cell strings which extend in the direction perpendicular to the silicon substrate can be formed. However, as miniaturization of the memory cells progresses, the size of memory hole becomes finer which creates a possibility that the memory hole may be closed during the step of forming the memory film. When the memory hole is closed, the semiconductor film cannot be formed within the memory hole and hence, the memory cell string will not function. | {
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Active automotive suspensions can include electrically powered actuators. In an active suspension system, power is supplied to the suspension, such as to help control vertical accelerations of a sprung mass when an unsprung mass encounters road disturbances. Integrating power electronics within an actuator can result in unacceptable levels of conducted electromagnetic interference (EMI). | {
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Typically, a content overlay, such as a weather emergency notification, is indiscriminately provided by a service provider to a large number of subscribers, or is at most limited by some attribute that applies to a large population of the subscriber base, such as geography. Such widespread and uniform content may be appropriate for certain types of content overlays, such as a weather emergency overlay; however, a personalized content overlay will generally be more effective than a non-personalized content overlay in many scenarios. Considering again the example of a weather emergency overlay, few would argue that an overlay appearing on a television screen stating “John Doe, it has been determined that your house is in the path of a severe storm” would be more effective than an overlay stating “The National Weather Service has issued a weather advisory for a three county region.”
Many advertisers recognize that advertisements targeted for particular populations are more effective within those targeted populations than non-targeted advertisements. For example, a national pizza chain advertisement might be more effective if the advertisement includes a reference to a local pizza outlet where the advertised pizza may be purchased. However, the production cost of video advertisements, such as a television commercial, may preclude the production and distribution of a number of different advertisements, each targeted for a different locality. In some instances, an advertiser may allow a regional or local entity, such as a car dealership, to modify the commercial to include local identification information. However, these modifications may incur substantial costs and must be done prior to providing the advertisement to the local service provider, thereby limiting the extent to which the advertisement can be targeted. For example, even in an average-sized city, a consumer may reside closer to one car dealership than another, and a commercial from a car dealership on the other side of town may not be as effective as a commercial from a car dealership across the street.
One mechanism for targeted advertising involves embedding interactive content, or triggers, into a commercial. When the commercial is played in conjunction with the appropriate equipment, a viewer can select or otherwise activate the trigger, which may then cause a web site containing more personalized information to appear on the television, or may enable the viewer to enter specific information that can be used to provide a more targeted advertising experience. However, such commercials are produced to work on particular equipment, and therefore when played on other equipment may not be operable, or the particular service provider providing the commercial may not have a contract or the means to provide the interactivity, resulting in viewer confusion and dissatisfaction. Moreover, such interactive commercials can only target a particular viewer after the viewer has selected the trigger, and therefore may be insufficient to capture the viewer's interest in the first place. Thus, there is a need to economically modify content, such as an advertisement, so that the content is personalized for a particular subscriber. | {
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The present invention relates to a disk storage device having a rotary recording/reproducing medium, and in particular to a disk storage device capable of improving reliability of recorded data by preventing intentional or accidental destruction of recorded data.
A conventional disk storage is connected to a host device via an interface such as SCSI (Small Computer System Interface). As for the control command of the disk storage device used in this interface, the disk storage device which has received the command cannot determine whether the control command is correct. Therefore, the disk storage device unconditionally executes operation, such as a read or write operation, ordered by the control command.
At the present time, the position occupied by auxiliary storage devices such as disk storage devices in computer systems becomes increasingly important. That is to say, an application program for conducting increasingly complicated and sophisticated processing, and precious user data such as deposit balance are preserved in the disk storage device. At the same time, however, there is an enhanced risk that nonreplaceable precious data preserved in the disk storage device will be destroyed because of a processing error of the application program in the host device, an operation mistake of an operator handling the system, or the existence of a computer virus which is now constituting a social problem.
In order to prevent such a risk of user data destruction, a file management method has been proposed in JP-A-4-287254, for example. According to the file management method, an OS (Operation System) for controlling the host device manages the storage area of the disk storage device in order to prevent abnormal data being written into the disk storage device. | {
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This invention relates to improvements in the preparation of dicarboxylic acid anhydrides by the vapor phase oxidation of hydrocarbons. More specifically the improvement concerns the regeneration of catalyst for the catalytic oxidation of hydrocarbons to dicarboxylic anhydrides in the presence of a vanadium-phosphorus-oxygen (PVO) catalyst.
It is known that PVO catalysts produce high yields of dicarboxylic anhydrides. Although high yields of dicarboxylic anhydrides have been obtained by such procedures, it has been found that the yield of product diminishes with time due to a reduction in the selectivity of the catalyst. Several methods of regenerating the PVO catalyst in situ have been devised.
Two early patents in this area are U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,296,282 and 3,474,041 issued to Ralph O. Kerr. These patents disclose that the PVO catalyst may be regenerated and stabilized by adding specified organo-phosphorus compounds to the catalyst. The organo-phosphorus compound may be added with or without the hydrocarbon, either intermittently or continuously. It was found that during the use of the catalysts a portion of the phosphorus is removed from the catalyst, thereby disrupting the initial ratio of P:V in the catalyst, and the added phosphorus compound replaced a portion of the lost phosphorus to thereby maintain the catalyst close to its original selectivity and extending the useful life of the catalyst. A similar approach was disclosed in British Patent Specification No. 1,291,354, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,906,008 and 3,975,407.
Another approach to the same problem, i.e., the disruption of the ratio of P to V by phosphorus loss in the catalyst, is the removal of some of the vanadium. A process using this method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,020,174; 4,098,807 and 4,094,816 issued to Partenheimer. The use of various organic and inorganic halogen compounds are disclosed to regenerate the catalyst. After treatment with alkyl halides, the patents suggest a steam treatment to cause a water gas reaction to remove residual carbon deposited by the alkyl halide. In the U.S. Pat. No. 4,098,807 the formation of the volatile vanadium halide is specifically noted, and the patentee discloses the unsuitability of PCl.sub.3 or PCl.sub.5 for the regeneration, because of the deposits of phosphorus onto the catalyst.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,111,832 discloses the use of aqueous ammonia and/or amine to at least partially dissolve the catalyst and thereafter redepositing the catalytic components from the solution.
British Patent Specification No. 1,464,198 discloses the regeneration of PVO oxidation catalysts by the addition of alkyl esters of orthophosphoric acid.
British Patent Specification No. 1,439,489 discloses the regeneration of PVO catalyst with a reducing agent such as hydrogen, carbon monoxide, methane or hydrogen sulfide.
The present invention is concerned with the regenerations wherein a phosphorus compound is added to the catalyst to increase selectivity and extend catalyst life. In the past the art has used the term "reactivate" to describe the situation wherein the treatment of the catalyst results in operation of the reaction system thereafter with higher yields than before the treatment, notwithstanding that the "activity" of the catalyst may have been reduced. The term "regeneration" is used herein to mean that a higher yield of product is obtained after treatment. The phosphorus compounds reduce the activity (the term "activity" as used herein, means the ability of the catalyst to convert hydrocarbon at a given temperature) of the catalyst while improving the selectivity. The overall result is that a higher yield (conversions.times.selectivity) is obtained at a slightly higher operating temperature (higher temperature to boost conversion which is the result of the P addition), i.e., the catalyst is regenerated and is more effective although the activity is actually reduced. The usefulness of this method of PVO catalyst treatment in a commercial maleic anhydride plant with fixed bed reactors is limited by the inability to evenly distribute the phosphorus throughout the catalyst bed.
In practice it has been found that the phosphorus compounds concentrate near the feed end of the catalyst bed. The catalyst, near the feed end of the bed, becomes more selective but less active. The catalyst further from the feed end of the catalyst bed is relatively unaffected, hence this portion remains active but loses selectivity with time in use. The result is that with only a portion of the bed receiving the optimum phosphorus treatment, yield continues to decline. The rate of decline is slower than it would be if no phosphorus treatment were applied, but faster than it would be if even distribution of the phosphorus could be obtained.
Another problem is that the amount of phosphorus addition must be limited; otherwise, the activity of the first part of the bed will become so low that a large portion of the reaction will occur in the last part of the bed. In this case the yield will decline, because the reaction will be occurring in the most nonselective part of the bed. Since the active part of the bed is now effectively shortened, the reactor temperature must be increased to maintain conversion because of the decreased contact time with active catalyst. This also leads to a loss in selectivity. It can be appreciated also, that as the site of the principal reaction (indicated by the reaction exotherm or "hot spot" in the temperature profile of the catalyst bed) moves toward the exit end of the catalyst bed, some of the reaction, which was occurring down stream of the exotherm, is actually eliminated because of the shortened bed.
It has now been found that the addition of steam following the addition of phosphorus compounds to a vanadium-phosphorus-oxygen catalyst obviates both of the noted problems. It is believed, the addition of steam to the catalyst bed which has been treated with phosphorus compounds removes a portion of the phosphorus from the feed end of the bed and redistributes it through the remainder of the bed. This results in the entire bed being treated. If a large amount of phosphorus is added or accumulated over a period of time and the feed end of the bed has been rendered inactive, steam treatment will redistribute the phosphorus, which will reduce the activity of the entire bed, but upon further steam treatment, the bed will tend to become active again. This is a proposed mechanism and the scope of the present invention is not intended to be limited thereby. | {
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The present invention relates to methods for the treatment of fibromyalgia syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, and pain. In particular, the present invention relates to methods of treating fibromyalgia syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, and pain with a sub-class of dual serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors characterized by a non-tricyclic structure and inhibit the reuptake of norepinephrine to an equal or greater extent than they inhibit the reuptake of serotonin.
Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is the most frequent cause of chronic, widespread pain, estimated to affect 2-4% of the population. FMS is characterized by a generalized heightened perception of sensory stimuli. Patients with FMS display abnormalities in pain perception in the form of both allodynia (pain with innocuous stimulation) and hyperalgesia (increased sensitivity to painful stimuli). The syndrome, as defined by the American College of Rheumatology""s criteria, involves the presence of pain for over 3 months duration in all four quadrants of the body, as well as along the spine. In addition, pain is elicited at 11 out of 18 xe2x80x9ctender pointsxe2x80x9d upon palpation. Other associated symptoms include fatigue, nonrestorative sleep, and memory difficulties.
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a debilitating disorder characterized by profound tiredness or fatigue. Patients with CFS may become exhausted with only light physical exertion, and must often function at a level of activity substantially lower than their capacity before the onset of illness. In addition to the key defining characteristic of fatigue, CFS patients generally report various nonspecific symptoms, including weakness, muscle aches and pains, excessive sleep, malaise, fever, sore throat, tender lymph nodes, impaired memory and/or mental concentration, insomnia, and depression. Like patients with FMS, patients with CFS suffer from disordered sleep, localized tenderness, and complaints of diffuse pain and fatigue.
There are two widely used criteria for diagnosing CFS. The criteria established by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention include medically unexplained fatigue of at least six months duration that is of new onset,;not a result of ongoing exertion and not substantially alleviated by rest, and a substantial reduction in previous levels of activity. In addition, the diagnosis involves the determination of the presence of four or more of the following symptomsxe2x80x94subjective memory impairment, tender lymph nodes, muscle pain, joint pain, headache, unrefreshing sleep, and postexertional malaise ( greater than 24 hours). Reid et al., 2000, British Medical Journal 320: 292-296. The diagnostic criteria from Oxford includes severe, disabling fatigue of at least six months duration that affects both physical and mental functioning and the fatigue being present for more than 50% of the time. In addition, the diagnosis involves the determination of the presence of other symptoms, particularly myalgia and sleep and mood disturbance. Reid et al., 2000, British Medical Journal 320: 292-296.
Owing to their common symptomology, FMS and CFS are thought to be related. However, they manifest different major symptoms. Whereas pain is the major symptom reported by patients with FMS, fatigue is the major symptom reported by patients with CFS. Given their relatedness, these two indications have been treated with the same medications. Some of the common medications currently employed to treat CFS and/or FMS include, but are not limited to, analgesics, hypnotics, immune suppressants, various other prescribed medications, and an array of non-prescription medications. Although a broad array of medications are used in FMS and CFS patients, no single pharmacological agent or combination of agents is effective in the treatment of either of these disorders. Thus, due to the lack of effective treatment regimens for FMS and/or CFS, there is a need to develop effective treatments.
Pain is associated with a variety of different underlying illnesses or injuries. Pain may be either acute or chronic. Chronic or intractable pain is often endured over many years or decades. Patients suffering from chronic pain often develop emotional problems which can lead to depression and in the worst case, attempted suicide. Long lasting pain often occurs particularly in joints, in muscles, connective tissue and in the back. In the United States alone, chronic pain causes a loss of more than 250 million working days per year. A patient is considered to have chronic pain when complaints thereof last longer than six months. In the course of time, chronic pain may form an independent clinical syndrome.
Most analgesic agents in use today are not always effective, may produce serious side effects and can be addictive. Hence, there is a demand for more active analgesic agents with diminished side effects and toxicity, and which are non-addictive. The ideal analgesic would reduce the awareness of pain, produce analgesia over a wide range of pain types, act satisfactorily whether given orally or parenterally, produce minimal or no side effects, and be free from the tendency to produce tolerance and drug dependence.
In one aspect, the invention provides a method of treating fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and/or the symptoms associated therewith in an animal subject, including a human. The method generally involves administering to an animal subject suffering from FMS an effective amount of a dual serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (xe2x80x9cSNRIxe2x80x9d) compound of a specific type, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof. The SNRI compounds that are useful to treat FMS and/or symptoms associated therewith are characterized by a non-tricyclic structure and inhibit the reuptake of norepinephrine to an equal or greater extent than they inhibit the reuptake of serotonin (referred to hereinafter as xe2x80x9cNExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compoundsxe2x80x9d). In one embodiment of the invention, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound administered inhibits norepinephrine reuptake to a greater degree than it inhibits serotonin reuptake (referred to hereinafter as a xe2x80x9cNE greater than 5-HT SNRI compoundxe2x80x9d). One particular example of such a NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound is milnacipran, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof. In another embodiment, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound is not administered adjunctively with phenylalanine, tyrosine and/or tryptophan.
In another aspect, the invention provides a method of treating pain in an animal subject, including a human. The method generally involves administering to an animal subject suffering from pain an effective amount of a NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof. In one embodiment, a NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound is administered. One particular example of a NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound is milnacipran or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof. In another embodiment, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound is not administered adjunctively with phenylalanine, tyrosine and/or tryptophan.
In still another aspect, the invention provides a method of treating CFS and/or symptoms associated therewith. The method generally involves administering to a patient suffering from CFS an effective amount of a NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof. In one embodiment, a NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound is administered. One particular example of a NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound is milnacipran or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof In another embodiment, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound is not administered adjunctively with phenylalanine, tyrosine and/or tryptophan.
In yet another aspect, the invention provides a kit comprising a NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound packaged in association with instructions teaching a method of using the compound according to one or more of the above-described methods. The kit can contain the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound packaged in unit dosage form. In one embodiment, a NE greater than 5-HT compound can be included in the kit. One particular example of a NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound is milnacipran or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof
The term xe2x80x9cdual serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor compoundxe2x80x9d or SNRI refers to the well-recognized class of anti-depressant compounds that selectively inhibit reuptake of both serotonin and norepinephrine. Common SNRI compounds include, but are not limited to, venlafaxine, duloxetine, and milnacipran.
The terms xe2x80x9cNExe2x89xa75-HT SNRIxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cNE greater than 5-HT SNRIxe2x80x9d refer to particular subclasses of SNRI compounds that are useful in the methods and kits of the present invention, as will be described in more detail herein.
The present invention provides methods and kits for treating FMS, CFS, and pain. A particular subclass of SNRI compounds is useful for practicing the present invention. Compounds in this SNRI subclass, referred to as xe2x80x9cNExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds,xe2x80x9d inhibit norepinephrine reuptake more than or equal to serotonin reuptake. Moreover, the NExe2x89xa75-HT compounds of the invention exclude compounds that belong to the distinct class of antidepressant compounds commonly referred to in the art as tricyclic antidepressants or TCAs. In particular, compounds useful for practicing the present invention inhibit norepinephrine reuptake more than serotonin reuptake, referred to as xe2x80x9cNE greater than 5-HT SNRI compounds.xe2x80x9d
Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) are a well-recognized class of antidepressant compounds that are characterized by a dibenz[b,e]azepine (structure I), dibenz[b,e]oxepine (structure II), dibenz[a,d]cycloheptane (structure Ill) or dibenz[a,d]cycloheptene (structure IV) tricyclic ring structure. These various rings are depicted below:
The TCAs are typically substituted at position 1 of the tricyclic ring with alkylamines or alkylidenamines, and may include additional substituents (typically on the benzo groups). Many common TCAs, including imipramine, desipramine, clomipramine, trimipramine, amitriptyline, nortriptyline, doxepin, cyclobenzaprine and protriptline are characterized by the general formula (V), below:
wherein:
X is O or C;
Y is N or C;
R1 is H or Cl;
R2 is selected from the group consisting of xe2x80x94(CH2)3N(CH3)2, xe2x80x94(CH2)3NHCH3, xe2x80x94CH2CH(CH3)CH2N(CH3)2, xe2x95x90CH(CH2)N(CH3)2, xe2x95x90CH(CH2)2NHCH3 and xe2x80x94(CH2)3NHCH3; and
the dotted line represents a single bond or a double bond.
The NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds of the invention exclude compounds classified as tricyclic antidepressants, and thus exclude compounds characterized by the above-depicted fused tricyclic nuclei of structures (I), (II), (III), and (IV).
As mentioned above, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds useful in the methods and kits of the invention include compounds that inhibit norepinephrine reuptake to a greater extent than serotonin reuptake, as well as compounds that inhibit the reuptake of these two monoamines to an equivalent extent. In one embodiment of the invention, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds have a ratio of inhibition of norepinephrine reuptake to serotonin reuptake (xe2x80x9cNE:5-HTxe2x80x9d) in the range of about 1-100:1. In a particular embodiment, the compounds are NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compounds, i.e., compounds that inhibit norepinephrine reuptake to a greater extent than serotonin reuptake. Such NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compounds generally have a NE:5-HT in the range of about 1.1-100:1. That is, such NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compounds are at least about 1.1 to about 100 times more effective at inhibiting norepinephrine reuptake than serotonin reuptake. NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compounds having a NE:5-HT ratio in the range of about 2:1 to about 10:1 may be particularly effective.
Various techniques are known in the art to determine the NE:5-HT of a particular SNRI. In one embodiment, the ratio can be calculated from IC50 data for NE and 5-HT reuptake inhibition. For example, it has been reported that for milnacipran the IC50 of norepinephrine reuptake is 100 nM, whereas the IC50 serotonin reuptake inhibition is 200 nM. See Moret et al., 1985, Neuropharmacology 24(12):1211-1219; Palmier et al., 1989, Eur J Clin Pharmacol 37:235-238. Therefore, the NE:5-HT reuptake inhibition ratio for milnacipran based on this data is 2:1. Of course, other IC values such as IC25, IC75, etc. could be used, so long as the same IC value is being compared for both norepinephrine and serotonin. The concentrations necessary to achieve the desired degree of inhibition (i.e., IC value) can be calculated using known techniques either in vivo or in vitro. See Sanchez et al., 1999, Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology 19(4):467-489; Turcotte et al., 2001, Neuropsychopharmacology 24(5):511-521; Moret et al., 1985, Neuropharmacology 24(12): 1211-1219; Moret et al., 1997, J. Neurochem. 69(2): 815-822; Bel et al., 1999, Neuropsychopharmacology 21(6):745-754; and Palmier et al., 1989, Eur J Clin Pharmacol 37:235-238.
The NE:5-HT of a particular SNRI also can be calculated using equilibrium dissociation constants (KD""s) for norepinephrine and serotonin transporters as described in Tatsumi et al., 1997, European Journal of Pharmacology 340:249-258. For example, a NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound with a KD of 2 nM for the norepinephrine transporter and a KD of 8 nM for the serotonin transporter has an NE:5-HT of 4:1.
Yet another means for determining the NE:5-HT of a particular SNRI involves measuring the affinity (Ki) of the SNRI for the norepinephrine and serotonin transporters as described in Owens et al., 1997, JPET 283:1305-1322. For example, a NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound with a Ki of 1 nM for the norepinephrine transporter and a Ki of 20 nM for the serotonin transporter has an NE:5-HT of 20:1.
A specific example of a NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound that can be used to practice the present invention is milnacipran. Additional NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds that can be used to practice the present invention include, by way of example and not limitation, any of the aminocyclopropane derivatives disclosed in the following references that inhibit norepinephrine reuptake to an equivalent or greater extent than serotonin reuptake (i.e., that have a NE:5-HT ratio that isxe2x89xa71:1): W095/22521; U.S. Pat. No. 5,621,142; Shuto et al., 1995, J. Med. Chem. 38:2964-2968; Shuto et al., 1996, J. Med. Chem. 39:4844-4852; Shuto et al., 1998, J. Med. Chem. 41:3507-3514; Shuto et al., 2001, Jpn. J. Pharmacol. 85:207-213; Noguchi et al., 1999, Synapse 31:87-96; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,836. All of these references are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
In a specific embodiment of the invention, the NE greater than 5-HT SNRI compound is milnacipran. The chemical structure of milnacipran, cis-(xc2x1)-2-(aminomethyl)-N,N-diethyl-1-phenyl-yclopropanecarboxamide, is as follows:
Milnacipran is also known in the art as F2207, TN-912, dalcipran, midalcipran, and midalipran. The NE:5-HT of milnacipran is 2:1. See Moret et al., 1985, Neuropharmacology 24(12):1211-1219; Palmier et al., 1989, Eur J Clin Pharmacol 37:235-238. Milnacipran and methods for its synthesis are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,836, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Additional information regarding milnacipran may be found in the Merck Index, 12th Edition, at entry 6281. Quite significantly, milnacipran has been used as an antidepressant in approximately 400,000 patients, and is known to be non-toxic in humans. In clinical trials at dosages of 100 mg/day or 200 mg/day, milnacipran was well tolerated and usually produced no more adverse effects than placebo (Spencer and Wilde, 1998, Drugs 56(3):405-427).
Those of skill in the art will recognize that NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds such as milnacipran may exhibit the phenomena of tautomerism, conformational isomerism, geometric isomerism and/or optical isomerism. It should be understood that the invention encompasses any tautomeric, conformational isomeric, optical isomeric and/or geometric isomeric forms of the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds having one or more of the utilities described herein, as well as mixtures of these various different forms. For example, as is clear from the above structural diagram, milnacipran is optically active. It has been reported in the literature that the dextrogyral enantiomer of milnacipran is about twice as active in inhibiting norepinephrine and serotonin reuptake than the racemic mixture, and that the levrogyral enantiomer is much less potent (see, e.g., Spencer and Wilde, 1998, supra; Viazzo et al., 1996, Tetrahedron Lett. 37(26):4519-4522; Deprez et al., 1998, Eur. J. Drug Metab. Pharmacokinet. 23(2):166-171). Accordingly, milnacipran may be administered in entantiomerically pure form (e.g., the pure dextrogyral enantiomer) or as a mixture of dextogyral and levrogyral enantiomers, such as a racemic mixture. Unless specifically noted otherwise, the term xe2x80x9cmilancipranxe2x80x9d as used herein refers to both enantiomerically pure forms of milnacipran as well as to mixtures of milnacipran enantiomers. Methods for separating and isolating the dextro- and levrogyral enantiomers of milnacipran and other NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds are well-known (see, e.g., Grard et al., 2000, Electrophoresis 2000 21:3028-3034).
It will also be appreciated that in many instances the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds may metabolize to produce active NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds. The use of active metabolites is also within the scope of the present invention.
It has been reported that milnacipran and its derivatives have antagonistic properties at the NMDA receptor. See Shuto et al., 1995, J Med. Chem. 38:2964-2968; Shuto et al., 1996, J. Med. Chem. 39:4844-4852; Shuto et al., 1998, J. Med. Chem. 41:3507-3514; and Shuto et al., 2001, Jpn. J. Pharmacol. 85:207-213. As a consequence, one particularly useful embodiment of the invention includes NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds that also have NMDA antagonistic properties. The NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds with NMDA receptor antagonistic properties can have IC50 values from about 1 nM-100 xcexcM. For example, milnacipran has been reported to have an IC50 value of about 6.3 xcexcM. The NMDA receptor antagonistic properties of milnacipran and its derivatives are described in Shuto et al., 1995, J. Med Chem., 38:2964-2968; Shuto et al., 1996, J Med. Chem. 39:4844-4852; Shuto et al., 1998, J. Med. Chem. 41:3507-3514; and Shuto et al., 2001, Jpn. J. Pharmacol. 85:207-213. Methods for determining the antagonism and affinity for antagonism are disclosed in Shuto et al., 1995, J. Med. Chem. 38:2964-2968; Shuto et al., 1996, J. Med. Chem. 39:4844-4852; Shuto et al., 1998, J. Med. Chem. 41:3507-3514; Noguchi et al., 1999, Synapse 31:87-96; and Shuto et al., 2001, Jpn. J. Pharmacol. 85:207-213. Aminocyclopropane derivatives disclosed in W095/22521; U.S. Pat. No. 5,621,142; Shuto et al., 1995, J. Med. Chem. 38:2964-2968; Shuto et al., 1996, J. Med. Chem. 39:4844-4852; Shuto et al., 1998, J. Med. Chem. 41:3507-3514; Noguchi et al., 1999, Synapse 31:87-96; and Shuto et al., 2001, Jpn. J. Pharmacol. 85:207-213 that inhibit NE reuptake equal to or greater than 5-HT reuptake and have NMDA antagonistic properties can be used to practice the present invention. These references are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
It has recently been reported that compounds that inhibit reuptake of both NE and 5-HT, such as venlafaxine, duloxetine, milnacipran, and certain TCAs, are effective for the treatment of pain, CFS and FMS, among other maladies, when administered in combination with neurotransmitter precursors such as phenylalanine, tyrosine and/or tryptophan. See WO 01/26623. For example, according to one study reported in WO 01/26623, a patient experiencing, inter alia, fatigue and fibromyalgia, was administered many types of drugs, including many types of non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, both tricyclic and serotonin reuptake inhibiting and noradrenalin reuptake inhibiting antidepressants, and even steroids, without effect. When given a combination of lofepramine (70 mg. bd) and L-phenylalanine (500 mg. bd), the patient experienced a considerable improvement in fatigue and fibromyalgia, which persisted for more than six months. Thus, a compound that inhibits reuptake of both NE and 5-HT was effective only when administered in combination with a neurotransmitter precursor.
Quite surprisingly, the present inventors have discovered that the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI subclass of SNRI compounds are effective in treating CFS, FMS and pain when administered alone (or in combination with other compounds that are not neurotransmitter precursors such as phenylalanine, tyrosine and/or tryptophan, as will be discussed in more detail, below). Thus, in one embodiment of the invention, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound is administered alone, or in combination with a compound other than a neurotransmitter precursor such as phenylalanine, tyrosine and/or tryptophan.
The NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds, such as, for example, milnacipran, can be administered adjunctively with other active compounds such as antidepressants, analgesics, muscle relaxants, anorectics, stimulants, antiepileptic drugs, and sedative/hypnotics. Specific examples of compounds that can be adjunctively administered with the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds include, but are not limited to, neurontin, pregabalin, pramipexole, 1-DOPA, amphetamine, tizanidine, clonidine, tramadol, morphine, tricyclic antidepressants, codeine, cambamazepine, sibutramine, amphetamine, valium, trazodone and combinations thereof. Typically for FMS patients the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds may be adjunctively administered with antidepressants, anorectics, analgesics, antiepileptic drugs, muscle relaxants, and sedative/hypnotics. For CFS patients, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds may be adjunctively administered antidepressants, anorectics, stimulants, and sedative/hypnotics. For patients suffering from pain the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds may be adjunctively administered with antidepressants, analgesics, antiepileptic drugs. By adjunctive administration is meant simultaneous administration of the compounds, in the same dosage form, simultaneous administration in separate dosage forms, and separate administration of the compounds. For example, milnacipran can be simultaneously administered with valium, wherein both milnacipran and valium are formulated together in the same tablet. Alternatively, milnacipran could be simultaneously administered with valium, wherein both the milnacipran and valium are present in two separate tablets. In another alternative, milnacipran could be administered first followed by the administration of valium, or vice versa.
The NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds can be administered therapeutically to achieve a therapeutic benefit or prophylactically to achieve a prophylactic benefit. By therapeutic benefit is meant eradication or amelioration of the underlying disorder being treated, e.g., eradication or amelioration of the underlying FMS, CFS or pain disorder, and/or eradication or amelioration of one or more of the physiological symptoms associated with the underlying disorder such that the patient reports an improvement in feeling or condition, notwithstanding that the patient may still be afflicted with the underlying disorder. For example, administration of milnacipran to a patient suffering from FMS provides therapeutic benefit not only when the underlying FMS indication is eradicated or ameliorated, but also when the patient reports decreased fatigue, improvements in sleep patterns, and/or a decrease in the severity or duration of pain.
Although depression is often comorbid in patients suffering from FMS and CFS, and could therefore be characterized as a symptom associated with these disorders, it is well-recognized in the art that NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds such as milnacipran are useful in the treatment of depression. Accordingly, while successful treatment regimens of the invention contemplate providing an improvement in at least one symptom associated with FMS or CFS, treatment regimens that cause an improvement only in depression are considered ineffective for purposes of the present invention. While improvements in associated psychological symptoms such as depression may be reported, for purposes of the present invention, an improvement in the underlying disorder and/or in at least one of the physiological symptoms associated with the disorder must be reported. Thus, the present invention does not contemplate the treatment of depression alone.
For therapeutic administration, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound typically will be administered to a patient already diagnosed with the particular indication being treated.
For prophylactic administration, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound may be administered to a patient at risk of developing FMS, CFS, or pain or to a patient reporting one or more of the physiological symptoms of FMS or CFS, even though a diagnosis of FMS or CFS may not have yet been made. Alternatively, prophylactic administration may be applied to avoid the onset of the physiological symptoms of the underlying disorder, particularly if the symptom manifests cyclically. In this latter embodiment, the therapy is prophylactic with respect to the associated physiological symptoms instead of the underlying indication. For example, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound could be prophylactically administered prior to bedtime to avoid the sleep disturbances associated with FMS or CFS. Alternatively, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound could be administered prior to recurrence of pain, or prior to onset of fatigue.
While the invention has been described so far with respect to NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds, the present invention can also be practiced with norepinephrine specific reuptake inhibitors (NARIs). NARIs are a well-recognized class of compounds that specifically inhibit the reuptake of only norepinephrine. An example of a compound that is classified as a NARI is reboxetine.
The NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds useful in the present invention, or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, can be delivered to a patient using a wide variety of routes or modes of administration. Suitable routes of administration include, but are not limited to, inhalation, transdermal, oral, rectal, transmucosal, intestinal and parenteral administration, including intramuscular, subcutaneous and intravenous injections.
The term xe2x80x9cpharmaceutically acceptable saltxe2x80x9d means those salts which retain the biological effectiveness and properties of the compounds used in the present invention, and which are not biologically or otherwise undesirable. Such salts include salts with inorganic or organic acids, such as hydrochloric acid, hydrobromic acid, phosphoric acid, nitric acid, sulfuric acid, methanesulfonic acid, p-toluenesulfonic acid, acetic acid, fumaric acid, succinic acid, lactic acid, mandelic acid, malic acid, citric acid, tartaric acid or maleic acid. In addition, if the compounds used in the present invention contain a carboxy group or other acidic group, it may be converted into a pharmaceutically acceptable addition salt with inorganic or organic bases. Examples of suitable bases include sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, ammonia, cyclohexylamine, dicyclohexyl-amine, ethanolamine, diethanolamine and triethanolamine.
The compounds, or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, may be administered singly, in combination with other NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds, and/or in cocktails combined with other therapeutic agents. Of course, the choice of therapeutic agents that can be co-administered with the compounds of the invention will depend, in part, on the condition being treated.
The active NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds (or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof) may be administered per se or in the form of a pharmaceutical composition wherein the active compound(s) is in admixture or mixture with one or more pharmaceutically acceptable carriers, excipients or diluents. Pharmaceutical compositions for use in accordance with the present invention may be formulated in conventional manner using one or more physiologically acceptable carriers comprising excipients and auxiliaries which facilitate processing of the active compounds into preparations which can be used pharmaceutically. Proper formulation is dependent upon the route of administration chosen.
For injection, the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds may be formulated in aqueous solutions, preferably in physiologically compatible buffers such as Hanks""s solution, Ringer""s solution, or physiological saline buffer. For transmucosal administration, penetrants appropriate to the barrier to be permeated are used in the formulation. Such penetrants are generally known in the art.
For oral administration, the compounds can be formulated readily by combining the active compound(s) with pharmaceutically acceptable carriers well known in the art. Such carriers enable the compounds of the invention to be formulated as tablets, pills, dragees, capsules, liquids, gels, syrups, slurries, suspensions and the like, for oral ingestion by a patient to be treated. Pharmaceutical preparations for oral use can be obtained as a solid excipient, optionally grinding a resulting mixture, and processing the mixture of granules, after adding suitable auxiliaries, if desired, to obtain tablets or dragee cores. Suitable excipients are, in particular, fillers such as sugars, including lactose, sucrose, mannitol, or sorbitol; cellulose preparations such as, for example, maize starch, wheat starch, rice starch, potato starch, gelatin, gum tragacanth, methyl cellulose, hydroxypropylmethyl-cellulose, sodium carboxymethylcellulose, and/or polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). If desired, disintegrating agents may be added, such as the cross-linked polyvinyl pyrrolidone, agar, or alginic acid or a salt thereof such as sodium alginate.
Dragee cores can be provided with suitable coatings. For this purpose, concentrated sugar solutions may be used, which may optionally contain gum arabic, talc, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, carbopol gel, polyethylene glycol, and/or titanium dioxide, lacquer solutions, and suitable organic solvents or solvent mixtures. Dyestuffs or pigments may be added to the tablets or dragee coatings for identification or to characterize different combinations of active compound doses.
For administration orally, the compounds may be formulated as a sustained release preparation. Numerous techniques for formulating sustained release preparations are described in the following referencesxe2x80x94U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,891,223; 6,004,582; 5,397,574; 5,419,917; 5,458,005; 5,458,887; 5,458,888; 5,472,708; 6,106,862; 6,103,263; 6,099,862; 6,099,859; 6,096,340; 6,077,541; 5,916,595; 5,837,379; 5,834,023; 5,885,616; 5,456,921; 5,603,956; 5,512,297; 5,399,362; 5,399,359; 5,399,358; 5,725,883; 5,773,025; 6,110,498; 5,952,004; 5,912,013; 5,897,876; 5,824,638; 5,464,633; 5,422,123; and 4,839,177; and WO 98/47491. Specifically, sustained release formulations of milnacipran are described in WO 98/08495. These references are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
Pharmaceutical preparations which can be used orally include push-fit capsules made of gelatin, as well as soft, sealed capsules made of gelatin and a plasticizer, such as glycerol or sorbitol. The push-fit capsules can contain the active ingredients in admixture with filler such as lactose, binders such as starches, and/or lubricants such as talc or magnesium stearate and, optionally, stabilizers. In soft capsules, the active compounds may be dissolved or suspended in suitable liquids, such as fatty oils, liquid paraffin, or liquid polyethylene glycols. In addition, stabilizers may be added. All formulations for oral administration should be in dosages suitable for such administration.
For buccal administration, the compositions may take the form of tablets or lozenges formulated in conventional manner.
For administration by inhalation, the active compound(s) may be conveniently delivered in the form of an aerosol spray presentation from pressurized packs or a nebulizer, with the use of a suitable propellant, e.g., dichlorodifluoromethane, trichlorofluoromethane, dichlorotetrafluoroethane, carbon dioxide or other suitable gas. In the case of a pressurized aerosol the dosage unit may be determined by providing a valve to deliver a metered amount. Capsules and cartridges of e.g. gelatin for use in an inhaler or insufflator may be formulated containing a powder mix of the compound and a suitable powder base such as lactose or starch.
The compounds may be formulated for parenteral administration by injection, e.g., by bolus injection or continuous infusion. Formulations for injection may be presented in unit dosage form, e.g., in ampoules or in multi-dose containers, with an added preservative. The compositions may take such forms as suspensions, solutions or emulsions in oily or aqueous vehicles, and may contain formulatory agents such as suspending, stabilizing and/or dispersing agents.
Pharmaceutical formulations for parenteral administration include aqueous solutions of the active compounds in water-soluble form. Additionally, suspensions of the active compounds may be prepared as appropriate oily injection suspensions. Suitable lipophilic solvents or vehicles include fatty oils such as sesame oil, or synthetic fatty acid esters, such as ethyl oleate or triglycerides, or liposomes. Aqueous injection suspensions may contain substances which increase the viscosity of the suspension, such as sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, sorbitol, or dextran. Optionally, the suspension may also contain suitable stabilizers or agents which increase the solubility of the compounds to allow for the preparation of highly concentrated solutions.
Alternatively, the active compound(s) may be in powder form for constitution with a suitable vehicle, e.g., sterile pyrogen-free water, before use.
The compounds may also be formulated in rectal compositions such as suppositories or retention enemas, e.g., containing conventional suppository bases such as cocoa butter or other glycerides.
In addition to the formulations described previously, the compounds may also be formulated as a depot preparation. Such long acting formulations may be administered by implantation or transcutaneous delivery (for example subcutaneously or intramuscularly), intramuscular injection or a transdermal patch. Thus, for example, the compounds may be formulated with suitable polymeric or hydrophobic materials (for example as an emulsion in an acceptable oil) or ion exchange resins, or as sparingly soluble derivatives, for example, as a sparingly soluble salt.
The pharmaceutical compositions also may comprise suitable solid or gel phase carriers or excipients. Examples of such carriers or excipients include but are not limited to calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate, various sugars, starches, cellulose derivatives, gelatin, and polymers such as polyethylene glycols.
Pharmaceutical compositions suitable for use in the present invention include compositions wherein the active ingredient is contained in a therapeutically or prophylactically effective amount, i.e., in an amount effective to achieve therapeutic or prophylactic benefit, as previously discussed. Of course, the actual amount effective for a particular application will depend, inter alia, on the condition being treated and the route of administration. Determination of an effective amount is well within the capabilities of those skilled in the art, especially in light of the disclosure herein.
Therapeutically effective amounts for use in humans can be determined from animal models. For example, a dose for humans can be formulated to achieve circulating concentration that has been found to be effective in animals. Useful animal models of pain are well known in the art. Models of neuropathic pain are described in Zeltser et al., 2000, Pain 89:19-24; Bennett et al., 1988, Pain 33:87-107; Seltzer et al., 1990, Pain 43:205-218; Kim et al., 1992, Pain 50:355-363; and Decosterd et al., 2000, Pain 87:149-158. An animal model of inflammatory pain using complete Freund""s adjuvant is described in Jasmin et al., 1998, Pain 75: 367-382. The stress-induced hyperalgesia model described in Quintero et al., 2000, Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior 67:449-458 may be used as an animal model of FMS and CFS.
Effective amounts for use in humans can be also be determined from human data for the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compounds used to treat depression. The amount administered can be the same amount administered to treat depression or can be an amount lower than the amount administered to treat depression. For example, the amount of milnacipran administered to treat depression is in the range of about 50 mg-400 mg/day. Thus, either 50 mg-400 mg/day or a lower dose can be administered for practicing the present invention.
Patient doses for oral administration of the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound typically range from about 1 xcexcg-1 gm/day. For example, for the treatment of FMS, CFS, or pain with milnacipran the dosage range is typically from 25 mg-400 mg/day, more typically from 100 mg-250 mg/day. The dosage may be administered once per day or several or multiple times per day. The amount of the NExe2x89xa75-HT SNRI compound administered to practice methods of the present invention will of course, be dependent on the subject being treated, the severity of the affliction, the manner of administration and the judgment of the prescribing physician. The dose used to practice the invention can produce the desired therapeutic or prophylactic effects, without producing serious side effects. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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Power screwdrivers for use in successively driving screws which are collated, secured in a parallel spaced relation with a belt or plastic strip of material are known. One such power screwdriving apparatus is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,146,071 to Mueller et al, issued Mar. 27, 1979, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Such known power screwdrivers include a rotatable and reciprocally moving screwdriver shaft, which is turned in rotation by an electric motor. A screwdriving bit held in an end-most portion of the shaft, defines a tip for engaging the head of each successive screw as it is moved into a driving position, axially aligned under the screwdriving shaft.
In the driving position, a cup-shaped screw locating member is provided to support a peripheral edge of the screw head. The screw locating member typically defines a radial extent of a boreway through which the shaft and screw head axially move as the screw is driven. The boreway preferably having a diameter marginally larger than the outside radial diameter of the head of the screw.
The shaft is axially movable in the boreway in a reciprocal manner to engage the screw and drive it into a work-piece. After each screw is driven the shaft retracts and a subsequent screw carried on the strip is advanced sideways into the boreway, engaging the locating member so as to be axial aligned under the shaft. The shaft typically has a diameter equal to or slightly smaller than the diameter of the screw head so as to not adversely wear against the locating member as each screw is driven.
Known power screwdrivers suffer the disadvantage in that the locating member is often fixed relative to the shaft, making it impractical to use the screwdriver with screws having different diameter screw heads. For example, on insertion of a screw having a head diameter appreciably larger than the diameter of the boreway, the screw abuts the locating member in a position out of axial alignment with the shaft and driving bit. Similarly, the use of screws having a head diameter appreciably smaller than the diameter of the axial boreway also results in the screw abutting the screw locating member at a position out of axial alignment with the shaft and driving bit. In either case, the tip will not properly engage the head of the screw resulting in premature tip wear, or causing the screw to deflect out of the correct axial orientation necessary to be driven.
To adapt the power screwdrivers for accommodating various sized screw heads, the screw locating member could be made movable radially inwardly and outwardly relative the boreway. In addition to adding to the cost of production, providing a movable locating member is disadvantageous in that the cup-shape of the locating member is fixed and is selected to engage the peripheral surface of only one diameter screw head. Accordingly, screws having screw heads which are either too small or too large may not be provided with adequate support by the locating member. Additionally, use of a movable locating member in accommodating screws having smaller head diameters, may result in a shaft and/or bit designed for use in driving screws having a larger head diameter, to disadvantageously wear against the locating member. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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The inventive concept relates to a method of operating a memory device, and more particularly, to a method of operating a memory device including a three-dimensional nonvolatile memory cell array, the method including a recharge operation, a program operation, and a read operation.
Semiconductor memory devices having a three-dimensional array structure have been studied to more efficiently manage memory blocks larger than a conventional two-dimensional array structure. For example, a memory operation may be performed on sub-block units. In particular, recently, a semiconductor memory device capable of supporting a partial erase operation in which an erase operation is performed in sub-block units has been introduced. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to watthour meters and, more specifically, to mounting attachments for watthour meters.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Electrical watthour meters have long been used to measure the amount of electrical power consumed by a particular machine or electrical utility customer. Watthour meters have been constructed in various configurations depending upon the type of electrical service that is required. Typically, the watthour meters have a circular cross-section and are mounted on a wall or support surface of a building or residence. They include gauges which indicate the amount of power consumed by the customer. Older watthour meters of the so-called bottom connected type are formed of a single piece housing in which the watthour meter was fixedly mounted along with terminals which provided connection to the building wiring. Any defect in the watthour meter requires replacement of the entire housing. To overcome this problem, socket-type watthour meters have been devised in which the watthour meter plugs into a base having contacts connected to terminals and the building wiring. This enables defective watthour meters to be easily replaced without removing the entire housing and internal conductors.
However, despite the advantages afforded by currently available socket-type watthour meters, improvements are still durable in the ease of manufacture of the socket-type housing, an adapter which would easily convert existing bottom connector watthour meter housings to a socket-type housing and a watthour meter housing which providing effective surge potential. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a support structure of a motor-driven steering assist apparatus.
2. Description of the Invention
In a rough road traveling vehicle such as a buggy vehicle or the like, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2004-231011 (patent document 1), there is a structure in which a motor-driven steering assist apparatus is interposed between an upper steering shaft in a steering wheel side and a lower steering shaft in a tire wheel side. A steering force applied to the steering wheel by a driver is assisted by a torque generated by an electric motor.
In the motor-driven steering assist apparatus in the patent document 1, a single unit body covered by a housing has an input shaft to which the upper steering shaft is connected, and an output shaft to which the lower steering shaft is connected. A torque sensor is provided between the input shaft and the output shaft. An electric motor is driven in correspondence to a detected torque of the torque sensor. A worm gear is coupled to a rotary shaft of the electric motor, and a worm wheel is coupled to the output shaft and engaging with the worm gear built-in. The housing can be attached to a vehicle body frame (a vehicle body side bracket). When the steering torque is applied to the steering wheel, the steering torque is applied to a torsion bar coupling the input shaft and the output shaft via the upper steering shaft, and the input shaft and the output shaft relatively rotate on the basis of a torsion generated by the torsion bar. Accordingly, the torque sensor detects the steering torque on the basis of a displacement in a rotating direction of the input shaft and the output shaft, and the electric motor is controlled so as to apply an assist force in correspondence to the steering torque to the output shaft.
In the motor-driven steering assist apparatus provided in the conventional rough road traveling vehicle, when steering the steering wheel to the maximum, the upper steering shaft and the input shaft twists the torsion bar, so that the torque sensor carries on detecting the steering torque. Accordingly, the electric motor is continuously driven despite that the output shaft and the lower steering shaft reach a steering stroke end.
Further, in the motor-driven steering assist apparatus provided in the conventional rough road traveling vehicle, if an inverse input is continuously input from the tire wheel side due to a rock being caught on the tire wheel during steering the steering wheel to the maximum, the lower steering shaft and the output shaft continues twisting the torsion bar, so that the torque sensor continues to detect the steering torque. Accordingly, the electric motor is continuously driven despite that the output shaft and the lower steering shaft reach the steering stroke end, thereby experiencing breakage such as a burnout or the like. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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European Patent EP 0 941 470 describes a fluorescence correlation spectroscopy module for a microscope. The FCS module can additionally be connected to a microscope of any desired design. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy allows the investigation of molecular dynamic processes to be studied. For this purpose, the particles contained in solution are doped with fluorescent dyes, and these dyes are then excited by light of a particular wavelength. The excitation light coming from a laser is coupled into the module via a flange joint for an optical waveguide. In the FCS module known from prior art, it is difficult to align the FCS detection volume with the sample area, which is to be investigated. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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During a grinding, polishing or similar operation performed on a workpiece, it is oftentimes critical that the temperature generated between the workpiece surface and the tool surface in contact therewith be accurately monitored and not exceed a predetermined amount. Where such temperatures are not properly controlled, important surface characteristics (e.g., hardness, wear-life, appearance and contour of the workpiece and/or the tool) may be seriously impaired.
In the past, the temperature control in such a situation depended to a substantial extent upon the skill and experience of the operator, and upon the type, volume, temperature and flow direction of the coolant circulated across the workpiece and tool surfaces. Various apparatus have heretofore been provided in an effort to attain better surface temperature control; however, because of certain inherent design features such apparatus has been beset with one or more of the following shortcomings: (a) the thermal sensing means or the detecting means were exposed to splash from the circulating coolant and thus, the accuracy of such means was impaired; (b) the location of the thermal sensing means on the tool surface caused unbalancing forces or stresses to develop within the tool thereby seriously shortening wear life; (c) the apparatus required an inordinate amount of service and maintenance; (d) the apparatus embodied numerous, costly and fragile components which were highly susceptible to malfunction; and (e) the apparatus was incapable of being utilized in conjunction with a variety of machining tools. | {
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It is generally known to utilize longitudinal conveyors and rakes for feeding weft inlay threads to the knitting instrumentalities of a warp knitting machine in parallel relationship and at a consistent distance relative to each other, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,564,872. A weft carriage feeds an array of weft threads with each transverse movement across the machine so that individual consecutive arrays consist of equally spaced weft threads. The desired equal distance between all threads is obtained by the rake taking over the array of weft threads at the end of each transversal movement of the weft carriage outside of the longitudinal conveyors by imparting a racking movement to the rake in the opposite direction of the direction of travel of the longitudinal conveyors at the end of each transversal movement of the weft carriage. The array of weft threads is transferred from the rake to the longitudinal conveyor when the rake moves to the racking position. The movement of the weft carriage and the rack is coordinated with the movement of the longitudinal conveyor so that the stroke and speed of movement of the rake accurately matches the corresponding movement of the longitudinal conveyor. In the aforesaid U.S. patent this coordination of movement is accomplished with the aid of a cam which rotates in synchronism with the continuously running longitudinal conveyor.
This type of timing cam is expensive to manufacture. Also, the timing cam must be changed when the width of the array of weft threads is altered. In particular situations where several weft carriers are used, as disclosed in DE-OS No. 3 343 048, the timing cam must have its own drive. In these instances where two cams are required for each weft carriage, each timing cam must be provided with its own drive so that this arrangement necessitates a very expensive construction. | {
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This invention relates in general to methods to monitor the energy enhancing effect of the reduced form of species such as nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH), nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH), Coenzyme Q10, reduced form of Coenzyme Q10, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and physiologically acceptable salts thereof, through determination of the relative activity of the energy-producing enzyme NADH cytochrome C reductase in whole blood.
Every living cell needs energy to survive. This energy is produced, according to a process known as oxidative phosphorylation, in form of the chemical entity adenosine triphosphate (ATP).
The key enzyme in the production of ATP is NADH cytochrome C reductase, also known as Complex I-III. This enzyme reduces cytochrome C by using the reducing agent NADH, the reduced form of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide. The reduced cytochrome C is then oxidized by the enzyme cytochrome C oxidase (Complex IV) to form water. In other words, the reduced form of NADH, also called Coenzyme I, uses ubiquitous oxygen in the cell to form water and 3 ATP molecules in accordance with the following general reaction scheme:
NADH+H++xc2xdO2+3Pi+3ADPxe2x86x92NAD++3ATP+4H2O.
Thus, with one NADH molecule, three ATP molecules are obtained having an energy of approximately 21 kilocalories. This process is set forth schematically in FIG. 1, where FeS is Reiske iron sulfur protein; ADP=adenosine diphosphate; and b562, b566, c1, a and a3 are cytochromes. The enzymes depicted in FIG. 1 are referred to as Complex I (NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase); Complex II (succinate dehydrogenase); Complex III (ubiquinone:cytochrome C oxidoreductase); Complex IV (cytochrome C oxidase); and Complex V (ATP synthase). These enzymes, whose energy-related functions occur in the mitochondria of the cell, are assembled from 13 polypeptides coded by the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and approximately 50 polypeptides coded by the nuclear DNA (nDNA). This system of five complexes also constitutes what is referred to as the electron transport chain (ETC), the common pathway for cellular energy metabolism, through which enzyme-catalyzed redox processes achieve electron transfer among critical substrate species.
NADH cytochrome C reductase is the first and key enzyme of this energy producing process. The greater the activity of NADH cytochrome C reductase, the higher the cellular output of energy. Illustratively, the more energy a cell needs, the more NADH it contains. For example, heart cells have 90 xcexcg/g tissue; brain and muscle cells contain 50 xcexcg/g tissue; liver cells contain 40 xcexcg/g; and red blood cells contain 3 xcexcg/g tissue. Thus, the activity of NADH cytochrome C reductase, directly linked to the amount of NADH present in the cell, reflects the energy producing capacity of a cell. Alberts, B., Bray, D., Lewis, J., Raff, H., Roberts, K., and Watson, J. D., xe2x80x9cEnergy Conversion: Mitochondria and Chloroplasts,xe2x80x9d in Molecular Biology of the Cell, 3rd Ed., Garland Publishing Inc., pp. 653-720, 1994; Lehninger, A. L., xe2x80x9cVitamins and Coenzymes,xe2x80x9d in Biochemistry, 2nd Ed., The John Hopkins University School of Medicine, Worth Publishers, Inc., pp. 337-342, 1975.
It has been shown in a variety of diseases (the so-called mitochondrial diseases) that energy production, in particular the activity of NADH cytochrome C reductase (Complex I-III), is decreased. This has been demonstrated not only in brain and muscle tissue, but also in platelets. Cooper, J. M., Mann, V. N., Krige, D., and Schapira, A. H. V., xe2x80x9cHuman mitochondrial complex I dysfunction,xe2x80x9d Biochemica et Biophysica Acta 1101, 198-203 (1992); Mizuno, Y., et al., xe2x80x9cDeficiencies in Complex I Subunits of the Respiratory Chain in Parkinson""s Disease,xe2x80x9d Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communication 163, 1450-1455 (1989); Shoffner, J. M., Wafts, R. L., Juncos, J. L., Torroni, A., and Wallace, D. C., xe2x80x9cMitochondrial Oxidative Phosphorylation Defects in Parkinson""s Disease,xe2x80x9d Ann. Neurol. 30, 332-339 (1991). This has been found both in patients with Parkinson""s disease (PD) and in patients with Alzheimer""s disease. A further demonstration of the link between cytochrome C reductase activity and disease conditions involves the Parkinson inducing toxin, 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), a compound that irreversibly inhibits and destroys NADH cytochrome C reductase in certain brain areas causing Parkinsonian-like symptoms. Benecke, R., Strumper, P., and Weiss, H., Brain 1993, Vol. 116, Part 6, pp. 1451-1463. These and other similar findings have significant implications for investigations into the etiology of conditions such as Alzheimer""s and Parkinson""s diseases.
Another known enzyme toxin is azidothymidine (AZT) which is used in the treatment of AIDS patients. This toxin damages NADH cytochrome C reductase, causing a reduction of energy production in the cell. Dalakas, M. C., IIIa, I., Pezeshkpour, G. H., Laukaftis, J. P., Cohen, B, and Griffin, J. L. xe2x80x9cMitochondrial myopathy caused by long-term zidovudine therapy,xe2x80x9d New Engl. J.Med. 322, 1098-1105 (1990). By measuring the activity of NADH cytochrome C reductase in muscle tissue biopsy, it was demonstrated that AZT destroys the enzyme""s activity, consequently blocking the energy production of the cells leading to muscle atrophy.
In addition to substances known to have an inhibitory effect on the activity of key enzymes related to cellular processes for the production of energy, there are also substances, such as the reduced form of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH), either endogenous or introduced exogenously, that are able to enhance NADH cytochrome C reductase activity and, consequently, cellular energy production. These two co-enzymes, and their pharmaceutically acceptable salts, have been shown to be useful in the treatment of Parkinson""s Disease (PD). The effectiveness of these agents for this purpose is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,970,200, 5,019,516, and 5,332,727, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. In addition, these substances are effective in the treatment of Alzheimer""s disease, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,444,053, the disclosure of which is also incorporated herein by reference. These substances have also been demonstrated to be effective in supplying additional energy to healthy individuals as disclosed in EP 0 496 479 131.
Assay methods for the determination of NADH cytochrome C reductase activity have been described for many tissues, in particular muscle, liver, brain and heart cells. See, for example, Hatefi, Y. and Stiggall, D. L. (1978b), xe2x80x9cPreparation and properties of NADH:cytochrome C oxidoreductase (Complex II),xe2x80x9d in Methods in Enzymology, 53, Fleischer, S. and Packer, L., eds, pp 5-10, Academic Press, New York, 1978; Trounce, I., Byrne, E. and Marzuki, S., xe2x80x9cDecline in skeletal muscle mitochondrial respiratory chain function: Possible factors in ageing,xe2x80x9d Lancet 1989, 637-639 (assay of muscle tissue); Yen, T.-C., et al., xe2x80x9cLiver mitochondrial respiratory functions decline with age,xe2x80x9d Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm. 165, 994-1003 (1989) (assay of liver tissue); Nakagawa-Hattori, Y., et al., xe2x80x9cIs Parkinson""s disease a mitochondrial disorder?xe2x80x9d J. Neurol. Sci. 107, 29-33 (1992) assay of muscle tissue obtained post-mortem); Mizuno, Y., et al., xe2x80x9cEffects of 1-methyl-1-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine and 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium ion activities of the enzymes in the electron transport system in mouse brain,xe2x80x9d J. Neurochem. 48, 1787-1793 (1987) (assay of mouse brain tissue); Reichman, H. et al., xe2x80x9cRespiratory chain and mitochondrial deoxyribonucleic acid n blood cells from patients with focal and generalized dystonia,xe2x80x9d Movement Disorders 9, 597-600 (1994) (assays of platelet homogenate).
Indeed, cofactors in oxidative phosphorylation processes have seen widespread use in analytical procedures due to the extremely high molar absorptivities demonstrated by species such as NADH which exhibits a unique absorption maximum at approximately 340 nm, along with an even stronger maximum at about 270 nm that is shared with the oxidized form of the cofactor, NAD+. By way of example, the concentration of alcohol in solution can be determined in an enzyme-based assay by adding an excess of NAD+ and a suitable quantity of the NAD+-dependent enzyme, alcohol dehydrogenase. The amount of NADH formed by the enzyme catalyzed reaction, which amount can be easily monitored spectrophotometrically, is stoichiometrically related to the amount of alcohol originally present in solution. The utility of such enzyme-based assays can be further extended through the use of coupled reaction schemes in which the analyte of interest does not directly participate in the enzyme-catalyzed process that gives rise to an analytical signal, but is indirectly linked to such process by a coupled reaction mechanism. However, it should be noted that, despite the use of a common enzyme cofactor in these analytical procedures, all such procedures share a common trait in that they are limited to monitoring processes that are not directly implicated in cellular energy production. As a consequence, such processes are dependent on the addition of both exogenous enzyme and cofactor, such as NADH, in order to generate an analytical signal.
For those demonstrated analytical procedures more directly related to cellular energy processes, a number of specific additional limitations exist. For example, all tissue-based assays require the sampling of tissue through biopsy or other even more invasive surgical procedures. In many cases, the tissue site selected for sampling is so critical physiologically that it can only be sampled post mortem. Assays based on isolation from platelets derived from a blood sample acquired through conventional venipuncture techniques offer advantages over methods that require biopsy of muscle or other tissue. However, such techniques suffer from the serious drawback that observed enzyme activity is dependent on the level of purification of the platelet preparation, introducing a potential source of significant analytical error. Furthermore, platelet separation/purification techniques are inherently complex and time consuming, adding significantly to the procedural overhead of enzyme-based methods from platelets. In addition, all of these enzyme-based assay methods can be further distinguished from the methods of the invention disclosed herein in that they all require the addition of exogenous sources of all cofactors involved in the enzymatic processes. Therefore, none of these methods can be characterized as assessing activity involving endogenous substrate.
In light of these and other significant drawbacks to the currently available assay methods for determination of energy-related enzyme activity, it is recognized that there is a need for an assay method that is simple in both sampling and procedure, as well as one that is efficient and well-suited to routine application. Toward that end, the inventor herein discloses an enzyme-based assay method that can be used with whole blood samples that has utility for assessment of the energy-producing capacity of test subjects, either before and/or after clinical treatments that include the ingestion of exogenous sources of NADH and related compounds.
In one aspect the present invention provides a method for the determination of the relative energy producing capacity of cells present in a sample of whole blood obtained from a test subject, wherein the method comprises the steps of obtaining a sample of whole blood from the test subject, in which sample there is present an endogenous source of an oxidoreductase enzyme participating, directly or indirectly, in cellular energy production; adding to a portion of that sample an effective amount of a substrate associated with the enzyme implicated in cellular energy production; and measurement of an analytical signal the level of which is proportional to the level of an endogenously present cofactor of the enzyme. Preferably, in the method of the invention, the test subject is a mammal. More preferably, the test subject is a human.
In another aspect, the method of the present invention involves an oxidoreductase enzyme selected from the group consisting of NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase, succinate dehydrogenase, ubiquinone:cyctochrome c oxidoreductase, cyctochrome C oxidase, ATP synthase, and combinations thereof. Alternatively, the method of the present invention involves an oxidoreductase enzyme selected from the group consisting of cytochrome C reductase (Complex I-III), dihydroubiquinone-cytochrome C oxidoreductase (coenzyme Q10), NADPH cytochrome B reductase, citrate synthetase, isocitrate dehydrogenase, alphaketoglutarate, succinate dehydrogenase, fumarase, and malate dehydrogenase and mixtures thereof.
In still another aspect, the method of the present invention involves an endogenously present cofactor selected from the group consisting of nicotinamide adenine dinucelotide (NAD+), the reduced form of nicotinamide adenine dinucelotide (NADH), nicotinamide adenine dinucelotide phosphate (NADP+), and the reduced form of nicotinamide adenine dinucelotide phosphate (NADPH).
In an alternative embodiment, the present invention contemplates a method for determination of the effect of endogenous factors on the cellular energy producing capability of cells present in a sample of whole blood obtained from a test subject, the method comprising testing a sample of whole blood obtained from the test subject according to a method comprising the steps of obtaining a sample of whole blood from the test subject, in which sample there is present an endogenous source of an oxidoreductase enzyme participating, directly or indirectly, in cellular energy production; adding to a portion of that sample an effective amount of a substrate associated with the enzyme implicated in cellular energy production; and measurement of an analytical signal the level of which is proportional to the endogenous level of an endogenously present cofactor of the enzyme.
In an another embodiment, the present invention provides a method for the determination of the effect of exogenous factors on the cellular energy producing capability of cells present in a sample of whole blood obtained from a test subject, the method comprising the steps of testing a sample of whole blood obtained from the test subject according to a method comprising the steps of obtaining a sample of whole blood from the test subject, in which sample there is present an endogenous source of an oxidoreductase enzyme participating, directly or indirectly, in cellular energy production; adding to a portion of that sample an effective amount of a substrate associated with the enzyme implicated in cellular energy production; and measurement of an analytical signal the level of which is proportional to the endogenous level of an endogenously present cofactor of the enzyme, the sample obtained prior to action of the exogenous factor on the test subject; testing a sample of whole blood obtained from the test subject according to a method comprising the steps of obtaining a sample of whole blood from the test subject, in which sample there is present an endogenous source of an oxidoreductase enzyme participating, directly or indirectly, in cellular energy production; adding to a portion of that sample an effective amount of a substrate associated with the enzyme implicated in cellular energy production; and measurement of an analytical signal the level of which is proportional to the endogenous level of an endogenously present cofactor of the enzyme, the sample obtained after action of the exogenous factor on the test subject; and comparing the results of the first measurement with the second measurement.
Specifically, the method of the present invention encompasses a method wherein the exogenous factor is exposure of the test subject to a substance capable of exerting a toxic effect on an oxidoreductase enzyme participating, directly or indirectly, in cellular energy production, or exposure of the test subject to a substance capable of enhancing the activity of an oxidoreductase enzyme participating, directly or indirectly, in cellular energy production.
In yet another alternative embodiment, the present invention provides a method for the determination of the relative energy producing capacity of cells present in a sample of whole blood obtained from a test subject comprising obtaining a sample of whole blood from the test subject, in which sample there is present an endogenous source of cytochrome C reductase; adding to a portion of that sample an effective amount of cytochrome C; measuring the absorbance of a mixture obtained from the previous two steps at 550 nm 60 seconds after mixing; measuring the absorbance at 550 nm of the mixture of step of the previous step after 300 sec; and calculating the moles of NADH present in the sample according to the following relationship: nmol xe2x80x83 CytC red = O . D . 550 ( at xe2x80x83 60 xe2x80x83 sec ) - O . D . 550 ( at xe2x80x83 300 xe2x80x83 sec ) 5 · 13 = nmol xe2x80x83 NADH xe2x80x83 ( endogenous ) | {
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The dual-action ball valves are customarily employed as master valves in high pressure systems involving oil/gas separation facilities, hot oil systems, pumping stations, well heads, metering facilities, emergency shut-down systems, and the like.
It has been found that the prior art dual-action ball valves experienced excessive bearing loads on the stem guide and spiral groove when rotating the valve to the open and closed positions, and also on the cam surface on the lower end of the stem and cooperating roller pins, wherein the bearing surfaces are minimal in both areas. These weaknesses are responsible for most field problems and customer complaints.
To overcome the excessive bearing loads encountered in prior dual-action rotary valves, the dual-action rotary valve of the present invention has been devised to increase the bearing surfaces on the various components of the valve, wherein a sleeve having a pair of spiral slots is fixedly secured to the valve bonnet and the valve stem is provided with a pair of guide pins extending into the slots. A ball insert is mounted on the top of the ball valve and is provided with a bearing surface cooperating with a sloping cam surface on the lower end of the valve stem. The upper surface of the ball insert is provided with a pair of upwardly extending arcuate members engaging the lower end of the valve bonnet bushing, to thereby provide a trunnion to facilitate tilting the ball valve relative to the valve seat. The lower end of the valve stem is also provided with an arcuate concave portion which is adapted to receive a correspondingly configured convex portion on the ball insert to enhance the holding of the ball valve in the closed position. | {
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This kind of pneumatic tool includes a housing. The housing has a motor housing for housing an air motor, and an air supply/exhaust portion which is connected to the motor housing and in which an air supply passage and an exhaust passage to and from the air motor are formed. The air supply/exhaust portion is provided with a valve unit for controlling air supply (for example, see Patent Document 1).
Patent Document 1: Japanese Registered Utility Model No. 2519937 | {
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to integrated bipolar and complementary metal oxide semiconductor (BiCMOS) devices using silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology in which the bipolar transistors and the CMOS transistors are fabricated on different surface layers of the SOI substrate. The present invention also provides a method for forming the BiCMOS devices. The structure and method of the present invention overcome topographic challenges as well as providing different surface layers in the SOI substrate for fabricating the various devices present in BiCMOS technology.
2. Background of the Invention
Bipolar transistors are electronic devices with two p-n junctions that are in close proximity to each other. A typical bipolar transistor has three device regions: an emitter, a collector, and a base disposed between the emitter and the collector. Ideally, the two p-n junctions, i.e., the emitter-base and collector-base junctions, are in a single layer of semiconductor material separated by a specific distance. Modulation of the current flow in one p-n junction by changing the bias of the nearby junction is called “bipolar-transistor action.”
If the emitter and collector are doped n-type and the base is doped p-type, the device is an “npn” transistor. Alternatively, if the opposite doping configuration is used, the device is a “pnp” transistor. Because the mobility of minority carriers, i.e., electrons, in the base region of npn transistors is higher than that of holes in the base of pnp transistors, higher-frequency operation and higher-speed performances can be obtained with npn transistor devices. Therefore, npn transistors comprise the majority of bipolar transistors used to build integrated circuits.
As the vertical dimensions of the bipolar transistor are scaled more and more, serious device operational limitations have been encountered. One actively studied approach to overcome these limitations is to build transistors with emitter materials whose band gaps are larger than the band gaps of the material used in the base. Such structures are called heterojunction transistors.
Heterostructures comprising heterojunctions can be used for both majority carrier and minority carrier devices. Among majority carrier devices, heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) in which the emitter is formed of silicon (Si) and the base of a silicon-germanium (SiGe) alloy have recently been developed. The SiGe alloy (often expressed simply as silicon-germanium) is narrower in band gap than silicon.
The advanced silicon-germanium bipolar and complementary metal oxide semiconductor (BiCMOS) technology uses a SiGe base in the heterojunction bipolar transistor. In the high-frequency (such as multi-GHz) regime, conventional compound semiconductors such as GaAs and InP currently dominate the market for high-speed wired and wireless communications. SiGe BiCMOS promises not only a comparable performance to GaAs in devices such as power amplifiers, but also a substantial cost reduction due to the integration of heterojunction bipolar transistors with standard CMOS, yielding the so-called “system on a chip.”
For high-performance HBT fabrication, yielding SiGe/Si HBTs, a conventional way to reduce the base resistance is through ion implantation onto the extrinsic base. The ion implantation will cause damage, however, to the base region. Such damage may ultimately lead to degradation in device performance.
To avoid the implantation damage, a raised extrinsic base (Rext) is formed by depositing an extra layer of polycrystalline silicon atop the conventional SiGe extrinsic base layer. There are essentially two processes that may be applied to achieve such a raised extrinsic base. The first process involves selective epitaxy; the other involves chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP).
In a typical selective epitaxy process, the raised extrinsic base polycrystalline silicon is formed before the deposition of the intrinsic base SiGe. The intrinsic base SiGe is deposited selectively onto the exposed surface of silicon and polycrystalline silicon inside an over-hanging cavity structure. The selective epitaxy with a cavity structure mandates stringent process requirements for good selectivity, and suffers from poor process control. U.S. Pat. No. 5,523,606 to Yamazaki and U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,908 to Inoh, et al. are some examples of prior art selective epitaxy processes.
In addition to selective epitaxy, a raised extrinsic base may be formed by utilizing a CMP process. However, when it comes to SiGe BiCMOS structures, there is a topographic issue for CMP since the CMOS gate creates a thickness difference, which is similar to the gate height (typically 100-250 nm), between the CMOS device area and the bipolar transistor device area. The height of these two device areas must be adjusted to the same level for the raised extrinsic base CMP.
In addition to selective epitaxy, a raised extrinsic base may be formed by utilizing a CMP process. However, when it comes to SiGe BiCMOS structures, there is a topographic issue for CMP since the CMOS gate creates a thickness difference, which is similar to the gate height (typically 100-250 nm), between the CMOS device area and the bipolar transistor device area. The height of these two device areas must be adjusted to the same level for the raised extrinsic base CMP.
In one prior art process; see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,492,238, a BiCMOS having a raised extrinsic base region is formed using a reactive-ion etch (RIE) step to etch part of the film on top of the CMOS gate to make the CMOS transistor and bipolar transistor device areas substantially level. Despite being capable of leveling the two device areas, this prior art approach for adjusting the height differential between the HBT and the CMOS transistor device areas is complicated and requires two additional lithographic levels to achieve leveling between the device areas of the CMOS transistor and the HBT. In addition to the topography challenges in integrating bipolar devices with CMOS devices, there is an ongoing trend in the semiconductor industry for replacing bulk Si technology with SOI technology since SOI permits the formation of high-speed integrated circuits. In SOI technology, a buried insulating layer electrically isolates a top Si-containing layer from a bottom Si-containing layer. The top Si-containing layer, which is oftentimes referred to in the art as the SOI layer, is generally the area in which active devices such as transistors are formed. Devices formed using SOI technology offer many advantages over their bulk Si counterparts including, for example, higher performance, absence of latch-up, higher packing density and low voltage applications. The replacement of bulk Si substrates with SOI is also occurring in BiCMOS devices. In most BiCMOS/SOI structures, the topography challenge mentioned above would also be present.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,232,649 to Lee discloses a process for fabricating a bipolar transistor on an SOI substrate which includes etching a bipolar transistor area into a bottom Si-containing layer of an SOI substrate; in the patented prior art process the etching goes through the top Si-containing layer, the buried insulating layer and an upper surface of the bottom Si-containing layer, stopping somewhere below this upper surface. Despite being capable of fabricating a bipolar transistor on an SOI substrate, this prior art approach needs a selective epitaxial silicon growth process which mandates stringent process requirements for good selectivity, and suffers from poor process control. Moreover, the form factor of the entire prior art bipolar transistors inherently lacks the compactness of the state-of-the art bipolar transistors in advanced BiCMOS technologies, e.g., the entire base region is separated from the collector by oxide sidewalls. This makes it difficult to reduce the product of base-collector capacitance and collector resistance, which is critical to enable fast bipolar transistors.
In addition, the etching used in Lee to form polysilicon sidewalls to connect the buried collectors etches directly into the Si where the buried collector is formed. Not only does this etch create damage in Si, rendering defective epitaxial base layer later on, but also it is not controllable; therefore the depth of the trenches for bipolar transistors formed into the SOI substrate may vary from one area to another as well as vary across a single SOI wafer. This results in a topography problem with each bipolar transistor being formed using technology such as disclosed in Lee.
Another challenge facing BiCMOS device fabrication is that different devices present on the same chip have different substrate requirements. For example, when passive elements such as inductors are present on BiCMOS integrated circuits, it is typically required that the passive elements be formed atop substrates that are highly resistive. A high-resistivity substrate is necessary for high quality factor, high-Q, inductors isolated between digital and analog parts of the circuit.
In view of the state of the art mentioned above, there is a continued need for providing BiCMOS devices that have improved topography between the CMOS device area and the bipolar device area in which SOI technology is used. Additionally, there is a need for being able to tailor portions of the SOI substrate for fabricating passive elements of high quality on the same chip as the bipolar transistors and the CMOS transistors. | {
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In modern communications networks, communications traffic is often carried on optical fibers. A plurality of transmitters may be connected to a first end of a fiber through an optical multiplexer to transmit a corresponding plurality of optical payload signals thereon. Each transmitter includes a semiconductor laser whose output optical intensity is modulated between a first predefined intensity representing a logical “0” and a second predefined intensity representing a logical “1” to generate an optical payload signal. Using a method called wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), the lasers transmitting on the fiber are chosen such that each laser generates a signal having a unique optical wavelength, permitting a plurality of payload signals to be optically multiplexed onto a single optical fiber without becoming mixed. An optical demultiplexer is connected to an opposite end of the fiber to demultiplex the plurality of optical payload signals onto a corresponding plurality of optical links for receipt by a corresponding plurality of receivers.
To manage such a communications network efficiently, it is necessary to monitor power of the optical signal, to ensure that the signal will be properly propagated through the optical fiber to be detected at a receiver. One method of facilitating optical power measurement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,513,029 to Roberts, wherein an optical payload data signal is submodulated with a dither signal encoded with a pseudo random code, and having a submodulation depth which is maintained constant relative to mean optical power of the submodulated optical payload data signal. A pseudo random code is used to broaden the emission spectrum of lasers used in optical transmitters to reduce non-linear optical effects such as Stimulated Brillouin Scattering (SBS).
In addition, to effectively manage an optical system it is desirable to transmit communications and control information between nodes on an optical network. This is typically done by including communications and control information, also referred to as overhead data, in the payload data signal or by submodulating the payload signal with overhead data.
Thus, submodulation of an optical signal has been used for either power monitoring or for transmission of communications and control data. Typically, where submodulation is used for power monitoring, communications and control data is transmitted in payload data and where submodulation is used for payload data, power monitoring is not provided.
Generally, it is not possible to simply add the communications and control data to the pseudo random codes used for power monitoring as this can result in a submodulation depth greater than an allowable limit. Exceeding such a limit may limit the distance the light can travel in the fiber, requiring more optical amplifiers at shorter spacings.
Furthermore, while channel power information is directly measurable when the channels are separate, prior to WDM multiplexing or after demultiplexing, it is difficult to directly measure the power of individual channels of a WDM signal. One existing method of determining channel power of a WDM signal involves optically demultiplexing the WDM signal to retrieve individual optical payload signals, converting the individual optical payload signals into individual electrical signals and then measuring the power of each such electrical signal. However, this method requires the use of a relatively expensive optical demultiplexer and may not, therefore, be economical.
Thus, there is a need for a way to transmit power information and non-payload data in an optical signal without excessive depth of modulation and without interfering with the payload data, while facilitating economical power measurement. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Masonry objects, that is, things comprised of stone or brick have long been used in natural and artificial gardens for esthetic and functional purposes. For instance, masonry walls are used to define boundaries and retain earth. Typically, good construction requires some sort of foundation, particularly when the ground alternately freezes and thaws. In any case, masonry structures are inherently heavy and need to have adequate structural support.
Simulated masonry articles in general are known. For instance, they are used when gardens are placed within a building, where the weight of masonry walls and other objects is undesirable from the standpoint of the structure. Similarly, it is desirable to have light weight objects when portability, easy placement or easy rearrangement of the units is an aim. In the past, simulated masonry articles have been made of such as painted wood, plaster, and plastic resins, etc. Simulated rocks, which are hollow and are made of molded plastic resin, have been known for decorative purposes, for use in exterior and interior locations.
Modular garden wall systems are known. For instance: U.S. Pat. No. 5,080,523 to Steiner describes a modular concrete wall system. U.S. Pat. No. 348,598 to Strickland shows curved concrete modules. U.S. Pat. No. 3,762,113 to O'Mullan shows molded plastic edging. U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,540 shows a modular plastic 4-high brick wall, with open rear sides which can be closed with a panel. The interlocking stepped ends of the modules are held together by pins, which optionally extend into the earth. Filler blocks are used to make vertical plane ends.
The modular garden wall systems in the prior art have various advantages and disadvantages. Some are obviously heavy. While they are stable, they are difficult to transport, move about, and store. On the other hand, simulated masonry which is so light that it does not stay in place can fail to achieve more than a simple cosmetic effect. Simulated masonry often fails to be good looking and sufficiently simulative of ordinary masonry. Other prior art designs are expensive to fabricate. Still others have means for connecting which does not combine well cost, simplicity, appearance of the joint, and ease of assembly or disassembly. Thus, there is a need for improvements. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a method and system for content distribution management.
2. Background Discussion
Social networking websites have played an increasingly important role in a person's social life. A current social norm is typically represented by a person communicating with others via the internet and social networking sites.
A plurality of social networking sites have been established for providing online social networking services. Examples of these social networking sites include, for example, Classmates.com®, Facebook®, Flickr®, HR.com®, LinkedIn®, LiveJournal®. MyLife®, Twitter®, and YouTube®. In a traditional way, a participant of these social networking websites needs to log onto each site in order to use the social networking services. When a user participates in multiple social networking sites, it is very inconvenient for a user to check each social networking website. Also, conventionally, a user is not able to share content among multiple social networking websites without logging on to each social network site. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates to the production of magnetic disks using glass substrates.
Most magnetic disks manufactured today comprise either aluminum or glass substrates. Glass substrates for magnetic disks are typically formed by the following process:
1. A sheet of glass 1 (FIG. 1) is prepared, e.g. by the xe2x80x9cfloat methodxe2x80x9d.
2. Individual xe2x80x9csquaresxe2x80x9d of glass (e.g. square 2 of FIG. 2) are cut out of sheet 1. This is typically done using a diamond scribing process.
3. The xe2x80x9csquaresxe2x80x9d of glass (e.g. square 2) are cut into disk-shaped substrates (e.g. substrate 3 of FIG. 3). During this cutting operation, a circular region is also cut out of an inner portion of disk shaped substrate 3 to leave a circular hole 4. After the disk is completed, hole 4 facilitates mounting of the disk on a spindle within a disk drive.
4. Chamfers (such as chamfer 6 of FIG. 4) are formed at the inner diameter (xe2x80x9cIDxe2x80x9d) and outer diameter (xe2x80x9cODxe2x80x9d) of each disk 3. This is generally a difficult operation.
It is accomplished using a grinding process (which typically damages the glass material) followed by polishing chamfer 6 (to try to remove the damage).
5. After chamfer 6 is formed, the disk is subjected to multiple lapping and polishing steps. These multiple steps are necessary for at least two reasons. First, during the step of providing a chamfer, the glass is damaged, and this damage must be removed. (Merely polishing the chamfer will not remove all of the damage.) Second, during various portions of the manufacturing process, the glass is typically stacked and unstacked. During stacking an unstacking, as well as cutting, the glass is typically damaged due to glass particles that are generated during the cutting steps. These glass particles lodge on the glass prior to stacking and damage the glass.
Forming chamfers, lapping and polishing substrates constitute a great expense during substrate manufacturing. It would be highly desirable to avoid or minimize these expenses.
A method in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention comprises the acts of a) applying a protective layer of material on a glass sheet; b) cutting the glass sheet into squares; and c) stacking the glass squares for further processing. In one embodiment, the further processing includes cutting the squares into substrates. Of importance, the protective layer prevents glass particles from damaging the surface of the substrates during the further processing. Thereafter, the substrates are unstacked and the protective layers are removed.
One important feature of this embodiment of our invention is that because the glass substrate surfaces are not damaged by glass particles, it is not necessary to subject them to multiple lapping and polishing steps that would otherwise be needed to achieve defect-free surfaces. Therefore, we can use this process to provide much less expensive substrates than were previously available.
A process in accordance with a second embodiment of our invention comprises rounding the corners of the glass substrates without forming chamfers. In one embodiment, this is accomplished by applying an edge polishing step on the stacked substrates. The protective layers on the substrates are softer than glass. The ID and OD of the stacked glass substrates are subjected to a polishing process, e.g. using a slurry. The portion of the protective layers at the ID and OD are removed first. This exposes portions of the glass substrates at the corner of the ID and OD to the slurry, and permits the slurry to round the substrate corners. We have discovered it is not necessary to form chamfers in a glass substrate, and that simply rounding the substrate corners suffices in a manufacturing process. In particular, the substrate can be safely handled, although it lacks chamfers, without damaging the substrate. Also, because the edges are rounded and not sharp, the substrates can be safely handled by people and associated process equipment. Further, by not chamfering the substrate corners, we avoid the expense and damage to the glass material associated with chamfering.
After the substrates are machined as discussed above, they are used for magnetic disk, manufacturing. In one embodiment, the substrates are destacked, the protective layers are removed, and the substrates are subjected to brief, minimal polishing. Because the substrates were protected during stacking and during cutting of the glass squares into substrates, the damage which would otherwise be caused by glass particles generated during the initial cutting process is not present. Therefore, only minimal polishing is required at this point in the manufacturing process. This minimal polishing leaves the initial substrate smoothness substantially undisturbed. Further, the minimal polishing removes less substrate material, and is much less expensive, than prior art lapping and polishing steps used to manufacture prior art disk substrates. After the minimal polishing step the substrates are then cleaned.
Optionally, the substrates are then subjected to a chemical strengthening step. After chemical strengthening the substrates are again cleaned.
Thereafter, the various layers of the magnetic disk are deposited on the substrate, e.g. by sputtering. For example, an underlayer such as Cr, a Cr alloy, NiP, or NiAl is sputtered onto the substrates, followed by a magnetic Co alloy and a protective overcoat.
The glass used to practice this invention can be any type of glass, e.g. a borosilicate glass, or an alumina silicate glass. In lieu of glass, the invention can be practiced using glass ceramic substrates. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Fingerprints (i.e., friction ridge signatures) illustrate a pattern of friction ridges and valleys having features that may be identified. In two-dimensional fingerprint representations associated with existing fingerprint imaging technology, the top of the friction ridges appear to be flat and/or planar. However, friction ridges that make up the friction ridge pattern reflected in a fingerprint are more like mountain ranges, undulating up and down with areas of lower elevation and areas where peaks exist. These variations are not visible in typical fingerprints because the subject's finger is pressed against an imaging surface causing the peaks and undulating areas to flatten such that they are captured as if they were flat. As such, these variations are ignored and are not visible as identification features.
Instead, conventional fingerprint classification and identification methods focus on the type and location of level I and level II features. Level I features, such as loops, arches, tents, deltas, and whorls, are mainly used to classify or subdivide fingerprints into broad categories, but do not provide sufficient discriminating power to identify individuals.
Level II features, such as ridge endings, bifurcations, and dots provide the basis of present day fingerprint identification algorithms. These features are classifications of the continuity of fingerprint ridge lines. To automate this process, the contrast of fingerprint images is often increased so that image processing algorithms can more accurately follow ridge lines to locate deviations from ridge line continuity. Relational maps of level II features are compared to national databases in order to identify individuals by their fingerprints.
Additional Level III features broadly arise from fine details of fingerprint patterns, ridges and valleys. Typical level III details may include ridge shape, width, and path deviation, pores, incipient ridges, breaks, creases, scars, and/or a variety of ridge edge contour details. Human experts may use Level III features to confirm the identity of an individual after a preliminary match based on level II features. Unfortunately, some level III features show significant variability within the same individual from fingerprints taken under different conditions. These factors have so far raised significant challenges for the use of level III features in automated fingerprint recognition algorithms. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to novel compounds capable of modulating, regulating and/or inhibiting tyrosine kinase signal transduction. The present invention is also directed to methods of regulating, modulating or inhibiting tyrosine kinases, whether of the receptor or non-receptor class, for the prevention and/or treatment of disorders related to unregulated tyrosine kinase signal transduction, including cell growth, metabolic, and blood vessel proliferative disorders.
2. Description of the Related Art
Protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) comprise a large and diverse class of proteins having enzymatic activity. The PTKs play an important role in the control of cell growth and differentiation.
For example, receptor tyrosine kinase mediated signal transduction is initiated by extracellular interaction with a specific growth factor (ligand), followed by receptor dimerization, transient stimulation of the intrinsic protein tyrosine kinase activity and phosphorylation. Binding sites are thereby created for intracellular signal transduction molecules and lead to the formation of complexes with a spectrum of cytoplasmic signaling molecules that facilitate the appropriate cellular response (e.g., cell division, metabolic homeostasis, and responses to the extracellular microenvironment).
With respect to receptor tyrosine kinases, it has been shown also that tyrosine phosphorylation sites function as high-affinity binding sites for SH2 (src homology) domains of signaling molecules. Several intracellular substrate proteins that associate with receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) have been identified. They may be divided into two principal groups: (1) substrates which have a catalytic domain; and (2) substrates which lack such domain but serve as adapters and associate with catalytically active molecules. The specificity of the interactions between receptors or proteins and SH2 domains of their substrates is determined by the amino acid residues immediately surrounding the phosphorylated tyrosine residue. Differences in the binding affinities between SH2 domains and the amino acid sequences surrounding the phosphotyrosine residues on particular receptors are consistent with the observed differences in their substrate phosphorylation profiles. These observations suggest that the function of each receptor tyrosine kinase is determined not only by its pattern of expression and ligand availability but also by the array of downstream signal transduction pathways that are activated by a particular receptor. Thus, phosphorylation provides an important regulatory step which determines the selectivity of signaling pathways recruited by specific growth factor receptors, as well as differentiation factor receptors.
Aberrant expression or mutations in the PTKs have been shown to lead to either uncontrolled cell proliferation (e.g. malignant tumor growth) or to defects in key developmental processes. Consequently, the biomedical community has expended significant resources to discover the specific biological role of members of the PTK family, their function in differentiation processes, their involvement in tumorigenesis and in other diseases, the biochemical mechanisms underlying their signal transduction pathways activated upon ligand stimulation and the development of novel drugs.
Tyrosine kinases can be of the receptor-type (having extracellular, transmembrane and intracellular domains) or the non-receptor type (being wholly intracellular).
The RTKs comprise a large family of transmembrane receptors with diverse biological activities. The intrinsic function of RTKs is activated upon ligand binding, which results in phosphorylation of the receptor and multiple cellular substrates, and subsequently in a variety of cellular responses.
At present, at least nineteen (19) distinct RTK subfamilies have been identified. One RTK subfamily, designated the HER subfamily, is believed to be comprised of EGFR, HER2, HER3 and HER4. Ligands to the HER subfamily of receptors include epithelial growth factor (EGF), TGF-α, amphiregulin, HB-EGF, betacellulin and heregulin.
A second family of RTKs, designated the insulin subfamily, is comprised of the INS-R, the IGF-1R and the IR-R. A third family, the “PDGF” subfamily includes the PDGF α and β receptors, CSFIR, c-kit and FLK-II. Another subfamily of RTKs, identified as the FLK family, is believed to be comprised of the Kinase insert Domain-Receptor fetal liver kinase-1 (KDR/FLK-1), the fetal liver kinase 4 (FLK-4) and the fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (flt-1). Each of these receptors was initially believed to be receptors for hematopoietic growth factors. Two other subfamilies of RTKs have been designated as the FGF receptor family (FGFR1, FGFR2, FGFR3 and FGFR4) and the Met subfamily (c-met and Ron).
Because of the similarities between the PDGF and FLK subfamilies, the two subfamilies are often considered together. The known RTK subfamilies are identified in Plowman et al, 1994, DN&P 7(6): 334-339, which is incorporated herein by reference.
The non-receptor tyrosine kinases represent a collection of cellular enzymes which lack extracellular and transmembrane sequences. At present, over twenty-four individual non-receptor tyrosine kinases, comprising eleven (11) subfamilies (Src, Frk, Btk, Csk, Abl, Zap70, Fes/Fps, Fak, Jak, Ack and LIMK) have been identified. At present, the Src subfamily of non-receptor tyrosine kinases is comprised of the largest number of PTKs and includes Src, Yes, Fyn, Lyn, Lck, Blk, Hck, Fgr and Yrk. The Src subfamily of enzymes has been linked to oncogenesis. A more detailed discussion of non-receptor tyrosine kinases is provided in Bolen, 1993, Oncogene 8: 2025-2031, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Many of the tyrosine kinases, whether an RTK or non-receptor tyrosine kinase, have been found to be involved in cellular signaling pathways leading to cellular signal cascades leading to pathogenic conditions, including cancer, psoriasis and hyper immune response.
In view of the surmised importance of PTKs to the control, regulation and modulation of cell proliferation the diseases and disorders associated with abnormal cell proliferation, many attempts have been made to identify receptor and non-receptor tyrosine kinase “inhibitors” using a variety of approaches, including the use of mutant ligands soluble receptors and antibodies RNA ligands and tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
More recently, attempts have been made to identify small molecules which act as tyrosine kinase inhibitors. For example, bis monocyclic, bicyclic or heterocyclic aryl compounds, vinylene-azaindole derivatives and 1-cyclopropyl-4-pyridyl-quinolones have been described generally as tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Styryl compounds, styryl-substituted pyridyl compounds certain quinazoline derivatives seleoindoles and selenides, tricyclic polyhydroxylic compounds and benzylphosphonic acid compounds have been described as compounds for use as tyrosine kinase inhibitors for use in the treatment of cancer.
The identification of effective small compounds which specifically inhibit signal transduction by modulating the activity of receptor and non-receptor tyrosine kinases to regulate and modulate abnormal or inappropriate cell proliferation is therefore desirable and one object of this invention.
Finally, certain small compounds are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,792,783; 5,834,504; 5,883,113; 5,883,116 and 5,886,020 as useful for the treatment of diseases related to unregulated TKS transduction. See also, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,541,504; 6,559,173; 6,765,012; 6,747,025; 6,699,863; 7,005,444; 7,015,220 and 7,060,844. These patents are hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for the purpose of disclosing starting materials and methods for the preparation thereof, screens and assays to determine a claimed compound's ability to modulate, regulate and/or inhibit cell proliferation, indications which are treatable with said compounds, formulations and routes of administration, effective dosages, etc. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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Contact lenses have been used commercially to improve vision since at least the 1950s. The first contact lenses were made of hard materials and as such were somewhat uncomfortable to users. Modern lenses have been developed that are made of softer materials, typically hydrogels and particularly silicone hydrogels. Silicone hydrogels are water-swollen polymer networks that have high oxygen permeability and surfaces that are more hydrophobic than hydrophilic. These lenses provide a good level of comfort to many lens wearers, but there are some users who experience discomfort and excessive ocular deposits leading to reduced visual acuity when using these lenses. This discomfort and deposits has been attributed to the hydrophobic character of the surfaces of lenses and the interaction of those surfaces with the protein, lipids and mucin and the hydrophilic surface of the eye.
Others have tried to alleviate this problem by coating the surface of silicone hydrogel contact lenses with hydrophilic coatings, such as plasma coatings Uncoated lenses having low incidences of surface deposits are not disclosed.
Incorporating internal hydrophilic agents (or wetting agents) into a macromer containing reaction mixture has been disclosed. However, not all silicone containing macromers display compatibility with hydrophilic polymers. Modifying the surface of a polymeric article by adding polymerizable surfactants to a monomer mix used to form the article has also been disclosed. However, lasting in vivo improvements in wettability and reductions in surface deposits are not likely.
Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) or poly-2-ethyl-2-oxazoline have been added to a hydrogel composition to form an interpenetrating network which shows a low degree of surface friction, a low dehydration rate and a high degree of biodeposit resistance. However, the hydrogel formulations disclosed are conventional hydrogels and there is no disclosure on how to incorporate hydrophobic components, such as siloxane monomers, without losing monomer compatibility.
While it may be possible to incorporate high molecular weight polymers as internal wetting agents into silicone hydrogel lenses, such polymers are difficult to solubilize in reaction mixtures which contain silicones. In order to solubilize these wetting agents, silicone macromers or other prepolymers must be used. These silicone macromers or prepolymers must be prepared in a separate step and then subsequently mixed with the remaining ingredients of the silicone hydrogel formulation. This additional step (or steps) increases the cost and the time it takes to produce these lenses. Moreover, these approaches have failed to produce a ophthalmic device which is sufficiently wettable to allow its use as a contact lens without a coating.
Therefore it would be advantageous to find a lens formulation that does not require the use of silicone macromers or other prepolymers and is suitable for extended wear without a surface treatment. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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Dyeing is as old as the textile industry and this antedates the written documents of human history. The natural desire of humans to clothe themselves goes hand in hand with the desire for beautiful, colorful clothing. There is historical evidence that indigo a vat dye, was used on the island of Crete as far back as 1600 B.C. for coloring clothing. Indigo remains the most widely recognized vat dye for dyeing clothing although most vat dyes have been in commercial use for at least 50 years.
Indigo was historically made from sea shells. Today the principle source of indigo is from plants which contain a compound called Indican. Indican is water soluble due to its glycoside linkage at the third position. To produce indigo from the plant material, the following procedure is generally used. The Indican is placed in an aqueous solution, the glycoside linkages are broken and 3-oxindole is released. The Indican/aqueous solution is then saturated with air which provides oxygen so that the 3-oxindole dimerizes to form the dye indigo. The dye, indigo, that is formed, is blue in color and is water insoluble. Likewise, the dye is practically insoluble in alcohol, ether or dilute acids. To use indigo to color textiles, it is necessary to reduce the indigo dye to its leuco form using a suitable reducing agent. This reduction usually occurs in an alkaline material, for example sodium hydroxide. Once the ,, leuco form of the dye is achieved the textile is immersed in the leuco solution and then exposed to air. These two steps, immersion and exposure may be repeated to obtain the desired shade of blue. Although there has been a widespread use of dyes for coloring fabrics, there is still a need to improve the existing dyeing processes and particularly a need to improve the step of reducing the dye to its soluble leuco form.
Typically, sodium dithionite has been employed to reduce the dyes to their leuco form, as is shown U.S. Pat. No. 3,798,172. Sodium dithionite decomposes rapidly in the presence or absence of air; therefore, large, excess quantities of this compound are used to reduce all of the dye and to maintain the dye in is soluble leuco form. Regrettably, the use of sodium dithionite raises ecological concerns.
Other reducing systems have been recommended for use by the textile industry. These include a highly alkaline solution containing five percent sodium borohydride and a powdered initiator of sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate (Rongalite C) with five percent sodium nickel cyanide. There are some environmental concerns relating to the nickel and cyanide discharges from this dyeing process. Another reducing agent that has received some attention is thiourea dioxide in an alkaline solution. However, thiourea dioxide is a strong reducing agent, and therefore tends to over reduce the vat dye. When reducing indigo overreduction is readily apparent by the smell of fecal material which is present when indole (the overreduction product) is in the reaction.
The reduction process is sensitive to slight changes in pH, temperature, and the amount and purity of the material being reduced. If the pH is too low, the dye may precipitate in its acid form. If sodium dithionite is used in too low a concentration, the dye may oxidize prematurely, resulting in a loss of the dye. Therefore, despite the fact that vat dyes have been known for years, the quest for an optimal, inexpensive reducing process which does not have environmental concerns attached to its use or which does not result in overreduction is ongoing.
Because the industry has not found an acceptable process for forming the leuco form of vat dyes the industry has turned to the formation of indigosols, the sulfuric esters of the leuco form of vat dyes. The reduction and esterification of the vat dye produces the sulfuric ester instead of the leuco form of the vat dye. Pyridine with iron and chlorosulfuric acid are agents employed to form the sulfuric ester having the general structure of ##STR1## The industry would prefer to form the leuco form of the vat dye instead of forming the ester to avoid adding expense to the dyed fabric.
The present invention provides an optimal reducing process for formation of the leuco form of the vat dye. Thus eliminating the need to form sulfuric esters. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to N-(5-tetrazolyl)-pyrimido[1,2-a]quinoline-2-carboxamides and derivatives thereof and to their use as antiallergy agents. More particularly, it relates to N-tetrazolyl-1-oxo-1H-6-(R.sub.3 -substituted)-pyrimido[1,2-a]quinoline-2-carboxamides wherein the 6-substituent is chloro, bromo or lower alkoxy; pharmaceutically-acceptable cationic salts thereof; and derivatives of such compounds wherein the benzenoid ring bears one or more substituents, which are useful as agents for the treatment of allergic reactions, and especially of allergic bronchial asthma; and intermediates therefor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Allergic reactions, the symptoms resulting from an antigen-antibody interaction, manifest themselves in a wide variety of ways and in different organs and tissues. Common allergic disorders, for example, are allergic rhinitis, a condition characterized by seasonal or perennial sneezing, running nose, nasal congestion, with itching a congestion of eyes; hay fever, a variety of allergic rhinitis that results from hypersensitivity to grass pollens; and bronchial asthma, one of the most disabling and debilitating of allergic reactions, a disease characterized by hyper-reactivity of the bronchi on exposure to various immunogenic or nonimmunogenic stimuli, resulting in bronchospasms with wheezing, short-lived paroxysms and widespread constriction of airway passages. The mechanical obstruction to airflow in airways is generally reversed by the use of bronchodilators, which provide symptomatic relief. In contrast, antiallergy agents prevent the release of mediators of anaphylaxis from tissue stores, thereby acting in a prophylactic manner to preclude elicitation of bronchoconstriction by the mediators.
Efforts to discover medicinal agents to alleviate the symptoms of the abnormal physiologic state have been extensive. As early as 1910, Matthews, Brit. Med. J., 1, 441 (1910) reported the bronchodilator effects of epinephrine. Since then, Chen and Schmidt, J. Pharmacol. Exper. Therap., 24, 339 (1924) reported the use of the alkaloid ephedrine as an orally efficacious bronchodilator with the same spectrum of activity as epinephrine. In 1940, Konzett, Arch. Exp. Path. Pharmak., 197 27 (1940) outlined the effects of the potent aerosol bronchodilator isoproterenol. Cullum et al., Brit. J. Pharmacol. Exp., 35, 141 (1969) reported the pharmacology of salbutamol, a potent bronchodilator of prolonged duration, and active via both oral and aerosol administration. Many bronchodilator preparations contain theophylline. These are generally less potent that the sympathomimetic amines such as isoproterenol and salbutamol, and are ineffective in aerosol administration.
Recently, Cox and co-workers, Adv. in Drug Res., 5, 115 (1970), described the pharmacology of one such agent, disodium cromoglycate [1,3-bis(2-carboxycromon-5-yloxy)-2-hydroxypropane, Intal]. It is not a bronchodilator, but mediates its therapeutic effects by a unique mechanism of action involving inhibition of release of mediators of anaphylaxis and is administered prophylactically. It suffers from lack of oral efficacy and, for optimum results, is administered by inhalation as a solid inhalant. Further, although it is effective against anaphylaxis due to immunoglubulin E (IgE), it is effective against anaphylaxis due to immunoglubulin G (IgG) only at high doses (60-70% protection at 100 and 300 mg./kg.).
Although the aforementioned agents represent outstanding contributions toward the treatment of asthma, many of them exert the undesired side effect of cardiac stimulation.
The synthesis of a 1H-pyrimido[1,2-a]quinoline appears to have first been reported by Antaki et al., J. Chem. Soc., pages 551-555 (1951), who condensed 2-chloroquinoline with ethyl .beta.-amino crotonate in the presence of anhydrous potassium carbonate and a trace of copper bronze to produce 1-oxo-1H-3-methylpyrimido[1,2-a]quinoline. No utility for the compound was reported.
Antaki, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 80, 3066-9 (1958) reports the condensation of 2-aminoquinoline and ethylethoxymethylenecyanoacetate to give ethyl 2-quinolylaminomethylenecyanoacetate which when distilled under reduced pressure afforded 1-oxo-1H-pyrimido[1,2-a]quinoline-2-carbonitrile. The compound demonstrated antischistosomal action.
Richardson, et al., J. Med. Chem., 15, 1203-6 (1972) describe ethyl 1-oxo-1H-pyrimido]1,2-a]quinoline-2-carboxylate and report it to be inactive as an antimicrobial agent. When tested for antiallergy activity by the PCA test it was found to exhibit 100% inhibition at 3 mg./kg. by the intravenous (I.V.) route of administration but is without activity at 1 mg./kg. I.V. Approximately 90% inhibition is demonstrated at 30 mg./kg. by the oral route of administration, but oral activity is absent at a dosage level of 10 mg./kg. via the oral route. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
In order to conserve energy, automobiles are now being engineered to give improved gasoline mileage compared to those in recent years. This effort is of great urgency as a result of Federal regulations recently enacted which compel auto manufacturers to achieve prescribed gasoline mileage. These regulations are to conserve crude oil. In an effort to achieve the required mileage, new cars are being down-sized and made much lighter. However, there are limits in this approach beyond which the cars will not accommodate a typical family.
Another way to improve fuel mileage is to reduce engine friction. The present invention is concerned with this latter approach. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The present invention relates to a refrigerated cabinet for storing beverage containers and other food items, and more particularly, to a cabinet for housing a plurality of readily interchangeable and independent modular elements which collectively define a refrigeration cabinet having multiple uses.
Beverage containers are displayed and sold in a variety of different types of refrigerated self-serve display cabinets and coin-operated vending machines. The sales environment in which the machine will be used most times determines the necessary attributes of a particular refrigerated cabinet. For example, a glass door merchandiser may be chosen to sell items inside a business, but would not be practical for vending items outside the business where a closed coin-operated merchandiser would be a better choice.
However, conventional refrigerated cabinets are not easily convertible from one type of merchandiser to another. For example, if a vendor purchases a closed vending machine but later discovers the need for a display type refrigerated cabinet, there is presently no way of economically and conveniently converting that machine. This is due in part to differences in the refrigeration systems provided by the two diverse types of vendors. This inability to convert merchandisers prohibits vendors from utilizing more effective methods for selling a product. Further, a vendor's purchase of a plurality of different types of cabinets causes expense and inventory problems. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Embodiments of the inventive concept relate to integrated circuits, and more particularly to application processors capable of sharing a resource based on an image resolution. Other embodiments of the inventive concept relate to devices including such application processors.
Many contemporary displays are capable of displaying images in more than one resolution. The possibility of receiving image data defined according to different resolutions places increased processing burdens upon processors in image processing systems. The size of image data is a function of resolution, and as resolutions have become greater, the performance and bandwidth provided by a display have become increasingly important. Greater resolution of the constituent display increases power consumption. In order to reduce the power consumption, the use of memory-to-memory transfer operations has increased.
In order to scale-down an image through an on-the fly operation, a competent scaler must read a large amount of data at a fixed data rate from memory, and then scale (up or down) the data. A scale-down ratio for the scaler may be restricted based on internal throughput of a scaler. When the internal throughput of a scaler is increased to increase the scale-down ratio, the resulting layout area of the scaler is increased. Accordingly, manufacturing costs associated with the scaler and/or an application processor incorporating the scaler are increased. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lenticular sheet enabling stereoscopic vision of an image and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a recording medium enabling stereoscopic vision of an image, a lenticular sheet has been conventionally known. An ordinary lenticular sheet has: a lenticular lens having a plurality of convex lenses in a semi-columnar shape that are arranged two-dimensionally; and an image recording layer which is provided on a flat surface, of the lenticular lens, opposite the convex lenses and on which a plurality of pixels are formed. On the image recording layer, left-eye pixels and right-eye pixels are adjacently formed. When a person sees the lenticular sheet from the convex lens side of the lenticular lens, the left eye visually perceives the left-eye pixels and the right eye visually perceives the right-eye pixels owing to the convex lenses, so that stereoscopic vision of an image is made possible due to disparity between images seen by the left eye and the right eye respectively (binocular parallax).
There are various methods of image recording on the image recording layer of the above-described lenticular sheet, and as one of them, a recording method by an ink-jet recording apparatus is known. In this case, the image recording layer of the lenticular sheet is made of a material high in ink absorbency (ink absorbing layer).
When an image is recorded on the image recording layer made of the ink absorbing layer by the ink-jet recording apparatus, if a landing position of droplets deviates from a proper position, ink sometimes permeates not only in a region where a desired pixel is disposed but also in a region where an adjacent pixel is disposed. Especially when the above problem occurs between the left-eye pixel and the right-eye pixel in the lenticular sheet, it might not be possible to produce binocular parallax for realizing a stereoscopic image.
Regarding this, in a lenticular sheet of Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. H09-15766, in order to prevent ink from running to/from adjacent pixels, sheet ribs or water repellent regions not allowing the permeation of the ink are provided on the ink absorbing layer for respective pixels, being arranged at a predetermined pitch in a direction (width direction) perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of semi-columnar convex lens parts (for example, FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 of Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. H09-15766).
In the above-described lenticular sheet, the sheet ribs or the water repellent regions preventing the ink from running to/from the pixels are exposed on a surface of the lenticular sheet. At the time of image recording, when droplets of the ink jetted from an ink-jet recording apparatus to the ink absorbing layer partly adhere to the aforesaid sheet ribs or water repellent regions, the ink is likely to remain without being absorbed. Accordingly, after the image recording, the ink remaining on exposed surfaces of the sheet ribs or the water repellent regions might contaminate the vicinity (hands of a user, the inside of the recording apparatus, and so on). | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink composition excellent in blackness and an ink jet recording method using the same.
2. Background Art
A black ink is an important ink composition used as an ink jet recording ink composition for both monocolor and full color printings.
C.I. Food Black 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 93766/1984) and dyes having structures analogous thereto (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 91577/1991) have been widely used as dyes for the black ink.
These dyes, however, have a somewhat bluish hue that is more or less different from pure black (a black color perceived, for example, from Chinese ink (sumi) or Japanese lacquer (urushi)).
For this reason, a proposal has been made on the use of a combination of these dyes with other dyes for the purpose of improving the hue (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 36279/1990). However, it has been found that the combination of dyes deteriorates the storage stability of the ink. Furthermore, the use of such an ink in ink jet printers, which effect printing at a high density of 300 dpi or more and a high frequency of 5 kHz or more, often gives rise to lack of jetting stability and clogging of nozzles. A special recording material (for example, coat paper comprising a substrate sheet, such as paper, an ink receiving layer containing a pigment and binder) has been proposed for the purpose of enhancing the image quality. Although the coat paper can provide pure black, it is desired that blackness and sharpness of an image will be also performed on plain paper.
In a water-base ink using a water-soluble dye, a general problem is to improve the water resistance of the print (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 91577/1991, 226175/1992 and 233975/1992). The ink composition described in these Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 36279/1990 also leaves room for an improvement in the water resistance of the print.
Additional properties which are generally required of ink compositions for an ink jet recording method are that the ink does not clog jetting nozzles, printing can be quickly resumed even though clogging occurred, and ink properties remain unchanged during storage. Therefore, the ink compositions for ink jet recording should satisfy requirements of freedom from clogging of nozzles, quick resumption of printing after clogging of nozzles and excellent storage stability in addition to pure black color and water resistance. | {
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Conventionally, CIS-based thin-film solar cells which utilize, as a p-type light absorption layer, a Group I-III-VI2 compound semiconductor that has a chalcopyrite structure containing Cu, In, Ga, Se and S have been proposed. Solar cells of this type are relatively inexpensive in terms of production cost and have a high absorption coefficient in the visible to near-infrared wavelength range; therefore, such solar cells are expected to exhibit high photoelectric conversion efficiency.
A CIS-based thin-film solar cell is produced by, for example, forming a backside metal electrode layer on a substrate, subsequently forming thereon a p-type light absorption layer composed of a Group I-III-VI2 compound and further sequentially forming an n-type high-resistance buffer layer and a window layer composed of an n-type transparent conductive film.
When Ga and In are used as Group III elements forming the p-type light absorption layer, the ratio between Ga having a large energy gap and In having a smaller energy gap than Ga is adjusted, and the energy gap of the p-type light absorption layer is thereby set.
It has been reported that Ga causes defects in the p-type light absorption layer and this leads to a reduction in the photoelectric conversion efficiency.
Thus, it has been proposed to reduce the recombination centers in p-n junctions and thereby improve the photoelectric conversion efficiency by reducing the Ga concentration in the p-type light absorption layer toward the n-type high-resistance buffer layer and thus reducing defects in the surface of the p-type light absorption layer on the side of the n-type high-resistance buffer layer.
Further, with regard to the composition ratio of the Group I element(s) and the Group III element(s), it has been proposed to control the composition ratio at lower than 1.0 so as to improve the photoelectric conversion efficiency (see Patent Document 1).
It has been reported that when the ratio of a Group I element, which is a metal element such as Cu, with respect to a Group III element(s) is 1.0 or higher, the p-type polarity of the p-type light absorption layer is affected and the photoelectric conversion efficiency is consequently reduced. For example, it has been proposed to set the ratio of a Group I element(s) with respect to a Group III element(s) at 0.86 to 0.98 (see Patent Document 2 and Non-patent Document 1). | {
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1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to an apparatus for judging a probability of collision between a vehicle and another object.
2. Description of the Related Art
In these apparatuses, the probability of collision is judged based on a direction and a distance of the object with respect to the own vehicle. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication Number 2010-18162 discloses a collision judging apparatus in which a probability of collision between the own vehicle and a moving object is determined when the horizontal-direction angle of the moving object with respect to the own vehicle has not changed for a predetermined period and the relative distance of the moving object with respect to the own vehicle becomes smaller with time.
However, the inventor has confirmed by experiments, such that a collision between the own vehicle and the moving object is likely to occur even when the horizontal-direction angle of the moving object with respect to the own vehicle changes with time. Especially, when a margin time of collision between the vehicle and the moving object, i.e., collision margin time TTC (time-to-collision) becomes shorter, location of the horizontal-direction angle with respect to the own vehicle changes easily. Therefore, according to the above-described patent document, it may be difficult to judge the probability of a collision when the collision margin time TTC is shorter. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improvement of an outer ring and manufacturing method thereof for a shell-type radial needle bearing that is assembled, for example, in a rotation support section of a joint cross type universal joint called a Cardan joint.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, joint cross type universal joints called Cardan joints have been used, for example, in a steering apparatus or propeller shall of an automobile, for joining the end sections of a pair of rotating shafts that are not aligned with each other in order to be able to transmit a rotating force (torque). As illustrated in FIG. 6, this kind of joint cross type universal joint comprises: a pair of yokes 1a, 1b that are fastened to the end sections of both of the rotating shaft, the end sections of each yoke being fork shaped; and a joint cross 2. A pair of circular holes 3 that are concentric with each other are formed in the pair of tip end sections of each yokes 1a, 1b. The tip end sections of the shaft sections 4 of the joint cross 2 are supported inside these circular holes 3 by shell-type radial needle bearings 5 such that they can rotate.
As illustrated in FIG. 7, these shell-type radial needle bearings 5 comprise an outer ring 6 and a plurality of needles 7. The outer ring 6, for example, is made by performing a drawing process using a press on a metal plate as a raw material, and forming that raw material into a cylindrical shape with a bottom such that this outer ring 6 comprises: a cylindrical section 8 that fits inside the circular hole 3, a bottom plate section 9 that covers the opening on one end of the cylindrical section 8 (left end in FIG. 7), and a circular ring shaped inward facing flange section 10 that is formed by bending the other end of the cylindrical section 8 (right end in FIG. 7) toward the inside in the radial direction. The inner circumferential surface of the cylindrical section 8 functions as cylindrical concave shaped outer raceway 11. A spherical convex section 12 is formed in the center section of the inside surface of the bottom plate section 9. Moreover, needles 7 are provided between a cylindrical convex shaped inner raceway 13 that is formed around the outer circumferential surface on the tip end section of the shaft section 4 of the joint cross 2 and the outer raceway 11 such that the needles can roll freely.
In this state, the center section of surface on the tip end of the shaft section 4 comes in contact with the surface on the tip end of the curved convex section 12. In other words, in the example in the figure, by having only the center section of the tip end surface of the shaft section 4 come in contact with the tip end surface of the curved convex section 12 instead of having the entire tip end surface of the shaft section 4 come in contact with the inside surface of the bottom plate section 9, the friction force that acts on this area of contact is sufficiently reduced. As a result, together with preventing problems such as abnormal wear and burning of the area of contact during operation, the resistance to rotation in the universal joint is reduced by reducing the bending torque, which is torque necessary for causing the yokes 1a, 1b to swivel with respect to the joint cross 2. Moreover, by applying a suitable pressure in advance to the area of contact between the tip end surface of the shaft section 4 and the tip end section of the curved convex section 12, movement in the axial direction of the shaft section 4 in the inside of the shell-type radial needle bearing 5 is prevented, and thus movement inside joint section between the yokes 1a, 1b and the joint cross 2 is prevented.
Furthermore, in the example in the figure, by compressing and holding a circular ring shaped seal member 15 between a stepped section 14 that exists around the base end edge of the shaft section 4, and the inward facing flange section 10 of the outer ring 6, the internal space of the shell-type radial needle bearing 5 is sealed.
When both of the rotating shafts that are connected by way of the universal joint rotate, an axial load is repeatedly applied to the bottom plate section 9 of the outer ring 6 from the tip end surface of the shaft section 4. This axial load becomes larger proportional to the size of the rotation force that is transmitted by way of the universal joint. On the other hand, in the case of an automobile steering apparatus, which is one example of an apparatus that uses a universal joint, in recent years electrically powered power steering apparatuses are becoming popular. Of this kind of electrically-powered power steering apparatus, in a column type power steering apparatus in which an electric motor, which functions as the auxiliary power source, is located in a position (steering wheel side) further upstream in the direction of transmission of the rotation force during steering than the position of the universal joint, the rotation force that is transmitted by way of the universal joint becomes large. As a result, the axial load that is repeatedly applied to the bottom plate section 9 also becomes large, so unless the fatigue strength of the outer ring 6 is sufficiently maintained, there is a possibility that damage such as cracking will occur in the center section of the bottom plate section 9 or in the continuous section between this bottom plate section 9 and the cylindrical section 8 as illustrated in FIG. 8.
The fatigue strength of the outer ring 6 can be improved by increasing the overall thickness of the outer ring 6. However, by employing this method, the overall size and weight of the outer ring 6 is increased, and because of this, the size and weight of the universal joint also increases. In many cases there is also a need to make the universal joint more compact and lightweight. Therefore, in the field of universal joints that are assembled in the column-type electrically powered power steering, apparatuses above, being able to maintain durability without increasing the thickness of the outer ring 6 is desirable, while in other fields, being able to sufficiently maintain durability without reducing the thickness of the outer ring 6 is desirable.
Construction to meet these needs has been conventionally known, such as the construction illustrated in FIG. 9 wherein the cross-sectional shape of the bottom plate section 9a of the outer ring 6a is multi-stepped shaped (refer to JP03-62232(A), JP04-14819(U), and JP2006-125513(A)). By employing construction as illustrated in FIG. 9, it is possible to improve the fatigue strength of the bottom plate section 9a and the continuous section between this bottom plate section 9a and the cylindrical section 8 without having to increase the thickness of the outer ring 6a. However, by employing construction such as illustrated in FIG. 9, there are problems in that the design of the die used in manufacturing becomes more complicated due to the complexity of the shape of the bottom plate section 9a, as well as adjustment of this die becomes troublesome, productivity decreases, and there is an increase in manufacturing cost.
Furthermore, as described above, as the rotation force that is inputted to the universal joint increases, in the worst case, the shell-type radial needle bearing 5 that is pressure fitted into the circular hole 3 may come out from the yoke, and position shift in rotation of the rotating shaft may occur. In regards to this, surface processing such as surface texturing is performed on the outer surface of the outer ring 6 of the shell-type radial needle bearing 5. However, depending on the press processing, there is a problem in that performing this kind of surface processing may be difficult, so it may become necessary to perform a surface processing using a different process, which results in an increase in labor and a large increase in cost.
On the other hand, because the outer ring 6 is metal, there is also a need for the shell-type radial needle bearing 5 to be able to resist corrosion. Particularly, when the universal joint is used in an automobile, this shell-type radial needle bearing 5 is located in an environment that is exposed to wind and rain, so there is a special need for the outer ring 6 to have the ability to resist corrosion, so corrosion resistant coating may be applied to the outer ring 6. However, even in this kind of case, there is a problem in that sufficient adhesion of the anti-corrosive coating on the outer ring 6 that is normally used the shell-type radial needle bearing 5 may not be able to be obtained.
Furthermore, before assembly, there may be extremely minute oxides or extremely thin spot-like oxides already existing on the metal outer ring 6. Finding the existence of such oxides is very difficult, and when left as is, problems occur in that there is an increase in resistance when the pressure fitting of the bearing is implemented, and the oxide component may enter into the bearing during operation, so even the smallest oxides are removed beforehand. However, the work for removing these extremely small oxides, which are difficult to find, requires much labor and time, and increases cost. | {
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Oilfield drilling typically occurs in geological formations having various compositions, permeabilities, porosities, pore fluids, and internal pressures. Weak zones may occur during drilling due to these formations having a variety of conditions. These weak zones may lead to fluid loss, pressure changes, well cave-ins, etc. The formation of weak zones is detrimental to drilling because they need to be strengthened before drilling work may resume.
Weak zones may occur, for example, when the fracture initiation pressure of one formation is lower than the internal pore pressure of another formation. As another example, increased borehole pressure, created by penetrating one formation, may cause a lower strength formation to fracture. As another example, the fluid pressure gradient in a borehole required to contain formation pore pressure during drilling may exceed the fracture pressure of a weaker formation exposed in a borehole.
Typically, weak zones have been strengthened by pumping a fluid into the weak zone, letting the fluid cure and develop strength over a period of time. Fluids used in the past include cement, epoxy resins with amine initiators and vinyl toluenes with initiators. The cure time for cement may be as long as 24 hours, delaying oil production which is undesirable, especially for off-shore drilling with high operating costs. Cement's particle based structure may also exhibit poor penetration capabilities in the formation leading to a reduced sealing effect. When using epoxy resins or vinyl toluenes, the cure time may be reduced, but the compositions are toxic, highly corrosive, flammable and pose a health hazard.
Cement, or other fluid compositions used for strengthening weak zones, may also be used in primary cementing operations which fill at least a portion of the annular space between the casing and the formation wall with the fluid. The cement may then be allowed to solidify in the annular space, thereby forming an annular sheath of cement. The cement barrier is desirably impermeable, such that it will prevent the migration of fluid between zones or formations previously penetrated by the wellbore.
Typically, the cement or strengthening composition is mixed at the surface and pumped downhole at high pressure to fill in the weak zone. Once the composition fills in the weak zones, it is allowed to set or cure, harden within the well bore.
Accordingly, there exists a need to reduce the amount of time required for curing along with making a safe composition. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a molded case circuit breaker and, more particularly, it pertains to latching and tripping mechanism which utilizes a series of linkages.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Molded case circuit breakers are designed to provide circuit protection for low voltage distribution systems. They protect connected apparatus against overload and/or short circuits. The proper breaker for a specific application can be selected by determining a few parameters, such as voltage, frequency, interrupting capacity, continuous current ratings, and unusual operating conditions. When a circuit breaker is applied where there is a possibility of high shock, a special anti-shock device should be used. Such a device may consist of inertia weight over the center pole for holding the trip bar latched under shock conditions without preventing thermal or magnetic trip units from functioning on overload and short circuit. The U.S. Navy is the largest user of high shock breakers which are required on all combat ships. | {
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A motor generally corresponding to this description is to be found mentioned in various prior art publications, for instance in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,361,790 in which will be found described an electromagnetic motor having two rotation senses and which includes a magnetic circuit having two windings simultaneously energized. This arrangement essentially provides a stator exhibiting three polar expansions surrounding the rotor, one of which is common to two windings, the other two being respectively dependent on each of said windings. By the principle of flux conservation it follows that such an arrangement exerts an attractive force on the rotor directed towards the common polar expansion which is twice as high as the force which is exerted towards the two other polar expansions. From this it may be reasonably concluded that this one-sided magnetic attraction by the mechanical imbalance which it brings about will cause stresses on the motor bearings and axis so as to provoke wear, shortening the life of the motor. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the generation of multimedia presentations.
2. Description of the Related Art
With the popularity of digital cameras, digital camcorders, etc., users of these devices have wanted to share with others the large number of photos and videos captured by these devices. To share their photos and videos, users are uploading them to their personal computers, media servers on their home networks, Internet-based storage locations, or social networking web sites.
Currently, when a user wishes to display photos or videos containing specific individuals, the user must spend an enormous amount of time locating the desired images by searching through all of the user's photos and videos in all of the various storage locations. Once the desired images have been chosen, the user must then spend time manually putting the images into a single presentation that can then be shared with others.
In light of the above, what is needed is a way for users to easily locate desired images and create a presentation based on the desired images to share with others. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
The invention has to do with surface covering tiles that can be connected to one another by means of an edge treatment that allows for grouting after the tiles are assembled. In a preferred embodiment, the invention relates to a flooring tile that can be assembled and grouted without adhesion to a sub-floor. The invention also concerns a process of manufacturing the tile product and a method of installing the product.
2. The Related Art
Various constructions for floating floor coverings and for connecting surface covering tiles to one another have been described in the art.
In Published Patent Application No. US2003/0131549, for example, a tile having a wearing layer and a support layer is described wherein the support layer has projections and mating cutouts. The projections and cutouts are hidden by the wearing layer when the tiles are installed. The installed tiles have narrow joints between individual tiles to allow welding so that dirt cannot adversely affect the flooring.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,114 discloses tiles having projections and mating cutouts that are virtually identical to those disclosed in the published application discussed above. A beveled edge is provided on the underside of the projections to facilitate installation. Unlike the published application discussed above, the projections and mating cutouts are not hidden when the tiles are installed.
In U.S. Pat. No. 7,610,731, a snap-together floor structure is described which requires a tray, a flooring material, a rubber grommet and a rubber matrix. The invention provides a floating floor structure that can be assembled without the use of adhesives on the subfloor.
A modular surface for use as a sports deck is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,436,779. Modules for a non-anchored modular surface are described which employ an expansion joint geometry adapted to retain the square shape of each module. This permits a surface including a large number of interlocked modules to remain flat and unbuckled with changing temperature conditions.
Resilient floor tiles having a convex edge are described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,550,192. The objective of the design is to simulate ceramic and natural tile floors. The tiles are installed conventionally by adhering them to a sub-floor. Installed tiles can be spaced from one another to permit installations using grout. | {
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A combustor is a component or area of a gas turbine, ramjet or pulse jet engine where combustion takes place. It is also known as a burner or flame. In a gas turbine engine, the main combustor or combustion chamber is fed high pressure air by the compression system and feeds the hot exhaust into the turbine components of the engine to produce power. The turbine can also be used as a gas generator.
Combustors are designed to contain and control the burning fuel-air mixture. The combustor normally consists of three components: an outer casing that acts as a high pressure container, the combustion chamber itself which contains the flame and the fuel injection system.
There are two categories of combustors, annular and can. Can combustors look like cans and are mounted around the shaft in an engine. They can be easily removed for maintenance and provide convenient plumbing for fuel. Annular combustors are more compact and embedded deep within the engine's casing. Modern jet engines usually have annular combustors.
A main concern in the design of gas turbine combustors is to achieve low pollutant emissions and better pattern factor (uniform thermal field at the combustor exit port). In this regard, modern jet engines with double annular combustors are being introduced to reduce emissions. Additionally, many combustion techniques have been investigated to achieve low pollutants emission (NOx, CO) for gas turbine combustors. Some examples include rich burn—quick quench—lean burn (RQL), catalytic combustion, lean direct injection, and ultra lean premixed combustion. | {
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It has long been known to electromagnetically deform or shape a conductive part. The part is placed in a mold which is recessed to allow for deformation of the part, a conductive coil is held adjacent the part and a high energy electric current is introduced in the coil. This generates strong electromagnetic repulsing forces between the part and the coil; which is strong enough to push the part into the recess in the mold.
More recently U.S. Pat. No. 3,196,649 disclosed a device for electromagnetic metal-forming by magnetic tension. A slowly rising current in a conductor creates a magnetic field which encompasses a part to be formed and a second conductor. Upon collapse of the current in the first conductor an induced magnetism between the part and the second conductor creates magnetic tension therebetween to form the part.
It is known to use a pulsed electromagnetic field to create magnetic tension between an energized coil and a conductive faced bonded structure to test the bond. | {
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The present invention relates to a portable dog waste receptacle and disposal device designed to collect and carry a dog's droppings excreted while walking the dog. It is capable of collecting the droppings during a walk without soiling the ground or lawn and without the unpleasantness of carrying it. It also offers an easy method of disposing of the droppings.
Dogs habitually excrete droppings while being walked. Since dogs are walked at public places such as parks or along rivers, if the droppings are not removed, the public will suffer from environmental pollution. It is the responsibility of the dog's owner to properly dispose the dog's droppings. In fact, many municipalities have laws specifically requiring dog owners to pick up the droppings.
Methods of disposing of a dog's droppings include scooping the droppings with a shovel and placing them in a bag, and inverting the bag and scooping droppings with the bag or other item into the inverted bag. The owner then brings the droppings home and disposes of them in a trash bin. Ordinarily, regular bags such as vinyl bags or plastic bags are used for this purpose. However, there are special bags designed to bring back the droppings. They include vinyl bags with deodorant placed inside, bags having bottoms that can be opened to dispose the droppings in the toilet, and bags spread out on the ground when a dog is about to excrete and collect it directly. These have been disclosed in Utility Model Registration Gazette No. 155756 (1989), Utility Model Registration Gazette No. 23855 (1993), and Utility Model Registration Gazette No. 30037 (1995).
It is difficult to completely pick up the droppings once deposited on the ground by the ordinary method of picking it up. There will be some remains left behind making it unclean, and the environmental pollution cannot be eliminated. Particularly, droppings deposited on grass are difficult to pick up cleanly. Consequently, many people just leave them. Additionally, after the droppings have been picked up, the bag containing them is normally held in one's hand. Therefore, there will be odor and other associated unpleasantness about it.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,269,575 to Paraders discloses a dog waste scoop and bag device which has a handle, a tray for holding an open plastic bag located at the bottom of the handle, and a rake to rake dog droppings into the bag. This still suffers from the problems of having to rake or pick up the droppings from the ground and having to handle the bag to close it or dispose of it.
What is needed is a device that prevents soiling of ground or grass by a dog's droppings, that enables one to carry the droppings without holding them in the hands, and that enables the collection of droppings without having to stoop down. In addition, what is needed is an easy way to bring the droppings home and dispose of them simply by dropping them into the toilet. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device comprising a semiconductor element covered with a coating film and a method for manufacturing the same, and particularly to a semiconductor device comprising a semiconductor light emitting element that is covered and a method for manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Methods of forming a coating film on a semiconductor element in the prior art include those that employ potting means or screen printing means. FIG. 14 is a sectional view schematically showing a process of a conventional film forming method that employs the potting means. FIG. 15 is a sectional view schematically showing a process of a conventional film forming method that employs the screen printing means. The processes will be described below with reference to these drawings.
A semiconductor device 200 is made by using the potting means. The semiconductor device 200 comprises a semiconductor element 210 mounted face down in a cavity 211 of a predetermined shape. Top face and side face of the semiconductor element 210 are covered with a coating film 212. The semiconductor element 210 is electrically connected with a lead electrode 215 that is formed integrally with the cavity 211. The semiconductor device 200 has the semiconductor element 210 that is mounted face down on the lead electrode 215 in advance. A resin 213 is dropped from a thin tube 214 onto the top face of the semiconductor element 210. Resin supply is stopped when the resin has completely covered the top face and side face of the semiconductor element 210, so as to harden the resin 214. Thus the coating film 212 is formed on the top face and side face of the semiconductor element 210.
A semiconductor device 300 is made by using the screen printing means. The semiconductor device 300 comprises a semiconductor element 310 mounted face down on the top surface of a substrate 311. Top face and side face of the semiconductor element 310 are covered with a coating film 312. The semiconductor element 310 is electrically connected with a lead electrode 315 that is formed on the substrate 311. The semiconductor device 300 is made by providing a side wall 316 that serves as a mask having a predetermined shape, spreading a resin 313 with a squeegee 314, thereby forming the coating film 312 on the top face of the semiconductor element 310. After forming the coating film 312, the side wall 316 serving as a mask is removed, thus having the coating film 312 formed on the top face and side face of the semiconductor element 310.
However, the semiconductor device 200 made by using the conventional potting means and the semiconductor device 500 made by using the conventional screen printing means have problems as described below.
In the semiconductor device 200 made by using the conventional potting means, the coating film 212 that covers the top face and side face of the semiconductor element 210 cannot be formed with uniform thickness. For example, when a semiconductor light emitting element is used as the semiconductor element 210 and a fluorescent material is mixed in the coating film 212, difference in thickness of the film among products results in variability in color between products as light emitted by the semiconductor light emitting element is absorbed by the fluorescent material and light of different wavelength generated by the fluorescent material is emitted to the outside. In addition, since the coating film is thicker in the portion where resin 213 has been dropped from the thin tube 214 and thinner in the surrounding portion, larger amount of light emitted by the fluorescent material 6 emerges from the potted portion, while smaller amount of light emitted by the fluorescent material 6 emerges from the surrounding portion, thus resulting in color unevenness.
In the semiconductor device 300 made by using the conventional screen printing means, it is difficult to form the coating film 312 that covers the top face and the side face of the semiconductor element 310 with uniform thickness. It is also difficult to manufacture, as the coating film 312 may come off along with the side wall 316 that makes the mask when the side wall 316 is removed from the coating film 312. | {
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When capturing images, as with a camera, it is desirable to capture images without unwanted distortion. In general, sources of unwanted distortion can be characterized as equipment errors and user errors. Examples of common equipment errors include inadequate or flawed optical equipment, and undesirable characteristics of the film or other recording media. Using equipment and media of a quality that is suitable for a particular photograph can help mitigate the problems associated with the equipment and the recording medium, but in spite of this, image distortion due to equipment errors can still appear.
Another source of image distortion is user error. Examples of common user errors include poor image processing, and relative motion between the imaging device and the subject of the image. For example, one common problem that significantly degrades the quality of a photograph is the blur that results from camera movement (i.e. shaking) at the time the photograph is taken. This can be difficult to avoid, especially when a slow shutter speed is used, such as in low light conditions, or when a large depth of field is needed and the lens aperture is small. Similarly, if the subject being photographed is moving, use of a slow shutter speed can also result in image blur.
There are currently many image processing techniques that are used to improve the quality, or “correctness,” of a photograph. These techniques are applied to the image either at the time it is captured by a camera, or later when it is post-processed. This is true for both traditional “hardcopy” photographs that are chemically recorded on film, and for digital photographs that are captured as digital data, for example using a charged couple device (CCD) or a CMOS sensor. Also, hardcopy photographs can be scanned and converted into digital data, and are thereby able to benefit from the same digital signal processing techniques as digital photographs.
Commonly used post-processing techniques for digitally correcting blurred images typically involve techniques that seek to increase the sharpness or contrast of the image. This can give the mistaken impression that the blur is remedied. However, in reality, this process causes loss of data from the original image, and also alters the nature of the photograph. Thus, current techniques for increasing the sharpness of an image do not really “correct” the blur that results from relative motion between a camera and a subject being photographed. In fact, the data loss from increasing the sharpness can result in a less accurate image than the original. Therefore, a different method that actually corrects the blur is desirable.
In the prior art, electro-mechanical devices for correcting image blur due to camera motion are built into some high quality lenses, variously called “image stabilization”, “vibration reduction”, or similar names by camera/lens manufacturers. These devices seek to compensate for the camera/lens movement by moving one or more of the lens elements; hence countering the effect of the motion. Adding such a device to a lens typically makes the lens much more expensive, heavier and less sturdy, and can also compromise image quality.
Accordingly, it is desirable to have a technique that corrects for distortion in photographs without adding excessively to the price, robustness or weight of a camera or other imaging device, or adversely affecting image quality. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
When Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) receivers receive signals from satellites, the receivers process the satellite signal by down-converting the signal to the baseband and also despreading the signal. In certain implementations, to down convert and despread the signal, a GNSS receiver uses numerically controlled oscillators (NCO). For example, the GNSS receiver has a carrier NCO that provides an oscillatory signal that is used to down convert a signal from an intermediate frequency (IF) to a baseband frequency. Also, the GNSS receiver has a code NCO that is used to remove a code (like a pseudorandom noise code) from the baseband signal.
To set the frequency of the oscillatory signal for both the carrier and code NCOs, digital control signals are provided that indicate the frequency that should be used to down-convert the IF signal to baseband and remove the code. A control signal is represented by an integer step size, which is periodically added to an internal NCO counter. A NCO rate is determined by impulses generated when the internal NCO counter overflows. However, because the NCO and its control signal are digital, the accuracy and precision of the NCOs are limited by the number of bits allocated to the NCO's internal counter. The higher the number of allocated bits, the finer the resolution of the generated impulses period. Thus, the desired NCO rate is represented by a quantized representation of different frequency levels. Due to the quantized frequency rates, the NCO is not always able to accurately provide oscillating signals at the IF or the code frequency. When an NCO is unable to accurately represent the IF or the code frequency, a quantization error that affects the accuracy of the GNSS receiver accumulates over an update period for the NCO. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to computer systems. In particular, the present invention relates to methods of managing the discrete sensors in server computer systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many computer systems, such as servers, include system management having various management features. The system management is responsive to various sensors. These sensors may detect, for example, the absence/presence and the operation/failure of a power supply. The sensors may include xe2x80x9cthreshold sensorsxe2x80x9d which provide analog values such as voltage or temperature and xe2x80x9cdiscrete sensorsxe2x80x9d which are sensors of a digital type returning one or two bytes of data, each one of the bits in the data having a value changing between 0 and 1 to identify a sensor status or event occurrence. For example, there might be a plurality of processor status discrete sensors which return bits in response to a query of the sensor indicative of several different characteristics of the corresponding processor. For example, one of the returned bits could indicate whether or not the processor is present, another bit could indicate whether or not there""s been a thermal trip in the processor, another bit could indicate whether or not the processor slot is occupied by a terminator, and another bit could indicate whether or not there has been a booting error.
The data signals can be queried by system management or sent automatically by the sensor, for example, upon the occurrence of some specified event. Unfortunately, the algorithms in current system managements process the offsets at sensor level as a whole, instead of individual discrete offset level. This makes it difficult to handle the offsets efficiently and to easily adapt when changes are made to the hardware platform, and corresponding discrete sensors, in a computer system. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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A number of systems exist for applying labels to containers. A typical system may utilize either roll-fed labels or cut-and-stack labels. Other systems are also known, but may be viewed generally as variations on the two primary systems.
Prior art labeling apparatus and methods employing labels in roll-fed form may also include label cutting and registration means for severing discrete labels from the roll and then registering them for attachment to the containers through, for example, a vacuum transfer drive system. In these continuous application systems, an adhesive may be applied to the label, such as a hot-melt adhesive. The hot-melt adhesive is typically applied to both the leading and trailing edge of the backside of the labels, though it may also be applied to the entire backside, for attaching labels to containers. Roll-fed labeling systems may commonly be used to apply labels sequentially to containers, such as bottles, tubs, or jars, in a continuous label application system.
As one alternative, cut-and-stack labels, i.e., labels that have been pre-cut off-line and are retained or positioned in a stack within a dispenser, such as a label magazine, may also be applied sequentially to containers, such as bottles, tubs, or jars, in a continuous label application system. The cut-and-stack method may also employ a cold-glue adhesive, which may be water-soluble, though a hot-melt adhesive may also be used. When a cold-glue adhesive is employed in a cut-and-stack method, it may be applied to a label pallet by a roller application system including a spinning roller made of, for example, steel and/or having a surface made of rubber. A label pallet may be moved into contact with the first or exposed label of the stack to both apply the cold-glue to that label and remove the label from the stack through surface adhesion between the label and the relatively high viscosity and/or tacky adhesive. Thereafter, the label, with the cold-glue adhesive thereon, may be moved to a transfer drum, from which it may then be applied to a container, such as, for example, a bottle.
In one aspect of present labeling technology using high viscosity adhesives, the adhesive may be applied to the label by pumping the adhesive onto a spinning glue roller, the adhesive on the spinning roller is then wiped by a doctor blade to remove excess adhesive. A label pallet contacts the adhesive on the spinning glue roller, thus splitting the adhesive between the spinning glue roller and the label pallet. Cut-and-stack labeling systems typically use a relatively high viscosity adhesive, such as, for example, a cold glue adhesive. Roll-fed systems employing hot-melt adhesives also include relatively high viscosity adhesive. The viscosity of such high viscosity cold glue adhesives and hot-melt adhesives are often greater than about 30,000 to 50,000 centipoise.
Due to the viscosity of the adhesive, when the label pallet contacts the spinning glue roller to transfer the adhesive from the spinning glue roller to the label pallet, a pattern may commonly be generated on the surface of the label pallet due to varying concentrations of adhesive across the label pallet surface and resulting from the cohesive split of the adhesive between the label pallet and the spinning roller. This so-called “transfer splitting pattern” may be further passed to the label when the label is peeled from the label pallet. A typical transfer splitting pattern may include a series of non-uniform peaks and valleys, and may result in uneven glue adhesion between label and container and impaired appearance. Uneven adhesion between label and container may result in (i) poor label adhesion to the container, (ii) a non-uniform label appearance, and (iii) an easily identifiable interface between label and container. The transfer split pattern may be transferred to the label when the label is removed from the label pallet and then transferred to the container.
Under an opaque label, the pattern or other visual imperfections may not be of significant concern, unless the appearance is manifest through the container wall, such as with clear containers, or if it appears on the surface of the label. However, under a transparent or clear label, the split-transfer adhesive pattern may notoriously appear through the label or otherwise impair the appearance of the labeled container. This problem may be particularly noticeable when trying to achieve a no-label look.
To address this problem, labeling technology has turned to two-part cold glue adhesives in which the labels comprise an activatable adhesive coating or layer on a surface of the label. The components of the activatable adhesive may constitute the high viscosity components of a traditional adhesive system, such as a cold glue system. These components are incorporated onto a surface, often a backside surface, of a label. Such components are dried, when necessary, and form an activatable adhesive coating or layer. Thereafter, a low viscosity activator solution is applied to the activatable adhesive label to activate the adhesive. The activated adhesive on the label is applied to a container while the adhesive is still tacky to the touch.
These low viscosity activator solutions may preferably constitute a solution that is relatively lower in viscosity as compared to an adhesive compound, such that the low viscosity activator solution may relatively easily be applied to the activatable adhesive on a surface of the film by spraying, to activate the adhesive. When such activated labels are applied to containers the appearance of the adhesive pattern on a labeled container is reduced.
These low viscosity activator solutions have a viscosity in the range from 5 to 1000; preferably from 5 to 500; more preferably from 5 to 100 centipoise.
Current labeling lines that use high viscosity adhesives are not capable of utilizing the low viscosity activator solutions. The need exists to retrofit the label application stations used for high viscosity adhesives in order to incorporate such lower viscosity activator solution. Such retrofit should be low in cost, easy to implement, and should require minimal to no change to existing labeling equipment. The present invention meets these and other needs. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
This invention relates to a system for controlling the flow of air through a duct, either to allow the air to escape from the duct by way of exit means along the duct or to prevent it from escaping, depending on the way internal structure in the duct is connected to a source of air. In particular, the invention relates to a duct with an interior, longitudinal, flexible sheet, opposite longitudinal edges of which are joined to the duct at lines of attachment extending along the duct.
In factories and similar buildings, it is common to remove stale and contaminated air by exhaust fans. This tends to reduce the atmospheric pressure in such structures, but the buildings are not airtight, and air seeps in by way of the many openings and crevices in the walls, doors, etc., to replace the exhausted air. In cold weather, the air entering the building in this way is likely to be experienced by people in the building as drafts and cold areas, particularly near the floor. At the same time, the manufacturing and other activity in the building, as well as radiant heat absorbed by the roof and walls, adds to any heat produced by fuel-driven heaters in the building. The density of the air is inversely proportional to its temperature, so the hotter, lighter air, however it is heated, rises to the top part of the building, further aggravating the discomfort produced by the cold drafts.
It is known that comfort in the building can be improved by deliberately bringing in air and distributing it in a controlled manner to make up for the air blown out. One way this has been done is to force the make-up air into a duct suspended just under the roof and to allow that air to escape through exit holes spaced along the duct. Such ducts are as large as 60" in diameter and as long as 550', but they may be made both larger in diameter and longer, as well as smaller and shorter. The exit holes are typically arranged in straight rows about 60.degree. to 90.degree. apart as measured relative to the axis of the circular duct. In order to make use of the heat in the air just under the roof, it is common to suspend the duct so that the air exit holes face upward and outward, with their axes about 30.degree. to 45.degree. from the vertical. This allows the make-up air to entrain and mix with air in the space near the ducts, thereby heating the emerging air and carrying it outwardly and then down to the locations in which people are working.
In the hot weather, it is not desirable to mix the incoming air with heated air just under the roof. Thus, when those in charge of the heating and ventilation of the building believe that winter has ended, it is common for them to arrange to have the duct released from its suspension means, rotated 180.degree. on its axis, and re-attached with the air exit holes pointing downward and outward. This allows the make-up air to blow down toward workers without first being heated. Conversely, when those in charge believe summer has ended, they arrange to have the duct returned to its winter position. Unhooking the duct, rotating it, and connecting it up again is a time-consuming, and therefore expensive, operation, even though the duct is typically made of fabric, which collapses to the thickness of two sheets when no air is blowing through it, and therefore, there is a tendency not to make the changeover until well after the first days of the new season have passed, which means that there are likely to be several days of discomfort before, and sometimes even after, each changeover. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to test apparatuses, and particularly to a test apparatus to test whether pins of a chip are askew.
2. Description of Related Art
Generally, there are several means for mounting a chip onto a printed circuit board, such as, releasably securing the chip to a chip carrier socket which is soldered on the printed circuit board. Although this method is convenient for removing the chip when needed, it is easy to bend the pins of the chip. When a pin or pins of the chip are askew, the pins may not properly engage in the chip carrier socket, and the chip will not work normally. Although the pins can be straightened as needed, it is difficult for an operator to distinguish which pin or pins are skewed by sight. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printed circuit board of an IC (integrated circuit) package, more particularly, to a printed circuit board on which a semiconductor IC chip (hereinafter referred to simply as a xe2x80x9cchipxe2x80x9d) is flip-chip bonded and which is connected to, i.e., mounted on, a motherboard by means of a plurality of external connection terminals provided on a main surface thereof opposite a chip-mounted main surface.
2. Description of the Related Art
Printed circuit boards of IC packages are widely known to be divided into the ball grid array (BGA) packaging type and the pin grid array (PGA) packaging type. Terminals (hereinafter referred to as xe2x80x9cexternal connection terminals,xe2x80x9d xe2x80x9cconnection terminals,xe2x80x9d or simply xe2x80x9cterminalsxe2x80x9d) provided on a printed circuit board of BGA packaging, and adapted to establish connection to a motherboard, are typically formed in the following manner. Solder balls made of lead-tin solder which has a greater lead content than tin content are fused on solder ball pads provided on a main surface of the printed circuit board by use of solder of a low melting point, such as lead-tin eutectic solder, thereby forming solder bumps as terminals. After a chip is mounted on the printed circuit board, followed by sealing, the printed circuit board is positioned on the motherboard such that connection terminals thereon are aligned with the respective terminals on the motherboard. Then, the facing terminals are fused together through application of heat (hereinafter referred to as xe2x80x9cBGA connectionxe2x80x9d), thereby mounting the printed circuit board on the motherboard.
Meanwhile, terminals on a printed circuit board of PGA packaging are typically formed in the following manner. A number of connection pads are formed through metallization on one main surface of the printed circuit board and are then plated with a predetermined metal. Nail heads of nail-headed pins are brazed to the pads. The pins are plated with nickel or gold to become terminals. The pins are inserted into socket terminals provided on a motherboard, thereby establishing electrical connection between the pins and the respective socket terminals through pressure contact (hereinafter referred to as xe2x80x9cPGA connectionxe2x80x9d).
The above-described printed circuit board of BGA connection allows for provision of a number of external connection terminals at high density, but involves the following problem. Since a printed circuit board of BGA connection is mounted on a motherboard through fusion of solder bumps serving as terminals, the mounted printed circuit board is difficult to demount from the motherboard. Even when the printed circuit board is successfully demounted from the motherboard, the printed circuit board is very difficult, if not impossible, to remount. In other words, the printed circuit board of BGA connection suffers the disadvantage that, once mounted on a motherboard, the printed circuit board is very difficult, if not impossible, to demount from the motherboard.
By contrast, the above-described printed circuit board of PGA connection is mounted on a motherboard through insertion of pins serving as terminals thereof into socket terminals provided on the motherboard. Thus, the mounted printed circuit board can be readily pulled out from the motherboard. However, in order to attach by, for example, brazing, slender pins to pads provided on the printed circuit board, the nail heads of the pins must be of a relatively large size so as to establish the appropriate strength of attachment to the pads. As a result, there are limits on the degree to which the pitch (interval) of pins or terminals can be decreased, in contrast to terminals of the BGA connection type, so that the pins serving as external connection terminals cannot be arrayed as densely as can terminals in the case of BGA connection.
An object of the present invention is to provide a printed circuit board capable of arraying terminals to be connected to those of a motherboard as densely as in the case of a printed circuit board of BGA connection and which can be freely demounted from a motherboard as in the case of a printed circuit board of PGA connection, without deteriorating the reliability of electrical connection.
It is noted the above object is seemingly achievable through employment of conventional solder bumps as terminals to be fitted into socket terminals of a motherboard. However, since the solder bumps are low in corrosion resistance, such connection fails to establish highly reliable electrical connection. Further, the solder bumps cannot be plated with gold (Au) or nickel (Ni) by ordinary plating methods. Also, since the Young""s modulus of lead-tin solder is low, mechanical contact or pressure contact associated with insertion readily causes deformation of the surfaces of the lead-tin solder bumps serving as terminals. Additionally, in the case of repeated mounting and demounting of the printed circuit board to and from a motherboard, the surfaces of the solder bumps are scraped off, resulting in deterioration of electrical connection between the engaged terminals.
To achieve the above object, there is provided, in accordance with the present invention, a printed circuit board comprising a board member and a plurality of ball-shaped terminals provided on a major surface of said board member, the ball-shaped terminals each comprising a pad disposed on the major surface of the board member; a metallic ball (substantially spherical) brazed onto the pad; and a gold plating layer formed on a surface of the metallic ball.
As a result of plating the ball-shaped terminals with gold, high corrosion resistance is imparted to the surfaces of the ball-shaped terminals, so that the fitting of the ball-shaped terminals into the respective socket terminals of a motherboard does not involve impairment of the highly reliable electrical connection provided between the engaged terminals. In other words, the printed circuit board according to the present invention can be freely mounted to or demounted from the motherboard without impairing the reliability of electrical connection between the engaged boards. Also, the ball-shaped terminals can be disposed or arrayed at a satisfactorily high density.
The metallic balls (which hereinafter may be referred to simply as xe2x80x9cballsxe2x80x9d) are advantageously of a metal that permits gold to be deposited, by plating, directly on the metallic-ball surface or deposited indirectly, i.e., deposited on a nickel plating layer formed on the metallic-ball surface. Preferably, the metallic balls are formed of a material selected so as to render the ball-shaped terminals resistant to deformation which would otherwise result from the insertion thereof into the socket terminals of a motherboard, i.e., so as to render the ball-shaped terminals free from any plastic deformation which would otherwise result from their insertion into the socket terminals and would thus cause or result in poor conduction of electricity. Metallic balls of a soft metal, such as lead-tin solder, deform easily when subjected to repeated mounting and demounting, resulting in deterioration in the reliability of electrical connection. Through employment of such a deformation-resistant metal for the metallic balls, the printed circuit board becomes highly reliable.
The material for the metallic balls is preferably selected according to a motherboard to be used; specifically, based on the compressive force which the socket terminals of the motherboard exert on the metallic balls fitted therein. Preferably, from the viewpoint of cost and electrical conductivity, the metallic balls are made of copper (Cu) or a copper alloy. From the viewpoint of Young""s modulus, an iron-nickel alloy, such as Kovar or 42-alloy, is preferred. However, the material for the metallic balls is not limited to these examples, but may be selected as appropriate.
Preferably, from the viewpoint of adhesion, the gold plating layer is formed on an Ni plating layer formed on the metallic-ball surface. The thickness of the gold plating layer may be selected as appropriate, but is preferably 0.03 xcexcm to 3 xcexcm from the viewpoint of adhesion and economy. More preferably, from the viewpoint of factors related to reliability of electrical connection, such as resistance to corrosion or abrasion, the thickness of the gold plating layer is 1 xcexcm to 3 xcexcm. A brazing material for brazing the metallic balls on the respective pads is preferably a silver brazing filler metal, which is compatible with plating with gold.
In order to securely engage the ball-shaped terminals and the socket terminals, the ball-shaped terminals are preferably shaped such that, once engaged with the respective socket terminals, the metallic balls function as clamps against disengagement. To this end, the metallic balls preferably have a diameter greater than that of the pads and are brazed on the respective pads substantially coaxially therewith. As a result, when the metallic ball is brazed on the pad, a constricted portion (a smaller-diameter portion) is formed at a brazed portion of the resultant ball-shaped terminal. Accordingly, when the socket terminals of a motherboard are shaped so as to hold the respective ball-shaped terminals at the constricted portions, the ball-shaped terminals engaged with the respective socket terminals are secured in place. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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The present invention relates generally to systems, methods and apparatus for conducting elections, and particularly, to a system, method and apparatus which utilizes a physical ballot, formed of a markable material, such as paper, cardboard, or a thin plastic sheet, or the like, which can be either manually marked by a voter, or electronically marked by an electronic voting station, and then visually or otherwise verified by the voter, electronically scanned and tallied, and preserved in a ballot box for recount purposes.
Traditionally, elections for public office in the United States have been conducted with voting systems utilizing hand-marked paper ballots. Typically, in such systems a paper ballot is issued to a verified voter by an election judge. The voter takes the ballot to a voting booth, where he manually marks his selections by placing marks or punch holes in marking spaces associated with the candidates he or she selects. The marked ballot is then taken by the voter to a ballot box where it is inserted and stored for subsequent hand or machine counting.
In recent years, the traditional system has been improved with the use of a ballot scanner to tally the hand-marked ballots as they are inserted into the ballot box. This has the advantage of making vote tallies immediately available at the close of polling, and, with scanners so-equipped, of preventing unintentional under-votes and over-votes. However, one drawback of the traditional system remains in that there is no provision for assisting voters who have a physical impairment, which would interfere with the manual marking of a ballot. Previous attempts at assisting such impaired voters have utilized electronic voting terminals wherein, instead of presenting candidate choices on a paper ballot, candidate choices are serially presented to the voter on large, easily viewable touch-screen displays. When the voter has made his selections, the results are tallied within the voting terminal, the total votes for each candidate being read from the terminal electronically or by means of a paper tape at the close of the polling place.
One drawback of electronic voting terminals is that there is no satisfactory means for auditing the voting process, i.e. confirming that each vote is tallied as voted, and that no votes are tallied which were not voted. Furthermore, there is no means for an individual voter to confirm for his or herself that his or her vote has actually been counted. Attempts at addressing these deficiencies have centered on the use of a paper tape or slip printed concurrently with each voter's voting. Such tapes and slips, which bear little or no resemblance to a ballot, have proven difficult to interpret by the voter and do not confirm that the vote has been actually tallied.
Another drawback of the use of the electronic voting terminals is that they are inherently less efficient since voters require more time to electronically vote their ballot than is required to mark or punch a paper ballot providing the same candidate choices. Consequently, to avoid long lines at a polling place, a large number of electronic voting stations must be provided, if such stations are utilized as the sole means of voting. This imposes an undesirable cost and space burden on voting jurisdictions, since the electronic voting stations are expensive to own and maintain and require additional space in use and in storage.
Accordingly, it is the general object of the invention to provide a new and improved voting system, method and apparatus.
It is a more specific object of the invention to provide an improved voting system which utilizes a voter-readable and machine-readable physical ballot which can be either hand-marked in a voting booth, or electronically marked at an electronic voting station by means of a touch screen voting terminal and associated marking device. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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Modern wireless devices (e.g., Wi-Fi devices) may be configured to operate in a single-band simultaneous (SBS) mode whereby the wireless device is active on multiple channels, concurrently, in the same frequency band (e.g., 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz band). For example, the wireless device may include a first transceiver chain that operates on one wireless channel (e.g., Channel A) and a second transceiver chain that operates on another wireless channel (e.g., Channel B). Accordingly, the first transceiver chain may transmit data signals via Channel A while the second transceiver chain transmits data signals via Channel B, concurrently. Similarly, the first transceiver chain may receive data signals via Channel A while the second transceiver chain receives data signals via Channel B, concurrently.
Challenges may arise when one of the transceiver chains attempts to transmit data signals on one channel while the other transceiver chain is receiving data signals on another channel. For example, if the first transceiver chain transmits an outgoing data signal while the second transceiver chain is receiving an incoming data signal, the transmission of the outgoing data signal may interfere with the reception of the incoming data signal. This phenomenon, commonly known as “self-interference,” typically occurs when the first and second transceiver chains are located in relatively close proximity of one another. Due to the close proximity of the transceiver chains, the signal strength of the outgoing data signal may be significantly greater than the signal strength of the incoming data signal (e.g., as viewed by a receive chain of the second transceiver chain). As a result, the second transceiver chain may not only fail to receive incoming data signals that directly overlap with the outgoing data signal, but may also fail to receive incoming data signals that arrive after transmission of the outgoing data signals ends. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an assembling structure for LED road lamp and heat dissipating module, and more particularly to an assembling structure capable of improving the heat conduction and dissipation of an LED road lamp significantly.
2. Description of Prior Art
Since light emitting diodes (LEDs) feature the advantages of high brightness, power saving and long life expectancy, LEDs have been used extensively for the illumination of lamps. Several LEDs are usually connected with each other to form an LED module, and a plurality of LED modules are connected in series or in parallel to constitute an LED lamp set to achieve an illumination effect that meets the requirements for a large projecting area and a high brightness and for outdoor illuminations. Since the outdoor illumination devices are exposed to the outside, therefore its requirements for airtightness, water resistance, dust resistance, and heat dissipation are higher than those of the indoor illumination devices. Further, the LEDs come with a low heat resistance, a heat dissipating module is usually required for dissipating the heat produced by each LED, so that each LED can emit lights at a lower temperature, and an LED and a heat dissipating module are indispensable to each other. Therefore, it is an important subject for manufacturers in the related field to design an assembling structure for an LED road lamp and a heat dissipating module.
A prior art LED road lamp heat dissipating structure as disclosed in R.O.C. Pat. No. M272940 includes an upper base, an aluminum partition board, a plurality of LEDs, and a plurality of parallel heat sinks extended upward from the back of the upper base, and one plane of the partition board is attached onto the middle of an internal side of the upper base and another plane is provided for connecting the LEDs, so as to constitute an LED road lamp heat dissipating structure.
However, the prior art LED road lamp heat dissipating structure still has the following problems in its applications. Since the prior art structure simply achieves the heat conduction by attaching each LED with the aluminum partition board and the speed of thermal conduction is very slow, therefore the heat dissipating effect is very limited. Particularly, when high power LEDs are developed continuously, the prior art structure no longer can meet the heat dissipating requirements of the current LED road lamps. Furthermore, the heat conducting and dissipating effects are low, and thus the life expectancy of the LEDs in the prior art structure is shortened greatly, and the prior art requires further improvements. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Furnishing elements that have a function mainly of heating are known: as well as having the normal domestic and/or furnishing functions, they also have the function of heating the place where they are installed and/or its user or users.
These known furnishing elements have conformations imposed mainly by the heating function, while the traditional domestic and/or furnishing functions are neglected.
Indeed, the known techniques for making this type of furnishing element, such as for example pressure casting, shell mold casting, assembly by welding and other, provide to make, directly in the casting or welding step, the components which perform the heating function, such as for example the pipes inside which the heat-carrying fluid flows, or inside which the electric resistances are inserted.
As a result, the aesthetics of the furnishing element and the domestic and/or furnishing function is limited, in that it is constrained and adapted to the possible disposition of the pipes for each determinate process of production used.
An example of said furnishing elements produced by welding are the so-called towel warming radiators, which combine the functions of supporting the towels and those of heating, typical of a radiator.
As a result, the planning and production of said equipment to produce the furnishing elements must be concentrated on the conformation that the heating components must have: the components also determine the aesthetic guide lines, conditioning the possible conformations and domestic and/or furnishing functions themselves.
This necessity therefore limits the possible aesthetic conformations of the heating element, and the type of furnishing element to which the function of heating can be combined.
Therefore, in the state of the art, a furnishing element with a particular design having surfaces with three-dimensional curves, free in space, such as an armchair, an upright piece or other, is difficult to produce, while also guaranteeing an efficient and specific heating function.
Moreover, the known techniques do not allow to produce in advantageously economic terms the pipes conformed so as to be able to follow the development of surfaces with a three-dimensional curve, free in space.
Furthermore, the known techniques for making these furnishing elements are economically justified only for productions on a large scale, that is, in series with a large number of pieces.
This limits the possibility of functional, structural and aesthetic personalization of the furnishing elements, that is, of unitary production, or of a few units of the furnishing elements with heating function.
A furnishing element is known from the German patent application DE-A-38 18406, in this case a chair, made of plastic material provided with an integrated heater.
Movable chairs having integrated electric heating devices are also known form the European patent EP-A-0 188 002, in which the electric heating devices are activated or deactivated electronically depending on the position of the chair.
The British patent application GB-A-2 172 393 refers to a heating device which can be applied to an existing chair in order to actuate the heating of the backrest and of the seat part.
None of these documents teaches how to make the chairs in themselves, nor how to associate the heating device to the chair during the production step of the chair.
Applying the normal casting and molding techniques, the solutions described in these documents have the disadvantages discussed above.
One purpose of the present invention is to make a furnishing element with a conditioning function which is simple and economic to make even in small series, which can have substantially any aesthetic and functional shape, and which guarantees an efficient function of conditioning the room and/or the user/users.
Another purpose of the present invention is to perfect a method which allows to make a furnishing element with a conditioning function, in a simple and economic way, even in small series, substantially of any aesthetic and functional shape, and with an efficient function of conditioning the room and/or the user/users.
The Applicant has devised, tested and embodied the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the state of the art and to obtain these and other purposes and advantages. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a carrying device, and more particularly to the carrying device which is used to carry belongings.
Description of the Prior Art
With technology development, people carry electronic belongings (such as smartphone, PDA, navigation device, or media player) with them in daily life, but it is inconvenient to take the electronic belongings out of a backpack or hold the electronic belongings on hand often. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a carrying device configured to accommodate the electronic belongings in which a solar panel is built, thus avoiding interference of electromagnetic waves from the electronic belongings.
The carrying device contains carrying bag, arm bag, hand bag, waist bag, or a specific bag fixed on user's wrist by using a flexible strap, wherein a torsion spring is mounted on a coupling shaft of the carrying device so that when the flexible strap connects with a fastener, the torsion spring pushes the flexible strap to secure on an object, thus tying the carrying device on the object fixedly.
However, the carrying device has defects as follows:
1. The flexible strap has to be pulled outwardly over the torsion spring so as to drive the coupling shaft to revolve and to extend the flexible strap, and when the flexible strap is extended sufficiently and passes through the object, a retainer is inserted through an opening so as to retain with a hook of the fastener, hence the flexible strap is fixed on the fastener. Nevertheless, such an operation is troublesome and the flexible strap is harmful for user after a period of using time.
2. The carrying device has many related components (inclusive of the torsion spring and a spring) which are assembled difficultly, thus increasing production cost and failure rate.
3. A button is configured to turn on the carrying device, but the carrying device is opened as touching the button unexpectedly.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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An infusion pump assembly may be used to infuse a fluid (e.g., a medication or nutrient) into a user. The fluid may be infused intravenously (i.e., into a vein), subcutaneously (i.e., into the skin), arterially (i.e., into an artery), and epidurally (i.e., into the epidural space).
Infusion pump assemblies may administer fluids in ways that would be impractically expensive/unreliable if performed manually by nursing staff. For example, an infusion pump assembly may repeatedly administer small quantities of an infusible fluid (e.g., 0.1 mL per hour), while allowing the user to request one-time larger “bolus” doses. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and, more particularly, to a semiconductor device provided by mounting a semiconductor on a substrate in a flip-chip manner.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, there is a trend toward integration and mounting of electronic components in higher densities as a result of increasing demands for electronic device having more functions and smaller weights and sizes. Accordingly, MCM (multi-chip module) or SIP (system in package) type products provided using flip-chip mounting are becoming the main stream of semiconductor devices. Some semiconductor devices of those types employ a configuration in which a semiconductor chip is flip-chip-mounted on a mounting substrate called an interposer.
FIGS. 9A and 9B show a configuration of a semiconductor device 900 according to the related art (see JP-A No. 2005-276879). FIG. 9A is a plan view of the device, and FIG. 9B is a sectional view of the same. The semiconductor device 900 illustrated includes a mounting substrate 910, a chip 903, a dam 905, a bump 901, and a liquid resin layer 904. Referring to the chip 903, a distance L10 between a predetermined edge of the region for mounting the chip and a part of the dam 905 associated with the predetermined edge is greater than a distance L12 between another edge of the chip mounting region and a part of the dam 905 associated with the other edge.
A liquid resin is dispensed to a region that is represented by the distance L10, and the resin is absorbed into a very small space between the chip 903 and the substrate 910 by capillarity to fill the space, whereby the liquid resin layer 904 is formed.
A liquid resin is dispensed to a region that is represented by the distance L10, and the resin is absorbed into a very small space between the chip 903 and the substrate 910 by capillarity to fill the space, whereby the liquid resin layer 904 is formed.
However, when the liquid resin is dispensed further so as to cover side surfaces of the chip after filling the very small space, the liquid resin may flow beyond the dam 905 to reach electrode pads 901 and to reach even side surfaces of the substrate.
In order to avoid the problem, the distances L10 and L12 must be made greater, and the external size of the mounting substrate 910 becomes greater accordingly.
When chips are provided in the form of a multiplicity of layers using flip chip mounting, a greater amount of liquid resin must be dispensed. Then, the external size of the mounting substrate 910 must be increased further to prevent the liquid resin from flowing out. | {
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Coaxial cable is known to be routed below ground, within conduits, or above ground, i.e., between utility poles and a mounting structure of the subscriber's home/office environment. When located under or below ground, a rigid, metal conduit often protects the cable from being damaged or severed by excavation equipment, e.g., heavy digging equipment such as a backhoe shovel. The cost of underground the cable can be significant, both in terms of the inventory requirements and the labor involved to bury the conduit/cable.
When located above ground, the coaxial cable extends between a support at each end and, as such, must be modified to address the environmental and structural differences influencing the coaxial cable. More specifically, the coaxial cable employed in aerial applications typically includes an anchor wire or “messenger” molded as part of the cable's jacket, extending along the cable's axis.
It is common for a service technician/installer to carry two types of cable, one for underground applications and the other for aerial applications. That is, the technician/installer typically carries cable without a messenger/anchor for underground applications and a cable with the messenger/anchor for aerial or above-ground applications. There is a significant burden of labor and cost related to storing, managing and installing these different types of cables.
Therefore, there is a need to overcome, or otherwise lessen the effects of, the disadvantages and shortcomings described above. | {
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The present invention relates to a circuit to disconnect a load and to preserve charge on a capacitor under emergency conditions and, more particularly, to a circuit to provide power during head retract and spindle motor brake in a hard disk drive memory system.
Moving media hard disk drive (HDD) memories are commonly used in computers and portable electronic systems whenever substantial amounts of memory storage are required. In moving media hard disk drive memories, the motion of the spinning disks suspends a magnetic read/write head above the media to facilitate the motion of the head across the disk. A voice coil motor or head actuator is then used to position the head above a particular data sector and track. When the battery or power supply fails or is unexpectedly disconnected, an emergency condition or a power-down procedure including retracting the read/write head to areas free from encoded data and/or braking of the spindle motor must be performed. The positioning of the head into a safe area is known as a head retract. The braking of a spindle motor is known as a spindle brake.
If the head retract is not completed before the head crashes onto the disk, permanent loss of data and damage to the disk may result. In order to prevent such damaging head crash, the head retract circuit must be able to provide reliably an auxiliary gate drive to the power transistor devices during retract even if the power supplies are failing completely.
FIG. 1 illustrates one such circuit to maintain a voltage on a capacitor in the event of an emergency condition to be used to retract the arm and/or to brake the motor. The maintained capacitor voltage is used for providing gate drive to the power transistor devices during retract and/or brake. In FIG. 1, the voltage on capacitor 114 decays such as illustrated in FIG. 2 as a result of a noisy switching on and off of the regulator 104 and the activation and deactivation of the sleep circuit 106 which turns on and off the load. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the ENABLE input to the regulator 104 is illustrated as the output voltage VFAULTZ of a power supply monitoring comparator 102, where Z at the end of a signal name by the convention used in this description means the logical complement, i.e., VFAULTZ is the complement of VFAULT. This voltage is a series of pulses which activate and deactivate regulator 104 and load 106 under a noisy situation. Normally, once a regulator is disabled completely, it takes time to recover. It can be seen from a linear regulator schematic shown in FIG. 8 that the base node 802 of the output stage NPN transistor in the regulator takes time to slew up to a certain voltage level to turn on the NPN after the node 802 has been pulled low completely. In the meantime, the load would be turned on relatively quickly. If the VFAULTZ pulses are short, then the consequence is that each turn on is not long enough for the regulator to recover, and thus the load would drain a certain amount of charge from the capacitor 114 each time. So the voltage at node V10 (and VPUMP) would droop, as shown in FIG. 2. But this drooping of the voltage at V10 and VPUMP is not desirable, because the voltage at the capacitor is needed for driving the gates of the power transistor devices for head retract and spindle brake. FIG. 3 is an oscilloscope picture with implementation as shown in FIG. 1 showing the drooping of V10 voltage occurring under a fault on the power supply VCC5. Glitches are noise pulses which are unexpected and of short duration.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for maintaining the voltage on a capacitor. The voltage is maintained during an emergency condition for example a voltage loss or voltage reduction. Additionally, the present invention maintains this voltage on the capacitor if there are glitches in the voltage. The present invention employs a one-shot circuit to prevent these glitches from reaching the regulator circuit and consequently from preventing the capacitor from discharging due to excess on and off operation of the regulator circuit. Thus, the present invention uses a one-shot device to prevent capacitor droop when the voltage as a result the emergency condition causes multiple trips due to circuit and system noise. | {
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bump forming method for forming solder bumps that are intended to serve as mechanical and electrical connecting terminals, a method of conducting preliminary treatment before soldering (hereinafter called presoldering treatment) technically associated with said bump forming method, a soldering method grown from said presoldering treatment method, and apparatuses for employing these methods, such as a bump forming apparatus, a presoldering treatment apparatus and a soldering apparatus.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Conventionally, a bare chip or a similar component having undergone a fine processing is packaged in such a way as to be easily mounted on a printed circuit board. The most typical example of such components are semiconductors. It has heretofore been common practice that an electrode pad portion of a bare chip is connected to an inner lead portion of a lead frame by a wire and sealed with a resin or ceramic material and that an outer lead portion extending to the outside of the chip serves as a mechanical and electrical connecting terminal to be connected to the packaging surface of the printed circuit board.
The rapidly increasing need recently to make electronic devices smaller, thinner, and lighter, as well as faster, has also made it necessary for the electronic components to be smaller and faster. For example, there has been an attempt to reduce the pitch between the leads of a Quad Flat Package (QFP), which is a semiconductor package provided with leads at the four sides of the package, from 0.65 mm to 0.4 mm. In order to cope with further reduction in the size of electronic equipment, vigorous efforts are being made to develop area-array packages of surface mount types.
An area array package is a package provided with electrodes that are arranged in a grid on the bottom of the package. Because of planar arrangement of the electrodes instead of a conventional linear arrangement, an area-array package is compact and provided with numerous pins. The design of connecting terminals for connecting an area array package to a printed circuit board has also changed from those attached to the lead frame to protrusion-shaped terminals (bumps) formed on the electrodes.
A change has also occurred in the wiring in a package, which used to be done with electrical wires; what is becoming necessary is flip chip joining using bumps formed on electrode portions. Such a change has been implemented, because the inductance component and other undesirable characteristics of a wire impair reduction of the operating speed and also cause various problems, such as improper functioning which is caused by simultaneous switching noises.
Examples of area array packages include a ball grid array (BGA), which may be used as a substitute for a QFP, and a chip scale package (CSP), which is reduced to a size nearly the same as a chip.
Furthermore, a part of the flip chip attaching (FCA) technique has already been put into practical use.
Terminals attached to the various electronic elements mentioned above are bump-shaped terminals instead of those of the conventional lead frame type. The most widely used are solder bumps, because they can cope with a batch reflow process, which is a part of the typical conventional procedure for production of a printed circuit board.
With regard to the bump forming technique, several methods have heretofore been offered. Those conventional methods are roughly divided into two categories: those using gold wires and those using solder alloys.
Examples of methods using gold wires include the Stud Bump Bonding (SBB) technique offered by Kyushu Matsushita Electric Co., Ltd. (IEMT ""93: pp. 362-365, 1993) and the Press Contact technique offered by NEC Corp. (Mate ""97 Microjoining and Assembly Technology in Electronics: pp. 15-18, 1997).
Both techniques call for a wire bonder to form gold bumps on the electrode side of a bare chip with a gold wire. With regard to connection of the chip to a substrate, the SBB technique calls for connection using silver paste, while the Press Contact technique calls for maintaining contact between the gold bumps and an electrode pad of the substrate solely by the contraction stress of the underfill resin.
Problems common to these techniques are:
(1) it takes too much time to form bumps, because bumps are formed one by one by studding an electrode pad of a bare chip with a gold wire by using a wire bonder;
(2) using expensive gold increases the cost per bump; and
(3) as a batch reflow process with other surface mount components is impossible, each chip has to be individually mounted on a printed circuit board.
The Press Contact technique presents another problem in that a variance or insufficient accuracy in the height of gold bumps and the degree of surface smoothness of substrates have a considerable influence on obtaining reliable electrical connection, in other words the mounting efficiency, and may therefore present a serious problem in the yield of the product.
Regarding methods of using a solder alloy, a typical method calls for forming a solder bump by placing a solder ball having characteristics within standards on an electrode that is mounted on a bare chip and coated with a fusing agent (hereinafter called xe2x80x9cfluxxe2x80x9d), and then conducting a reflow treatment. Solder balls for BGA are already available.
NEC Corp. has also offered a method of forming solder bumps by using the micropunching technique; this method calls for punching out a solder tape, placing solder pieces on an electrode that is mounted on a bare chip and coated with flux, and then conducting reflow treatment (""95 Japan IEMT Symposium: pp. 117-120).
Other examples include a solder paste printing method by Hitachi Techno Engineering Co., Ltd. (Mate ""97 Microjoining and Assembly Technology in Electronics: pp. 19-22) and a plating method by TOSHIBA CORPORATION (Mate ""97 Microjoining and Assembly Technology in Electronics: pp. 23-38).
All of the methods mentioned above call for, in some way or another, placing a solder alloy on an electrode pad and performing reflow to form solder bumps. Flux is always used for the reflow treatment and, thereafter, removed by washing.
In other words, according to any one of the methods of forming solder bumps, flux is indispensable and its washing process is accordingly necessary. Depending on its thoroughness, washing may produce flux residue, which may have a serious influence on the reliability of the finished electronic element.
For this reason, the washing process requires a vigorous cleaner, such as a Freon substitute. In addition to thus necessitating a process that will have an damaging effect on the environment, these methods present a problem of excessively high production costs in their requirement of an expensive facility and disposal of waste liquid.
There have been patent applications relating this field, such as those laid open under Provisional Publication Nos. 293952/1988, 148481/1989 and 500026/1993.
Japanese Patent Provisional Publication No. 293952/1988 describes a method of removing oxides from the surface of solder on an electrode portion by means of hydrogen plasma reduction when the solder is heated and melted in a vacuum.
However, hydrogen reduction damages a passivation film on a bare chip. Furthermore, using hydrogen presents the danger of explosion and requires proper measures to handle the exhaust, resulting in high production costs.
Japanese Patent Provisional Publication No. 148481/1989 describes a method of removing oxides by using argon plasma.
This method, however, is limed to cases of thermal bonding of a flat surface to another flat surface and not applicable to bump formation. Furthermore, a test has proved that treatment using argon plasma is unable to produce good bumps.
The method has another drawback in that the cost of the apparatus is very high, because the initial degree of vacuum in the chamber has to be considerably low: approximately 10xe2x88x925 Torr. Furthermore, in case an oil diffusion pump is used, pollution by the oil will be a problem.
Japanese Patent Provisional Publication No. 500026/1993 describes a method that calls for fluorination of a solder surface by using fluorine-containing plasma in order to remove an oxide film that will impair wetting at the time of solder bonding.
However, fluorine plasma has the property of corroding silicon and a passivation film. Furthermore, silicon tetrafluoride, which is a reaction product, sometimes reacts with solder bumps and consequently damages the solder bumps. Fluorine residue may exert a serious influence on the reliability of the finished product, depending on the residual percentage.
In short, conventional methods that call for use of a gold wire require an excessively long processing period and high production costs and also present a problem in mounting a product on a substrate. Conventional methods using a solder alloy require use of flux and therefore present problems resulting from the postprocess washing. As for conventional methods involving plasma treatment, there is none that is suitable for forming solder bumps.
In order to solve the above problem, an object of the present invention is to provide a bump forming method and a bump forming apparatus for forming solder bumps serving as element electrode terminals that can cope with an electronic element having reduced dimensions. To be more specific, a bump forming method and a bump forming apparatus according to the invention are capable of forming such solder bumps with an inexpensive soft solder alloy and without using flux so that there is no need of postprocess washing and that finished solder bumps will have high reliability. Another object of the invention is to provide a presoldering treatment method and a presoldering treatment apparatus which are also capable of solving the above problems. Yet another object of the invention is to provide a soldering method and a soldering apparatus which are results of development from these methods and apparatuses.
A bump forming method according to the invention is a method of forming solder bumps, which will serve as connecting terminals, on the surface of an object (hereinafter called workpiece) by accumulating a soft solder alloy on the surface of the workpiece; irradiating the accumulated soft solder alloy with at least plasma that contains hydrogen; and applying reflow treatment to the soft solder alloy that has been irradiated with at least said plasma that contains hydrogen.
As hydroxides and oxides in the soft solder alloy are removed by irradiation of the accumulated soft solder alloy with hydrogen-containing plasma, bumps that will serve as mechanical and electrical connecting terminals are formed without the need of flux during the reflow treatment.
A bump forming method according to another feature of the invention is similar to the bump forming method described above and further characterized in that the reflow treatment and the hydrogen-containing plasma irradiation are conducted in a vacuum either simultaneously or with the reflow treatment following immediately after the hydrogen-containing plasma irradiation.
As a result, the quality of the product and the productivity can be increased. Conducting reflow treatment in a vacuum is especially effective in preventing re-oxidation of the soft solder alloy during the reflow. Conducting reflow treatment in a vacuum either simultaneously with or immediately after plasma irradiation enables the increase of the quality of the product and the productivity.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to either bump forming method of the invention described above and further characterized in that it calls for conducting the reflow treatment in either an inert gas atmosphere, such as a nitrogen atmosphere, or a reductive atmosphere.
As a result of this feature, the method is capable of preventing re-oxidation of the soft solder alloy during the reflow, thereby increasing the quality of the product.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to any one of the bump forming methods of the invention described above and further characterized in that it calls for irradiating the soft solder alloy with hydrogen-containing plasma at a temperature lower than the melting point of the soft solder alloy, the range of permissible temperature including room temperature.
As a result of this feature, the method is capable of clearly separating the process of plasma treatment to the soft solder alloy from the reflow process and ensuring proper execution of each process.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to any one of the bump forming methods of the invention described above and further characterized in that the process gas for generating the hydrogen-containing plasma is a mixed gas containing an inert gas and hydrogen gas that contains hydrogen with a mixing ratio of equal to or more than 3 V/V % but less than 8 V/V % calculated in terms of hydrogen molecules.
By using a mix that has been prepared by separately feeding an inert gas and either hydrogen gas or hydrogen-containing gas, or using a premixed gas, plasma irradiation is conducted. Using a process gas that is a mixed gas comprised of an inert gas to which hydrogen gas is added with a mixing ratio of equal to or more than 3 V/V % but less than 8 V/V % with respect to the total volume of the mixed gas not only achieves high plasma treatment effect (spattering effect) but is also desirable in view of safety, costs and other factors. Limiting the hydrogen content to not less than 3 V/V % ensures removal of hydroxides and oxides from the soft solder alloy, while limiting the hydrogen content to less than 8 V/V % ensures the safety and eliminates the need of treatment of exhaust gas.
Our tests have clearly proved that adding an excessive quantity of hydrogen to argon gas causes its plasma to selectively and severely etch a certain potion of the solder structure, i.e. the portion rich in tin, resulting in damage to the surface of the solder bumps. Therefore, it is desirable to limit the quantity of the hydrogen added to less than 10%.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to any one of the bump forming methods of the invention described above and further characterized in that the duration of the plasma irradiation is limited to less than two minutes. By plasma irradiation for less than two minutes, the method is capable of giving the soft solder alloy a sufficient quality improving treatment, thereby forming good solder bumps, and protecting the workpiece from possible damage.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to any one of the bump forming methods of the invention described above and further characterized in that the reflow treatment is conducted by means of heat radiation in a vacuum. By using heat radiation, the method ensures the effective reflow heating in a vacuum.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to any one of the bump forming methods of the invention described above and further characterized in that irradiation with fluorine-containing plasma is performed after irradiation with the hydrogen-containing plasma.
Because of this feature, the method is capable of limiting possible damage to a passivation film, which is a protective coat for a microcircuit formed on such a workpiece as a silicone wafer. For example, the method is capable of reducing etching of silicon oxide, silicon nitride, etc. or ashing of organic coats.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to the bump forming method described above and further characterized in that the fluorine-containing plasma contains either one of or both argon and oxygen.
Because of the fluorine-containing plasma irradiation conducted after the irradiation with the hydrogen-containing plasma, the method is capable of reducing the duration of the surface treatment and limiting damage to a passivation film.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to the bump forming method described above and further characterized in that the duration and the temperature of irradiation with fluorine-containing plasma are respectively limited to within 60 seconds and a temperature lower than the melting point of the soft solder alloy, the range of permissible temperature including room temperature.
By thus limiting the duration and the temperature of irradiation with fluorine-containing plasma, the method enables the quick surface treatment and the reduction of damage to passivation films.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to any one of the bump forming methods of the invention described above and further characterized in that the workpiece is preheated at a temperature not higher than 100xc2x0 C. when conducting the reflow process.
As a result, it is possible to prevent the quality of the surface of the workpiece that has undergone surface treatment process from changing during the reflow process. Therefore, the method is capable of improving bonding between the bonding surfaces of the two objects where they are bonded to each other.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is similar to any one of the bump forming methods of the invention described above and further characterized in that irradiation with hydrogen-containing plasma is performed again after the reflow process.
By performing plasma irradiation also after the reflow process, the minimal quantity of oxides or other impurities that appeared on the surface of the solder during the melting of the solder are removed. The method is thus capable of forming bumps that have cleaner surface.
A soldering method according to the present invention is a method that calls for bringing the soft solder alloy on the surface of a workpiece into contact with the surface of a bonding target, i.e. an object to which said workpiece is intended to be soldered, and thus bonding the surface of the workpiece to the surface of the bonding target by soldering during the reflow process of any one of the bump forming methods of the invention described above.
By thus bringing the surface of the soft solder alloy on the surface of the workpiece that has undergone surface reforming treatment into contact with the surface of the bonding target and heating them in the reflow process, the method enables the formation of bumps and bonding the workpiece and the bonding target together by soldering without using flux which would otherwise require post process washing.
A solder bump forming apparatus according to the present invention is adapted to use a soft solder alloy on the surface of a workpiece to form solder bumps, which will serve as connecting terminals, and includes a plasma generating means adapted to generate at least hydrogen-containing plasma under a low pressure; a gas supply means for feeding process gas to the plasma generating means; a workpiece exposing means for exposing the soft solder alloy on the surface of the workpiece at least to hydrogen-containing plasma; and a heating means for applying a reflow treatment the soft solder alloy in a vacuum.
By irradiating the soft solder alloy of the workpiece with hydrogen-containing plasma using the plasma generating means for generating hydrogen-containing plasma, the gas supply means for feeding process gas and the workpiece exposing means for exposing the workpiece to the hydrogen-containing plasma, the apparatus is capable of removing hydroxides and oxides from the soft solder alloy. Furthermore, by conducting the reflow process in a vacuum by the heating means, the apparatus is capable of preventing re-oxidation of the soft solder alloy during the reflow process.
A bump forming apparatus according to another feature of the invention is an apparatus as the bump forming apparatus described above, wherein the plasma generating means is provided with a high frequency power supply and an electrode for generating plasma, said electrode connected to the high frequency power supply and having a hollow electrode body adapted to receive the process gas, supply openings that are adapted to feed the process gas and bored in the end of the electrode body facing away from the workpiece, and through holes bored through the electrode body so as to extend from the end where the supply openings are formed to the opposite end.
Because of the structure described above, plasma ions generated from the process gas ejected from the supply openings, which are located opposite the workpiece, can be trapped and removed by the through holes, which serve as H tunnels for trapping plasma ions when the ions pass the through holes. By thus preventing a violent collision of ions with the workpiece, the apparatus is capable of protecting a passivation film or other parts of the workpiece from damage that is prone to be caused by hard, physical etching resulting from collision with ions. Meanwhile, active species that etch, when in the excited state, the workpiece through soft, chemical reaction are allowed to pass through the through holes and thus effectively utilized.
A bump forming apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention is an apparatus similar to either bump forming method of the invention described above and further characterized in that the heating means has a light source, which is adapted to heat the backside of the workpiece by radiation, and a reflecting mirror for adjusting luminous flux from the light source.
As a result of the structure that calls for heat radiation with the luminous flux from the light source adjusted by the reflecting mirror, the apparatus is capable of quick, intensive heating of the workpiece in a vacuum as well as easy temperature control.
A bump forming apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention is an apparatus as any one of the bump forming apparatuses of the invention described above and further characterized in that the apparatus includes a gas recovery means that defines the flow of the gas that carries plasma generated between said electrode and another electrode to the workpiece, said gas recovery means disposed such that the workpiece is positioned between the gas recovery means and the gas supply means.
As a result of the structure wherein the flow of the gas for carrying plasma or radicals (active species) generated between the aforementioned electrode and another electrode to the workpiece is defined by the gas supply means and the gas recovery means, which is disposed such that the workpiece is positioned between the gas recovery means and the gas supply means, the apparatus is capable of plasma irradiation with an increased efficiency.
A bump forming apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention is an apparatus as any one of the bump forming apparatuses of the invention described above and further characterized in that the heating means includes a light source and a reflecting mirror, said light source disposed at such a location so as not to be exposed to plasma and adapted to heat the workpiece by radiation, and said reflecting mirror adapted to form an optical path extending from the light source to the workpiece.
As a result of the structure described above, the apparatus is capable of preventing the plasma from inflicting damage to the light source or other components and also from causing chemical reduction.
A bump forming apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention is an apparatus as any one of the bump forming apparatuses of the invention described above and further characterized in that the apparatus includes a gas supply means for supplying a process gas, which is a mixed gas containing an inert gas and hydrogen gas that contains hydrogen with a mixing ratio of equal to or more than 3 V/V % but less than 8 V/V % calculated in terms of hydrogen molecules.
A gas containing hydroxyl groups is desirable to be used as the process gas. Taking such factors as the safety, costs and the like into consideration, a mixed gas comprised of an inert gas and hydrogen gas is most suitable. In view of effectiveness of the treatment, a mixed gas comprised of an inert gas to which hydrogen gas is added with a mixing ratio of equal to or more than 3% but less than 8% to the total volume of the mixed gas is particularly desirable. Limiting the hydrogen content to not less than 3 V/V % ensures the highly effective plasma treatment which is capable of effective removal of hydroxides and oxides from the soft solder alloy. Limiting the hydrogen content to less than 8 V/V % ensures the safety and eliminates the need of treatment of exhaust gas.
A bump forming apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention is an apparatus as any one of the bump forming apparatuses of the invention described above and further characterized in that the apparatus includes a high frequency power supply having a frequency of either 13.56 MHz or 2.45 GHz.
The process gas is excited and plasmatized by a 13.56 MHz or 2.45 GHz high frequency power supply, which is inexpensive and easily available.
A bump forming apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention is an apparatus as any one of the bump forming apparatuses of the invention described above and further characterized in that the plasma generating means is adapted to generate fluorine-containing plasma in addition to the aforementioned hydrogen-containing plasma, said fluorine-containing plasma containing either one of or both argon and oxygen.
As a result, the apparatus is capable of reducing possible damage to a protective coat formed on the workpiece and reforming the surface of such a protective coat. Therefore, the apparatus is more suitable for soldering and capable of bonding the soft solder alloy on the workpiece to the surface of the bonding target with increased reliability.
A soldering apparatus according to the invention includes a bump forming apparatus as any one of the bump forming apparatuses of the invention described above; a positioning means for aligning and bringing the soft solder alloy on the surface of a workpiece that has been exposed to plasma and the surface of a bonding target into contact with each other; and a heating means for applying reflow treatment to the film of the soft solder alloy, thereby soldering the surface of the workpiece and the surface of the bonding target together.
Therefore, by aligning and bringing the workpiece that has been treated with plasma and the bonding target into contact with each other by means of the positioning means and conducting a reflow process of the film of the soft solder alloy with the heating means, the soldering apparatus described above is capable of simultaneously performing both the bump forming process and the soldering process without using flux, use of which would necessitate postprocess washing.
A bump forming method according to yet another feature of the invention is a method of forming bumps, which will serve as connecting terminals, on the surface of a workpiece by following the procedure that comprises steps of roughening the surface of a soft solder alloy accumulated on the surface of the workpiece; giving the roughened surface of the soft solder alloy surface reforming treatment that calls for forming a fluorine containing layer on the surface of the soft solder alloy; and applying reflow treatment to the soft solder alloy that has undergone the surface reforming treatment.
A presoldering treatment method according to the invention is a pretreatment method that is intended to be performed prior to soldering of a workpiece and calls for roughening the surface of solder bumps of a soft solder alloy formed on the workpiece, and applying surface reforming treatment to the surface of the solder bumps by forming a fluorine containing layer on the roughened surface of the solder bumps.
A soldering method according to yet another feature of the invention is a method of bonding together a plurality of workpieces by soldering, said soldering method comprising the steps of roughening the surface of solder bumps of a soft solder alloy formed on one or more workpieces and applying surface reforming treatment to the surface of the solder bumps by forming a fluorine containing layer on the roughened surface of the solder bumps; and bringing said one or more workpieces having the solder bumps that have undergone the surface roughening treatment and the surface reforming treatment into contact with other workpiece or workpieces and, in this state, performing reflow of these workpieces. In this case, it does not matter whether any number of the said other workpieces have solder bumps that have undergone the surface roughening treatment and the surface reforming treatment.
The bump forming method, the presoldering treatment method and the soldering method described above are capable of preventing damage to a chip, a circuit board or the like by roughening the surface of the soft solder alloy and accordingly reducing the duration of the surface reforming treatment following the surface roughening treatment. Furthermore, because a fluorine containing layer formed as a result of surface reforming treatment provides increased solder wettability and prevents re-oxidation of the surface of the solder, there is no need of flux to conduct a reflow process or a postprocess washing process.
The surface roughening treatment in any one of the bump forming method, the presoldering treatment method and the soldering method described above is performed by using plasma excitation of an inert gas to which hydrogen has been added.
The quantity of the hydrogen added for said surface roughening treatment ranges from equal to or more than 3 V/V % to less than 8 V/V %.
Argon is used as the inert gas for said surface roughening treatment.
The surface reforming treatment in any one of the bump forming method, the presoldering treatment method and the soldering method described above is performed by using plasma excitation of a mixed gas which contains a fluorine compound or fluorine compounds, and to which either one of or both oxygen and argon are added.
The fluorine compound for said surface reforming treatment consists of at least one of the compounds selected from among carbon fluoride compounds, sulfur hexafluoride and nitrogen trifluoride.
A bump forming apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention includes a surface roughening device for roughening the surface of a soft solder alloy accumulated on a workpiece; a surface reforming device for performing surface reforming treatment by forming a fluorine containing layer on the roughened surface of the soft solder alloy; and a thermal melting unit for performing reflow of the soft solder alloy having the reformed surface, thereby forming solder bumps, which will serve as connecting terminals, on the surface of said workpiece.
A presoldering treatment apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention includes a surface roughening device for roughening the surface of solder bumps of a soft solder alloy formed on a workpiece, and a surface reforming device for performing surface reforming treatment by forming a fluorine containing layer on the roughened surface of the solder bumps.
A soldering apparatus according to yet another feature of the invention is adapted to solder together a plurality of workpieces and includes a surface roughening device for roughening the surface of solder bumps of a soft solder alloy formed on one or more workpieces; a surface reforming device for performing surface reforming treatment by forming a fluorine containing layer on the roughened surface of the solder bumps; and a thermal melting unit for bringing one or more workpieces having the solder bumps that have undergone the surface roughening treatment and the surface reforming treatment into contact with other workpiece or workpieces and, in this state, performing reflow of these workpieces.
The bump forming apparatus, the presoldering treatment apparatus and the soldering apparatus described above are each capable of preventing damage to a chip, a circuit board or the like by roughening the surface of the soft solder alloy accumulated on the workpiece or the surface of the solder bumps formed on the workpiece by means of the surface roughening device so as to reduce the time required for the surface reforming treatment performed thereafter. Furthermore, as a fluorine containing layer formed as a result of surface reforming treatment by the surface reforming device improves the solder wettability and prevents re-oxidation of the surface of the solder, there is no need of flux to conduct a reflow process by the thermal melting unit, and a postprocess washing process can be eliminated accordingly, even if a soft solder alloy is used.
According to yet another feature of the invention, the surface roughening device of any one of the bump forming apparatus, the presoldering treatment apparatus and the soldering apparatus described above is a plasma exciting device adapted to roughen the surface of a soft solder alloy by means of plasma excitation, and the plasma exciting device and the surface reforming device are respectively operated in separate and different atmospheres without a pause between operation of the plasma exciting device and the operation of the surface reforming device.
The feature described above enables the conduction of the surface roughening treatment and the surface reforming treatment in separate and different atmospheres without the possibility of the two types of treatments exerting any undesirable influence on each other.
According to yet another feature of the invention, the surface roughening device of the presoldering treatment apparatus and the soldering apparatus described above is adapted to roughen the surface of the solder bumps of a soft solder alloy in a mechanical way and has an ensured reliability.
The above and still further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description of a specific embodiment thereof, especially when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals in the various figures are utilized to designate like components, and wherein: | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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Vehicles, such as consumer automobiles, for example, can include one or more electronic systems. In some examples, an electronic system (e.g., one or more lights, indicator systems, actuator systems, etc.) can be controlled by one or more electronic control units (ECUs) included in the vehicle. One or more ECUs can comprise storage or memory with firmware installed thereon. Updates to the firmware can improve ECU efficiency and/or include new functionality for the ECU to perform. In some examples, security of one or more firmware updates can be important to the safety and/or performance of one or more electronic systems of a vehicle. Accordingly, there exists a need in the field of vehicle ECUs for a method and apparatus for efficient, secure firmware updating. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an analog capacitor, and a method of fabricating the same, and more particularly, to an analog capacitor having at least three high-k dielectric layers, and a method of fabricating the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
An analog capacitor is one element of a device typically used in an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), a RF device, a switching capacitor filter, a CMOS image sensor (CIS), and the like. The analog capacitor is a capacitor which obtains bits and operates based on the fact that the quantity of charge stored in the electrodes on both ends of a dielectric layer varies corresponding to the change of an applied voltage.
When a voltage (V) is applied on a capacitor, the quantity of charge (Q) stored in the electrodes of both ends of a dielectric layer can be given by Equation 1.Q=C×V, [Equation ]1
where C is a capacitance of the capacitor.
In the case in which the capacitance (C) has a constant value, the quantity of charge (Q) is linearly increased in proportion to the voltage (V). The quantity of charge (Q) stored in the capacitor is constant, when the voltage (V) is fixed. Therefore, the voltage can be divided within the range of an operating voltage of a capacitor, and the quantity of charge corresponding to each divided voltage can be used as one bit.
In order to obtain high bits in an analog capacitor, the difference of the quantities of charge corresponding to each divided voltage should be large and constant. For this purpose, the dielectric layer used in an analog capacitor requires that its voltage coefficient of capacitance (VCC), i.e., the change of the capacitance in variance with voltage, be low, its capacitance be large, and its leakage current be low.
With the increased integration in semiconductor devices, the capacitor size is increasingly scaled down. Therefore, in order to prevent the reduction of the capacitance corresponding to the size decrease of the capacitor, a high-k dielectric layer is used. A dielectric layer having a dielectric constant higher than or equal to 8 is defined as a high-k dielectric layer.
The capacitance of a dielectric layer typically depends on a voltage. That is, capacitance ((C(V)) can be indicated by a function of applied voltage (V), and can be fitted as a quadratic function, which is given by Equation 2.C(V)=C(0)×(a×V2+b×V+1) [Equation ]2
where C(0) is a capacitance of a capacitor with applied voltage 0V, a is a quadratic coefficient of VCC, and b is a linear coefficient of VCC. Thus, in order to have a low value of VCC, a and b should be close to zero.
The quadratic coefficient a is known to be related to the interfacial characteristics of the electrodes and the dielectric layer of the capacitor. That is, if a depletion occurs in the electrodes when a voltage is applied, the quadratic coefficient has a negative value. In contrast, if electrons penetrate into the dielectric layer thereby to reduce the effective thickness of the dielectric layer, the quadratic coefficient has a positive value.
Therefore, the dielectric layer used in the analog capacitor as a high-k dielectric layer requires that its leakage current be low and that the absolute value of the quadratic coefficient of VCC be low. However, it is difficult to satisfy the leakage current characteristics and the VCC characteristics simultaneously using a single dielectric layer. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for producing a protective cover for a device, and in particular to the production of a protective cover for devices containing areas whose function would be impeded by injection-molding housings, such as BAW filters (BAW=bulk acoustic wave), SAW filters (SAW=surface acoustic wave), resonators, sensors, and/or actors. In particular, the present invention relates to a method for producing such a protective cover for the devices on wafer level.
2. Description of Prior Art
Conventionally, devices are produced on and/or in a substrate, wherein after completion of the device the substrate including the device is arranged in an injection-molding housing in a protected manner. In this arrangement, the substrate and the device are completely embedded in the material of the injection-molding housing at least in the area of the device. This procedure is disadvantageous for devices whose function is impeded by this material which, thus require a clearance for proper operability, as is required, for example, in the above-mentioned BAW filters, SAW filters, resonators, sensors, and actors.
An approach known in the prior art to solve these problems with injection-molding housings is to provide a “counter-substrate” in which a corresponding opening is inserted, so that when assembling the device substrate and the housing substrate the cavity is arranged in the area of the device in the device substrate, so that here no further impeding of the device occurs. On wafer level, a wafer is correspondingly produced with a corresponding structure for the devices (system wafer) which is connected to a second wafer (lid wafer) having corresponding pits and holes having been produced for example by etching it, e.g. by a bond procedure. In this manner, the pits of the second wafer become cavities above the sensitive structures of the first wafer, the contact pads of the first wafer being accessible through the holes in the second wafer. Hereby, the sensitive structures are protected.
Alternatively to the procedures just described, a ceramic housing may also be used.
The disadvantage of this solution is that here always a second substrate or a second wafer is to be structured, which requires processing and machining separate from the first wafer. This leads to very time-consuming and expensive overall production and also increases the requirements with respect to the required process accuracy. A further disadvantage of the procedure is that in the connection of the lid wafer to the system wafer pressure and temperature have additionally to be applied, and that the requirements on the surface quality and purity are correspondingly high. A further, even more serious disadvantage is that during this bond process the micro-electromechanical structures are already exposed so that here an additional yield risk exists.
In the post-published German patent application DE 102 00 869 A, an alternative method is described, which describes a sacrificial layer and a cover element formed by a photoresist. The sacrificial layer is formed in an area of the substrate in which the device is formed, in which the cavity is to be produced later. Over the sacrificial layer, a photoresist layer is deposited in which holes are inserted to expose the sacrificial layer in the area of the holes. Then the sacrificial layer is removed by suitable measures, and the holes in the photoresist layer are closed. The disadvantage of this procedure is to be seen in the creation of a non-uniform height profile across the wafer cross-section, i.e. of a non-planar wafer surface, which results from processing the individual protective covers above the devices. This non-uniform height profile across the wafer cross-section makes subsequent process steps more difficult. This applies, in particular, to methods exhibiting particularly good properties on planar surfaces, such as printing processes. Since low-cost printing methods, e.g. screen printing, are often used for applying contact pads in semi-conductor production, the occurrence of a non-uniform height profile across the wafer surface may entail a significant loss in precision in applying contact pads by means of the printing process, it being possible, under certain circumstances, for the low-cost printing processes to no longer have sufficient precision at a high packing density. Another disadvantage of a non-uniform height profile across the wafer cross-section are yield losses, since part of the protective covers to be formed on the wafer are “squashed” due of the printing processes employed. Finally it shall also be noted that due to self-supporting sacrificial structures and self-supporting protective covers on the wafer surface, as are provided in the post-published patent application DE 102 00 869 A, it is not possible to fall short of a defined component size, since otherwise the adherence of the sacrificial structure or of the protective cover to the wafer surface is too small, and the protective cover produced thus does not have sufficient stability.
EP 0 373 360 B1 describes a method for producing an improved insulation in VLSO and ULSI circuits, wherein here also a cavity is to be formed. Here the cavity is also structured by a sacrificial layer removed through one or more openings in a surface of the arrangement. However, a disadvantage to be noted here is that the cavity to be formed has little stability, since the cavity is formed essentially by a cover layer supported by the conductor lines to be insulated. For reasons of sufficient insulation, it is not possible to fall short of a defined cavity size, which, in turn, leads to yield losses due to a “squashing” of the cavities formed when using printing processes in subsequent process steps. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
Adapting standard cargo containers for air transport is a vital requirement of military and commercial air cargo communities. Lessons learned from the U.S. Armed Forces' recent deployments and engagements have proved the utility of quadcon and tricon containers and highlighted a need for improved air transportability of these products. Quadcon containers are designed so that when four quadcon units are secured together, the combined package has the same footprint as an ISO standard 20-foot intermodal container. Similarly, tricon containers are designed so that when three tricon units are secured together, the combined package has the same footprint as an ISO standard 20-foot intermodal container. An advantage of quadcon and tricon containers is that they can be are separated into individual units, thereby permitting each quadcon or tricon unit to be handled by standard material handling equipment. This greatly simplifies ground transport handling and speeds the process of airfield clearance. Currently in order to move quadcon or tricon units by air, each container must be disconnected from its 3 or 4 container train, placed on a standard 463 L pallet, with appropriate dunnage, and chained to the pallet. This process increases deployment times at the mode transition points (e.g., from ground to air transport and from air to ground transport) and places a demand for large quantities of pallets, dunnage, and chains at the aerial port of embarkation. The present invention markedly improves the capability to rapidly adapt standard cargo containers to directly interface with cargo loading systems of cargo aircraft by eliminating the need to palletize the containers using pallet systems, dunnage, and chains, thus eliminating a logistics nightmare and bottleneck for transportation mode change points. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
The invention relates to inverters in general and more particularly to an inverter for induction heating. Such an inverter supplies high frequency alternating current to the induction heating coil which forms a tank circuit that has varying electrical characteristics according to the material and size of the workpiece and the temperature of the workpiece being heated. The load in the induction heating installation has an inductive component, a capacitive component and a resistive component. Consequently, it is susceptible to frequency changes and presents a load that varies drastically. In recent years, there has been a substantial amount of work devoted to the development of a high power solid-state power supply for driving an induction heating load. Such devices generally convert D.C. current to an alternating current which flows through the load. One of the most common of these devices is a solid-state inverter having a constant current supplied from a D.C. source, which current is alternately switched through the load in different directions by two distinct sets of switching devices, generally SCR's. This type of solid-state device has been used in tandem with a power rectifier which converts available three phase alternating current into D.C. current. This D.C. current is then directed to the inverter which changes the direct current into a single phase alternating current of a controllable high frequency. Frequency of the inverter is controlled by the rate at which gating signals are provided to the SCR's. One form of such inverters is a parallel-compensated inverter which is attached to a constant current source and is well known in the induction heating art.
In order for the SCR's to be commutated to the OFF condition, it is necessary to apply a reverse voltage across the individual SCR's for a time which is referred to as the turn-off time of the SCR's or other switching devices. This switching time varies according to the particular type of switching device used. As the frequency increases, there is less time available for commutating the individual switching devices or SCR's. Consequently, with high frequency inverters of 1.0 KHertz and higher, relatively precise switching devices are required. Such devices are expensive. Indeed, commercial SCRs can not exceed a preselected high frequency when a large margin of safety is provided to assure turn-off time. Thus, as inverters of the type described above are used for high frequency heating, generally required in induction heating, the SCR's become expensive and there is a relatively low maximum frequency to be obtained without modifying the well known inverter circuits. For this reason, controlling the gating pulses or gating signals for the SCR's has been the subject of substantial developmental work. Gating is generally controlled by monitoring the phase relationship of the voltage and current through the load and then adjusting this relationship so that sufficient turn-off time is assured. This concept limits the versatility of the inverter, necessitates expensive SCR's, requires an expensive choke to assure continuous current flow and generally complicates the inverter circuit itself.
Another disadvantage of power inverters, which is especially serious when used for widely varying loads, is that such inverter for supplying an induction load is difficult to start. It is usually impossible to start the inverter by merely providing gating pulses to the SCR's in the inverter in a manner similar to the steady-state condition. At start up, there is no energy in the tuned load for commutating the thyristors or SCR's. This starting problem is further compounded when the load is spaced from the inverter so that substantial inductance is created by connecting leads between the inverter and the load. Because of these difficulties, a substantial amount of work has been devoted to providing an arrangement for starting a power inverter used in the induction heating art. Circuits have been suggested for causing initial current oscillation through the load during the starting cycle. Some circuits involve switching of special capacitors across the load. Circuits have been provided to initially charge the tuned load to build up oscillations in the load before the gating of the inverter is started. Since this starting concept requires matching of an auxiliary circuit with the characteristics of the load, such concept could not be used for a wide range of load conditions. The most widely adopted concept is the provision of a smoothing inductor or reactor between the input D.C. supply and the thyristors or SCR's of the inverter. A precharging current is then directed through the inverter into the tuned load to shock the load into oscillations when the SCR's are gated. This technique required a relatively large reactor between the rectifier and inverter which is expensive and substantially adds to the cost of the device. In addition, the characteristics of the load negated this concept as an effective means for allowing start-up of a power inverter of the type used in induction heating. | {
"pile_set_name": "USPTO Backgrounds"
} |
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