Datasets:

ccdv

/

patent-classification

like 20

embodiments of the present disclosure are described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings . it is to be understood that the detailed descriptions are presented for illustrative purposes only . any computer configuration and architecture satisfying the speed and interface requirements herein described may be suitable for implementing the system and method of various embodiments of the present disclosure . the system and method of the present invention may be implemented as a computer software program stored in a computer memory ( non - volatile ) and executable on one or more computers ( hardware or virtual ). in one embodiment , the computer software program may be configured to identify ( 1 ) the likely occurrence of one or more precursor activities that are related to one or more possible identified consequent events , ( 2 ) the increased likelihood of the occurrence of one or more of such identified consequent events , and ( 3 ) the general characteristics ( such as geographical area , time , target profile , and attack method ) associated with each such consequent event so identified as being likely to occur . one objective of the present invention is to automate the process by which the specialized knowledge of a subject matter expert ( sme ), memorialized in computer software program , may be used by the computer software program to examine available information and apply rules developed by the sme to identify possible precursor activities and possible consequent events , as to possible time and location . these identified activities and / or events may be brought to the attention of individuals who are without specialized training so that alarms and notifications may be made and other steps taken to prevent the occurrence of an identified consequent event or to minimize the adverse effects thereof . the process embodied by the present invention creates multiple precursor activity networks based upon relationships developed by smes , each related to a specific type of consequent event . as actual events unfold , these precursor activity networks are geospatially and temporally aligned and realigned in a systematic process by identifying the precursor activities in the various precursor activity networks that are consistent with actual events in accordance with the geospatial , temporal , and other precursor characteristics set by the sme . simplistically , the smes create a template of precursor activities along with relationship constraints including geospatial , temporal , and / or other elements , but without specification as to precise location and / or time of occurrence . these precursor activity networks are subsequently anchored in space and time based on the occurrence of actual events . the methodology may be analogized to that of assembling multiple puzzles piece - by - piece on a map . as actual events occur , additional pieces are added until pictures of evolving precursor activity networks and consequent events emerge overlaid on a geospatial region . the computer may be instructed that , when sufficient information has been gathered and embodied in a precursor activity network , the computer is to issue an alert or otherwise bring to the attention of an operator that a precursor activity network of critical significance exists . otherwise , the computer , upon instruction , will create and provide reports that show the status of its various precursor activity networks using such parameters as the operator may determine . referring now to fig1 , there is illustrated a representative logic diagram for sample consequent event , precursor activities , and precursor activity network . as shown in fig1 , representative actual events that satisfy the criteria for a precursor activity are shown . fig1 also shows representative geospatial and time relationships used to define whether or not satisfied precursor activities should be treated as part of the same precursor activity network . further , fig1 shows resulting instructions to be implemented by the computer as a result of a precursor activity network attaining a specified criteria . in this illustration colors may be used to indicate the relative weighting of each of the precursor activities should an actual event occur . referring again to fig1 , precursor activity 101 pertains to the recruitment of a terrorist suspect , and satisfactory events for precursor activity 101 include communication intercept and informant intelligence . precursor activity 101 should remain active for a period of , for example , 6 months and within a geographical range of , for example , 50 miles . precursor activity 103 pertains to the funding of a terrorist activity , and satisfactory events for precursor activity 101 include large cash deposit and money theft . precursor activity 103 should remain active for a period of , for example , 4 months and within a geographical range of , for example , 30 miles . precursor activity 105 pertains to target specific threats , and satisfactory events for precursor activity 105 include internet charter , informant intelligence , communication intercept , and voiced threats . precursor activity 105 should remain active for a period of , for example , 1 month and within a geographical range of , for example , 0 miles . precursor activity 107 pertains to general threats , and satisfactory events for precursor activity 101 include internet charter , informant intelligence , communication intercept , and voiced threats . precursor activity 107 should remain active for a period of , for example , 6 months and within a geographical range of , for example , 20 miles . precursor activity 109 pertains to improper access of building , and satisfactory events for precursor activity 109 include theft of uniforms or badges , and failure of alarm system . precursor activity 109 should remain active for a period of , for example , 1 months and within a geographical range of , for example , 0 miles . precursor activity 111 pertains to surveillance equipment , which may be monitored upon occurrence of precursor activity 103 . satisfactory events for precursor activity 111 include surveillance equipment purchase . precursor activity 111 should remain active for a period of , for example , 3 months and within a geographical range of , for example , 30 miles . precursor activity 113 pertains to bomb making equipment , which may be monitored upon occurrence of precursor activity 103 . satisfactory events for precursor activity 113 include purchase of fertilizer , purchase of explosives , and purchase of certain electronics . precursor activity 113 should remain active for a period of , for example , 2 months and within a geographical range of , for example , 30 miles . precursor activity 115 pertains to surveillance , which may be monitored upon occurrence of precursor activity 101 or precursor activity 111 . satisfactory events for precursor activity 113 include photography , alarm system probes , and questions to employees . precursor activity 115 should remain active for a period of , for example , 2 months and within a geographical range of , for example , 0 miles . precursor activity 117 pertains to bomb manufacturing , which may be monitored upon occurrence of precursor activity 113 . satisfactory events for precursor activity 117 include purchase of fertilizer , purchase of explosives , and purchase of certain electronics . precursor activity 115 should remain active for a period of , for example , 2 . 5 months and within a geographical range of , for example , 10 miles . precursor activity 119 pertains to action , which may be monitored upon occurrence of precursor activities 115 , 117 , 105 , 109 , and 109 . satisfactory events for precursor activity 117 include suspicious package at potential target . as shown in fig1 , precursor activities 101 through 119 form a precursor activity network . each of the precursor activities 101 through 119 may be associated with a weighting factor , which may be designated by an sme , in this case by assigning a color . upon occurrence of one or more of precursor activities 101 through 119 , the system of the present invention may continuously calculate an indicator value using the weighting factors of the precursor activities 101 through 119 . once the indicator value exceeds a pre - defined threshold value , the system of the present invention may generate an alert signal indicating that consequent event 121 , such as hotel bombing , is likely to occur . below table 1 illustrates another exemplary precursor activities network . as shown , the precursor activities may be recruitment , funding , general threats , target - specific threats , attempts to gain unauthorized access , id theft , theft or purchase of surveillance equipment , theft or purchase of bomb making equipment , surveillance , evidence of bomb manufacturing . each of the precursor activities may be associated therewith spatial and time relations . for example , the spatial relation of the “ evidence of bomb manufacturing ” precursor activity is a maximum of 10 miles distance from a consequent event ; and the temporal relation of the “ evidence of bomb manufacturing ” precursor activity is a maximum of 1 month time before a consequent event . further , each of the precursor activities in this illustration is assigned a numerical weighting factor . for example , a weighting factor of 70 is assigned to the “ evidence of bomb manufacturing ” precursor activity . referring to fig2 , there is illustrated a flow diagram for a method for providing an alert prior to the occurrence of an actual event , in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention . the method may be embodied in a precursor activity network , such as that show in fig1 , and implementable by a computer software platform . as shown in fig2 , the method begins from step 201 , in which an actual event occurs and is reported to a computer system configured to carry out the method . in step 203 , the actual event may be classified in accordance with various different event types ( e . g ., planning , funding , specific threat , surveillance , equipment / material acquisition , device creation , etc .). in step 205 , the actual event may be associated with key assets , such as a location information of the actual event , captured by a geographic information system ( gis ). in step 207 , the actual event may be compared with a plurality of precursor activities . in one embodiment , a network of the precursor activities may be prepared and stored in a computer memory as a simulation / analysis database 210 by , for example , one or more subject matter experts , prior to the occurrence of the actual event , and data of the precursor activities may be retrieved by the computer from database 210 so as to perform the comparison in step 207 . further , in step 209 , the computer system determines whether the actual event constitutes a possible match for one or more of the precursor activities in the precursor activities network stored in database 210 . if the actual event does not constitute a possible match , then the actual event is ignored in step 211 . in step 213 , if the actual event constitutes a possible match , then the precursor activities network in database 210 is updated by adding the actual event to database 210 , and an updated simulation / analysis database 220 is stored in a computer memory . the computer system continues to monitor actual events occurred at different times and locations as an ongoing analysis process in step 215 . in step 217 , if one of the qualifying actual event remains inactive in the precursor activities network beyond a predefined time period , for example , the computer system then removes the inactive actual event from the precursor activities network . in one embodiment , each precursor activity in the precursor activities network may be associated with a number counter which may be used to count the number of active qualifying actual events . as the monitoring process continues , the computer system calculates an indicator value based on the number of active precursor activities and the weighting factors ( see table 1 above ) associated with the active precursor activities . in one embodiment , the indicator value may be calculated by summing the weighting factors of all triggered precursor activities . in step 219 , if the total indicator value exceeds the event alert preset value ( in this particular case , 100 ), then an alerting notice is sent to a system operator indicating an increased likelihood that a consequent event would follow . in step 221 , the alerting notice is displayed to the system operator , showing a listing of ranking for the precursor activities network , selected precursor activities in timeline , and / or the geospatial influence zone of the precursor activities network . in sum , each precursor activity within the precursor activity network for a representative consequent event can be identified , along with the maximum time and distance set by the sme for the occurrence of the precursor activity to be related to the consequent event . in addition , the criteria for determining whether an alert should trigger a precursor activity ( alert type and keyword contained in the text accompanying the alert ) is provided . any confirmatory action that is to be automatically initiated to determine if the precursor activity should be triggered is also identified . finally , each precursor activity is assigned a weighting factor . the weighting factors of all triggered precursor activities are summed , and , if the total exceeds the event alert preset value , the system operator is provided notice of the increased likelihood of the consequent event along with a summary of the alerts that triggered precursor activities in the precursor activity network . referring to fig3 , there is illustrated a schematic block diagram showing components of an event system , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention . the event system includes a precursor activity network database 309 , a computer simulation / analysis program , and a simulation / analysis manager 315 . precursor activity network database 309 may be constructed by performing blocks 301 through 307 . specifically , in block 301 , an sme may identify precursor activities and consequent events . in block 302 , the precursor activities and consequent events are formatted as elements in logic networks ( precursor activity networks ) that embody the geospatial , time , and / or other relationships of individual precursor activities to each other . a relation is also established between the precursor activities and the consequent events that they presage , all as specified by sme - created rules . precursor activities may include the presence of a known individual with acknowledged skills . when possible , the characteristics of critical infrastructure and key assets ( ci / kr ) associated with precursor activities and consequent events are identified ( e . g ., hotels , chemical suppliers , etc .). in block 305 , the elements of actual events that cause the criteria for a precursor activity to have been satisfied are identified ( e . g ., types of suspicious activity reports ( sars ), which are a method adopted by state and federal government agencies to document activities that may relate to illegal activities ). once an actual event that satisfies the criteria established for a precursor activity has occurred , the information relating to the actual event and the satisfaction of the precursor activity are recorded in a database in block 307 , using a suitable computer simulation / analysis program 311 . in this embodiment , the priority 5 touch assisted command and control system ( taccs ™) unity sm simulation / analysis manager 315 may be used . at the time the criteria for a precursor activity have been satisfied by an actual event , that precursor activity is associated with the geospatial location of the actual event ; and the precursor activity and associated actual event may be displayed using a suitable gis viewer , such as taccs ™. once the criteria for a precursor activity have been satisfied , the precursor activity network containing that precursor activity remains active in the simulation / analysis program 311 until the geospatial , temporal , and / or other relationships that exist between the precursor activities in the precursor activity network can no longer be satisfied . behavior rules that have been developed by smes or others may be assigned to each precursor activity and to each precursor activity network to stipulate the action to be taken by the simulation / analysis program 311 upon the occurrence of an actual event that satisfies the criteria for any precursor activity and upon the occurrence of sufficient events such that the criteria for a critical number of precursor activities within a particular precursor activity network have been satisfied . such behavior rules may include the following : a . whether or not there is an active precursor activity network containing the precursor activity , which embodies geospatial , temporal , and / or other relationships that exist between the precursor activities such that the precursor activity should be treated as part of the active precursor network ; and b . whether or not the satisfaction of the criteria for a particular precursor activity represents sufficient progress towards a consequent event , such that operator notification is warranted based on the number of precursor activities the criteria for which have been satisfied . a . notice of the existence of an active precursor activity network , including the extent of progress toward a consequent event ; and b . alerts indicating the progress toward a consequent event , including : ( i ) the location of actual events that have satisfied the criteria of precursor activities ; and ( ii ) critical infrastructure and key assets associated with the precursor activities ; and ( iii ) consequent events that meet the established geospatial range criteria . fig4 illustrates a graphic user interface on a display panel , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention , showing an elevated level of progress toward a consequent event and the location of the satisfied precursor activities . fig5 illustrates a graphic user interface on a display panel , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention , showing the status of a precursor activity network with three precursor activities having been satisfied . fig6 illustrates a graphic user interface on a display panel , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention , showing a search for critical infrastructure and key assets associated with the consequent event presaged by the satisfied precursor activities . fig7 illustrates a graphic user interface on a display panel , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention , showing the location of a highly likely consequent event based on the satisfied precursor activities . advantages of the present invention includes , but are not limited to : 1 . the task of identifying significant patterns of events within large amounts of data has been automated , not by examining data and looking for possible patterns on a case - by - case basis , but by establishing all patterns identified by the community of subject matter experts and associating actual events with these patterns as the actual events occur . 2 . by using communities of subject matter experts to create rules that define patterns , and using new experience to refine the rules and thus better define the patterns , the process or method by which data are sought may thus be made more “ expert .” because the process , being automated , can be made widely available , the higher levels of analyses that can be achieved through continuous refinement will also be made widely available . 3 . by using one or more computers to automate the search for precursor activities , the process of identifying evolving consequent events and providing alerts to users can be achieved on a real or near real time basis . hereinafter , an exemplary implementation of the present invention is described in detail . research shows that terrorist activities are not random activities as initially perceived . there are similar key indicators across the multiple terrorist events that if tracked and mapped , point to where the terrorist event occurred . the research identifies a core concept that terrorist tend to think globally , but act locally . meaningful key indicators for a select region can be tracked based on a range for how far a terrorist is probably travelling and the time for how long an indicator would stay relevant . for example , an analyst tracks a potential hotel bombing and alerts come in of suspicious events , such as , explosive material stolen , uniforms stolen , and known recruitment of a fringe group occurring , which all have ranges associated therewith . fig8 illustrates a graphic user interface showing an overlap 810 between ranges 820 of suspicious events in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention . if there is an overlap between the ranges of the suspicious events , the overlap area becomes a high target location . while human behavior is unpredictable at best , this type of analysis provides a more thorough approach for processing what seemed to be initial independent intelligence spots . it also provides a method for tracking intelligence spots that may have occurred 6 months ago , but is still relevant to a particular terrorist type of event . classification ( indicator )— a specific type of event that an intelligence spot can be associated with so that it can be cataloged . precursor activity — a specific type of activity that takes into account the weight of a threat , the timeframe for the threat , the distance of the threat for each classified intelligence spot . threat value — a way to weight the importance of the intelligence . the higher the threat value the stronger the intelligence , for example , 0 - 50 ( blue ); 51 - 100 ( orange ); 101 + ( red ). precursor activity network ( pan )— a profile of a specific type of criminal activity made up of specific categories that typically lead up to that criminal activity taking place . automated alert analysis — based on a developed precursor activity network , a warning panel illustrating the likelihood of the potential criminal activity . step 1 — identify a precursor activity network ( pan ). pan is a specific list of terrorist events that an intelligence team is interested in tracking . these events in the system can be created by the analyst . potential networks could be , for example , station bombing , train bombing , railway bombing ( track , bridges , and tunnels ), and deranged individual . step 1 . a — identify classifications and categories . for each precursor activity network , classifications and categories ( key indicators ) need to be identified . this can be done either by an agencies subject matter expert or from collected research . once these have been identified then their threat value , time , and distance can be updated and changed by the analysis based on the differing precursor activity network . a precursor activity report of , for example , station bombing is given in below table 2 . the system of the present invention receives alerts from an intelligence team . each of the alerts is given an alert type and a geographic location . the alerts may be basic emails with text . the geographic location of the alerts may be provided by the analyst . it is noted that an alert can also be created manually by the analyst if new intelligence is received , but it is not connected to the system . the alerts may be processed according to the following procedure : 3 . the step may vary based on filters established , but assuming no filters , review the title of the alert , and if it meets a potential criteria , select the alert to review . 4 . once the alert has been selected , click the blue gear box on the bottom left to edit the alert . 5 . once the editable alert has open , select the edit classification button to open the activity classification to categorize the alert . fig9 illustrates a graphic user interface after the edit classification button is clicked , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention . if at any point an alert needs its category or classification updated , that alert can be updated by following the same process . also , it is recommended that the analyst perform this task daily at a set time each day , except for new alerts that need to be manually typed in . those exceptional alerts should be done as required . step 2 — monitor automated alert analysis panel . once the alert has been categorized as a potential key indicator , the system begins processing the alert automatically based on the developed pan perimeters . once a minimum of two ( 2 ) alerts have created an overlap , that pan appears with a severity color and the alerts that triggered the pan for review . fig1 illustrates a graphic user interface of the pan triggered by the alerts , in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention . the color indicates the severity of the potential incident based on the incoming intelligence . the color cod may be : blue —( 0 - 50 ), indicators are present but the threat is minimal ( low range ); orange —( 51 - 100 ), indicators are present but the threat is stronger ( mid range ); and red —( 101 +), strong evidence that an event could occur ( high range ). once pan has entered into the automated alert analysis the following procedure is followed . 1 . when a pan has entered the automated alert analysis : a ) if it is orange / blue , the analyst notifies the inspector for the intelligence team immediately via email with the pan and the associated alerts ; b ) if it is red , the inspector is notified immediately via phone . if the inspector is not available , then the officer in charge for the day is notified . the next steps may include : i ) notification to , for example , apd command staff ; corporate ; tsoc / jttf / hsoc ; and sat coordinators to notify state and local officials ; and ii ) actions to , for example , dispatch special operations ( k - 9 ); extend patrol to 12 hour shifts ; daily briefings of events . 2 . since the weighting of an alert can span a period of time , each daily notification to the inspector includes whether the pan has risen , lowered , or that the threat is no longer active . in view of the foregoing , it can be seen that the present disclosure provides a system and a method to automate the search for precursor activities , identify evolving consequent events , and provide alerts to users in real time or near real time , thereby supporting the decision process . it is to be understood that embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail for exemplary and illustrative purposes only . various modifications and changes may be made by persons skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined in the appended claims .

6Physics

an embodiment of a magnetic head for a magnetic disk unit having a disk of a diameter of 14 inch ( revolution speed : 3600 r . p . m .) according to the present invention will now be described by referring to fig2 . in this embodiment shown in fig2 one surface of a disk 5 as described in ibm journal of research and development , november 1974 , pp . 489 - 505 , particularly p . 495 is divided into inner tracks and outer tracks to undergo read and write operation performed by two read - write heads 20 and 30 mounted on one head arm 10 . half of the tracks located at the outer side ( not illustrated ) undergo the read and write operation performed by the head 20 , and half of the tracks located at the inner side undergo the read and write operation performed by the head 30 . each of the heads 20 and 30 has a basic structure as shown in fig1 a and 1b . as described in jp - b - no . 59 - 35088 , each of the heads 20 and 30 has a write head and a read head disposed at one end of a slider 40 . the write head has a magnetic circuit 50 and coils 60 as shown in fig1 a . an enlarged view of a part of the read head is shown in fig1 b . in the read head , an mr element 90 including an mr film 70 having thickness of t mr and a bias film 80 is put between shields 100 . the magnetic circuit 50 and the shield 100 have a part in common . the head of this structure is fabricated by using the same method as that described in jp - b - no . 59 - 35088 . as the above described bias film 80 , a titanium film having thickness of approximately 0 . 15 μm is deposited by using the conventional evaporation method to constitute a shunt biased mr element . the heads are protected by a protection film 110 . as a result of application of the present invention , the thickness of the mr film 70 in the head 20 is made different from that in the head 30 . it is preferred that the ratio of the thickness t mr1 of the mr film of the inner head to the thickness t mr2 of the mr film of the outer head is essentially equal to the ratio between the values of magnetization strength remained on the disk . assuming that the recording wavelength at the central track ( i . e ., a track having the strongest magnetization left and undergoing the read operation performed by the inner head ), the disk film thickness at the central track , the recording wavelength at the outermost track and the disk film thickness at the outermost track are respectively λ 1 ` , t 1 , λ 2 and t 2 , the above described ratio is attained by using the expression further , a circuit for driving the mr head used in this embodiment is shown in fig6 . in the drive circuit , the internal head 20 or the outer head 30 is so selected by an analog switch 120 as to be connected to the input of an amplifier 130 . a circuit 140 is used to let flow a bias current through an mr head . ( the bias current is common to a sense current in case of the shunt bias method .) when the outer head 20 has been selected , a switch 150 included in the circuit 140 is closed to increase the bias current so that an optimum bias magnetic field may be applied even if the mr film is thick . when the internal head 30 has been selected , the switch 150 is opened to supply a bias magnetic field suitable to a head having a thin mr film . frequency characteristics of the magnetic disk used in the present embodiment were measured by using a conventional inductive head . results of the measurement are shown in fig5 . in fig5 the difference in disk velocity of the output amplitude has already been compensated . the central track corresponds to the outermost track read by the inner magnetic head . if this magnetic disk is used with the mfm ( modified fm ) modulation method , amplitude values at densities indicated by arrows of fig5 are reproduced for respective data . for the data pattern &# 34 ; 1010 &# 34 ;, the recording density becomes the lowest and hence the strongest magnetization remains . the ratio of the output of the central track to that of the outermost track can be regarded as the corresponding strength ratio of residual magnetization of the disk . accordingly , the outer head undergoes a magnetic field which is 3 . 7 db ( 1 . 5 times ) stronger than that of the inner head . in the present embodiment , therefore , the thickness of the mr film of the outer head was made 1 . 5 times larger than that of the inner head . to be concrete , the thickness of the mr film of the inner head was defined to be 320 å , and the thickness of the mr film of the outer head was defined to be 480 å . the bias current was also changed between 14 ma to be let flow when the internal head was selected and 21 ma to be let flow when the outer head was selected . in this way , the sensitivity of the mr head was improved at the inner tracks , while the distortion of the reproduced waveform was prevented at the outer tracks . in this embodiment , the mr head was driven by a constant current , and the bias current was changed over depending upon whether the head is inner one or outer one . however , it is evident that similar effects can be obtained even when the mr head is driven by constant voltage and the applied voltage to the outer head is made higher to let flow a larger bias current than that of the inner head . further , in case of a shunt biased mr head , it is evident that a suitable bias magnetic field can be applied even when the shunt film of the outer head is made thicker than that of the inner head to let flow a larger bias current . when another bias method such as a method of disposing a permanent magnet film near the mr film is employed , it is evident that it is sufficient to make the permanent magnet film of the outer head thick or make the residual magnetic flux density br of the outer head larger than that of the inner head . when a bias method of disposing mr films asymmetrically in a gap formed by shield at both sides , i . e ., of disposing mr films closer to shield located at either side is used as a further bias method , it is evident that a suitable bias magnetic field is obtained by disposing the mr film of the outer head closer to the shield film than the mr film of the inner head . in the present embodiment heretofore described , one surface of a disk undergoes the read and write operation performed by two heads , i . e ., the inner head and the outer head . even when three or more heads are used , it is evidently sufficient to make the mr film of the inner head thin and make the mr film of the outer head thicker . the present invention has heretofore been described by referring to a magnetic disk of 14 inch . however , a floppy disk drive using a similar read - write method can be considered in the same way . that is to say , it is evidently sufficient to make the film of an inner head thin and make the film of an outer head thick . further , the mr head in the present embodiment is biased by the shunt bias method . it is also evident that the effects of the present invention are obtained independently of the bias method used . in accordance with the present invention , the mr film of an mr head is made thin for inner tracks where the recording density is high and weak signal magnetization remains on the magnetic disk , thus high sensitivity being maintained . meanwhile , the mr film is made thick for outer tracks where relatively strong signal magnetization remains , thus linearity being assured .

6Physics

in two preferred embodiments the invention is configured in the shape of a tobacco pipe and smoker &# 39 ; s cigarette . the examples detailed below show fig1 and 2 as a bowl pipe and fig3 and 4 as a cylinder pipe . with reference to fig1 and fig2 , the bowl pipe configuration includes ; a bowl ( 1 ), a stem ( 2 ) and mouthpiece ( 7 ). an internal cylinder ( 8 ) inside the bowl , houses a dual fan mechanism comprising air extractor blades ( 9 ) and active substance extractor blades ( 10 ) which consist of fan blades extending away from central axles ( 11 ) and ( 12 ) in a perpendicular direction ; the axles are connected to magnets ( 13 ) and ( 14 ). the said blades can be tilted to provide the appropriate level of air resistance when air is drawn through the inward air channel ( 3 ) which causes air extractor blades ( 9 ) and axle ( 11 ) to spin in compartment ( a ), and in tandem , axle ( 12 ) and fan blades ( 10 ) turn to generate a resulting level of air propulsion in compartment ( b ) directing air to the user &# 39 ; s nostrils via external air channel ( 4 ) and outlet nozzle ( 5 ). ambient air is drawn through mouthpiece ( 7 ) and into the user &# 39 ; s lungs and within funnel 20 or external air channel ( 6 ) it is possible to include a replaceable air fitter ( made of a reasonably dense but still penetrable substance ) with the potential to remove some large air pollution or naturally occurring particulates . in order for air to reach the mouthpiece the air has traveled from inward ventilation holes ( 3 ), into compartment ( a ), then through air extractor blades ( 9 ) and into funnel ( 20 ), the air is then drawn into external air channel ( 6 ); when this airflow contacts the internal blades ( 9 ) in compartment ( a ) they spin , turning axle ( 11 ) and magnet ( 13 ). magnets ( 13 ) and ( 14 ) have a magnetic connection across an impervious membrane ( 15 ), ensuring fan blades ( 9 ) and ( 10 ) and axles ( 11 ) and ( 12 ) move simultaneously without air mixing across the said compartments . magnet ( 13 ) sits on the upstream end of axle ( 11 ). at the top of the bowl is a removable cover ( 16 ) with screw - cap thread ( 17 ). under the removable cover is a third compartment ( 18 ) for housing an active substance ( 19 ). an inward flow of ambient air molecules is drawn into compartment ( 18 ) via inward ventilating holes ( 22 ), this activity allows aromas from the said active substance to be combined with the said ambient air ; these holes may also indicate when the active substance expiry date is reached , through an oxidation process that over a prescribed time changes color to indicate when the active substance replacement is necessary . when active substance extractor blades ( 10 ) turn in response to the movement of air extractor blades ( 9 ), it creates a partial vacuum drawing ambient air down through inward ventilation holes ( 22 ) and the third compartment ( 18 ). the active substance is then drawn through permeable gauze membrane ( 23 ) into compartment ( b ) until it is propelled by ( 10 ) and then funneled by ( 21 ) into external air channel ( 4 ), exiting the unit via an outlet nozzle ( 5 ). the base of the funnel ( 21 ) contains a roller bearing ( 21 b ) through which axle ( 12 ) can turn . magnet ( 14 ) sits below roller bearing ( 21 b ) on the end of axle ( 12 ). when the active substance is expelled out of outlet nozzle ( 5 ) it is concentrated into a thin column of air and directed by this nozzle into the user &# 39 ; s nostrils . a detachable directional component ( acting as an air channel extension ) may be attached to the nozzle to alter the angle at which air is directed into the nose . with reference to fig3 and 4 , this type of cylinder pipe configuration includes ; a cylinder ( 25 ), a mouthpiece ( 30 ) and removable cover ( 45 ). inside cylinder ( 25 ) are three compartments ( c ), ( d ) and ( 39 ) housing dual fan mechanisms ( 31 ) an air extractor and ( 32 ) an active substance extractor , with blades extending away from central axles ( 33 ) and ( 34 ) in a perpendicular direction ; the axles are connected to magnets ( 35 ) and ( 36 ). the said blades can be tilted to provide the appropriate level of air resistance and resulting axle spin in compartment ( c ), and in tandem the appropriate level of air propulsion in compartment ( d ) directing air into the user &# 39 ; s nostrils . ambient air is drawn through mouthpiece ( 30 ) and into the user &# 39 ; s lungs and within the said mouthpiece it is possible to include a replaceable air filter ( made of a reasonably dense but still penetrable substance ) with the potential to remove some large air pollution or naturally occurring particulates . access to the replaceable filter would be via a detachable mouthpiece ( 30 ) with screw thread attaching to the cylinder ( 25 ). in order for air to reach the mouthpiece , the air has traveled from one or more inward ventilation holes ( 26 ) into compartment ( c ), through air extractor blades ( 31 ) and into funnel ( 29 ); when this airflow contacts the air extractor blades ( 31 ) in compartment ( c ) they spin , turning axle ( 33 ) and magnet ( 35 ). magnets ( 35 ) and ( 36 ) have a magnetic connection across an impervious membrane ( 37 ), ensuring the air extractor blades ( 31 ) and active substance extractor blades ( 32 ) move simultaneously without air mixing between compartments ( c ) and ( d ). at the opposite end to the mouthpiece ( 30 ) of cylinder ( 25 ) there is a removable cylinder cover ( 45 ) with inward ventilation holes ( 42 ) and screw cap thread ( 38 ). inside cylinder cover ( 45 ) there is a third compartment ( 39 ) to house an active substance ( 40 ). the end of cylinder cover ( 45 ) may be transparent to identify the expiry date or time , of the active substance . ambient air is drawn through inward ventilation holes ( 42 ) and then passes into compartment ( 39 ) and over the active substance ( 40 ), then through a permeable gauze membrane ( 43 ) and into chamber ( d ). within the cylinder cover ( 45 ) and third compartment ( 39 ) there is a perforated inner casing ( 46 ) for housing the active substance ( 40 ). the said perforated inner casing holds the active substance in place and allows aromas from the said active substance to be easily combined with air molecules entering via the inward ventilation holes ( 42 ). when active substance extractor blades ( 32 ) turn in response to the movement of air extractor blades ( 31 ), it creates a partial vacuum drawing ambient air down through inward ventilation holes ( 42 ) and the third compartment ( 39 ). the active substance is then drawn through permeable gauze membrane ( 43 ) and into compartment ( d ), until it is propelled by ( 32 ) and then funneled by ( 41 ) into external air channel ( 27 ), exiting the unit via an outlet nozzle ( 28 ). the base of the funnel ( 41 ) contains a roller bearing ( 41 d ) through which axle ( 34 ) can turn . magnet ( 36 ) is located to the right of ( 41 d ) on the end of axle ( 34 ). when the active substance is expelled out of external air channel ( 27 ) and outlet nozzle ( 28 ), it is concentrated into a thin column of air that is directed by the nozzle into the user &# 39 ; s nostrils . a detachable directional component may be attached to the nozzle to after the angle at which air is directed into the user &# 39 ; s nose . aspects of the present invention have been described by way of example only and it should be appreciated that modifications and additions may be made thereto without departing from the scope thereof as defined in the appended claims .

0Human Necessities

referring now to the drawings and to fig1 in particular , there is shown a portable drawing box constructed in accordance with the invention and designated generally by the letter b . the box b is constructed in a rigid form from suitable sheet material such as metal , plastic or the like and comprises a rectangular main housing 11 . the housing 11 includes spaced - apart top and bottom walls 12 , 13 , spaced - apart side walls 15 , 16 defining an interior 17 having access openings 18 , 19 at each end . as shown best in fig2 the box interior 17 is divided into a pair of compartments 21 , 22 each of which are associated with a respective one of the access openings 18 , 19 . preferably , partition means are provided within the housing interior 17 for defining the compartments 21 , 22 which , in the illustrated embodiment , comprises a wall 20 formed integrally with the housing 11 . a roll of writing paper in strip form and designated generally by the letter p is disposed within compartment 22 the free end of which extends through an elongated , transversely extending slot 24 in the top wall 12 adjacent the access opening 18 . if desired , the strip p may be provided with longitudinally spaced perforations p1 , p2 , etc . to permit successive portions of the strip to be removed after use . as can be seen in fig1 , the paper strip p may be advanced in overlying relationship with the top wall 12 in the direction indicated by the arrow a , the top wall serving as a supporting surface when the exposed portion of the strip is to be used for writing , sketching or the like . it will be noted that the access openings 18 , 19 are adapted to be closed by flaps 26 , 27 respectively preferably formed integrally with the housing 11 . a transversely extending bar member 28 is mounted on the top wall 12 adjacent the access opening 19 and the paper strip p is advanced in the direction of the arrow a in underlying relationship therewith . the bar member 28 is formed of suitable material such as plastic so as to resiliently engage the underlying strip for retaining the exposed strip portion in the selected position . the member 28 is provided with a serrated side edge 28a against which the used strip portion may be torn away such as along perforations p2 as shown best in fig7 . for further retaining the strip p during the tear - off operation , the member 28 is provided with an l - shaped slot 29 adjacent one end which defines a flexible tab 31 having a guide dimple 31a . in the relaxed condition , the tab 31 permits the paper strip p to be easily advanced under the bar 28 . as shown best in fig2 , ready accessibility to writing or sketching instruments such as crayons is obtained by the provision of means for supporting a plurality of such crayons within the main housing 11 . more specifically , a secondary housing 32 is provided having spaced - apart top and bottom walls 33 , 34 , spaced - apart side walls 36 , 37 and an end wall 38 defining an interior 39 . the secondary housing 32 includes an access opening 41 at the other end to permit the insertion of a plurality of crayons preferably of various colors designated generally by the letter c within the housing interior 39 . the secondary housing 32 is adapted for snug - fitting accommodation within the other compartment 21 of the main housing 11 in a stored condition . thus , lifting of the closure flap 27 permits access to the crayons c or the secondary housing 32 may be withdrawn from the main housing 11 as shown in fig5 for even more ready access to the crayons c stored therein . referring now specifically to fig7 when a used end portion is to be torn from the strip p , the strip is advanced in the direction of the arrow a until the line of perforations p2 coincide with the serrated edge 28a of the member 28 . using a finger f guidably positioned on tab 31 by means of the dimple 31a , downward pressure is applied to the tab for retaining engagement with the underlying strip p . at this time , the used forward end portion of strip p may be torn away as shown in fig7 and discarded . referring now to fig4 , there are shown one - piece blanks d , e suitably cut and scored from which the main and secondary housings 11 , 32 respectively may be formed . as shown in fig4 the blank d includes top and bottom walls 12 , 13 , side walls 15 , 16 and end walls 26 , 27 , wall 12 containing slot 24 . side walls 15 , 16 are provided with corner tabs 15a , 15b and 16a , 16b respectively . bottom wall 13 includes glue tab 13a and partition 20 having glue tab 20a . end walls 26 , 27 include integral tabs 26a , 27a respectively and slot cut 26b is provided along the intersection of tab 26a and end wall 26 . wall 25 extends adjacent bottom wall 13 and is provided with glue tabs 25a , 25b and tab 25c . suitable fold lines are provided as shown . fig6 shows the integrally formed blank e for the secondary housing 32 . the blank e comprises top and bottom walls 33 , 34 , side walls 36 , 37 and end wall 38 provided with glue tab 38a and corner tabs 38b , 38c . top wall 33 includes glue tab 33a . as referred to heretofore , the box b is displayed for sale in the form shown in fig1 , no external packaging being required . in this form , the paper strip p is advanced over the housing top wall 12 and under the bar 28 to expose a portion of the strip p for writing and / or sketching . the secondary housing 32 may be withdrawn from the main housing 11 after lifting the end flap 27 for ready access as shown in fig5 . after use of the exposed strip portion , tear - off of the used strip portion is accomplished as previously described to expose the next strip portion between the perforations for use .

0Human Necessities

the present invention is a modular table system that allows a wide variety of table designs to be constructed from a plurality of modular components . the system allows the modular assembly of office desks / tables where the tables can be interconnected and accessory components can be attached thereto . the system uses mechanical connections to attach legs and table - to - table connectors , including connectors that allow attachment of privacy screens and modesty panels . in its most basic form , the modular table system is a table module that includes a generally planar horizontal work top ( also referred to herein as a table top ) connected to four legs using leg attachment structures . each of the leg attachment structures includes a connection plate attached to the end of a table leg and a cap that is secured to the bottom surface of the table top at one of the four corners . the connector plate is preferably welded to the end of the leg and the connection plate is fastened to the cap using well know fastening devices , including different types of screws or bolts . the caps have a base plate with two surfaces and four sides and are substantially rectangular in shape , preferably square . the top surface contacts the bottom surface of the table top and is substantially flat except for four posts near the corners that extend away from the surface and four recesses . the posts are inserted into holes drilled in the bottom surface ( also referred to herein as the undersurface ) of the table top to prevent the cap from moving out of position . mounting screws are then inserted in a plurality of apertures in the cap and tightened to secure the cap to the bottom surface of the table top . a recess is formed in the top surface of the cap on each of the four sides . as more fully described below , these recesses receive horizontal connectors that are used to connect two table modules together . the bottom surface of the cap has a perimetrical edge that extends away from the bottom surface and forms a cavity . the cavity is designed to receive the plate attached to the end of the leg . the base plate of the cap and the plate on the leg each have a plurality of corresponding apertures that are used to fasten the leg to the cap . the caps are located at the corners of the table top so that two sides of the cap are located along two adjacent sides of the table top . the recesses in the sides of the cap receive connectors that are used to attach adjoining table tops . the connectors are rectangular and substantially flat with one or more apertures on each end . these apertures correspond to apertures in the connection plate and the base plate of the cap and are used to secure the connector in the recess . the connectors allow the user to add any number of table tops together to form a large table surface in a wide variety of sizes and shapes . before two tables are joined , the connectors are inserted in the recesses of the caps of one of the tables and secured using fasteners , typically screws or bolts . the two tables are then positioned next to each other so that the recesses in the caps of the two tables are aligned . the tables are then moved together so that the unattached ends of the connectors are inserted into the recesses of the caps on the opposing table . the apertures are aligned and fasteners installed to secure the connector to the second table . the adjacent tables form a continuous table top surface . additional tables can be added as desired by the user using the connectors and following the same procedure . the modular nature of the system and the various components , including modesty panels , privacy panels and the like , allow the construction of various arrangements of tables and desks without having to maintain an inventory of different pre - constructed furniture configurations . the cap component and the accessory connectors and brackets allow modular assembly of different components to form user selected configurations that can be easily modified . the invention is further described with reference to the accompanying drawings and photographs . fig1 is a perspective view of the bottom of a table module 10 showing the connection of the legs 20 to the undersurface 11 of the generally planar horizontal work top , i . e ., the table top 12 . the legs 20 have a connection plate 22 on one end , which is attached to a cap structure 14 ( also referred to as “ the cap ”) that is secured to the undersurface 11 of the table top 12 at each corner . the table legs 20 and plates 22 are preferably made of metal and welded together . however , legs 20 and plates 22 made of plastic or composite materials are also within the scope of the invention and for these embodiments , the plate 22 can be attached to the leg 20 using an adhesive or mechanical fastening device , such as screws or clips . the leg 20 and cap 22 can also be formed as a single structure using an extrusion or molding method . the table top 12 can have one or more openings 15 that can be used for the passage of cables and electrical power cords . when not in use , the openings 15 can be sealed with removable filler plates 13 ( fig1 ). fig2 is a photograph showing the undersurface 11 of the table top 12 with holes 18 that do not pass through to the top surface of the table top 12 . these holes 18 are aligned with and used for receiving the posts 16 that extend from the surface of the cap 14 . after the posts 16 are positioned in the holes 18 , the cap 14 is secured to the undersurface 11 of the table top 12 with screws 17 ( see fig1 ). fig3 is a perspective , exploded view of a table leg 20 and the leg attachment structure ( i . e ., the connection plate 22 and the cap 14 ). the connection plate 22 is attached to the leg 20 . after the cap 14 is secured to the undersurface 11 of the table top 12 , the connection plate 22 is attached to the cap 14 with screws 26 , which pass through unthreaded apertures 24 in the plate 22 and threaded into tapped ( i . e ., threaded ) apertures 31 in the cap 14 . the plate 22 also has other unthreaded apertures 28 that are used to attach horizontal connectors 30 , 34 as discussed in more detail below with respect to fig5 and 6 . the cap 14 also has a perimetrical side wall 38 that corresponds to the dimensions of the connection plate 22 and secures the plate 22 in position . fig4 is a photograph showing a leg 20 attached to the undersurface 11 of a table top 12 by connecting the connector plate 22 to the cap 14 using hex socket screws 26 . other types of screws and bolts can also be used . in preferred embodiments , screws 26 are used and the apertures 24 ( fig3 ) in the connector plate 22 are beveled so that the head of the screw 26 is even with or below the surface of the plate 22 as shown in fig4 . this figure also shows how the cap 14 and the recess 32 are aligned with the edge of the table top 12 . when two table modules 10 are joined , the recess 32 is used to connect the two table modules 10 as described below with respect to fig5 and 6 . fig5 is a top perspective view of a table leg 20 with a leg attachment structure ( i . e ., a connection plate 22 and cap 14 ) connected to a second leg attachment structure by a top horizontal connector 30 and a bottom horizontal connector 34 . the top connector 30 is inserted into the recess 32 after the caps 14 are attached to the undersurface 11 of a table top 12 and the threaded apertures 37 in the top connector 30 are aligned with the unthreaded apertures 28 , 35 in the connector plate 22 and the cap 14 . fig6 is a bottom perspective view of the table leg 20 and two leg attachment structures shown in fig5 . the bottom horizontal connector 34 is positioned over the connector plate 22 on one side so that a pair of unthreaded apertures 28 in the connector plate 22 aligns with the unthreaded apertures 39 in the bottom connector 34 . on the other side , a leg with a connector plate is not connected to the cap 14 and the end of the bottom connector 34 has a member 36 that extends upwardly and offsets the bottom connector 34 from the surface of the cap 14 . this allows the surface of the bottom connector 34 to remain parallel with the surface of the connector plate 22 . when a connector plate 22 is connected to the cap 14 on both ends of the bottom connector 34 , the bottom connector 34 is turned over so that the member 36 extends away from the connector plates 22 . the bottom horizontal connector 34 is positioned over the cap 14 and the unthreaded apertures 39 are aligned with the unthreaded apertures 35 in the cap 14 . four screws 33 pass through unthreaded apertures 39 , 28 , 35 and are screwed into the threaded apertures 37 in the top connector 30 . after the screws 33 are tightened , the two adjacent table modules 10 are securely connected together . the top and bottom horizontal connectors 30 , 34 allow various arrangements of multiple tables to be connected . fig7 and 8 show a table module 10 with a vertical connection bracket 40 connected to a cap 14 . the connecting end 44 of the bracket 40 forms a right angle and is secured to the cap 14 by a pair of screws 33 . the connecting end 44 also has a slot 46 that is aligned with the recess 32 in the cap 14 . a connector ( not shown ) with two unthreaded apertures can be inserted in the slot so that the apertures align with the apertures 35 in the cap 14 ( fig6 ). the connector is secured in place when the screws 33 are tightened . fig8 shows the table module 10 with two vertical connection brackets 40 used to support a privacy panel 42 on the work surface of the table top 12 . fig9 shows two table modules 10 being joined together and a vertical connection bracket 40 attached to the cap 14 on one table top 12 . in addition , fig9 shows a horizontal connector 30 passing through the slot 46 in the connecting end 44 of the bracket 40 . when the two table modules 10 are joined together , the opposing ends of the connector 30 are inserted into the recesses 32 of the opposing caps 14 of the two table modules 10 . the connecting end 44 of the bracket 40 is secured to the cap 14 on one side and , on the other side , the horizontal connector 30 is secured to the cap 14 on the second table module 10 . fig1 shows a table module 10 with a modesty panel 52 attached under the table top 12 between two legs 20 using brackets 50 attached to the legs 20 . again , the brackets 50 are attached to the caps 14 . when one or more the modesty panels 52 are used in combination with one or more of the privacy panels 42 shown in fig8 , a work station is created that provides a private work space . fig1 is a photograph of an assembled table module 10 and shows a pair of legs 20 attached to a pair of caps 14 on one end of the table top 12 . the openings 15 ( fig1 ) in the table top 12 are sealed with removable filler plates 13 . fig1 is a photograph of the undersurface 11 of a table top 12 with a pair of legs 20 attached by connecting the connection plates 22 to the caps 14 . fig1 also shows the bracket 50 used to attach the modesty panel 52 shown in fig1 lying on the undersurface 11 of the table top 12 . fig1 is a photograph showing a cap 14 being attached to the undersurface 11 of a table top 12 at one of the corners using screws 17 . the cap 12 includes projecting posts 16 ( fig2 ), which fit into aligned holes 18 in the undersurface 11 of the table top 12 . preferably , wood screws 33 are used to secure the cap 14 to the undersurface 11 . thus , while there have been described the preferred embodiments of the present invention , those skilled in the art will realize that other embodiments can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention , and it is intended to include all such further modifications and changes as come within the true scope of the claims set forth herein .

0Human Necessities

an embodiment of a photoelectric conversion apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig3 is a schematic circuit diagram showing an embodiment of a photoelectric conversion apparatus according to the present invention . as shown in fig3 a photoelectric conversion element s is connected to a capacitor c n via a transistor t 1 and is connected to a capacitor c s via a mos transistor t 2 . the capacitors c n and c s are connected to a buffer amplifier tr 2 and a mos transistor t bc controlled by a pulse φ bc via mos transistors t h1 and t h2 controlled by a shift register . the shift register is controlled by pulses φ hs , φ h1 , and φ h2 . an output from the buffer amplifier tr 2 is transferred to an output signal line sl . note that the output signal line sl has a parasitic capacitance c h . a portion a at the output signal line sl side is reset by a mos transistor t hbc controlled by a pulse φ bc . the output signal line sl is connected to a mos transistor t sh controlled by a pulse φ h2 and a mos transistor t hc1 controlled by a pulse φ hc1 via a coupling capacitor c c . the mos transistor t hc1 resets a portion b at the output side of the coupling capacitor c c . the mos transistor t sh is further connected to a capacitor c s and a mos transistor t hc2 . the mos transistor t hc2 resets a portion c at the output side of the mos transistor t sh . an operation of the photoelectric conversion apparatus having the above operation will be described below with reference to fig4 . fig4 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of the above photoelectric conversion apparatus . noise from the photoelectric conversion element s is stored in the capacitor c n via the mos transistor t 1 under the control of a pulse φ t1 . a signal from the photoelectric conversion element s is stored in the capacitor c s via the mos transistor t 2 under the control of a pulse φ t2 . when the pulse φ h1 goes to high level , the mos transistor t h1 is turned on , and the noise stored in the capacitor c n is stored in the coupling capacitor c c via the mos transistor t h1 and the buffer amplifier tr 2 . since the pulse φ hc1 is at high level and the mos transistor t hc1 is kept on , a potential of the portion b at the output side of the coupling capacitor c c is kept at gnd . therefore , while a potential v 2 of the portion b is at gnd , a noise voltage of + vn 1 is stored as a potential v 1 of the portion a of the output signal line sl . the pulse φ hc1 is switched to low level , and the mos transistor t hc1 is turned off , thereby floating the portion b . in addition , the pulse φ bc is switched to high level , and the mos transistor t hbc is turned on , thereby decreasing the potential of the portion a from the noise voltage of + vn 1 to gnd . at this time , a noise voltage of - vn 1 having a polarity opposite to that of the noise voltage of + vn 1 appears as the potential v 2 of the portion b . the pulse φ bc is switched to low level , and the mos transistor t hbc is turned off . thereafter , by switching the pulse φ h2 to high level , the mos transistor t h2 is turned on , and the signal stored in the capacitor c s is transferred to the coupling capacitor c c via the mos transistor t h2 and the buffer amplifier tr 2 . at this time , the potential of the portion a rises from gnd to a signal voltage of vs 1 . in accordance with the potential rise in the portion a , the potential of the portion b rises by the potential vs 1 from a noise voltage of - vn 1 to a potential of vs 1 - vn 1 , i . e ., a potential including only signal components obtained by canceling noise voltage components . that is , the sensor noise and the buffer amplifier noise are cancelled . since the sample - and - hold mos transistor t sh is turned on when the voltage vs 1 - vn 1 appears in the portion b , a voltage v 3 appears in the portion c . by sampling and holding , a signal having a high duty ratio and free from noise components can be obtained . fig5 is a partial circuit diagram showing a photoelectric conversion apparatus according to the present invention including a pulse leakage component removing circuit . referring to fig5 when a mos transistor or the like is pulse - driven , a pulse leakage component is generated due to capacitance division of a pulse caused by the gate capacitance or an overlap capacitance between the source ( drain ) and the gate of the mos transistor and a signal line capacitance . the pulse leakage component is also generated by a parasitic capacitance between pulse wiring and a signal line . as shown in fig5 such a leakage component can be removed by arranging a circuit having the same arrangement as that of a signal reading circuit in parallel with the signal reading circuit to perform differential processing . a practical arrangement of an image reader to which the present invention is applied will be described below . fig6 is a schematic block diagram showing the arrangement of the image reader . referring to fig6 an original 501 is mechanically moved relative to a reading unit 505 in a direction indicated by an arrow y . image reading is performed by scanning in a direction indicated by an arrow x by an image sensor 504 as a photoelectric conversion apparatus of the present invention . light from a light source 502 is reflected by the original 501 , and the reflected light forms an image on the image sensor 504 through an imaging optical system 503 . the image sensor 504 stores carriers corresponding to the intensity of the incident light and outputs the carriers as a photoelectrically converted image signal . this image signal is digital - converted by an a / d converter 506 and fetched as image data in an internal memory of an image processing unit 507 . the fetched data is subjected to , e . g ., shading correction and color correction and transmitted to a personal computer 508 , a printer , or the like . when image signal transfer of x - direction scanning is finished in this manner , the original 501 is moved relatively in the y direction , and the above operation is repeatedly performed , thereby converting the total image of the original 501 into an electrical signal and extracting the signal as image information . in the above embodiment , the present invention is applied to an image reader using a line sensor . the present invention , however , can be applied to not only a line sensor but also , e . g ., an area sensor . as has been described above in detail , according to the photoelectric conversion apparatus , noise included in a signal from a photoelectric conversion element and offset noise generated by a buffer amplifier in a read system can be removed in a single chip . in addition , by noise removal of a coupling capacitance system provided at the output side of the buffer amplifier , a bipolar transistor portion is included between the photoelectric conversion element and the buffer amplifier . therefore , even if a bias voltage is applied , the bias voltage can be cancelled . furthermore , since a sample - and - hold circuit is included , only a sensor signal having a high s / n ratio can be output . an embodiment of a noise correction circuit according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings . although an application of the noise correction circuit of the present invention is not limited to a photoelectric conversion apparatus , a photoelectric conversion apparatus will be exemplified as a suitable application . fig7 is a circuit diagram showing an arrangement of the noise correction circuit used in the photoelectric conversion apparatus of the present invention . fig7 shows an arrangement of a circuit for reading out a sensor signal from a photoelectric conversion unit having m pixels via a buffer amplifier as a buffer means . referring to fig7 output lines l 1 , l 2 , and l 3 are connected to buffer amplifiers b 11 to b 1n , b 21 to b 2n , and b 31 to b 3n , respectively , each corresponding to m / 3 pixels . transistors m 11 to m 1n ( n = m / 3 ) are connected to the input sides of the buffer amplifiers b 11 to b 1n which are connected to the output line l 1 , respectively . transistors m 21 to m 2n ( n = m / 3 ) are connected to the input sides of the buffer amplifiers b 21 to b 2n which are connected to the output line l 2 , respectively . transistors m 31 to m 3n ( n = m / 3 ) are connected to the input sides of the buffer amplifiers b 31 to b 3n which are connected to the output line l 3 , respectively . the transistors m 11 to m 1n , m 21 to m 2n , and m 31 to m 3n are on / off - controlled by pulses φ 11 to φ 1n , φ 21 to φ 2n , and φ 31 and φ 3n , respectively . sensor signals v s1 to v sm of the respective signals are selected by the pulses φ 11 to φ 1n , φ 21 to φ 2n , and φ 31 to φ 3n and output to the output lines l 1 to l 3 via the transistors m 11 to m 1n , m 21 to m 2n , and m 31 to m 3n and the buffer amplifiers b 11 to b 1n , b 21 to b 2n , and b 31 to b 3n which are connected to these transistors . transistors n 11 to n 1n are connected to the input sides of the buffer amplifiers b 11 to b 1n , respectively , transistors n 21 to n 2n are connected to the input sides of the buffer amplifiers b 21 to b 2n , respectively , and transistors n 31 to n 3n are connected to the input sides of the buffer amplifiers b 31 to b 3n , respectively . the transistors n 11 to n 1n , n 21 to n 2n , and n 31 to n 3n are on / off - controlled by pulses φ 30 to φ 3n - 1 , φ 11 to φ 1n , and φ 21 to φ 2n , respectively . a reference voltage v b can be applied to the input sides of the buffer amplifiers b 21 to b 2n via the transistors n 11 to n 1n , n 21 to n 2n , and n 31 to n 3n , respectively . capacitors c n1 , c n2 , and c n3 are connected in series with the output stages of the output lines l 1 , l 2 , and l 3 , respectively , and the input sides of the capacitors c n1 , c n2 , and c n3 are connected to reset power sources via transistors , m r1 , m r2 , and m r3 , respectively , so that a reset voltage v gn can be applied thereto . the transistors m r1 , m r2 , and m r3 are on / off - controlled by output read pulses φ 2 , φ 3 , and φ 1 , respectively . the output sides of the capacitors c n1 , c n2 , and c n3 are connected to a sample - and - hold circuit ( s / h circuit ) via transistors m t1 , m t2 , and m t3 , respectively . the transistors m t1 , m t2 , and m t3 are controlled by the output read pulses φ 1 , φ 2 , and φ 3 , respectively , and the signal charges stored in the capacitors c n1 , c n2 , and c n3 are read out to the s / h circuit under the control of the output read pulses φ 1 , φ 2 , and φ 3 , respectively . the output sides of the capacitors c n1 , c n2 , and c n3 are connected to reset power sources via transistors m c1 , m c2 , and m c3 , respectively , so that the reset voltage v gn can be applied thereto . the transistors m c1 , m c2 , and m c3 are on / off - controlled by the output read pulses φ 3 , φ 1 , and φ 2 , respectively . the output sides of the transistors m t1 , m t2 , and m t3 are connected to reset power sources via transistors m f1 , m f2 , and m f3 , respectively , so that the reset voltage v gn can be applied thereto . the transistors m f1 , m f2 , and m f3 are on / off - controlled by the output read pulses φ 2 , φ 3 , and φ 1 , respectively . an operation of the noise correction circuit having the above arrangement will be described below . fig8 is a timing chart for explaining an operation of the noise correction circuit . as has been described above with reference to fig7 the pulses φ 1 , φ 2 , and φ 3 on / off - control the transistors m t1 , m t2 , and m t3 to select the output lines l 1 , l 2 , and l 3 , respectively , and on / off - control the transistors m r1 to m r3 , m c1 to m c3 , and m f1 to m f3 to reset the output lines l 1 , l 2 , and l 3 , respectively . pulses φ 11 , φ 21 , φ 31 , and φ 30 are the pulses output from a scanning circuit in synchronism with the pulses φ 1 , φ 2 , and φ 3 , and only one of them is output during one sensor operation cycle . with reference to a timing chart shown in fig8 a noise correction read operation of an input signal v s1 to the output line l 1 will be described below . first , the transistor n 11 is turned on by the pulse φ 30 to input a predetermined voltage v b to the buffer amplifier b 11 . a the same time , the transistor m c1 is turned on by the pulse φ 3 to set the output side of the capacitor c n1 at a fixed voltage v gn . assuming that a signal including a noise component output via the buffer amplifier b 11 is v b + v n , the capacitor c n1 holds a potential of v b + v n . when the transistor m 11 is turned on by the pulse φ 11 to input the sensor signal v s1 to the buffer amplifier b 11 , a noise component at the same level as that obtained when the predetermined voltage v b is input via the buffer amplifier b 11 is generated as v s1 + v n . at the same time this signal v s1 + v n is output from the buffer amplifier b 11 , the transistor m c1 is turned off by the pulse φ 3 to float the capacitor c n1 . at this time , a signal change in the capacitor c n1 is as follows . that is , at the beginning , a potential v b + v n is held at the input side of the capacitor c n1 , while the potential v gn is held at its output side . when the signal of v s1 + v n is applied , a potential change at the input side of the capacitor c n1 is v s1 - v b , while the potential at its output side changes by v s1 - v b to be v s1 - v b + v gn , thereby removing the noise component v n generated by the buffer amplifier b 11 . since the transistor m t1 is kept on by the pulse φ 1 , the signal having the potential v s1 - v b + v gn is input to the s / h circuit . thereafter , the transistors m r1 and m f1 are turned on by the pulse φ 2 , and the potentials of the respective wiring portions are reset to prepare for the next signal reading . the above series of operations are similarly performed for the output lines l 2 and l 3 . as is apparent from the timing chart in fig8 the output signals are supplied to the s / h circuit in the order of the pulses φ 1 , φ 2 , and φ 3 and extracted as continuous signals . in this embodiment , an output line is divided into three or more lines , and scanning pulses and output read pulses of the respective lines are efficiently combined . therefore , a noise correction operation can be performed by using the same number of pulses as that used in a circuit not having a noise correction circuit , and the signal processing can be efficiently performed within a short time period . note that in the above embodiment , the potential v b is preferably set to be a value at which the same noise as that generated when the signal is input to a buffer amplifier is generated by the buffer amplifier . in the above embodiment , however , the potential v b may be a potential at the same level as a dark signal level of the sensor . as has been described above in detail , according to the noise correction circuit of the present invention , noise generated by the buffer means can be removed by a simple circuit arrangement . a photoelectric conversion apparatus using the present invention can prevent gain reduction in an output unit and improve a read time efficiency by using the above noise correction circuit . an embodiment of a subtractor according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig9 is a circuit diagram for explaining a basic arrangement of the subtractor of the present invention . referring to fig9 this subtractor comprises a connection terminal s 1 connectable to a first signal source , a mos transistor m 1 for on / off - controlling a signal from the first signal source by using a clock φ a , a connection terminal s 2 connectable to a second signal source , and a mos transistor m 2 for on / off - controlling a signal from the second signal source by using a clock φ b . the mos transistors m 1 and m 2 are commonly connected at a node p 1 , and then to a capacitor c . the capacitor c is connected to an output amplifier a 1 . a terminal of the capacitor c at the node p side is connected to a mos transistor m 4 which is on / off - controlled by a clock φ c so that a charge stored in the wiring and the capacitor can be reset . a terminal of the capacitor c at the output amplifier a side is connected at a node p 2 to a mos transistor m 3 which is on / off - controlled by the clock φ a so that a reference potential ( v r ) can be applied thereto . an operation of the subtractor having the above arrangement will be described below . fig1 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of the above circuit . referring to fig1 , when the pulse φ a rises at a timing t0 turn on the mos transistors m 1 and m 3 , the signal voltage v 1 from the first signal source is read out to the node p 1 and at the same time the node p 2 is reset to the reference potential ( v r ), when the clock φ a falls at a timing t1 to turn off the mos transistors m 1 and m 3 , the node p 2 is set in a high - impedance state . when the clock φ b rises at a timing t2 to turn on the mos transistor m 2 , the signal voltage v 2 ( in this case , v 2 & gt ; v 1 ) from the second signal source is read out to the node p 1 . at this time , the potential at the node p 1 rises from v 1 to v 2 , and the potential at the node p 2 rises from the reference potential v r by ( v 2 - v 1 ) due to the capacitor c provided between the contacts p 1 and p 2 . therefore , the amplifier a 1 outputs a signal corresponding to the difference signal ( v 2 - v 1 ) when the clock φ b falls at a timing t3 to turn off the mos transistor v 2 and the clock φ c rises at a timing t4 to turn on the mos transistor m 4 , charges stored in the wiring and the capacitor at the node p 1 side are reset to prepare for the next signal reading . as an embodiment of the subtractor of the present invention , an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a photoelectric conversion apparatus will be described below . fig1 is a circuit diagram showing an arrangement of a photoelectric conversion apparatus using the subtractor of the present invention . as shown in fig1 , mos transistors m 11 to m 1n are connected to the bases of sensor transistors q 1 to q n , respectively , and a voltage v bb is applied thereto under on / off control of a pulse φ br . the emitters of the sensor transistors q 1 to q n are connected to mos transistors m 21 to m 2n , respectively , and are further connected to capacitors c p1 to c pn and capacitors c d1 to c dn via mos transistors m 31 to m 3n and mos transistors m 41 to m 4n , respectively . the mos transistors m21 to m2n are on / off - controlled by a pulse φ vrs so that a voltage v vr , can be applied to the emitters of the sensor transistors q 1 to q n respectively . the mos transistors m 31 to m 3n are on / off - controlled by a pulse φ tp , and the mos transistors m 41 to m 4n are on / off , controlled by a pulse φ td . the capacitors c p1 to c pn and the capacitors c d1 to c dn are connected to mos transistors m 51 to m 5n and mos transistors m 61 to m 6n via buffers b 11 to b 1n and buffers b 21 to b 2n , respectively . the gates of the mos transistors m 51 and m 61 , m 52 and m 62 , . . . , m 5n and m 6n are commonly connected and sequentially scanned by a shift register . by sequentially controlling the shift register , the signals stored in the capacitors c p1 and c d1 , c p2 and c d2 , . . . , c pn and c dn are transferred onto horizontal transfer lines l 1 and l 2 . the horizontal transfer lines l 1 and l 2 are connected to a subtractor unit x . note that the subtractor unit x is equivalent to the subtractor described above except that the reference potential v r is gnd in the unit x . in the subtractor unit x , the same reference symbols as in the above subtractor denote the same parts and a detailed description thereof will be omitted . fig1 is a timing chart for explaining an operation of the above circuit . at a timing t1 , a clock φ tp rises to turn on the mos transistors m 31 to m 3n , and storage end timing signals ( including fixed pattern noise ) are simultaneously transferred to the temporary storage capacitors cp1 to cpn for all the pixels . when the clock φ tp falls to turn off the mos transistors m 31 to m 3n at a timing t2 and a clock φ br falls to turn on the transistors m 11 to m 1n at a timing t3 , the base potentials of the sensor transistors q 1 to q n are reset to be v bb for all the pixels ( this is called a perfect reset operation ). when the clock φ br rises to turn off the transistors m 11 to m 1n at a timing t4 and a clock φ vrs rises to turn on the transistors m 21 to m 2n at a timing t5 , the emitter potentials of the sensor transistors q 1 to q n are reset to be v vr ( this is called a transition reset operation ). from a timing t6 to a timing t7 during this transition reset operation , a clock φ td rises to turn on the transistors m 41 to m 4n , and the potential at the end of the transition reset operation , i . e ., the potential at the start of the storage operation is transferred to the capacitors c d1 to c dn . storage of new signals into the sensor transistors q 1 to q n is started at the timing t7 , and the storage end timing signals ( including the fixed pattern noise ) transferred to the capacitors c p1 to c pn and c d1 to c dn and storage operation start timing outputs are sequentially output via the buffers b 11 and b 1n , the mos transistors m 51 to m 5n , the horizontal transfer line l 2 , the buffers b 21 to b 2n , the mos transistors m61 to m6n , and the horizontal transfer line l 1 , respectively . an output operation of the storage end timing signal ( including the fixed pattern noise ) and the storage start timing output is performed as follows . that is , the shift register applies a clock φ 1 to the mos transistors m 51 and m 61 , and carriers of the capacitors c p1 and c d1 are read out onto the horizontal transfer lines l 2 and l 1 via the buffers b 11 and b 21 , respectively . by using the subtractor of the present invention described above , a differential signal obtained by subtracting a dark output from an optical signal is extracted . since the clock φ a is at high level during the first half of the readout operation , i . e ., between timings t8 to t9 , the mos transistors m 1 and m 3 are in an on state . therefore , the potentials at the nodes p 1 and p 2 are gnd which is an output level upon storage start . since the clock φ b is at high level during the second half of the readout operation , i . e ., between timings t9 to t10 , the mos transistor m 2 is in an on state , and the potential at the node p 1 changes from v n to v s + n ( storage end timing signal level ). at this time , since the node p 2 is in a floating state , the potential at the node p 2 rises from the gnd level by the potential rise ( v s ), and this level is finally output . thereafter , at a timing t10 , the clock φ 1 from the shift register goes to low level and the clock φ c rises . in the first half ( timings t10 to t11 ) of the clock φ c , the clock φ a goes to high level to turn on the transistors m 1 and m 3 , and the nodes p 1 and p 2 and the horizontal transfer line l 1 are reset . in the second half ( timings tll to t12 ) of the clock φ c , the clock φ b goes to high level to turn on the transistor m 2 , and the horizontal transfer line l 2 is reset . the above series of read operations are sequentially performed to output an optical signal for each pixel . in this case , even if the storage start timing output level varies for each pixel , only the storage end timing signal level not including the fixed pattern noise is output to the output terminal . therefore , optical information having a high s / n ratio can be obtained . fig1 is a circuit diagram showing an arrangement of another photoelectric conversion apparatus using the subtractor of the present invention . fig1 is a timing chart for explaining the basic arrangement of the subtractor . as shown in fig1 , this embodiment is a photoelectric conversion apparatus of a 4 - line read system in which outputs from pixels are divided into upper and lower stages , each of which is further divided into upper and lower stages . a sensor unit and a subtractor unit of each line of four horizontal transfer lines are equivalent to those of the first embodiment , and detailed arrangements and operations thereof will be omitted . as shown in fig1 and 14 , clocks φ c1 , φ c2 , φ c3 , and φ c4 are sequentially scanned to output a storage start timing output and a storage end timing signal to horizontal transfer lines l la and l 2a , l 1b and l 2b , and l 2c , and l 1d and l 2d , respectively . subtractor units x a to x d correspond to the subtractor unit x in the above embodiment shown in fig1 except that no amplifier is included in these units . mos transistors m 1a to m 4a , m 1b to m 4b , m 1c to m 4c , and m 1d to m 4d correspond to the transistors m 1 to m 4 , respectively , and capacitors c 1 to c 4 correspond to the capacitor c . outputs from nodes q 1 to q 4 of the subtractor units x a to x d are connected to mos transistors m 5a to m 5d which are on / off - controlled by the clocks φ c3 , φ c4 , φ c2 , and φ c1 , respectively . the mos transistors m 5a and m 5b are commonly connected via an amplifier a 2 to a mos transistor m 6 which is on / off - controlled by a clock φ a0 . the mos transistors m 5c and m 5d are commonly connected via an amplifier a 3 to a mos transistor m 7 which is on / off - controlled by a clock φ b0 . the mos transistors m 6 and m 7 are commonly connected to a capacitor c s and an amplifier a 4 . the nodes q 1 , q 2 , q 3l , and q 4 shown in fig1 have potentials q 1 , q 2 , q 3 , and q 4 shown in fig1 , respectively , and the amplifier a4 outputs v out . in the embodiment shown in fig1 , an optical signal is output during a 1 / 4 period of the clock φ 1 . in this embodiment shown in fig1 , however , the horizontal signal line is divided into four parts , and the phases of the four parts are offset by 90 ° c . therefore , an optical signal continuously appears at the output terminal . in addition , a sample - and - hold function is provided by the capacitor c s . the above photoelectric conversion apparatus can be applied to the image reader as shown in fig6 . as has been described in detail above , according to the subtractor of the present invention , a circuit can be easily integrated since a circuit member such as a differential amplifier which is difficult to be integrated need not be used . therefore , a compact apparatus can be manufactured at low cost .

7Electricity

a digital color copying machine 1 ( hereinafter referred to simply as &# 34 ; color copying machine &# 34 ;) embodying the present invention will be described hereinafter with reference to fig1 to 6 . as shown in fig1 the color copying machine 1 is provided with a color picture reader 2 for reading an original color picture s . the color picture reader 2 is installed in the upper portion of the color copying machine 1 . a transparent contact glass plate 5 for supporting the original color picture s is provided in the upper portion of the color copying machine 1 . an original cover 6 is provided over the contact glass plate 5 so as to cover the contact glass plate 5 and to hold the original color picture s on the contact glass plate 5 . a light source carriage 10 is disposed under the contact glass plate 5 . the carriage 10 moves in the directions indicated by arrow heads g ( hereinafter referred to &# 34 ; scanning direction &# 34 ;) in fig1 . fluorescent lamps 7 , serving as scanning light sources , are mounted on the carriage 10 so as to extend along a direction perpendicular to the scanning direction ( hereinafter referred to as &# 34 ; subscanning direction &# 34 ;). reflectors 7a reflect the light emitted by the fluorescent lamps 7 so as to concentrate the light on the contact glass plate 5 . a reflecting mirror 8 is mounted on the light source carriage 10 so as to reflect the light emitted by the fluorescent lamps 7 and reflected by the original color picture s to the right , as viewed in fig1 . a lens 11 is mounted on the carriage 10 so as to condense the light reflected by the reflecting mirror 8 . a filter unit 12 is mounted on the carriage 10 to separate the light condensed by the lens 11 into a red light component , a green light component and a blue light component . a solid - state image sensor ( hereinafter referred to also as &# 34 ; ccd &# 34 ;) 13 is mounted on the carriage 10 so as to receive the light transmitted through the lens 11 and the filter unit 12 to convert the light components into corresponding electric signals . the filter 12 and the ccd 13 function as inputting means . the carriage 10 is moved in the directions indicated by the arrow heads g by a light source moving device 9 . the light source moving device 9 comprises a pair of pulleys 9a , a wire 9b extended between the pulleys 9a and fastened to the carriage 10 , and a driving unit ( not shown ) for rotating one of the pulleys 9a . an original receiving tray 14 is disposed on the left - hand side of the transparent contact glass plate 5 of the color picture reader 2 . an original feed roller 15 is provided opposite to the original receiving tray 14 to feed the original picture s stored in the original receiving tray 14 toward the transparent contact glass plate 5 . an original conveying device 16 for conveying the original picture s fed by the original feed roller 15 to a predetermined position on the transparent contact glass plate 5 . the original conveying device 16 comprises a pair of pulleys 16a disposed with their axes extending in the subscanning direction , a belt 16b extended between the pair of pulleys 16a to move the original picture s in the direction of the arrow heads g , and a driving device ( not shown ) for rotating one of the pulleys 16a . an ejecting roller 17a for ejecting the original picture s after the completion of reading operation is disposed on the right - hand side of the transparent contact glass plate 5 . an original receiving tray 17 for receiving the ejected original picture s is disposed on the right - hand side of the ejecting roller 17a . a console panel 43 is disposed on the right - hand side of the original cover 6 . as shown in fig2 the console panel 43 is provided with a surface - finishing mode selector button 41 for selecting a glazing mode to glaze a recording sheet , a start button 42 and a glazing mode indicating lamp 44 which lights up when the glazing mode is selected . the surface - finishing mode selector button 41 also functions as a parameter selecting means . the color copying machine is provided in its right - hand side with a color recording unit 4 , which functions as recording means , for recording a color picture on a recording sheet as the recording medium . the color recording unit 4 for recording a color picture on a recording sheet k is connected to a color image processing unit 3 disposed in the upper right - hand portion of the color copying machine 1 . the color picture recording unit 4 is controlled by control signals provided by the color image processing unit 3 . the color recording unit 4 comprises a laser light source 23 that emits a laser beam , such as employed in a known copying machine , a laser controller 24 , a polygonal rotating mirror 25 , and a laser modulator 26 for modulating a laser light . the laser controller 24 controls the laser modulator 26 on the basis of a laser driving signal corresponding to a control signal , and the laser light source 23 projects a laser beam onto the polygonal rotating mirror 25 . a photoconductive drum 27 is disposed near the laser light source 23 so as to be exposed to a laser beam reflected by the polygonal rotating mirror 25 . a charger 28 is disposed above the photoconductive drum 27 to charge the photoconductive drum 27 uniformly so that a negative charge appears on the photoconductive drum 27 . the photoconductive drum 27 thus charged by the charger 28 is exposed to the laser beam to form an electrostatic latent image thereon . a cyan developing unit 29 for applying a cyan toner to the electrostatic latent image , a magenta developing unit 30 for applying a magenta toner thereto and an yellow developing unit 31 for applying an yellow toner thereto respectively , are arranged around the photoconductive drum 27 . the cyan , magenta and yellow toners are supplied to the developing units 29 , 30 and 31 from a cyan toner supply unit 32 , a magenta toner supply unit 33 and an yellow toner supply unit 34 , respectively , disposed in the lower portion of the color copying machine 1 . a cleaning unit 35 is disposed near the photoconductive drum 27 to remove toners remaining on the photoconductive drum 27 after printing . recording sheets k are contained in a sheet cassette 36 provided in the left - hand side of the color copying machine 1 . rollers 36a arranged between the photoconductive drum 27 and the sheet cassette 36 transport the recording sheet k drawn out from the sheet cassette 36 . a sheet conveying unit 40 is comprised of a pair of pulleys 40a disposed with their axes extended along the subscanning direction , a belt 40b extended between the pair of pulleys 40a to convey the recording sheet k , and a driving unit ( not shown ) for rotating one of the pulleys 40a . a fixing unit 38 for heat - fixing a toner image transferred onto the recording sheet k is disposed above the belt 40b . after the toner image has been fixed to the recording sheet k by the fixing unit 38 , the recording sheet k is delivered to a delivery tray 39 , disposed above the sheet cassette 36 , when the recording sheet k need not be glazed . the sheet conveying unit 40 is disposed between the photoconductive drum 27 and the delivery tray 39 . a delivery tray 45 for receiving the recording sheet k when the recording sheet k is glazed after the toner image has been fixed thereto by the fixing unit 38 is disposed above the delivery tray 39 . a sheet guide 46 is disposed above the belt 40b to guide the recording sheet k upward into the delivery tray 45 . a sheet guide shifting unit 46a , which controls the sheet guide 46 , shifts the sheet guide 46 between a position where the right - hand end of the sheet guide 46 is in contact with the belt 40b and a position where the right - hand end of the sheet guide 46 is separated from the belt 40a according to a surface - finishing mode selected by operating the surface - finishing mode selector button 41 to deliver the recording sheet k after fixing to either the delivery tray 39 or the delivery tray 45 . the sheet guide shifting unit 46a moves a movable roller 46b disposed beneath the sheet guide 46 in the direction of an arrow l to turn the right - hand end 46c of the sheet guide 46 in the direction of an arrow i . a laminator 47 is disposed between the delivery tray 45 and the sheet guide 46 to laminate a lamination material onto r and the recording sheet k . the laminator 47 has a pair of rollers 47a to compress the recording sheet k and the lamination material r superposed on the recording sheet k therebetween . the lamination material r is , for example , a lamination lpa - 330 ® ( tokyo lamix co .). the laminate material r stored above the laminator 47 is fed to the pair of rollers 47a by a lamination feeder 48 . the color image processing unit 3 functions as color signal changing means , for changing input color signals into recording color signals by using parameters described below . the processing unit 3 is electrically connected to an analog - to - digital converter ( hereinafter referred to &# 34 ; a / d converter &# 34 ;) 18 for converting analog color signals provided by the solid - state image sensor 13 representing the colors of the original color picture s into corresponding digital signals . the color image processing unit 3 has a rom 20 for storing parameters for color signal modification determined before - hand in order that the color signals may be modified properly so that the colors of the original color picture s may satisfactorily be reproduced regardless of the selected surface - finishing mode . the rom 20 , which functions as parameter storage means , stores two different parameters respectively for color signal modification when the recording sheet k is to be glazed and color signal modification when the recording sheet k is not to be glazed . the parameters are a 3 - line 3 - column matrix m1 for color signal modification when the recording sheet k is not to be glazed and a second 3 - line 3 - column matrix m2 for color signal modification when the recording sheet k is to be glazed as shown in fig5 . the color image processing unit 3 is also provided with a ram 21 and a cpu 22 which carries out image processing operations . the color image processing unit 3 has a laser controller 24 which drives the laser light source 23 of the color picture recorder 4 on the basis of color signals as control signals . the color image processing unit 3 is also provided with an original picture storage device 19 for storing a digital color signals . the cpu 22 , which functions as the parameter determining means , chooses either the matrix m1 of parameters or the matrix m2 of parameters from the rom 20 based on the surface - finishing mode selected by operating the surface - finishing mode selecting button 41 . the cpu 22 , the ram 21 , the rom 20 , the laser controller 24 , the a / d converter 18 , the original picture storage device 19 and the sheet guide shifting unit 46a are electrically connected with each other through a bus line . the digital color signal is modified for color signal modification by using the coefficient for color signal modification and expression ( 1 ) to determine printer control signals for controlling the cyan printing c , the magenta printing m and the yellow printing y . such a method of color signal modification is designated as a color masking method , which will be described hereinafter with reference to fig6 . fig6 shows color signal modifying steps , to be carried out by the color image processing unit , and the flow of the color data . the image of the original color picture s is composed of many minute picture elements , for example , sixty - four elements per square millimeter in dot density . referring to fig6 the color picture reader 2 reads the original color picture s and gives image data representing the original color picture s through the color picture processing unit 3 to the color recording unit 4 . the color recording unit 4 records the color image on a recording sheet k . the color picture reader 2 reads the color picture recorded on the recording sheet k before glazing to determine an intensity of the color image data . the laminator 47 glazes the recording sheet k and the color picture reader 2 again reads the color picture to determine the intensity of the color image data after glazing of the recording sheet k . y1 is a matrix of a red - component value r of the red - component of the picture elements of the original color picture s , a green - component value g of the green - component of the picture elements of the same , and a blue - component value b of the blue - component of the picture elements of the same . the red - component value r , the green - component value g and the blue - component value b are those determined by , for example , a multiple light source spectroscopic colorimeter msc - 2 which is produced by gasu shikenki k . k . y2 is a matrix of a red - component value r of the red - component of the color picture on the unglazed recording sheet k , a green - component value g of the green - component of the same , and a blue - component value b of the blue - component of the same . the red - component value r , the green - component value g and the blue - component value b are those determined by the multiple light source spectroscopic colorimeter msc - 2 . y3 is a matrix of a red - component value r of the color picture on the glazed recording sheet k , a green - component value of the green - component of the same , and a blue - component value b of the green - component of the same , which are those determined by the multiple light source spectroscopic colorimeter msc - 2 . the multiple light source spectroscopic colorimeter msc - 2 senses the colors of the picture elements like the human retina and provides numerical data representing the colors . when the values of the matrix y1 and the corresponding values of the matrix y2 are the same , humans will decide that the colors of the color picture on the unglazed recording sheet k are the same as the colors of the original color picture s . similarly , when the values of the matrix y1 and the corresponding values of the matrix y3 are the same , humans will decide that the colors of the color picture on the glazed recording sheet k are the same as those of the original color picture s . z1 is a matrix of digital values representing the red - component value r , green - component value g and blue - component value b of the red , green and blue - components , respectively , of the picture elements of the original color picture s which are determined by converting data provided by the ccd 13 of the color picture reader 2 into digital data by the a / d converter 18 . z2 is a matrix of a cyan printer control signal c , a magenta printer control signal m and an yellow printer control signal y . the color image processing unit 3 produces the matrix z2 of the printer control signals by the color signal modifying operation using expression ( 1 ). the values of the control signals c , m and y in the matrix z2 indicate the densities of cyan , magenta and yellow in the printed color picture . z3 is a matrix of a red - component value r , a green - component value g and a blue - component value b of the colors of the picture elements of the color picture on the unglazed recording sheet k . a character f represents the general color reading characteristics of the color picture reader 2 . values of colors read by the color picture reader 2 are different from those determined by the multiple light source spectroscopic colorimeter msc - 2 . the relationship between the digital values of the matrix z1 , the values of the matrix y1 and the color reading characteristics f is expressed by : similarly , the relationship between the values of the matrix z3 , the values of the matrix y2 and the color reading characteristics f is expressed by : similarly , the relationship between the values of the matrix z4 , the values of the matrix y3 and the color reading characteristics f is expressed by : a character g indicates the general characteristics of the color recording unit 4 affecting the colors of the picture elements of the picture . the relationship between the values of the matrix z2 , the values of the matrix y1 and the characteristics g is expressed by : a character h indicates the general characteristics of the laminator 47 as it affects the colors of the picture elements of the picture . the relationship between the matrices y2 and y3 and the characters h is expressed by : when the recording sheet k is not glazed , the original color picture s must be copied so that the color picture on the recording sheet k represented by the matrix y2 must give the same color sensation as that given by the original color picture s . therefore , if the color picture reader 2 meets the generally known luther condition , the luther condition is described in detail in j . a . c . yule , &# 34 ; principles of color reproduction &# 34 ;, john wiley & amp ; sons , new york , pp . 126 - 150 ( 1967 ). briefly , the luther condition is met when the color picture reader 2 correctly receives the light reflected by a color picture regardless of the type of coloring matters in reading the color picture . the matrix i corresponds to the 3 - line 3 - column matrix m1 of parameters to be used in expression ( 1 ) for calculating recording conditions in case the recording sheet is not to be glazed after recording . conditions for recording the original color picture s on a recording sheet and glazing the recording sheet after recording must meet a requirement that the color picture corresponding to the matrix y3 and picture printed on the recording sheet must give the same color sensation as that given by the original color picture s corresponding to the matrix y1 and therefore , the matrix j corresponds to the 3 - line 3 - column matrix m2 of parameters to be used in expression ( 1 ) for calculating recording conditions in case the recording sheet is to be glazed after recording . a method of determining optimum values for the coefficients aij of the 3 - line 3 - column matrices i and j uses the method of least squares , which is employed also in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 458 , 265 , will be described hereinafter . when the recording sheet is not to be glazed after recording , since there are nine coefficients aij , printer control signals tjk ( j = c , m and y , k = 1 to n ) ( corresponding to the printer control signals of z2 ( c , m and y ), and read values of the matrix z1 ( r , g and b ) uses more than nine matrices . the recording sheet k carrying a color picture is delivered without glazing the same , the recording sheet k is placed on the transparent contact glass plate 5 , and then the color picture reader 2 reads the color picture . suppose that three color components to be read corresponding to the printer control signals tjk are xik ( i = r , g and b , k = 1 to n ). then , if aij are determined so as to meet ## equ2 ## expression ( 1 ) meets optimum color reproducing conditions . if ejk is defined by : ## equ3 ## and fj is defined by : ## equ4 ## a value of a ij that makes the partial derivative of fj with respect to a l , i . e ., an optional one of a ij , zero gives a minimum of f j . ## equ5 ## therefore , optimum values for aij can be determined by solving the simultaneous linear equations . on the other hand , the printed recording sheet k may be glazed and the same procedure may be performed . since there are nine coefficients aij , the printer control signals tjk ( j = c , m and y , k = 1 to n ) ( corresponding to the printer control signals c , m and y of the matrix z2 ) and the measured values r , g and b use more than nine matrices . the values for aij for a copying mode in which the recording sheet is to be glazed after recording and those for aij for a copying mode in which the recording sheet is not to be glazed are different from each other . the operation of the digital color copying machine 1 will be described hereinafter with reference to fig4 a and 4b . in step s1 , the surface - finishing mode selector button 41 is detected to select either the surface - finishing mode for glazing or the surface - finishing mode for unglazing . in step s2 , the coefficients of either the matrix m1 or m2 stored in the rom 20 are selected based on the selected surface - finishing mode , and the selected coefficients are stored in the ram 21 . in step s3 , a query is made to see if the start button 42 has been pressed . if the response in step s3 is affirmative , an original picture s is delivered from the original receiving tray 14 to the transparent contact glass plate 5 by the original conveying device 16 . in step s4 , the fluorescent lamps 7 are moved in the subscanning direction by the light source moving device 9 to expose the original color picture s placed on the transparent contact glass plate 5 to the white light emitted by the fluorescent lamps 7 during scanning . in step s5 , the solid - state image sensor 13 receives the light reflected by the original color picture s , after passing through the lens 11 and the filter unit 12 , and converts the light into corresponding digital signals . the filter unit 12 has red , green and blue filters which transmit only red light , green light and blue light , respectively . as the carriage 10 is moved by the light source moving device 9 , the red , green and blue filters of the filter unit 12 are placed sequentially in front of the solid - state image sensor 13 for each scanning line . in step s6 , analog electric signals provided by the solid - state image sensor 13 , respectively , corresponding to picture elements , are converted into digital color signals by the a / d converter 18 and the digital color signals are stored in an original picture storage device 19 . in step s7 , the digital color signals stored in the original picture storage device 19 are subjected to a color signal modifying process to modify the same by using the color signal modifying coefficients stored in the ram 21 and expression ( 1 ) to obtain a cyan printer control signal c , a magenta printer control signal m and an yellow printer control signal y . in step s8 , these printer control signals are applied to the laser controller 24 and the laser light source 23 emits a laser beam . the laser beam is reflected by the polygonal rotating mirror 26 on the photoconductive drum 27 , uniformly charged by the charger 28 , to form an electrostatic latent image on the photoconductive drum 27 . in step s9 , a query is made to see if the entire copying area of the photoconductive drum 27 has been exposed to the laser beam . if the response in step s9 is negative , the routine returns to step s4 . if the response in step s9 is affirmative , the cyan , magenta and yellow toners are applied to the electrostatic latent image by the cyan developing unit 29 , the magenta developing unit 30 and the yellow developing unit 31 in step s10 . in step s11 , a query is made to see if all the colors have been printed . if the response in step s11 is affirmative , namely , when the developing process is completed , a recording sheet k drawn out from the sheet cassette 36 is wound around a transfer drum 37 and the toner image is transferred from the photoconductive drum 27 to the recording sheet k . toners remaining on the photoconductive drum 27 are removed by the cleaning unit 35 . the toner image transferred to the recording sheet k is heat - fixed by the fixing unit 38 while the recording sheet k is being conveyed by the sheet conveying unit 40 in step s12 . if the recording sheet need not be glazed , the recording sheet k is delivered to the delivery tray 39 . if the recording sheet k needs to be glazed on the basis of the selected surface - finishing mode , the recording sheet k is delivered to the delivery tray 45 after the application of a lamination material r to the recording sheet k by the laminator 47 in step s13 . the result of color modification by the controller by using the matrix m1 or m2 shown in fig5 and stored in the ram 20 will be described hereinafter . suppose that the color picture reader 2 read the original color picture s and provided color picture signals ( r , g , b )=( 40 , 7 , 3 ). the matrix m1 was used because the recording sheet need not be glazed , as selected by the operator , and printer control signals ( c , m , y )=( 49 , 0 , 2 ) were calculated by using expression ( 1 ), in which all the negative values were represented by &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. the color recording unit 4 was controlled by the printer control signals ( 49 , 0 , 2 ) to record a color picture on the recording sheet k . the color picture reader 2 read the picture recorded on the recording sheet k and provided color signals ( r , g , b )=( 40 , 6 , 3 ). thus , the color signals representing the colors of the picture recorded on the recording sheet k agreed substantially with those representing the colors of the original color picture s . when the recording sheet k needs to be glazed , as selected by the operator , printer control signals ( c , m , y ) are calculated by using expression ( 1 ) and the matrix m2 . then the calculated printer control signals ( c , m , y ) are ( 34 , 0 , 1 ), in which all the negative values were represented by &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, and the color recording unit 4 is controlled by the printer control signals ( 34 , 0 , 1 ) to record a color picture on the recording sheet k . the color picture reader 2 read the color picture and provided color signals ( 36 , 4 , 2 ). the color picture produced was read again by the color picture reader 2 after glazing the recording sheet k by the laminator 47 and provided color signals ( 40 , 7 , 3 ). thus , the color signals representing the colors of the color picture produced on the glazed recording sheet k agreed substantially with those representing the colors of the original color picture s . the present invention is not limited to the foregoing embodiments in its practical application . for example , the color signal modification may be achieved by a color signal modifying system using a generally known look - up table and an interpolation process instead of the foregoing color masking system . the present invention may be applied to a color printer separately comprising a color picture reader and a recording unit as well as to the foregoing digital color copying machine . the present invention may be applied to a digital color copying machine which is not provided with a laminator as glazing means in a frame of the machine . as is apparent from the foregoing description , the present invention is capable of satisfactorily reproducing the colors of an original color picture in a copy regardless of the surface condition of the recording sheet because the present invention uses different parameters for color signal modification according to the operator selected surface - finishing mode , i . e ., a surface - finishing mode in which the recording sheet is glazed or a surface - finishing mode in which the recording sheet is not glazed . while this invention has been described in connection with specific embodiments thereof , it is evident that many alternative modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art . accordingly , the preferred embodiments of the invention as set forth herein are intended to be illustrative , not limiting . various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

a new class of fluorescent molecules is disclosed that comprises multiple individual fluorophores . the individual fluorophores can be constructed as glycosides , with aromatic fluorophores replacing a rna or dna base . these individually fluorescent molecules are assembled into oligofluor strings that resemble single - stranded dna . this strategy not only allows for ready preparation on a dna synthesizer , but also encourages the closest possible interactions by allowing them to stack , as do nucleobases in dna . finally , the dna backbone negative charges maintain water solubility in what would otherwise likely be insoluble dyes . one embodiment of the invention is directed towards fluorescent nucleoside analogs containing an aromatic hydrocarbon group . the analogs do not include naturally occurring nucleosides such as a ( containing adenine ), t ( containing thymine ), c ( containing cytosine ), g ( containing guanine ), and u ( containing uracil ). fig1 shows a variety of examples of such nucleoside analogs . the aromatic hydrocarbon group can replace a natural base in dna or rna molecules . the aromatic hydrocarbon group can be attached at the c1 ( 1 ′) position of a sugar moiety such as a ribose or deoxyribose . the aromatic hydrocarbon group can be attached to the c1 position by a carbon - carbon bond , or by a carbon - heteroatom bond . the sugar moiety can be a hexose ( allose , altrose , glucose , mannose , gulose , idose , galactose , or talose ) or a pentose ( ribose , arabinose , xylose , or lyxose ). the sugar can be in a reduced form such as in 2 - deoxyribose or 3 - deoxyribose . the c1 position of the sugar moiety can generally be attached to any available position on the aromatic hydrocarbon group . the nucleoside analog can be the alpha isomer or the beta isomer . embodiments of the invention also includes 5 ′- triphosphate , trityl , dimethoxytrityl , and / or phosphoramidite derivatives of any of the described fluorescent nucleoside analogs . the aromatic hydrocarbon group can generally be any aromatic hydrocarbon group . the aromatic hydrocarbon can be an unsubstituted aromatic hydrocarbon ( i . e . containing only hydrogen and carbon atoms ), an aromatic hydrocarbon containing one or more heteroatoms ( such as nitrogen , oxygen , or sulfur ), or can be substituted with one or more substituents . the substituents can generally be any substituent . for example , the substituent can be fluoro , chloro , bromo , iodo , amino , alkylamino , arylamino , hydroxy , alkoxy , aryloxy , phenyl , aryl , methyl , ethyl , propyl , butyl , isopropyl , t - butyl , carboxy , or sulfonate groups . examples of the aromatic hydrocarbon group include oxoperylene , perylene , dimethylaminostilbene , quinacridone , fluorophenyl - dimethyl - bodipy , bis - fluorophenyl - bodipy , acridine , terrylene , sexiphenyl , porphyrin , phenylporphyrin , benzopyrene , ( fluorophenyl - dimethyl - difluorobora - diaza - indacene ) phenyl , ( bis - fluorophenyl - difluorobora - diaza - indacene ) phenyl , quaterphenyl , bi - benzothiazole ( multiple isomers possible ), ter - benzothiazole , bi - naphthyl , bi - anthracyl ( multiple isomers possible ), and ter - naphthyl ( multiple isomers possible ). the aromatic hydrocarbon group is preferably not anthracene , phenanthrene , pyrene , stilbene , tetracene , or pentacene . the individual fluorescent nucleoside analogs can have absorbance maxima of about 250 nm to about 1000 nm , and more preferably about 300 nm to about 700 nm , and fluorescence emission maxima of about 300 nm to about 1200 nm , and more preferably about 350 nm to about 900 nm . the individual molar absorptivities can be about 1 × 10 2 l · mol − 1 cm − 1 to about 5 × 10 8 l · mol − 1 cm − 1 , and more preferably about 1 × 10 3 l · mol − 1 cm − 1 to about 1 × 10 7 l · mol − 1 cm − 1 . the individual stokes shifts can be about 10 nm to about 300 nm , and more preferably about 20 nm to about 200 nm . the quantum yields in air - saturated methanol can be about 0 . 001 to about 1 . 00 , and more preferably about 0 . 1 to about 1 . 0 . specific examples of the fluorescent nucleoside analogs include oxoperylene deoxyriboside , perylene deoxyriboside , phenylporphyrin deoxyriboside , and quinacridone deoxyriboside . additional examples include terrylene deoxyriboside , 7 , 15 - dihexyl - terrylene deoxyriboside , fluorophenyl - dimethyl - difluorobora - diaza - indacene deoxyriboside , sexiphenyl deoxyriboside , porphyrin deoxyriboside , benzopyrene deoxyriboside , bis - fluorophenyl - difluorobora - diaza - indacene deoxyriboside , tetracene deoxyriboside , ( fluorophenyl - dimethyl - difluorobora - diaza - indacene )- phenyl deoxyriboside , ( bis - fluorophenyl - difluorobora - diaza - indacene )- phenyl deoxyriboside , quaterphenyl deoxyriboside , bi - anthracyl deoxyriboside , bi - naphthyl deoxyriboside , ter - naphthyl deoxyriboside , bi - benzothiazole deoxyriboside , terbenzothiazole deoxyriboside , and benzopyrene deoxyriboside . various isomers are possible for several of the example fluorescent nucleoside analogs . an additional embodiment of the invention is directed towards fluorescence quenching nucleoside analogs containing quenching groups , where temporary or permanent quenching of fluorescence is desired ( see fig2 ). these analogs can be used in combination with the fluorescent nucleoside analogs described above . the analogs generally comprise a sugar moiety and a fluorescence quenching group attached to the c1 position of the sugar moiety . the sugar moiety can generally be any of the sugar moieties described above . the analogs can be an alpha isomer or a beta isomer . examples of fluorescence quenching groups include dimethylaminostilbene , dimethylaminoazobenzene , dimethylaniline , nitrobenzene , pentafluorobenzene , methylpyridinium , and phenyl -( methylpyridinium ). specific examples of fluorescence quenching nucleoside analogs include dimethylaminostilbene deoxyriboside ; dimethylaminoazobenzene deoxyriboside ; dimethylaniline deoxyriboside ; nitrobenzene deoxyriboside ; pentafluorobenzene deoxyriboside ; methylpyridinium deoxyriboside ; and phenyl -( methylpyridinium ) deoxyriboside . a further embodiment of the invention is directed towards fluorescence insulator nucleoside analogs that can be used in combination with the fluorescent nucleoside analogs described above to separate them physically and / or electronically from each other or from natural dna or other molecules ( see fig3 ). insulators can enhance the fluorescence properties of standard fluorophores , fluorosides , or polyfluors . the analogs generally comprise a sugar moiety and a cyclic non - aromatic hydrocarbon group attached to the c1 position of the sugar moiety . the sugar moiety can generally be any of the sugar moieties described above . the analogs can be an alpha isomer or a beta isomer . examples of cyclic non - aromatic hydrocarbon groups include a cyclohexane group , a decalin group , a dehydrodecalin group , a tetradecahydro - anthracene group , a dodecahydro - anthracene group , a tetradecahydro - phenanthrene group , or a dodecahydro - phenanthrene group . the cyclic non - aromatic hydrocarbon groups can have one or more rings , such as one ring , two rings , three rings , four rings , five rings , six rings , and so on . multiple isomers are possible for many of the polycyclic non - aromatic hydrocarbon groups . specific examples of fluorescence insulator nucleoside analogs include decalin deoxyriboside isomer 1 , decalin deoxyriboside isomer 2 , dehydrodecalin deoxyriboside isomer 1 , dehydrodecalin deoxyriboside isomer 2 , dehydrodecalin deoxyriboside isomer 3 , tricyclic deoxyriboside isomer 1 , and tricyclic deoxyriboside isomer 2 . an additional embodiment of the invention is directed towards synthetic methods for the preparation of fluorescent nucleoside analogs . several of such methods are described in detail in the examples section below . the synthetic methods also include methods for the preparation of phosphoramidite derivatives of any of the described fluorescent nucleoside analogs . an additional embodiment of the invention is directed towards oligoglycosides ( or oligomers ) and polynucleotides ( or polymers ) containing one or more of the above described fluorescent nucleoside analogs , fluorescence quenching nucleoside analogs , and / or fluorescence insulator nucleoside analogs . the analogs can be the same or different . for example , an oligonucleotide can contain a fluorescent nucleoside analog and a fluorescence insulator nucleoside analog . the oligonucleotides can contain natural dna or rna bases ( i . e . a , t , c , g , u ). the oligonucleotides and polynucleotides can contain 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , or more nucleoside analogs . in one embodiment , the fluorescent nucleoside analogs ( or the above quenchers or spacer deoxyribosides ) are attached at adjacent positions in a chain . the fluorescent oligomers can be alone or attached to other organic molecules , dna , rna , peptides , proteins , antibodies , or biological structures ( e . g . cells , lipid bilayers , membranes , micelles , transmembrane proteins , ribosomes , liposomes , nucleosomes , peroxisomes , cytoskeletal units , plastids , chloroplasts , and mitochondria ). the fluorescence properties of the oligonucleotides or polynucleotides containing multiple fluorescent analogs can be different from the fluorescence properties of the analogs individually . for example , different colors of fluorescence can be obtained by combining different fluorescent nucleoside analogs . the labelled organic molecules , dna , rna , peptide , protein , or biological structure can then be imaged by applying ultraviolet light , and detecting the emitted light . the invention disclosed herein offers a number of potentially useful differences from previously used fluorescence strategies . first , it allows for a broader array of energy transfer mechanisms , resulting in greater diversity in photophysical outcomes . second , the present library is considerably larger and more diverse than those prepared earlier . this is in part because a greater number of different fluorophores can be introduced into a smaller molecule , and because embodiments of the invention are not limited by commercially available phosphoramidite - derivatized dyes . third , the present polyfluors are much smaller and are simpler and less expensive to prepare ( previously described triple - fluorophore molecules are a total of 26 nucleotides in length ). the relatively small size of the current molecules makes them good candidates for conjugation to proteins and dna . a further embodiment of the invention is directed towards methods for incorporation of one or more fluorescent nucleoside analogs into oligonucleotides and polynucleotides . the incorporation can be performed chemically ( such as with a dna synthesizer machine ), or enzymatically . the chemical incorporation can be performed in solution or on a solid support . methods for chemical incorporation is described in detail in the examples section below . enzymatic incorporation can be performed with a wide array of known dna polymerases such as t4 , klenow , t7 , tth , bst , vent , deep vent , taq , sequenase , pfu , tdt , or e . coli pol i dna polymerase . enzymatic incorporation can also be performed with rna polymerases such as sp6 , t3 , t7 , and e . coli rna polymerase . a further embodiment of the invention is directed towards materials and methods for incorporation of one or more fluorescent nucleoside analogs into proteins , antibodies , biotin , and other molecules of interest . an oligonucleotide containing multiple fluorescent nucleoside analogs can be prepared and attached to the molecule of interest , rendering it fluorescent . the particular fluorescent nucleoside analogs selected , and their combination can afford different detectable colors . for example , 5 ′- ysss is violet , 5 ′- dsys is blue , 5 ′- syyy is cyan , 5 ′- yooy is green , 5 ′- yeee is yellow , 5 ′- qyyy is orange , and 5 ′- psys is red , wherein d =( dimethylaminostilbene deoxyriboside ); e =( perylene deoxyriboside ); 0 =( oxoperylene deoxyriboside ); q =( quinacridone deoxyriboside ); p =( phenylporphyrin deoxyriboside ); s =( spacer commercial abasic deoxyriboside ); t =( terthiophene deoxyriboside ); and y =( pyrene deoxyriboside ). representative chemical structures of oligonucleotides containing multiple fluorescent nucleoside analogs are shown in fig4 . other tetrafluors having a wide array of colors are disclosed in the examples section below . an additional embodiment of the invention is directed towards methods of detecting a particular nucleic acid sequence of interest . a nucleic acid probe can be prepared or obtained containing one or more of the described fluorescent nucleoside analogs , contacted with a sample suspected of containing the nucleic acid sequence of interest under conditions suitable for hybridization of the probe to the sequence , and the hybridized probe can be detected to indicate the presence or absence of the nucleic acid sequence of interest . the nucleic acid sequence of interest can be dna or rna . the nucleic acid sequence of interest can be single stranded or double stranded . the contacting step can be performed in vitro , invivo , on a solid support ( such as a bead , pin , or membrane ), in a cell , in a tissue , or under other conditions . the method can further comprise a washing step to remove unhybridized probe . the method can be performed qualitatively or quantitatively . the detection step can be performed visually or with a machine . the detection step can include irradiation of the sample with ultraviolet or visible light . a further embodiment of the invention is directed towards antibodies covalently attached to one or more of the above described fluorescent nucleoside analogs , and methods for their use . the antibodies can be covalently attached to the analogs using any compatible chemical reaction strategy , such as reaction of antibody lysine amines with aldehyde , carboxylate , or isothiocyanate derivatives of oligofluors , or cysteine thiols with thiol , iodoacetyl , or maleimido derivatives of oligofluors . the labelled antibodies can be used in bioassays such as western blots , dot blots , and elisa assays . the antibodies can also be used for in vitro applications . the following examples are included to demonstrate preferred embodiments of the invention . it should be appreciated by those of skill in the art that the techniques disclosed in the examples which follow represent techniques discovered by the inventors to function well in the practice of the invention , and thus can be considered to constitute preferred modes for its practice . however , those of skill in the art should , in light of the present disclosure , appreciate that many changes can be made in the specific embodiments which are disclosed and still obtain a like or similar result without departing from the scope of the invention . solvents used as reaction media were purified and dried over cah 2 ( pyridine , mecn , and ch 2 cl 2 ), na ( thf ), or molecular sieves ( methanol ). chemicals were purchased from aldrich , tci america , glen research , lancaster , or j . t . baker . pyrene - nucleoside ( y ) and pyrenephosphoramidite were synthesized following the published procedure ( ren et al . j . am . chem . soc . 118 : 7671 , 1996 ). 3 - bromo - perylene was prepared using the published methods ( mitchell , et al . j . org . chem . 44 ( 25 ): 4733 , 1979 ). 4 - bromo - 4 ′-( n , n - di methylamino )- stil bene was prepared according to the published procedure ( papper et al . j . photochem . photobio . 111 ( 1 - 3 ): 87 , 1997 ). 1 h - nmr ( 500 mhz ), 13 c - nmr ( 500 mhz ) and 31 p - nmr ( 500 mhz ) were taken on a varian 500 mhz nmr spectrometer . hr - ms was performed by the university of california - riverside mass spectrometry facility . esi - ms was taken on a finnigan lcq mass - spectrometer . absorption measurement was performed on cary 1 uv - vis spectrometer . fluorescence studies were performed with a spex fluorolog 3 spectrometer . abbreviations used herein : dmac = n , n - dimethylacetamide , dipea = n , n - diisopropylethylamine , dmap = p - n , ndimethylaminopyridine , dmt - cl = 4 , 4 ′- dimethoxytrityl chloride , dmt = 4 , 4 ′- dimethoxytrityl , dtnp = 2 , 2 ′- dithiobis ( 5 - nitro - pyridine ), dmas = 4 ′-( n , n - dimethyl - amino )- stilbene . to test whether a stacked oligofluor design would result in useful fluorophore interactions , four fluorescent deoxyribosides (“ fluorosides ”) were prepared as monomeric components of a combinatorial set . pyrene ( y , a blue fluorophore ), oxoperylene ( e , green ), dimethylaminostilbene ( d , blue ), and quinacridone ( q , yellow ) were selected as a simple set of test dyes . their synthesis and characterization is described in the following examples ( see fig5 - 7 ). the four dyes were prepared as 5 ′- dimethoxytrityl - 3 ′- phosphoramidite derivatives for automated incorporation into dna - like strings on a commercial synthesizer . the α - pyrene nucleoside (“ y ”) was prepared as described in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 218 , 108 b1 . a set of twelve binary encoding compounds was also prepared so that individual polyfluorophores could later be decoded after selection . the fluorescence properties of the individual monomer fluorosides y , e , d , and q were determined . quinacridone ( 3 . 12 g , 10 . 0 mmol ) and nah ( 60 % dispersion in mineral oil , 400 mg , 10 . 0 mmol ) were charged into a 250 ml round - bottom flask . 60 ml of dmac was added into the flask via syringe under an atmosphere of nitrogen . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 15 minutes . next , hoffer &# 39 ; s chlorosugar ( 3 . 89 g , 10 . 0 mmol ) was added in one portion and the reaction mixture was stirred for 24 hours at room temperature . dmac was evaporated under vacuum . the crude products were purified by flash chromatography ( first column with hexanes / ethyl acetate 2 : 1 to 1 : 1 , second column with ch 2 cl 2 to ch 2 cl 2 / ch 3 oh 20 : 1 as eluent ) to give quinacridone - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside - 3 ′, 5 ′- di -( p - toluoyl ) ester ( 560 mg , 8 . 4 %) as a red solid . the product was confirmed to be α - isomer by roesy experiment with the free nucleoside . the β - isomer , as minor product , was not isolated ; 1 h nmr ( dmso - d 6 , 500 mhz ) δ = 11 . 93 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 82 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 45 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 26 - 8 . 22 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 99 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 96 ( d , 2h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 92 ( d , 1h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 75 ( m , 1h ), 7 . 69 ( m , 1h ), 7 . 52 ( d , 1h , j = 8 . 5 hz ) 7 . 28 ( m , 6h ), 6 . 90 ( t , 1h , j = 8 hz ), 5 . 72 ( m , 1h ), 5 . 04 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 83 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 64 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 03 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 72 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 37 ( s , 3h ), 2 . 34 ( s , 3h ); c nmr ( dmso - d 6 , 500 hz ) δ = 178 . 7 , 177 . 5 , 166 . 4 , 166 . 3 , 144 . 7 , 144 . 6 , 143 . 0 , 142 . 2 , 136 . 1 , 135 . 7 , 134 . 8 , 134 . 7 , 130 . 3 , 130 . 14 , 130 . 10 , 130 . 03 , 129 . 99 , 128 . 1 , 127 . 4 , 127 . 3 , 127 . 1 , 126 . 9 , 124 . 5 , 122 . 8 , 121 . 6 , 120 . 1 , 118 . 4 , 118 . 0 , 115 . 4 , 115 . 2 , 91 . 2 , 81 . 2 , 75 . 6 , 65 . 2 , 35 . 1 , 21 . 9 ; esi - ms m / e 665 . 1 [( m + h )+]; hrms calcd for c 41 h 33 n 2 o 7 [( m + h ) + ] 665 . 2288 , found 665 . 2319 . quinacridone - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside - 3 ′, 5 ′- di -( p - toluoyl ) ester ( 150 mg , 0 . 22 mmol ) was dissolved in 10 ml ch 2 cl 2 , and 1 ml sodium methoxide solution ( 0 . 5m / methanol ) was added with syringe . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours and concentrated onto silica gel and purified with flash chromatography ( ch 2 cl 2 to ch 2 cl 2 / ch 3 oh 10 : 1 ). the product was obtained as red powder ( 56 mg , 59 %); 1 h nmr ( dmso - d 6 , 500 mhz ) δ = 11 . 93 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 74 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 46 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 25 ( m , 2h ), 8 . 01 ( d , 1h , 9 hz ), 7 . 76 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 52 ( d , 1h , j = 8 . 0 hz ) 7 . 32 ( t , 1h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 23 ( t , 1h , j = 7 hz ), 6 . 65 ( t , 1h , j = 7 hz ), 5 . 52 ( d , 1h , j = 4 hz ), 4 . 98 ( t , 1h , j = 5 . 5 hz ), 4 . 54 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 33 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 74 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 67 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 57 ( m , 2h ). 13 c nmr ( dmso - d 6 , 500 hz ) δ = 178 . 6 , 177 . 6 , 142 . 8 , 142 . 2 , 135 . 9 , 135 . 8 , 134 . 8 , 134 . 7 , 127 . 8 , 127 . 3 , 126 . 9 , 124 . 5 , 122 . 4 , 121 . 5 , 120 . 0 , 118 . 8 , 118 . 0 , 115 . 3 , 115 . 0 , 90 . 4 , 86 . 3 , 70 . 6 , 62 . 5 , 37 . 7 ; esi - ms m / e 429 . 4 [( m + h )+]; hrms calcd for c 25 h 21 n 2 o 5 [( m + h ) + ] 429 . 1450 , found 429 . 1457 . quinacridone - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside ( 110 mg , 0 . 26 mmol ) was co - evaporated with 2 × 20 ml dry pyridine and then the residue was dissolved in 50 ml dry pyridine . 272 μl dipea ( 1 . 56 mmol , 6 equiv .) was added in one portion via syringe . 347 mg 4 , 4 ′- dimethoxytrityl chloride ( 1 . 03 mmol , 4 equiv .) dissolved in 10 ml dry pyridine was transferred to the nucleoside solution via syringe . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours . next , 0 . 1 ml methanol was injected into the reaction mixture to quench the reaction . the solvent was removed under vacuum . the crude product was purified with flash chromatography to give product as a red solid ( 151 mg , 79 %). the eluent gradient used is hexanes : ethyl acetate 2 : 1 to 100 % ethyl α - etate ; all eluents also contained 3 % triethylamine ( tea ) to prevent the degradation of the product ); 1 h nmr ( dmso - d 6 , 500 mhz ) δ = 11 . 97 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 84 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 51 ( s , 1h ), 8 . 31 ( d , 1h , j = 8 hz ), 8 . 27 ( d , 1h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 97 ( d , 1h , j = 7 . 5 hz ), 7 . 80 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 56 ( d , 1h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 49 ( d , 2h , j = 7 . 5 hz ), 7 . 40 - 7 . 22 ( m , 9h ), 6 . 95 ( d , 4h , j = 8 hz ), 6 . 74 ( m , 1h ), 5 . 56 ( d , 1h , j = 5 hz ), 4 . 52 - 4 . 45 ( m , 2h ), 3 . 75 ( s , 6h ), 3 . 68 ( s , 1h ), 3 . 63 ( s , 1h ), 2 . 65 - 2 . 50 ( m , 2h ); 13 c nmr ( pyridine - d 5 , 500 mhz ) δ = 179 . 0 , 178 . 1 , 159 . 1 , 146 . 0 , 143 . 0 , 142 . 8 , 136 . 8 , 136 . 6 , 136 . 5 , 134 . 1 , 133 . 8 , 130 . 8 , 130 . 7 , 128 . 8 , 128 . 5 , 128 . 4 , 127 . 6 , 127 . 4 , 127 . 2 , 125 . 2 , 122 . 0 , 121 . 1 , 120 . 8 , 118 . 9 , 117 . 5 , 115 . 5 , 114 . 9 , 113 . 9 , 113 . 8 , 91 . 5 , 86 . 8 , 85 . 7 , 72 . 0 , 65 . 8 , 55 . 2 , 38 . 3 ; esi - ms m / e 753 . 6 [( m + na ) + ]; hrms calcd for c 46 h 38 n 2 o 7 na [( m + na ) + ] 753 . 2577 , found 753 . 2612 . 5 ′-( 4 , 4 ′- di methoxytrityl )- quinacridone - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside ( 151 mg , 0 . 21 mmol ) was suspended in 15 ml dry ch 2 cl 2 . n , n - diisopropylethylamine ( dipea , 220 μl , 1 . 26 mmol , 6 equiv .) and 2 - cyanoethyl n , n - diisopropylchlorophosphoramidite ( 140 μl , 0 . 63 mmol , 3 equiv .) was added via syringe . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 3 hours . the solvent was removed under vacuum and the crude product was loaded onto a silica column . flash chromatography ( hexanes : ethyl acetate 4 : 1 ) gave product as red foam ( 173 mg , 88 %, product is the mixture of two diastereoisomers ); 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 10 . 35 ( s , broad , 1h ), 8 . 88 ( m , 2h ), 8 . 51 ( t , 1h , j = 8 hz ), 8 . 39 ( d , 1h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 92 ( m , 1h ), 7 . 68 - 7 . 16 ( m , 14h ), 6 . 92 - 6 . 86 ( m , 4h ), 6 . 82 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 90 - 4 . 74 ( m , 2h ), 3 . 79 ( 2s , 6h ), 3 . 78 - 3 . 49 ( m , 4h ), 2 . 96 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 77 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 57 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 40 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 30 - 1 . 06 ( m , 14h ); c nmr ( cdcl3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 179 . 7 , 177 . 9 , 158 . 5 , 144 . 5 , 141 . 6 , 135 . 9 , 135 . 8 , 135 . 5 , 133 . 9 , 130 . 1 , 130 . 0 , 128 . 3 , 128 . 2 , 127 . 9 , 127 . 5 , 127 . 3 , 127 . 1 , 126 . 9 , 122 . 5 , 121 . 8 , 121 . 0 , 120 . 2 , 117 . 8 , 117 . 0 , 115 . 0 , 113 . 3 , 91 . 1 , 86 . 5 , 64 . 3 , 58 . 5 , 58 . 4 , 55 . 2 , 45 . 3 , 24 . 5 ; 31 p nmr ( cdcl3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 147 . 0 , 146 . 3 ; esi - ms m / e 953 . 5 [( m + na ) + ]; hrms calcd for c 55 h 55 n 4 o 8 pna [( m + na ) + ] 953 . 3655 , found 953 . 3682 . 3 - bromoperylene ( 540 mg , 1 . 63 mmol ) was dissolved in 20 ml dry thf and oxygen was bubbled into the solution for 30 minutes . the solution was then cooled with acetone - dry ice bath . n - butyl lithium solution ( 1 . 6m solution in hexanes , 2 . 0 ml , 3 . 2 mmol ) was added slowly over 20 minutes . the reaction mixture was stirred for 30 minutes at − 78 ° c . next , 1 . 63 ml zinc chloride solution ( 0 . 5m in thf ) was added in one portion via syringe . ten minutes after the addition , the reaction mixture was allowed to warm to room temperature , and stirring was continued for 2 hours . hoffer &# 39 ; s chlorosugar ( 635 mg , 1 . 63 mmol ) was dissolved in 5 ml dry thf and added to the reaction mixture in one portion . the reaction was stirred at room temperature overnight . next , the reaction mixture was poured into 50 ml 10 % ammonium chloride aqueous solution and washed with 2 × 30 ml ch 2 cl 2 . the organic layers were combined , washed with 30 ml saturated sodium bicarbonate solution and brine , dried over anhydrous sodium sulfate , and concentrated . the crude product was purified with flash chromatography ( ch 2 cl 2 ) to give the product as a yellow - brown solid ( 186 mg , 19 %). the product was confirmed to be α - isomer by 1 - d noe experiment ( table 1 ) on the free nucleoside . the β - isomer , a minor product , was not isolated ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 8 . 24 - 8 . 08 ( m , 7h ), 7 . 97 ( 2d , 2h , j = 6 . 5 hz ), 7 . 68 ( d , 1h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 64 ( d , 1h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 50 - 7 . 46 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 40 ( t , 1h , j = 8 hz ) 7 . 31 - 7 . 25 ( m , 5h ), 6 . 29 ( d , 1h , j = 4 hz ), 5 . 70 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 80 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 70 - 4 . 60 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 79 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 48 ( s , 3h ), 2 . 45 ( s , 3h ); 13 c nmr ( cdcl3 , 500 hz ) δ = 166 . 8 , 166 . 5 , 152 . 4 , 144 . 5 , 144 . 2 , 135 . 1 , 131 . 7 , 131 . 6 , 131 . 4 , 130 . 2 , 130 . 0 , 129 . 5 , 128 . 7 , 128 . 0 , 127 . 2 , 127 . 1 , 127 . 0 , 126 . 9 , 126 . 7 , 126 . 2 , 125 . 3 , 122 . 2 , 121 . 1 , 120 . 9 , 120 . 2 , 119 . 4 , 109 . 4 , 102 . 4 , 83 . 5 , 75 . 0 , 64 . 5 , 39 . 9 , 22 . 0 ; fab - ms m / e 620 [ m + ]; hrms calcd for c 41 h 32 o 6 [ m + ] 620 . 2199 , found : 620 . 2181 . 3 - oxoperylene - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside - 3 ′, 5 ′- di -( p - toluoyl ) ester ( 360 mg , 0 . 58 mmol ) was dissolved in 15 ml ch 2 cl 2 , and 1 . 5 ml naoch 3 / ch 3 oh ( 0 . 5m ) solution was added in one portion via syringe . half an hour after the addition of sodium methoxide solution , yellow precipitate was formed , which was the deprotected nucleoside . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours and tlc showed the absence of the starting material . product was obtained as a yellow solid through filtration ( 196 mg , 88 %); 1 h nmr ( dmso - d 6 , 500 mhz ) δ = 8 . 37 ( d , 1h , 7 . 5 hz ), 8 . 31 ( d , 1h , 7 . 5 hz ), 8 . 29 ( d , 1h , 8 . 5 hz ), 8 . 22 ( d , 1h , 7 hz ), 8 . 08 ( d , 1h , 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 74 ( d , 1h , 8 hz ), 7 . 69 ( d , 1h , 8 hz ), 7 . 55 - 7 . 47 ( m , 3h ), 7 . 21 ( d , 1h , 8 . 5 hz ), 6 . 09 ( m , 1h ), 5 . 20 ( s , broad , 1h ), 4 . 78 ( s , broad , 1h ), 4 . 18 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 97 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 55 - 3 . 44 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 58 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 19 ( m , 1h ); c nmr ( dmso , 500 hz ) δ = 153 . 2 , 135 . 2 , 131 . 6 , 131 . 3 , 131 . 1 , 129 . 6 , 128 . 5 , 128 . 4 , 127 . 6 , 127 . 5 , 127 . 4 , 127 . 1 , 127 . 0 , 124 . 4 , 122 . 8 , 122 . 1 , 122 . 0 , 121 . 1 , 120 . 1 , 110 . 6 , 102 . 9 , 87 . 8 , 70 . 7 , 61 . 9 , 42 . 0 ; fabms m / e 407 , [( m + na )+]; hrms calcd for c 25 h 20 o 4 na [( m + na ) + ] 407 . 1259 , found : 407 . 1280 . 3 - oxoperylene - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside ( 189 mg , 0 . 49 mmol ) was co - evaporated with 2 × 20 ml dry pyridine and then suspended in 66 ml dry pyridine . n , n - diisopropylethylamine ( dipea , 0 . 54 ml , 3 . 07 mmol ) was added in one portion . 4 , 4 ′- dimethoxytrityl chloride ( 693 mg , 2 . 05 mmol ) was dissolved in 12 ml dry pyridine and added to the perylene - o - deoxyriboside suspension . the suspension turned to clear immediately upon addition of dmt - chloride solution . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours . next , 0 . 5 ml methanol was injected to quench the reaction . solvents were removed under vacuum and crude product was purified with flash chromatography ( eluent gradient used was hexanes / ethyl acetate 3 : 1 to 1 : 1 , containing 3 % tea ). product was obtained as yellow foam ( 296 mg , 86 %); 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 8 . 24 ( d , h , 7 . 5 hz ), 8 . 19 ( d , 1h , 8 hz ), 8 . 15 ( d , 1h , 8 . 5 hz ), 8 . 12 ( d , 1h , 7 . 5 hz ), 8 . 00 ( d , 1h , 8 hz ), 7 . 69 ( d , 1h , 8 hz ), 7 . 65 ( d , 1h , 8 hz ), 7 . 53 - 7 . 46 ( m , 5h ), 7 . 38 - 7 . 24 ( m , 8h ), 6 . 89 - 6 . 86 ( m , 4h ), 6 . 15 ( d , 1h , 5 hz ), 4 . 46 ( m , 2h ), 3 . 83 ( s , 6h ), 3 . 29 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 66 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 53 ( m , 1h ); c nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 hz ) δ = 158 . 5 , 152 . 3 , 144 . 7 , 135 . 9 , 135 . 8 , 134 . 8 , 131 . 4 , 131 . 2 , 130 . 0 , 128 . 1 , 127 . 9 , 127 . 8 , 126 . 8 , 126 . 7 , 126 . 6 , 126 . 5 , 126 . 3 , 125 . 4 , 121 . 5 , 120 . 8 , 120 . 6 , 120 . 1 , 119 . 2 , 113 . 1 , 110 . 1 , 103 . 7 , 87 . 4 , 86 . 3 , 73 . 5 , 63 . 9 , 55 . 2 , 41 . 7 ; fab - ms m / e 709 [( m + na )+]; hrms calcd for c 46 h 38 o 6 na [( m + na ) + ] 709 . 2567 , found : 709 . 2541 . 5 ′-( 4 , 4 ′- di methoxytrityl )- 3 - oxoperylene - 1 ′- α - deoxyribos ide ( 290 mg , 0 . 42 mmol ) was dissolved in 15 ml dry ch 2 cl 2 . n , n - diisopropylethylamine ( dipea , 449 μl , 2 . 58 mmol ) and 2 - cyanoethyl n , n - diisopropylchlorophosphoramidite ( 289 μl , 1 . 30 mmol ) was added via syringe . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 3 hours . solvent was removed under vacuum and the crude product was purified with flash chromatography ( eluent gradient used was : hexanes : ethyl acetate 5 : 1 to 3 : 1 , containing 3 % tea ). product was obtained as a red foam ( 304 mg , 88 %, product is the mixture of two diastereoisomers ); 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 8 . 25 - 8 . 11 ( m , 5h ), 7 . 68 ( d , 1h , 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 64 ( d , 1h , 8 hz ), 7 . 51 - 7 . 46 ( m , 5h ), 7 . 40 - 7 . 24 ( m , 8h ), 6 . 88 - 6 . 85 ( m , 4h ), 6 . 18 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 62 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 50 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 82 ( s , 6h ), 3 . 69 - 3 . 42 ( m , 2h ), 3 . 43 - 3 . 34 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 22 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 70 - 2 . 37 ( m , 4h ), 1 . 29 - 1 . 20 ( m , 14h ); c nmr ( cdcl 3 , 400 hz ) δ = 158 . 4 , 152 . 9 , 144 . 8 , 136 . 1 , 135 . 9 , 134 . 8 , 131 . 6 , 131 . 4 , 130 . 1 , 128 . 3 , 128 . 2 , 127 . 8 , 127 . 7 , 126 . 8 , 126 . 6 , 126 . 4 , 125 . 8 , 122 . 3 , 120 . 8 , 120 . 7 , 119 . 9 , 119 . 0 , 113 . 1 , 109 . 57 , 109 . 45 , 103 . 0 , 102 . 8 , 86 . 0 , 85 . 7 , 63 . 5 , 63 . 4 , 58 . 3 , 58 . 1 , 55 . 2 , 43 . 2 , 41 . 1 , 29 . 7 , 24 . 6 , 24 . 5 ; p nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 146 . 2 , 145 . 8 ; fabms m / e 909 [( m + na )+]; hrms calcd for c 55 h 55 n 2 o 7 nap [( m + na ) + ] 909 . 3644 , found : 909 . 3632 . 4 - bromo - 4 ′-( n , n - dimethyl - amino )- stilbene ( 3 g , 10 mmol ), magnesium turnings ( 240 mg , 10 mmol ) and catalytic amount of iodine was charged into a three - neck flask equipped with condenser . 70 ml dry thf was injected into the flask via syringe . slight heating was needed to initiate the reaction . once the reaction was initiated , the reaction mixture was heated up slowly to reflux and was allowed to stay at reflux for 3 hours to form the grignard reagent completely . 916 mg cdcl 2 ( 5 mmol ) was added in one portion and the reaction mixture was refluxed for another 2 hours . then the reaction was cooled to room temperature and hoffer &# 39 ; s chlorosugar ( 3 . 89 g , 10 mmol ) was added as a solid in one portion . the reaction mixture was heated to reflux for 4 hours and then was allowed to stay at room temperature overnight . the reaction was quenched by pouring the mixture into 200 ml 10 % nh 4 cl aqueous solution . the resulting mixture was extracted with 3 × 50 ml ch 2 cl 2 . the organic layers were combined , washed with 100 ml saturated nahco solution and brine , dried over anhydrous naso 4 , and concentrated . purification by flash chromatography gave dmas - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside3 ′, 5 ′- di -( p - toluoyl ) ester as a white solid ( 1 . 94 g , 34 %). the product was confirmed to be α - isomer by 1 - d noe experiment on the free nucleoside . the β - lsomer , as minor product , was not isolated ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 7 . 98 ( d , 2h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 68 ( d , 2h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 47 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 42 ( d , 2h , j = 9 hz ), 7 . 38 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 5 hz ) 7 . 24 ( d , 2h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 16 ( d , 2h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 05 ( d , 1h , j = 16 hz ), 6 . 95 ( d , 1h , j = 16 hz ), 6 . 72 ( d , 2h , j = 9 hz ), 5 . 60 ( m , 1h ), 5 . 37 ( t , 1h , j = 6 . 5 hz ), 4 . 68 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 58 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 99 ( s , 6h ), 2 . 92 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 41 ( s , 3h ), 2 . 37 ( s , 3h ), 2 . 32 ( m , 1h ); c nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 hz ) δ = 166 . 4 , 166 . 1 , 150 . 1 , 143 . 9 , 143 . 8 , 140 . 7 , 137 . 4 , 129 . 7 , 129 . 6 , 129 . 1 , 129 . 0 , 128 . 7 , 127 . 5 , 127 . 1 , 126 . 8 , 126 . 0 , 125 . 9 , 125 . 7 , 124 . 0 , 112 . 4 , 82 . 1 , 80 . 2 , 76 . 4 , 40 . 4 , 40 . 3 , 21 . 7 ; ei - ms m / e 575 [ m + ]; hrms calcd for c 37 h 37 no 5 [ m + ] 575 . 2672 , found 575 . 2656 . dmas - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside - 3 ′, 5 ′- di - toluoyl ester ( 832 mg , 1 . 45 mmol ) was dissolved in 30 ml ch 2 cl 2 . 8 . 68 ml naoch 3 / ch 3 oh ( 0 . 5m ) was added into the solution in one portion via syringe . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours . solid ammonium chloride was added until the reaction mixture was weakly basic . the mixture was then poured into 100 ml water and resulting mixture was extracted with 3 × 50 ml ch 2 cl 2 . organic layers were combined and washed with 100 ml h 2 o , dried over mgso 4 , and concentrated . purification by flash chromatography ( ethyl acetate as eluent ) gave the product as a yellowish solid ( 468 mg , 95 %); 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 7 . 49 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 45 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 7 . 37 ( d , 2h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 07 ( d , 1h , j = 16 hz ), 6 . 94 ( d , 1h , j = 16 hz ), 6 . 92 ( s , broad , 2h ), 5 . 13 ( t , 1h , j = 7 . 5 hz ), 4 . 48 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 12 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 85 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 75 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 02 ( s , 6h ), 2 . 70 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 11 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 00 ( s , broad , 1h ), 1 . 87 ( s , broad , 1h ); c nmr ( dmso - d 6 , 500 hz ) δ = 150 . 6 , 142 . 8 , 137 . 4 , 129 . 0 , 128 . 2 , 126 . 9 , 126 . 3 , 125 . 7 , 124 . 1 , 112 . 9 , 86 . 9 , 79 . 1 , 72 . 4 , 62 . 5 , 44 . 2 ; ei - ms m / e 339 [ m + ]; hrms calcd for c 21 h 25 no 3 [ m + ] 339 . 1834 , found 339 . 1837 . dmas - 1 ′- α - deoxyriboside ( 102 mg , 0 . 3 mmol ) was co - evaporated twice with 10 ml dry pyridine and the residue was dissolved in 5 ml dry pyridine . n , n - diisopropylethylamine ( dipea , 0 . 16 ml , 0 . 9 mmol ) was added in one portion . 4 , 4 ′- dimethoxytrityl chloride ( 152 mg , 0 . 45 mmol ) was dissolved in 5 ml dry pyridine and transferred into the dmas nucleoside solution . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours , after which tlc showed the absence of the starting material . reaction was quenched by injecting 0 . 5 ml methanol into the reaction mixture . solvent was removed under vacuum . the remaining oil was dissolved in 2 ml ch 2 cl 2 and loaded onto a silica column pretreated with 3 % tea in hexanes / ethyl acetate ( 4 : 1 ). flash chromatography ( hexanes / ethyl acetate gradient 4 : 1 to 2 : 3 ) gave product as yellowish foam ( 180 mg , 94 %); 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 7 . 46 ( d , 4h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 41 ( d , 2h , j = 9 hz ), 7 . 36 - 7 . 22 ( m , 9h ), 7 . 04 ( d , 1h , j = 16 hz ), 6 . 91 ( d , 1h , 16 hz ), 6 . 84 ( d , 4h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 6 . 72 ( d , 2h , 9 hz ), 5 . 12 ( t , 1h , j = 7 hz ), 4 . 42 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 18 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 80 ( s , 6h ), 3 . 38 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 22 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 98 ( s , 6h ), 2 . 68 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 04 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 95 ( s , broad , 1h ); c nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 hz ) δ = 158 . 5 , 150 . 1 , 144 . 8 , 141 . 2 , 137 . 5 , 136 . 0 , 135 . 9 , 130 . 0 , 128 . 7 , 128 . 1 , 127 . 9 , 127 . 5 , 126 . 8 , 126 . 1 , 126 . 0 , 125 . 7 , 124 . 0 , 113 . 1 , 112 . 4 , 86 . 3 , 84 . 3 , 79 . 6 , 75 . 3 , 64 . 8 , 55 . 2 , 45 . 7 ; ei - ms m / e 641 [ m + ]; hrms calcd for c 42 h 43 no 5 [ m + ] 641 . 3141 , found 641 . 3177 . preparation of 5 ′-( 4 , 4 ′- dimethoxytrityl )- dmas - 1 ′- α - deoxyri boside - 3 ′- o -( cyanoethyl - n , ndiisopropylamino ) phosphoramidite5 ′-( 4 , 4 ′- dimethoxytrityl )- dmas - 1 ′- α - deoxyri boside ( 180 mg , 0 . 28 mmol ) was dissolved in 10 ml ch 2 cl 2 . n , n - diisopropylethylamine ( dipea , 195 μl , 1 . 12 mmol ) and 2 - cyanoethyl n , n - diisopropylchlorophosphoramidite ( 96 μl , 0 . 42 mmol ) was added via syringe . the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours . tlc showed that the starting material was mostly gone . solvent was removed under vacuum and the crude product was purified with flash chromatography ( hexanes / ethyl acetate 3 . 5 : 1 ). product was obtained as yellowish foam ( 212 mg , 90 %; product is the mixture of two diastereoisomers ); 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 7 . 50 - 7 . 18 ( m , 15h ), 7 . 04 ( d , 1h , j = 16 hz ), 6 . 91 ( d , 1h , j = 16 hz ), 6 . 83 ( m , 4h ), 6 . 72 ( d , 2h , j = 9 hz ), 5 . 25 - 5 . 17 ( two triplet , 1h , j = 7 hz ), 4 . 65 - 4 . 49 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 34 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 79 ( s , 6h ), 3 . 56 ( m , 2h ), 3 . 36 - 3 . 28 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 18 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 98 ( s , 6h ), 2 . 69 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 44 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 35 ( t , 1h , j = 7 hz ), 2 . 25 - 2 . 05 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 34 - 1 . 01 ( m , 14h ); 13 c nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 hz ) δ = 158 . 4 , 150 . 1 , 144 . 9 , 141 . 7 , 141 . 3 , 137 . 4 , 137 . 1 , 136 . 1 , 130 . 2 , 130 . 1 , 128 . 53 , 128 . 46 , 128 . 3 , 128 . 2 , 127 . 8 , 127 . 5 , 126 . 7 , 126 . 3 , 126 . 1 , 125 . 9 , 125 . 8 , 125 . 7 , 124 . 1 , 113 . 0 , 112 . 4 , 86 . 0 , 84 . 8 , 84 . 6 , 80 . 0 , 75 . 3 ( m ), 64 . 2 , 64 . 0 , 55 . 20 , 55 . 18 , 42 . 5 , 24 . 6 , 24 . 5 , 24 . 4 , 24 . 3 ; p nmr ( cdcl 3 , 500 mhz ) δ = 145 . 8 , 145 . 0 ; ei - ms m / e 841 [ m + ]; hrms calcd for c 51 h 60 n 3 o 6 p [ m + ] 841 . 4219 , found 841 . 4196 . the fluorosides were characterized by their uv - vis absorption ( fig8 ) and fluorescence spectroscopy ( fig9 ). photophysical data are summarized in table 1 . the photophysical properties of these fluorosides are close to those of the unsubstituted fluorophores . the four compounds display absorbance maxima ranging from 342 nm to 509 nm , and emission maxima from 375 nm to 541 nm . molar absorptivities vary from 8 . 8 × 10 3 to 4 . 7 × 10 5 lmol − 1 cm − 1 stokes shifts range from 17 to 93 nm , and quantum yields ( in air saturated methanol ) vary from 0 . 055 to 0 . 81 . as expected , the fluorescence properties of these deoxyribosides are close to those of known unsubstituted parent fluorophores . synthesis of the modified beads was performed as illustrated in fig1 . loading of the modified beads was determined to be 85 μmol / g by standard procedures . fluorophore - phosphoramidites were dissolved in accn / ch 2 cl 2 ( 10 : 1 ) to make 0 . 1m solutions , which were used for the polyfluor - library synthesis . the synthesis of the library was performed using a split and pool synthetic method , generating a diverse library . the growth of the polyfluorophore chain was accomplished by automated dna synthesis ( lpmol scale ) on abi 392 dna synthesizer through phosphoramidite chemistry using standard split - and - mix methods . trityl cation monitoring demonstrated coupling yields that were acceptably high ( at & gt ; 93 . 6 %) for each of the four monomers . the fluorophore sequences of each library member were recorded by the binary encoding strategy with molecular tags . the tag synthesis , tagging and decoding procedure was done according to the published procedure ( nestler et al ., j . org . chem . 59 ( 17 ): 4723 , 1994 ). molecular tags used in this study are 10a , 9a , 8a , 7a , 10d , 10b , 9d , 9b , 8d , 8b , 7d , 7b . the polyfluorophore library was screened under an epifluorescence microscope . ( nikon eclipse e800 equipped with 4 × objective , excitation 340 - 380 nm ; emission light collected & gt ; 435 nm ). fluorescence images were taken using a spot rt digital camera and spot advanced imaging software . the brightest beads of several different colors , as well as the darkest beads were picked up with a flamepulled pipet and transferred into a capillary tube ( size : 0 . 8 - 1 . 1 × 90 mm ) for decoding . of sixteen possible outcomes , approximately 8 - 10 variations of intensity and hue were observable by eye . this suggested that neither strong radiationless quenching mechanisms , nor overwhelming of apparent library color by a single bright dye were dominant outcomes for this molecular design . next , a larger 256 member binary - encoded tetrafluor library composed of all combinations of the four fluorosides y , e , d , and q were prepared . based on the size of beads and scale of the library , each member of the library was represented with ca . 40 - fold redundancy . this new set of tetrafluors exhibited at least 40 - 50 different hues and intensities distinguishable by eye , ranging from violet to yellow - orange in color , and from relatively bright to nearly completely dark . as an initial sample a set of tetrafluors were selected and sequenced based on bright beads of various hues as well as a few especially dark examples . approximately 90 % of about fifty selected beads yielded a decodable sequence . the 44 sequences decoded are listed in table 2 according to their approximate colors and intensities . selected polyfluors from the library ( 5 ′- yddd — bright blue ; 5 ′- yeey — green ; and 5 ′- qyyy — yellow ) were remade through the standard oligonucleotide synthesis protocol on cpg beads . four units of dspacer ( glen research , abbreviated as s ) were added onto the 3 ′- end of the polyfluors to increase their solubility in water . products were cleaved from the solid support with concentrated ammonia ( 24 hours , room temperature ) and purified with polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis . purified products were characterized by esi - ms , uv - absorption , and fluorescence spectroscopy ( fig1 , 12 , and 13 ). results showed that the new tetrafluors exhibited the same apparent color in solution as they did on the solid support . these three selected tetrafluors display properties markedly different than any of the monomeric fluorophores that make them up . their colors differ in non - trivial ways from the monomers that compose them ; for example , qyyy is yellow - orange despite being composed of three violet dyes and only one yellow one . stokes shifts are often much larger for these tetrafluors ( 40 - 221 nm ) than for the monomers , and the three display their varied emission colors with a single excitation wavelength . ordinarily the observation of three differently colored commercial monomeric dyes under the microscope requires three different excitations with three different filter sets , and they could only be observed simultaneously by artificially overlaying three digital images . the synthetic route is shown in fig1 . a 3 , 5 - bis - o - touloyl protected deoxyribose - c1 - carboxaldehyde ( 3 ) was prepared in three steps from hoffer &# 39 ; s α - chlorosugar via a nitrile glycoside isolated in the β configuration . a mixed aldehyde condensation of ( 3 ) with benzaldehyde and dipyrromethane under lindsey conditions for meso substituted porphyrins afforded a mixture of porphyrins from which a trans - substituted 5 , 15 - phenylporphyrin nucleoside ( 4 ) was isolated in 15 - 20 % yields . deprotection of the sugar moiety gave c - porphyrinyl nucleoside ( 5 ) as a glassy purple solid . structural characterization was performed by means of 1 h , 1 h - cosy and noe nmr spectroscopy . the chemical shifts for the ribose unit in ( 5 ) were displaced downfield in comparison with the observed values in other c - nucleosides . in particular , the 1 ′ proton typically found between 5 - 6 . 5 ppm with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons exhibited a strong deshielding to 8 . 3 ppm in pyridine - d5 . confirmation of the β - glycosidic configuration of ( 5 ) was obtained by noe difference experiments . irradiation of the 1 ′ h gave noe on 4 ′ h ( 6 . 2 %) and 2 ′ h - α ( 7 . 3 %). similarly , irradiation on 2 ′ h - β gave noe on 3 ′ h ( 5 %) and the neighbor pyrrolic - β - h ( 7 . 8 %), whereas irradiation at the 2 ′ h - α only yielded significant enhancements on 1 ′ h ( 6 . 3 %). β - c - porphyrinyl nucleoside ( abbreviated o ) displays the standard features of 5 , 15 - disubstituted porphyrins , with uv - vis absorption characterized by a strong band at 400 nm ( soret , e400 = 3 . 24 × 10 5 m − 1 cm − 1 ) and four weak absorptions in the region between 500 - 650 nm ( q bands , e500 = 1 . 6 × 10 4 m − 1 cm − 1 ). likewise , the steady - state fluorescence shows large stokes shifts with emission bands at 629 and 694 nm ( λexc 400 nm ) and quantum efficiency of 0 . 11 in meoh . nucleoside o was further 5 ′- o - trytilated and 3 ′- o - phosphytylated to afford 2 - cyanoethyl phosphoramidite ( 6 ) in 50 % overall yields . with compound ( 6 ) in hand , synthesis of oligonucleotides containing o was readily performed by standard automated dna synthesis methods ( table 3 ). fluorescence emission and quantum yield data was determined for oligonucleotides containing o in water at 25 ° c . the water - soluble derivative ( 7 ; containing nine abasic nucleosides terminated with the porphyrin nucleoside o ) displayed identical absorption spectra as the parent o in meoh , and a small blue shift in the fluorescence emission . in the presence of nucleobases , the soret band was red - shifted by 5 nm in ( 8 ) ( facing a single base ) and 8 nm in ( 9 ) and ( 10 ), interacting with two bases . surprisingly , apart from the small red shift displayed in the emission band of ( 8 ), ( 9 ) and ( 10 ), in comparison to ( 7 ), the quantum efficiency of o seems to be independent of the presence of nucleobases . dna interaction with fluorescent dyes often produces quenching of fluorescence . in cationic porphyrins substantial quenching was observed in intercalative binding at gc regions as a consequence of deactivation of an excited - state complex with g via reductive quenching of the porphyrin excited state . all of the compositions and / or methods disclosed and claimed herein can be made and executed without undue experimentation in light of the present disclosure . while the compositions and methods of this invention have been described in terms of preferred embodiments , it will be apparent to those of skill in the art that variations may be applied to the compositions and / or methods and in the steps or in the sequence of steps of the methods described herein without departing from the concept and scope of the invention . more specifically , it will be apparent that certain agents which are chemically related may be substituted for the agents described herein while the same or similar results would be achieved . all such similar substitutes and modifications apparent to those skilled in the art are deemed to be within the scope and concept of the invention .

2Chemistry; Metallurgy

the p53 gene product plays an important role in suppressing the formation of tumors . somatic mutations ( non - heritable dna changes in a part of the body of the affected individual ) of the gene have been extensively documented in various types of cancers ( greenblatt et al ., 1994 ; kanjilal et al ., 1995 ; kanjilal et al ., 1993 ). germ - line mutations ( dna alterations originating in sperm or ova that may be passed on to off - spring with the alterations then becoming present throughout the off - spring ) in p53 are also present in about 60 % of humans with the rare inherited cancer predisposition known as li fraumeni syndrome ( lfs ) ( srivastava et al ., 1990 ; malkin et al , 1990 ). individuals with this disorder are prone to developing carcinomas of the breast and adrenal cortex as well as sarcomas of the bones and soft tissues ( evans and lozano ( 1997 ); and birch et al ., 2001 ). experimentally created transgenic mice lacking one or both functional alleles of p53 also develop sarcomas of the bones and soft tissues and provide a rodent model for studying the effects of germ - line mutations and tumor suppressor gene dosing ( donehower et al ., 1996 ; venkatachalam et al ., 1998 ; kuperwasser et al ., 2000 ). as companion animals , domestic cats are subjected to many of the same environmental conditions as their human co - dwellers . the feline genome displays the highest level of syntenic conservation with the human genome of all non - primates ( e . g . cat pig , cattle , dog , mouse ) that have been investigated ( o &# 39 ; brien et al . i ; o &# 39 ; brien et al ., ii ; menotti - raymond et al ., 1999 , murphy et al ., 2000 ; yang et al ., 2000 ). the large number of genetic diseases with analogous pathologies described in the two species , as well as the high level of syntenic conservation between the feline and humans genomes , suggests that spontaneous diseases in domestic cats can provide useful models for investigating the etiology and molecular pathogenesis of many human diseases ( o &# 39 ; brien et al ., 1999 ; murphy et al ., 2000 ; chowdhary et al ., 1998 ). the possibility that the predisposition to cancer in domestic cats is similar to the inherited susceptibility to cancer observed in li fraumeni syndrome ( lfs ) prompted an investigation into the occurrence of germline alterations in the feline p53 . in addition to helping improve feline health management and treatment , the vaccine - associated sarcomas and genetic predispositions to disease susceptibility described herein is important in defining the role of inflammation in malignant transformation . inflammation is believed to play an important role in the development of various types of cancer . ( o &# 39 ; byrne and dalgleish , 2001 ). the clear connection between vaccine site inflammation and cancer development , as well as the ability to identify cats carrying the molecular bio - marker described herein , helps elucidate the cellular and molecular pathways of tumor development in response to inflammation and the identification of targets for preventing or slowing the process . predisposed cats develop cancers , such as sarcomas , that also afflict humans . the success rate for treatment of cancers such as sarcomas needs to be improved for both pet animals and humans . the predisposed cats that develop cancer provide natural models for basic research as well as for the evaluation of chemotherapeutics and other treatments with potential anti - cancer activities . cell lines developed from the feline cancers provide valuable materials for conducting ex vivo research while the feline cancer patients provide test subjects for in vivo evaluation of treatment protocols . hence , a feline model for human — cancer predisposition and cancer treatment is also envisioned in this disclosure . the invention will now be illustrated by the following non - limiting examples . study cases and controls . biological samples including blood and tissue samples were obtained from 33 vafs cases and matched cancer free controls . the cases included 20 male domestic short hairs ( dsh ), 13 female dshs , and their average age was 8 . 5 ( range 1 . 5 – 16 ). cases were matched with controls by age (+/− 1 year ) and sex . pcr amplification and sequence analysis of feline p53 . segments of feline genomic dna spanning exons 5 through 9 of the p53 gene were amplified using oligonucleotide primers as shown in table 1 ( saiki et al ., 1988 ). amplification reactions contained 50 ng genomic dna template , 0 . 2 μm each of forward and reverse primers , 100 μm dntps , 0 . 75 u amplitaq gold ( perkin elmer , foster city , calif . ), and pcr buffer i ( perkin elmer ) in a total volume of 25 μl . the amplitaq gold in the reactions was activated at 94 ° c . for 10 minutes . amplification using the first two primer pairs was performed using annealing temperatures of 65 ° c . for 2 cycles , 60 ° c . for 3 cycles , and 55 ° c . for 25 cycles . an annealing temperature of 55 ° c . was maintained for 30 cycles for amplification using the third primer pair . extension and denaturation temperatures were maintained at 72 ° c . and 94 ° c ., respectively , and all segments of each amplification cycle were 30 seconds in duration ( except on the last cycle for which the extension period was increased to 5 min ). examples of additional primers useful for the detection and examination of segments of feline p53 include : the molecular biomarker described herein can also was detected by examination of the nucleic acid segment amplified by the primer 5 ′- cca gca tct cat ccg agt gg - 3 ′ ( seq id no : 11 ) and a suitable down - stream primer such as seq id no : 4 or seq id no : 6 . nucleotide sequence analysis . amplicons were filtered through microcon - 100 ( amicon inc ., beverly , mass .) and sequenced in both directions using amplitaqfs dye - terminator chemistry ( pe applied biosystems , foster city , calif .). the sequencing reaction mixtures were electrophoresed on abi model 377 dna sequencers ( pe applied biosystems ) at the university of minnesota advanced genetic analysis center . the sequence data was analyzed using editseq and megalign programs ( dna star , madison , wis .). statistical methods . the distribution of the alleles in cancer cases and cancer - free controls was analyzed by fisher &# 39 ; s exact test ( statview 5 . 0 , sas institute , cary , n . j .). the confidence interval for the analyses was set at 95 %. allele - specific pcr analysis . the predisposing allele was amplified and detected by pcr amplification using the allele specific primer 5 ′- ccc tca ctg cct cca gct tt - 3 ′ ( seq id no : 12 ) and a down - stream primer such as seq id no : 4 or seq id no : 6 . the allele not associated with the disease predisposition was amplified and detected by pcr amplification using the primer 5 ′- ccc tca ctg cct cca gct tc - 3 ′ ( seq id no : 13 ) and a down - stream primer such as seq id no : 4 or seq id no : 6 . the conditions for pcr ( e . g . temperature and time ) were adjusted as needed . for example , an annealing temperature of 55 ° c . for 30 cycles of amplification was suitable for amplification with the primer pair seq id no : 12 and seq id no : 6 and the primer pair seq id no : 13 and seq id no : 6 . pcr - restriction fragment length polymorphism ( rflp ) analysis . detection of the allele containing the molecular biomarker was accomplished by the use of rflp analysis , a method which is known to the art . for example , the pcr product obtained on amplification with primers seq id no : 3 and seq id no : 4 was cut and analyzed with the restriction enzyme alwni , sphi , or bsaai . allele specific hybridization . analysis of the molecular biomarker was conducted by hybridization of labeled nucleic acid probes . the oligonucleotides seq id no : 12 and seq id no : 13 are examples of probes that were used for this purpose . hybridization techniques are known to the art . the genomic sequence of feline p53 was examined from exons 5 through 9 in blood or normal tissue samples obtained from 33 domestic short hair cats with vaccine associated feline sarcoma and an equal number of age , sex , and breed matched cancer - free controls . seven sites of allelic variation have been found to date . three previously identified polymorphic sites were found in exon 5 and intron 7 ( okuda et al ., 1993 ; mayr et al ., 1998 ). four additional sites of allelic variation have been found . one of these newly recognized sites involved a single thymidine ( t ) nucleotide insertion in intron 7 as , shown by the sequence 5 ′- gtagggacccgcacgccaccctgocccaggccactctctcccgtgctaccgocccatcccgcctgtggaatccccgcct gtggaatctcctctgctgtccccaccctccgcctccaagttttcttttctctggctttgggaccttctcttacccggcttctcg atactccttaggcttttaggctccaca taggatgaaggaggtggggagtaaggggggccccatctccctcactgcctccagc ttt ctgtcttcttacgtgggta g - 3 ′ ( seq id : 14 ; with altered area capitalized and underlined , also noted in genbank accession number af175762 ), while the other three sites involved single nucleotide polymorphisms in intron 8 ( 5 ′- gta agc ggg cag ga ( c / t ) gag a ( g / a ) g agg cag gga ggg tgc agt tcg gct caa aat tta ctc ttc tct cgc cgt ( t / c ) cc tca cct ctt tcc cag ( seq id no : 15 ) ( with polymorphisms at positions 15 , 20 , and 70 indicated by nucleotides in parenthesis ). analysis of the allelic distribution at the polymorphic sites in germline dna from this series of cases and cancer - free controls indicated that the allele containing the single nucleotide insertion in intron 7 is specifically associated with the development of tumors ( table 2 ). this allele was present in 16 of the 33 ( 49 %) vafs cases that were examined . fourteen cases were heterozygous (+/−) for the allele and another two were homozygous (+/+). in contrast , none of the 33 cancer - free controls were homozygous for the allele and only three ( 9 %) harbored the allele in the heterozygous state . a two - tailed fisher &# 39 ; s test showed that the association between this allele and the development of cancer was significant ( p & lt ; 0 . 001 ). the odds ratio for this case - control study was & gt ; 9 . 4 . although the feline marker allele of p53 described herein bears an intronic alteration and many of the alterations found in human lfs commonly occur in exons 5 – 9 , intronic alterations of p53 have also been described in families that fit the lfs description ( srivastava et al ., 1990 ; malkin et al ., 1990 ; evans and lozano , 1997 ; verselis et al ., 2000 ; avigad et al ., 1997 ; khaliq et al ., 2000 ). some of these intronic alterations lead to alternately spliced forms of p53 but in other cases the mechanism by which the intronic sequences are associated with the cancer predisposition are yet unknown ( verselis et al ., 2000 ; avigad et al ., 1997 ; khaliq et al ., 2000 ). the results described herein indicate that the single nucleotide insertion that is associated with cancer development in domestic short hair cats is also present in cancer cases amongst cats of the siamese and its derivative breeds . the combination of the genetic predisposition and the founder effect in the domestic cat population has likely resulted in the marked rise in the incidence of sarcomas following enactment of laws mandating vaccinations in various states ( hendrick and goldschmidt , 1991 , vella et al ., 1999 ; vinogradov , 1997 ; klein et al ., 1988 ). analyses on 115 other cancers in the domestic cat , including various carcinomas , adenomas , lymphomas , sarcomas , mast cell tumors , leukemias , myelomas , and melanomas , representing tumors of various organs including breast , skin , muscle , nerve , bone , thyroid glands also indicated the presence of a genetic predisposition . comparison of the presence of susceptibility markers in cases as compared to controls also indicated that the associations were highly significant for each cancer type ( p values & lt ; 0 . 05 ). review of the medical history for the control cats described in example 1 revealed a clinical history of urinary system disorders in some individuals . blood samples from six cats with a history of urinary system disorder ( case ) and 19 control cats ( no history of urinary disorder ) were collected . pcr amplification of feline p53 and sequence analysis of amplicons was conducted as described in example 1 . as with the cancer , the single nucleotide insertion in intron 7 of p53 described herein is associated with urinary system disorders in cats . four out of six of the urinary disorder cases were positive for the allele , whereas one out of 18 of the control animals were positive . similarly , a number of cats with the marker allele also have a history of cardiac problems or endocrine disorders . all publications , patents , and patent documents are incorporated by reference herein , as though individually incorporated by reference . the invention has been described with reference to various specific and preferred embodiments and techniques . however , it should be understood that many variations and modifications might be made while remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention . banerji et al ., am . j . vet . res . 63 , 728 – 732 ( 2002 ). hendrick and goldschmidt , j . am . vet . med . assoc . 199 , 968 ( 1991 ). kass et al ., j . am . vet . med . assoc ., 203 , 396 – 405 ( 1993 ). lekcharoensuk et al ., j . am . vet . med . assoc ., 218 , 1429 – 35 ( 2001 ). macy and hendrick , vet . clinics of north america , 26 , 103 – 109 ( 1996 ). ogilve and moore , in : managing the veterinary cancer patient , veterinary learning systems , 1995 . okuda et al ., j . vet . med . sci ., 55 , 801 – 805 , 1993 . vella et al ., in : robinson &# 39 ; s genetics for cat breeders and veterinarians , butterworth - heinemann medical , 4 th edition . ( 1999 ).

2Chemistry; Metallurgy

the patient single surface system ( ps3 ) provides an all encompassing , systematized approach to patient transport and care , representing a paradigm shift from current systems and methods . ps3 has been designed to provide a fully modular and scalable system based upon the provision of a single surface upon which a patient may remain beginning at a trauma site and extending throughout the steps of diagnosis , treatment and convalescence . the origins of the ps3 concept emanated from a study of stroke victim care in which studies indicated that up to 16 patient transfers were required for treatment , which corresponded to a loss of 20 - 40 minutes required for these manual transfers . the deficiencies of current patient care systems thus necessitate frequent movements which detract from efficient care and often tax the abilities of all involved , including the patient , caregivers ( such as doctors , nurses , orderlies , attendants and paramedics ), and the institutions for whom they serve , including hospitals , emergency medical services and health insurance providers . implementation of the ps3 system will provide myriad benefits , such as reduced time to treatment for all immobilized patients ( e . g . stroke or acute coronary syndrome patients , where time lost translates into irreversible loss of function ); elimination of unnecessary disturbance of acute care victims , such as those suffering spinal injuries ; and improved patient comfort during diagnosis , treatment and convalescence . implementation of ps3 will also serve to enhance economics related to patient care by eliminating patient transfer associated hospital staff injuries during patient transfer ( which is estimated to have a direct cost in the range of $ 28 -$ 128 million annually ), eliminating patient injuries during surface transfers , reducing staff requirements for patient transfers by as much as 6 to 1 , improving long - term outcome and reducing healthcare costs for patients benefiting from reduced time to treatment , improving long - term hospital staff retention and improving patient throughput . the ps3 has been designed to provide a wide range of application across a broad spectrum of patient treatment from trauma through convalescence , in a scalable and modular format . ps3 &# 39 ; s design requires little modification to existing interfacing equipment , while providing a multiplicity of safety interlocks using simple and readily adapted mechanisms . the heart of the ps3 system is the frameless single surface platform which may be formed in 2 - 3 segments to provide articulation of a backrest portion and , optionally , a knee gatch . although some loss of functionality may occur , it is nevertheless contemplated to provide full or partial framing , as need may dictate , for particular applications . the single surface platform or bed is designed to be lightweight , thin and modular , and may incorporate a wing system to provide for scalability in width , as required . in a preferred embodiment , a self - aligning self - locking quick release wing construction is provided to rapidly adapt the ps3 single surface platform to width requirements dictated by either patient comfort requirements , equipment space requirements or the like . in a particularly preferred embodiment , the wing attachments are additionally provided with a tension lever to insure tight fit to a single surface , while simultaneously acting as a fail - safe mechanism to prevent inadvertent disengagement . when desirable , and in order to reduce the number of loose parts , it is contemplated to fabricate the wings in a multiple segment hinged embodiment . in an alternative embodiment , as opposed to scalable wings , a multiple width integrated solution may be provided , wherein a particular width ps3 single surface platform is initially chosen based upon anticipated needs . this embodiment serves to eliminate a proliferation of loose parts , e . g . wings , however it may necessitate a transfer of the patient to an alternatively sized ps3 single surface platform , as may be required . the ps3 single surface platform is designed to facilitate compatibility with mri and x - ray imagery equipment , as well as providing an easily adaptable platform for usage by emergency medical services personnel . in a particular embodiment , the ps3 single surface platform can be provided with an inflatable air mattress for enhanced patient comfort . this mattress may be provided with multiple layers including a foam or gel overlying an impervious layer or an alternative self - healing layer analogous to a basketball self - healing membrane overlying a plurality of air chambers . the air mattress provides a means for rapid adaptation to various conditions experienced as the patient progresses from trauma through diagnosis , treatment and convalescence . inflated on - demand by a small compressor in the frame , separate stand or auxiliary tray on ps3 . this multi - layer air mattress is an alternative to continuous air systems which require constant power supply , constant connection to the fan system , are noisy and more maintenance intensive due to the constant run nature . the second major component of the ps3 system is the single surface to transfer frame interface , which provides rapid transfer , is self - aligning , secure , of passive design and is designed to provide both trendelenburg and reverse trendelenburg positioning . in an illustrative , albeit non - limiting embodiment , the frame to single surface platform interface is further provided with one or more tabs which are designed to rotate or translate to a position above the single surface platform - to - frame interface to provide additional security . contrary to prior art devices , the instant invention permits horizontal withdrawal of the frame to single surface interface , without requiring that the components drop below the mating surface for disengagement . the third major component of the ps3 system is encompassed in the provision and accommodation of auxiliary components . auxiliary components such as guard rails , iv pole holders , and the like are attachable to the ps3 support surface anywhere along the periphery of the support surface , utilizing the same self - locking features as the auxiliary blocks and wings , and need not be attached and reattached during patient movement from one area of treatment to another . the auxiliaries are designed so as not to extend below the ps3 or wing surface , thereby ensuring that the auxiliaries can be removed while the ps3 is mated to another surface . in a preferred , albeit non - limiting embodiment , provision of a unique auxiliary block having a self - locking and quick release design enables enhanced ability for attachment of auxiliary devices . the system &# 39 ; s modular design permits quick self - aligning attachment of all auxiliary components to a variety of modular components such as the ps3 surface support platform and / or the wings . by use of the scalable wings , along with an auxiliary block which incorporates a unique two - step locking mechanism , secure assemblage of specifically needed surface structure and auxiliary implementation can be readily achieved . in an illustrative example , a patient will initially be assessed by ems personnel and placed upon a ps3 patient surface platform or “ ps3 bed ”. auxiliary components such as an iv bag carrying fluids to the patient may be attached thereto . self - lock , quick release transfer hooks may also be applied to the ps3 single surface platform along with the adjustable width self - storing handles and the single surface platform may be affixed to a wheeled carrier for transfer to the hospital emergency room . once within the er , a backrest and mid - section self - locking wing might be installed to enhance patient comfort . additionally , guard rails may be secured along the peripheries of the ps3 single surface platform to provide enhanced patient security , while still enabling articulation for patient treatment and comfort . once within the hospital , the transfer frame can be positioned for engagement with the ps3 single surface platform . utilizing the self - aligning features inherent in the single surface platform - to - frame interface , safe and secure transfer may be easily accomplished , thereby enabling removal of the wheeled carrier . upon positioning of the ps3 single surface platform upon the transfer frame , the patient may be easily moved throughout the hospital for necessary tests and the like . this transport may be carried out in a horizontal mode or , by vertically orienting the support structure of the transfer frame , in the trendelenburg or reverse trendelenburg position , as desired . in an illustrative embodiment , as will be further described below , the patient , while resting on the ps3 single support surface which is interfaced with the transfer frame , is first transported to the vicinity of an mri device . the patient is then transferred directly to the mri device , while always remaining on the ps3 single support surface . the only modification required of the mri device is the installation of an appropriate number of “ t - pins ” ( usually two ) to couple to the ps3 single surface platform . the entire patient support surface is positioned above the mri scan bed , and once nominally positioned , any guard - rails or auxiliaries may be dismounted and stored on a separate rack or mounted to t - slots , or the like matable receiving surface , built into the mri transfer frame . the quick - release mid / lower leg wings and guard - rails can then be removed , as well as the quick - release backrest wings and associated guard - rails . at this point the ps3 single surface support is lowered onto the mri bed and self - positioning openings guide the t - pins into place as the patient support surface is lowered thereon . when fully supported upon the mri bed , the ps3 transfer frame may be removed . subsequently , the ps3 support surface is locked to the mri bed by activation of the single handle which translates the locking mechanism , simultaneously interlocking about the t - pins , and releasing the locking elements which had prevented articulation of the backrest and knee gatch joints , which had maintained the ps3 support surface rigid . if necessary , auxiliaries may remain fixedly engaged to the mri bed , while still enabling insertion of the patient within the mri device . alternatively , when space within the mri or ct scanner becomes problematic , the ps3 single surface platform may fully replace the imaging bed of the scanning device . in such an embodiment , the mri or ct scanner will engage the ps3 in a side - drive configuration , wherein the matable receiving surface , e . g . the t - slot , is directly engaged by mating means made integral with the mri / ct scanner . this allows elimination of the extra thickness caused by stacking of the ps3 and mri / ct scan bed , and allows for removal of the articulation inter - lock module ( which allows for improved imaging ) and does away with the need for the t - pins . with reference to the ps3 single surface support platform or “ ps3 bed ”, the design is configured to initially provide a rigid backboard facility . means are provided to maintain the segmented surface in a rigid configuration , e . g . by the use of spring loaded locking tubes , which are biased to a home position which insures positive engagement of adjacent segments , thereby precluding relative articulation therebetween , e . g . about the back rest or knee gatch articulation points . an articulation inter - lock module is provided which is positionable within the confines of the ps3 single surface platform , in a manner such that translation of the articulation interlock module securement means can only be accomplished subsequent to insertion of the t - pins within the t - pin reception means , at which point the articulation inter - lock blocks securely grasp the t - pins and simultaneously disengage the means providing rigidity of the segments to a second position , whereby articulation of the segments is enabled . thus , when mounted to an underlying surface which permits of articulation , the knee gatch and backrest may be adjusted for most efficient treatment and patient comfort . an additional feature of the ps3 system is illustrated in the ps3 auxiliary block mounting mechanism . this mechanism is designed to securely mount within a matable receiving surface , which is ubiquitous to various members of the ps3 system . in a preferred , albeit non - limiting embodiment , the matable receiving surface is depicted as a t - slot . the t - slot may be provided in the sides of the ps3 single support surface , the transfer frame , the scalable wing system , and the various manifestations of guide - rails . by utilizing a combination of male / female coupling configurations , the component mounting system provides a self - locking and self - aligning attachment system which is infinitely adjustable within the mounting surface . spring biasing means , or the like , provide for easy and quick release of mounted components , while , in a preferred embodiment , providing a supplemental locking element which provides for a secure fit and fail - safe attachment , thereby preventing inadvertent disengagement . unique to the auxiliary mounting block , is a locking element incorporating a two - stage quick release feature . as illustrated below , this locking element provides for self - locking of the auxiliary block to a mounting surface and also self - locking of an auxiliary feature , e . g . an intravenous support pole ( iv pole ) within the auxiliary block . application of force to the release mechanism to a first release point enables release of the iv pole , without any release of the auxiliary block form the mounting surface . continued application of pressure to a second release point is effective for disengagement of the auxiliary block from the associated matable receiving surface . in an alternative embodiment , a modification of the ps3 support surface is provided which enables articulation and actuation of both the knee gatch and backrest incline while the ps3 support surface is engaged with the ps3 frame , in addition to trendelenburg and reverse trendelenburg within the ps3 frame . this modification , in addition to allowing backrest incline and knee gatch articulation while in the ps3 frame , further permits improved access to both sides of the ps3 single surface platform when in “ bed / gurney ” mode ( at rest or transport ) and support of ps3 single surface when suspended in the ps3 frame , which allows for easier installation / removal of the articulation interlock module . this support embodiment heavily reduces the chance of binding and force required to install / remove the articulation interlock module . two major approaches for this embodiment are contemplated , a first embodiment wherein a full width version with full low profile frame is provided which stays attached to the frame at the main single surface platform to frame interface hooks . this embodiment utilizes conventional gurney backrest incline actuation which is usually pneumatic shocks which stay within the frame height . the knee gatch is also actuated by typical gurney means within the frame height . this embodiment would require one transfer to narrow width version of ps3 if need for mri / ct scan . it is noted that the t - pins and keyhole lock modules would still be used to lock ps3 into another surface , but the interlock for backrest and knee gatch articulation would not be necessary . in a second embodiment a two column mid cross - bar version is provided , wherein one version has “ head ” end and leg end “ specified ” and a more complicated version which is not specific with regard to the head end versus the leg end of the single surface platform with respect to frame . in this embodiment , the frame cross bar may be moved laterally to a middle position , irrespective of the backrest / knee gatch articulation within the frame , thereby improving side access within the frame . in order to fully explain the various features , of ps3 , its auxiliary components and alternative embodiments , reference will now be made , in detail , to the accompanying figures , wherein like elements are uniformly numbered throughout . with regard to diagnostic interfaces , the mri is thought to be the most difficult , primarily due to its package constraints and very narrow patient platform . the mri also adds a challenge through the requirement that any interface equipment is of nonferrous material , which the ps3 design facilitates . now with particular reference to fig1 - 10 , a stepwise example of use of the ps3 system in conjunction with an mri is described . ps3 design features that facilitate each step are shown as well in the following mri example . the heart of the ps3 system is a frameless single surface platform 12 which may be formed in 2 - 3 segments to provide articulation of a backrest portion 14 and an optional mid portion and knee gatch of sections 20 and 18 respectively ( fig1 ). the single surface platform is designed to be lightweight , thin and modular . a wing system may be incorporated onto the single surface platform for scalability in width . in an embodiment a self - locking , quick release wing system 22 is provided to adapt the single surface platform 12 to width requirements dictated by either patient comfort requirements , equipment space requirements or the like . as illustrated in fig5 wing sections 24 may be attached to one or both sides of the backrest portion 14 of the single surface platform . also , wing sections 26 may be attached to one or both sides of the lower portion 16 of the single surface platform . as shown in fig1 wing section 28 may be attached to one or both sides of the knee gatch portion 18 of the single surface platform and wing section 30 may be attached to one or both sides of the mid portion 20 of the single surface platform . wing sections can be attached to each other to further increase the width of the platform . for example , 2 or more wing sections 24 and / or 26 can be attached to one or both sides of the single surface platform in fig5 . with reference to fig1 , a perspective view is shown depicting the initial alignment of ps3 single surface platform 12 , while supported upon the transfer frame 32 , as the patient is transported to the mri lab and initially positioned next to the mri device 194 upon the extended mri bed 196 . initially usage of ps3 simply involves the transport of the patient on the ps3 apparatus 10 to the mri lab , as one would do on a standard gurney . modes of operation for vertical raising and lowering or trendelenburg motion are through either electromechanical means , hydraulic or pneumatic means . fig1 illustrates step of raising the ps3 platform into position by either electromechanical means , hydraulic or pneumatic means . also , the initial alignment of ps3 and patient next to the mri bed . note the placement of means for securing the ps3 platform 12 to the mri bed , herein illustrated as t - pins 86 . fig1 , illustrates the steps of raising the ps3 single surface platform into position by either electromechanical means , hydraulic or pneumatic means and then translating the ps3 , by pushing it into position above the mri bed . as further illustrated in fig2 , the ps3 single surface platform is next lowered into position by vertical translation of the cantilevered arms or single surface to frame interface 40 of the transport and transfer interface frame 32 to a safe distance just above (˜ 1 inch ) the mri bed . note that the quick release guard rails 64 and auxiliaries 66 remain in place . regarding fig3 , illustrated here is removal of the quick release guardrails 64 and auxiliaries 66 . the guard rails may be placed aside or hung from the frame on hooks ( not shown ), while the quick release auxiliary blocks and poles , may be likewise removed or shifted to the distal end of the ps3 , as necessary , thereby permitting entry into the mri apparatus . the embodiment illustrated in fig4 illustrates a frame upper cross member 34 ( which may be replaced by an alternative transfer frame which permits reversal of the cantilever frame ). note the frame lower legs 38 are provided with wheels 46 permitting easy transport of the frame . frame to single surface interface or cantilever arms 40 are mounted on frame cantilever column 36 enabling vertical movement of the cantilever arms . now referring to fig5 , an exploded view of ps3 single surface platform , wing sections and guardrails is illustrated . the single surface platform is segmented into two sections , a backrest section or uppermost section 14 and a lower section 16 . in addition backrest section wings 24 ( 2 shown ) and a lower section wings 26 ( 2 shown ) are illustrated . the backrest section and lower section of the platform are provided with single surface to frame interfaces or hooks 50 . the single surface platform is shown as frameless . however , a frame may be associated with the platform . for example , a frame could completely encircle the perimeter of the single surface platform or only extend along both longitudinal edges of the platform . fig8 shows the ps3 platform and patient lowered fully onto the mri bed platform and locked into the self - guiding t - pins . the ps3 platform is released from the cantilever frame 32 at this stage . note gap between the frame to single surface interface or single surface supporting member 40 and the single surface to frame interface or supporting member engagement means 50 , which allows for the removal of the frame . due to the design of the frame and hook components , the frame to single surface interface 50 enables separation from the transport frame 32 without requiring the frame to single surface interface hooks to drop below the surface of the platform 12 . fig1 illustrates an ability to complete the mri test by traversal of the ps3 , shown in mechanical engagement with the mri bed , into the mri device . note that the self lock , quick - release hooks or single surface to frame interface 50 can be removed if necessary . it is understood that to retrieve the patient for further transport / transfer , the above steps will be reversed . it is further noted that the unique design of the single surface to frame interface 50 on the single surface platform provides a secure , self - aligning interface between the ps3 platform 12 and the frame to single surface interface 40 . the single surface to frame interface also allows quick release of the single surface platform 12 from the frame 32 once the single surface platform is fully lowered onto another surface . fig1 shows an illustrative example of a ps3 single surface to frame interface 50 using a hook style which is self aligning with the alignment and lateral location members 54 on the frame to single surface interface 40 . fig1 shows an alternative illustrative example of a central , upraised alignment and lateral location member 56 on the frame to single surface interface . fig1 is yet another illustrative example of a ps3 single surface to frame interface which depicts redundant transverse surfaces on the frame to single surface interface 58 for mating of the single surface to frame interface 50 with the frame to single surface 58 . fig1 shows an alternative embodiment of the ps3 single surface to frame interface wherein a receiver or “ box ” 52 is designed to encircle and self - align with a frame to single surface interface as shown in fig1 . alternatively , this design may be formed with an upper opening for receipt of the central upraised surface of the arm of fig1 , in order to make that coupling self - aligning as well . fig1 represents a perspective view of the ps3 segmented single surface , inclusive of segmented wing assemblies , removable single surface to frame interfaces or hooks and actuation handles 92 . fig1 shows an embodiment which illustrates the ps3 single surface platform 12 approaching a gurney 60 . the gurney includes mating t - pins for affixing the ps3 single surface platform to the gurney , which are the only additions / modifications required to the gurney to allow a secure interface with the ps3 single surface , thereby enabling disengagement of the articulation inter - lock system 68 . engagement of the inter - lock system prevents the hinged portions of the frameless version single surface from bending with respect to each other . thus permitting the frameless version single surface support platform to be supported only at each of the ends . details regarding the secure interface and articulation inter - lock follow in fig1 to fig2 . fig1 illustrates the ps3 single surface platform with the backrest portion 14 elevated , such articulation only being enabled once the ps3 single surface is securely mated to a surface like this wheeled gurney via positive engagement of the t - pins whereby the articulation inter - lock may be disengaged . fig1 is an underside view of the ps3 single surface platform having the articulation inter - lock system formed integral therewith and illustrates translation of the interlock plates via the four - bar linkage 70 which is enabled upon engagement of interlock plate release lever ( not shown ) by the t - pins ( not shown ). note the eccentric lever 76 or “ articulation handle ( s )” effective to operate the articulation inter - lock system and lever 92 effective to operate the inter - lock for the wing assemblies . fig1 is an underside view of the ps3 single surface platform without wings and without the backrest section . this figure shows the inter - lock plates 78 and four - bar linkage 70 . rotation of the handle 76 in a counterclockwise direction moves the right inter - lock plate 78 toward the left , which pushes bar 70 to the left . this action rotates four - bar center link 72 clockwise , which pulls four - bar link 74 to the right . this moves the left inter - lock plate to the right thereby causes the inter - lock plates to move toward each other when the eccentric lever 76 is rotated . additionally , a backrest lock bar 88 ( fig2 & amp ; 26 ) keeps the frameless ps3 single surface platform rigid and flat when it is suspended and / or not properly supported by a mating surface underneath such as a gurney . the t - pin inter - lock keyhole 85 is illustrated wherein an internal taper surrounding the keyhole slot 85 provides a self - aligning feature . fig2 is a detailed isometric view of the inter - lock plate assembly 78 showing the inter - lock plate rails 80 which are affixed to the ps3 single surface platform . the inter - lock plate is in its open position , and the spring - biased inter - lock lever 82 is shown in its lower position , in inter - lock lever recess 84 , which prevents movement of inter - lock plate 78 . inter - lock plate is connected to four - bar link 70 which moves another inter - lock plate 79 . inter - lock lever 82 is raised upon insertion of the t - pin 86 or equivalent mating means , thereby enabling translation of the inter - lock plate about the mating device to retract the single surface locking pins ( not shown ) while simultaneously affixing the single surface platform to the underlying support gurney , mri / scanner bed , articulating transfer frame , or the like . fig2 is an isometric view of the underside of the ps3 inter - lock plate module 77 , showing alignment of the t - pin 86 with the keyhole 85 , by virtue of the tapered mating area by which a self - aligning utility is achieved , and also showing the small to large cross - sectional are of each which allows secure mating in all directions . although the t - pin or inter - lock module securement element 86 is illustrated as being round , triangular , hexagonal , or the like shapes may be used effectively , so long as they generally embody a large cross - section versus small cross section relationship that facilitates their mating together . fig2 illustrates the ps3 single surface platform inter - lock plate module 77 with the t - pin 86 engaged in large end of keyhole 85 . note that the inter - lock lever 82 is still below the top surface of the inter - lock ramp 83 . the inter - lock plate 78 still cannot translate motion to inter - lock plate 79 at this stage . fig2 illustrates further engagement of the t - pin with the inter - lock plate module 77 whereby the ps3 inter - lock lever 82 is now above the inter - lock ramp 83 . at this stage , since the bottom of the ps3 single surface platform is resting on a mating surface such as a gurnie , the inter - lock lock plate can translate motion to the inter - lock plate 79 ( in the direction of the arrow shown in fig2 ) as long as the other inter - lock plate block 77 is disengaged in a similar manner . fig2 shows the ps3 inter - lock block 77 in its final locked position as its opposing inter - lock plate is as well , whereby the ps3 single surface platform is secure to its mating surface in all directions . also , the backrest lock bar 88 is retracted as shown in fig2 . with reference now to fig2 - 27 , as fig2 is equivalent to fig1 , above which shows an underside view of the ps3 single surface platform without wings and without the backrest section . these figures shows the inter - lock plates and four - bar linkage , which causes the plates to move toward each other when the eccentric lever is rotated ( note that the eccentric lever could be flipped , the lock plates rotated 180 degrees and a flexure in the lock bar added like the knee gatch lock bar in which the lock plates would move away from each other ). additionally , the backrest tilt lock bar , which keeps the frameless ps3 single surface platform “ rigid ” and flat when it is suspended and / or not properly supported by a mating surface underneath like , e . g . a stretcher . the docking / mating means ( t - pin ) interlock is illustrated wherein an internal taper surrounding the keyhole slot provides a self - aligning feature . fig2 shows the ps3 eccentric articulation handle 76 ( lock / unlock handle ) rotated 90 degrees counter clockwise causing translation of the two inter - lock blocks 77 toward each other ( due to the four - bar linkage ) to secure the ps3 single surface lower section to the mating surface and retraction of the backrest lock bar 88 as shown . ( t - pins are not shown for clarity , which would be required in position as shown above to release the interlock and allow translation .) fig2 further illustrates the ps3 eccentric articulation handle 76 rotated 180 degrees counter clockwise causing translation of the two inter - lock blocks 77 toward each other to their final locked location and the backrest lock bar 88 completely withdrawn . ( t - pins not shown for clarity , which would be required in position as shown above to release the interlock and allow translation of the lock plates .) fig2 illustrates the ps3 single surface platform provided with a backrest portion 14 , a lower portion 16 and a wing system 22 . fig2 a is illustrative of one embodiment of a ps3 wing lock assembly 90 , illustrating a quick lock and release actuation handle 92 . the actuation handle 92 is eccentrically mounted such that counterclockwise rotation moves lock actuation pin 94 in an upward direction . the actuation pin 94 moves lateral lock bars 96 in an outwardly horizontal direction engaging wing lock pins 98 ( the inner pins are no longer lock pins , but alignment and vertical load support pins ). the lateral lock bars and the lock pins have tapered profiles ( not shown ) to assist their engagement . the engagement of the lock pins 98 by the lateral lock bars secures the wings to the single surface platform . the lateral lock bars are spring loaded to return them to their unlocked position when the lock actuation pin 94 disengaged them and retracts . fig2 b is illustrative of the wing abutting the single surface prior to the lock being engaged . fig3 illustrates engagement of the ps3 lock . actuation handle 92 has been rotated clockwise to its locked position . the eccentricity of the actuation handle moves the lock actuation pin 94 upwardly which actuates a set of lateral lock bars 96 . the short wing lock pins provide additional support of the wing with respect to the single support platform thereby locking the wings securely onto the single support surface platform . fig3 shows an embodiment of the ps3 wing which is self - locking into the ps3 single surface platform . the figure shows hand access cutouts for release levers to retract self - locking catches 104 . alignment pins 105 provide vertical load support and alignment to the single surface . the number of alignment pins 105 may vary as required , for example one or more may be added in the middle of the wing . fig3 illustrates a transparent view of a ps3 wing including hand access apertures 100 for release levers 102 to retract self - locking catches 104 . alignment pins 105 provide vertical load support and alignment with the single surface platform 12 . a detailed depiction of the two - stage release lever and self - locking catch mechanism and the t - slot for mounting auxiliaries is set forth below . fig3 illustrates a modular auxiliary block 108 having a push - button release mechanism coupled to a self - lock catch , having a pair of locking tabs which are spring biased to a locked position , but can be deflected to enable insertion into the t - slot 62 of the ps3 single surface platform or wing to enable self - locking therewith . it is noted that a passive part could also be utilized for appending to the t - slot , for example a t - pin ( analogous to the t - nuts used in the machining industry for fixturing / clamping items to a t - slot surface ) having a threaded nut which could be tightened to form a secure connection , or tightening of the tension lock lever style cam . fig3 and 35 illustrate one embodiment of an auxiliary block design showing an external isometric view ( fig3 ) and transparent orthogonal view ( fig3 ) respectively . fig3 illustrates shows push buttons 110 which interact with an internal spring biasing means ( not shown ) having tapered surfaces which act upon the catch tips 112 to close and release the catch when the push buttons are pressed inward . an auxiliary pole is inserted into the auxiliary block 108 through aperture 114 . the auxiliary pole is then supported adjacent the single surface platform . fig3 illustrates stepped holes 116 , 118 and 120 which are designed to accept various auxiliary pole diameters and sizes . fig3 is an perspective view of the auxiliary block of fig3 which illustrates the inclusion of stepped holes to accommodate multiple pole diameters fig3 a is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the auxiliary block illustrating a self - locking modular auxiliary block 122 . the auxiliary block is adapted to engage a t - slot 62 on the side of a wing or single surface platform . release lever 124 activates both catch tips 112 and auxiliary pole lock 126 as further illustrated in fig3 b . fig3 b is a cross sectional view of the auxiliary block of fig3 a , illustrating the internal design of the single lever , dual purpose release lever 124 and self - locking auxiliary pole lock 126 . the release lever 124 may be moved to a first position , to the left in fig4 , which permits auxiliary pole lock 126 to disengage and auxiliary pole and provide for removal of the auxiliary pole . subsequently the release lever 124 is moved to a second position which disengages the self - locking catch tips 112 from the t - slot 62 of the ps3 single surface platform or wing . fig3 is a view of a preferred embodiment of ps3 auxiliary block 128 showing a release lever 130 . a self - locking catch 134 is engagable with the ps3 t - slot design in the wing or ps3 single surface for mating the auxiliary block 128 and ps3 wing or ps3 single surface . the front surface of the auxiliary block nose 134 is tapered to permit self alignment with a mating surface such as a t - slot . the release lever 130 also operates a auxiliary pole lock 136 which secures and auxiliary pole to the auxiliary block . fig3 illustrates the auxiliary block 128 of fig3 in position to engage the t - slot 62 in the ps3 single surface platform or wing . fig4 illustrates the auxiliary block 128 of fig3 locked into the t - slot 62 in the ps3 single surface platform or wing . the tapered self - locking catches 112 are biased in the outward “ locked ” position but self - retract upon engagement with the t - slot ( due to the tapers ) and then “ spring ” back into locked position once fully engaged into the t - slot as depicted in this figure . fig4 illustrates a modified t - slot 62 in the ps3 single surface or wing , which includes cutouts 138 with vertical surfaces to securely locate the auxiliary blocks laterally or along the length of the slot , and further depicts tapers for self - alignment laterally and vertically . fig4 illustrates the ps3 auxiliary block release lever which can rotate to engage a conical ramp 106 on the self - locking catch 104 for self - lock into ps3 single surface or wings . the aperture 107 in the release handle engages the conical ramp thereby causing the self - locking catch ends to move toward each other and release from the t - slot on the edge of a single surface or wing . the conical ramp feature 106 on the self - locking catch 104 allows any orientation of the self - locking catch along its horizontal axis , as illustrated further in fig4 . the self - locking catch is formed as a spring or living hinge . fig4 additionally illustrates the functioning of the ps3 auxiliary block release lever and auxiliary catch . note the self - locking catch 104 is rotated 90 degrees from the prior figure . this orientation is the one used for the single surface wing self - locking catch mechanism . this orientation could also be used fro a “ horizontal ” version of the auxiliary block , for example . fig4 shows a ps3 auxiliary lock ring 140 with a spline on the side to mate with the auxiliary block 128 and insure they go together properly for the self - locking auxiliary pole lock 136 . it also shows a patient safety strap 142 in position to mate to the auxiliary block . now with reference to fig4 , an embodiment of the ps3 auxiliary lock ring 140 is illustrated as it begins to engage the “ locked ” position biased auxiliary pole lock 136 . the lock ring is provided with a slot or aperture 144 into which auxiliary pole lock 136 can move to secure the lock ring to the auxiliary pole . note , a standard auxiliary pole can fit inside the lock ring to allow accommodation of both the patient safety strap and an auxiliary pole . fig4 is the next step wherein the ps3 lock ring is shown starting to engage the auxiliary pole lock 136 to force it to “ unlock ” prior to self - returning into the slot 144 in the lock ring . although not herein depicted , it is understood that the engaging leading edges of the auxiliary poles , lock ring and receiving holes &# 39 ; top edges in the auxiliary block may be tapered to aid self - alignment as used throughout the ps3 design . fig4 illustrates the final step wherein the auxiliary pole lock has self - returned and is fully engaged with the auxiliary block . the auxiliary pole lock 136 is shown in aperture 144 thus securing the lock ring to the auxiliary block . fig4 is illustrative of positioning of the release lever 130 of the ps3 auxiliary block showing a first phase of staged release . in this figure , the auxiliary pole lock 136 has completely disengaged the slot 144 in the lock ring to allow removal of auxiliary poles and lock ring . in addition , the release lever 130 has just started to engage the self - locking catch ramps 106 of the self - locking catch 134 . note , kinematics are key to allow staged process and proper engagement between the release handle and catch . in addition , the kinematics of the release lever rotation must be correct to properly engage both the top and bottom of the catch . with reference to fig4 , the ps3 auxiliary block is illustrated showing the second phase of staged release . the release handle 130 has engaged the self - locking catch ramps 106 enough for the catch tips 112 to completely retract . ( note catches are not shown retracted ). fig5 is a front isometric exploded view of a ps3 auxiliary tray assembly 146 which includes : an auxiliary tray , two auxiliary blocks ( self - locking assemblies ) 128 , two lock rings 140 to lock the assembly together and an auxiliary pole , which fits inside the lock ring and is secure in the auxiliary block . referring to fig5 , a rear isometric exploded view of the ps3 auxiliary tray assembly 146 is provided , which shows the same elements as those in fig5 as well as a support pin 148 to support heavier vertical loading in the auxiliary tray . fig5 is a front isometric view of the auxiliary tray assembly in an assembled condition shown in fig5 and fig5 . fig5 is a side view of the ps3 single surface platform 12 ( in a horizontal position ), frame to single surface interface arms 50 and a new pivot center 40 for one frame to single surface interface arm . the pivot center allows rotation of the frame to single surface interface arms to compensate for the reduction in the horizontal distance ( x - direction ) between the two frame to single surface interface arm pairs when the ps3 single surface platform is placed in a trendelenburg ( tilted ) position . fig5 is a side view of the ps3 single surface platform in a trendelenburg ( tilted ) position in which the frame to single surface interface arm , on the left has rotated about its pivot center accordingly to compensate for the reduction in the horizontal distance between the two single surface to frame interface centers . fig5 is an isometric view of the ps3 single surface platform in a trendelenburg ( tilted ) position in which the frame to single surface interface arm 40 , on the left has rotated about its pivot center accordingly to compensate for the reduction in the horizontal distance between the two single surface to frame interface centers . note a round interface between the frame to single surface arms and the single surface to frame interface hooks is still required for trendelenburg ( full bed tilt ) as shown . fig5 is a top isometric view of a three segment base ps3 single surface platform without the articulation inter - lock system 152 and single surface to frame interface hooks . labeled specifically are the single surface backrest or uppermost section 14 , the single surface mid or middle section 20 and the single surface knee gatch or lowermost section 18 with hinged interface / joints therebetween . the construction of this single surface platform would likely be of a composite exterior shell utilizing , for example structural foam , honeycomb , balsa wood , etc . for core for stiffness to weight , x - ray translucency and non - magnetic ( mri ) compatibility . the t - slots would likely be extruded or machined in plastic and sandwiched in the composite shell . all aspects of the ps3 single surface platform design facilitate the use of non - ferrous materials . this rigid backboard mode is intended for just that , a backboard , to facilitate usage by the ems . fig5 is a bottom isometric view of the base three segment ps3 single surface platform without the articulation inter - lock system and single surface to frame interface hooks . labeled specifically are the recesses 150 for the articulation inter - lock system . fig5 illustrates a top isometric view of the three segment self - contained articulation inter - lock module system . this figure and fig6 through fig6 show the same basic inter - lock mechanisms and include therein the self - contained articulation system itself and the addition of lock and unlock for the knee gatch section . fig5 illustrates a bottom view of the base three segment ps3 single surface platform without the articulation inter - lock system 152 and module retainer plates . it shows a portion of the single surface backrest portion and the single surface knee gatch and all of the single surface mid portion . it also again highlights the pivot centers hinged interface / joint between the single surface backrest portion and single surface mid portion and the hinged interface / joint between the single surface mid portion and single surface knee gatch section . fig5 further illustrates the spring loaded tilt / bend lock tubes 154 . the tilt / bend lock tubes that translate longitudinally are shown normally spring loaded in position to “ lock out ” or prevent any tilting or bending of the three segments maintaining a single flat surface . spring 158 provides the bias to hold the tilt / bend lock tubes in this position . the spring could be a non - ferrous coil design or a composite or non - ferrous leaf spring as is the case for anything of the “ spring - loaded ” mechanisms in ps3 . also shown are tips 156 on the tilt / bend lock tubes which contact specific points on the articulation inter - lock system to retract the lock tubes . when the self - contained articulation system 152 is inserted into the apertures 150 in the single surface platform ( fig5 ) the top edge and the stepped edge of the articulation system engage the tips 156 of the tilt / bend lock tubes 154 and push the tubes upwardly ( fig5 ) disengaging the connection between the backrest portion and mid portion and also between the mid portion and the knee gatch . the self - contained installed articulation interlock module takes “ control ” of locking out the articulation of the backrest and knee gatch joints prior to the complete retraction of the lock tubes . the articulation inter - lock module self - locks into place via the same self - lock catch and release mechanisms described throughout ps3 . fig6 is an isometric view of the tilt / bend lock tube 154 including tip 156 . fig6 represents an end view of the ps3 single surface platform without the articulation inter - lock system and single surface to frame interface hooks . shown are the horizontally staggered tips 156 of the tilt / bend lock tubes that interface the articulation inter - lock system . note , tips of the tilt / bend lock tubes could be alternatively staggered vertically . this figure also illustrates the apertures 202 for attachment of the extension on the single surface to frame interface . fig6 is a top isometric view of the base three segment ps3 single surface platform without the articulation inter - lock system , but with the single surface to frame interface hooks . cross bars 160 are provided between the hooks and can be used as a handle or receiver for the interface hooks . fig6 is a top view of the three segment separable self - contained articulation inter - lock system 152 shown in fig5 with the mechanisms in the locked position . backrest lock bar 88 locks the mid portion to the backrest portion . knee gatch lock bar 162 locks the mid portion to the knee gatch such that the three single surface platform segments are not allowed to bend at the hinge joints . fig6 through fig6 show the same basic inter - lock mechanisms as described in the document in fig1 through 27 of the detailed description overview with the following additions involving the inter - lock system itself and the addition of lock and unlock for the knee gatch segment . the first addition is comprised of the knee gatch lock bar 162 for the knee gatch segment and a corresponding hinge lock bar . note , these figures initially show the four bar member and lock bar in position such that the segments cannot articulate . in addition , these figures show surfaces which contact the tips on the tilt / bend lock tube in fig5 and fig6 . this interface and significance is described in further detail below in fig6 and fig6 . fig6 is a top view of the three segment articulation inter - lock system with the mechanisms in the unlocked position . the three segments and corresponding single surface platform portions are allowed to bend at the hinges . this figure now shows the elements positioned such that the portions can articulate . the hinge joint of the single surface platform is aligned with the hinge joint of the articulation inter - lock system to allow this articulation along with full retraction of the knee gatch lock bar 162 . a simple revolute hinge can be used at the hinge joint , however , a spherical joint could be used as well to allow for some misalignment of the hinge axis or a flexible coupling / joint . use of this same design provides an ability to add segments and add hinge joints to the corresponding four bar mechanism such that the additional joints align with the new segment joint when the entire mechanism is in the unlock position . t - pins , although required to unlock the interlock plate module , are not shown in these figures . fig6 is directed toward a zoomed in top view of the alignment between hinge joints on the articulation inter - lock system and the single surface platform , which ultimately allows articulation of the single surface knee gatch portion with respect to the mid portion . fig6 is a bottom view of the complete self - contained articulation inter - lock system 152 . fig6 is a bottom view of the articulation inter - lock system 152 sliding / docking into the ps3 single surface platform and just beginning to engage the tips of the tilt / bend lock tubes . the stagger of the lower interface is required to properly engage the tilt / bend lock tubes . as illustrated , the tilt / bend lock tubes are in their baseline position which is maintained by the four springs 158 , thereby locking the three segment ps3 single surface platform into one flat surface at this point . fig6 is a bottom view of the articulation inter - lock system 152 in its final position in the ps3 single surface platform in which it has fully retracted the tilt / bend lock tubes beyond the hinge joints . at this point the articulation inter - lock system 152 controls articulation of the ps3 single surface platform joints . as described earlier , the inter - lock plate modules cannot be released without the two required t - pins ( mated to a separate surface like a gurney ) engaged into the inter - lock plate module . therefore , the articulation inter - lock system will always be in the locked configuration ( no articulation of ps3 single surface joints allowed ) while docking or removing the articulation inter - lock system . in addition , the four springs automatically force the four tilt / bend lock tubes back into a position , which securely locks out articulation of the hinge joints . therefore , this design combination allows rapid installation and removal of the articulation inter - lock system without the chance of accidentally allowing articulation of the ps3 single surface platform hinge joints . fig6 is a bottom view of the assembled ps3 single surface platform ( 14 , 18 , 20 ), articulation inter - lock system and single surface to frame interface hooks 50 . fig7 illustrates a top isometric view of a complete ps3 single surface wing assembly . the wing is provides with three support pins 174 which provide additional support between the wing and the platform . also an eccentric tension lever 168 is shown which will be described later . fig7 is a bottom view of the complete ps3 single surface wing assembly highlighting the inclusion of the wing catch / tension / release module 166 ( fig7 ), which comprises a pair of self - locking catch mechanisms and release levers joined by a bar 172 . there could also be a single mechanism at the center of the wing for a wing of a shorter length . fig7 is an enlarged top view of the wing catch / tension / release module 166 highlighting the parts thereof which include the eccentric tension lever 168 , and the tension bar 170 . the eccentric tension lever is shown in the “ locked ” position . tension bar 170 is eccentrically mounted to the eccentric tension lever and connected to bar 172 connecting the catch mechanisms . movement of the tension bar 170 by actuation of the tension lever 168 causes translation of the wing catch / tension / release module relative to the wing body itself due to the offset or eccentric nature of the pivot center versus the outer radius or cam profile of the tension lever 168 . the tension bar 170 is threaded into the wing catch / tension / release bar 172 , which allows for adjustment of the tension of the wing to the single surface platform side . fig7 is a top isometric view of one of the wing catch / tension / release module elements . a release handle 102 engages the ramped portion 106 of the self - locking catch 104 thereby retracting catch the self - locking tips 112 from engaging the t - slots in the in single surface platform or wings . fig7 is a bottom view of the complete ps3 single surface wing assembly with the eccentric tension lever 168 in the unlocked position . note the gap between the wing catch / tension / release module and the wing itself and compare it to the gap in fig7 . fig7 is a bottom view similar to fig7 of the complete ps3 single surface wing assembly with the eccentric tension lever 168 in the locked position . note that the gap between the wing catch / tension / release module and the wing itself has closed as the catch / tension / release module is moved upward . this relative movement upward causes the self - locking catches to pull the wing tight into the single surface platform side . note this same tension and release system could be used on the prior described auxiliary block assemblies if desired . fig7 represents an end view of the self - locking catch . the back side edge of the tips 112 are angled rearward from vertical , which contacts the vertical mating surface on the t - slot on the single surface platform ( the prior design showed this surface to be purely vertical ). the rearward angle means the tip 112 of the self - locking catch will contact the t - slot before its base does and will provide a more secure lock into the t - slot . this back angle will cause the self - locking catch tips to lock / bite into the t - slot when the eccentric tension lever 168 is locked , which will not allow one to release the wing with the release levers until the eccentric tension lever is unlocked . fig7 a and 77b illustrates a side view of an “ external ” engagement of a standard rectangular or square bed / stretcher / gurnie rail 178 by inwardly projecting self - locking catch tips 176 of auxiliary block 122 . fig7 is a standard gurnie which could utilize the “ external ” engagement self - locking catch auxiliary design shown above in fig7 a and 77b . fig7 is an isometric view of another alternative single surface platform rail 180 which provides for “ external ” engagement of the tips of auxiliary block . fig8 is an isometric view of the preferred “ internal ” engagement of a self - locking catch auxiliary block 122 aligning to mate to an alternative standard rail design 180 with a slot or appropriately sized through hole . fig8 is an isometric view of the preferred “ internal ” engagement of a self - locking catch auxiliary block 122 mated to an alternative standard rail design 180 with a slot or appropriately sized through hole . fig8 a and 82b illustrate a side view of alternative types of mounts 182 , 184 for self - locking catch designs . fig8 a depicts a “ rigid ” mount for the self - locking catches 182 in which the catch itself must flex / act as a living hinge . fig8 b depicts a pivot mount for the self - locking catches 182 in which the catch is spring - loaded . fig8 illustrates an isometric view of an auxiliary block assembly 122 mating to a lateral lock version of the t - slot 162 . this figure shows an auxiliary block with a longer “ nose ” that fits into the apertures 186 ( 5 shown ) at the back wall of the t - slot . this mate improves the vertical load carrying ability of the auxiliary block and lateral lock . fig8 is an isometric view of the standard ps3 t - slot with slots 188 at the back wall of the t - slot for then nose of the auxiliary block . note this is a separate piece of the standard ps3 t - slot that can be placed anywhere ( mri , ps3 frame , separate rack , a wall , etc . to accommodate ps3 wings , guardrails and auxiliaries when not assembled to the ps3 single surface platform . the same holds true for the lateral lock ps3 t - slot of fig8 . fig8 is an enlarged view of fig8 illustrating a taper on the leading edge of the t - slots . this taper assists with the self - alignment of an auxiliary block or another wing section . fig8 is a top isometric view of the auxiliary block 122 showing in detail the four flats - 90 degrees apart configuration of the pokeyoke 190 . this configuration allows four orientations of the pole and is easier from a manufacturing standpoint . note , this also shows the auxiliary pole lock 136 . fig8 is a bottom isometric view of the auxiliary lock ring 140 with the four flats - 90 degrees apart pokeyoke with corresponding slots 144 for the auxiliary pole lock . the poke yoke insures 140 mates to 122 properly always resulting in a self - lock mate with pole lock 136 . fig8 is an isometric exploded view illustrating the relationship of the auxiliary block 122 , the auxiliary lock ring 140 and the bottom of the auxiliary pole 66 . fig8 is an isometric view of the ps3 single surface platform including the addition of guardrails 192 , which mount into the ps3 t - slot with the same self - locking catch mechanism as the auxiliary blocks and wings . the guardrails further include a ps3 auxiliary t - slot mounted thereon , and further illustrate the use inclusion of auxiliary t - slots 198 mounted to the frame 32 . fig9 represents an isometric view of the above illustrated ps3 single surface platform approaching an mri device in which auxiliary t - slots 198 are placed on the side of the mri bed platform to attach the ps3 wings and guardrails . the guardrails would be placed in the upper t - slots on the mri platform to provide additional patient safety . these auxiliary t - slots could be mounted horizontally as shown or vertically . fig9 is an isometric view of the ps3 single surface to frame interface hooks 50 adapted for inclusion of the same basic self - lock catch mechanism as the auxiliary block and wings ( see fig9 and 93 ) by the addition of extensions 200 . they are released from the ps3 single surface platform with a push button as shown attached to the extension . the push buttons are preferably positioned on the inside of the single surface to frame interface extensions to help prevent accidental release . they could also be placed on both inside and outside or just outside . fig9 is a zoomed isometric view of the single surface to frame interface hooks provided with the self - catch mechanism release pushbutton 204 and inserted into the ps3 single surface platform . fig9 is a bottom view of the ps3 single surface platform with a recess for the single surface to frame interface hook self - catch mechanism 204 to provide a secure mate of the single surface to frame interface hooks to the single surface platform . fig9 is a bottom view similar to fig9 showing the retraction of the single surface to frame interface hooks self - catch mechanism 204 to allow removal of the single surface to frame interface hooks when the buttons are pushed in this manner . fig9 is an isometric view of the ps3 single surface platform illustrating an air mattress 206 in a deflated condition on top , and covering the entire surface . fig9 illustrates an isometric view of the ps3 single surface platform with wings and without the deflated air mattress on top . hinge 208 is provides between the backrest portion and the mid portion of the ps3 single surface . hinges 212 are provided between the corresponding wings attached to these surfaces . hinge 210 is provided between the mid portion and the knee gatch of the single surface . hinges 212 are provided between the corresponding wings attached to these surfaces . note , there could be an innumerable number of wing width options depending on the specific application . fig9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the single surface platform to frame interface wherein the interface members 214 are straight and project outwardly from the single surface platform . a crossbar 216 connects these interface members ( these could not be used to interface with the frame , but would function strictly as handles ) and permits the interface member to be utilized as a handle or attachment member to the frame . fig9 is a perspective view of the hook shaped single surface platform to frame interface hooks 50 provided with a crossbar 216 . fig9 is an exploded view of a handle assembly 218 and sleeve 220 which are insertable into the crossbar 216 to provide carrying handles . the sleeve 220 is provided with a longitudinal slot 224 and vertical slots 226 for the reception of pins 222 of handle assembly 218 . this permits the distance that the handle assembly protrudes from the crossbar 216 to be adjusted . the hinge joint in the handle allows for angular orientation adjustment for the user &# 39 ; s comfort as well as the ability to straighten and store away in the crossbar 216 . note optional detent features ( not shown herein ) may be positioned near the top of the slots 226 to “ snap / lock ” the pin 222 into when rotated into position . fig1 is an alternative mechanism for attaching the handle assembly to the sleeve . self catch mechanism 228 is mounted in the handle assembly . apertures 230 and 232 are provided in sleeve 220 . the tabs of the self catch mechanism 228 are engagable with the apertures 230 and 232 thereby enabling the distance that the handle assembly extends from the sleeve to be adjusted . fig1 is a side view of the sleeve 220 illustrated in fig1 . fig1 is a side view of the handle assembly 218 and sleeve 220 illustrating the relationship of the self catch mechanism 28 and apertures 230 in the sleeve . fig1 is a side view of the self catch mechanism of fig1 either rigidly fixed and required to flex or a pivot and spring - loaded . fig1 is a side view of an alternative embodiment of an auxiliary block provided with a tension lock 234 in the unlocked position . fig1 is a view similar to fig1 with the eccentric tension lock in its locked position . the tension lock lever is moved upwardly to its vertical position . this action moves the tension lock to the left whereby the self - locking catch is also moved to the left . this provides an additional force to secure the auxiliary block to the t - slot of the wing or single surface platform and does not allow one to release the auxiliary block from the wing or single surface via the release handle when tension lock lever 236 is locked . fig1 is a side view of the ps3 assembly provided with push / pull folding handles 238 , which are used to move and position the ps3 assembly , in their inoperative position . fig1 is a side view of the ps3 system of fig1 with the push / pull handles 238 in their operative position . fig1 is a partial view of the push / pull handles and ps3 frame illustrating the hinge pin 242 about which the handles pivot . also shown is the self - locking latch 240 which holds the handles in their operative or inoperative positions . fig1 is a partial side view of the ends of the push / pull handles provided with telescoping extensions 244 . fig1 is a top plane view of the ps3 single surface platform incorporating an upper body portion hinged to a mid portion which is hinged to a knee gatch portion . separate wing sections 24 , 30 and 28 are attached to the respective portions of the single surface platform . hinges are illustrated on the single surface platform and the lower wing sections . fig1 illustrates an internally mounted adaptor plug 246 for an auxiliary pole . fig1 illustrates an externally mounted adaptor plug 248 for an auxiliary pole . fig1 illustrates transfer / transport frame 252 which is an alternative embodiment of transfer / transport frame 32 . the new additional frame elements shown in fig1 , which are described in the following , enable the following additional functions : in ps3 frame articulation of the frameless single surface backrest and kneegatch joints , complete reversal of the cantilever with or without the ps3 single surface in place , equal access to either transverse side of the frame during all situations except surface transfer and additional single surface support to minimize binding / friction during docking of the articulation inter - lock module 152 while the frameless single surface is supported in the ps3 frame . articulation of the backrest incline and knee gatch within the ps3 frame as well as the ability to provide equal access to both sides of the single surface while in the ps3 frame , except during surface transfer , eliminates the need for a separate supporting surface and elimination of the need for storage of the ps3 frame during patient convalescence or otherwise . frame 252 includes frame lower legs 256 positioned at each end of frame 252 . a collapsible / extendable lower cross member 260 , extends between and connects the frame lower legs 256 . cross member 260 is collabsible / extendable to compensate for large horizontal distance changes required between support columns 254 during in frame articulation of the backrest and knee gatch joints as shown in fig1 , while maintaining interface between arms 258 and single surface to frame interface member 50 . maintaining the arm 258 to single surface to frame interface member 50 during articulation of these joints adds support / stability and reduces the function required from the inner support assemblies 262 and 264 . for example , member 266 in fig1 would not require engagement / actuation of the backrest section for backrest articulation and / or trendelenburg if the main single surface to frame interface members 258 are engaged as described . one of the frame interface members 258 still utilize the pivot 40 to accommodate small horizontal distance changes for pure trendelenburg and reverse trendelenburg . the lower cross member 260 is in telescoping engagement with said legs 256 , as well as traversing said legs in a lateral direction , wherein said cross member 260 is movable from one side of said frame 256 to another in which the wheels &# 39 ; 46 rotation are locked to facilitate this traverse of the cross member 260 . simply the lateral movement of the cross member 260 to a mid position lengthwise of legs 256 allows equal access to either side of the single surface while in the ps3 frame in all situations other than those transfers requiring the cantilever function . the cantilever columns 254 are each telescopingly engaged with said legs 256 , as well as being rotatable and translatable in a manner effective to rotate the support members 258 180 ° in response to translation of said columns from a first side of said frame 252 to the other side thereof . rotation of said support members 258 permits the single surface platform to remain aligned with the lower legs 256 , thereby preventing the frame from becoming unstable and reversing the cantilever in concert with the traverse of cross member 260 . this allows correct orientation of the patient to transfer surface within the ps3 frame dependent on which side of a surface for transfer has clear access without having to disengage and engage the single surface and patient on another surface to re - orient . the bottom large square column 254 which interfaces 256 remain fixed in orientation about its vertical axis and cylinder 278 allows a rotational degree of freedom and is mated to pinion 279 which repeatability automates rotation during translation and proper final orientation of arms 258 depending on the end positioned on the leg 256 . reversing the cantilever with the single surface and patient in place requires the usage of the inner support column assemblies 262 and 264 in which the single surface platform is raised to a position above the tops of assemblies 262 and 264 . further included are telescoping , rotatable and longitudinally adjustable supports 262 , 264 which are engageable with , and support said single surface support platform . each of said adjustable supports 262 , 264 are provided with a mating means assembly for selectively enabling reversible engagement with and adjustment of the single surface support platform , the mating means assembly being comprised of pivoting support member 266 , adjustable extension 268 and mating means 270 . a pivoting support member 266 is mounted above each adjustable support 262 , 264 , each said supporting member 266 being vertically adjustable and rotatable . each said supporting member 266 further including adjustable extensions 268 which are provided with mating means , e . g . t - pins , 270 for enabling reversible engagement with the single surface support platform , in a variety of configurations . for example , when rotated 90 degrees , the t - pins 270 will provide mating engagement with coupling elements 285 , 286 , as illustrated in fig6 . support columns 274 enable vertical adjustment and rotation of said support members 266 with respect to support columns 272 . columns 272 slidably engage lower cross member 260 via column mounting elements 276 . the next step in cantilever reversal involves the cross member 260 and assemblies 262 and 264 which are positioned in a mid leg 256 position so the assemblies 262 and 264 are positioned below the lateral center of the single surface . subsequently , the inner support assemblies 262 and 264 , which are slidably engaged on cross member 260 , are positioned longitudinally below the self - aligning keyhole recesses 285 and 286 in fig6 . in the process of this longitudinal positioning of inner support assemblies 262 and 264 , they automatically rotate 90 degrees via the same basic method as described for translation and rotation of arms 258 except modified for 90 degree rotation instead of 180 degrees . next , the arms 268 are retracted or extended to allow t - pins 270 to align with the large end of the keyholes 285 and 286 . then , the single surface is lowered onto the current vertically oriented and locked t - pins 270 , via the frame top single surface interface arms 258 , which mate in the large end of the keyholes 285 and 286 . next , the arms 268 retract to securely mount and support the single surface by the assemblies 262 and 264 . at this point , the articulation interlock module 152 could be easily removed or installed in the frameless single surface as described earlier . finally , the assemblies 262 and 264 raise the single surface off of the single surface to frame interface arms 258 and allow the cantilever reversal of arms 258 . then the arm 258 and assemblies 262 and 264 engagement is reversed to return the single surface loading to arms 258 and allow the cantilever reversal completion via movement of the cross member 260 and its corresponding assemblies 262 and 264 to the end of the legs 256 in which the columns 254 now reside . description of the ps3 frame 252 backrest and knee gatch articulation of the frameless single surface follows . like the cantilever reversal process the first step for backrest and knee gatch articulation involves the single surface platform positioning above the tops of assemblies 262 and 264 via the arms 258 . once again cross member 260 and assemblies 262 and 264 are moved to a mid leg 256 position so the assemblies 262 and 264 are positioned below the lateral center of the single surface as well as the proper longitudinal position to mate one of the t - pins 270 sets on assembly 262 or 264 to the articulation interlock module keyholes 85 large end . the resultant assembly 262 or 264 to be engaged to the single surface is raised above the non - engaging assembly 262 or 264 . the single surface is lowered onto the intended t - pins 270 via the frame to single surface arms 258 and the single surface articulation handle 76 is rotated accordingly to lock into t - pins 270 as described earlier and release the backrest and knee gatch joint articulation . this locking into the t - pins releases a separate inter - lock to allow the rotation of the crossbar 266 about its pivot on 274 as well as the t - pins about their pivot on the telescoping arms 268 . the telescoping arms 268 can now retract to cause knee gatch articulation as shown in fig1 in which t - pins 270 only can rotate about the pictured pivot away from their telescopic arms 268 to force proper articulation of the knee gatch due to a mechanical stop between the t - pin 270 mount and the telescopic arms 268 . the frame to single surface arms 258 can remain engaged in the single surface to frame interface hooks 50 via proper automated and actuated vertical adjustment of the arms 258 and horizontal retraction of the telescopic cross member 260 . backrest incline and combinations of trendelenburg and reverse trendelenburg are also feasible through coordinated vertical movement of arms 258 and engaged assembly 262 or 264 . fig1 illustrates articulation of the single surface platform about the articulating joints , permitting movement of the backrest incline and knee gatch with respect to the mid - section . single surface to frame interface hooks remain attached to either end of said single surface platform whereby engagement with said frame supporting arm may be effected . fig1 is illustrative of a rack and pinion mechanism 282 designed to insure coordinated movement of the frame supporting arm 258 and frame cantilever column 254 . as illustrated , upon initiation of lateral movement of the frame cantilever column 254 , follower cam 281 begins to traverse across the width of frame lower leg 256 , wherein gear 280 engages rack 284 , providing rotation of frame supporting arm 258 in a coordinated fashion so as to effect a rotation of 180 ° upon completion of the traversal of said frame lower leg 256 by said frame cantilever column 254 . follower cam 281 engagement with cam profile 283 post rotation insures and maintains proper orientation of pinion 279 and resultant orientation of frame supporting arms 258 . pinion 279 is attached directly on the rotational center of the cylinder 278 or offset and connected via gears , belts and pulleys , etc . in an alternative embodiment pinion 279 could be connected to column 254 and eliminate the separate cylinder 278 . this cooperation of elements provides reversibility of the orientation of the frame and cantilever arms while in place . all patents and publications mentioned in this specification are indicative of the levels of those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains . all patents and publications are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference . it is to be understood that while a certain form of the invention is illustrated , it is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement of parts herein described and shown . it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention and the invention is not to be considered limited to what is shown and described in the specification . one skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the present invention is well adapted to carry out the objects and obtain the ends and advantages mentioned , as well as those inherent therein . any devices , methods , procedures and techniques described herein are presently representative of the preferred embodiments , are intended to be exemplary and are not intended as limitations on the scope . changes therein and other uses will occur to those skilled in the art which are encompassed within the spirit of the invention and are defined by the scope of the appended claims . although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments , it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments . indeed , various modifications of the described modes for carrying out the invention which are obvious to those skilled in the art are intended to be within the scope of the following claims .

0Human Necessities

in an embodiment , the present invention provides an objective changer as well as a microscope having an easy objective change , with little space requirements for the objective change . the objective changer is designed and developed such that each of the objectives can be pendulously swung into its operating position near the focal position via the changing device . according to the invention , a suitable swinging mechanism is provided for swinging the objectives into their operating position . specifically , each of the objectives can be pendulously swung into its operating position near the focal position via the changing device . by the inventive pendulous swinging motion , on the one hand , a very simple mode of motion for the objectives is chosen and , on the other hand , an objective change with a space requirement as little as possible is implemented . therefore , with the inventive objective changer an objective changer is specified in which an easy objective change with little space requirements for the objective change is made possible with constructively simple means . in a further advantageous manner , each of the objectives could be pendulously swung from the operating position into a standby position via the changing device . in this case , a swinging of the non - used objective into the free space , for example , to the front or the rear , is possible . in this connection , the objectives could be coupled to the changing device such that their pendulous swinging motion is performed in one common plane . as a result thereof , a particularly space - saving objective change is implemented , and there remains a wide spatial area for handling and manipulating the sample . for achieving a particularly effective pendulous swinging motion , the objectives could be coupled such that a swinging - in of the one objective causes the swinging - out of the other objective or the other objectives . as a result thereof , a particularly easy change of the objectives from , for example , an objective having a low magnifying power to an objective having a high magnifying power is made possible . with respect to a particularly safe objective change , during which a particularly high degree of safety with respect to the desired integrity of a sample is achieved , the objectives could additionally be lowered during the pendulous swinging - in motion and additionally be lifted during the pendulous swinging - out motion via the changing device . specifically , the changing device could be designed such that the objective changing motion starts by lifting the objective to be swung out and ends by lowering a swung - in objective . in other words , as a result thereof , a coupled motion composed of a swinging operation and a lifting or , respectively , lowering operation could be performed . impairment of the sample or of any manipulators of the sample is thus lessened . with respect to a particularly simple construction of the objective changer , the changing device could have a link - type guide device with a mechanism coupled thereto for implementing the pendulous swinging motion of the objectives . in a further advantageous manner , the lowering and lifting motion of the objectives could be implemented via this mechanism . insofar , one single mechanism could provide both the pendulous swinging motion and the lowering and lifting motion of the objectives . with respect to a compact structure of the objective changer , the objectives could be coupled to the mechanism . further component parts would not be necessary in this connection . such a coupling of the objectives to the mechanism could be implemented in a particularly easy manner via a screw connection or a bayonet coupling . as a result thereof , an easy replacement also of a great number of objectives using the available mechanism or , respectively , changing device is possible . in a specific simple design , the link - type guide device could have a curved slot for guiding an actuating element of the mechanism . as a result thereof , a particularly easy operation and actuation of the objective changer and hence of the changing device is made possible , namely by merely guiding the actuating element in the slot . in doing so , the guiding of the actuating element to one end of the slot could effect the swinging - in and possibly the lowering of an objective and the guiding of the actuating element to the other end of the slot could effect the swinging - in and possibly the lowering of the other objective . merely by swinging the actuating element back and forth along the curved slot , thus the pendulous swinging of the objectives into and out of their operating position is achieved . in a constructively further particularly easy manner , the slot could be formed in a plate or side plate or in a system carrier of the objective changer . the mechanism could be arranged in a protected and safe manner between two plates or side plates arranged in parallel to one another . the plates or side plates could be fixed relative to one another in the sense of a frame . as a result thereof , specifically an arrangement of two plates or side plates arranged in parallel could be implemented with the mechanism for the objectives arranged in - between . further , with respect to a particularly simple design of the objective changer , the actuating element could be formed as an axle or lever . such an axle or such a lever can be easily inserted in the slot of a guide device and be used therein as an actuating element . in a specific design of the changing device , the objectives could be pivoted on the actuating element . as a result thereof , a direct mounting of the objectives on the actuating element is ensured . in a specific design , each of the objectives could be arranged on a holder of the mechanism , and the holders could be pivoted with one of their ends on the actuating element . in other words , in this case the objectives would be pivoted on the actuating element via a holder . the objectives could be fixedly mounted on the holder . by pivoting or articulating the objectives or the holders on the actuating element , a pivoting or articulating about a common axle could be realized . here , the actuating element itself could serve as a common axle , when formed as an axle or lever . in a further constructively simple manner , the respective other end of each of the holders could be mounted or articulated on one lever each — connecting lever — of the mechanism such that it can be pivoted about a pivotable axle . thus , the holders are pivotally mounted or articulated with their one end on the actuating element and with their other end on the connecting lever . the connecting levers could in turn be pivoted with their end facing away from the respective holder about one axle each , which axles are stationary relative to the changing device . the stationary axles could specifically be mounted in the plates or side plates or in the system carrier . as a result thereof , a particularly compact structure of the changing device and hence of the objective changer is achieved . the common axle , the pivotable axles and the stationary axles could be arranged in parallel to one another . as a result thereof , a particularly easy maneuverability of the changing device via the actuating element is achieved . basically two objectives could be coupled to the changing device in order to ensure a change between the two objectives . in an even more comfortable design of the changing device , three objectives could be coupled to the changing device so that by pivoting the actuating element each time one of the three objectives can be pivoted into its operating position . in this connection , a right - hand stop position , an intermediate position and a left - hand stop position could each correlate with the operating positions of the three objectives . for providing more than two or three objectives by means of the changing device , an additional feed device could also be provided which couples individual objectives to the changing device and thus makes a swinging - in of the desired objective into its operating position possible . with respect to a particularly safe arrangement of an objective in its operating position , the changing device could have an adjusting device for adjusting the position of at least one pivotable axle in axial direction . by means of such an adjusting device a positioning and adjusting of the objective in the direction of the pivotable axle could thus be carried out . in a constructively particularly simple manner , the adjusting device could have a spring - biased deflection plate which can be pressed against the pivotable axle preferably by means of a screw against the spring biasing direction . in a further simple manner , the deflection plate could be embedded in a side plate or plate of the changing device in which the stationary axles are mounted . as a result thereof , a particularly compact design of the changing device and hence of the objective changer is achieved . for implementing an adjustment of the objective in the so - called z - direction of a microscope or with respect to a tilting of the objectives , the changing device could have a setting device for changing the curvature of the slot . by changing the curvature of the slot , the actuating element inevitably experiences a change of its quasi - circular path which it runs through when it is actuated or pivoted . in particular , the end regions of the slot could be variable with respect to their curvature so that finally a change in the end position of the actuating element and hence a change in the end position of the objective in the operating position of the objective could be achieved . in a specific and simple manner , the setting device could have a clamping element , preferably a screw , with which an elastically pivotable end region of the slot can be pivoted . in an embodiment , the present invention provides a microscope having an objective changer of the above - described type . with respect thereto and to avoid repetitions reference is made to the above - described advantages and embodiments concerning the objective changer . with the inventive objective changer , a simple objective change with little space requirements for the objective change is made possible with constructively simple means . in order to actuate the changing device , it is finally sufficient to throw an actuating element . the objectives can be changed in focused position without contacting the sample . the changing device could also be referred to as a crank drive . the lifting and lowering of the objective and hence the distance of the objectives from the sample is determined by the length ratios of the component parts of the mechanism or , respectively , the changing device or the crank drive as well as by the circular path which is run through by the actuating element in the slot . specifically , the length ratios of the holders and connecting levers are of particular importance here . thus , the objective can be lifted away from the sample and pivoted backward or forward into the free space . the above - mentioned connecting levers could also be referred to as a crank . fig1 shows in a perspective and schematic illustration an embodiment of an inventive objective changer for a microscope . the objective changer has a changing device 1 for at least two objectives 2 , 3 . with respect to an easy objective change with little space requirements for the objective change , each of the objectives 2 , 3 can be pendulously swung into its operating position near the focal position via the changing device 1 . further , each of the objectives 2 , 3 can be pendulously swung from the operating position into a standby position via the changing device 1 . in the embodiment shown in fig1 , the objective 2 is located in a swung - out standby position and the objective 3 is located in its operating position near the focal position . the objectives 2 and 3 are coupled to the changing device 1 such that their pendulous swinging motion is performed in one common plane . this results in little space requirements for the changing operation . further , the objectives 2 and 3 are coupled such that a swinging - in of the one objective 2 or 3 causes the swinging - out of the other objective 3 or 2 . via the changing device 1 , the objectives 2 , 3 can additionally be lowered during the pendulous swinging - in motion and can additionally be lifted during the pendulous swinging - out motion . this guarantees an objective change without contacting the sample lying underneath . fig2 to 6 show in schematic side views snapshots of the objective changer during the change from one objective 3 to the other objective 2 . here , the movements performed by all mechanisms of the changing device 1 are well visible . the changing device 1 has a link - type guide device 4 with a mechanism coupled thereto for implementing the pendulous swinging motion of the objectives 2 and 3 . via the mechanism , additionally the lowering and lifting motion of the objectives 2 and 3 is implemented . the objectives 2 and 3 are coupled to the mechanism . specifically , the link - type guide device 4 has a curved slot 5 for guiding an actuating element 6 of the mechanism . the actuating element 6 is formed as a pivot lever . the slot 5 is formed in a side plate 7 . the objectives 2 and 3 are each arranged on a holder 8 and 9 , respectively , of the mechanism , the holders 8 and 9 being pivoted with one of their ends on the actuating element 6 . specifically , the objectives 2 and 3 are mounted via the holders 8 and 9 on the actuating element 6 so as to be pivotable about a common axle 10 . with their respective other ends , the holders 8 and 9 are each mounted or articulated on one lever each — connecting levers 13 and 14 — of the mechanism such that they can be pivoted about a respective pivotable axle 11 and 12 . on their end facing away from the respective holder 8 , 9 , the connecting levers 13 and 14 are in turn pivoted about an axle 15 and 16 , respectively , which axles are stationary relative to the changing device 1 . due to the pivotable mounting of the holders 8 and 9 via the connecting levers 13 and 14 , the pendulous swinging motion of the objectives 2 and 3 is achieved . here , the common axle 10 , the pivotable axles 11 and 12 and the stationary axles 15 and 16 are arranged in parallel . during the pendulous swinging motion , these axles 10 and 11 and 12 are merely shifted relative to the stationary axles 15 and 16 . fig7 shows in a schematic side view all snapshots of the fig2 to 6 in a superimposed manner . here , a complete swinging motion for changing the objectives 2 and 3 is visible . fig8 shows in a schematic side view a side plate 20 in which the stationary axles 15 and 16 are mounted . the side plate 20 has an integrated adjusting device 17 for the position of at least one pivotable axle 11 or 12 in axial direction . for reasons of simplicity , only one adjusting device 17 is shown in the illustration , however a further adjusting device 17 for the other pivotable axle 11 or 12 can also be integrated in the side plate 20 . the adjusting device 17 has a spring - biased deflection plate 18 which can be pressed against the pivotable axle 11 or 12 preferably by means of a screw 19 against the spring biasing direction . by pressing the deflection plate 18 against the axle 11 or 12 , this axle can be displaced in axial direction , as a result whereof an adjustment of the associated objective relative to the optical axis of a microscope results . the deflection plate 18 is embedded in the side plate 20 . the side plate 20 is arranged opposite to the side plate 7 shown in fig2 to 7 , wherein the mechanism of the changing device 1 for the objectives 2 and 3 is arranged between the side plates 7 and 20 . during the pendulous swinging motion of the changing device 1 the pivotable axle 11 or 12 to be adjusted moves along the deflection plate 18 , as indicated by the double arrow in fig8 . insofar , the pressure effect exerted by the deflection plate 18 only acts in the lower region of the swinging motion of the pivotable axles 11 or 12 and hence only when the objective 2 or 3 is substantially arranged in the operating position . the broken line 28 indicates the pivot axis about which the deflection plate 18 can be slightly pivoted in order to be pressed against the axle 11 or 12 . fig9 shows in a schematic side view a side plate 7 lying opposite to the side plate 20 from fig8 and having an integrated setting device 21 for changing the curvature of the slot 5 . in the embodiment shown in fig9 , the end regions 22 and 23 of the slot 5 are formed slightly movably or bendably . this is achieved by continuous recesses 24 and 25 or passages in the side plate 7 . insofar , the end regions 22 and 23 in the side plate 7 are designed in a quasi - uncovered manner . for moving or setting the end regions 22 and 23 , the side plate 7 has threads 26 and 27 into each of which one screw can be inserted . these screws can be screwed against the ends of the uncovered end regions 22 and 23 so that these end regions 22 and 23 can be bent or pivoted in screwing direction . this changes the shape of the slot 5 and hence the guiding for an actuating element 6 during the pendulous changing movement for the objectives 2 and 3 . insofar , a setting of the operating position of the objectives 2 and 3 in z - direction or a tilting of the objectives 2 and 3 is made possible . with respect to further advantageous designs and developments of the inventive teaching reference is made , on the one hand , to the general part of the description and , on the other hand , to the enclosed claims for avoiding repetitions . finally , it is most particularly pointed out that the above merely arbitrarily chosen embodiments only serve to explain the teaching according to the invention but do not restrict the same to these embodiments . while the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . 1 changing device 2 objective 3 objective 4 guide device 5 slot 6 actuating element 7 side plate 8 holder 9 holder 10 common axle 11 pivotable axle 12 pivotable axle 13 connecting lever 14 connecting lever 15 stationary axle 16 stationary axle 17 adjusting device 18 deflection plate 19 screw 20 side plate 21 setting device 22 end region 23 end region 24 recess 25 recess 26 thread 27 thread 28 broken line

6Physics

referring to the drawings , a ship is indicated partially at 10 having a metal hull 12 in which a hole or opening shown at 14 has been ripped resulting from a collision or the like . flexible covering means comprising this invention and generally indicated at 16 is shown secured to the outer surface of metal hull 12 and covering the jagged hole 14 to restrict or stop the flow of a liquid lading therefrom , such as oil or the like . flexible covering means 16 includes a flexible material generally indicated at 18 and being impermeable to fluids . flexible material 18 is wound onto a roll or reel 20 having end supports 22 for lowering alongside the outer surface of metal hull 12 . a motor shown at m may be provided for reeling or unreeling roll 20 . fig1 shows flexible material 18 of a generally rectangular shape magnetically secured to hull 12 and having a lower end 24 , parallel sides 26 , and an upper end on roll 20 . suitable straps 28 may be attached to end 24 for securement about hull 12 as may be desired under certain conditions . means ( not shown ) may be provided to release and propel straps 28 beneath hull 12 to the opposite side thereof upon securement of flexible material 18 on hull 12 with straps 28 being pulled taut from the opposite side of the hull to additionally secure flexible material 18 on hull 12 , such as might be required in the event of a malfunction of power sources , for example . referring now to fig3 and 4 in which flexible material 18 is specifically illustrated , an inner layer 30 is provided from a tough elastomeric material , such as sold under the trade name &# 34 ; hyperlastic &# 34 ; by gundle lining systems , inc ., 19103 gundle road , houston , texas , and having a thickness of around 0 . 030 inch . a protective intermediate layer 32 is provided adjacent inner layer 30 and may be formed of a suitable &# 34 ; kevlar &# 34 ; ( a registered trademark of dupont ) material such as sold under the designation &# 34 ; vkwf162 &# 34 ; by advanced textiles , inc ., seguin , texas , and having a thickness of around 0 . 020 inch . an outer tough protective layer 32 is provided likewise formed of a suitable &# 34 ; kevlar &# 34 ; material with a flexible type sealer material combined with the &# 34 ; kevlar &# 34 ; outer layer 34 . embedded or sandwiched between intermediate layer 32 and outer layer 34 are a plurality of spaced electromagnets each generally indicated at 36 and arranged in a plurality of generally transverse rows extending from the upper end of flexible material 18 to the lower end 24 thereof across the entire width of flexible material 18 between parallel sides 26 . electromagnets 36 are preferably cylindrical in shape and may , for example , be of a size having a diameter of 31 / 2 inches and a height of 11 / 2 inches and spaced around 4 to 6 inches from each other in the transverse rows . electromagnets 36 and adjacent rows are staggered . a flexible filler material of a suitable plastic material is positioned about electromagnets 36 between intermediate layer 32 and outer layer 34 . thus , flexible material 18 has a total thickness of around 13 / 4 inches . each electromagnet 36 has a central iron core 40 , a winding 42 surrounding iron core 40 , a cylindrical plastic outer case 44 about winding 42 , and a plastic cover 46 . an electrical wire or conduit 43 is provided for each electromagnet 36 . as an example of a suitable electromagnet 36 , an electromagnet designated as &# 34 ; emr35 &# 34 ; is sold by master magnetics , inc ., castle rock , colorado , having a diameter of 31 / 2 inches , a height of 11 / 2 inches , and operating at 8 watts to exert a magnetic pull of 650 pounds . it may be desirable to provide additional wattage in order to increase the magnetic pull for certain operating conditions . the number of electromagnets 36 is increased along sides 26 and end 24 in order to provide additional securing strength along the lower end and sides of flexible material 18 . while electromagnets 36 may be adequate to provide sufficient magnetic attraction to metal hull 12 under most operating conditions , it may be necessary to provide additional means to assist in directing or forcing flexible material 18 toward steel hull 12 for securement by electromagnets 36 . for this purpose , an air assist member is shown at 48 for each electromagnet 36 positioned centrally on the outer cover 46 of electromagnet 36 . an air conduit or line 50 extends to air assist member 48 and upon the supply of air to air assist member 48 , an air jet is directed outwardly of electromagnet 36 with the opposite end forcing or pushing electromagnet 36 in a direction toward hull 12 . a suitable source of air is shown at a and air conduits or lines 50 are embedded in flexible material 18 . likewise , electrical conduits 43 to electromagnets 36 are embedded in flexible material 18 with the electrical current being supplied by a suitable source of electrical energy shown at e . a control panel is shown at c to control of motor m to wind and unwind flexible material 18 , to control the energizing and de - energizing of electromagnets 36 , and to control the supply of air to air jet assists 48 . it is noted that a separate electrical line 43 is provided for each electromagnet 36 with each electromagnet having a designated number and position on flexible material 18 for monitoring . selective rows of electromagnets 36 may be energized or de - energized as desired . in operation , roll 20 is unrolled upon energizing motor m alongside the outer surface of hull 12 to length sufficient to adequately cover hole 14 . then , horizontal rows of electromagnets 36 are energized in sequence beginning with the uppermost row of electromagnets 36 and continuing to the lowermost row of electromagnets 36 adjacent lower end 24 . if needed , air assist member 48 may be utilized to force flexible material 18 closely adjacent hull 12 so that adequate magnetic attraction is provided upon energizing of electromagnets 36 to secure properly flexible material 18 against steel hull 12 . straps 28 may be propelled beneath hull 12 to the opposite side thereof by suitable means ( not shown ) for securement to the opposite side of hull 12 . it is to be understood that the present invention may be provided in a portable packaging arrangement for transport to a ship where needed . also , a ship might be fitted with suitable sources of electrical energy and air at a predetermined location to adapt itself for the use of such a flexible covering means . while preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated in detail , it is apparent that modifications or adaptations of the preferred embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art . however , it is to be expressly understood that such modifications and adaptations are within the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the following claims .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

the present invention will now be described with reference to the following examples which are provided for the purpose of illustration and are not intended to be construed as being limiting on the present invention , and further , with reference to the figures , wherein : fig1 shows the effect of the multiple subtype natural human alpha interferon product multiferon ™ on the cytopathogenicity of human encephalomyocarditis virus ( emcv ) on a549 cells , wherein the multiferon ™ concentration required to obtain 50 % cytopathic effect ( cpe ) for human a549 cells challenged with emc virus is shown for different concentrations of emc virus ; fig2 shows the effect of increasing concentrations of multiferon ™ on survival of cells infected with emcv ; fig3 shows cytotoxicity ( dashed line ) and antiviral ( unbroken line ) profiles for multiferon ( 10 - 10000 iu / ml ) treatment of mdbk cells infected with 100 tcid 50 h5n1 avian influenza virus ( a / vn / 1203 / 04 ); fig4 shows cytotoxicity ( dashed line ) and antiviral ( unbroken line ) profiles for ribavirin ( 0 . 1 - 100 μg / ml ) treatment of mdbk cells infected with 100 tcid 50 h5n1 avian influenza virus ( a / vn / 1203 / 04 ); fig5 shows cytotoxicity ( dashed line ) and antiviral ( unbroken line ) profiles for repeat experiment with multiferon ( 0 . 1 - 100 iu / ml ) treatment of mdbk cells infected with 100 tcid 50 h5n1 avian influenza virus ( a / vn / 1203 / 04 ); and fig6 shows a comparison of ic 50 concentrations ( in pg / ml ) for multiferon , interferon alpha 2a , and interferon beta 1a protection of mdbk cells from h5n1 avian influenza virus . interferons are widely known to be species specific as the target for the interferon is the infected cell rather than the virus itself . the effect of each anti - viral treatment will be tested in quadruplicate . briefly , 100 microlitres of serial 10 - fold dilutions of each treatment was incubated with 100 microlitres of cells to give a final cell count of 20 , 000 cells per well in a 96 - well plate . incubation at 37 ° c . in 5 % co 2 was carried out overnight for the interferon preparations and for one hour for ribavirin ™. 10 microlitres of virus at a concentration of 10 , 000 pfu / well was then added to each test well . the plates were then incubated at 37 ° c . in 5 % co 2 for three days , with the plates being observed daily for cytopathic effects . the end point is the diluted concentration that inhibited the cytopathic effect in all four set - ups by 50 %. to determine cytotoxicity , 100 microlitres of serial 10 - fold dilutions of each treatment was incubated with 100 microlitres of cells giving a final cell count of 20 , 000 cells per well in a 96 - well plate , without viral challenge . the plates were then incubated at 37 ° c . in 5 % co 2 for three days and toxicity effects observed for using an inverted microscope . multiferon ™ was added to human lung epithelial cells ( cell line a549 ) prior to addition of virus . the human encephalomyocarditis virus ( emcv ) was then used to infect a549 cells and the effect of multiferon ™ on the cytopathogenicity of emcv was determined by assessing the interferon concentration required to obtain 50 % cytopathic effect ( cpe ) for the human a549 cells . the results shown in fig1 show the concentration of multiferon ™ needed to obtain 50 % cytopathic effect in the human cells at varying viral titres . as would be expected , a higher viral concentration requires a higher effective multiferon ™ concentration . in fig2 , multiferon ™ can be observed to inhibit the cytopathic effect caused by emcv infection in a titration dependent manner . these results show that multiferon ™ successfully inhibited cytopathic effect in emcv - infected cells , in a titration - dependent manner . madin darby bovine kidney ( mdbk ) cells were used to test the efficacy of compounds to h5n1 avian influenza virus ( h5n1 ; strain a / vn / 1203 / 04 ). the antiviral evaluation assay examined the effects of compounds at seven half - log concentrations each . recombinant human interferon alpha 2a and recombinant human interferon beta 1a ( pbl biomedical laboratories , piscataway , n . j .) as well as ribavirin ™ ( mp biomedicals , irvine , calif .) were included in each run as positive control compounds . multiferon and controls were run in duplicate assays in triplicate for h5n1 as well as duplicate toxicity wells . subconfluent cultures of mdbk cells were plated out into 96 - well plates for the analysis of cell numbers ( cytotoxicity ) or antiviral activity ( cpe ) and the next day drugs were added to the appropriate wells . one hundred 50 % tissue culture infectious doses ( tcid 50 ) of h5n1 or media were added to appropriate wells and cells were processed 72 hours later when the virus induced peak cpe . the effective drug concentration which reduced h5n1 cpe levels by 25 % ( ic 25 ), 50 % ( ic 50 ) and 90 % ( ic 90 ) were calculated by regression analysis with semi log curve fitting . h5n1 levels were assessed as relative luminescence units ( rlu ) using celltiter - glo ®. the toxic concentration of drug that reduced cell numbers by 50 % ( tc 50 ) and 90 % ( tc 90 ) were calculated in the same manner . selectivity ( therapeutic ) indices ( si tc / ic ) at 50 % ( si 50 ) and 90 % ( si 90 ) were calculated . at assay termination , cell viability and drug cytotoxicity were assessed using the celltiter - glo ® luminescent cell viability assay reagent ( promega , madison , wis .) per the manufacturer &# 39 ; s instructions . this reagent is a homogeneous method for determining the number of viable cells in culture based on quantitation of the atp present , an indicator of metabolically active cells . the homogeneous assay procedure involves adding the single reagent ( celltiter - glo ® reagent ) directly to cells cultured in assay medium . the homogeneous “ add - mix - measure ” format results in cell lysis and generation of a “ glow - type ” luminescent signal ( half - life generally greater than five hours ) that is proportional to the amount of atp present . the amount of atp is directly proportional to the number of cells present in culture and readout is determined by rlu . the toxic concentration of drug that reduced cell numbers by 50 % ( tc 50 ) and 90 % ( tc 90 ) were calculated in spreadsheets by regression analysis with semi log curve fitting . selectivity ( therapeutic ) indices ( si = tc / ic ) at 50 % ( si 50 ) and 90 % ( si 90 ) were calculated . multiferon ™ was tested for anti - h5n1 activity using a concentration range from 10000 iu / ml down to 0 . 1 iu / ml . fig3 details results following treatment with multiferon at a concentration range of 10000 iu / ml down to 10 iu / ml . in this experiment , the lowest concentration of multiferon ™ used , 10 iu / ml , protected 100 % of cells from h5n1 infection ( unbroken line in fig3 ) indicating that multiferon is highly efficient at protecting cells in vitro from h5n1 infection . in contrast , 12 . 11 iu / ml of interferon beta 1a only protected 50 % of cells from h5n1 infection ( graph not shown ; a summary of the results is presented in table 1 below ). fig3 ( dashed line ) shows that multiferon ™ was not toxic at any concentrations tested up to 10 , 000 iu / ml . in contrast , fig4 ( dashed line ) shows that ribavirin ™ was toxic at concentrations above that which protected 80 % of cells from h5n1 infection , i . e . it was not possible to reach full protection of cells using ribavirin ™. fig5 details results from a repeat study where the concentration range for multiferon ™ was reduced to 100 iu / ml down to 0 . 1 iu / ml to determine an ic 50 concentration for multiferon ™. ribavirin ™, interferon beta 1a and interferon alpha 2a were included in this study . multiferon ™ was demonstrated to be & gt ; 17 - fold stronger than interferon beta 1a and & gt ; 51 - fold stronger than interferon alpha 2a in protecting cells from h5n1 infection ( graphs not shown , results also summarized in table 3 ). table 3 details the comparison of ic 50 concentrations for v to interferon alpha 2a and interferon beta 1a , in iu / ml and in pg / ml . this takes into account differences in specific activity of the products tested , demonstrating multiferon ™ is & gt ; 20 - fold stronger than either interferon alpha 2a or interferon beta 1a when ic 50 concentrations in pg / ml are compared . data taken from column 4 of table 3 is graphed in fig6 , which shows a comparison of ic 50 concentrations ( in pg / ml ) for multiferon ™, interferon alpha 2a , and interferon beta 1a protection of mdbk cells from h5n1 avian influenza virus . it is surprising that multi - subtype forms of interferon alpha provide a robust treatment or preventative therapy against avian influenza . the present invention provides an important broad spectrum , first line of defense therapeutic product which can protect against infection with avian influenza h5n1 and likely any reassortment or variant derived therefrom . leukocyte derived natural multi - subtype forms of interferon alpha have no or very little tendency to give rise to neutralising antibodies , and accordingly provide a higher response rate than recombinant interferon alpha 2 products when used therapeutically in humans . for patients who develop anti - interferon antibodies to recombinant interferon alpha 2 products , it has proven useful to follow up the treatment with a natural form of alpha interferon ( milella et al ., 1995 ). all documents referred to in this specification are herein incorporated by reference . various modifications and variations to the described embodiments of the inventions will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention . although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments , it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments . indeed , various modifications of the described modes of carrying out the invention which are obvious to those skilled in the art are intended to be covered by the present invention . antonelli g . ( 1997 ) j interferon cytokine res jul ; 17 suppl 1 : s39 - 46 . easterday , b . c ., et al . ( 1997 ) influenza , p . 583 - 605 . in b . w . calnek , h . j . barnes , c . w . beard , l . r . mcdougald , and y . m . saif ( ed .). diseases in poultry . iowa state university press , ames . foster g r , et al . 1996 . j . interferon res . 16 : 1027 - 1033 . goodbourn , s . e . y ., et al . ( 2000 ) j . gen . virol . 81 : 2341 - 2364 . weck , p . k . et al . ( 1981 ) j . gen . virol . 57 233 - 237

0Human Necessities

the embodiment herein described does not intend to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed . it has been chosen and described to explain the principles of the invention and its application and practical use to best enable others skilled in the art to follow its teachings . fig1 shows a trailer 10 connected to a sliding hitch assembly 18 , which in turn is mounted to a vehicle 20 . trailer 10 includes a pin box 12 with a king pin 14 downwardly extending therefrom . king pin 14 engages a locking jaw 16 on sliding hitch assembly 18 , thereby securing the trailer to the hitch assembly . sliding hitch assembly 18 is mounted in the bed of a vehicle 20 to enable the vehicle to tow trailer 10 . vehicle 20 may be a short - bed pickup truck . the sliding hitch assembly 18 moves king pin 14 away from the cab of vehicle 20 when turning to prevent trailer 10 from contacting vehicle 20 , such as shown in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 308 , 977 , incorporated herein by reference . the pin box 12 is mounted on sliding hitch assembly 18 with a capture plate 22 sandwiched therebetween , as shown in fig2 . fig3 shows an exploded view of pin box 12 , capture plate 22 and sliding hitch assembly 18 . with capture plate 22 anchored to pin box 12 , king pin 14 passes through a pin hole 24 in capture plate 22 and is secured in locking jaw 16 on sliding hitch assembly 18 , thereby connecting trailer 10 to sliding hitch assembly 18 . a lip 26 restricts rotation between pin box 12 and capture plate 22 , and a wedge 28 restricts rotation between the capture plate and hitch assembly 18 , as discussed in more detail below . a hitch plate 32 forms the top of sliding hitch assembly 18 and has a pin slot 30 . pin slot 30 is defined as an open channel which accepts king pin 14 and houses a locking jaw 16 which locks king pin 14 in place when the trailer is docked on the sliding hitch assembly . wedge 28 is fixed to the bottom of capture plate 22 and is sized to mate with pin slot 30 . wedge 28 fits restrictively into pin slot 30 near locking jaw 16 on sliding hitch assembly 18 , whereby rotation is prevented between capture plate 22 and sliding hitch assembly 18 as shown in fig5 , 6 and 7 . wedge 28 may have a tapered leading edge 29 , as shown in fig9 , such that the tapered edge serves to guide the wedge into pin slot 30 as capture plate 22 is docked on sliding hitch assembly 18 . capture plate 22 is formed from a generally flat plate with pin hole 24 forming an aperture through the plate which accepts king pin 14 as shown in fig8 - 11 . capture plate 22 has a front edge 34 , a back edge 36 , a top side 38 and a bottom side 40 . wedge 28 extends from bottom side 40 , preferably positioned between back edge 36 and pin hole 24 . lip 26 extends from top side 38 and is located around a portion of the perimeter of capture plate 22 , preferably around front edge 34 . fig8 shows lip 26 traveling around nearly the front half of capture plate 22 . other embodiments envision various lip configurations such as lip 26 terminating near back edge back edge 36 , or extending only far enough to accommodate shims 42 , as shown in fig1 and fig1 respectively . other embodiments envision lip configurations which restrict rotation between the pin box and the capture plate such as the use of multiple lips , or a lip contacting the back portion of the pin box or other similar configurations . in one embodiment , lip 26 runs generally parallel to the outer edges of the top side 38 of capture plate 22 . lip 26 circumscribes a sufficient part of pin box 12 so that rotation is prevented between pin box 12 and capture plate 22 as shown in fig1 . the outer dimensions of pin box 12 may vary among trailer manufacturers and therefore one or more shims 42 may be secured to lip 26 to accommodate different pin boxes , thereby allowing a restricted fit between capture plate 22 and pin box 12 such that rotation is prevented therebetween as discussed in more detail below . with capture plate 22 mounted on pin box 12 , top side 38 , lip 26 and any shims 42 contact pin box 12 . lip 26 may terminate in a flared end 44 , as shown in fig8 . shims 42 are defined as one or more spacers which may be mounted to lip 26 in order to custom fit capture plate 22 to pin box 12 . shims 42 can be secured to lip 26 by a fastening means known in the art . here , a bolt 50 passes through a hole in each shim 42 and through a corresponding hole in lip 26 and then secures into a nut 51 . the number of shims 42 shown in fig1 is merely illustrative ; the number of shims used in practice will depend on the dimensions of the pin box to which the capture plate is attached to allow for connection between the pin box and the capture plate . lip 26 is attached to capture plate 22 with a fail - safe bond such that the lip may preferentially fail before the rotational force between trailer 10 and vehicle 20 becomes great enough to damage any of the attached components such as pin box 12 , trailer 10 , sliding hitch assembly 18 or vehicle 20 . lip 26 is designed to fail by bending outwardly or separating from capture plate 22 when subjected to a sufficient rotational force , thus allowing pin box 12 to rotate relative to capture plate 22 . wedge 28 is an extension of capture plate 22 adapted for mating with pin slot 30 . as discussed above , wedge 28 mates with pin slot 30 of hitch assembly 18 to prevent rotation between capture plate 22 and the hitch assembly . wedge 28 may be fixed to capture plate 22 by any method known in the art , including , but not limited to , welding , riveting , bolting , or any other fastener as is known in the art . alternatively , wedge 28 and capture plate 22 may be formed as a single piece . wedge 28 is shaped to contact pin slot 30 to prevent rotation of the capture plate relative to the hitch assembly . a fastener , such as a set screw 46 , is carried on the underside of capture plate 22 , and serves to anchor capture plate 22 to pin box 12 , preferably to king pin 14 . with set screw 46 tightened against king pin 14 , capture plate 22 is held in anchored contact with pin box 12 . fastener 46 is designed as a quick - release fastener for readily attaching and detaching capture plate 22 to pin box 12 without damaging or modifying the pin box . fastener 46 is an improvement over the prior art as it allows attachment of a capture plate to a pin box without modifying the pin box , and does so with a single quick - release fastener . in the preferred embodiment , fastener 46 is carried by wedge 28 . in the preferred embodiment , wedge 28 is fixed to the bottom side 40 of capture plate 22 between pin hole 24 and back edge 36 as shown in fig9 . wedge 28 may take many shapes ; in one embodiment wedge 28 is a hollow d - shaped extension of capture plate 22 , with a tapered leading edge 29 to allow for smooth mating with pin slot 30 . in a further embodiment , wedge 28 is a solid polygonal extension of capture plate 22 . the description herein contemplates other embodiments of wedge 28 which mate with a pin slot to prevent rotation between a capture plate and a hitch assembly , and which carry a quick - release fastener for readily attaching and detaching the capture plate to the pin box without modifying the pin box . in one embodiment , the front edge 34 of capture plate 22 terminates in an angled portion 48 . with capture plate 22 mounted on pin box 12 , angled portion 48 serves as a ramped leading edge for engagement with pin slot 30 . in an alternative embodiment , lip 50 extends the length of the front edge of the capture plate with arms 52 and 54 extending perpendicular therefrom , as shown in fig1 . one or more shims 56 may be secured to arms 52 and 54 . in this embodiment , arms 52 and 54 are shorter in length than the embodiment shown in fig8 , being just long enough to accommodate shims 56 . another embodiment of the invention has arms 58 and 60 extending from near the front edge to near the back edge of the capture plate with shims 62 sized to fit the length of arms 58 and 60 , as shown in fig1 .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

referring now to fig1 , an exemplary embodiment of a multi - lane dna sequencing system according to the present invention is shown . in this exemplary embodiment , the system of fig1 may be similar to the system described in alaverdian et al . in with the exception of the novel lane cross - talk removal function implemented in accordance with the present invention . the exemplary embodiment of fig1 may include a multi - capillary array 12 . in a preferred embodiment the array may be a 16 - or 48 - capillary array , such as those made available by applied biosystems , inc ., or may be any other multi - capillary array . the multi - capillary array 12 may preferably be inserted into a precision holder . in accordance with the exemplary embodiment of fig1 , a laser beam illuminates the array from the side and excites fluorescence in the capillaries of the array 12 . in an exemplary embodiment , the laser beam may be generated by a fiberized , single mode 25 mw ndyag laser ( 532 mm ), such as those available from crystal lasers , inc . in order to illuminate the multi - capillary array from the side and excite fluorescence in all channels with high efficiency , an optical system comprising a collimator and microscope objective ( jis 10 ×/ 0 . 25 ) may be employed to reduce the beam size to a size of , e . g ., 40 microns . the fluorescence excited in the multi - capillary array is captured by a lens of a high numerical aperture , passed through a spectral separating device 13 , and projected onto photosensitive pixels of a photodetector 14 . in a preferred embodiment , the spectral separating device 13 may be a rotating filter wheel comprising four band pass filters passing the fluorescence in four different spectral bands . such a device may be advantageously employed because the system cross - talk effects may differ in different spectral bands . the spectral separator device may isolate particular spectral bands for cross - talk analysis . revolutions of the filter wheel may be synchronized with the photodetector 14 so that the photodetector is provided with information regarding what color light it is receiving at any given time . although outside the scope of the present invention , various other optical filtering may be employed to ensure efficient transmission of the fluorescence excited in the multi - capillary array to the photodetector 14 . for example , the lens may preferably be any lens with high numerical aperture , such as the commercially - available canon ef 50 mm 1 : 1 . 4 . the photodetector 14 may preferably be a 32 - channel pmt , such as the h72060 developed by hamamatsu . however , any photodetector and filtering apparatus may be employed in accordance with the present invention , as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art . the photodetector 14 may preferably be operated in a single photon counting mode in accordance with this exemplary embodiment of the present invention . each channel of photodetector 14 produces an output stream of short pulses in response to an input incident photon flux . the output pulses may generally range between 0 . 4 - 0 . 6 ma with corresponding peak voltage between 8 and 12 mv . in order to facilitate photon counting detection mode , a pulse amplifier and photon counter 16 may be employed . these functions may be performed using a single piece of hardware or several pieces of hardware , depending upon the particulars of the embodiment . for example , a 32 - channel pulse amplifier and a 32 - channel photon counter may be employed in accordance with the preferred embodiment . the amplifier comprises 32 identical pulse amplifying channels with gain of 35 - 40 db , bandwidth of 0 . 5 - 4 , 000 mhz and 32 fast comparators . these comparators have a rise and fall time of about 2 ns , which limits the minimum pulse width to approximately 4 . 5 ns . after amplification , a digitization ( counting ) of the amplified signal is performed by a home designed 32 - channel photon counter . in order to synchronize the counter with the rotating 4 - color filter wheel and to identify band - pass filters , we use a 2 - bit gray code from two sensors installed on the filter wheel . the change of the code word at the sensor outputs indicates the change of the filter in alignment . the counting of the input photon pulses in each of the 32 channels is performed by summation of pulses arriving to the channel input during the time intervals when a particular band - pass filter is in alignment with the photodetector . data collected by the counter is transferred to a computer device such as a personal computer using standard ieee 1284 parallel port interface or other standard computer interface . the data is transferred in samples using a binary format . one data sample is collected during one full revolution of the filter wheel . the frame consists of count values obtained in 4 fluorescence detection bands ( 4 color filters ) for each of the 32 detection channels . the frames are sent in order of their generation , determined by the filter code on the wheel and the direction of its rotation . each frame starts with a 6 - byte header which includes the following fields : 1 - byte counter type , 2 - byte frame number , 1 - byte color code ( filter number ) and a 2 - byte counting period length . the frame number contains the number of the current frame . the number is incremented by 1 for each following frame thus forming a rising sequence with overflow . the frame numbers serve as synchronization marks and are used by the data processing software to find data frames in a continuous data stream . frame numbers are also used for verification of data integrity and for finding errors introduced by interference in the transmission line . the duration of the counting period is measured in milliseconds and is represented by a 2 - byte value . the time duration when the filter is “ on ” is measured separately for each filter and is used by processing software to calculate a photocount rate . the frame size is 105 bytes . during the normal operation of the system , when the filter wheel performs ˜ 10 revolutions per second , the counter produces about 4200 bytes per second , which results in approximately 1 . 48 mb per hour . a special software package operating on a personal computer or other computing device may perform the recording and the on - line visualization of the data transferred by the counter . the recorded data may preferably undergo a preprocessing which includes non - linearity compensation , smoothing and lane cross - talk removal . further processing may include an automated base calling and assigning quality factor based on phred approach . referring now to fig2 , a flow diagram of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is shown . as shown in fig2 , a first step 20 in the exemplary method is to determine a cross - talk matrix for a given system . next , in step 22 , the system is operated and fluorescence data recorded . finally , in step 24 , the cross - talk matrix is applied to the recorded test data to remove / eliminate cross - talk and leave only the correct fluorescence data measurements for each photodetector channel . notably , the details of all processing steps in accordance with the present invention are similar to those described in alaverdian et al . with the exception of the novel cross - talk removal steps . one of the critical steps in the method according to the present invention is the determination of a cross - talk matrix for a given system , which cross - talk matrix may be used to remove unwanted cross - talk components from output data . exemplary methods for determining a cross - talk matrix in accordance with the present invention are described herein below . the proposed method of the cross - talk removal is based on the assumption that the fluorescence measurement system is linear , i . e ., a photocount rate registered in the n - th channel of the photodetector is a sum of components contributed by signals in all other system channels and ratios of contributions from individual channels do not depend on the photocount rate . linearity of optical cross talk is obvious as long as the measured photocount rate stays within the linear range of the pmt . ( as described in d . gavrilov , b . gorbovitski , m . gouzman , g . gudkov , a . stepoukhovitch , v . ruskovoloshin , a . tsuprik , g . tyshko , o . bilenko , o . kosobokova , s . luryi , v . gorfinkel , electrophoresis 2003 , 24 , 1184 - 1192 ( hereinafter “ gavrilov et al .”). an exemplary system according to the present invention may have n - channel pmt and m detection lanes . the number of detection lanes may be determined by the number of active capillaries m in the capillary array ( m & lt ; n ). the vector of fluorescence intensities in the capillary lanes may be denoted as f =( f1 , f2 . . . f m ) t and the vector of registered photocount rates as s =( s 1 , s 2 . . . s n ) t , where (.) t denotes the matrix transpose . the model of the system establishes relationship between f and s vectors : where γ (.) is an operator accounting for non - linearity of the pmt , ε is quantum efficiency of the pmt , β is an efficiency of the optical system , c ( n × m ) is the cross - talk matrix and ω ( n × 1 ) is the noise vector , which defines the stochastic component of s , caused by random arrival times of individual photons and distributed according to poisson . the quantum efficiency ε determines the percentage of photons that cause the pmt to produce a response on its output . this parameter depends on the wavelength of the fluorescent emission and in our wavelength range it stays below 7 %. the efficiency of the optical system β is a parameter combining efficiency of the fluorescence collection and delivery systems . in order to simplify the equations , a photocount rate may be defined as a number of photons per sampling interval . in linear approximation , the cross - talk matrix c ( n × m ) combines the electronic and optical cross - talk in the system : given the same level of electronic cross - talk between the adjacent channels of the pmt , the matrix c el ( n × m ) may take the form : in the above exemplary cross - talk matrix 1 , the only diagonals containing non - zero elements are the main and two adjacent diagonals , meaning that no electronic cross - talk exists between non - adjacent channels of the pmt . measurement results confirm that this matrix is valid for analysis of an exemplary system employing the h7260 device described in accordance with fig1 . indeed , the elements of the c el are c 1 el = 0 . 94 and c 2 el = 0 . 03 , ( so that c 1 el + c 2 el = 1 ), and the cross talk level between non - adjacent channels stays negligibly small ( below 0 . 5 %). elements of the optical cross - talk matrix c opt ( n × m ) depend on the properties of the optical system . in an exemplary embodiment of the present invention , an optical system may include a number of capillaries in the array ( number of lanes ) equal to the number of channels of the photodetector ( m = n ), such that c opt is a square matrix of the form : each column of c opt reflects distribution of the fluorescence intensity collected from the corresponding capillary among all n channels of the pmt . the matrix may be normalized as follows : if the number of lanes is smaller than the number of photodetection channels ( m & lt ; n ) and each lane is assigned to its unique primary pmt channel , i . e ., the channel to which the most of its fluorescence is forwarded , then the ( n × m ) matrix is constricted from exemplary cross - talk matrix 2 above by removing the columns with numbers of the pmt channels that do not serve as primary . because estimation of the absolute value of the fluorescence intensity is not important in this analysis of the recorded sequencing traces , but rather the relative peak amplitudes are the important consideration , it is convenient to use a vector of ‘ true ’ photocount rate r =( r 1 , r 2 . . . r m ) t , which represents the rate that would be obtained in an idealized system , equipped with the ideally linear m - channel estimator of the photocount rate and optical projection system with no cross - talk : according to the above equations , the registered photocount rate s may be related to the ‘ true ’ photocount rate as the simple minimum variance unbiased ( mvu ) estimator for r may be found in s . m . kay , fundamentals of statistical signal processing . estimation theory . prentice - hall , n . j ., 1993 , 597 p ., under assumption that the elements of the noise vector in the system are independent , identically distributed random values with gaussian distribution n ( 0 , σ ): where { circumflex over ( r )} denotes the estimate of r , and γ − 1 (.) is the non - linearity compensation operator applied to the elements of the vector s . the methods for { circumflex over ( r )} =( c γ c ) − 1 c γ γ − 1 ( s ), characterization and compensation of non - linearity of a single photon detector are described in detail in d . gavrilov , b . gorbovitski , m . gouzman , g . gudkov , a . stepoukhovitch , v . ruskovoloshin , a . tsuprik , g . tyshko , o . bilenko , o . kosobokova , s . luryi , v . gorfinkel , electrophoresis 2003 , 24 , 1184 - 1192 , which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety . if the number of lanes m in the system is equal to the number of photodetection channels , then c is a square ( n × n ) matrix , and the equation above may be reduced to : therefore , in order to find vector { circumflex over ( r )}, information about the cross - talk matrix c must be deduced . in order to evaluate optical cross - talk , certain assumptions about the characteristics of the optical system which cause the cross talk may be made . a first assumption may be that the optical cross talk in the system is mainly caused by edge aberrations of the lens . therefore , the cross - talk will depend on the fluorescence collection angle . in an exemplary embodiment of the present invention , a system using a smaller collection angle may be referred to as narrow collection angle ( nca ) system , and a system using a bigger collection angle may be referred to as a wide collection angle ( wca ) system . in an nca system the whole fluorescence collected from each capillary is projected only on the effective space of the corresponding channel of the pmt . the wca system can not be made to produce a sharp image of the entire capillary array . in an exemplary system according to the present invention , the projected images of the central capillaries of the array may be sharp and may become more and more blurred as the detector is moved closer and closer to the array ends . as a result of blurring , more and more fluorescence is delivered to the nearest neighbors of the designated channels , leading to optical cross - talk between the channels . experiments with fluorescence collection using variable aperture show that the nca approximation for an exemplary optical system is valid when the light collection angle does not exceed 20 °. therefore , the wca approximation will span all collection angles 20 °& lt ; θ & lt ; θ max , where θ max is defined either by the lens collection angle or limited to a critical angle of total internal reflection θ c . θ c = sin − 1 ( n air / n glass ) where n air and n glass are refractive indices of air and glass correspondingly ( n air = 1 , n glass = 1 . 5 , θ c = 41 . 8 °). in the optical system employed in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention , the lens collection angle is ˜ 45 °. depending on the type of capillary array employed , a different equation may be applied . for example , for capillary arrays which do not include an outer glass box , the collection efficiency may be expressed as : for capillary arrays of the type which are immersed into a glass quvette filled with a refractive index liquid , the collection efficiency may be modified and expressed as : thus , collection efficiencies for both capillary array types are very close . optical parameter β may be denoted as β nca and β wca for nca and wca systems correspondingly . assuming a maximum value of β max ≈ 0 . 25 and that maximum value of β nca is β nca ( 20 °)= 0 . 058 , the following may be shown : a lane cross - talk removal method in accordance with the present invention may be implemented to remove cross - talk from an nca system . the nca system that provides ideally focused image may be described by the diagonal matrix : therefore for the nca system c = c el . due to stability of the electronic cross - talk matrix c el , the matrix c can be computed once for the pmt and used until the pmt is replaced . a lane cross - talk removal method in accordance with the present invention may be implemented to remove cross - talk from a wca system . in the wca system , depending on the image quality , the exemplary cross - talk matrix 2 may have non - zero elements on the main and several adjacent diagonals . analytical evaluation of the matrix c for the wca system requires evaluation of the c opt , which depends on specific design of the optical system and may vary not only from system to system , but even after every replacement of the multi - capillary array because of the system misalignment caused by a finite tolerance of the array positioning system . therefore , for determining elements of the c matrix for specific detection system , it is more practical to use a special calibration procedure based on sequencing data obtained from the system calibration experiment . obviously , the system calibration must be performed each time a new capillary array is installed . the calibration of a cross - talk cancellation algorithm in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes estimation of the cross - talk matrix . two approaches may be employed in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention — static and dynamic approaches to calibration . this approach to calibration is well suited for photodetection units . static calibration may be performed at the stage of device manufacturing before the photodetection unit is installed in the system . the n - th column of a cross - talk matrix is obtained by illuminating the n - th pixel ( channel ) of the photodetector and recording responses at the outputs of each channel . for example , in calibration of a linear array pmt , the illumination of a single channel can be achieved using a low aperture single mode fiber . the fiber may be equipped with a tip lens to narrow the aperture . before each experiment the background noise levels may be recorded in each channel . the background levels are subtracted from the responses before their values are used to form the columns of a cross - talk matrix . the dynamic approach may preferably be employed for calibration of a detection system as a whole . the resulting matrix from such calibration combines the internal and external ( i . e ., electronic and optical ) cross - talk . in this approach , the cross - talk matrix is estimated from the results of the experiment . an algorithm for matrix estimation is utilized to extract the cross - talk information from the recorded data set using knowledge about the specific conditions of the experiment . this approach to calibration of the cross - talk cancellation algorithm may be applied in an exemplary fluorescence detection system for multi - capillary electrophoresis in accordance with the present invention . estimation of the lane cross talk includes execution of a series of short sequencing runs . the number of runs in the series is determined experimentally as a number of capillaries between two closest lanes with negligibly small cross - talk . in one exemplary embodiment of the present invention , for calibration of the lane cross - talk an internal lane standard ( ils - 600 , promega corp ) may be used . this sample produces a number of well separated peaks in the 580 nm - 620 nm wavelength range on a rather low background level (˜ 1 , 000 count / s ) which generates very low photon counting noise (& lt ; 250 c / s ). thus , since the typical count rate of the detected ils peaks varies in the range of ˜ 100 , 000 c / s - 50 , 000 c / s , the system may be calibrated for as low as 1 % lane cross - talk with signal - to - noise ratio larger than 1 . in a case when cross - talk affects only adjacent channels , the calibration experiment consists of only two short runs during which the ils - 600 sample is loaded in either odd or even capillaries of the array . both recorded data sets may also undergo smoothing and background removal . the odd columns of c may be found using the ‘ odd ’ data set and the even columns using the ‘ even ’ data set . in both data sets the high quality peaks may be detected in each channel that has a loaded capillary assigned to it during the corresponding sequencing run . if j peaks are detected in the channel n i to which the fluorescence from the i - th lane is primarily projected , then : b 1 = 1 j ⁢ ∑ j = 1 j ⁢ a n i - 1 ⁡ [ j ] a n i ⁡ [ j ] ; b 2 = 1 j ⁢ ∑ j = 1 j ⁢ a n i + 1 ⁡ [ j ] a n i ⁡ [ j ] , where a ni [ j ] is the height of the j - th peak in the channel n i and a ni − 1 [ j ] and a ni + 1 [ j ] are the heights of the cross - talk induced peaks in the adjacent channels . the height of the peaks may be determined from the data set obtained by removal of baseline from the raw experimental data . the baseline removal is an important step , because the baseline may constitute significant fraction of the recorded raw data value . then the non - zero elements of the i - th column of c may be expressed as : a similar procedure can be used if a larger number of calibration runs is needed . notably , the transition from nca to wca detection system causes some of the collected fluorescence to be projected on the ‘ dead ’ insensitive spaces of the pmt , introducing additional loss in the efficiency of the detector . it has been shown that in an exemplary system using pmt h7260 in accordance with the present invention , the loss in fluorescence does not exceed 20 % if cross - talk between adjacent channels stays below 30 % ( 0 . 3 ). the described cross - talk cancellation algorithm assumes that the photodetection unit has strictly linear characteristic , i . e ., it produces the output response ( in the case of the pmt module it is the rate of shaped electric pulses ) that is proportional to the intensity of incident light . the characteristics of real world devices generally are not strictly linear . in many cases a photodetection unit can be calibrated and the calibration results can be used to compensate non - linearity in the experimental data . the compensation can be performed in software or hardware . the algorithms for calibration and compensation of non - linearity are described in detail in gavrilov et al . after non - linearity compensation the data can be forwarded to the cross - talk cancellation algorithm of the present invention , which will not introduce additional distortions in the data . the nca and wca detection systems analyses assume that the characteristics of the pmt are known precisely and its non - linearity can be perfectly compensated . the detailed description of the methods for characterization of single photon detectors and non - linearity compensation is presented in gavrilov et al . in analysis we also assume that significant cross - talk exists only between the adjacent channels and does not exceed 30 %. the expressions are derived for the case when the number of lanes m is the same as the number of pmt channels n . a software module may be implemented in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention to automatically determine the lane cross - talk matrix based on calibration data . the software module may process a series of calibration runs and produce a configuration file of the lane cross - talk matrix coefficients . a set of active lanes ( containing sample ) may be specified for each calibration run . the cross - talk removal is performed separately on data obtained in each of the four fluorescence spectral bands . the procedure of estimation of the cross - talk matrix in every spectral band may include base - line removal in all 32 channels followed by peak detection . the module may search for well resolved fluorescence peaks in the active channels and corresponding cross - talk peaks in the neighboring channels . after non - linearity compensation , noise filtering , and base line subtraction have preferably been performed , the peak heights in active and neighboring channels may be determined . the cross - talk coefficients are found as ratios of peak heights in neighboring channels to the peak height in active channels . the coefficients may be further normalized . the determined cross talk matrix may then be applied for further processing of the sequencing data . experiments involving the cross - talk cancellation method of the present invention applied to processing of the experimental traces obtained from internal lane standard 600 ( promega corporation ) sequenced in the 16 - capillary array ( applied biosystems inc .) and detected using our 32 - channel dna sequencing setup showed favorable results . while there have been described what are believed to be the preferred embodiments of the present invention , those skilled in the art will recognize that other and further changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention , and it is intended to claim all such changes and modifications as fall within the true scope of the invention .

6Physics

an exemplary data mining system 100 , in which the present invention may be implemented , is shown in fig1 . system 100 includes a data mining system 102 that is connected to a variety of sources of data . for example , system 102 may be connected to a plurality of internal or proprietary data sources , such as systems 104 a - 104 n . systems 104 a - 104 n may be any type of data source , warehouse , or repository , including those that are not publicly accessible . examples of such systems include inventory control systems , accounting systems , scheduling systems , etc . system 102 may also be connected to a plurality of proprietary data sources that are accessible in some way over the internet 108 . such systems include systems 106 a - 106 n , shown in fig1 . systems 106 a - 106 n may be publicly accessible over the internet 108 , they may be privately accessible using a secure connection technology , or they may be both publicly and privately accessible . system 102 may also be connected to other systems over the internet 108 . for example , system 110 may be privately accessible to system 102 over the internet 108 using a secure connection , while system 112 may be publicly accessible over the internet 108 . the common thread to the systems connected to system 102 is that the connected systems all are potential sources of data for system 102 . the data involved may be of any type , from any original source , and in any format . system 102 has the capability to utilize and all such data that is available to it . an exemplary embodiment of data mining system 102 is shown in fig2 . data mining system 102 utilizes data , such as externally stored data 204 and internally stored data 206 , which is obtained from data sources such as the proprietary and public data sources shown in fig1 . data mining system 102 also includes data mining engine 208 . externally stored data 204 is typically stored in a database management system and is accessed by data mining system 102 . the database management system typically includes software that receives and processes queries of the database , such as those received from data mining system 102 , obtains data satisfying the queries , and generates and transmits responses to the queries , such as to data mining system 102 . internally stored data 206 contemplates an embodiment in which data mining engine 208 is combined with , or implemented on , a database management system . in either case , data 204 or 206 includes data , typically arranged as a plurality of data tables , such as relational data tables , as well as indexes and other structures that facilitate access to the data . data mining engine 208 performs data mining processes , such as processing data to generate data mining models and responding to requests for data mining results from one or more users , such as user 212 . an exemplary data flow diagram of a data mining process , which may be performed by data mining engine 208 , including building and scoring of models and generation of predictions / recommendations , is shown in fig3 . the training / model building step 302 involves generating the models that are used to perform data mining recommendation / prediction , clustering , association rule generation , etc . the inputs to training / model building step 302 include training parameters 304 , training data 306 , and untrained models 308 . for some types of models , such as neural network or self - organizing map models , untrained models 308 may include initialized or untrained representations of the models in addition to algorithms that process the training data 306 in order to actually build the models . such a representation includes a structural representation of the model that either does not actually contain data that makes up the model , or contains only default data or parameters . the actual data or parameters are generated and entered into the representation during training / model building step 302 by the model building algorithms . for other types of models , such as tree models or association rule models , untrained models 308 do not include untrained representations of the models , but only include the algorithms that process the training data 306 in order to actually build the models . training parameters 304 are parameters that are input to the data - mining model building algorithms to control how the algorithms build the models . training data 306 is data that is input to the algorithms and which is used to actually build the models . model building can also partition “ build data ” into training , evaluation , and test datasets . the evaluation dataset can be used by the model building algorithm to avoid overtraining , while the test dataset can be used to provide error estimates of the model . training / model building step 302 invokes the data mining model building algorithms included in untrained models 308 , initializes the algorithms using the training parameters 304 , processes training data 306 using the algorithms to build the model , and generates trained model 310 . trained model 310 may include rules that implement the conditions and decisions that make up the operational model , for those types of models that use rules . as part of the process of building trained model 310 , trained model 310 is evaluated and , for example , in the case of decision tree models , those rules that decrease or do not contribute to the quality , i . e . prediction accuracy , of the model are eliminated from the model . the remaining rules of trained model 310 are encoded in an appropriate format and are deployed for use in making predictions or recommendations . for those types of models that do not use rules , such as neural networks , the trained model 310 includes an appropriate representation of the model encoded in an appropriate format and deployed for use in making predictions or recommendations scoring step 312 involves using the deployed trained model 310 to make predictions or recommendations based on new data that is received . trained model 310 , prediction parameters 314 , and prediction data 316 are input to scoring step 312 . trained models 310 include one or more sets of deployed rules that were generated by model building step 302 . prediction parameters 314 are parameters that are input to the scoring step 318 to control the scoring of trained model 310 against prediction data 316 and are input to the selection and prediction / recommendation step 320 to control the selection of the scored rules and the generation of predictions and recommendations prediction data 316 is processed according to deployed rules or other representation of the model included in trained model 310 , as controlled by prediction parameters 314 . in the case of a rule based model , scores are generated for prediction data 316 based upon each rule in the set of deployed rules included in trained model 310 . typically , a trained model 310 can be defined in terms of a function of input variables producing a prediction / recommendation based on the input variables . the function is evaluated using the input prediction data 316 and scores are generated . the scores indicate how closely the function defined by the model matches the prediction data , how much confidence may be placed in the prediction , how likely the output prediction / recommendation from the model is to be true , and other statistical indicators . scored data 318 is output from scoring step 312 and includes predictions or recommendations for each scored record in prediction data 316 , along with corresponding probabilities for each scored record . scored data 318 is input to selection and prediction / recommendation generation step , which evaluates the probabilities associated with each record of scored data 318 and generates predictions / recommendations based on the scored data . records may be selected based on prediction parameters 314 provided by the user , for example , to filter records that do not meet some probability threshold . the generated predictions / recommendations are output 322 from step 320 for use in any post data mining processing . an exemplary block diagram of one embodiment of a database / data mining system 102 , shown in fig1 , is shown in fig4 a . database / data mining system 102 is typically a programmed general - purpose computer system , such as a personal computer , workstation , server system , and minicomputer or mainframe computer . database / data mining system 102 includes one or more processors ( cpus ) 402 a - 402 n , input / output circuitry 404 , network adapter 406 , and memory 408 . cpus 402 a - 402 n executes program instructions in order to carry out the functions of the present invention . typically , cpus 402 a - 402 n are one or more microprocessors , such as an intel pentium ® processor . fig4 illustrates an embodiment in which data mining system 102 is implemented as a single multi - processor computer system , in which multiple processors 402 a - 402 n share system resources , such as memory 408 , input / output circuitry 404 , and network adapter 406 . however , the present invention also contemplates embodiments in which data mining system 102 is implemented as a plurality of networked computer systems , which may be single - processor computer systems , multi - processor computer systems , or a mix thereof . input / output circuitry 404 provides the capability to input data to , or output data from , database / data mining system 102 . for example , input / output circuitry may include input devices , such as keyboards , mice , touchpads , trackballs , scanners , etc ., output devices , such as video adapters , monitors , printers , etc ., and input / output devices , such as , modems , etc . network adapter 406 interfaces database / data mining system 102 with network 410 . network 410 may be any standard local area network ( lan ) or wide area network ( wan ), such as ethernet , token ring , the internet , or a private or proprietary lan / wan . memory 408 stores program instructions that are executed by , and data that are used and processed by , cpu 402 to perform the functions of the database / data mining system 102 . memory 408 may include electronic memory devices , such as random - access memory ( ram ), read - only memory ( rom ), programmable read - only memory ( prom ), electrically erasable programmable read - only memory ( eeprom ), flash memory , etc ., and electromechanical memory , such as magnetic disk drives , tape drives , optical disk drives , etc ., which may use an integrated drive electronics ( ide ) interface , or a variation or enhancement thereof , such as enhanced ide ( eide ) or ultra direct memory access ( udma ), or a small computer system interface ( scsi ) based interface , or a variation or enhancement thereof , such as fast - scsi , wide - scsi , fast and wide - scsi , etc , or a fiber channel - arbitrated loop ( fc - al ) interface . memory 408 includes data 206 , database management processing routines 412 , data mining processing routines 414 a - 414 z , data mining agents 416 a - 416 z , and operating system 418 . data 206 includes data , typically arranged as a plurality of data tables , such as relational database tables , as well as indexes and other structures that facilitate access to the data . database management processing routines 412 are software routines that provide database management functionality , such as database query processing . data mining processing routines 414 a - 414 z are software routines that implement the data mining processing performed by the present invention . data mining processing routines 414 a - 414 z interact with and are used by data mining agents 418 a - 418 z . data mining agents 418 a - 418 z are software components that perform data mining processing , but which have been enhanced to be capable of flexible , autonomous action in the environment . that is , each data mining agent can operate autonomously , proactively , reactively , deliberatively and cooperatively . autonomous operation means that the data mining agent has control over its own behavior and internal states . proactive operation means that the data mining agent can act in anticipation of future goals or tasks . reactive operation means that the data mining agent can respond in a timely fashion to changes in its environment , including changes in available processing tasks , etc . deliberative operation means that the data mining agent can reflect on or process received information before acting on that information . cooperative operation means that the data mining agent can communicate with other data mining agents to coordinate their actions . operating system 418 provides overall system functionality . an exemplary block diagram of another embodiment of a data mining system 102 is shown in fig4 b . this embodiment includes a plurality of computer systems , such as computer systems 420 a - x , which communicate with each other over network 410 . each computer system 420 a - 420 x includes components similar to those shown in fig4 a , but not all of these components are shown in fig4 b . some of the computer systems , such as computer systems 420 a and 420 x include one or more active , running data mining agents . for example , computer system 420 a includes active , running data mining agent 422 , while computer system 420 x includes a plurality of active , running data mining agents 424 a - 424 z . computer system 420 n includes machine agent 426 . machine agent 426 is a software component that provides monitoring and coordination capabilities to computer system 420 n even in the absence of any active , running data mining agents . machine agent 426 is a process that runs in the background and performs a specified operation at predefined times or in response to certain events . in particular , machine agent 426 receives and responds to coordination requests from data mining agents , which allows coordination of the local computer system upon which the machine agent resides ( computer system 420 n in this case ) with other computer systems . machine agent 426 monitors the configuration , utilization , processing load , and other parameters of the local computer system and can respond to requests requiring such information . machine agent 426 can also launch data mining agents , such as data mining agents 428 a - 428 z , if necessary to respond to requests for migration of data mining processing tasks to the local computer system . an exemplary data flow diagram of processing performed by a data mining agent 500 is shown in fig5 . data mining agent 500 includes real time processing 502 , tuning and / or adaptation processing 504 , and user / system goal assessment 506 . data mining agent 500 accepts input data 508 and performs real time processing 502 on the data to generate output data 510 . input data 508 typically includes data such as data mining model training data , data mining model training parameters , data mining prediction data , and data mining prediction parameters , which is obtained from data sources such as proprietary and public data sources , users of the data mining system , and predefined parameters . input data 508 may also include system observation data , such as machine cpu usage / load data . real time processing 502 typically includes processing such as data mining model building , data mining model scoring , and data mining prediction / recommendation generation . output data 510 typically includes data such as trained data mining models , scored data mining models , and data mining predictions and recommendations . input data 508 is received from , and output data 510 is transmitted to , environment 512 . environment 512 includes users of data mining processing services , sources of data mining data , other data mining systems with other data mining agents , etc . user / system goal assessment processing 506 involves monitoring input data 508 to determine goals that users of data mining processing are attempting to achieve and how well those goals are being achieved by , in particular , other data mining systems with other data mining agents that are included in environment 512 . in addition , user / system goal assessment processing 506 monitor how well data mining agent 500 is achieving the goal of the data mining processing being performed by data mining agent 500 . by monitoring these factors , user / system goal assessment processing 506 allows data mining agent 500 to recognize goals that are not being achieved , whether by other data mining systems with other data mining agents or by data mining agent 500 itself . tuning and / or adaptation processing 504 provides data mining agent 500 with the capability to respond when it determines that goals are not being achieved by other data mining agents or by data mining agent 500 itself . if the goals are not being achieved by other data mining systems , tuning and / or adaptation processing 504 can coordinate with the other data mining systems to migrate processing of data mining processing tasks from those systems to data mining agent 500 for processing . likewise , if the goals are not being achieved by data mining agent 500 , tuning and / or adaptation processing 504 can coordinate with other data mining systems to migrate processing of data mining processing tasks from data mining agent 500 to the other data mining systems . a data flow diagram of data mining agents selecting tasks to process is shown in fig6 . as shown in fig6 , there are a plurality of data mining agents , such as data mining agents 602 a - 602 n . these data mining agents are software components that are present on one or more computer systems , such as servers . data mining agents 602 a - n are typically distributed among the computer systems . one form of communication among data mining agents 602 a - 602 n is provided by mining object repository ( mor ) 604 , which serves as a central repository for data mining objects that is accessible by all data mining agents . in particular , mor 604 includes one or more request queues , such as request queue 606 a - 606 x . each request queue contains requests for data mining processing received directly or indirectly from data mining users . request queues 606 a - 606 x may be organized in any way desired . for example , request queues 606 a - 606 x may be organized according to data mining users , types of data mining processing requested , priority levels of the requests , etc . the received requests for data mining processing are typically queued in a first - in - first - out ( fifo ) arrangement . however , any request queue organization and any queueing arrangement is contemplated by the present invention . in addition , the mor 604 is a logical entity and may itself be distributed to provide reliability and fault tolerance . again , the present invention contemplates any arrangement or distribution of the mor . each data mining agent , such as data mining agent 602 a , includes a plurality of processes / threads , such as peek at queue process 608 a and operation thread 610 a . the peek at queue processes 608 a - 608 n of data mining agents 602 a - 602 n communicate with request queues 606 a - 606 x and examine the queued requests for data mining processing contained therein . the peek at queue processes 608 a - 608 n select requests for data mining processing that are to be processed by each associated data mining agent as shown in fig7 . a data flow diagram of a data mining processing task request selection process 700 of a data mining agent is shown in fig7 . fig7 is best viewed in conjunction with fig6 . process 700 begins with requests for data mining processing being submitted to request queues 606 a - 606 x , as described above . in step 704 , a peek at queue process , such as peek at queue process 608 a of data mining agents 602 a , examines the queued requests for data mining processing contained therein . typically , peek at queue processes 608 a is proactive , that is , the process actively examines request queues 606 a - 606 x looking for suitable requests to handle . in step 706 , peek at queue process 608 a determines if its associated data mining agent , data mining agent 602 a , is capable of processing each particular request . in step 708 , if peek at queue process 608 a determines that its associated data mining agent , data mining agent 602 a , is capable of processing a particular request , then peek at queue process 608 a accepts the request for processing and dequeues that request from the request queue in which it is contained . steps 706 and 708 are performed repeatedly , with peek at queue process 608 a examining any accepted requests until it determines that data mining agent 602 a cannot handle any more requests . in step 710 , data mining agent 602 a processes the accepted requests . a flow diagram of a process performed by step 706 , shown in fig7 , in which peek at queue process 608 a determines if its associated data mining agent , data mining agent 602 a , is capable of processing each particular request , is shown in fig8 . the process of step 706 begins with step 706 - 1 , in which it is determined whether the data mining agent supports the algorithm or algorithms that are required to process the particular request for data mining process being examined . for example , there may be data defined in , or associated with , the data mining agent , which defines the algorithms that are supported by the data mining agent . likewise , the request for data mining processing may include data that defines , explicitly or implicitly , one or more algorithms that must be performed in order to perform the requested processing . an example may include xml data stored in the data mining agent that defines the algorithms supported by the data mining agent and xml data in the request for data mining processing that defines the algorithms that are required to process the request . in this case , a simple comparison of the xml definitions should suffice to determine whether the data mining agent supports the algorithm or algorithms that are required to process the particular request for data mining process being examined . if the request for data mining processing includes data that implicitly defines the algorithms that must be performed in order to perform the requested processing , a more complex process must be performed in order to determine whether the data mining agent supports the algorithm or algorithms that are required to process the particular request for data mining process being examined . if , in step 706 - 1 , it is determined that the data mining agent does not support the algorithm or algorithms that are required to process the particular request for data mining process being examined , then the process of step 706 continues with step 706 - 2 , in which it is determined that the local computer system cannot process the particular request being examined . if , in step 706 - 1 , it is determined that the data mining agent does support the algorithm or algorithms that are required to process the particular request for data mining process being examined , then the process of step 706 continues with step 706 - 3 , in which it is determined whether the computer system upon which the associated data mining agent resides is currently busy and thus unavailable to accept additional processing . the definition of busy may be adjusted as desired . for example , a computer system may be defined as busy if it is performing any processing at all . on the other hand , a computer system may be defined as busy only if the available idle time of the computer system is less than some predefined or some dynamically calculated threshold . likewise , in an embodiment in which one or more computer systems have more than one processor , the busy condition of each processor may be used instead . an enhancement to step 706 - 3 is to determine the busy condition of the local computer system relative to other computer systems that may be utilized , rather than absolutely . for example , it may be determined whether the local computer system is more or less busy than other computer systems that might process the request . if other computer systems are more busy , then it may be determined , in step 706 - 3 , that the local computer system is relatively not busy . conversely , if other computer systems are less busy , then it may be determined , in step 706 - 3 , that the local computer system is relatively busy . the relative busy conditions of the involved computer systems may be determined based on a variety of factors . for example , the processing load on each computer system may be considered , along with the processing speed of each computer system . the involved computer systems may exchange messages indicating these and other parameters , which may be compared by the data mining agents on each computer system . for example , each involved computer system may transmit a message in xml format , which may then be compared by the data mining agents on each computer system to determine the relative busy conditions of the involved computer system . the determinations may be made based on different algorithms , parameters , or thresholds by the various data mining agents . thus , different data mining agents may generate different determinations of relative busy conditions . however the determination of the busy condition of the local computer system is made , if , in step 706 - 3 , it is determined that the local computer system is busy , then the process of step 706 continues with step 706 - 4 , in which it is determined whether the local computer system is the first computer system that will become available for additional processing . the data mining agent first estimates the time to availability of the computer system upon which it resides . this estimate is performed based on factors such as estimated completion times of the processing jobs currently running on the computer system upon which the data mining agent resides . each processing algorithm , such as data mining algorithms and others , provides estimates of completion times and also provides regular updates to those estimates . after the data mining agent has produced an estimate of the availability of the computer system upon which it resides , the data mining agent then exchanges estimates with other data mining agents and determines its availability relative to other data mining agents . if , in step 706 - 4 , it is determined that the data mining agent is not the first , or is not among the first number , of data mining agents that will become available , then the process of step 700 continues with step 706 - 2 , in which it is determined that the local computer system cannot process the particular request being examined . if , in step 706 - 4 , it is determined that the data mining agent is the first , or is among the first number , of data mining agents that will become available , then the process of step 700 continues with step 706 - 5 . likewise , if in step 706 - 3 , it is determined that the local computer system is not busy , then the process of step 706 continues with step 706 - 5 . in step 706 - 5 , it is determined whether the local computer system will be able to complete the requested processing in the allotted time . the request for data mining processing that is being examined may include time allocation information indicating a time that the processing must be completed or a total amount of processing time to be allocated to the task . the data mining agent generates an estimate of the time to completion of the task if the processing were performed on the computer system upon which the data mining agent resides . this estimate is then compared with the time allocation information included in the request for data mining processing . if it is determined that the local computer system will be able to complete the requested processing in the allotted time , then process 700 continues with step 706 - 6 , in which it is determined that the local computer system can process the particular request being examined . if it is determined that the local computer system will not be able to complete the requested processing in the allotted time , then process 700 continues with step 706 - 2 , in which it is determined that the local computer system cannot process the particular request being examined . if no data mining agent accepts a request for data mining processing within a defined time limit , a timeout response may be transmitted to the entity that issued the request , the requestor . the time limit may be defined in the processing request itself , or it may be defined by a default value for the system mor , or the particular request queue in which the processing request is queued . the timeout response allows the requester to perform alternate or error processing in the event the processing request is not accepted for processing . an important feature of the present invention is the mobility of data mining processing from data mining agent to other agents and from one computer system to another . in particular , one or more data mining processing tasks that are being processed may be migrated to other computer systems under certain circumstances . for example , a computer system upon which a data mining agent resides may become overloaded , which would result in some or all of the tasks being processed by that computer system to be completed late or not completed at all . in this situation , the data mining agent , which is monitoring its environment , will detect the overload condition and may transfer the data mining processing task that it is processing to another computer system . a flow diagram of one embodiment of a data mining processing task migration process 900 is shown in fig9 . the process begins with step 902 , in which a local data mining agent determines that the local computer system , upon which the local data mining agent resides , and which is processing the current task of the local data mining agent , is overloaded . the local data mining agent may determine overloading in a number of ways , but typically , processor ( cpu ) utilization is the preferred measure . for example , a threshold cpu utilization may be set , such as if the cpu utilization is greater than a predefined percentage for a predefined number of seconds , then an overload condition exists . in step 904 , the local data mining agent queries other computer systems to determine if any other computer systems can complete the current task of the local data mining agent more quickly than the local computer system . to do this , the local data mining agent generates an estimate of the time the task would take to complete if the processing were performed on the local computer system . this estimate involves estimating the amount of processing that must be performed to complete the data mining processing task and an estimate of the cpu utilization available to process the data mining processing task . the time to complete processing of the data mining processing task may then be estimated based on the estimate of the amount of processing that must be performed , the estimate of available cpu utilization , and the speed of the cpu . the data mining agent also transmits queries to other computer systems . typically , the queries request from other data mining agents information such as the speeds of the computer systems upon which the other data mining agents reside and estimates of cpu utilization that the computer systems upon which the other data mining agents reside could provide to process the data mining processing task . in some cases , there may not be any data mining agents running on a computer system that receives a query , even though the computer system is available for performing data mining processing . in this situation , other software on the computer system can respond to the query . in step 906 , the local data mining agent determines whether another computer system could complete the data mining processing task faster than the local computer system . to do this , the local data mining agent computes estimates of times to complete the data mining processing task based on the amount of processing that must be performed to complete the data mining processing task , the speed of the other computer systems , and estimates of cpu utilization of the other computer systems . alternatively , the queries transmitted to the other data mining agents may include information relating to the amount of processing that must be performed to complete the data mining processing task . the other data mining agents would then compute estimates of times to complete the data mining processing task based on the amount of processing that must be performed to complete the data mining processing task , the speed of the other computer systems , and estimates of cpu utilization of the other computer systems . the responses to the queries would include these completion time estimates . in either case , the local data mining agent then adds estimates of the time it would take to migrate the data mining processing task to another computer system to the estimated completion times for the other computer systems . the local data mining agent then compares the estimated completion time for the local computer system with the estimated completion times for the other computer systems to determine whether another computer system could complete the data mining processing task faster than the local computer system . if , in step 906 , the local data mining agent determines that the computer system upon which it resides could complete the data mining processing task faster than any other computer system , then process 900 ends and the data mining processing task is not migrated . if in step 906 , the local data mining agent determines that another computer system could complete the data mining processing task faster than the local computer system , then process 900 continues with step 908 , in which the local data mining agent selects the computer system with the fastest completion time and reserves that computer system for migration of the data mining processing task . if there are one or more data mining agents running on the selected computer system , one of those data mining agents may receive and accept the reservation . alternatively , other software on the selected computer system may receive and accept the reservation , whether data mining agents are running on the selected computer system or not . if there are no data mining agents running on the selected computer system , then the software that receives and accepts the reservation is responsible for launching a data mining agent to handle the data mining processing . in step 910 , the local data mining agent interrupts the processing of the data mining processing task that is being performed on the local computer system . the data mining processing task is checkpointed , that is , all input data , processing state information , and output data that is required to resume processing of the data mining processing task is saved . in step 912 , the local data mining agent enqueues a “ continuebuild ” request in a request queue that serves the selected computer system , to which the data mining processing task is migrating . the continuebuild request typically references the checkpointed data that is needed to resume processing of the data mining processing task . when a data mining agent on the computer system to which the data mining processing task is migrating dequeues the continuebuild request , the reference to the checkpointed information is used to actually transfer the checkpointed information to the computer system to which the data mining processing task is migrating . alternatively , the checkpointed information may be included with the continuebuild request . a flow diagram of one embodiment of a data mining processing task migration process 1000 is shown in fig1 . in this embodiment , the data mining agents communicate with each other on a regular basis , so that computer system utilization can be easily coordinated among the data mining agents . process 1000 begins with step 1002 , in which a local data mining agent determines that the local computer system , upon which the local data mining agent resides , and which is processing the current task of the local data mining agent , has a high load relative to other computer systems . the local data mining agent may determine load in a number of ways , but typically , processor ( cpu ) utilization is the preferred measure . data mining agents communicate loading information with each other on a regular basis . in particular , it may determined that the processing load of the local computer system is high relative to the processing loads of other computer systems by determining a processor utilization of the local computer system , determining processor utilizations of the other computer systems , and determining that the processor utilization of the local computer system is greater than a predefined amount higher than the processor utilization of the other computer systems . in step 1004 , the local data mining agent determines the remaining cost of completing processing of the data mining processing task on the local computer system . the cost of completing processing may be based solely on the time it would take to complete processing , or it may be based on additional factors , such as actual costs that must be paid for use of computing equipment , etc . in order to determine the time it would take to complete processing , the local data mining agent generates an estimate of the time the task would take to complete if the processing were performed on the local computer system . this estimate involves estimating the amount of processing that must be performed to complete the data mining processing task and an estimate of the cpu utilization that will be used to process the data mining processing task . in addition , the local data mining agent may estimate other factors , such as actual costs that must be paid for use of computing equipment , etc . in step 1006 , the local data mining agent solicits bids for completing processing of the data mining processing task from other computer systems . typically , the requests for bids transmitted to the other data mining agents include information relating to the amount of processing that must be performed to complete the data mining processing task . the other data mining agents would then submit bids to the local data mining agent . the bids would include estimates of the costs of completing the data mining processing task on each of the other computer systems . in order to generate a bid , a data mining agent would compute estimates of costs to complete the data mining processing task that are based on the amount of time that is needed to complete the migrated task and may also be based on other factors , such as the cost of processing on the computer system . the time to complete the migrated task includes both the time needed to complete the processing and the time needed to migrate the task from one computer system to another . the time needed to complete the processing is based on the amount of processing that must be performed to complete the data mining processing task , the speed of the other computer systems , and estimates of cpu utilization of the other computer systems . in some cases , there may not be any data mining agents running on a computer system that receives a request for a bid , even though the computer system is available for performing data mining processing . in this situation , other software on the computer system can generate and transmit the bid . in step 1008 , the local data mining agent determines whether another computer system has a bid that is lower than the cost to complete the data mining processing task on the local computer system . to do this , the local data mining agent compares the determination of the cost of completing processing of the data mining processing task on the local computer system with the bids received from the other computer systems . if any of the received bids are significantly lower than the cost of completing processing of the data mining processing task on the local computer system , the local data mining agent migrates the remaining processing of the data mining processing task to the lowest bidder among the other computer systems . in order to carry out the migration , the local data mining agent interrupts the processing of the data mining processing task that is being performed on the local computer system . the data mining processing task is checkpointed , that is , all input data , processing state information , and output data that is required to resume processing of the data mining processing task is saved . the data mining agent enqueues a “ continuebuild ” request in a request queue that serves the computer system to which the data mining processing task is migrating . the continuebuild request typically references the checkpointed data that is needed to resume processing of the data mining processing task . when a data mining agent on the computer system to which the data mining processing task is migrating dequeues the continuebuild request , the reference to the checkpointed information is used to actually transfer the checkpointed information to the computer system to which the data mining processing task is migrating . alternatively , the checkpointed information may be included with the continuebuild request . it is important to note that while the present invention has been described in the context of a fully functioning data processing system , those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the processes of the present invention are capable of being distributed in the form of a computer readable medium of instructions and a variety of forms and that the present invention applies equally regardless of the particular type of signal bearing media actually used to carry out the distribution . examples of computer readable media include recordable - type media such as floppy disc , a hard disk drive , ram , and cd - rom &# 39 ; s , as well as transmission - type media , such as digital and analog communications links . although specific embodiments of the present invention have been described , it will be understood by those of skill in the art that there are other embodiments that are equivalent to the described embodiments . accordingly , it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited by the specific illustrated embodiments , but only by the scope of the appended claims .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

the current invention is a letter - based lottery game . in one embodiment , a player selects letters from the alphabet , and a drawing is conducted in a manner similar to a traditional lottery game . depending on how the player &# 39 ; s selection compares with the outcome of the draw , the player may be awarded a prize . generally , a draw in a lottery game comprises equally likely outcomes . this approach is problematic for a letter - based game that incorporates words and language because letters in the english alphabet are not distributed equally among words . some letters , such as “ e ,” occur frequently whereas other letters , such as “ x ,” occur infrequently . more significantly , letters combine differently . for example , more words contain both the letters “ e ” and “ s ” than contain both “ j ” and “ q .” to accommodate the uneven nature of language , the current invention allows outcomes to occur with different probabilities . more precisely , the outcomes for this lottery game can be described by a probability - distribution . associated with each outcome is a probability . the sum of the probabilities is 1 , which indicates that one and only one outcome will occur from the set of possible outcomes . in effect , the outcomes are “ weighted .” it will be shown that with this approach the expected payout for a letter - based game is the same for all players , or at least falls within an acceptable range . it is not required that the player have any knowledge of this weighting of outcomes . his expected return will be the same , or fall within some range , regardless of his selection . an outcome for the current invention comprises one or more “ letter puzzles .” a letter puzzle may be defined as any puzzle for which a set of letters is a solution . a letter puzzle may be a be word , or combination of words such as a phrase , a sentence , or a paragraph , or combination thereof , for which all or some of the letters are indicated as “ missing .” for example , the character string “- rett - as a - i - ture ” is the phrase “ pretty as a picture ” with several letters replaced by dashes . “- rett - as a - i - ture ” is a letter puzzle for which the solution is the set “ cpy ”, as this set comprises the missing letters . note that this solution allows a single letter to be used as many times as needed . ( p occurs twice in “ pretty as a picture ”). alternatively , it may be required that a solution repeat a letter as many times as the letter occurs in the puzzle . in that case , “ cppy ” would be the solution to “- rett - as a - i - ture .” unless indicated otherwise , we will assume that a letter can be used as many times as needed . fig1 is an example of an outcome comprising three puzzles . moreover , an order is assigned to the puzzles . puzzle 1 is “- itten ”, the solution to which is “ k ” (“ kitten ”). puzzle 2 is “ t - at rin - s a - ell ”, the solution to which is “ bgh ” (“ that rings a bell ”). puzzle 3 is “- lose - ut no - i - ar ”, the solution to which is “ bcg ” (“ close but no cigar ”). the general sequence of events for playing the game of the current invention is similar to a traditional lottery game . instead of a set of numbers , the player selects a set of letters . the player may make his selection with a playslip as shown in fig2 . alternatively , the selection may be an oral transaction or communicated electronically . the letters available to the player may be the entire alphabet or a subset . on the playslip in fig2 , the letters a , e , i , l , n , o , r , s , t , u are shaded to exclude them from player selection . they serve as place holders on the playslip to orient the player . the player pays a fee to participate in the game and receives a ticket as shown in fig3 to document the selection ( s ). the draw comprises a selection by the lottery or gaming organization of a set of puzzles , as in fig1 . the outcome for a draw is a set of puzzles . depending on the implementation , the puzzles may be drawn individually or in pre - assigned groups . the universe of possible outcomes could consist of “ groups ” of puzzles with each group being assigned a probability . as with a traditional lottery game , the draw would occur at a designated time , or event . for example , the draw could be part of a daily televised event . the “ daily puzzles ” would be displayed along with the results of the other daily games . alternatively , the game could be a monitor game , conducted at regular intervals throughout the day and displayed on monitors , similar to keno . once the puzzles have been revealed , the player compares his selection with the drawn puzzles . he “ solves ” a puzzle if his selection contains the solution to that puzzle . for example , suppose the player &# 39 ; s selection is as in fig3 , “ bcdgh ,” and the draw is as described in fig1 . the player &# 39 ; s selection “ solves ” puzzles 2 and 3 as his selection contains the solutions “ bgh ” and “ bcg .” the player is awarded a prize based on which , and / or how many puzzles he solves . fig4 illustrates a prize table . if a player solves only puzzle 3 , he wins $ 5 . if he solves exactly two puzzles , he wins $ 20 . if he solves all 3 he wins $ 100 . in the event the player interprets a puzzle differently from the lottery ( e . g . “ mitten ” instead of “ kitten ”), the lottery &# 39 ; s interpretation prevails . if a player prefers , he can simply have a retailer scan his ticket to determine if he is a winner rather than determining the outcome himself . fig5 - 21 describe an embodiment of this invention . the wager is $ 2 . the letters a , e , i , l , n , o , r , s , t , u are given to the player . these letters comprise the vowels and some frequently occurring consonants . the player selects from the remaining letters . the remaining letters are divided into 2 classes as illustrated in fig5 . organizing the letters into two classes provides the flexibility to handle letters differently . roughly speaking , the more unwieldy letters , such as “ q ” and “ x ,” are in class 2 . in addition to organizing letters into classes , puzzles are organized into groups . fig6 illustrates an exemplary group 1 with 21 puzzles . for each letter in class 1 , there is a corresponding puzzle in group 1 such that that individual letter is the solution . for example , the letter “ f ” is in class 1 . there is a corresponding puzzle in group 1 : - ern the solution to which is “ f ” (“ fern ”). also , for each combination of two letters from class 1 there is a puzzle in group 1 for which that combination is the solution . for example , for the two letters “ d ” and “ f ,” there is the puzzle - a -- o - il (“ daffodil ”). fig7 illustrates another group , group 2 , with 10 puzzles . similar to group 1 , for each letter in class 2 there is a puzzle in group 2 such that that individual letter is the solution . for example , the letter “ v ” is the solution to oli - e (“ olive ”). however , unlike group 1 , there are no puzzles in group 2 for which the solution is a combination of letters . an outcome for this embodiment will be defined to be a set of 2 puzzles . a plurality of sets of 2 puzzles will be determined and each of these sets assigned a probability . individual puzzles will not be assigned probabilities . instead , sets of 2 will be worked out in advance . the draw will consist of selecting exactly one of these sets based on the assigned probabilities . for this embodiment , the outcomes comprise 4 types of sets of 2 puzzles . the first type is illustrated in fig8 . type 1 outcomes consist of two distinct puzzles from group 2 . furthermore , the outcomes are distinguished by order , puzzles 1 and 2 . recall that each puzzle in group 2 is such that its solution is an individual letter from class 2 . in this example , puzzle 1 is “ tu - a ” ( solution : “ b ” for “ tuba ”) and puzzle 2 is “- et ” ( solution : “ j ” for “ jet ”). the number of outcomes of type 1 is 90 ( 10 × 9 , the number of permutations of 10 objects taken 2 at a time ). a type 2 outcome is illustrated in fig9 . puzzle 1 is from group 1 and such that the solution is an individual letter from class 1 . puzzle 2 is from group 2 . in this example , puzzle 1 is “ li - ori - e ” ( solution : “ c ” for “ licorice ”) and puzzle 2 is “ tu - a ” ( solution : “ b ” for “ tuba ”). the number of outcomes of type 2 is 60 ( 6 × 10 , the number of acceptable puzzles in group 1 × the number of puzzles in group 2 ). a type 3 outcome is illustrated in fig1 . puzzle 1 is from group 1 and such that the solution is a combination of two letters from class 1 . puzzle 2 is from group 2 . in this example , puzzle 1 is “- an - er ” ( solution : “ cd ” for “ dancer ”) and puzzle 2 is “ tu - a ” ( solution : “ b ” for “ tuba ”). the number of outcomes of type 3 is 150 ( 15 × 10 , the number of acceptable puzzles in group 1 × the number of puzzles in group 2 ). a type 4 outcome is illustrated in fig1 . puzzle 1 is from group 1 and such that the solution is an individual letter from class 1 . puzzle 2 is also from group 1 and such that the solution is a combination of two letters from class 1 . also , it is required that the solutions do not overlap . in this example , puzzle 1 is “ li - ori - e ” ( solution : “ c ” for “ licorice ”) and puzzle 2 is “- a -- o - il ” ( solution : “ df ” for “ daffodil ”). fig1 illustrates that the solution to puzzle 1 is “ c ” (“ licorice ”) and the solution to puzzle 2 is “ df ” (“ daffodil ”). the number of outcomes of type 4 is 60 ( 6 × 10 , the number of letters in class 1 × the number of combinations of 2 out the remaining 5 letters ). the 4 types comprise 360 individual outcomes ( 90 + 60 + 150 + 60 ). to complete this embodiment , it remains to set price , a prize table and assign the outcomes a probability distribution . fig1 illustrates a prize table for a $ 2 price point . the player wins $ 5 if his letters contain the solution to puzzle 2 . he wins $ 100 for solving both puzzle 1 and puzzle 2 . four different types comprising 360 distinct outcomes for this embodiment have been determined , each consisting of a set of 2 puzzles . it remains to assign a probability distribution for these outcomes . each outcome will be assigned a weight and will be drawn in proportion to that weight . it is generally desirable , and in some cases a legal requirement , that the return for a lottery game be independent of player skill . therefore , the probability distribution should be such that the return is the same for all player selections . such a probability distribution can be derived using linear algebra . the probability distribution is derived as follows : as there are 4 different types of outcomes ( 90 , 60 , 150 , and 60 outcomes of types 1 , 2 , 3 , and 4 ), 4 different weights will be determined : w 1 , w 2 , w 3 , and w 4 corresponding to the 4 different types of outcomes . each of the 360 outcomes will be assigned the weight of its corresponding type and the sum of the weights for the 360 outcomes will be 1 , i . e . 90w 1 + 60w 2 + 150w 3 + 60w 4 = 1 if w 1 , w 2 , w 3 , and w 4 are the weights for the 4 different types of outcomes then the return for any player selection can be expressed as a linear combination of w 1 , w 2 , w 3 , and w 4 . for example , consider the player selection cdm . there are only two different possible prize amounts the player can win : $ 5 and $ 100 . there are exactly 9 type 1 outcomes for which cdm wins $ 5 , exactly 4 type 2 outcomes , exactly 15 type 3 outcomes , and exactly 4 type 4 outcomes . analogously , there are 0 type 1 outcomes that win $ 100 , 2 type 2 outcomes , 1 type 3 outcomes , and 0 type 4 outcomes . as the wager is $ 2 , the return is ([ 9 w 1 + 4 w 2 + 14 w 3 + 4 w 4 ]× 5 +[ 0 w 1 + 2 w 2 + 1 w 3 + 0 w 4 ]× 100 )/ 2 = 22 . 5 w 1 + 60 w 2 + 85 w 3 + 10 w 4 . it is clear that returns for player selections equivalent to cdm are expressed by the same linear combination . that is , as cdm comprises 2 letters from class 1 and 1 letter from class 2 , the return for any other player selection comprising 2 letters from class 1 and 1 letter from class 2 would be derived similarly , e . g fgq , hpw , cgj , etc . would be expressed by the same linear combination . in general , to express the return for a player selection as a linear combination of w 1 , w 2 , w 3 , and w 4 , there are 4 cases to consider : 3 class 1 letters , 2 class 1 letters and 1 class 2 letter , 1 class 1 letter and 2 class 2 letters , and 3 class 2 letters . we derived the linear combination for the case where there are 2 class 1 letters and 1 class 2 letter . the other 3 linear combinations are derived similarly . the linear combinations for the 4 different cases are displayed in fig3 . as discussed , it is desirable that the weights be determined such that the returns for each of the 4 cases is the same . in short , it is desirable to find w 1 , w 2 , w 3 , w 4 and a number r subject to the constraints summarized in fig3 . using techniques of linear algebra a solution to this set of constraints is w 1 = 0 . 03186 %, w 2 = 0 . 26585 %, w 3 = 0 . 38658 %, w 4 = 0 . 38658 %, and r = 66 . 7 %. that is , if each of the 360 outcomes is assigned the corresponding one of these weights , the return for every player selection is 66 . 7 %. this return is reasonable for a lottery game as returns can range from below 50 % to more than 70 %. if this return were not satisfactory the prizes could be rescaled and the weights and return recomputed . ( for example , dividing all of the prizes by 2 would reduce the expected return by half .) fig1 illustrates another example of a playslip for this lottery game . each board contains the letters of the alphabet . the letters that are given to the player , in this case ( a , e , i , l , n , o , r , s , t , u ) may either be omitted or shaded . the player selects 3 letters for from the remaining letters for each board chosen to play . the player &# 39 ; s selection ( s ) is documented on a ticket as illustrated by fig1 . the draw comprises an outcome randomly chosen from the pool of 360 sets of puzzles , subject to the probability distribution . the draw could be displayed in two stages . in the initial stage shown in fig1 , the puzzles with the letters missing would be displayed ( on a television or monitor screen ). this would be followed momentarily by a display of the completed puzzles . once the draw has been conducted the prizes are determined according to the prize table ( fig1 ). fig1 illustrates winning and losing tickets . if the draw is as in fig1 , the solution to puzzle 1 is “ c ” and the solution to puzzle 2 is “ df .” the player selection for the “ non - winner ” ticket in fig1 is “ cdg .” this selection solves puzzle 1 as it contains the letter “ c ,” but does not solve puzzle 2 as it does not contain both “ d ” and “ f .” since only puzzle 1 is solved , by the prize table ( fig1 ), the player does not win a prize . the player selection for the “ winning ticket ” is “ bdf .” this selection does not solve puzzle 1 as it does not contain the letter “ c .” this selection does solve puzzle 2 as it contains the letters “ d ” and “ f .” by the prize table ( fig1 ), the player wins $ 5 . it should be noted that the prizes for this game can be variable . for example , the prize for solving 2 puzzles in this implementation is a constant $ 100 . it would be equivalent to allow this prize to vary such that the average value is $ 100 . for example , the prize for solving 2 puzzles could be determined by a wheel that produces values between $ 20 and $ 500 , whose average is $ 100 . in many lottery games , players have the option of allowing the lottery to randomly select or “ quick pick ” their choices in a lottery game . in the present embodiment , players may be offered a quick pick in the traditional manner , where all choices of three letters are possible , or they may be allowed to specify how many letters will be quick picked from each group . for example , the player may specify that two letters are to be selected from class 1 and one letter is to be selected from class 2 . while this embodiment describes a set - prize game , it is also possible to implement the present invention as a pari - mutuel game , i . e . one in which a percentage of sales is set aside for each prize level and winners at each level share the prize money equally . in doing so , it is desirable to allocate the prize money so that the actual prizes awarded will be , on average , at some predetermined level . in most traditional lottery games , this is a straightforward process , but in this invention the process is complicated by the fact that different player selections are not equally likely to win at the various levels , even though the return is 66 . 7 % for all player selections . for example , if a player chooses three letters from class 1 , she will have a one in 28 . 7 chance of solving puzzle 2 only and a one in 86 . 2 chance of solving both puzzles , whereas if she chooses three letters from class 2 , she will have a one in 4 . 4 chance of solving puzzle 2 only and a one in 523 . 1 chance of solving both puzzles . if money is allocated to prize levels purely as percentages of sales , there is risk that the prize amounts will be diluted . for example , if all players choose three letters from class 1 and the prize money is not directed to the “ both puzzles ” prize pool accordingly , the prize for solving both puzzles may be quite small , perhaps even smaller than the prize for solving puzzle 2 only . the following method may be used to avoid this situation . for each prize level , a target prize amount is selected . for example , say the prize for solving puzzle 2 only is targeted to average $ 5 and the prize for solving both is targeted to average $ 100 . then for every ticket sold the amount contributed to each prize fund is the target prize amount times the probability that the ticket will earn that prize , given the player &# 39 ; s selection . for the embodiment described above , this is summarized in the table in fig1 . this allocation method achieves the targeted average prize amounts regardless of the proportions in which players choose the four kinds of selections . an implementation has been described where an outcome comprises a set of puzzles . more generally , an outcome could be thought of as a set of solutions to puzzles . that is , puzzles with the same solution are interchangeable . for a given solution there could be a pool of puzzles with that solution . fig1 illustrates this concept . displayed in fig1 are the group 1 puzzles of fig7 supplemented with more puzzles . for example , there are three puzzles with a solution of “ b ”: “ tu - a ”, “ ra -- it ” and “- oot ”. instead of a set of specific puzzles , an outcome would consist of a set of solutions that could be expressed by one or more sets of puzzles . fig1 represents the probability distribution for the outcomes for the implementation described so far . instead of specific puzzles , fig1 identifies an outcome as a set of solutions . for example , “ b , j ” is assigned a probability of 0 . 03186 %. “ b , j ” refers to any set of puzzles for which the solution to the first puzzle is “ b ” and the solution to the second puzzle is “ j .” fig2 illustrates the sets of puzzles corresponding to “ b , j .” any of these combinations could be used for the outcome “ b , j .” this interchangeability allows for a greater variety of content and quality control . for example , for aesthetics it may be desirable that the first puzzle contain fewer letters than the second . outcomes that fit this criterion would be given priority . the letter puzzles discussed so far have been words and phrases . however , a puzzle could consist of a single letter or group of letters devoid of context . for example , a puzzle could be a “ lucky letter ,” simply a randomly selected letter . the player would be credited with that puzzle if his ticket contains the lucky letter . similarly , a puzzle could comprise a random combination of 2 letters not related to a word or phrase . this contrivance could be useful in situations where there is insufficient natural content in the form of words and phrases . the current invention does not have to be implemented by explicitly defining a probability distribution . a distribution could be “ implied ,” i . e ., by whatever method used , the outcomes occur with varying probabilities . multiple distributions could be used to manage the expected return . for example , there could be an embodiment that produces a 45 % return and another that produces a 60 % return to the players . the two embodiments could be weighted to produce a composite game that returns 50 % to the players , i . e ., an outcome could be drawn from either embodiment in proportion to produce the desired payout . a special embodiment of this invention is one where all of the outcomes are equally likely . for example , the embodiment could be contrived where all of the puzzles had solutions consisting of one letter and there is exactly one puzzle for each letter . for example , there could be 26 puzzles starting with - pple (“ a ” for apple ) through - ebra (“ z ” for zebra ). the player may be allowed to select 2 letters . in this case , puzzles could be randomly drawn as in a traditional lottery game . no player selection would have an advantage . the outcomes for this game would be the same . nonetheless , this game would be consistent with the current invention as it can be described by a probability distribution for which all of the outcomes are equally likely . as it has been discussed , draws for the current invention are random but the outcomes are not necessarily equal : the outcomes are subject to a probability distribution so that the payout is the same ( or within an acceptable range ) regardless of the player &# 39 ; s selection . one method of effecting this type of draw is to conduct the draw in two phases : the first phase of the draw would be a multi - matrix game and the second phase of the draw a function would be randomly selected from a probability distribution of functions . “ multi - matrix ” means permutations or combinations of objects are selected from two or more sets of objects . ( a single set of objects could be considered a trivial case of a “ multi - matrix .”) then a function is randomly selected subject to a probability distribution . each function is such that it maps the result of the multi - matrix game from the first phase of the draw to an outcome . fig2 is a summary of an implementation of the current invention using this approach . the specifications are as follows . the wager is $ 2 . the number of letters and the number of puzzles used is specified : the player will select 5 letters and the lottery will draw 4 puzzles . the given letters are indicated as a , e , i , l , n , o , r , s , t , u . the remaining letters are divided into two groups : matrix 1 , comprising b , c , d , g , h , m , p , y , and matrix 2 , comprising f , j , k , q , v , w , x , z . also indicated are functions assigned probabilities totaling to 1 . the input for each of these functions consists of two permutations of letters . permutation 1 is composed of letters from matrix 1 and is represented by variables x 1 through x 5 . permutation 2 is composed of letters from matrix 2 and is represented by variables y 1 through y 5 . each function maps these two permutations to an outcome consisting of a set of solutions to puzzles . recall that an outcome for this game can be regarded as a set of solutions for puzzles . the actual words or phrases that have those solutions and are displayed to the players are incidental as far as the underlying game mechanics are concerned . fig2 illustrates a draw . for the first phase of the draw the permutation gdbyp is randomly selected from matrix 1 and the permutation kqfjz is randomly selected from matrix 2 . for the second phase of the draw function 2 as described in fig2 is randomly selected subject to the probability distribution . once the permutations and the function have been selected the permutations are taken as input to the function . to evaluate the function , the letters are identified with the variables . g is identified with x 1 , d is identified with x 2 , b is identified with x 3 , y is identified with x 4 , p is identified with x 5 , k is identified with y 1 , q is identified with y 2 , f is identified with y 3 , j is identified with y 4 , and z is identified with y 5 . substituting letters for the variables we get the outcome : puzzle 1 : g , puzzle 2 : dk , puzzle 3 : bq , and puzzle 4 : gdb . to produce actual puzzles with these solutions there is a table in a database ( fig2 ) that correlates every possible solution to one or more words and / or phrases for which the given solution comprises the missing letters , i . e . letters other than those given ( a , e , i , n , o , r , s , t , u ). for example , the solution to puzzle 1 is g . the database is interrogated for a puzzle . looking up g in the table ( fig2 ), it is correlated to the word green . g is the only letter in green that is not given similarly , interrogating the database for puzzles 2 , 3 , and 4 we get puzzle 2 is desk , puzzle 3 is banquet , and puzzle 4 is badge . these puzzles could be displayed to the player with placeholders ( e . g . dashes ) replacing the letters in the solution , e . g . puzzle 1 : - reen , puzzle 2 : - es -, puzzle 3 : - an - uet , puzzle 4 : - a -- e . the probabilities assigned to each of the functions must be such that the return for any player selection is the same . we describe how these probabilities and the consequent return are computed using linear algebra . fig2 illustrates the returns for the various player selections expressed as linear combinations of weights on the outcomes . fig2 is a system of constraints for the weights on the outcomes and overall return on a game . the range of each function comprises the set of every possible outcome that can be attained by inputting permutations . fig3 illustrates the number of winning outcomes associated with each of these functions . for example , those skilled in the art of mathematics can verify that there are 6 , 720 different outcomes produced by function 1 . let p 1 , p 2 , p 3 , p 4 , p 5 , and p 6 be the probabilities assigned to these 6 functions . the return for any player selection can be expressed as a linear combination of these probabilities . as an example , consider bcdfj , comprising 3 letters from matrix 1 and 2 from matrix 2 in fig3 . the return for this selection can be expressed as follows : fig3 illustrates the counts of the outcomes corresponding to the 6 functions that confer bcdfj a winner . for example , 360 of the outcomes of function 1 are such that bcdfj wins $ 10 . this information can be used to compute probabilities . ( for example , there 6 , 720 outcomes for function 1 , 360 of which are such that bcdfj wins $ 10 . therefore , given an outcome from function 1 , the probability that bcdfj wins $ 10 is 360 / 6 , 720 .) as there are 3 different prizes to consider , $ 10 , $ 50 , $ 500 , the return for bcdfj on a $ 2 wager is : 50 ×( probability bcdfj wins $ 50 )/ 2 + 500 ×( probability bcdfj wins $ 500 )/ 2 = 10 ×( 360 p 1 / 6 , 720 + 1 , 080 p 2 / 18 , 816 + 1 , 440 p 3 / 13 , 440 + 2 , 232 p 4 / 18 , 816 + 5 , 380 p 5 / 13 , 440 + 360 p 6 / 1 , 680 )/ 2 + 50 ×( 144p 2 / 18 , 816 + 60 p 3 / 13 , 440 + 144 p 4 / 18 , 816 )/ 2 + 500 ×( 12 p 2 / 18 , 816 )/ 2 = 0 . 267857 p 1 + 0 . 637755 p 2 + 0 . 647321 p 3 + 0 . 784439 p 4 + 0 . 513393 p 5 + 1 . 071429 p 6 the linear combination has been derived that expresses the return for the case for which there are 3 letters from matrix 1 and 2 letters from matrix 2 , as represented by player selection bcdfj . the other cases are derived similarly . in total , there are 6 cases : 5 letters from matrix 1 ; 4 letters from matrix 1 and 1 from matrix 2 ; 3 from matrix 1 and 2 from matrix 2 ; 2 from matrix 1 and 3 from matrix 2 ; 1 from matrix 1 and 4 from matrix 2 ; and 5 from matrix 2 . the linear combinations that express the return for each of these cases is indicated in fig2 , respectively . the probabilities should be such that the return is the same for all player selections . that is , there is a number r such that the constraints in fig3 hold . using linear algebra , a solution to these constraints is p 1 = 0 . 119 %, p 2 43 . 994 %, p 3 = 12 . 454 %, p 4 35 . 832 %, p 5 = 5 . 677 %, p 6 = 1 . 924 %, and r = 69 . 23 %. that is , given this probability distribution for the functions in fig2 , each player selection yields a 69 . 23 % return on a $ 2 wager . fig3 illustrates the system of constraints for the weights on functions used in the draw and the overall return on a game the puzzles for this game can be displayed in a variety of ways . at the time of draw the outcome could be displayed as in fig2 . initially , only the given letters are concealed . the missing letters are supplied ( e . g . one puzzle at a time ). finally , the completed puzzles are displayed . alternatively , the puzzles could initially be displayed with none of the letters exposed , as in fig2 . all of the letters would be eventually revealed to the completed puzzles . one embodiment for implementing this invention is summarized in the flowcharts shown in fig2 and 27 . first , the game must be configured ( block 310 , fig2 expanded in fig2 ). it must be decided what letters to give to the player ( block 320 , fig2 ). for example , in the embodiment described paragraphs [ 0078 ]-[ 0086 ], fig2 - 25 , the letters a e i l n o r s t u are given to the player . the player will be allowed to use these letters to solve the puzzles in addition to whatever letters he selects . it must be decided how many letters the player can select ( block 322 , fig2 ). for example , in the embodiment described in paragraphs [ 0078 ]-[ 0086 ], fig2 - 25 , the player selects 5 letters from those letters that are not given . the content of the puzzles must be decided ( block 324 , fig2 ). words and / or phrases must be assembled that the lottery deems appropriate . fig2 illustrates the content for the puzzles for the embodiment described in paragraphs [ 0078 ]-[ 0086 ], fig2 - 25 . it must also be decided the number of puzzles per game ( block 326 , fig2 ). in the embodiment in paragraphs [ 0078 ]-[ 0086 ], fig2 - 23 , there are 4 puzzles per game . sets of solutions to puzzles are assembled such that for any solution within a set , there is a corresponding puzzle with that solution ( block 328 , fig2 ). in the embodiment illustrated in fig2 , sets of solutions to puzzles are determined by functions that take as input permutations of letters . each function outputs a set of solutions to puzzles . for example , paragraph [ 0079 ] describes how the set of solutions ( g , dk , bq , gdb ) is produced by function 2 . ( g , dk , bq , gdb ) represents any set of puzzles for which g , dk , bq , and gdb are the solutions . those skilled in the art of mathematics can confirm that there are actually 18 , 816 groups of puzzles represented by function 2 . [ 0090 ] once the groups of solutions to puzzles have been determined , each group must be assigned weight in such a way as to return a constant payout to the players regardless of the player selection . for example , in the embodiment in fig2 , function 2 has been assigned 43 . 994 %. as there are 18 , 816 sets of solutions to puzzles that can be produced by function 2 , and each set equally likely , such a set would be effectively assigned a weight of 0 . 002338116 %= 43 . 994 %/ 18 , 816 . as discussed in paragraphs [ 0078 ]-[ 0086 ], this weighting is accomplished using techniques of linear algebra and results in a game for which the return is the same for every player selection . once the game has been configured , a player enters the game by selecting or having quick - picked a set of letters ( block 312 , fig2 ) the same way in which he would select a set of numbers in traditional lottery game . the lottery conducts a draw by selecting a set of solutions to puzzles ( block 314 , fig2 ). this could be done directly by using a random number generator to select a particular set subject to its assigned weight . the draw could take place in steps . for example , in fig2 the groups of puzzles are represented by functions taking as input permutations of letters . the draw could consist of randomly selecting the permutations to be taken as input to a function , and then selecting the function based on its assigned weight . for example , in fig2 , function 2 would be chosen 43 . 994 % of the time and the input to the function would be randomly selected permutations . once a set of solutions has been determined , a set of letter puzzles that have these solutions must be selected . this may be accomplished by querying a database . given any solution , there is one or more letters puzzles stored in the database that has that solution . a letter puzzle from among those having that particular solution may be selected at random or it may be chosen for quality control . for example , it may be desirable for a series of puzzles to be of increasing lengths . it might be possible to accomplish this in the way in which puzzles are queried in the database . once the draw has been conducted , that is , a group of puzzles has been selected , the player wins prizes based on which and / or the number of puzzles he is able to solve with his letters and the given letters ( block 316 , fig2 ). while the present invention has been shown and described in several embodiments , it is to be appreciated that certain changes can be made in the systems and methods without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the claims appended herewith .

6Physics

for the purposes of the present invention , oral composition is intended as any composition which can be administered by oral route to a subject . also for the purposes of the present invention , continuous slow release oral composition is intended a composition which releases in a continuous manner the active ingredient in the gastrointestinal tract , oral environment included . this feature does not only covers specially designed oral compositions for the continuous slow release of an active ingredient in the gastrointestinal tract , such as for example the so - called “ cronoids ”, or sustained or delayed release type , but also any composition which , when retained in the mouth for a sufficient period of time , continuously releases in a slow manner the active ingredient . examples of oral composition are pills , lozenges , tablets , capsules , powdery compositions , solutions , suspensions , emulsions , preferably in the form of gel . according to the present invention , also some formulations pertaining to alimentary field are considered oral compositions , such as for example , confectionery , such as candies , gummy candies , chewing gum . for the purposes of the present invention , as a substance capable of absorbing phosphorus compounds it is intended any substance for use as medicament which can bind phosphorus in a stable manner throughout the transit of the substance along the gastrointestinal tract until its elimination by fecal route . examples of phosphorus binding are any kind of chemical bond , such as ionic bond , covalent bond , van der waals interactions , chelating phenomenon . examples of substances capable of absorbing phosphorus are phosphate binding polymers , such as those disclosed and mentioned in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 496 , 545 and related patents . the currently marketed for of these phosphate binding polymers is a polyallylamine hydrochloride ( sevelamer - renagel ®), polyallylamine carbonate , and other pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof , a pharmaceutically acceptable salt of lanthanum , for example carbonate , aluminium hydroxide , a pharmaceutically acceptable salt of magnesium , such as acetate , carbonate , a pharmaceutically acceptable salt of calcium , such as carbonate , acetate , citrate , alginate , and a pharmaceutically acceptable salt of a ketoacid , such as mentioned in the above u . s . pat . no . 5 , 496 , 545 ; pharmaceutically acceptable anionic ion exchange resins , including those well - known with the trade mark dowex ® ( styrene - divinylbenzene anion exchange resins ), pharmaceutically acceptable phosphorus binding polysaccharides . polyallylamine hydrochloride is a preferred embodiment of the present invention for the class of phosphate binding polymer . the most preferred embodiment of the present invention is chitosan for the class of phosphate binding polysaccharide . in the most preferred embodiment of the present invention , chitosan is also used for the preparation of a medicament for the general treatment of hyperphosphatemia , including the administration of said medicament at meals , in order to absorb phosphorus compounds from food . for the purposes of the present invention , as phosphorus compound is intended any substance containing phosphorus , for example phosphate , which , when absorbed in the body affects phosphatemia by increasing it . in case of substances capable of absorbing phosphorus which can be absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract or their administration can imply side effects , the present invention is embodied in an oral composition characterized by the slow release of a substance capable of binding phosphorus and characterized in that said substance is substantially not absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract . examples of this kind of sub - stances are aluminium hydroxide and / or magnesium hydroxide , calcium acetate , calcium carbonate . for the purposes of the present invention , as substantially not absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract is intended that absorption is null or undetectable or does not increase serum phosphate level or does not involve side effects in the subject orally administered with said substance . a first preferred embodiment of the present invention is an oral composition which can be retained for a long time in the mouth of the subject . examples of such composition are a chewable tablet , a sachet , a mouthwash , a chewing gum , a gummy candy , a sucking tablet or candies . these compositions must be endowed with continuous slow release characteristics . chewing gum is a more preferred embodiment , since it can be retained in the mouth for extended period , even hours . this first embodiment of the present invention is advantageous since phosphate sequestration occurs in the mouth , in particular from saliva , the major source of recirculating phosphorus and once the composition has accomplished its scope , namely it has exhausted its absorbing capacity , can be directly taken out from the mouth and a new unit dose can be taken . this avoids swallowing the composition and engaging the gastrointestinal tract with the presence of a composition loaded with phosphorus , so that the subject has not to worry about a possible release of phosphorus in the gastrointestinal tract or the effective elimination of the composition . a second preferred embodiment of the present invention is an oral composition which can be partly retained for a certain time in the mouth of the subject and subsequently swallowed . examples of such composition is a chewable tablet , gummy candies , or candies . these compositions must be endowed with slow release characteristics . this second embodiment of the present invention is advantageous since phosphorus sequestration , preferably in the form of phosphate , occurs in the mouth , in particular from saliva , the major source of recirculating phosphorus and once the composition has mostly accomplished its scope , namely it has exploited considerable part of its absorbing capacity , can be swallowed in order to continue its absorbing action through the gastrointestinal tract . this allows performing the intended treatment throughout the gastrointestinal tract with a single unit dose or a single administration of the composition . this second embodiment can also be carried out by ingesting a composition according to the present invention and , after ingestion , taking a composition according to the first embodiment , retaining it in the mouth for a long time , until exhaustion of absorption capacity . the two unit doses , the first one to be immediately swallowed and the second one to be retained in the mouth until exhaustion of said binding agent for a therapeutic unit , can be conveniently packaged in a single therapeutic unit dose . the person skilled in the art can modify the therapeutic unit by varying the number and form of the unit doses , then providing a therapeutic unit with at least one first unit dose and at least one second unit dose . a preferred example of composition to be ingested is a powdery composition , for example a sachet containing the composition in the form of a powder . other forms of swallowable composition are well known in the art , for examples , capsules , pills , syrups , extemporary or ready - to - use solutions , suspensions , emulsions . the powdery composition may be soluble , partially soluble , insoluble or resulting in a suspension or emulsion in a suitable drinkable liquid . an interesting combination of the first and second embodiment is a composition that can be retained in the mouth for a certain period in the form of mouthwash and subsequently swallowed . the treatment according to the present invention is carried out during fasting period . interestingly , the method according to the present invention can advantageously combined with the one of the state of the art , namely the administration at mealtimes of substances capable of absorbing phosphorus . in this way , a better control of phosphate serum level can be achieved . in another preferred embodiment of the present invention , the composition , in particular those retained in the mouth , will be provided with detecting means signaling the complete absorption of phosphorus , namely the exhaustion of absorption capacity of the unit dose of the composition . in this way , the patient will be able to determine if and whether to discard the exhausted composition and to take another one according to medical advice . a preferred embodiment of detecting means is a substance changing colour or becoming coloured in the presence of phosphorus . the person skilled in the art will find in the general common knowledge information about the above detecting means in order to carry out the present invention . alternatively , the composition according to the present invention can be supplied with separate detecting means , in order to check phosphorus level , for example in the form of phosphate , in saliva and to determine the duration of the treatment , namely how long to retain the composition in the mouth . a suitable example of such detecting means can be found in tobey s l , anslyn e v ; org . lett ., 2003 jun . 12 ; 5 ( 12 ): 2029 - 31 . it will be understood that the present invention is suitable for self - medication . in the embodiment of the present invention wherein the phosphorus binder is sevelamer , a preferred pharmaceutical composition is represented by slow - release tablets containing 250 , 500 or 1 , 000 mg of sevelamer . these tablets will bind about 46 . 75 mg , 93 . 50 mg and 187 mg of phosphorus , respectively , deriving from salivary and gastrointestinal secretion at ph about 7 . the tablets are designed to be effective during diurnal and nocturnal fasting , but can be used also in different period of the day , according to medical prescription . the dosage of the phosphorus - binding agent in the composition of the invention will be determined by the person skilled in the art according to standard dose finding tests . however , the dosage of the binding agent will preferably be in an amount sufficient to remove excess phosphorus with respect to physiological level . it would not be advisable to remove phosphorus in an amount such as to bring it at a level lower than physiological one , in order to avoid damage to teeth . slow - release tablets are within the general knowledge of the person skilled in the art and enabling disclosures are found in normal textbooks , such as for example remington &# 39 ; s pharmaceutical sciences , latest edition , mack publishing and co . a vast literature is available to the skilled person for the selection of the suitable formulation for the slow release of the active ingredient of interest , see for example u . s . pat . no . 5 , 686 , 094 and references cited therein . u . s . pat . no . 5 , 879 , 710 and references cited therein is an example of mucoadhesive pharmaceutical dosage form , suitable for the purposes of the present invention . u . s . pat . no . 6 , 395 , 029 and references cited therein refer to slow release of polyanionic active ingredients , such as sevelamer . chewable soft gel is described in us 2004 / 0076664 and the references cited therein . normally , the tablet will contain at least one pharmaceutically acceptable vehicle and / or excipient . examples of said vehicles and excipient are lactose anhydrous or monohydrate , povidone , microcrystalline cellulose , hydroxypropylcellulose , sodium croscaramellose , magnesium stearate , e , 171 , e 172 , mannitol , sodium laurylsulphate , ipromellose , methacrylic acid copolymer , macrogol , magnesium stearate , gelatine , saccharose , starch , sorbitol , mannitol , flavours , sodium saccharine , colloidal silica . tablets can be either chewed or swallowed , depending on where the desired effect of phosphorus absorption shall occur . in the embodiment of the present invention wherein the phosphorus binder is sevelamer , another preferred pharmaceutical composition is represented by capsules containing the same or different amount of sevelamer . these capsules are designed to be effective in the same manner as the above - mentioned tablets , but mainly in the gastrointestinal tract , since they are taken and swallowed . slow - release capsules are within the general knowledge of the person skilled in the art and enabling disclosures are found in the same textbooks . normally , the capsule will contain at least one pharmaceutically acceptable vehicle and / or excipient and can be of the soft or rigid type . examples of said vehicles and excipient are gelatine , titanium dioxide , sodium laurylsulphate . another embodiment of the present invention is represented by candies and gummy candies . these candies are designed to be effective mostly in the mouth , where the saliva is secreted . candies are within the general knowledge of the person skilled in the art and the field of confectionery industry can be considered a near technical field in this case . normally , the candies will contain the active ingredient and vehicles and / or excipients of use in confectionery ( see for example food industries manual ( 24th edition ) edited by : ranken , m . d . ; kill , r . c . ; baker , c . g . j . © 1997 springer - verlag ). examples of excipients are maltitol syrup , gum arabic , glycerol , aspartame , hydrogenated vegetal oil , gelatine , sorbitol , citric acid , pectin , caramel . sachets containing a soluble powder are another embodiment of the present invention and their preparation is within the normal task of a person of ordinary skill in the art . examples of vehicles and excipient are mannitol , sucrose , colloidal silica , methylcellulose , hydroxypropylcellulose . excipient suitable to pre - pare a thick solution , suspension , emulsion , or preferably a gel are also well known in the art , see for example thickening and gelling agents for food , second edition by alan imeson ). a resulting gel formulation is more preferred in the embodiment of a mouthwash , which will be advantageous for patients with difficulty in chewing . examples of gelling agents are 70 % sorbitol . it is within the general common knowledge that , for example tablets to be retained in the mouth until complete dissolution ( for example suck - able tablets ) will be prepared without disintegrating agents and will have high sugar content . suitable non - disintegrating agent will be used , such as for example waxes , paraffin , fats . continuous slow - release compositions are intended for the purposes of the present invention any one of sustained release compositions , prolonged action compositions , repeat action compositions , otherwise generally named “ cronoids ” ( e . ragazzi lezioni di tecnica farmaceutica , edizioni libreria cortina padova , 1982 ). slow release compositions are manufactured according to techniques which are part of the general common knowledge . for example , differential release compositions can be prepared by means of granulates with differential coatings . the active ingredient ( the binding agent according to the present invention ) is mixed with a suitable excipient ( for example lactose , starch ) and transformed into a homogeneous granulate , which is subsequently coated with a suitable material ( such as lac , shellac , zein , polyacrylic resins , waxes , fats , such as cacao butter , beeswax , stearic acid , etc .). the granules can then made up in a suitable pharmaceutical unit dose , such as capsules , tablet , multi - layered tablets . alternatively , the active agent is adhered on an inert granulating support ( sugar , starch , etc .) and transformed in a pill or a sugar - coated pill . multi - layered tablets , in which a first layer will provide a “ burst ” of drug and a second or further layers will provide a continuous , slow release of drug , can be a convenient embodiment . differential disintegration granules are also a suitable embodiment of the present invention , wherein the drug is incorporated in a lipophilic excipient ( cacao butter , hydrogenated oils , glyceryl stearate , beeswax , carnauba wax , saturated fatty acids , etc .) and subsequently transformed into granules , which can optionally coated with different materials according to the desired release time and site . the active agent can also be incorporated in a suitable polymeric matrix which will gradually and continuously release it . for example , ion exchange resins can be suitably selected depending on the ph of the desired site of release ( mouth , stomach , gut ). one of the best modes for carrying out the invention is represented by chewing gum , since it allows to control the permanence of the phosphorus binder agent in the mouth at patience &# 39 ; s will . as per the case of candies , chewing gum preparation is within the normal exercise of a skilled person . just for example , u . s . pat . no . 3 , 818 , 807 and the references cited therein teaches a chewing gum with controlled flavour release composition ; see also u . s . pat . nos . 4 , 386 , 106 , 4 , 515 , 769 and references cited therein . ep 0 427 505 and the references cited therein offer an interesting embodiment for the present invention , since a low calorie chewing gum can be attractive for patients . ie 980990 and the references cited therein provide useful information for the manufacture of a medicated chewing gum with immediate release or sustained release or both . see also wo 02 / 074099 and the relevant art cited . one possible formulation of a slow - release composition according to the present invention in the form of chewing gum comprises sorbitol , mannitol , 5 % xylitol , maltitol syrup , aspartame , acesulfame k , gum base , glycerol , e320 , polyalcohols , e903 . another possible formulation of a slow - release composition according to the present invention comprises sorbitol , mannitol , 36 % xylitol , maltitol syrup , sodium hydrogen carbonate , aspartame , acesulfame k , gum base , glycerol , e320 , polyalcohols , e903 . in another best embodiment of the present invention , a method for the treatment of high phosphorus serum levels , or a method for controlling phosphorus serum levels in a subject in need thereof comprises the administration of a composition according to the present invention , said composition can be directly swallowed or chewed and swallowed , followed by taking a composition according to the present invention in the form of a chewing gum and retaining it in the mouth until complete exhaustion of binding capacity of the active ingredient . the chewing gum can incorporate phosphorus detecting means signalling the exhaustion of binding capacity or the chewing gum unit dose can be supplied with separate detecting means in order to periodically check phosphorus content in saliva . all the above formulations can be adopted in the general frame of the present invention , thus meaning that they can be used with a generic phosphorus binding agent suitable for human use . for those binding agent whose use could imply side effects , some measures will be adopted in order to avoid or minimize the side effects . for example , if aluminium hydroxide or another aluminium derivative or lanthanum carbonate or another lanthanum derivative is the binding agent , for example in the form of tablets , the size of the particle comprising aluminium will be higher than 3 μm , in order to avoid intestinal absorption . sucrose powder , starch , sorbitol , mannitol , flavouring agents , sodium saccharinate , magnesium stearate . if desired antiemetic or eukinetic agents can be added to or used in combination with the composition of the present invention . 68 uremic patients ( 47 males and 21 females , aging 61 . 6 ± 9 . 4 ) undergoing periodic bicarbonate dialysis ( hd ), three times weekly , using polysulphone dialyzer and 30 control healthy subjects of the same age were enrolled . uremic patients have been under dialytic treatment for at least one year , mean period 8 . 9 ± 7 . 3 years . all patients were in good clinical conditions . at the beginning of middle - week hemodialysis session , fasting patients and control subjects were subjected to blood withdrawal to dose serum phosphorus ( p ), calcium ( ca ) and parathyroid hormone ( pth ). a the same time , 2 ml of saliva samples were obtained , to dose phosphorus and calcium concentration . calcium and phosphorus were dosed by spectrophotometry using flex reagent cartridge by dade behring inc ., newark , u . s . a . after centrifugation of the samples , while serum pth was dosed by using immulite 2000 intact pth , solid phase , two site chemiluminescent enzyme labelled immunometric assay ( diagnostic product corporation , los angeles , u . s . a .). statistical analysis was performed as follows : salivary calcium and phosphorus , as well as the corresponding serum levels in hd patients were skewed , a logarithmic transformation was performed before analysis , and the results presented as geometric mean with 95 % confidence intervals ( ci ). regression analysis was used within hd patients to identify relevant relations between levels of salivary p and other parameters . to verify the association made by independent regression analysis when controlling other variables , multiple regression analysis was performed . unpaired student &# 39 ; s t test was used to compare log transformed salivary p between controls and hd patients . differences can be interpreted as the ratio of geometric means with 95 % confidence intervals ( ci ). upper limit of intervals for mean of salivary p was calculated in controls and a relationship for this value between controls and hd patients was established . serum ca 8 . 73 mg / dl ( geometric mean )— 95 % ci , 8 . 49 to 8 . 98 , salivary ca 7 . 21 mg / dl ( geometric mean )— 95 % ci , 6 . 58 to 7 . 91 ; serum p 5 . 73 ± 1 . 31 mg / dl ( mean )— 95 % ci , 5 . 41 to 6 . 04 ; salivary p 30 . 27 mg / dl ( geometric mean )— 95 % ci , 26 . 50 to 34 . 58 . pth 5 . 73 ± 143 . 63 pg / ml ( mean )— 95 % ci , 110 . 57 to 167 . 69 . salivary p 30 . 27 mg / dl ( geometric mean )— 95 % ci , 26 . 50 to 34 . 58 . considering as cut off the upper limit of confidence intervals for mean of salivary p in controls ( 14 . 73 ml / dl ), 62 out of 68 subjects had a value greater than cut off . salivary p was significantly correlated with serum p within hd patients ( r = 0 . 53 , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ). considering that the quantity of daily salivary excretion ranges between 1 , 000 and 1 , 800 ml , it was calculated that salivary glands of the hd subjects were able to secrete a total amount of phosphate ranging from 302 . 7 to 544 . 86 ml . 110 patients ( 59 males and 51 females , aging 65 ; 17 - 90 ) under conservative treatment , were randomly selected at dialysis unit at papardo hospital in messina , italy . care was taken to exclude patients on treatment with drugs known to interfere with phosphorus assay . investigation protocol included serum creatinine and phosphorus assays as well as salivary phosphorus . after overnight fasting , blood ( 4 ml ) and saliva ( 2 ml ) samples were withdrawn , at 8 . 00 a . m . glomerulal filtration rate ( gfr ) was calculated according to mdrd equation [ gfr ( ml / min / 1 . 73 m 2 )= 186 ×( plasma creatinine ) − 1 . 1154 ×( age ) − 0 . 203 ×( 0 . 742 if female ). as salivary and serum phosphorus ( p ), age ( yrs ), gfr as well as serum creatinine values were skewed , data were log transformed before further parametric analysis was done . the results are presented as median and range . to assess possible relevant association between salivary p and demographic ( age ) and clinical characteristics , multiplicative regression analysis was used . to verify the associations made by univariate analysis when controlling for other variables , backward stepwise multiple regression analysis was performed . the results of the parsimonious model are shown . differences between genders were tested by unpaired student &# 39 ; s t test . clinical data are shown in table 1 . a positive relationship ( r = 0 . 85 , standard error = 0 . 31 , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ) was found between salivary p and creatinine with an index of determination ( r 2 ) of 71 . 5 percent . at a lesser extent , the same was true for age ( r = 0 . 45 , standard error = 0 . 52 , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ). a negative association was found for gfr ( r =− 0 . 85 , standard error = 0 . 32 , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ). as expected , there was a positive relationship of creatinine with both age ( r = 0 . 39 , standard error = 0 . 32 , r 2 = 15 . 4 percent , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ) and serum p ( r = 0 . 50 , standard error 0 . 17 , r 2 = 24 . 9 percent , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ). no relationship was found between serum p and age . a prevalence of male gender was found for salivary p ( p = 0 . 002 ), creatinina ( p = 0 . 08 ) and age ( p = 0 . 002 ). the backward stepwise multiple regression analysis selected only creatinine and age as independent predictor of salivary p ( table 2 ). medium and low - viscosity chitosan sequestered phosphate quantity was determined by 500 mhz high - resolution 31 p - nmr ( hr - nmr ) with mono - dimensional spectra acquisition at 300 ° k . a ) studying interaction of low - and medium - viscosity chitosan ( fluka cat . 50494 and cat . 28191 ) and solution at different concentrations with pbs ( phosphate buffered saline — sigma ), comparing the difference in phosphate amount between pure pbs and chitosan - containing pbs , in the same experimental conditions ; b ) studying interaction of pbs with a medium - viscosity chitosan solution at different concentrations according to literature ( yong zhang and m . zhang , j . biomed . mater . res ., 2002 , dec . 5 , 5 , 62 ( 3 ): 378 - 86 ). 0 . 2 , 1 . 0 and 1 . 5 g of low - and medium - viscosity chitosan were added to 10 ml of pbs to give 2 , 10 and 15 % p / v chitosan solutions . 0 . 5 ml solution were sampled for nmr analysis and added with 0 . 1 d 2 o . 1 . 0 and 2 . 0 g , respectively , of medium - viscosity chitosan were dissolved into 10 ml of 0 . 2 m acetic acid to give 10 and 20 % p / v chitosan solutions . the obtained solutions were subsequently stirred at 50 ° c . for about 2 hours , in order to obtain a homogeneous polymer solution . the solution was filtered to remove air bubbles . the filtered solutions were added with 0 . 0931 g pbs and frozen at − 20 ° c . to separate solids . liquid phase was removed for nmr analysis . 0 . 5 ml test and reference ( pbs ) solutions were sampled for nmr analysis and added with 0 . 1 d 2 o .

0Human Necessities

referring to fig1 , a test system 20 for measuring s - parameters of the ports 11 and 12 of a passive circuit 10 is shown . the test system 20 includes a measuring part 22 and a compensating part 23 . fig3 shows a flow chart of the test system 20 measuring s - parameters . firstly , in step 201 , the measuring part 22 measures s - parameters of the passive circuit 10 at a given frequency . then in step 202 the test system 20 then computes if the measured s - parameters satisfy passivity . if the s - parameters satisfy passivity , then in step 205 the test system 20 outputs the original s - parameters . if the s - parameters do not satisfy passivity , then in step 204 the compensating part 23 adjusts the s - parameters to satisfy passivity , then in step 205 the test system 20 outputs the compensated s - parameters . referring to fig4 and 5 , fig4 shows the detailed steps of the step 204 of fig3 . fig5 shows modules of the compensating part 23 . the compensating part 23 includes a matrix computing module 31 , an eigenvalue computing module 32 , a compensating value computing module 33 , and a compensating module 34 . the eigenvalue computing module 32 is connected to the matrix computing module 31 , the compensating value computing module 33 is connected to the eigenvalue computing module 32 , and the compensating module 34 is connected to the compensating value computing module 33 . step 301 , the compensating part 23 gets the s - parameters that do not satisfy passivity . step 302 , the matrix computing module 31 computes the matrix [ s × s ′]. the eigenvalue computing module 32 computes the eigenvalues of the matrix [ s × s ′]. because the s - parameters do not satisfy passivity , there is an eigenvalue λ of the matrix [ e − s × s ′] whose real part is the smallest , and less than 0 , that is real ( λ )& lt ; 0 . according to the formula of eigenvalue [ e − s × s ′]= 1 − eigenvalue [ s × s ′], there is an eigenvalue ψ of the matrix [ s × s ′] whose real part is the biggest , and greater than 1 , for real ( ψ )= 1 − real ( λ )& gt ; 1 . step 303 , the compensating value computing module 33 then computes a compensating value ξ according to the compensating value formula of ξ = real ( ψ ) 1 / 2 ×( 1 + ε ). in the above formula , the ε is a very small positive number . step 304 , the compensating module 34 compensates the s - parameters according to the compensating formula of s *= s / ξ to get the compensated s - parameters s *. regarding the compensated s - parameters s *, the estimating formula used to estimate passivity is : real ( eigenvalue [ e − s *× s *′])= 1 − real ( eigenvalue [ s *× s *′])= 1 − real ( eigenvalue [ s / ξ × s ′/ ξ ])= 1 − real ( eigenvalue [ s × s ′])/[ real ( ψ )×( 1 + ε ) 2 ]. because real ( ψ ) is greater than 1 , ε is a very small positive number , and the real ( eigenvalue [ s × s ′]) is not bigger than real ( ψ ). therefore , real ( eigenvalue [ e − s *× s *′])/ real ( ψ )×( 1 + ε ) 2 is smaller than 1 , and real ( eigenvalue [ e − s *× s *′])= 1 − real ( eigenvalue [ s × s ′])/[ real ( ψ )×( 1 + ε ) 2 ]& gt ; 0 . thus , the compensated s - parameter matrix s * satisfies passivity . referring to fig1 to 5 , described below is an embodiment of the compensating method used in a two port passive circuit . the two ports are the same kind of ports . the measuring part 22 measures s - parameters of the two port passive circuit at a given frequency ( step 201 ), and forms an s - parameter matrix s =[( s 11 , s 12 ), ( s 21 , s 22 )]. because the two ports are the same , s 11 is equal to s 22 , and s 12 is equal to s 21 . therefore , the s - parameter matrix s is equal to [( s 11 , s 12 ), ( s 12 , s 11 )]. in the above equation , s 11 is ( r 11 + i 11 i ), and s 12 is ( r 12 + i 12 i ). if in step 202 it is found that the s - parameter matrix s does not satisfy passivity , then step 204 is performed to produce adjusted s - parameters , as detailed below : step 301 , the compensating part 23 gets the s - parameter matrix s =[( s 11 , s 12 ), ( s 12 , s 11 )]. step 302 , the matrix computing module 31 computes the matrix [ s × s ′]=[( r 11 2 + r 12 2 + i 11 2 + i 12 2 , 2 × r 11 × r 12 + 2 × i 11 × i 12 ),( 2 × r 11 × r 12 + 2 × i 11 × i 12 , r 11 2 + r 12 2 + i 11 2 + i 12 2 )]. the eigenvalue computing module 32 computes the eigenvalues of the matrix [ s × s ′], and the eigenvalues are ψ 1 =( i 11 + i 12 ) 2 +( r 11 + r 12 ) 2 , and ψ 2 =( i 11 − i 12 ) 2 +( r 11 − r 12 ) 2 . then , the two eigenvalues are compared to get an eigenvalue ψ max from the two eigenvalues whose real part is the biggest real part of all the eigenvalues . step 303 , the compensating value computing module 33 computes a compensating value ξ according to the compensating value formula of ξ = real ( ψ max ) 1 / 2 ×( 1 + ε ). in the above formula , ε is a very small positive number . step 304 , the compensating module 34 compensates the s - parameter matrix s according to the compensating module s *= s / ξ to get the compensated s - parameter matrix s * which satisfies passivity . a realistic example is described below using the compensating method to compensate s - parameters . referring to fig6 , a signal trace 60 is laid on a printed circuit board 50 . the procedure is as follows : step 201 , the test system 20 measures s - parameters of the signal trace 60 at a frequency of 4 . 6372 ghz , and forms an s - parameter matrix : [(− 0 . 2608352337196621 + 0 . 3476273125912422i , 0 . 7203853298827190 + 0 . 5405228611018837i ), ( 0 . 7203853298827190 + 0 . 5405228611018837i , − 0 . 2608352337196621 + 0 . 3476273125912422i )]. step 202 , in the above described s - parameter matrix , eigenvalues of the matrix [ e − s × s ′] are 2 . 978085395288764 × 10 − 6 and − 2 . 487071395607110 × 10 − 6 . one of the eigenvalues is smaller than 0 , so the s - parameters of the signal trace 60 do not satisfy passivity . step 204 , then , the compensating part 23 compensates by adjusting the s - parameters of the signal trace 60 , as described below : step 301 , the compensating part 23 gets the s - parameter matrix s = [(− 0 . 2608352337196621 + 0 . 3476273125912422i , 0 . 7203853298827190 + 0 . 5405228611018837i ), ( 0 . 7203853298827190 + 0 . 5405228611018837i , − 0 . 2608352337196621 + 0 . 3476273125912422i )]. step 302 , the matrix computing module 31 computes the matrix [ s × s ′]. the eigenvalue computing module 32 computes the eigenvalues of the matrix [ s × s ′]. then , compare the eigenvalues , and get an eigenvalue ψ max = 1 . 000002487071396 whose real part is the biggest . step 303 , the compensating value computing module 33 then computes a compensating value ξ according to the compensating value formula of ξ = real ( ψ max ) 1 / 2 ×( 1 + ε )= 1 . 000001243535925 . in the above equation , the ε is set to 1 × 10 − 12 . step 304 , the compensating module 34 compensates the s - parameter matrix s according to the compensating module s *= s / ξ to get the compensated s - parameter matrix s *= [(− 0 . 2608349093620819 + 0 . 3476268803047282 , 0 . 7203844340587956 + 0 . 5405221889431238i ), ( 0 . 7203844340587956 + 0 . 5405221 889431238i , − 0 . 2608349093620819 + 0 . 3476268803047282 )]. for the above matrix s *, the eigenvalues of the matrix [ s *× s *′] are 5 . 465145198668697 × 10 − 6 , and 2 . 000122290161193 × 10 − 12 . both of the two eigenvalues are bigger than 0 , so the matrix s * satisfies passivity . it is to be understood , however , that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description , together with details of the structure and function of the invention , the disclosure is illustrative only , and changes may be made in detail , especially in matters of shape , size , and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed .

6Physics

referring first to fig1 there is shown an electronic notary 10 including , in accordance with a presently preferred embodiment of the invention , a cyclic redundancy check ( crc ) generator 12 . crc generator 12 has an input coupled to document and / or other unit ( s ) of data provided by a first party desiring to authenticate the unit ( s ) of data . the data units may be provided from , by example , a communications network , from a mass storage device such as a disk , or directly from the memory of a data processing unit . further in accordance with an aspect of the invention the input data units may be image data provided from a scanner such as that associated with a facsimile device or a hand held document scanner . in general , the invention may be employed to authenticate any type of digital data units wherein a data unit may comprise from one or more bits of data to some arbitrarily large number of data bytes or words . the output of the crc generator 12 is crc data that is generated by any one of a number of known types of crc methods . one advantage of providing the input data unit to the crc generator 12 is that the possibly large amount of input data is reduced to a relatively few bytes of crc data , thereby providing for efficiencies in storage . in this regard it should be noted that other than crc generation methods can be employed such as calculating a check sum of the input data or performing one or two dimensional parity generation on the input data . by example , checksum or parity information can be generated for each line of characters associated with a document . alternatively , such information can be generated for the entire document instead of on a line - by - line basis . in general , any suitable method may be employed that generates a second unit of data from a first unit of data wherein the second unit of data is expressive of an information content of the first unit of data . electronic notary 10 also includes a time generation device 14 that , in accordance with the invention , is a secured device such that the first party is unable to set , reset , or otherwise modify the time - related content thereof . in accordance with an embodiment of the invention electronic notary 10 is provided by a second party for use by the first party . only the second party has a capability to alter the time maintained by the time generating device 14 . as a result , when the first party provides document and / or other data to the electronic notary 10 for notarization the first party is unable to modify in any way the date and time maintained internally within the electronic notary 10 . an encryption block 16 operates in accordance with any known type of encryption algorithm including , but not limited to , private key cryptography , such as des , public key cryptography , such as rsa , or variants and combinations thereof . for example , the encryption device 16 can operate in accordance with electronic indicia algorithms such as those disclosed in a commonly assigned u . s . pat . no . 4 , 853 , 961 , issued aug . 1 , 1989 to jose pastor . the crc information and the date and time information are input to the encryption device 16 where this information is encrypted and is output from the electronic notary 10 . this output data is referred to herein as an authentication string or packet . this output may be maintained by the first party and can be appended to the original document data and / or stored separately therefrom . the authentication string output from the electronic notary 10 may also be provided to the second party for storage . by example , this information can be provided electronically via a modem or other such device to a central repository of authentication string data maintained by the second party . other information can be also provided , if desired , to be included with the encrypted authentication string . for example , document - related data such as the title of the document , the author or authors of the document and other similar information can be provided separately from the document data and time data . also , a &# 34 ; machine id &# 34 ; that identifies the particular electronic notary , such as by a serial number , can also be provided to the encryption device 16 to be encrypted and included as part of the authentication string . these optional data inputs are shown as dashed input lines in the block diagram of fig1 . referring now to fig2 there is shown in block diagram form a presently preferred embodiment of a validation device 20 for validating a previously electronically notarized document or data . device 20 includes a decryption block 22 wherein the data / time stamped authentication string is provided . this block of data is that which was generated previously by the electronic notary 10 of fig1 . device 20 further includes a crc generator 24 that operates in accordance with the same crc algorithm as the crc generator 12 of fig1 . the data to be validated is provided to this second crc generator 24 . in operation , the decryption device 22 decrypts in accordance with the key associated with the first party the input data to provide therefrom the date / time information and the crc information . the decrypted crc information from block 22 is compared by a comparator 26 to the crc information generated by crc generator 24 . if the two crcs are found to be identical it is indicated that the document data provided is identical to that previously provided to the electronic notary 10 of fig1 . furthermore , the date and time information retrieved from the authentication string is the date and time that this data was applied to the electronic notary 10 . as a result , the decrypting party determines that the data presented for validation produces the same crc data as the original data in addition to determining a date and time previously associated with the original data . of course , if the authentication string data is originally generated by a checksum , parity generation or other procedure block 24 implements the same procedure . in this case the comparator 26 compares the checksums or parity bits to determine if a match occurs . although it is theoretically possible that the first party may break the encryption algorithm and forge an authentication string for a particular document , the second party service may , as previously mentioned , have a permanent record of each authentication string issued by the notary 10 . thereafter , to successfully pass a verification test , the authentication string must not only generate a match between the proposed original document and the document presented for validation but the authentication string must also exist in storage within the second party &# 39 ; s repository of authentication strings . in such a two party system the authentication string can also be transmitted along with the electronic document . this permits the recipient to confirm that the document is valid and unmodified from the time it was originally electronically notarized . furthermore , if the authentication string is constructed in such a manner that it is unique to an originator , such as by having a unique encryption key , the recipient of the electronic document can demonstrate that the document has not been modified and also that the document was indeed created by the sender . that is , the authentication string was encrypted with a key known to be associated with the sender . referring to fig3 there is shown in flowchart form a method of the invention . in block ( a ) there is provided a first data unit . in block ( b ) there is generated a second data unit from the first data unit . the second data unit may be generated by crc or other techniques as described above . next , at block ( c ) information is generated with a secure time generation device , the information being expressive typically of both a time and a date . preferably the time is expressed in greenwich mean time ( gmt ) and reflects the actual time of day . the time may be generated to any desired accuracy such as to a second or tenths or hundredths of a second . at block ( d ) the generated time and the second data unit are encrypted to provide an authentication string as shown in fig1 . this authentication string is thereafter stored for subsequent retrieval and validation as required . referring to fig4 a there is shown a method , in accordance with one embodiment of the invention , for validating a previously electronically notarized data unit . at block ( f ) there is provided the encrypted second data unit including the time , that is , the previously generated authentication string . this authentication string is decrypted to provide a fourth data unit and the time associated with the second data unit . at block ( h ) there is provided a fifth data unit that is proportioned to be identical to the first data unit . at block ( i ) a sixth data unit is generated by the method used previously when generating the authentication string . at block ( j ) the fourth data unit and the sixth data unit are compared , such as by comparing the two crcs , to determine if the crc of the data unit to be validated matches that previously presented . referring to fig4 b there is shown a method , in accordance with another embodiment of the invention , for validating a previously electronically notarized data unit . at block ( f &# 39 ;) a fifth unit of data is provided , the fifth unit of data purported to be identical to the first unit of data . at block ( g &# 39 ;) the fifth unit of data is converted to a sixth unit of data by a procedure identical to that employed to create the second data unit . at block ( h &# 39 ;) a time purported to be the time associated with the third data unit , such as the time of creation , is combined with the sixth data unit in a predetermined manner , such as by appending the time indication to the sixth data unit . next , at block ( i &# 39 ;), the sixth unit of data , including the purported time indication , is encrypted using a same procedure as that employed to generate the third data unit . next , at block ( j &# 39 ;) the data string representing the encrypted sixth data unit and the purported time is compared to the third data unit . a match indicates that the purported time is valid . the invention may be embodied in hardware constructed with , for example , commercially available crc generators , time and date maintaining &# 34 ; calendar / clock &# 34 ; integrated circuits and encryption and decryption integrated circuits . alternatively , the invention can be embodied solely in software executed on a data processing system . alternatively , the invention can be embodied in a combination of hardware and software . in any of the possible embodiments of the invention it is however a requirement that the system date and time be secure from tampering and / or modification by the party that employs the apparatus and method of the invention to electronically notarize document or other data . securing the time function can be achieved by a number of techniques including physically securing a calendar / clock electronic device within a tamper proof module having no external programming inputs . securing the time function can also be achieved by requiring the use of passwords to obtain access to a date and time function maintained by software . securing the time function can also be achieved by storing an encrypted clock value which can only be decrypted with a third party key . although the use of the invention has been thus far primarily depicted in the context of electronically stored document data it should be apparent that the data may originate from a number of possible sources . for example , a particular data unit may be single record from a database . by example , in a database that maintains information concerning employees of a corporation each data base record may relate to one employee . each time that an employee &# 39 ; s record is accessed and modified , such as to reflect an increase in salary , the modified record is applied to the electronic notary of fig1 to provide an authentication string therefor . as a result , it can be readily detected if an employee &# 39 ; s record has been inadvertently or intentionally modified at a time subsequent to the time that the record was believed to have been last modified . this teaching may also be employed to detect unauthorized modification to a computer file such as that caused by a &# 34 ; viral infection &# 34 ;. the source of data may also be image data or the like . for example , a document or a graphics image may be converted to electronic form and the image data &# 34 ; notarized &# 34 ; to associate a time and date therewith . thus , it can be realized that the teaching of the invention is applicable to the authentication of a large number of different types of data originating from a wide variety of sources . it should also be realized that certain steps of the method of the invention may be performed in other than the order illustrated while still achieving the same result . as such , although the invention has been particularly shown and described with respect to preferred embodiments thereof , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention .

7Electricity

turning now to the drawings , a self - contained pipeline heater 20 is illustrated in fig1 and broadly includes a housing 22 , a fluid - conveying assembly 24 ( see also , fig7 - 8 ), an infrared heating assembly 26 ( see fig6 and 9 - 10 ), a heat insulating assembly 28 ( see fig4 and 9 ), an air - cooling assembly 30 ( see fig1 ), and a power and control assembly 32 ( see fig6 ). the purpose of heater 20 is to selectively and efficiently heat an incoming fluid ( such as liquid or gaseous petroleum products ) at an appropriate location along the length of a pipeline or the like . the housing 22 generally includes a lower , elongated , substantially rectangular in cross - section primary housing 34 as well as a smaller , upper housing 36 mounted atop the primary housing 34 , and defines an enclosed space therein . although , this configuration presents certain advantages , the scope of the present invention is not limited to this particular design . the overall housing 22 accommodates all of the other assemblies 24 - 32 , as will be described . the primary housing 34 may be constructed using a standard metal shipping container , but this is not essential . in certain embodiments , the primary housing 34 has bottom wall 38 , a pair of laterally spaced apart , upright corrugated sidewalls 40 and 42 , as well as a corrugated top wall 44 having an elongated slot 46 formed therein . the forward end of the primary housing 34 has a pair of double doors 48 and , in like manner , the rearward end thereof has a rear wall 50 and a single , central door 52 . an intermediate upright wall 54 is provided toward the rearward end of the housing and serves to create a rearmost room 56 , which can be accessed via door 52 . the walls 40 - 44 and related structure of the primary housing 34 are supported by conventional frame structure 58 . bottom wall 38 is supported by a series of laterally extending beams 60 . a pair of elongated , laterally spaced apart , somewhat l - shaped rails 62 are affixed to the upper surface of wall 38 and extend from the forward end of the housing 34 to intermediate wall 54 . similarly , a pair of elongated tubular beams 64 are secured to the underside of top wall 44 directly above the rails 62 ( see fig1 ). beams 64 are electrical hazardous location glans and extend through wall 54 . the entire heater 20 is typically mounted above - grade on a series of cylindrical concrete footings 66 . if desired , front and rear concrete entry pads 68 and 70 are provided adjacent the front and rear doors 48 , 52 , as illustrated . the elongated secondary housing 36 is positioned in spanning relationship to the slot 46 of top wall 44 and includes a pair of spaced apart side panels 72 and 74 , insulated top panel 76 , and insulated front and rear end panels 78 and 80 . the front panel 78 has an opening 82 formed therein , whereas top panel 76 has three vent openings 84 . an upright , gabled vent housing 86 is secured to top wall 76 in registry with each vent opening 84 . it will be appreciated that the secondary housing 36 is smaller in volume as compared with primary housing 34 , and has a lesser width , height , and length . advantageously , the secondary housing 36 is smaller in at least one dimension as compared with the primary housing 34 ( e . g ., height ), and preferably in at least two dimensions ( e . g ., height and length or length and width ). most preferably , the secondary housing 36 is smaller in all three dimensions of height , length , and width . the fluid - conveying assembly 24 ( see fig7 - 8 ) includes a substantially horizontally oriented fluid inlet conduit or header 88 , a juxtaposed fluid outlet conduit or header 90 , and a depending coil assembly 92 . the headers 88 , 90 include connection flanges 94 , 96 at the forward ends thereof , and are capped by end caps 98 , 100 at their rearward ends . conventional inlet and outlet pipe assemblies 102 , 104 are secured to the headers 88 and 90 by connection to the associated flanges 94 , 96 . the assemblies 102 , 104 are typically capped for transport of the heater 20 to its intended use location by means of caps 106 , 108 , but in use , fluid entry and exit pipelines ( not shown ) are operatively connected to the assemblies 102 , 104 . in this way , the fluid ( s ) to be heated within heater 20 are conveyed to and from the assembly 24 . the coil assembly 92 is made up of a series of separate , elongated , vertically extending coils 110 , each having an inlet pipe 112 coupled with inlet header 88 and a corresponding outlet pipe 114 coupled with outlet header 90 . as illustrated , the piping of each coil 110 has a diameter substantially less than the diameter of the associated headers 88 , 90 , to create a greater surface area for heat transfer . the coils 110 have multiple loops or convolutions 110 a which are oblong in configuration and extend vertically beneath the headers 88 , 90 as separate passes . the assembly 24 is centrally mounted within housing 22 by means of a plurality of support beam 115 ( fig1 ) that span from sidewall 40 to sidewall 42 . moreover , it will be seen that the headers 88 , 90 , and the upper ends of the coil assembly 92 are situated within secondary housing 36 , whereas the main body of the coil assembly 92 is located within the confines of primary housing 34 . the forward ends of the headers 88 and 90 protrude through the opening 82 , as illustrated . the coils 110 may have a number of different configurations , such as those described in u . s . patent publication no . 2015 / 0020918 , which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety . the ir heating assembly 26 includes a plurality of vertically stacked , fore - and - aft extending , gas - fired infrared heating elements 118 , which extend the entire length of the coil assembly 92 ; the elements 118 are operable to emit ir energy through the flameless catalytic combustion of natural gas , and to direct such energy toward coils 110 . to this end , the elements 118 are positioned in two separate parallel banks or panels 120 and 122 , which are respectively astride the side margins of the coil assembly 92 and extend from a point adjacent bottom wall 38 into the secondary housing 36 to a point just beneath the headers 88 , 90 ( see fig9 - 10 ). the banks 120 , 122 are supported by a supporting frame 116 and upright frame elements 124 , and a gas line 125 is provided for delivery of natural gas to the elements 118 . the operation of the elements 118 is controlled by appropriate valve and sensor assemblies 126 located adjacent the forward end of housing 22 . exemplary ir heating elements 118 include those available from catalytic industrial group of independence , kansas , and are described in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 557 , 858 and 6 , 003 , 244 , both of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties . it is also within the scope of the present invention to use electrically powered ir heating elements . the heat insulating assembly 28 includes a series of upright heat insulating walls 128 positioned within primary housing 34 on opposite sides of the ir heater banks 120 , 122 . as best illustrated in fig5 , walls 128 are mounted on lower grooved rollers 130 , whereas the upper ends of the walls are held captive by the rectangular beams 64 . accordingly , the individual walls 128 are simply shifted along the lengths of the rails 62 to create essentially solid insulating walls 131 adjacent the outboard faces of the elements 118 making up the banks 120 , 122 . as best seen in fig4 , the walls 131 extend from a point adjacent the forward end of primary housing 34 to the intermediate wall 54 . the spacing between the walls 40 , 42 and the adjacent insulating walls 131 provide open passages or walkways 132 extending from the doors 48 to the intermediate wall 54 ( fig9 ); this allows servicing and repair of the internal components of the heater 20 . the overall assembly 28 further includes insulating structure for the secondary housing 36 , namely side insulating panels 134 located inboard of the side panels 72 , 74 , which extend the full length of the secondary housing . the panels 134 , together with insulated front and rear panels 78 , 80 , thus provide the requisite degree of heat insulation for the secondary housing 36 . the air cooling assembly 30 includes a plurality of lower box - like air inlets 136 which are mounted to the sidewalls 40 , 42 and communicate with the interior of heater 20 through ports 138 ( see fig5 ). the inlets 136 are equipped with shiftable dampers or louvers 140 to facilitate control of air flow to the heater 20 , and thus serve as active air control assemblies . in certain embodiments , inlets 136 serve as the principal air inlet for the space enclosed by housing 22 . in addition , the assembly 30 includes a plurality of upright “ mushroom ” air outlets 142 secured to top wall 44 along the length of secondary housing 36 . additionally , sidewall vents 144 are provided adjacent the upper ends of the sidewalls 40 , 42 of primary housing 34 . power and control assembly 32 includes a conventional electrical entrance panel 146 located within room 56 and adjacent intermediate wall 54 . thus , the panel 146 may be accessed through door 52 as needed . the assembly also has a junction box 148 mounted adjacent the forward end of heater 20 between the valve / sensor assemblies 126 . the panel 146 houses the control elements and circuitry for the heater 20 , and has one or more programmable digital devices allowing control of the assemblies 24 - 30 during the operation of heater 20 . box 148 can be readily accessed through forward doors 48 . the assembly 32 further has conventional temperature , pressure , and oxygen sensors 143 within the housing 22 , and a resistance temperature detector ( rtd ) 109 coupled with the forward - most coil 110 . in the operation of heater 20 , incoming fluid to be heated is conveyed through pipe assembly 102 to header 88 for passage through the coil inlet pipes 112 and ultimately through the individual coils 110 . to this end , the incoming fluid is delivered to the heater 20 by means of existing line pressure and the flow rate of which is generally uncontrolled . as the fluid passes through the coils 110 , the ir heaters 118 operate to heat the fluid before outward passage thereof from the pipes 114 and header 90 . from this point , the now - heated fluid is delivered to the desired use location for heating of the associated pipeline equipment or the like . also during this heating operation , the air cooling assembly 30 comes into play . that is , operation of the heating elements 118 , which can achieve temperatures well above 500 f , induces air drafts within housing 22 . as best seen in fig1 , such induced air currents 150 are drawn through the inlets 136 and pass upwardly for exit through the vents 86 , mushroom outlets 142 , and side vents 144 . at least a portion of the draft is directed through a passage 145 defined between beams 64 and support frame 147 for insulating panels 134 and into a draft - conducting space 149 formed between heater arrays 120 , 122 and insulated panels 128 . shields 154 are positioned at the upper ends of space 149 to force the air draft to travel downwardly into space 149 . the air moving within space 149 is preheated by heater arrays 120 , 122 prior to entering the heat exchange column 151 in which the coils 110 reside . the lower margin of insulated panels 128 is sealed from walkways 132 outboard of panels 128 causing the induced draft to overcome the natural buoyancy of the warming air in space 149 and pass through passageway 152 into the heat exchange column 151 . in certain embodiments , the air flowing within column 151 and past coils 110 flows in a direction that is opposite to that of the air flowing in draft - conducting space 149 . this air flow can create an environment of convective heat transfer from the fluid flowing through the coils 110 and , if the air flow is too strong , the efficiency of heater 20 is compromised . in order to control the air flow , the louvers 140 , operably coupled with control panel 146 , are adjusted to maintain the proper air flow through the heater 20 . advantageously , the overall control system for the heater 20 comprises , in addition to the controller panel 146 , at least one member selected from the group consisting of an oxygen sensor 143 , carbon dioxide sensor , and a pressure transducer installed within the housing 22 and operable to determine a characteristic of the air draft within the housing 22 , in order to open or close the louvers 140 based upon determination of such characteristic ( s ). hence , the heating / cooling operation of heater 20 may be precisely controlled to achieve optimum performance . in certain embodiments , it has been found that the pitch of the convolutions 110 a of the coils 110 can be adjusted in order to further maximize the efficiency of heater 20 . the pitch of these convolutions refers to the lateral spacing between adjacent convolutions . for example , in certain cases , the pitch of the convolutions 110 a is selected to keep all of the convolutions maximally “ visible ” to the opposed banks 120 , 122 of the elements 118 .

5Mechanical Engineering; Lightning; Heating; Weapons; Blasting

in the figures , unless otherwise stated , the same or functionally identical components have been provided with the same reference numerals . fig1 schematically illustrates an apparatus provided in a vehicle for controlling the operation of an electronic wheel unit 2 assigned to a wheel 1 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention . as shown in fig1 , each vehicle wheel 1 preferably has an assigned electronic wheel unit 2 which is mounted e . g . in the tire or internal rim surface or rim edge . the present invention will now be explained in greater detail with reference to a wheel 1 with assigned electronic wheel unit 2 , the present invention obviously being applicable analogously to all the wheels . measured wheel state variables are transmitted by the electronic wheel unit 2 from same to a central control unit 9 e . g . by means of a radio link and a superordinate radio receiver 8 which is directly connected to the control unit 9 . the central control unit 9 , as likewise shown in fig1 , is connected to preferably a plurality of sensors 3 which sense different operating states of the wheel 1 . said sensors 3 can be implemented either as sensors separately provided in the motor vehicle or as sensors incorporated in the electronic wheel unit 2 or directly connected to same . advantageously , the sensors 3 provided are used simultaneously e . g . for the recording of the pressure , temperature , acceleration or the like of the wheel 1 by the central control unit 9 and by the electronic wheel unit 2 . the sensors 3 thus sense variables which provide indications of the instantaneous operating state of the wheel 1 . such measured variables can be , for example , vibrations , noise , forces , movements , temperatures , pressures or other state variables of the wheel 1 . in addition , state changes selectively introduced from outside can also be detected by means of the sensors 3 and acquired data transmitted to the central control unit . for example , electrical , magnetic or electromagnetic signals emitted by a fixed transmitter in the vehicle can be detected by the sensors 3 in order to signal the instantaneous operating state of the wheel 1 . the apparatus according to the present embodiment additionally has one or more energy detection devices 4 , 4 ′ which will be explained in greater detail with reference to fig2 . the energy detection devices 4 , 4 ′ detect the instantaneously available energy of a generator 5 supplying the wheel unit and the instantaneous fill level or the instantaneous utilization state of an energy storage device 6 connected between the electronic wheel unit 2 and the generator 5 . the generator 5 can be any kind of energy transducer which e . g . converts mechanical energy into electrical energy . an example of such a generator is contained in patent application u . s . pat . no . 5 , 741 , 966 . the sensors 3 or the energy detection devices 4 , 4 ′ are preferably implemented as completely passively operating devices so that any change in a state variable to be detected itself generates the energy to transmit this change in the state variable to the central control unit via the corresponding sensor or corresponding device . for example , the sensors can be implemented as piezoelectric elements for detecting mechanical deformations , as pickup coils for detecting electromagnetic signals by means of induction , or the like . fig2 shows a block diagram of the individual components of an apparatus according to the invention according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention . as can be seen in fig2 , the central control unit 9 , as already explained above , is connected to sensors 3 , an energy detection device 4 of the generator 5 and an energy detection device 4 ′ of the interposed energy storage device 6 . the central control unit 9 thus registers the instantaneously available energy of the generator 5 and of the interposed energy storage device 6 as well as the instantaneous operating state of the wheel by analyzing the data received by the individual devices 3 , 4 and 4 ′. as is also illustrated in fig2 , the central control unit 9 is connected to the electronic wheel unit 2 or the wheel electronics 2 e . g . via a radio link . the wheel electronics 2 are in turn connected , for energy feeding of same , to the generator 5 via the energy storage device 6 . the energy storage device 6 preferably has charging electronics 7 which convert the signals received from the energy - generating generator 5 in a suitable manner and condition them for direct use for the energy storage device 6 . the central control unit 9 generates from one or more signals of one or more sensors 3 an associated signal which characterizes the instantaneous operating state of the wheel 1 . for example , this resulting signal can represent one or more of the following operating states of the wheel 1 : start of driving , e . g . a predetermined time interval after moving off ; initialization , whereby an initialization procedure is executed preferably on the vehicle receiver ; localization , whereby a localization procedure is executed e . g . likewise on the vehicle receiver ; a risk operating state , e . g . for a detected below - threshold pressure and / or a detected above - threshold speed ; a dangerous operating state , e . g . for greatly below - threshold pressure or the like . in addition , the data of the energy detection devices 4 and / or 4 ′ can be evaluated separately by the central control unit 9 or in conjunction with the signals of the sensors 3 . thus , for example , a resulting signal indicating e . g . the charging state of the energy system comprising the generator 5 and the energy storage device 6 can also be generated by the central control unit 9 . for example , it can be registered by the central control unit 9 that the energy system is in a charging state e . g . in the event of high available energy at the generator output and / or of a low fill level of the energy storage device 6 . in addition , the central control unit 9 can if necessary also indicate a discharging state of the energy system by a correspondingly assigned signal if , for example , low available energy is present at the generator output and / or a high fill level of the energy storage device 6 is available . the control unit 9 transmits the signal characterizing the driving condition of the wheel 1 and the energy state of the energy system to the electronic wheel unit 2 and controls the operation of the electronic wheel unit 2 such that a mode of the electronic wheel unit 2 matched to the detected instantaneous driving condition and the instantaneously available energy is executed . accordingly , the operation or mode of the electronic wheel unit 2 is controlled as a function of the signals registered by the central control unit 9 and thus the energy consumption of the wheel electronics 2 is controlled by the central control unit 9 in a cost - effective manner matched to the wheel and energy state . for example , the central control unit 9 suitably adjusts : the transmitting frequency of the wheel electronics depending on the signals detected , i . e . as a function of the driving condition of the wheel 1 and of the energy reservoir available from the energy system ; the measuring frequency of the wheel electronics ; the repetition frequency of a radio telegram to improve transmission reliability ; the precision of the measurements of the wheel electronics ; selection as to which measurements are performed by the wheel electronics ; a transition to or from a power saving mode of the wheel electronics , connection of the wheel electronics to the energy storage device , or the like . the central control unit 9 thus influences the response of the electronic wheel unit 2 as a function of the detected signals in order , for example , during particularly important operating states , to ensure operation which at least temporarily consumes more energy than is instantaneously available from the generator 5 . during comparatively less important operating states , the functionality is in some cases reduced below the degree available from the available energy of the generator 5 in order to charge or top up the energy storage device 6 to compensate for the energy previously over - consumed or to be over - consumed . thus even during operating states in which , at the start of driving , for example , insufficient energy can be generated or made available , a reliable functionality matched to the driving condition is guaranteed for the electronic wheel unit 2 without needing to use additional auxiliary batteries . the central control unit 9 implements , together with the suitably dimensioned energy storage element 6 , a situation - dependent response of the electronic wheel unit 2 which eliminates the limited availability of known generators . increasing the operational readiness of the electronic wheel unit 2 in this way , particularly in the initial driving phase , allows reliable localization and / or initialization of the associated wheels . although the present invention has been described above with reference to preferred embodiments , it is not limited thereto but can be modified in a variety of ways . for example , the electronic wheel unit 2 can be directly connected to the generator 5 to supply it with energy , the energy storage device 6 only being used to supply the electronic wheel unit 2 with energy in the event of particular detected operating states .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

fig1 shows a first embodiment of the invention in diagrammatic view . the torque transfer device 1 has a first clutch device 10 and a second clutch device 12 . the second clutch device 12 has a drive device 14 as well as an actuating device 16 coupled thereto and shown in marked diagrammatic form . the drive device 14 can load the actuating device 16 which in turn can cause the second clutch device 12 to be shifted into different shift positions . these shift positions are designed so that in at least a first shift position a torque can be transferred between the input part 18 and the second clutch device 12 and the output part 20 of the second clutch device 12 and in at least one second shift position the input part 18 is uncoupled from the output part 20 so that between these parts 18 , 20 there can be no torque transfer . where necessary in at least a third shift position of the second clutch device 12 a restricted torque can be transferred between the input part 18 and the output part 20 . this means in particular that a torque introduced into the second clutch device 12 is completely transferred insofar as this torque is less than a predetermined limit torque . if the torque introduced into the second clutch device 12 is greater than this predetermined limit torque then only this predetermined limit torque is transferred . the second clutch device 12 is a friction clutch so that the second clutch device 12 slips when a torque introduced in a third shift position is greater than the predetermined limit torque . the second clutch device 12 has in particular , but not shown in more detail , a stop coupled to the input part 18 as well as a contact pressure plate . at least one clutch disc is mounted in the axial direction between this stop and this contact pressure plate and is coupled to the output part 20 or is the actual output part . more particularly the clutch disc is coupled on the output side through a spring and / or damper device and under predetermined conditions can transfer torque through this spring and / or damping device . the second clutch device 12 is a self - sustaining start - up clutch so that the second clutch device 12 is shifted substantially in a closed shift position when it is not actuated or is not loaded by the actuating device . the input part 18 of the second clutch device 12 is coupled to a crankshaft 22 of a vehicle which is loaded by an internal combustion engine whose cylinders 24 are shown diagrammatically . the output part 20 of the second clutch device 12 is coupled to a first shaft 26 — where necessary through a spring and / or damper device — and can transfer torque at least in part to this first shaft 26 . several wheels 28 , 30 , 32 , 34 , 36 are disposed on the first shaft 26 , each associated with a transmission stage or gear stage and in this case are spur wheels . each of these wheels 28 , 30 , 32 , 34 , 36 engages in a wheel 38 , 40 , 42 , 44 , 46 which is mounted on a second shaft 48 . the second shaft 48 is mounted parallel to the first shaft 26 . the wheel pairings 28 - 38 , 30 - 40 , 32 - 42 , 34 - 44 , 36 - 46 respectively are each associated with a transmission stage or a gear stage , namely preferably in this sequence the fifth to first gear . in the embodiment according to fig1 these transmission stages or gear stages are arranged on the first 26 or second shaft 48 so that the highest of these gear stages faces the second clutch device 12 or the internal combustion engine ( not shown ) and the transmission stage of the first gear is mounted on the output side or faces a drive axle of a motor vehicle with torque transfer device 1 wherein between the first and fifth gear stage the remaining gear stages are arranged in numerical sequence . each of these gear stages 28 - 38 , 30 - 40 , 32 - 42 , 34 - 44 , 36 - 46 has a spur wheel 28 , 30 , 42 , 44 , 46 which is mounted rotatable on the first 26 or second shaft 48 . another wheel or the other wheel 38 , 40 , 32 , 34 , 36 of these transmission stages is mounted rotationally secured on each other of these shafts 26 , 48 respectively . these rotatably mounted spur wheels 28 , 30 , 42 , 44 , 46 are in particular mounted on the first 26 or second shaft 48 so that at least one further rotatably mounted spur wheel 28 , 30 , 42 , 44 , 46 is mounted adjoining each of these rotatably mounted spur wheels 28 , 30 , 42 , 44 , 46 . a further spur wheel 50 mounted on the first shaft 26 and a further spur wheel 52 mounted on the second shaft 48 is associated with a further transmission stage or gear stage . a further toothed wheel 54 is connected in between these toothed wheels 50 , 52 wherein the toothed wheel 50 engages in the toothed wheel 54 and the toothed wheel 54 engages in the toothed wheel 52 . the effect of this interposed toothed wheel 54 is that the rotational direction of the toothed wheels 50 , 52 is identical or that with the same rotational direction of the first shaft the rotational direction of the second shaft with the switched transmission stage 50 - 54 - 52 in comparison with the transmission stages 28 - 38 , 30 - 40 , 32 - 42 , 34 - 44 , 36 - 46 is opposite . the transmission stages or gear transmission stages 28 - 38 , 30 - 40 , 32 - 42 , 34 - 44 , 36 - 46 are in particular designed as forward gears whilst the transmission or gear stage 50 - 54 - 52 is designed as reverse gear . the power shift transmission stage mentioned below likewise preferably acts as forward gear . the spur wheel 52 of the reverse gear stage or transmission stages 50 - 54 - 52 is mounted rotatable on the second shaft and the spur wheel 50 is mounted rotationally secured on the first shaft 26 . adjacent the spur wheels 28 , 30 , 42 , 44 , 46 , 52 of the gears or gear stages or transmission stages 28 - 38 , 30 - 40 , 32 - 42 , 34 - 44 , 36 - 46 or 50 - 54 - 52 mounted rotatable on the first 26 and second shaft 48 respectively are third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 which can each be shifted into different shift positions . by means of these third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 it is possible to couple the spur wheels 28 , 30 , 42 , 44 , 46 , 52 which are mounted movable on the first 26 and second shaft 48 respectively to the relevant shaft 26 , 48 in a rotationally secured manner . in the illustration according to fig1 the spur wheels 28 , 30 , 32 , 44 , 46 , 52 which are mounted rotatable on the first 26 and second shaft 48 respectively , as well as the third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 are each designed and arranged so that the third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 are each mounted between two rotatably mounted spur wheels of the transmission stages and in different shift positions can couple each one of these each adjoining spur wheels to the relevant shaft 26 , 48 whereby these third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 can be shifted in particular in each one further shift position in which they couple none of the adjoining spur wheels 28 , 30 , 42 , 44 , 46 , 52 mounted rotatable on the first 26 and second shaft 48 respectively to the said first 26 or second shaft 48 . it is thus proposed in particular that the third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 are each associated with two spur wheels of the transmission stages . the third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 are actuated or shifted by an actuating device 62 which if necessary has a transmission stage 64 . the actuating device 62 is loaded by a drive device which has a first electric motor 66 as well as a second electric motor 68 . the actuating device 62 is designed so that in the event of load through the first electric motor 66 the actuating device can be shifted into a shift position from which each one predetermined gear stage can be engaged and this predetermined gear stage can be engaged through the second electric motor 66 . preferably the actuating device 62 or a predetermined component part ( not shown ) of the actuating device 62 , such as shift shaft , when shifting into a predetermined shift position from which a gear can be engaged , during the so - called selection , on the one hand , and on shifting into a predetermined gear stage , during the so - called shifting , on the other hand , can be moved or loaded in different directions . these different movement or load directions are in particular each caused through one of the different electric motors 66 , 68 . these different motion or load directions can be for example in the case of a shift shaft such that this is loaded or moved in the circumferential direction on the one hand and in the axial direction on the other . between the first shaft 26 and the second shaft 48 is a further transmission stage which has a wheel 70 mounted rotatable on the first shaft and formed here as a spur wheel , as well as a wheel 72 mounted rotationally secured on the second shaft 48 . this transmission stage 70 - 72 is designed as a power shift transmission stage . the transmission ratio of the power shift transmission stage is designed so that it is greater than the transmission ratios of the gear stages . the power shift transmission stage 70 - 72 is mounted on the output side of the gear transmission stages 28 - 38 , 30 - 40 , 32 - 42 , 34 - 44 , 36 - 46 , 50 - 52 . the spur wheel 70 of the power shift transmission stage mounted rotationally movable on the first shaft 26 is coupled rotationally fixed to the output part 72 of the first clutch device 10 . the input part 74 of the first clutch device 10 is coupled rotationally secured to the first shaft 26 . the first clutch device 10 formed as a friction clutch can be shifted into different shift positions by means of a drive device 78 as well as an actuating device 80 whereby in a first shift position the input part 74 is substantially uncoupled from the output part 72 and is coupled in at least a further shift position and is designed in at least one further shift position so that torque can be transferred in part , thus in particular restricted to a predetermined value , between the input part 74 and the output part 72 of the first clutch device 10 . to this end the drive device 78 of the first clutch device 10 generates a drive signal and transfers this to the actuating device 80 of the first clutch device 10 which in dependence on the drive signal generates an actuating force with which the release mechanism 82 is loaded . the release mechanism 82 of the first clutch device 10 is shifted into different shift positions in dependence on the drive signal or actuating force . according to the invention it is proposed that the elasticity of the unit comprising the drive device 78 and actuating device 80 amounts to at least 50 % of the elasticity of the release mechanism 82 . the gear transmission stages 28 - 38 , 30 - 40 , 32 - 42 , 34 - 44 , 36 - 46 as well as 50 - 54 - 52 as well as the power shift transmission stage 70 - 72 are mounted between the first clutch device 10 and the second clutch device 12 , seen in the axial direction of the first shaft 26 . according to one aspect the torque transfer device according to the invention functions as follows : if a motor vehicle with torque transfer device 1 according to the invention is to be operated in a predetermined gear stage , and a shift process between different gears is not initiated or is terminated , thus between the first and second shaft a torque is to be transferred through the transmission stage 28 - 38 , or 30 - 40 or 32 - 42 or 34 - 44 or 36 - 46 or 50 - 54 - 52 , then the second clutch device 12 is in a closed shift position and the first clutch device 10 is in an open shift position . thus torque is transferred from the crankshaft 22 to the input part 18 of the second clutch device 12 . since the second clutch device 12 is in a closed shift position this torque is passed on — at least in part — to the first shaft 26 . one of the third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 connects one of the rotationally mounted spur wheels 28 , 30 , 42 , 44 , 46 , 52 rotationally secured to the first 26 or second shaft 48 . the remaining of these third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 are shifted in an open position so that the remaining rotationally mounted toothed wheels can rotate on the shaft 26 or 48 . in the following it is assumed by way of example that as starting transmission stage , thus as the transmission stage from which at a later point in time a shift will be made into another transmission stage , the transmission stage of the first gear is shifted so that from the first shaft 26 a torque is transferred through the spur wheel 36 to the spur wheel 46 and from this spur wheel 46 through the closed third clutch device 60 to the second shaft 48 . since the first clutch device 10 is shifted in an opened shift position the torque from the first shaft 26 which loads the input part 74 of the first clutch device 10 is not transferred through the first clutch device 10 to the output part 72 of the first clutch device 10 and thus the spur wheel 70 of the power shift transmission stage 70 - 72 so that the spur wheel 72 of the power shift transmission stage mounted on the second shaft 48 is substantially not loaded by the spur wheel 70 of the power shift transmission stage mounted on the first shaft 26 . if it is to be shifted into a different gear stage , here it may be assumed that it is to be shifted into the gear stage of the third gear , a signal is sent from a control device ( not shown ) to the first drive device 78 . this signal has the effect that the clutch device 10 is closed at least in part . the concrete shift position of the first clutch device 10 which is initially controlled by the control device or drive device 78 or actuating device 80 depends in particular on predetermined characteristic values . such characteristic values can in particular be the engaged gear stage of the output gear , thus here the gear stage of first gear , or the transmission of this gear stage or the shaft on which the third clutch device of the output gear is mounted or the speed or torque of the first 26 or second shaft 48 or the like . the controlled shift position of the first clutch device 10 or release mechanism 82 of this third clutch device 10 is in particular designed so that it has the effect that the third clutch device 60 can be shifted into a shift position in which no torque is transferred between the toothed wheel 46 of the output gear or — here — the first gear stage and the third clutch device 60 . this shift is designed so that all third clutch devices 56 , 58 , 60 are shifted in an opened shift position and a torque is transferred between the first shaft 26 and second shaft 48 only through the power shift transmission stage 70 - 72 . the first clutch device 10 or the release mechanism 82 of the first clutch device is then controlled so that the torque transferred from this release mechanism 82 or this first clutch device 10 between the first shaft 26 or input part 74 of the first clutch device 10 and the output part 72 of the first clutch device 10 or toothed wheel 70 , or the transferred power or the speed of the first shaft 26 or the speed of the second shaft 48 is such that it enables the transmission stage 32 - 42 of the target gear — thus here the third gear — to be shifted by means of a third clutch device 58 without this third clutch device 58 and this toothed wheel 42 which is to be coupled with this third clutch device 58 having to be synchronised by means of synchronisation rings or the like . the target gear is then shifted . for the example where the target gear is third gear , the third clutch device 58 is shifted so that it connects the toothed wheel 42 mounted rotatable on the second shaft 48 to this second shaft 48 in rotationally secured manner . the first clutch device 10 is then opened again so that the torque between the first shaft 26 and the second shaft 48 is transferred completely through the target gear stage , thus here the transmission stage 32 - 42 of third gear . the embodiment according to fig2 differs from the embodiment according to fig1 in particular in that the first clutch device 10 and the second clutch device 12 are mounted on the input side of the power shift transmission stage 70 , 72 as well as on the input side of the gear stages 28 - 38 , 30 - 40 , 32 - 42 , 34 - 44 , , 36 - 46 , 50 - 52 . furthermore the first clutch device 10 as well as the second clutch device 12 are mounted in a common clutch housing 100 . furthermore a common drive device 102 as well as a common actuating device 104 is provided for the first clutch device 10 as well as the second clutch device 12 . the elasticity of this drive device 102 as well as this actuating device 104 is designed so that the elasticity of the unit comprising the drive device 102 as well as the actuating device 104 in the direction of the force transfer stretch amounts to at least 50 % of the elasticity of the release mechanism 82 in the direction of the force transfer stretch . fig3 shows an embodiment of a first clutch device 10 according to the invention by way of example with a drive device 110 , an actuating device 112 as well as a release device 114 . the actuating device 112 is shown in marked diagrammatic form . the actuating device has a transmission stage 116 , a release bearing 118 as well as component parts 120 , 122 , 124 . the elasticities of the drive device and its component parts are shown in diagrammatic form through the springs 126 , 128 . the first clutch device 10 has an input part 130 , which has a stop 132 , as well as a clutch cover 134 . the clutch device 10 furthermore has an output part 72 . the contact pressure plate 138 can be displaced relative to the stop 132 or relative to the clutch disc which is designed elastic and is therefore represented as a spring 140 , through a release lever 136 which is shown in fig3 in two different shift positions and which can be loaded by the actuating device 112 . the release lever 136 is supported against the contact pressure plate 138 as well as against the clutch cover 134 . the clutch cover 134 has in the direction of the release path which is shown diagrammatically by the arrow 140 , an elasticity which is shown diagrammatically by the spring 142 . a resetting spring 144 has the effect that the clutch disc is relaxed or the contact pressure plate 138 is moved back towards its starting position when the release lever 136 is relaxed or the load exerted by the released lever 136 on the contact pressure plate 138 is reduced . the clutch disc is coupled rotationally secured to the output part 72 . the release mechanism 82 has in particular the release lever 136 , the clutch cover 134 as well as the clutch disc . according to the invention it is proposed that the elasticity of the unit comprising the drive device 110 and actuating device 112 amounts to at least 50 % of the elasticity of the release mechanism 82 , namely in particular in the direction of the force transfer stretch . it should be noted that the elasticities of the release mechanism 82 are in particular the elasticities which influence the maximum release path wherein the release path strictly speaking can also be an engagement path . by elasticity which is given in the direction of the force transfer stretch is meant in particular the elasticity which is given between predetermined load engagement points . with the release lever loaded by torque the decisive elasticity is in particular that which is given between the force engagement point 146 in the region of the release bearing and the force engagement point 148 in the region of the contact pressure plate or between one of these points 146 , 148 and the force engagement point 150 on the clutch cover , namely in particular in the direction of the forces or initiated and forwarded forces or in the direction of the force transfer stretch in the region of the force introduction and force forwarding . with this release lever loaded by torque the elasticity in the direction of the lever axis is thus not absolutely decisive . fig4 shows an embodiment by way of example of the torque transfer device 10 according to the invention wherein in this illustration according to fig4 compared to the illustration according to fig3 the clutch disc 160 is shown not as a diagrammatic spring , but as a clutch disc and wherein the elasticities 142 , 126 , 128 are not shown . in the actuating device 112 between the release bearing 118 and a transmission stage 116 there is an elastic device 162 which has the effect that the elasticity of the unit comprising the drive device 110 and actuating device 112 amounts to at least 50 % of the elasticity of the release mechanism 82 . this elastic device 162 is in particular a device which serves substantially only to increase the elasticity of the operating stretch or actuating device 112 and otherwise could be replaced by another component part such as a rigid component part wherein if necessary then the release device would be designed elastically . it is thus in particular proposed that the release device has compared to the known devices a reduced elasticity whilst the actuating device 112 and / or the drive device 110 has an increased elasticity . fig5 shows an embodiment of the invention by way of example which differs from the illustration according to fig4 substantially in that the elastic device is mounted between the transmission stage 116 and the drive device 110 . fig6 shows an embodiment of the invention by way of example in diagrammatic form whose release mechanism 82 is designed substantially as was described with reference to fig4 and 5 . the actuating device 112 of the third clutch device has a hydrostatic stretch 170 which has a master cylinder 172 , a master piston 174 , a slave cylinder 176 as well as a slave piston 178 . the master piston is loaded by mechanical components 180 , 182 , 184 wherein a transmission stage 186 is arranged where necessary in the region of these components . the master cylinder 172 is connected to the slave cylinder 176 through a hydraulic pipeline assembly 188 . inside this hydraulic pipeline assembly a pipeline 190 branches off and opens into a cylinder 192 . inside this cylinder is a spring device or elastic device 194 which is tensioned between a wall 196 of the cylinder 192 and a piston mounted inside the cylinder 192 . the mechanical component parts 180 , 182 , 184 are coupled to a rotatably mounted component part 200 . this rotationally mounted component part is loaded by an electric motor 110 or its output shaft 202 . the rotational movement of this rotationally mounted component part 220 which is conditioned through the load by means of the electric motor 110 is converted into a substantially linear movement by means of the mechanical component parts 180 , 182 , 184 . this linear movement or linear force acts on the master piston 174 , and thus on the fluid in the hydraulic pipeline assembly 188 . thus the slave piston is loaded which through the adjoining component parts of the actuating device 112 acts on the release lever 136 . an additional elasticity of the actuating stretch 170 or inside the actuating device 112 is effected in that a part of the hydraulic fluid loaded through the master piston 174 is compressed inside the hydraulic assembly 188 through the branch pipe 190 into the cylinder 192 whereby this movement of the hydraulic fluid is counteracted by the spring force of the spring device 194 . it is hereby effected that the elasticity of the force transfer stretch inside the actuating device 112 is increased . fig7 shows an embodiment of the invention by way of example which differs from the embodiment according to fig6 through the configuration of the actuating device 112 . the actuating device 112 has a mechanical stretch 240 within which a spring device 242 is provided . this spring device is in particular configured and arranged so that a piston 244 is connected to the cylinder 246 through the spring device 242 . this device 242 , 244 , 246 is in particular provided for the purpose of increasing the elasticity of the actuating device 112 . fig8 shows an embodiment by way of example of a torque transfer device according to the invention in which an elastic device is provided inside the drive device 272 of the first clutch device 10 . the drive device 272 has a device 200 mounted rotatable and loaded by an electric motor 110 and which is in particular a worm gear and to which a component part 184 is coupled which can convert the rotational movement of this rotationally mounted component part 200 into a linear movement of the component part 182 . spring devices 274 , 276 , 278 , 280 are supported in the circumferential direction on this rotationally mounted device and have the effect that in the event of load through the electric motor 110 this load is counteracted by spring forces of the spring device 274 , 276 , 278 , 280 . the overall elasticity of the drive device 272 of the first clutch device 10 is thus increased . the actuating device 112 is shown in marked diagrammatic form in fig8 . the combinations of the elastic ( additional ) devices illustrated in fig6 to 8 are preferred according to the invention . fig9 shows a force - path diagram of an elastic device of the actuating device and / or drive device which is provided according to the invention . as the characteristic line 280 clearly shows the force - path behaviour of the elastic device can be degressive or as shown by the characteristic line 282 linear or as shown by the characteristic line 284 as progressive . fig1 shows by way of example the elastic behaviour of component parts of a torque transfer device according to the invention . the right boundary line of the relevant fields is each time a force - path characteristic line of a device relating to the left boundary line of these relevant fields . the field 290 shows the elasticity of the drive device . the field 292 shows the elasticity of the stretch of actuating device . the fields 290 , 292 hereby do not take into account the elasticity of additional elastic elements inside the drive or actuating device . the field 294 shows the elasticity of an ( additional ) elastic device which is mounted in the actuating device and / or release mechanism . the elasticity of this additional elastic device is preferably greater than the elasticity of the drive device or the elasticity of the actuating device or the elasticity of the unit comprising the drive device and actuating device . the field 296 shows the elasticity of the release lever and the field 298 the elasticity of the clutch cover 134 . the field 300 shows the elasticity of the clutch disc or the unit comprising the clutch disc and resetting spring of the release mechanism . in fig1 the force produced by the drive device or the drive force of the release mechanism or the force with which the actuating device loads the release lever is mounted on the vertical axis . the fields 290 , 292 , 294 show elasticities of the actuating and / or drive device . the fields 296 , 298 , 300 show elasticities of the release mechanism . the path 302 which is given in the event of maximum force 304 corresponds to the release path of the clutch device . in the illustration given by way of example in fig1 the elasticity of the clutch disc and the resetting spring is greater than the elasticity of the clutch cover 134 . the elasticity of the clutch lever is likewise greater than the elasticity of the clutch cover 134 . the elasticity of the clutch disc as well as the resetting spring or the unit comprising clutch disc and resetting spring is smaller or larger than the elasticity of the clutch lever . the elasticity of the elastic device which is mounted in the actuating device or the drive device is greater than the elasticity of the release lever as well as greater than the elasticity of the clutch cover 134 as well as greater than the elasticity of the unit comprising clutch disc and resetting spring . the elasticity of the elastic device indicated by the field 294 is linear in the illustration according to fig1 . fig1 shows a force - path diagram which indicates the elasticities according to fig1 wherein the elasticity of the elastic device indicated by the field 294 is here designed to be degressive . it should be pointed out that through progressive characteristic lines or progressive elasticity behaviour , more particularly of the elastic device , it is possible to finely tune the overall system for lower torques whilst through degressive characteristics it is possible to finely tune the system to high torques . the size ratios of the elasticities relate in particular to the elasticities which are given in the event of the maximum load with which the drive device loads the release mechanism during operation , and where applicable also to lower loads . fig1 shows corresponding to the illustrations of fig1 and 11 the elasticities of a known torque transfer device opposite those of a torque transfer device according to the invention wherein the right hand illustration corresponds substantially to the illustration of fig1 . the elasticity of the drive device of the known torque transfer device is indicated through the field 320 . the elasticity of the elastic stretch or actuating device of the known torque transfer device is indicated through the field 322 . the elasticity of the release lever of the known torque transfer device is indicated through the field 324 . the elasticity of the clutch cover 134 of the known torque transfer device is indicated through the field 326 . the elasticity of the clutch disc as well as the resetting spring of the known torque transfer device is indicated through the field 328 . as can be seen from comparing the illustrations according to fig1 the known torque transfer device does not have an elasticity of an additional elastic device indicated by the field 294 . consequently the elasticity of the known release mechanism which corresponds substantially to the release path 330 is clearly greater than the elasticity 332 of the unit comprising the drive device and actuating device in the event of maximum load 304 . as opposed to this with the same maximum load 304 the elasticity 334 of the unit comprising the actuating device and drive device is at least 50 % of the elasticity of the release mechanism . consequently in the known release mechanism at maximum load 304 the release path 330 is clearly greater than the path displacement 332 moved in the drive device or actuating device . in the torque transfer device according to the invention the path displacement effected in the actuating device as well as drive device at maximum load 304 is at least 50 % of the release path 302 . the patent claims filed with the application are proposed wordings without prejudice for obtaining wider patent protection . the applicant retains the right to claim further features disclosed up until now only in the description and / or drawings . references used in the sub - claims refer to further designs of the subject of the main claim through the features of each relevant sub - claim ; they are not to be regarded as dispensing with obtaining an independent subject protection for the features of the sub - claims referred to . since the subjects of the sub - claims can form independent and proper inventions in respect of the prior art known on the priority date the applicant reserves the right to make them the subject of independent claims and partial declarations . they can also contain independent inventions which have a configuration independent of the subjects of the preceding sub - claims . the embodiments are not to be regarded as a restriction of the invention . rather within the scope of the present disclosure numerals modifications and amendments are possible , particularly those variations , elements and combinations and / or materials which e . g . through a combination or modification of individual features or elements or method steps described in connection with the general description and embodiments as well as claims and are contained in the drawings can be drawn on by the expert with a view to solving the problem posed by the invention and which through a combination of features lead to a new subject or new method steps or sequence of method steps , where they relate to manufacturing , test and work processes .

5Mechanical Engineering; Lightning; Heating; Weapons; Blasting

fig1 is a block diagram of a pulse oximeter system incorporating a calibration memory element 56 according to the invention . in one embodiment , memory element 56 is a two - lead semiconductor digital memory chip . the calibration element is part of the sensor 50 which also includes red and infrared leds 52 as in the prior art , along with a detector 54 . if desired , leds 52 may be replaced with other light emitting elements such as lasers . the oximeter includes read circuit 60 , drive circuit 66 , look - up tables 62 and 63 , controller 64 , amplifier 72 , filter 74 , and analog - to - digital converter 76 . read circuit 60 is provided for reading multiple coded values across the two leads 51 , 53 connected to calibration element 56 . one value is provided to a look - up table 62 to determine appropriate wavelength dependent coefficients for the oxygen saturation calculation , as in the prior art . the other value ( s ) are then provided to another look up table ( s ) 63 which provides input ( e . g ., coefficients ) to other calculations performed by controller 64 . these additional calculations may enhance the performance and / or safety of the system . controller 64 provides signals to a drive circuit 66 , to control the amount of drive current provided to leds 52 . memory 56 may , for example , be implemented as a random access memory ( ram ), a flash memory , a programmable read only memory ( prom ), an electrically erasable prom , a similar programmable and / or erasable memory , any kind of erasable memory , a write once memory , or other memory technologies capable of write operations . as in the prior art , detector 54 is connected through an amplifier 72 and a filter 74 to an a / d converter 76 . this forms a feedback path used by controller 64 to adjust the drive current to optimize the intensity range of the signal received . for proper operation the signal must be within the analog range of the circuits employed . the signal should also be well within the range of a / d converter 76 ( e . g ., one rule that may be applied is to adjust led drives and amplifier gains so that both red and ir signals fall between 40 % and 80 % of full scale reading of converter 76 ). this requires correct and independent settings for both the red and infrared leds . numerous types of data can be stored in memory chip 56 . some of these types of data are now discussed . the motion - signal algorithm here refers to the sensors designed to be used where “ motion provides the signal ”, i . e ., the cardiac pulse need not be present or discernible in order for the oximeter to provide sp 0 2 values . instead , the red and ir waveforms resulting from the motion itself are used for determining the arterial saturation ( see e . g ., u . s . pat . no . 6 , 018 , 673 ). this feature is possible for tissue beds that are well “ arterialized ” ( a large supply of arterial blood relative to the metabolic needs of the tissue ) resulting in a small aterio - venous saturation difference , as well as other signal characteristics that are not germane to this discussion . we have observed that the necessary degree of arterialization correlates well to being “ well perfused ” at the tissue site , which itself correlates well to the tissue bed being warm . thus by monitoring the temperature of the skin at the sensor site , and by knowing a value of temperature ( programmed into the memory chip ) at which the “ motion - signal ” algorithm can be utilized for the specific sensor design being used , improved reading accuracy through motion can be better accomplished . an electro - chemical or thermal device that senses and stores to memory the number of exposures ( zero , once , or potentially more than once or the actual number ) to sterilization cycles could be used to capture the history of the sensor . excessive exposure to sterilization cycles degrades a number of components in the sensor , and can affect its performance . a sensor exceeding a certain number of exposures could cause a display to indicate the sensor needs to be replaced . data encryption utilizes private and / or public keys to scramble the data written to the memory chip and later decipher the data so that only authorized devices are supported . to further prevent the use with a monitor that isn &# 39 ; t certified to provide correct results , the sensor manufacturing system could periodically change the private and / or public keys . the change in the key could be communicated to the instrument via the memory chip in encrypted form . the purpose of this feature is to elevate the level of security in the memory system . this might be used in a scheme in which the memory chip was on the bandage , not in the connector . this combines a mems accelerometer with any of several different chips that might usefully be placed in the sensor head ; local digitizing chip , preamp chip , memory chip . accelerometer data may be used to warn of the presence of motion ( in which case special algorithms may be called into play or oximetry may be suspended ), or actually to help correct for motion ( to the extent to which we can produce algorithms which can predict physio - optic effects of known motion ). the amount of optical shunting could be measured for each sensor , or family of sensors . the value would be stored in the sensory memory for the monitor to read and use to adjust the processing coefficients . this might be used , e . g ., in overseeing the operation of an actively warmed sensor ( i . e ., a sensor provided with a low - power heating or warming surface ). there is preferably a thermal cutout in the control system of actively warmed sensors , that causes operation to terminate if the sensor goes over a certain temperature . this is a necessary component of protecting the patient against burns . if the reason for a high sensor temperature is that the environment is warm , it could be quite acceptable to continue oximetry , even though warmer operation would be shut down . in the absence of knowledge about environmental temperature , a high temperature reading might have to be assumed to mean that something was wrong with the sensor , in which case all operation might have to cease . an environmental temperature sensor in the plug could help to tell which rule to apply . the memory chip could record the calibration of the device used for thermometry . in legacy oximetry sensors there is a resistor which is selected and installed in the sensor connector , to correspond to the wavelength of the red led , as described in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 700 , 708 . the wavelength difference from led to led has an impact on the calibration of the saturation measurement , if not compensated for . oximeters designed for such sensors will read the value of resistance and adjust its calculation accordingly . when adding the memory chip , memory compatible oximeters will be able to obtain the necessary calibration coefficients from the memory chip but the legacy instruments will still need a calibration resistor value . with a resistance properly built - in to the chip and trimmed or selected at sensor manufacture , only one device would need to be installed in the sensor connector . that would reduce the overall - cost , yet keep the sensor compatible with both the legacy instruments and the new memory compatible instruments . when making measurements of the resistance that is placed in the sensor , for calibration information purposes , one of the factors that can influence that measurement is the contact resistance of the connectors that are between the oximeter and the resistor itself . in order to compensate for connectors that are significant in their impact on the measure , one could encode the contact resistance of the connector and subtract that algorithmically from the measured resistance to get a more accurate measurement of the resistance of the calibration resistor . this would enhance the accuracy with which the resistance measurement is made and therefore make the instrument less prone to miscalculation and therefore inaccuracies in maturation calculation and display . one of the interfering noise sources that can have an effect on oximetry is that of common mode electrical noise . this can come from the surrounding electrical environment . other instruments , lights , drills etc . can produce electrical fields that can couple into the cable between the patient and the oximeter . once coupled - in , they can make measurements more difficult , less accurate or not possible , depending on the severity of the noise . to help reduce this common mode noise , differential amplifiers are used for amplifying the signal from the sensor . these amplifiers amplify only the difference between two signal wires . thus , if the common mode signal is coupled exactly the same into both wires , the amplifier will not amplify it because the same signal is present on both wires . if the two wires have different coupling to their electrical environment then they will present different signals and the difference will be amplified as if it were a signal . one component that influences this coupling is the capacitance of the lines to the outside world . this is affected by the manufacture of the cable , materials , twists in the wire , etc . if one measures the cable during manufacture and then stores that information in the memory chip , it can be read when the oximeter is operating . once the capacitance for the two wires to the shield are known the instrument can be provided with a tunable capacitance device that balances the two lines and makes the noise coupling to the lines better matched . this reduces the amount of susceptibility to the external noise that becomes coupled into the patient cable . reduced noise results in better measurements or the ability to make measurements on some patients at all . another potential source of interference with pulse oximetry sensors is the interference caused by ambient light in the environment reaching the sensor &# 39 ; s photodetector . this can be made worse when a sensor comes loose or the ambient light is extremely high in value . by characterizing the sensor during manufacture or by its design one can know the level of ambient light that can be tolerated , and give a warning to the operator when the level has been exceeded . an external measure of ambient light by the pulse oximeter monitor provides operators the opportunity to adjust the sensor , the light , or both to effect an improvement in the performance of the oximeter . this can be accomplished , e . g ., with a photodetector positioned on or near the pulse oximeter . the stronger the pulsatile signal the better the chances are of measuring the saturation accurately . one way to enhance the modulation percentage is to apply pressure in the range of the median pulsatile pressure or the mean arterial pressure . when implemented , one can use relatively low cost transducers and supply calibration coefficients in the memory to allow accurate pressure readings to be made . the memory can also contain the pressure settings and / or expected modulation enhancement capability to determine effectiveness of the pressure enhancement . a moisture sensor or impedance sensor can detect the amount of wetness of the sensor . this can be used for different purposes , and can be stored in the sensor memory for trending or monitoring . a ) to determine sensor malfunction ( e . g ., oxicliq ). the sensor can be disabled if the wetness exceeds a threshold , which could be stored in the sensor memory . b ) patient isolation . some sensors may not provide for isolation of the patient from the electronics for excessive wetness . the maximum allowable wetness could be stored in the sensor memory . the memory can store information about what parameters are to be analyzed and displayed when the extra wavelengths are used in the pulse oximeter sensor . oxygen saturation may be displayed when 2 wavelengths are used , while additional information could be displayed when an extra wavelength or more are used ( hct , cohb , etc .) while the present invention has been described herein with reference to particular embodiments thereof , a latitude of modification , various changes and substitutions are intended in the foregoing disclosure , and it will be appreciated that in some instances some features of the invention will be employed without a corresponding use of other features without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth . therefore , many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope and spirit of the present invention . it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed , but that the invention will include all embodiments and equivalents falling within the scope of the claims .

0Human Necessities

the reorganized lipid material in the atherogenic lesions according to the present invention is formed by a ldl fusion process in the vascular intima . the fusion process of the ldl produces heavy microemulsion droplets with increased dimensions and multiple apolipoprotein b copies on their surface , a situation in which new antigenic determinants of the apolipoprotein b are exposed , rendering the heavy microemulsion particle antigenic and immunogenic . the term &# 34 ; heavy microemulsion particle &# 34 ; as used throughout the specification means a microemulsion particle having a flotation density of about 1 . 00 - 1 . 24 g / ml . the fusion of the ldl was obtained in vitro in simple conditions not implying the modification of the ldl native state with regard to its oxidation state and reproducing simple ionic conditions most probably existing in an intima undergoing an atherogenic transformation . by immunizing experimental normal animals such as hamsters with this material containing only the reorganized lipid material of the ldl in a physiological saline , emulsified in a conventional adjuvant product it was possible to select specific b and t lymphocyte clones capable of reacting against a similar type of reorganized ldl material , immediately after its formation in the lesion - prone areas of the animals on an atherogenic diet . the syrian golden hamster was used ( nistor , a ., et al ., atherosclerosis , 1987 , 68 , 159 ), because of the great similarities between its lipoprotein metabolism and the human lipid metabolism ( spady , d . k ., et al ., proc . natl . acad . sci ., usa , 1983 , 80 , 3499 ). moreover , this animal was shown to develop obstructive coronary lesions at long diet times . the important advantage of this procedure is that the reorganized form of ldl exists only in the lesional areas , and these areas are the only target of the immune - competent lymphocyte clones selected by the immunization . by the immunization a reversion of the affected lesion - prone areas to the normal structure is induced and maintained . this management of the atherogenic lesions can be applied both prophylactically and therapeutically , as will be detailed below . the normal ldl metabolism is not affected , since the circulating form of the lipoprotein is the unmodified form . the ldl fusion in vivo is a lipoprotein modification leading to an increased capacity of the native ldl - based material to generate atherogenic lesions . the essence of the present invention is the development of a ldl fusion procedure in vitro , leading to a ldl - based material which is identical to the in vivo material . this type of material is both antigenic and immunogenic ( i . e ., it represents a non - self structure which has the capacity to select specific lymphocyte clones producing antibodies against it ). such a statement is based on the reaction of the immune system against the extracellular lipid material in the lesions , when the immunization and the diet were applied sequentially . 1 . ldl isolation and characterization ( standard methods were applied for said ldl isolation and characterization ). from the experimental animals the blood was obtained by cardiac puncture . from human subjects ( blood donors ) the blood was obtained by phlebotomy in standard conditions , after their informed consent . plasma was immediately obtained by low speed centrifugation . the ldl fraction was obtained from fresh plasma by single vertical spin density gradient ultracentrifugation ( chung , b . h ., et al ., j . lipid res ., 1980 , 21 , 284 ). the ldl purity was checked by immunochemical methods using affinity - purified anti hololdl polyclonal antibodies . the native state of the ldl was checked by the high performance liquid chromatography ( hplc ) quantitation of its molondialdehude ( mda ) content . the level found characterized the isolated lipoprotein as native ( berliner , j . a ., j . clin . invest ., 1980 , 85 , 1260 ). the integrity of the ldl apolipoprotein b , characterizing its native state was also checked by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis ( sds - page ). the ldl was transferred into half - diluted phosphate - buffered saline ( pbs ) containing 72 mm na +, 2 mm k +, 0 . 3 nm mg2 +, 0 . 45 mm ca2 +, by gel filtration on a 2 ml sephadex g - 25 column . the concentration of ca2 + was raised to 1 . 6 mm . these ionic concentrations are characteristic for the physiological saline solution used as a fusion buffer ( fb ). this buffer was found to be essential for the fusion procedure . it was found that ldl fusion may be obtained by two methods based on entirely different physico - chemical phenomena . the first method used the antibiotic bacitracin to fuse the lipoprotein . one of the unique properties of bacitracin is its pronounced amphipathic activity . said antibiotic material was then taken out from the fused preparation by a simple dialysis , due to its small molecular weight . after the dialysis the total removal of the antibiotic from the preparation was demonstrated by a specific bacitracin quantitation hplc method . ( see pavli , v . ; sokolic , m ., j . lig . chromatogr ., vol . 134 ( 1990 ), pp . 303 - 310 ). the same fusion effect was also induced by the neurohormone vasopressin , having similar structural features with the antibiotic bacitracin , at steady - state concentration levels found usually in the human plasma . the second method of ldl fusion was based on osmotic stress inducing the fusion process by osmoelastic coupling . the osmotic stress was generated by subjecting the ldl , transferred in fb to a dialysis against 20 % polymer solutions of polyethylene glycol ( peg ) 20 , 000 or dextran 40 , 000 . the in vitro work below was done for animal and human material . only the immunization work was done solely in animals . a . fusion by bacitracin . to 0 . 1 - 0 . 7 mg / ml ldl in fb , bacitracin was added from a fresh 70 mm solution to a final concentration of 0 . 35 mm and the preparation was incubated at 20 ° c . for 15 min . the best fusion yield was obtained at a bacitracin to apolipoprotein b ratio of 7 . 5 . at the end of the incubation period the ca2 + was chelated with ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid ( edta ) ( 2 mm final concentration ). an extensive dialysis of the preparation against 4 , 000 volumes of pbs followed . this dialyzed preparation was used for the immunization . b . fusion by vasopressin . to 0 . 1 - 0 . 7 mg / ml ldl in fb , vasopressin ( sigma chemical co ., usa ) was added from a fresh 1 mg / ml solution at the final concentration of 2 pg / ml and the preparation was incubated at 20 ° c . for 30 min . an extensive dialysis against 4 , 000 volumes of pbs followed . c . fusion by osmotic stress . the 0 . 1 - 0 . 7 mg / ml ldl solution in fb was subjected to a 15 min . dialysis at 20 ° c . against a 20 % solution of peg 20 , 000 or dextran 40 , 000 in water . the cutoff limit of the dialysis bag was 10 , 000 . an extensive dialysis against 4 , 000 volumes of pbs followed . bacitracin produced the ldl fusion in the presence of 1 . 6 mm ca2 + in 7 min . ; the equilibrium was attained for hamster ldl in 15 min . and for human ldl in 20 min . this was indicated by the turbidiby of the sample , monitored spectrophotometrically by absorption at 400 nm ( fig1 ). bacitracin was effective in inducing the ldl fusion from 0 . 35 mm to 0 . 35 pm . the concentration of vasopressin tested was in the physiological range ( 2 pg / ml ). the fusion phenomena were observed ultrastructurally by negative staining . the ldl preparation was formed from 20 nm particles of uniform size ( fig2 a ), floating at 1 . 06 g / ml in the gradient density ultracentrifugation ( fig2 b ). the fused preparation was formed from microemulsion droplets with dimensions ranging from 30 to 300 nm ( fig2 c ), floating in two bands at 1 . 21 and 1 . 24 g / ml ( fig2 d ). the dimensions and the flotation densities of the microemulsion droplets in the fused preparations were similar to the material isolated from the experimental hamster atherogenic lesions . it was also concluded that the change in the flotation density in both in vivo and in vitro material was due to the presence of multiple copies of apolipoprotein b on the surface of the microemulsion droplets . this conclusion was based on a correlative investigation of both in vivo and in vitro material from the experimental animals and of in vitro studies for the human material ; this correlative investigation comprised biochemistry , cytochemistry , immunochemistry , electron microscopy and work in vitro with isolated cells ( hamster monocytes ). the heavy microemulsion particles proved to have the same pattern of organization as the ldl : a core of neutral lipid stabilized in a hydrophilic medium by a phospholipid monolayer ( fig2 e ) in which multiple copies of the apolipoprotein b were embedded . by taking the ldl parameters as a basis , an estimation of the droplet surface / ldl surface would predict 2 copies of apolipoprotein b on the surface of a 30 nm particle and 225 copies on the surface of a 300 nm particle . this novel rearrangement of self molecules proved to be antigenic and immunogenic . animals were immunized by a conventional immunization scheme comprising a primary immunization with 50 μg of protein / animal ( mean weight 100 g ) and three secondary immunizations at two - week intervals with 25 μg of protein each , with the microemulsion obtained in vitro ; a group was hyperimmunized and received 7 secondary immunizations . then , these animals were given a hypercholesterolemic diet in the form of standard hamster chow supplemented with 5 % cholesterol and 15 % butter , for 7 , 14 , 30 and 60 days . after these diet times , 2 - 3 ml of blood were obtained by cardiac puncture for biochemical and immunochemical investigation , then the animals were sacrificed for the ultrastructural investigation of their lesions . the total cholesterol determinations in the sera of these animals indicated clearly their hypercholesterolemic state , by comparison with the values obtained from the atherogenic control animals . the only significant deviation from the control values was at 7 and 14 days of diet , when a significant increase in the level of circulating cholesterol was observed . the explanation of this increase in the level of circulating cholesterol was due to an immunosuppression phenomenon because of the unfused ldl present in the preparation . this immunosuppression was not present in the case of animals immunized with fused human ldl ( table 1 ). table 1__________________________________________________________________________cholesterol values in the experimental atherogenicanimals ( mg / dl ) immunized ( pooled sera ) with humannormalcontrol atherogenic immunized hyperimmunized fused ldl__________________________________________________________________________103 ± 7150 ( 7 days diet ) 327 ± 72 -- 126 ± 38200 ( 14 days diet ) 419 ± 73 -- 146 ± 16250 ( 30 days diet ) 258 ± 49 240 ± 76 244 ± 13300 ( 60 days diet ) 352 ± 96 -- __________________________________________________________________________ after this initial increase the cholesterol level dropped and reached the values comparable to that of the atherogenic unimmunized control . the circulating antimicroemulsion antibody titers determined by conventional enzyme - linked immunosorbent assay ( elisa ) showed measurable , but very low , antibody titers ( 2 to - 3 ) only at 7 days of diet . at all the other diet times , no measurable levels of circulating antibodies were detected , indicating that the immune reaction was localized to the lesional areas , as it will be detailed below . the cross - reactivity of the sera from the antigen - challenged animals ( immunized animals receiving an atherogenic diet ) with the homologous ldl was tested and a negative result was obtained . the effect of the immunization was tested on lesion development in the region of the aortic valve rings . this area was particularly susceptible to the atherogenic diet , developing fibrolipidic - like lesions 10 times faster than any other lesion - prone areas in the hamster . the main body of these lesions was formed by the extracellular lipid material in a very dynamic state of lipid component rearrangement . in the antigen - challenged animals at 7 days of diet , the lesions developed in the above locations , implying that the ldl metabolism in these animals was not affected , being similar to the control atherogenic animals . at this time of diet , in the controls , the extracellular lipid material was in the form of densely packed microemulsion droplets in a dynamic state of reorganization . in the antigen - challenged animals the microemulsion lipid material was stabilized ( fig3 a ) and numerous plasma cells surrounded the lipid deposits ( fig3 b ). they had characteristic distensions of their endoplasmic reticulum , indicating an active antibody synthesis ( fig3 b , inset ). the reaction of the immune system to the microemulsion droplet material in the lesions in the antigen - challenged animals implied an identity between the microemulsion droplet material formed in vivo in the lesions and the in vitro material used for the immunizations , since the diet was administered post - immunization . at 14 days of diet , the former fibrolipidic - like lesions developed in the unimmunized controls were replaced by a fatty streak ( fig4 ), implying that a reversion of the lesion type took place . this was not previously induced in any experimental model of atherogenesis by any type of experimental manipulation and is a process only presumed to take place naturally in humans in which , occasionally , lesional areas requilibrate ( munro , j . m . cotran , r . s . lab . invet ., 1988 , 58 , 249 ). at 30 and 60 days of diet , 80 % of the aortic ring area had an aspect close to the normal . moreover , the clearance of the area was assured by numerous monocyte - derived from cells , showing morphological specializations which clearly indicated a close cooperation in their egression from the tissue ( fig5 a and 5b ). in the animals immunized with the fused human ldl the same trend of events was observed , and the presence of antibody secreting b cells was the same around the lesions . consequently the same reversion events took place and at about 1 month of diet the vessel returned to its normal structure . in the hyperimmunized animals , at 30 days of antigen - challenge post - immunization , the structure of the aortic ring area was normal , as compared to the normal animals ( not immunized and receiving a normal diet ) and with the immunized controls ( immunized animals receiving a normal diet ) ( fig6 a , 6b , 6c ). in a special group of animals , the immunization was applied post - diet to elucidate if the same reversion process could be induced . after 3 months of atherogenic diet these animals had a total plasma cholesterol of 281 + 95 mg / dl . by taking into consideration the moment of activation of the resident valvular macrophages into presenting the antigen , a process which appears from the first week of diet in the antigen - challenged animals and appears very late ( 6 months ) in the course of atherogenic lesion development ( filip , d . a ., et al . atherosclerosis , 1987 , 67 , 199 ) a working hypothesis indicated that a reasonable moment to check the eventual reversion was at 1 / 10 of the total diet time from the moment the immunization was completed ( the immune surveillance system established ). a considerable degree of reversal was obtained in comparison with the atherogenic controls ( fig7 a ). however , the previous diet period left sequellae , representing the effects of lipid component reorganization ( fig7 b ). nevertheless , even the reorganized lipid material in the form of micronic cholesteryl ester droplets ( fig7 b ) was taken up by the monocyte / macrophages in the same time with the phagocytosis of the heavy microemilsion formed in vivo by the fusion . the mechanism of disposal of cholesteryl ester micronic droplets was similar to the one observed in vitro during the incubation of monocyte / macrophages with cholsterol crystals ( koren , e . et al ., prgo . lipid res ., 1991 , 30 , 237 ). it consisted in the surrounding of the cholesteryl ester micronic droplets with multiple phospholipid bylayers ( fig7 b , inst ) micronic . in conclusion , it appears that the immunization against a heavy microemulsion formed by the ldl fusion and representing the initial step in the extracellular lipid accumulation in the atherogenic lesion - prone areas , reversed the atherogenic evolution by blocking its initial step . this immunological approach proved beneficial for the management of atherogenic lesions even if applied in advance or post - diet . therefore , this approach may represent even a prophylactic or a therapeutic method of atherogenesis treatment by an immunological mechanism which is a vaccination . fig1 . the process of hamster ldl fusion by bacitracin , monitored as absorption at 400 nm ( black circles ). each value represents the mean of triplicate aliqotes . as shown by the kinetics , the fusion is complete in 7 minutes and the equilibrium is attained in 9 minutes . for the human ldl the kinetics is somewhat slower , the fusion being complete in 15 min . and the equilibrium attained in 20 min . the same type of measurements were done for the initial and final absorption values in stress - induced fusion experiments ( triangle ), also for hamster ldl . fig2 . a . the ldl particles aspect in negative staining : the particles have similar dimensions around 20 nm ( x 95 , 400 ). b . the ldl , separated by a single vertical spin density gradient centrifugation has a flotation density around 1 . 06 g / ml . c . the negative aspect of the ldl fused preparation , in which microemulsion droplets have dimensions between 30 and 100 nm ( x 181 , 400 ). d . the microemulsion droplets , due to their high protein content ( multiple apolipoprotein b copies on their surface ) float at much higher densities ( 1 . 20 and 1 . 24 g / ml ). e . the microemulsion droplets have the same pattern of organization as the lipoprotein , being composed of a core of neutral lipids , ( evidenced here by a cytochemical reaction with tannic acid - paraphenuylene diamine ) stabilized by a phospholipid monolayer ( x 95 , 400 ). fig3 . a . in the immunized animals , starting with the first week of hypercholesterolemic diet post - immunization , the lipid material in the microemulsion form is stabilized in comparison with the control hypercholesterolemic animals , in which the same type of material is in a dynamic state of lipid component reorganization ( x 95 , 400 ). b . numerous plasma cells ( x 29 , 400 ), by ultrastructural criteria , surround the extracellular accumulations of lipid material ; these cells have the characteristic distended rough endoplasmic reticulum , indicative of antibody synthesis c . ( inset ) ( x 59 , 600 ). fig4 . at 14 days of diet , the previous fibrolipidic - like lesions are transformed into fatty streaks . no more extracellular lipid material in microemulsion form is found extracellularly . this demonstrates the reversion of the previous fibrolipidic - like lesion to a more benign form of atherogenic lesions , namely the fatty streak . fig5 . a . at 30 days of diet , the foam cells are massively egressing from the tissue ( x 8 , 300 ). b . they have specialized interdigitized structure , assuring a cooperative action in the region of the endothelial cell junctions ( x 29 , 400 ). fig6 . a . in the case of hyperimmunized animals , at 30 days of diet post - immunization , the lesional area is already re - equilibrated between the microemulsion droplet material formation and its disposal by the foam cell egression , resulting in a normal aspect of the lesion - prone area ( x 54 , 600 ). b . the aspect of the same area in the normal control animals , in which some microemulsion droplets can be seen immediately under the endothelial cells ; their presence reflects the very high propensity of this area to develop atherogenic lesions ( x 37 , 800 ). c . the same region in the control immunized animals , not receiving an atherogenic diet ( x 54 , 600 ). fig7 . a . the aspect of the lesions in the animals receiving the immunization post - diet . the immunization was started after 3 months of atherogenic diet , and the animals were sacrificed at a total diet time of 17 weeks ( at an 1 / 10 total diet time after the immunization scheme was completed ). the lesion regression is evident , though the sequelae of the initial period of diet are present , especially in the form of cholesteryl ester droplets ( x 54 , 600 ). however , even this type of material was disposed off by the monocyte / macrophages in the region , by a characteristic type of phagocytosis ( b . inset ) ( x 18 , 600 ). c . the aspect of the lesions in the atherogenic controls , at an approximately the same diet time ( x 3 , 600 ). all references cited herein are incorporated by reference .

0Human Necessities

the present invention provides methods and systems for computing an optimum time of reference (“ tor ”) for a dmt transceiver . methods and systems envisioned by the present invention minimize the amount of ibi prior to supplemental filtering . fig1 depicts a typical impulse response h ( n ) of a dsl channel . the impulse response h ( n ), and its associated length can be given by : h ⁡ ( n ) = ∑ - l 2 l 1 ⁢ h k ⁢ δ ⁡ ( n - k ) ; l = l 1 + l 2 + 1 ( 1 ) where δ ( n ) is an input impulse signal , “ n ” is a unit of time , l 1 and l 2 are the lengths of causal and noncausal portions of h ( n ), h ( 0 ) is the location of the tor , and “ m ” is the cyclic prefix . the upper tail , lower tail and main lobe of h ( n ) are identified by h a ( n ), h b ( n ) and h c ( n ), respectively . the present invention concerns minimizing ibi in a signal δ ( n ) that is created by the tails h a ( n ) and h b ( n ) of the impulse response h ( n ). in order to minimize ibi in the signal δ ( n ), the total ibi power within the tails h a ( n ) and h b ( n ) must be minimized . total ibi power , p ibi , can be expressed using the following equation : p ibi = ∑ n ⁢ ( n + 1 ) ⁡ [ h a 2 ⁡ ( n ) + h b 2 ⁡ ( n ) ] ( 3 ) from equation ( 3 ), it can be shown that points along the tails h a ( n ) and h b ( n ) contribute non - uniform amounts of ibi power , in a linearly - increasing manner , as the distance of the points from the main lobe h c ( n ) of the impulse response h ( n ) increases ( hereafter referred to as contributing “ non - uniform amounts of ibi ”). that is , the contribution of h ( m + 5 ), which is the fifth term of upper tail h a ( n ), to ibi power p ibi is five times that of h ( m + 1 ), which is the first term of upper tail h a ( n ). this principle , which is contrary to previous belief , is disclosed in co - pending u . s . patent applications ser . nos . 09 / 639 , 640 and 09 / 639 , 641 . it is also clear from the equation ( 3 ) that the main lobe h c ( n ) does not contribute to ibi power , as expected . according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention , a novel transceiver comprising a novel “ windowing function ” and a novel time of reference - optimizing function is adapted to minimize ibi by computing the optimum time of reference tor for the impulse response h ( n ). the optimum tor is computed based on minimizing the total ibi power . more specifically , the optimum tor is computed by : generating a novel windowing function ; generating a time of reference - optimizing function by minimizing a cross - correlation between the windowing function and the square of the impulse response h ( n ) ( i . e ., minimizing total ibi power ); computing the output value of the time of reference - optimizing function ; and identifying the optimum tor as the location of the output value . the windowing and time of reference - minimizing functions are generated by taking into account the fact that that points along the tails h a ( n ) and h b ( n ) of impulse response h ( n ) contribute non - uniform amounts of ibi . computing the optimum tor requires generating an illustrative windowing function w 2 ( n ) shown in fig3 . windowing function w 2 ( n ) reflects the fact that points along tails h a ( n ) and h b ( n ) of the impulse response h ( n ) contribute non - uniform amounts of ibi power . the windowing function w 2 ( n ) replaces the windowing function w 1 ( n ) ( shown in fig2 ), which is erroneously used in existing methods to compute the tor . as shown in fig3 , the windowing function w 2 ( n ) comprises a mid - section of zero value . this section corresponds to the main lobe h c ( n ), and reflects the fact that the main lobe h c ( n ) does not contribute to ibi power . the sections to the right and left of the mid - section correspond to the upper and lower tails h a ( n ) and h b ( n ), respectively . the slope “ m ” of the left and right sections reflects the fact that points along the tails h a ( n ) and h b ( n ) contribute non - uniform amounts of ibi . in an illustrative embodiment of the present invention , once the windowing function w 2 ( n ) has been generated , a time of reference - optimizing function f tor optimum is generated . the time of reference - optimizing function is given by : f toroptimum = arg ⁢ ⁢ min m ⁢ ⁢ ∑ n ⁢ h 2 ⁡ ( n ) ⁢ w 2 ⁡ ( n - m ) ( 4 ) the time of reference - optimizing function f tor optimum is generated by minimizing a cross - correlation of the windowing function w 2 ( n ) and h 2 ( n ) ( i . e ., the square of the impulse response h ( n )). the time of reference - optimizing function f tor optimum is in essence a minimization function for the total ibi power , p ibi . in an illustrative embodiment of the invention , after an output value of the time of reference - optimizing function f tor optimum is generated , the optimum tor is identified as the location of the output value . by identifying the optimum tor for a minimized total ibi power p ibi , it follows that the amount of ibi generated by the impulse response h ( n ) is minimized . fig4 shows an example of a dsl sub - system 1 . sub - system 1 comprises a transmitter 100 and a novel device 200 , such as a transceiver module , adapted to minimize ibi . the transceiver module 200 envisioned by the present invention may comprise the features and functions disclosed in either of co - pending u . s . patent applications ser . nos . 09 / 639 , 640 and 09 / 639 , 641 . transceiver module 200 is adapted to generate the novel windowing function w 2 ( n ) previously described and shown in fig3 . an example of how transceiver 200 operates is as follows . transmitter 100 generates and transmits a dsl signal δ 1 ( n ), such as a dsl signal , through a communication channel 102 , whose impulse response h ( n ) associated with dsl signal δ 1 ( n ) is known and graphically represented in fig1 . upon exiting channel 102 , signal δ 2 ( n ) is received by transceiver module 200 using means known in the art . signal δ 2 ( n ) comprises ibi created by the tails h a ( n ) and h b ( n ) of the impulse response h ( n ). thereafter , transceiver module 200 is adapted to minimize ibi . more specifically , transceiver 200 is adapted to compute the optimum time of reference for the impulse response h ( n ) based on minimizing total ibi power p ibi . computing the optimum tor comprises : generating the windowing function w 2 ( n ); generating a time of reference - optimizing function f tor optimum through minimizing a cross - correlation between the windowing function w 2 ( n ) and the square of the impulse response h ( n ); computing an output value of the time of reference - optimizing function f tor optimum ; and identifying the optimum tor as the location of the output value . once the optimum tor of impulse response h ( n ) has been computed , transceiver module 200 is adapted to transmit a signal δ 3 ( n ) comprising a minimum amount of ibi , without supplemental filtering , to other devices in the sub - system 1 via channel 201 . according to one embodiment of the invention , the signal δ 3 ( n ) may be transmitted to a supplemental filter ( not shown ) which is adapted to execute an algorithm to further suppress ibi . the supplemental filter may comprise a time domain equalizer (“ teq ”), such as the teq disclosed in either of co - pending u . s . patent applications ser . nos . 09 / 639 , 640 and 09 / 639 , 641 . in such an embodiment , the performance of the supplemental filter / teq is improved because the amount of ibi that must be suppressed by the filter is reduced . the transceiver module 200 may comprise one or more integrated circuits , discrete devices or some combination of the two . according to alternative embodiments of the present invention , transceiver module 200 may comprise a discrete multitone device such as a dmt transceiver , a component within a dmt transceiver , or a part of a teq . it should be understood that module 200 is adapted to carry out all of the steps for minimizing ibi described in more detail above . fig5 depicts a comparison of the average signal - to - noise ratios (“ snr ”) of two dmt receivers . the snrs represented by the dotted line were generated by a dmt transceiver adapted to compute a tor by maximizing the energy of the main lobe of an impulse response using a conventional windowing function w 1 ( n ) while the snrs represented by the continuous line were generated by a dmt transceiver according to one embodiment of the present invention adapted to compute an optimum tor by minimizing total ibi power using the windowing function w 2 ( n ). the snrs were calculated using a communication channel which comprised an 8kft , 24 awg twisted pair copper wire . the cyclic prefix length was set at m = 16 with a sampling frequency of 1 . 104 and a block length of n = 256 . as illustrated in fig5 , transceiver modules and / or dmt transceivers envisioned by the present invention provide increased snrs . these snrs indicate a reduced amount of ibi . it is to be understood that changes and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims that follow .

7Electricity

with reference to fig1 , the flickering control device has a program controller ( 10 ) with multiple flickering mode modules built in . flickering modes include undulating flickering mode , single led fade - in - fade - out mode , multiple leds fade - in - fade - out mode , starlight mode , all shine mode , transforming mode ( transforming among the above modes ) etc . multiple leds ( 11 ) are connected to output pins l 1 ˜ l 3 of the program controller ( 10 ) and those leds ( 11 ) are of same or different colors . batteries ( 12 ) are mounted to provide power supply to the program controller ( 10 ) and the leds ( 11 ). a switch group ( 20 ) consists of at least two switches ( 21 ), ( 22 ), wherein the first switch ( 21 ) is a power switch connected between the batteries ( 12 ) and the program controller ( 10 ); and the second switch ( 22 ) is a mode switch connected between a specific pin “ key ” from the program controller ( 10 ) and a battery cathode . therefore , the first switch ( 21 ) is used to control the on / off status of the flickering control device , and the second switch ( 22 ) can be a slide switch or a touch switch , either of which is responsible for mode conversion . the flickering control device is embedded in the personal articles , and transmits the light via a light layer ( not numbered in fig1 ) of the periphery of the personal article ; the switch group ( 20 ) is mounted externally to facilitate being handled . no matter whether the user is walking , the flickering function can be activated by switch ( 21 ), and transformed to different modes by a switch ( 22 ). fig2 shows the flickering control device of this invention applied in a sneaker ( 30 ). abox ( 101 ) is set to accommodate a circuit board ( 100 ), and the program controller ( not numbered in fig2 ) and a battery house ( 106 ) for holding batteries ( 12 ) are built in the circuit board ( 100 ). the program controller is connected to the leds ( 11 ) via a conducting wire ( 102 ), or connected to leds via a conducting wire ( 105 ), and a male / female adapter ( 103 ), ( 104 ). the conducting wire ( 105 ) and the male / female adapter ( 103 ), ( 104 ) are also used to connect the circuit board ( 100 ) and the switch group ( 20 ). with reference to fig2 and fig3 , the sneaker ( 30 ) consists of an outsole ( 31 ), a middle sole ( 32 ) and a vamp ( 33 ). a recess and multiple slots are defined in the outsole ( 31 ) to secure the box ( 101 ) and the multiple leds ( 11 ). the material for the outsole ( 31 ) is normally pervious or partly pervious to light . the middle sole ( 32 ) covers the outsole ( 31 ) and is integrated with the outsole ( 31 ). a first hole ( 321 ) and a second hole ( 322 ) are defined in the middle sole ( 32 ). the conducting wires ( 102 ) and ( 105 ) extend through the first hole ( 321 ), wherein the former ( 102 ) is used for equipping the leds ( 11 ) on the vamp ( 33 ); the latter ( 105 ) is used for externally setting the switch group ( 20 ) on the vamp . the first hole ( 321 ) has a cover ( 323 ) thereon which is conceals the box ( 101 ). the middle sole ( 32 ) is integrated with the vamp ( 33 ) to define a chamber for a foot . when the sneaker is not in use and the batteries are exhausted , the cover ( 323 ) can be removed to enable replacement of the batteries ( 12 ) in the box ( 101 ). therefore , the vamp ( 33 ) is also equipped with at least one led ( 11 ) connected with the circuit board ( 100 ) in the outsole ( 31 ) via the conducting wire ( 102 ), so the flickering light of the vamp can be seen . the switch group ( 20 ) is also set on the vamp externally , so that the user can control the flickering function conveniently . with reference to fig4 , another embodiment of this invention is disclosed . the flickering control device is applied in a handbag ( 40 ) consisting of a pocket ( 41 ) and a shoulder strap ( 42 ). some parts of the shoulder strap ( 42 ) and the pocket ( 41 ) are light layers ( 43 ) that are pervious to light . multiple leds ( 11 ) are mounted inside those light layers ( 43 ) and the switch group ( 20 ) is set at the shoulder strap ( 42 ) to facilitate control , especially , the light layer ( 43 ) can be formed as a logo of the manufacturer of the bag , thus the leds ( 11 ) are set to make the logo more eye - catching . the program controller ( 10 ) is still built in the circuit board ( 100 ), which can also be received into a box ( 101 ) in the pocket ( 41 ) or set in the light layer ( 43 ). in addition to the sneaker and the handbag , the invention can be applied in other personal articles . it is to be understood , however , that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description , together with details of the structure and function of the invention , the disclosure is illustrative only , and changes may be made in detail , especially in matters of shape , size , and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed .

7Electricity

an embodiment of the convertible inflatable furnishing as shown in fig1 for sitting and other uses comprises an inflatable base 1 including a base upper skin 17 which forms a layer of the upper side of the base 1 and a base lower skin 16 shown in fig3 which forms a layer of the lower side of the base 1 , and a rim side 6 which links the edge of the upper side of the base to the edge of the lower side of the base , an inflatable backrest 2 providing back support for a person sitting on the base 1 , a fixing means 21 to fix the backrest to the base upper skin 17 , and an air passage 3 between the base 1 and the backrest 2 allowing a flow of air between the inside of the base 1 and the inside of the backrest 2 when loads on the base and backrest change , and a first part of retaining means 4 and a second part of retaining means 5 wherein the air in the backrest can be squeezed out of the backrest through the air passage 3 into the base 1 and a first part of retaining means 4 and a second part of retaining means 5 can be fastened together to retain the backrest 2 in a substantially unerect state shown in fig2 enabling use of the base 1 for various purposes including body therapies in situations where a protruding backrest 2 is an obstruction . the base upper skin 17 and the base lower skin 16 are layers of the base 1 which participate in holding the tension created by pressure when a load is on the furnishing . the base upper skin 17 and the base lower skin 16 may be gas impermeable layers or other layers . in this embodiment shown in fig1 a cover 9 is provided on which the first part of retaining means 5 and a flap 10 are mounted . the second part of retaining means 4 is mounted on the side of the flap 10 which is facing the cover 9 and is hidden from view by the flap 10 . incidental creases in the cover 9 are shown with dotted lines in fig1 and fig2 . [ 0021 ] fig2 shows the embodiment of the convertible furnishing tilted on the rim side 6 with the backrest 2 deflated and inserted into the base 1 and the first part of retaining means 4 shown in fig1 and the second part of retaining means 5 shown in fig1 fastened together to retain the backrest 2 in a substantially deflated state inside the base 1 and hidden from view . in this embodiment the first part of retaining means 4 is hook strip and the second part of retaining means 5 is loop strip and these strips can be fastened together by the well - known press - seal method ( e . g . velcro ). in this case the backrest is retained substantially inside the base 1 . when this method of retaining the backrest is used it is preferable that the hook strip is mounted on the side of the flap 10 that is facing the cover 9 as indicated , but hidden from view , in fig1 . then when a load is applied to the furnishing with the press - seal engaged as shown in fig2 the resulting force on the strips is substantially tangential to the surface of the strips and does not tend to separate the strips . [ 0023 ] fig3 is a combined elevation and cross - sectional view showing the interior of the embodiment revealing that the base 1 and the backrest 2 share a single bladder 8 , the fabric cover 9 covers the entire bladder 8 , and the base lower skinl 6 and the base upper skin 17 are parts of the cover 9 . the bladder 8 is of a size and shape that when inflated fills the cover 9 so that the shape of the cover 9 substantially determines the shape of the furnishing . as shown in fig3 a zip 14 is provided on the base lower skin 16 for internal access and a nozzle 15 is fixed to the connecting means 11 provided near and accessible through the zip 14 for inflating and deflating the bladder 8 . in this embodiment the bladder 8 is substantially tubular with sealed ends , and the axis of the tubular bladder 8 is curved around the connecting means 11 and the bladder 8 is sufficiently long that a region of the bladder 8 in the vicinity of one sealed end of the bladder 8 abuts a region of the bladder 8 in the vicinity of the other sealed end of the bladder 8 . the tubular bladder 8 follows a curved path 18 around the axis defined by the connecting means 11 . the curved dashed line shown in fig3 and 4 indicates this curved path 18 . a first bladder end 13 is part of one end of the bladder 8 and protrudes upward into the backrest 2 according to the curved path 18 when the backrest 2 is erect . the first bladder end 13 may be shaped similarly to the backrest 2 but is preferably slightly larger than the backrest 2 so that the bladder 8 fully erects and fills the backrest 2 when the retaining means 4 is released and a load is applied to the base 1 . in this embodiment a connecting means 11 shown in cross - section in fig3 and 4 is provided to connect a region of the base upper skin 17 to a region of the base lower skin 16 with the connecting means 11 being in tension when the base 1 is substantially inflated . in this embodiment the said regions are near the center of the base upper skin 17 and the center of the base lower skin 16 . the connecting means 11 is an elasticized fabric formed into a cylindrical shape with the ends of the cylinder sewn with circular seams onto the base lower skin 16 and the base upper skin 17 . the length of the cylinder is sufficiently short to substantially constrain horizontal mobility of the base upper skin 17 relative to the base lower skin 16 when the base lower skin 16 is placed on a floor thereby providing a more stable , comfortable seat . the connecting means 11 is preferably of sufficient length to allow an occupant of the seat to make small rocking movements while sifting on the base upper skin 17 . the connecting means 11 preferably has such a length as to constrain horizontal mobility of the base upper skin within 20 cm of the equilibrium position when a horizontal component of force of 100n is applied to the base upper skin . the connecting means 11 is preferably an elastic material of sufficient tensile strength and elasticity to absorb pressure shocks resulting from sudden loads applied to the furnishing , such as 100 kg failing one meter onto the furnishing . it will be realized that the connecting means 11 according to the present invention is not restricted to the fabric construction described above , but may use cord , strap , fabric or film with any combination of materials of sufficient strength including inelastic materials . the fastening system for fastening the connecting means 11 to the base lower skin 16 and the base upper skin 17 is not restricted to sewing , but may use any fastening system with sufficient tensile strength and purchase , including bonding and bolting systems . in the embodiment shown in combined elevation and cross - section in fig3 and fig4 the air passage 3 is provided by providing the base 1 and the backrest 2 with a single shared bladder 8 allowing the air to flow back and forth between the backrest 2 and the base 1 through the region of the bladder 8 where the backrest 2 joins the base 1 . the embodiment shown in combined elevation and cross - section in fig3 and fig4 allows the backrest 2 to be easily reclined by an occupant leaning back on the backrest 2 and reducing their weight on the base 1 . the fixing means 21 is sufficiently flexible to allow the backrest 2 to recline increasingly with deflation of the backrest 2 including when the backrest 2 is under an increasing load , and to allow the backrest 2 to erect increasingly with inflation of the backrest 2 including when the load on the backrest 2 is reducing . in this embodiment the fixing means 21 is a flexible region of the fabric cover 9 where the backrest 2 joins to the base 1 . the fabric provides flexibility by folding or curving . in the embodiment shown in fig4 the connecting means 11 includes an elastic material biasing the region of the base upper skin 17 towards the region of the base lower skin 16 . the elastic material in tension preferably provides a elastic modulus capable of supporting an increased load on the backrest 2 wherein the supporting force tending to maintain erection of the backrest 2 is increased when the base 1 volumetrically expands due to increased pressurization of the base 1 resulting from increased compression of the backrest 2 . in this manner the erection of the backrest 2 is assisted by the tension in the connecting means 11 and a person reclining on the convertible furnishing experiences increased back support at all angles of recline . it will be realized that the convertible furnishing according to this invention is not restricted to a fixing means 21 having flexibility by folding or curving , but may use other flexible systems such as a bending or hinged frame , or may have no flexibility . it will be realized that the convertible furnishing according to this invention is not restricted to an embodiment having a fabric cover 9 , but may use an uncovered single bladder or plural bladders with no cover or partial covers . [ 0033 ] fig5 shows an embodiment of the bladder 8 as a laid flat tube . a nozzle 15 for inflation and deflation of the bladder 8 is positioned near the first bladder end 13 . the nozzle 15 is preferably fixed to the cover 9 or to the connecting means 11 in the position shown in fig3 to assist in locating the first bladder end 13 in the backrest 2 . it will be realized that the nozzle 15 may be fixed in other locations in the region of the backrest 2 in order to locate the first bladder end 13 relative to the backrest 2 . the preferred material of the bladder is a plastic film such as polyurethane , polyethylene or pvc . the film may be admixed , laminated , or metalized to reduce gas permeability . in the embodiment shown in fig6 the base 1 when deflated and backrest 2 when deflated have relative volumes allowing the base 1 to be fully inserted into the backrest 2 and a first part of fastening means 19 and a second part of fastening means 20 are provided to retain the deflated base 1 inside the deflated backrest 2 . in this embodiment the first part of fastening means 19 is also the first part of retaining means 4 and the second part of fastening means 20 is also the second part of retaining means 5 . when the base 1 has been inserted into the backrest 2 , the flap 10 can be folded open so that the first part of fastening means 19 , which is hook strip , faces and can be press - seal fastened onto the second part of fastening means 20 , which is loop strip , to retain the base 1 inside the backrest 2 for the purposes of packing and portability . other fasteners such as a zip or studs could provide this fastening . in the embodiment in the erect state of the backrest 2 shown in fig1 the outer shape of the base 1 has a horizontal width transverse to the usual direction of sitting of about 850 mm , but preferably at least 600 mm , to enable the base upper skin 17 to puff upward beside the outer sides of a sitter &# 39 ; s thighs thereby providing armrests 7 . in the embodiment as shown in fig1 the outer shape of the base 1 has a horizontal breadth of about 850 mm enabling the base 1 to be tilted onto a rim side 6 as shown in fig2 to provide support for the torso of a person at a height where massage and other body manipulation and stretching is facilitated . these activities are facilitated when a horizontal breadth of the base 1 is in the range 700 mm to 1000 mm . a small cushion may be provided for the chin - tip of a person lying prostrate along the rim side 6 . in the embodiment shown in fig1 about half the air can be released so that the furnishing can be used as a seat supporting the occupant at a height and in a posture similarly to a bean bag seat . it will be realized that the convertible furnishing according to this invention is not restricted to having a single backrest 2 positioned at or near one edge of the base upper skin 17 , but may have one or more backrests positioned at any location on the base upper skin 17 .

0Human Necessities

while the making and using of various embodiments of the present invention are discussed in detail below , it should be appreciated that the present invention provides many applicable inventive concepts that can be embodied in a wide variety of specific contexts . the specific embodiments discussed herein are merely illustrative of specific ways to make and use the invention and do not delimit the scope of the invention . to facilitate the understanding of this invention , a number of terms are defined below . terms defined herein have meanings as commonly understood by a person of ordinary skill in the areas relevant to the present invention . terms such as “ a ”, “ an ” and “ the ” are not intended to refer to only a singular entity , but include the general class of which a specific example may be used for illustration . the terminology herein is used to describe specific embodiments of the invention , but their usage does not delimit the invention , except as outlined in the claims . the word fungo is defined by haney &# 39 ; s book of reference as “[ a ] preliminary practice game in which one player takes the bat and , tossing the ball up , hits it as it falls , and if the ball is caught in the field on the fly , the player catching it takes the bat . it is useless as practice in batting , but good for taking fly balls . . . .” as used herein , the term “ fungo ” or “ fungoman ” are used to describe an apparatus and system that , unlike conventional baseball pitching machines that are only able deliver a ball to a two - dimensional target ( i . e ., the strike zone ), is able to deliver any object to a three dimensional zone , area or landscape . the fungo may be fully - automated and / or used in manual mode . fungoman is best described as a programmable ball throwing machine that is able to eject hardballs or softballs to preset positions with programmable projection characteristics . in one embodiment , the machine is set - up at home plate on a baseball or softball field and through the use of the machine , a coach is able to train players by launching balls that simulate balls batted to them during regular play . a standard set of ball launching wheels have been mounted on a base with horizontal and vertical displacement capabilities that allow the ejection of a ball with the simulated characteristics of a baseball batted in the traditional manner of a batter using a baseball or softball bat . closed loop positioning controls have been combined in a unique fashion that enables the launching of a series of balls to preprogrammed positions with launch characteristics that provides an entire baseball team or an individual with a meaningful practice session . fungoman is a complete , automated coaching machine . in order to train a baseball team , a coach must posses the ability to hit a ball that simulates a ball being hit by a batter during regular play . a special bat called a “ fungo ” bat has been developed for that specific purpose . however , use of a fungo bat requires a considerable amount of training and concentration on the part of the coach . this detracts from his ability to concentrate on coaching the player he is batting to . once the problem of launching precisely placed balls with the desired launch characteristics have been overcome , a meaningful launch sequence must be developed into a realistic routine that leads to the enhancement of the ball player &# 39 ; s skills . the coach needs to be free to analyze each player &# 39 ; s reaction and fielding technique to each ball as it is hit to him . the coach also needs the ability to interrupt the launch sequence , give timely , specific instructions to a player and repeat the launch several times if necessary before resuming the practice session . the apparatus and system of the present invention has the ability to precisely place objects , e . g ., a baseball , with realistic characteristics such as top spin , back spin , single hop , multi - hop , line drive , fly ball or pop ups , in a programmed sequence interactive with and controlled by a coach to produce a meaningful ball catching practice session . to this end state - of - the - art motor drives with the ability to accelerate rapidly or decelerate from one speed and type launch profile to another have been used . feedback provides closed loop position control and a programmable logic controller connected to a user - friendly man - machine interface that allows the user to call up pre - designated practice sessions or develop new routines based on specific player or team needs . fungoman can simulate previously played games enabling coaches to review errors or reinforce outstanding plays the team or individual performed in the simulated game . for impromptu practice sessions , a manual mode has been incorporated into the design to allow the coach to launch a ball to an individual at a specific location with specific launch characteristics . there is also a manual mode where the coach sets up the machine for back - hand field practice , for example , then selects which position the ball is to be thrown to and easily moves from position to position launching back - hand balls to each . the following is an itemized list of some of the major distinguishing features of the machine : 1 . custom routines for individual or team training sessions . 2 . programmable launch sequences or routines for entire team training sessions . 3 . single position routines for specific position training . 4 . control of the ball speed appropriate to each player &# 39 ; s skill level . 5 . precise , repeatable placement of the launched balls . 6 . ability to impart a realistic launch characteristic on the ball . 7 . position / launch combinations for specific skill development . 8 . motor drives with acceleration and deceleration abilities . 9 . independent speed control of the launch wheels . 10 . safety - enable switch with automatic shut - off when released . 11 . user - friendly man / machine interface . 12 . ability to interrupt a training session and repeat a launch for timely coaching . 13 . use of programmable logic controller for dependable operation . 14 . unique positive stop , ball release mechanism . 15 . portability for ease of storage and relocation . referring initially to fig1 in one embodiment the ball throwing apparatus of the present invention is generally illustrated by reference numeral 1 and includes a ball - ejecting mechanism 22 , typically mounted on a utility box 12 , which may be seated on a base or frame 2 . the frame 2 may include wheels 3 to render the ball throwing apparatus 1 portable . vertically - adjustable stabilizers 4 may also be provided on one end of the frame 2 and may be slidably seated in a handle frame 5 a that mounts vertical elements of a handle 5 to engage the ground and facilitate stabilizing the ball throwing apparatus 1 in a particular location . a control mount pedestal 6 is typically provided on the end of the frame 2 opposite the handle 5 , and serves to mount a control box 7 fitted with box controls 8 for operating the ball throwing apparatus 1 , as hereinafter further described . a controller 75 is typically removably seated on a pin or bracket 8 a , which extends from fixed attachment to the control box 7 , as further illustrated in fig1 . in some embodiments , the controller 75 may be wireless , wired or even a touch screen display . as illustrated in fig4 , the controller 75 may includes a handle 76 , and hand control wiring 10 a ( fig1 ) extends from the controller 75 to the control box 7 for manually operating the ball throwing apparatus 1 by manipulation of various buttons on the controller 75 . in other embodiments the controller 75 may be wireless and linked to the apparatus 1 ( e . g ., bluetooth , wi - fi , frequencies in the 2 . 4 ghz range , frequencies in the 5 . 8 ghz range frequencies in the 900 mhz range , frequencies in the 40 mhz range or combinations thereof ). a mount pedestal 13 is journalled for rotation in a pedestal bottom bearing 15 attached to the bottom of the utility box 12 , and a pedestal gear 14 is fixed to the mount pedestal 13 above the pedestal bottom bearing 15 , as illustrated . a pedestal drive motor 17 is also fixed to the bottom of the utility box 12 and is fitted with a drive motor gear 18 that receives a pedestal drive belt 19 . the pedestal drive belt 19 is also connected to the pedestal gear 14 in driving relationship such that operation of the pedestal drive motor 17 causes the mount pedestal 13 to rotate in the counterclockwise or clockwise direction in the pedestal bottom bearing 15 and in a corresponding top bearing 16 located in the top of the utility box 12 . operation of the pedestal drive motor 17 in rotating the mount pedestal 13 is facilitated by operation of the box controls 8 or the controller 75 at the control box 7 , as further illustrated in fig1 of the drawings . referring to fig1 of the drawings , the mount pedestal 13 extends upwardly from the utility box 12 , through the pedestal top bearing 16 and terminates at a horizontal offset plate 21 that mounts a ball feed frame support mount 34 which also extends upwardly to receive a ball feed frame support 33 . the ball ejection mechanism 22 is mounted on the ball feed frame support mount 34 . a mount clamp plate 62 of the ball ejection mechanism 22 is fixed to the top end of the ball feed frame support mount 34 and may include a rotatable clamp lever 63 that may be adjusted to pivot the ball ejection mechanism 22 in the vertical plane , as hereinafter further described . this adjustment is facilitated , for example , by means of a vertical pivot mount plate 61 mounted to a wheel mount frame 23 of the ball ejection mechanism 22 , which vertical pivot mount plate 61 is pivotally attached to the mount clamp plate 62 . in one embodiment , pivotal adjustment of the ball ejection mechanism 22 in a vertical plane is facilitated by means of an elevation motor 72 that is mounted on the ball feed frame support mount 34 or other element of the apparatus 1 and is operably connected to the wheel mount frame 23 , according to the knowledge of those skilled in the art . as further illustrated in fig1 of the drawings , the wheel mount frame 23 is characterized by an elongated mount frame plate 24 extending from the vertical pivot mount plate 61 and fitted at each end with a wheel guard bracket 25 and corresponding wheel motor 29 for mounting the two counter - rotating wheels 27 on the wheel mount frame 23 . each of the counter - rotating wheels 27 is provided with a peripheral ball - contact surface 28 for contacting and expelling a baseball , softball or other ball from the ball ejection mechanism 22 due to the counter - rotating operation of the counter - rotating wheels 27 by operation of the respective wheel motors 29 , as hereinafter further described . horizontal positioning or aiming of the ball ejection mechanism 22 is facilitated by operation of the pedestal drive motor 17 , which rotates the mount pedestal 13 . the offset plate 21 translates the rotating motion of the mount pedestal 13 to the ball feed frame support mount 34 , which moves the ball ejection mechanism 22 mounted thereon in the horizontal plane . referring again to fig1 of the drawings , the ball feed frame 32 , mounted on the extending upper end of the ball feed frame support 33 , supports a spirally - mounted ball feed tube 35 by means of tube clamps 35 a . the ball feed tube 35 includes a feed tube inlet 36 at the extending top end thereof and a feed tube outlet 37 at the bottom end thereof . a ball feed arm 38 is attached to the lower end of the ball feed tube 35 at the feed tube outlet 37 and includes feed arm slots 38 a . a feed arm outlet 39 terminates the opposite end of the ball feed arm 38 and is aligned with the space between the counter - rotating wheels 27 to facilitate feeding of baseball , softball or other balls through the ball feeder tube 35 and the ball feed arm 38 and between the counter - rotating wheels 27 for ejection , respectively . referring to fig1 of the drawings , a feed arm lip 40 is typically provided at the outlet or ejection end of the feed arm outlet 39 to support the balls 70 as they are sequentially fed from the feed arm outlet 39 to the space between the counter - rotating wheels 27 for ejection . as illustrated in fig1 , a feed arm bracket 41 is also provided on the feed arm outlet 39 to securely mount the feed arm outlet 39 to the wheel mount frame 23 of the ball ejection mechanism 22 . a first ball feed trigger 43 , from which extends a first ball contact finger 49 , is pivotally secured to the ball feed arm 38 at a first trigger pivot pin 46 . the first ball feed trigger 43 is connected to a first trigger pivot spring 44 , which is pivotally secured to the ball feed arm 38 at a first trigger pivot spring mount 45 . first trigger wiring 48 extends from a ball feed trigger control box 59 , secured typically to the feed arm bracket 41 , and is attached to the first ball feed trigger 43 to pivot the first ball feed trigger 43 between the ball - blocking position , with the first ball contact finger 49 projecting into the ball feed arm 38 through the feed arm slot 38 a , and the ball - release position , where the first ball contact finger 49 clears the interior of the ball feed arm 38 against the bias exerted by the first trigger pivot spring 44 . referring now to fig2 and 3 , another embodiment the ball delivering apparatus of the present invention is generally illustrated by reference numeral 1 and includes a ball - ejecting mechanism 22 , typically mounted on a utility box 12 , which may be seated on a base or frame 2 . the wireless control ( not pictured ) links to the to the wireless control box ( not shown ) for manually operating the ball throwing apparatus 1 by manipulation of various buttons on the wireless control box ( not pictured ), as further hereinafter described . the wireless link may be made through bluetooth , wi - fi , frequencies in the 2 . 4 ghz range , frequencies in the 5 . 8 ghz range frequencies in the 900 mhz range , frequencies in the 40 mhz range or combinations thereof . a pedestal drive motor 17 is fixed to the utility box 12 and is also connected to the pedestal 13 such that operation of the pedestal drive motor 17 causes the mount pedestal 13 to rotate in the counterclockwise or clockwise direction in the pedestal . operation of the pedestal drive motor 17 in rotating the mount pedestal 13 is facilitated by operation of the wireless control ( not shown ). referring again to fig2 and 3 of the drawings , the ball ejection mechanism 22 a wheel mount frame 23 , which is mounted on the pedestal 13 . a vertical pivot mount plate ( not shown ) mounted to a wheel mount frame 23 may be adjusted to pivot the ball ejection mechanism 22 in the vertical plane . in one embodiment , pivotal adjustment of the ball ejection mechanism 22 in a vertical plane is facilitated by the use of an elevation motor 72 that is mounted on the ball feed frame support mount 34 or other element of the apparatus 1 and is operably connected to the wheel mount frame 23 , according to the knowledge of those skilled in the art . as further illustrated in fig2 and 3 of the drawings , the wheel mount frame 23 is characterized by an elongated mount frame plate 24 and fitted at each end with a corresponding wheel motor 29 for mounting the two counter - rotating wheels 27 on the wheel mount frame 23 . each of the counter - rotating wheels 27 is provided with a peripheral ball - contact surface 28 for contacting and expelling a baseball , softball or other ball from the ball ejection mechanism 22 due to the counter - rotating operation of the counter - rotating wheels 27 by operation of the respective wheel motors 29 . horizontal positioning or aiming of the ball ejection mechanism 22 is facilitated by operation of the pedestal drive motor 17 , which rotates the mount pedestal 13 in the horizontal plane . this may be accomplished using a wireless controller or a pendant controller . referring again to fig2 and 3 of the drawings , the ball hopper 65 is in connection with utility box 12 and feed tube 35 . the ball hopper 65 is designed to accommodate storage of balls ; however , the size and shape of the ball hopper 65 may be varied as needed for specific application , balls or the like . the ball feed tube 35 includes a feed tube inlet 36 at the utility box 12 and at the top end of the feed tube 35 is the feed tube outlet 37 . a ball feed mechanism may be provided to sequentially feed balls 70 into the feed tube inlet 36 of the ball feed tube 35 . a motor driven ball feed impeller 67 is attached to the lower end of the ball feed tube 35 at the feed tube outlet 36 . the motor driven ball feed impeller 67 propels balls 70 into the ball feed tube 35 through the activation of delivery motor 73 . in one embodiment , a sensor ( not shown ) is placed in feed tube 35 , which is linked to the delivery motor 73 of the motor driven ball feed impeller 67 as to regulate its operation . thus , allowing a continuous flow of balls 70 as long as balls 70 are in the ball hopper 65 . a feed tube outlet 37 is aligned with the space between the counter - rotating wheels 27 to facilitate feeding of baseball , softball or other balls through the ball feeder tube 35 and between the counter - rotating wheels 27 for ejection , respectively . referring next to fig4 and 5 the box controls 8 and the controller 75 are operably connected , through a programmable logic controller 90 , to the pedestal drive motor 17 , the respective wheel motors 29 , the ball feed trigger control box 59 , delivery system motor 73 and the elevation motor 72 to facilitate selected automatic or manual control of those components of the ball throwing apparatus 1 , as hereinafter described . in another embodiment , box controls 8 and the controller 75 are operably connected wirelessly , through a programmable logic controller 90 . accordingly , the programmable ball throwing apparatus 1 can be operated according to an automatic mode , in which the ball ejection mechanism 22 launches each of a succession of balls 70 according to programmed ball launch characteristics , which include skill level , base or field position , range position and elevation . a positioning unit 97 , operably connected to the logic controller 90 , senses the base or field position , range position and elevation position of the ball ejection mechanism 22 with respect to a homing position , which is typically the line drive position at second base . alternatively , the ball throwing apparatus 1 can be operated according to a manual mode , in which the ball ejection mechanism 22 launches each ball 70 according to manually selected skill level , base or field position , range position and elevation ball launch characteristics , using the pendant controller 75 . in either the automatic mode or the manual mode , fielders ( not illustrated ) stand at the left field fielding position , center field fielding position , right field fielding position , first base fielding position , second base fielding position , short stop fielding position and / or third base fielding position in a baseball or softball outfield and attempt to catch the balls 70 launched from the ball ejection mechanism 22 , to hone baseball or softball catching skills . in the automatic mode , the ball ejection mechanism 22 is operated by the programmable logic controller 90 , according to one of multiple programs each having multiple steps . at each step of a particular program , the ball ejection mechanism 22 launches a ball 70 according to the skill level , base or field position , range position , and elevation ball launch characteristics programmed for that step . in each step , the controller 75 is used to launch each ball 70 according to the programmed ball launch characteristics for that step . the ball launch characteristics of each step in a particular program are pre - selected and edited using the various control features of the box controls 8 of the control box 7 , as hereinafter described . in the manual mode , the controller 75 is used both to select the ball launch characteristics for each step , typically with the exception of the skill level , and to launch each ball 70 from the ball ejection mechanism 22 . as illustrated in fig4 and 5 , the box controls 8 of the control box 7 includes a control panel 92 having a left field position button 101 , a center field position button 102 and a right field position button 103 , each of which is typically a push - light button . the field position buttons 101 - 103 are used to program the logic controller 90 ( fig4 ) to position the ball ejection mechanism 22 at the left field fielding position , center field fielding position or right field fielding position , respectively , to launch each ball 70 toward that fielding position at a given step of a particular program . the control panel 92 further includes a first base position button 105 , a second base position button 106 , a shortstop position button 107 and a third base position button 108 , each of which buttons 105 - 108 is typically a push - light button . the base position buttons 105 - 108 are used to program the logic controller 90 to position the ball ejection mechanism 22 at the first base fielding position , second base fielding position , shortstop fielding position or third base fielding position , respectively , to launch each ball 70 toward that selected base or shortstop fielding position at a given step of a particular program . other embodiments may use a touch panel , a computer , a pda , a hand held computer or a palm pilot . in one embodiment of the programmable ball throwing apparatus 1 , one of five different skill levels may be selected . these skill levels are “ pee wee ” ( pw ), corresponding to the slowest ball launch speed ; “ junior ” ( jr ); “ high school ” ( hs ); “ college ” ( col ); and “ pro ” ( pro ), corresponding to the highest ball launch speed . accordingly , as further illustrated in fig4 and 5 , the control panel 92 on the box controls 8 of the control box 7 includes a pro skill level button 110 , a col skill level button 111 , an hs skill level button 112 , a jr skill level button 113 , and a pw skill level button 114 . the skill level buttons 110 - 114 are typically push - light buttons and are used to program the logic controller 90 to operate the launch motors 29 at various speeds , and therefore , launch each ball 70 between the wheels 27 at the speed , which corresponds to the selected skill level at a given step of a particular program . an “ up ” elevation button 116 and a “ down ” elevation button 117 , each of which is typically a push - light button , are provided on the control panel 92 and used to program the logic controller 90 to operate the elevation motor 72 to angle the ball ejection mechanism 22 along a vertical plane in a lowermost (− 2 ) position , in which the ball ejection mechanism 22 launches a ball 70 in a “ multi - hop ” trajectory ; a lower position (− 1 ), in which the ball 70 is launched in a “ one - hop ” trajectory ; a line drive ( ld ) position ; an upper position (+ 1 ), in which the ball 70 is launched in a “ fly ball ” trajectory ; and an uppermost (+ 2 ) position , in which the ball 70 is launched in a “ pop fly ” trajectory , at a given step of a particular program . accordingly , the logic controller 90 is calibrated to initially position the ball ejection mechanism typically in the line drive ( ld ) position . the “ up ” elevation button 116 is pressed once to program the logic controller 90 to position the ball ejection mechanism 22 in the upper (+ 1 ) position and launch a “ fly ball .” the “ up ” elevation button 116 is pressed twice to position the ball ejection mechanism 22 in the uppermost (+ 2 ) position and launch a “ pop fly .” from the line drive ( ld ) position , the “ down ” elevation button 117 is pressed once to program the logic controller 90 to position the ball ejection mechanism 22 in the lower (− 1 ) position and launch a “ one - hop ”, and twice to program the logic controller 90 to position the ball ejection mechanism 22 in the lowermost (− 2 ) position and launch a “ multi - hop ”. a right range button 119 and a left range button 120 , each of which is typically a push - light button , are provided on the control panel 92 to program the logic controller 90 to operate the pedestal drive motor 17 to position the ball ejection mechanism 22 at a direct hit ( 0 ) position ; at a forehand (− 1 ) position , in which a ball 70 is launched to the left of each base or field fielding position ; at a forehand (− 2 ) position , in which a ball 70 is launched to the far left of each base or field fielding position ; at a backhand (+ 1 ) position , in which a ball 70 is launched to the right of each base or field fielding position ; and at a backhand (+ 2 ) position , in which a ball 70 is launched to the far right of each base or field fielding position , at a given step of a particular program . from the direct hit ( 0 ) position , the right range button 119 is pressed once to select the right backhand (+ 1 ) position and twice to select the far right backhand (+ 2 ) position . from the line drive position ( ld ), the left range button 119 is pressed once to select the left forehand (− 1 ) position and twice to select the far left forehand (− 2 ) position . a program mode selector switch 94 and a run mode selector switch 95 are included on the control panel 92 . the program mode selector switch 94 includes a “ program ” setting ( p ), an “ edit ” setting ( e ), and a “ run ” setting ( r ). the program mode selector switch 94 is set to the “ program ” setting ( p ) to select among the multiple ball - launch programs , each including multiple ball launch steps , whereas the program mode selector switch 94 is set to the “ edit ” setting to edit the various ball launch characteristics in a particular step of a given program , using the various control features on the control panel 92 . the program mode selector switch 94 is set to the “ run ” ( r ) setting to run the selected and edited program in the automatic mode or to operate the apparatus 1 in the manual mode , which automatic or manual mode is selected using the run mode selector switch 95 as hereinafter described . the run mode selector switch 95 includes an “ automatic ” setting ( a ), an “ off ” setting ( o ), and a “ manual ” setting ( m ). the switch 95 is set to the “ automatic ” setting ( a ) to run the apparatus 1 in the automatic mode , according to the ball launch program previously selected and edited using the program mode selector switch 94 . the run mode selector switch 95 is set to the “ manual ” setting ( m ) to run the apparatus 1 in the manual mode , using the pendant controller 75 . the program mode selector switch 95 is set to the “ off ” ( o ) position to turn off the apparatus 1 . the control panel 92 further includes a digital display 93 having an “ up ” selector button 93 a and a “ down ” selector button 93 b . when the program mode selector switch 94 is turned to the “ p ” setting to select the desired program to be edited or to be run in the automatic mode , the number of the program selected appears in the digital display 93 . the “ up ” selector button 93 a and the “ down ” selector button 93 b are pressed to scroll through the available programs by number and select the program to be edited and / or run , as indicated by program number in the digital display 93 . when the selected program appears by number in the digital display 93 , the program mode selector switch 94 is next turned to the “ e ” setting to edit the desired step or steps in the selected program , using the various control features on the control panel 92 . the number of the step being edited in the selected program appears in the digital display 93 . the “ up ” selector button 93 a and the “ down ” selector button 93 b are pressed to scroll through the steps by number in the program and individually select each step to be edited , as indicated by number in the digital display 93 . alternatively , in another embodiment the control box 7 may include box controls 8 in the form of a touch screen display . the touch screen display can display different regions of the box controls 8 as active and / or choices depending on the program in operation at the time . for example , the touch screen may display choices for a main menu which allows the selection of the mode of operation of the apparatus 1 by the selection of setup mode , manual mode , program mode , maintenance mode or manual on the fly mode as hereinafter described in fig6 and in fig7 as a screen shot of one embodiment of the touch screen controller . when the apparatus 1 is run in the “ manual ” mode , as hereinafter further described , the controller 75 is used to manually control the various ball launch characteristics of the ball ejection mechanism 22 . the controller 75 includes a first base position button 81 which is pressed to aim the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the first base fielding position in a baseball or softball outfield , a second base position button 82 which is pressed to aim the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the second base fielding position , a short - stop position button 83 which is pressed to aim the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the short - stop fielding position , and a third base position button 84 which is pressed to aim the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the third base fielding position . accordingly , depression of the base position buttons 81 - 84 energizes the pedestal drive motor 17 to rotate the mount pedestal 13 in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction in order to facilitate proper positioning or aiming of the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the selected base or shortstop fielding position . a left field position button 78 , a center field position button 79 and a right field position button 80 are provided on the controller 75 . depression of the left field position button 78 , the center field position button 79 or the right field position button 80 energizes the pedestal drive motor 17 to rotate the mount pedestal 13 in order to facilitate proper positioning of the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the selected left field fielding position , center field fielding position or right field fielding position , respectively , in the outfield . an “ up ” elevation button 85 and a “ down ” elevation button 86 are typically included on the controller 75 to facilitate operation of the elevation motor 72 to pivot the ball ejection mechanism 22 in a vertical plane . accordingly , the elevation motor 72 is calibrated to initially orient the ball ejection mechanism 22 typically in a line drive ( ld ) homing position , in which balls 70 are ejected from the ball ejection mechanism 22 in a generally horizontal , line - drive trajectory . by one depression of the “ up ” elevation button 85 , the elevation motor 72 tilts the ball ejection mechanism 22 upwardly to an upper “ fly ball ” (+ 1 ) elevation position , such that the ball ejection mechanism 22 ejects balls 70 in a fly ball trajectory . by two depressions of the “ up ” elevation button 85 , the elevation motor 72 tilts the ball ejection mechanism 22 upwardly to an uppermost “ pop fly ” (+ 2 ) elevation position , such that the ball ejection mechanism 22 ejects balls 70 in a pop fly trajectory . with the ball ejection mechanism 22 oriented in the line drive homing position , the “ down ” elevation button 86 is pressed once to cause the elevation motor 72 to tilt the ball ejection mechanism 22 downwardly , such that balls 70 are ejected in a “ one hop ” (− 1 ) trajectory . by depression of the “ down ” elevation button 86 twice , the elevation motor 72 tilts the ball ejection mechanism 22 downwardly such that balls 70 are ejected in a “ multi hop ” (− 2 ) trajectory . the controller 75 further includes a right range button 87 and a left range button 88 which can be pressed to actuate the pedestal drive motor 17 to position the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward a far right (+ 2 ) backhand position , a right (+ 1 ) backhand position , a center or direct hit ( 0 ) position , a left (− 1 ) forehand position or a far left (− 2 ) forehand position , respectively , of each first base , second base , short stop or third base fielding position , selected using one of the position buttons , or to the left , far left , right or far right of each left field fielding position , center field fielding position or right field fielding position selected using the left field position button 78 , center field position button 79 or right field position button 80 . for example , the programmable ball throwing apparatus 1 is typically calibrated to aim the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the center or line - drive ( ld ) position of the selected base or field fielding position . depression of the left range button 88 once facilitates positioning of the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the left forehand (− 1 ) position , whereas depression of the right range button 87 once facilitates aiming of the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the right backhand (+ 1 ) position . depression of the left range button 88 twice facilitates positioning of the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the far left forehand (− 2 ) position , whereas depression of the right range button 87 twice facilitates positioning of the ball ejection mechanism 22 toward the far right backhand (+ 2 ) position . like the base position buttons 81 - 84 and the field position buttons 78 - 80 , the right range button 87 and left range button 88 energize the pedestal drive motor 17 to rotate the mount pedestal 13 in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction in order to facilitate proper positioning of the ball ejection mechanism 22 to the right or left of the selected base or field position . a right position indicator light ( not illustrated ) and a left position indicator light ( not illustrated ) may be further provided on the controller 75 . accordingly , when the ball ejection mechanism 22 is aimed toward the right backhand (+ 1 ) position of one of the base or field positions , the right position indicator light is continuously illuminated . when the ball ejection mechanism 22 is aimed toward the far right backhand (+ 2 ) position of one of the base or field positions , the right position indicator light flashes or blinks . conversely , when the ball ejection mechanism 22 is aimed toward the left forehand (− 1 ) position of a base or field position , the left position indicator light is continuously illuminated . the left position indicator light flashes or blinks when the ball ejection mechanism 22 is aimed toward the far left forehand (− 2 ) position . when the ball ejection mechanism 22 is aimed in the center range or line drive ( ld ) position of one of the base or field positions , neither the right position indicator light nor the left position indicator light is illuminated or flashes . a launch button 77 provided on the controller 75 is pressed to manually launch each ball 70 from the ball ejection mechanism 22 , toward the desired base or field position , range position and elevation position in the baseball or softball outfield previously selected by pressing one of the base position buttons 81 - 84 , range position buttons 87 , 88 , and elevation position buttons 85 , 86 . accordingly , the launch button 77 actuates the release one of the balls 70 between the rotating wheels 27 . referring next to fig6 , the programmable ball throwing apparatus 1 is capable of being operated in an automatic mode or a manual mode , as hereinafter described . as illustrated in fig6 , block 602 displays a main menu which allows the selection of the mode of operation of the apparatus 1 by the selection of block 604 setup mode , block 606 manual mode , block 608 program mode , block 610 maintenance mode or block 700 manual on the fly mode as hereinafter described . for example , fig7 is a screen shot of one embodiment of block 602 displayed on a touch screen controller . the activation of area 1001 , 1002 and 1003 on the controller results in the activation of block 608 , 604 , and 606 respectively . the selection of block 610 maintenance mode from the main menu 602 provides the choice of block 612 , which allows upgrades to the apparatus 1 and selection of block 614 for recalibration of the apparatus 1 . the selection of block 608 initiates the program mode , which allows the selection of block 646 team routines , block 648 individual routines , block 650 custom routines or block 652 return to the main menu . the selection of block 646 team routines allows the selection of block 654 , which includes a variety of routines , which include variations in the sequential delivery of balls having the desired parameters to different positions . block 654 then proceeds to block 656 . the selection of block 648 individual routines allows individual routines to be selected by initiating block 658 , which allow the selection of position by the selection of the blocks 660 to 674 , which correspond to field positions . block 660 corresponds to the pitcher , block 662 corresponds to the first base , block 664 corresponds to the second base , block 666 corresponds to the short stop position , block 668 corresponds to the third base position , block 670 corresponds to the left field position , block 672 corresponds to the center field position and block 674 corresponds to the right field position . once block 660 to 674 has been selected and the position designates the block 676 , the selection of individual routines may be activated . block 678 includes variations to one or more parameters identifying the ball flight and trajectory . in the automatic mode , the ball ejection mechanism 22 is operated by the programmable logic controller 90 , according to one of multiple programs each having multiple steps . at each step of a particular program , the ball ejection mechanism 22 launches a ball 70 according to the skill level , base or field position , range position , and elevation ball launch characteristics programmed for that step . in each step , the controller 75 is used to launch each ball 70 according to the programmed ball launch characteristics for that step . the selection of block 650 custom routines initiates block 678 . block 678 allows the selection of customized routine , which vary the sequential delivery of balls and have different parameters identifying a flight and trajectory having the parameters desired by the user . once the routine is selected block 678 is selected block 656 is initiated . for example , fig8 is a screen shot of one embodiment of block 658 on a touch screen controller . the activation of area 1004 , 1005 , 1006 , 1007 , 1008 , 1009 , 1010 and 1011 on the controller results in the activation of block 660 which corresponds to the pitcher , block 662 which corresponds to the first base , block 664 which corresponds to the second base , block 666 which corresponds to the short stop position , block 668 which corresponds to the third base position , block 670 which corresponds to the left field position , block 672 which corresponds to the center field position and block 674 which corresponds to the right field position respectively . block 656 initiates block 680 the run menu display , which in turn initiates block 682 , which prompts the user to start the routine . if the user elects to start the routine block 684 is initiated and runs the routine , thus , operating the apparatus . block 686 is then activated , which prompts the user to determine if the routine is over . a positive response to block 686 , causes block 680 to be reinitiated . a negative response to block 686 initiates block 688 , which prompts the user to stop the routine . if the routine is stopped then block 680 to be reinitiated . if the routine is not stopped then block 690 is initiated , which prompts the user to cancel the routine . a positive response to block 690 to cancel the routine will reinitiate block 608 and a negative response will reactivate block 684 causing the operation of the apparatus 1 . alternatively , at block 682 if the user elected not to run the routine then block 688 will be initialized . alternatively , at block 602 , block 606 manual mode may be selected . block 606 manual mode allows the selection of block 692 to set the position , block 694 to set the range , block 696 to set the type , block 698 to set the spin and block 700 the fly mode . the selection of block 692 allows the position to be selected by selecting blocks 702 to 716 , which correspond to field positions . block 702 corresponds to the pitcher , block 710 corresponds to the first base , block 706 corresponds to the second base , block 708 corresponds to the short stop position , block 708 corresponds to the third base position , block 712 corresponds to the left field position , block 714 corresponds to the center field position and block 716 corresponds to the right field position . for example , fig9 is a screen shot of one embodiment of block 730 on a touch screen controller . the activation of area 1012 , 1013 , 1014 , 1015 , 1016 , 1017 , 1018 and 1019 on the controller results in the activation of block 702 , 704 , 706 , 708 , 710 , 712 , 714 and 716 respectively . if block 694 was selected then block 718 is initiated , which allows the selection of the range . block 718 defines the range through the selection of blocks 720 - 728 . block 728 extreme right , block 726 right , block 724 direct , block 722 left , block 720 extreme left . for example , fig1 is a screen shot of one embodiment of block 718 on a touch screen controller . the activation of area 1020 , 1021 , 1022 , 1023 and 1024 on the controller results in the activation of block 720 , 722 , 724 , 726 and 728 respectively . if block 696 was selected then block 730 is initiated , which allows the selection of the characteristics of ball to be delivered block 732 to 747 . the characteristic ( e . g ., groundball , line drive or fly ball ) of the ball may be selected : block 732 soft groundball , block 734 medium groundball , block 736 hard groundball , block 738 soft line drive , block 740 medium line drive , block 742 hard line drive , block 744 soft fly ball , block 746 medium fly ball or block 747 hard fly ball . for example , fig1 is a screen shot of one embodiment of block 718 on a touch screen controller . the activation of area 1025 , 1026 , 1027 , 1028 , 1029 , 1030 , 1031 , 1032 and 1033 on the controller results in the activation of block 732 , 734 , 736 , 738 , 740 , 742 , 744 , 746 and 748 respectively . if block 698 was selected then block 790 is initiated , which allows the selection of the spin of the ball through the selection of block 792 extreme back spin , block 794 backspin , block 796 normal spin , block 798 topspin or block 800 extreme top spin . the selection of block 700 on the fly mode allows the selection of block 606 or block 802 . for example , fig1 is a screen shot of one embodiment of block 790 on a touch screen controller . the activation of area 1034 , 1035 , 1036 , 1037 and 1038 on the controller results in the activation of block 792 , 794 , 796 , 798 , and 800 respectively . initiation of block 802 initiates block 804 on the fly manual menu . block 806 is initiated as a result of block 804 and prompts the user to change ball attributes . if the user elects to change the ball attributes then block 808 is initiated , however if the user elects not to change the ball attributes then block 814 is initiated . block 808 allows the selection of the parameters that control the characteristics of the ball , e . g ., spin , type , and range . in the automatic mode , the ball ejection mechanism 22 is operated by the programmable logic controller 90 , according to one of multiple programs each having multiple steps . at each step of a particular program , the ball ejection mechanism 22 launches a ball 70 according to the skill level , base or field position , range position , and elevation ball launch characteristics programmed for that step . in each step , the controller 75 is used to launch each ball 70 according to the programmed ball launch characteristics for that step . block 814 prompts the user to end manual mode . if the user responds positively then block 606 is reinitiated , however if the user responds negatively then block 810 is initiated . block 810 serves to initiate the firing of the ball and initiation of block 812 . block 812 prompts the user to fire another ball . if the user responds positively to block 812 then block 806 is reinitiated , however a negative response results in block 606 being reactivated . if block 604 setup was selected from the main menu 602 , block 814 is initiated which prompts the user for a password . block 816 is then initiated which prompts the user to select the level by selecting blocks 820 - 828 , pro block 820 , college block 822 , high school block 824 , junior block 826 and peewee block 828 . block 818 is then initiated and the user prompted to set the dimension of the field using blocks 832 - 840 , left field position block 832 , the left center field position block 834 , the center field position block 836 , the right center field position block 838 and the right field position block 840 . the user is then prompted to set the time by block 842 , followed by initiation of block 644 , which prompts the user to return to the main menu . if the user responds positively to block 644 , then block 606 is reinitiated , however it the user responds negatively block 604 is reinitiated . referring next to fig1 - 16 , the programmable ball throwing apparatus 1 is capable of being operated in an automatic mode or a manual mode , as hereinafter described . as illustrated in step s 1 of fig1 , the apparatus 1 is initially placed at home plate on a baseball or softball field , with the ball ejection mechanism 22 aimed toward second base , and then turned on , typically by actuation of a power switch ( not shown ) which may be provided on the control box 7 . as indicated in step s 2 , by operation of the positioning unit 97 , the apparatus 1 self - calibrates such that the ball ejection mechanism 22 is positioned in the direct hit ( 0 ) position at second base . next , from the main menu s 3 , the apparatus 1 can be operated in the program mode s 4 or the run mode s 13 , as hereinafter described , using the program mode selector switch 94 and the run mode selector switch 95 . the program mode s 4 is used to select a desired ball launch program by which to operate the apparatus 1 , as well as to edit the ball launch characteristics of one or more steps in the selected program . the run mode s 13 is used to operate the apparatus 1 in either the automatic mode or the manual mode . as illustrated in fig1 , the program mode s 4 is selected by turning the program mode selector switch 94 to the “ program ” ( p ) position on the control panel 92 , with the run mode selector switch 95 typically turned to the “ off ” ( o ) position . accordingly , as the program mode selector switch 94 remains at the “ p ” position , the first of multiple , typically 99 , programs that are programmed into the logic controller 90 is initially indicated by the numeral “ 1 ” in the digital display 93 . the programs vary from each other according to the multiple steps ( typically 10 ) each contains , and the steps in a given program vary according to the ball launch characteristics of each step . typically , one or multiple programs are selected by a baseball or softball coach to train a baseball or softball team during one practice session . as indicated in step s 5 of fig1 , the desired program to be used is selected by pressing the “ up ” selector button 93 a and / or the “ down ” selector button 93 b on the control panel 92 , and the program numbers of the scrolled programs successively appear in the digital display 93 . when the desired program to be used has been selected , as indicated by program number in the digital display 93 , the program mode selector switch 94 may then be turned to the “ edit ” setting ( e ) on the control panel 92 to edit a step or steps in the selected program , as indicated in step s 6 of fig1 . the steps of the program selected in step s 6 are indicated by number in the digital display 93 , and the step or steps to be edited are individually selected by scrolling the steps , by number , using the “ up ” selector button 93 a and / or the “ down ” selector button 93 b . when the number of the desired step appears in the digital display 93 , the ball launch characteristics of that step can be edited , as desired and as indicated in steps s 7 - s 11 of fig1 . for example , the skill level s 7 for the step is selected by pushing the “ pro ” skill level button 110 , “ col ” skill level button 111 , “ hs ” skill level button 112 , “ jr ” skill level button 113 or “ pw ” skill level button 114 on the control panel 92 to operate the apparatus 1 at the selected skill level at that step . the pressed button is illuminated to indicate the skill level for the step . for example , if the “ pro ” skill level button 110 is pressed for a particular step in a program , then the “ pro ” skill level button 110 is illuminated and remains illuminated as long as the digital display 93 displays the number of that step . this selected skill level for that particular step is automatically saved in the memory of the programmable controller 90 . the range position for the selected step , as indicated in step s 8 , is programmed by pressing the right range button 119 and / or the left range button 120 on the control panel 92 . since the apparatus 1 is calibrated to initially position the ball ejection mechanism 22 at the direct hit ( 0 ) position at second base , the right range button 119 is pressed once ( and is continuously illuminated ) to select the right (+ 1 ) backhand position and twice ( and flashes ) to select the far right (+ 2 ) backhand position . the left range button 120 is pressed once ( and is continuously illuminated ) to select the left (− 1 ) forehand position and twice ( and flashes ) to select the far left (− 2 ) forehand position . the selected range position for the step is automatically saved in the memory of the programmable controller 90 . the base or field position of the selected step , as indicated in step s 9 , is programmed by pressing the first base position button 105 , the second base position button 106 , the short stop position button 107 , the third base position button 108 , the left field position button 101 , the center field position button 102 or the right field position button 103 on the control panel 92 . when the desired position button 105 , 106 , 107 , 108 or field position button 101 , 102 or 103 is pressed , that button is illuminated and remains illuminated to indicate the base or field position selected for that step . the selected skill level for the step can be saved in the memory of the programmable controller 90 . the elevation position of the selected step , as indicated in step s 10 , is programmed by pressing the “ up ” elevation button 116 and / or the “ down ” elevation button 117 on the control panel 92 . from the line drive ( ld ) position of the ball ejection mechanism 22 , the “ up ” elevation button 116 is pressed once ( and is continuously illuminated ) to select the upper (+ 1 ) or “ fly ball ” elevation position and twice ( and flashes ) to select the uppermost (+ 2 ) or “ pop fly ” elevation position . the “ down ” elevation button 117 is pressed once ( and is continuously illuminated ) to select the lower (− 1 ) or “ one - hop ” elevation position and twice ( and flashes ) to select the lowermost (− 2 ) or “ multi - hop ” elevation position . the selected skill level for the step is automatically saved in the memory of the programmable controller 90 . the ball spin may be selected , as indicated in step s 11 , is programmed by selecting the desired ball spin from the menu including extreme back spin , back spin , normal , top spin or extreme topspin . the selected ball spin for the step can be saved in the memory of the programmable controller 90 . after the skill level , range position , base or field position and elevation position have been selected for a particular step in a program , as indicated in steps s 7 - s 11 and heretofore described , the next or previous step in the program to be edited can be selected by pressing the “ up ” selector button 93 a and / or the “ down ” selector button 93 b on the control panel 92 . that step is then edited in similar fashion . after all of the steps for the program or programs to be used in a practice session have been edited as desired , and the ball launch characteristics for each step of each program saved into the memory of the logic controller 90 , the program mode selector switch 94 is turned to the “ run ” ( r ) setting on the control panel 92 to operate the apparatus 1 in either the automatic mode or the manual mode , as hereinafter described . the ball launch characteristics programmed into the logic controller 90 for each step of a given program remain unchanged unless and until the ball launch characteristics are subsequently edited in the manner heretofore described with respect to steps s 7 - s 11 of fig1 . the apparatus 1 is operated in the automatic mode , as indicated in step s 14 , by turning the program mode selector switch 94 to the “ run ” ( r ) setting and the run mode selector switch 95 to the “ automatic ” ( a ) setting on the control panel 92 . next , as indicated in step s 15 of fig1 , the controller 75 is used to launch each ball 70 from the ball ejection mechanism 22 , as indicated in step s 16 . this is accomplished by depression of the launch button 77 on the pendant controller 75 . accordingly , the ball ejection mechanism 22 ejects each ball 70 according to the ball launch characteristics of each step in the program previously selected using the program mode selector switch 94 and the “ up ” selector button 93 a and / or the “ down ” selector button 93 b . beginning with the first step in the selected program , the ball ejection mechanism 22 successively ejects balls 70 according to the ball launch characteristics programmed into the logic controller 90 for the respective steps of the program , by successive pressing of the launch button 77 . the ball 70 launched at a given step in the program has the combination of ball launch characteristics previously programmed for that step . these ball launch characteristics include the skill level ; the base or field position , which corresponds to which of the left field , center field or right field fielding position , or which of the first base , second base , short stop or third base fielding position , the ball 70 is launched toward ; the range position ; and the elevation position . for example , at a given step in the program , the ball ejection mechanism 22 may launch a ball 70 toward a fielder standing at the center field fielding position . the other launch characteristics of the ball 70 may include a high school ( hs ) skill level ; a back hand (+ 1 ) range position ; and a fly ball (+ 1 ) elevation position . accordingly , the center field fielder attempts to catch the ball 70 after the ball is launched from the ball ejection mechanism 22 . the next ball 70 launched from the ball ejection mechanism 22 at a subsequent step in the program may have the same or different ball launch characteristics for the same or a different fielder , depending on the particular ball launch characteristics of the ball 70 programmed for that particular step in the program . accordingly , the ball launch characteristics of the balls 70 launched in a particular program can be edited to provide the desired workout for any and all fielding positions in the baseball or softball outfield . after a ball 70 is ejected from the ball ejection mechanism 22 according to the ball launch characteristics of the first step , for example , the logic controller 90 automatically selects the ball launch characteristics of the second step in the program , as indicated in step s 18 , and launches the next ball 70 accordingly , until each step in the program has been completed . the ball launch characteristics of the previous step in the program may be selected , as desired , as indicated in step s 19 , by pressing the “ down ” selector button 93 b on the control panel 92 . as indicated in step s 17 , therefore , the ball launch characteristics of the next step in the program are selected and implemented in the next launching of the ball from the ball ejection mechanism 22 by simply pressing the launch button 77 on the pendant controller 75 . conversely , the ball launch characteristics of a previous step in the program are selected by pressing the “ down ” selector button 93 b on the control panel 92 , and then implemented by pressing the launch button 77 on the pendant controller 75 . as illustrated in fig1 , the apparatus 1 is operated in the manual mode , as indicated in step s 21 , by turning the run mode selector switch 95 to the “ manual ” ( m ) setting on the control panel 92 while the program mode selector switch 94 remains at the “ run ” ( r ) setting . the ball ejection mechanism 22 is then manually operated using the pendant controller 75 , as indicated in step s 22 . accordingly , the skill level for a particular ball launch step , indicated in step s 23 , is selected by pressing a selected one of the skill level buttons 110 - 114 on the control panel 92 . the range position for the step , indicated in step s 24 , is selected by pressing the right range button 87 or left range button 88 . from the direct hit ( 0 ) position the right range button 87 is pressed once to select the right (+ 1 ) backhand position and twice to select the far right (+ 2 ) backhand position . the left range button 88 is pressed once to select the left (− 1 ) forehand position and twice to select the far left (− 2 ) forehand position . the base or field position for the ball launch step , indicated in step s 25 , is selected by pressing a selected one of the left field position button 78 , center field position button 79 , right field position button 80 , first base position button 81 , second base position button 82 , short - stop position button 83 or third base position button 84 on the pendant controller 75 . as indicated in step s 26 , the elevation position for the ball launch step is selected to choose a multi - hop , one - hop , line drive , fly ball or pop fly ball trajectory for the ball launch step . from the line drive ( ld ) position , the upper (+ 1 ) “ fly ball ” position is selected by pressing the “ up ” elevation button 85 once . the “ up ” elevation button 85 is pressed twice to select the uppermost (+ 2 ) “ pop fly ” position . the lower (− 1 ) “ one - hop ” position is selected by pressing the “ down ” elevation button 86 , whereas the “ down ” elevation button 86 is pressed twice to select the lowermost (− 2 ) “ multi - hop ” position . finally , after the skill level , range position , base or field position and elevation position have been selected , as indicated in steps s 23 - s 26 , a ball 70 is launched from the ball ejection mechanism 22 according to the selected ball launch characteristics , as indicated in step s 27 , by pressing the launch button 77 on the pendant controller 75 . another ball 70 having the same ball launch characteristics can then be launched from the ball ejection mechanism 22 by again pressing the launch button 77 . alternatively , the ball launch characteristics can be changed , according to any or all of steps s 23 - s 26 , to launch a ball or balls 70 having the manually - selected ball launch characteristics . it will be understood that particular embodiments described herein are shown by way of illustration and not as limitations of the invention . the principal features of this invention can be employed in various embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention . those skilled in the art will recognize , or be able to ascertain using no more than routine experimentation , numerous equivalents to the specific procedures described herein . such equivalents are considered to be within the scope of this invention and are covered by the claims .

0Human Necessities

the scheme below depicts the syntheses of a large number of indolizine compounds of this invention , i . e ., compounds 1 - 39 . details of preparation of compounds 1 - 39 are described in examples 1 - 39 , respectively . the indolizine compounds described above can be prepared by methods well known in the art , as well as by the synthetic routes disclosed herein . for example , one can react a 2 - methylpyridine compound with a bromomethyl ketone compound to produce a pyridine salt . treated with dimethyl sulfate , this pyridine salt forms an indolizine ring to give an indolizinyl ketone . this ketone can then be reduced to a 3 - subsituted indolizine compound . a compound of this invention can be obtained by reacting the 3 - substituted indolizine compound with 2 -, 3 -, or 4 - aminopyridine or n - oxy 4 - aminopyridine . appropriate functional groups can be introduced into both the 2 - methylpyridine compound and the aminopyridine compound . any reactive groups on an indolizine intermediate can be protected prior to reacting the intermediate with an aminopyridine . for suitable protecting groups , see , e . g ., greene ( 1981 ) protective groups in organic synthesis , john wiley & amp ; sons , inc ., new york . an indolizine compound thus synthesized can be further purified by any conventional purification method , including without limitation , crystallization , flash column chromatography , solvating gas chromatography , or high performance liquid chromatography . the indolizine compounds of the invention may contain a non - aromatic double bond and one or more asymmetric centers . thus , they can occur as racemates and racemic mixtures , single enantiomers , individual diastereomers , diastereomeric mixtures , and cis - or trans - isomeric forms . all such isomeric forms are contemplated . also within the scope of this invention is a pharmaceutical composition contains an effective amount of at least one indolizine compound of the present invention and a pharmaceutical acceptable carrier . further , this invention covers a method of administering an effective amount of one or more of the indolizine compounds described in the summary section above to an inflammatory disorder patient . “ an effective amount ” refers to the amount of an active indolizine compound that is required to confer a therapeutic effect on the treated subject . effective doses will vary , as recognized by those skilled in the art , depending on the types of diseases treated , route of administration , excipient usage , and the possibility of co - usage with other therapeutic treatment . to practice the method of the present invention , a composition having one or more indolizine compound can be administered parenterally , orally , nasally , rectally , topically , or buccally . the term “ parenteral ” as used herein refers to subcutaneous , intracutaneous , intravenous , intrmuscular , intraarticular , intraarterial , intrasynovial , intrasternal , intrathecal , intralesional , or intracranial injection , as well as any suitable infusion technique . a sterile injectable composition can be a solution or suspension in a non - toxic parenterally acceptable diluent or solvent , such as a solution in 1 , 3 - butanediol . among the acceptable vehicles and solvents that can be employed are mannitol , water , ringer &# 39 ; s solution , and isotonic sodium chloride solution . in addition , fixed oils are conventionally employed as a solvent or suspending medium ( e . g ., synthetic mono - or diglycerides ). fatty acid , such as oleic acid and its glyceride derivatives are useful in the preparation of injectables , as are natural pharmaceutically acceptable oils , such as olive oil or castor oil , especially in their polyoxyethylated versions . these oil solutions or suspensions can also contain a long chain alcohol diluent or dispersant , or carboxymethyl cellulose or similar dispersing agents . other commonly used surfactants such as tweens or spans or other similar emulsifying agents or bioavailability enhancers which are commonly used in the manufacture of pharmaceutically acceptable solid , liquid , or other dosage forms can also be used for the purpose of formulation . a composition for oral administration can be any orally acceptable dosage form including capsules , tablets , emulsions , and aqueous suspensions , dispersions , and solutions . in the case of tablets , commonly used carriers include lactose and corn starch . lubricating agents , such as magnesium stearate , are also typically added . for oral administration in a capsule form , useful diluents include lactose and dried corn starch . when aqueous suspensions or emulsions are administered orally , the active ingredient can be suspended or dissolved in an oily phase combined with emulsifying or suspending agents . if desired , certain sweetening , flavoring , or coloring agents can be added . a nasal aerosol or inhalation composition can be prepared according to techniques well known in the art of pharmaceutical formulation . for example , such a composition can be prepared as a solution in saline , employing benzyl alcohol or other suitable preservatives , absorption promoters to enhance bioavailability , fluorocarbons , and / or other solubilizing or dispersing agents known in the art . a composition having one or more active indolizine compounds can also be administered in the form of suppositories for rectal administration . the carrier in the pharmaceutical composition must be “ acceptable ” in the sense that it is compatible with the active ingredient of the composition ( and preferably , capable of stabilizing the active ingredient ) and not deleterious to the subject to be treated . one or more solubilizing agents can be utilized as pharmaceutical excipients for delivery of an active indolizine compound . examples of other carriers include colloidal silicon oxide , magnesium stearate , cellulose , sodium lauryl sulfate , and d & amp ; c yellow # 10 . the indolizine compounds of this invention can be preliminarily screened for their efficacy in treating inflammatory disorders by one or more of the following in vitro assays ( see examples 40 and 41 below ) and in vivo assays ( see examples 42 , 43 , and 44 below ). other methods will also apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art . the specific examples below are to be construed as merely illustrative , and not limitative of the remainder of the disclosure in any way whatsoever . without further elaboration , it is believed that one skilled in the art can , based on the description herein , utilize the present invention to its fullest extent . all publications cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety . picoline ( 2 . 18 ml , 22 mmol ) was added to a stirred solution of 2 - bromo - 1 -( 4 - methoxyphenyl )- ethanone ( 2 . 5 g , 10 . 9 mmol ) in 11 ml of acetonitrile at room temperature . the solution was continually stirred at room temperature for 2 hours . 15 ml of ethyl acetate was then added to the above solution . the resultant precipitate was collected by filtration and washed with ethyl acetate to give intermediate 1 as a white solid ( 2 . 4 g , 68 %). to a stirred suspension of intermediate 1 ( 2 . 4 g , 7 . 45 mmol ) in 22 ml of dimethylformamide ( dmf ) was added 18 ml of dmf - me 2 so 4 ( obtained by stirring a mixture of 1 eq . dmf and 1 eq . me 2 so 4 at 60 - 80 ° c . for 3 hours , followed by cooling to room temperature ). stirring was continued at room temperature for another 15 minutes . 31 ml of triethylamine was added to the above suspension , followed by stirring at 40 - 50 ° c . ( reaction temperature ) for 2 hours . after cooled to room temperature , the mixture was poured into 100 ml of ice water and was stirred for several hours . the resultant precipitate was collected , washed with water , and dried to give of intermediate 2 as an orange solid ( 1 . 4 g , 75 %). bh 3 - thf ( 1m , 26 ml ) was added to a solution of intermediate 2 ( 1 . 4 g , 11 . 2 mmol ) in 33 ml of acetonitrile containing 0 . 5 ml of methanol . the resulting solution was stirred at 50 ° c . for 1 hour . the reaction mixture was cooled to ˜ 10 ° c . and quenched with 4 ml of ice water . 20 ml of ethyl acetate was added to the mixture , followed by drying with anhydrous na 2 so 4 . the solution was then decanted and evaporated under reduced pressure . the crude product was purified by solvating gas chromatography ( sgc ) using a gradient elution ( hexane to 8 : 1 hexane / dichloromethane to 1 : 1 hexane / dichloromethane ) to give intermediate 3 as an off - white solid ( 0 . 6 g , 43 %). a 10 ml dry ether solution containing intermediate 3 ( 0 . 39 g , 1 . 65 mmol ) was slowly added to a stirred solution of oxalyl chloride ( 0 . 17 ml , 1 . 98 mmol ) in 5 ml of dry ether at 0 ° c . after stirred at the same temperature for 30 minutes , the solution was concentrated to yield a solid and the resultant solid was re - dissolved in 5 ml of dry thf . a solution of 3 - aminopyridine ( 0 . 37 g , 3 . 95 mmol ) in 910 ml of dry thf was then added slowly to the above solution at 0 ° c . stirring was continued at 0 ° c . for 1 hour and at room temperature for 2 . 5 hours . the volatiles were then removed under reduced pressure and the residue was dissolved in 30 ml of ethyl acetate . the ethyl acetate solution was washed successively with h 2 o , saturated nahco 3 , and brine . after dried with na 2 so 4 , the solvent of the solution was removed . the crude product was purified by sgc using a gradient elution ( hexane to 2 : 1 hexane / ethyl acetate to 1 : 1 hexane / ethyl acetate ) to give compound 1 as a yellow solid ( 0 . 3 g , 47 %). [ 0029 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 3 . 65 ( s , 3h ); 4 . 10 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 60 - 6 . 82 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 15 ( q , j = 7 hz , 2h ); 7 . 19 - 7 . 24 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 78 ( d , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 7 . 97 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 18 - 8 . 24 ( m , 1h ); 8 . 32 ( dd , j = 1 . 5 hz , 5 hz , 1h ); 8 . 52 ( d , j = 9 hz , 1h ); 8 . 74 ( d , j = 2 . 4 hz , 1h ); 9 . 55 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 19 n 3 o 3 ): 385 . 1 ; found : 386 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 2 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0032 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 52 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 81 ( d , j = 4 . 8 hz , 1h ); 8 . 66 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 8 . 45 - 8 . 26 ( m , 2h ); 8 . 13 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 81 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 7 . 64 - 7 . 30 ( m , 6h ); 6 . 96 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 26 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 16 n 4 o 2 ): 380 . 13 ; found : 381 . 2 ( m + h ) + . compound 3 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0035 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 4 . 25 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 83 ( t , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 7 . 14 - 7 . 32 ( m , 4h ); 7 . 71 ( d , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 7 . 97 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 03 ( d , j = 8 hz , 2h ); 8 . 17 ( dt , j = 8 hz , 1 . 5 hz , 1h ); 8 . 28 ( d , j = 4 . 8 hz , 1h ); 8 . 48 ( dd , j = 9 hz , 1 . 2 hz , 1h ); 8 . 74 ( s , 1h ); 9 . 59 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 16 n 4 o 4 ): 400 . 1 ; found : 401 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 4 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0038 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 3 . 65 ( bs , 2h ); 4 . 18 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 63 ( d , j = 9 hz , 1h ); 6 . 9 ( t , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 6 . 98 ( d , j = 7 hz , 2h ); 7 . 28 - 7 . 39 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 90 ( d , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 8 . 06 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 28 - 8 . 34 ( m , 1h ); 8 . 41 ( dd , j = 5 hz , 1 . 5 hz , 1h ); 8 . 63 ( d , j = 9 hz , 1h ); 8 . 83 ( d , j = 2 . 4 hz , 1h ); 9 . 62 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 18 n 4 o 2 ): 370 . 1 ; found : 371 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 5 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0041 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 53 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 81 ( d , j = 3 . 0 hz , 1h ); 8 . 66 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 1h ); 8 . 40 ( d , j = 6 . 0 hz , 2h ); 8 . 30 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 85 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 1h ); 7 . 35 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 96 ( m , 3h ); 4 . 24 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated ( c 22 h 16 fn 3 o 2 ): 373 . 1 ; found : 374 . 1 ( m + h ) + compound 6 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0044 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 53 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 81 ( d , j = 3 . 0 hz , 1h ); 8 . 66 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 1h ); 8 . 42 ( d , j = 6 . 0 hz , 1h ); 8 . 30 ( m , 1h ); 8 . 11 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 83 ( d , j = 6 . 0 hz , 1h ); 7 . 36 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 15 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 2h ); 6 . 93 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 24 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated ( c 22 h 16 cln 3 o 2 ): 389 . 1 ; found : 390 . 1 ( m + h ) + compound 7 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0047 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 4 . 20 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 82 ( t , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 7 . 11 - 7 . 32 ( m , 7h ); 7 . 80 ( d , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 8 . 04 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 22 - 8 . 27 ( m , 1h ); 8 . 34 ( dd , j = 1 . 4 hz , 5 hz , 1h ); 8 . 56 ( d , j = 9 hz , 1h ); 8 . 74 ( d , j = 3 hz , 1h ); 9 . 49 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 17 n 3 o 2 ): 355 . 1 ; found : 356 . 1 ( m + h ) + . 3 . 2 g ( 60 %, 80 mmol ) of nah was added to a 130 ml dmf solution containing 8 . 88 g ( 82 mmol ) of benzyl alcohol at 0 ° c . the solution was stirred at room temperature for 2 hours . 10 g ( 78 mmol ) of 4 - chloropicoline was added to the above solution at room temperature , followed by stirring the solution for another 3 hours at 100 ° c . 200 ml of ice water was added to the above solution to yield a precipitate . the resultant precipitate was collected , washed with water , and dried to give 13 . 8 g ( 79 %) of 4 - benzyloxy - 2 - methyl - pyridine . compound 8 with a benzyl protected hydroxy ( 2 -[ 3 -( 4 - fluoro - benzyl )- 7 - benzyloxy - indolizin - 1 - yl ]- 2 - oxo - n - pyridin - 3 - yl - acetamide ) was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 by using 4 - benzyloxy - 2 - methyl - pyridine was used as a starting material . the protecting benzyl group was removed by using a well - known hydrogenation reduction to give compound 8 . [ 0052 ] 1 h - nmr ( cd 3 socd 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 10 . 72 ( s , 1h ); 9 . 01 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 32 ( d , j = 6 hz , 1h ); 8 . 26 ( d , j = 12 hz , 2h ); 7 . 89 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 42 - 7 . 10 ( m , 6h ); 7 . 64 - 7 . 30 ( m , 6h ); 4 . 22 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 16 fn 3 o 3 ): 389 . 12 ; found : 390 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 9 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0055 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 46 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 82 ( d , j = 2 . 4 hz , 1h ); 8 . 68 ( d , j = 2 . 1 hz , 1h ); 8 . 42 ( d , j = 5 . 1 hz , 1h ); 8 . 31 - 8 . 23 ( m , 1h ); 8 . 09 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 74 ( d , j = 7 . 5 hz , 1h ); 7 . 34 ( dd , j = 5 . 1 hz , 8 . 1 hz , 1h ); 7 . 18 - 7 . 14 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 04 - 6 . 98 ( m , 2h ); 6 . 89 ( dd , j = 2 . 4 hz , 7 . 5 hz , 1h ); 4 . 22 ( s , 2h ); esms : calculated for ( c 22 h 15 clfn 3 o 2 ): 407 . 82 ; found : 408 . 0 ( m + h ) + . compound 10 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0058 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 44 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 60 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 8 . 24 ( d , j = 10 hz , 1h ), 7 . 96 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 83 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 7 . 39 ( d , j = 10 hz , 1h ); 7 . 38 - 6 . 89 ( m , 6h ); 4 . 21 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 14 cl 2 fn 3 o 2 ): 441 . 04 ; found : 442 . 0 ( m + h ) + . compound 11 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0061 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 84 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 68 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 8 . 41 - 8 . 28 ( m , 2h ); 8 . 08 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 13 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 81 - 7 . 73 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 61 ( d , j = 12 . 5 hz , 2h ); 7 . 41 - 7 . 32 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 13 - 6 . 84 ( m , 2h ); 4 . 36 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 16 n 4 o 2 ): 380 . 13 ; found : 381 . 2 ( m + h ) + . compound 12 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0064 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 4 . 24 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 92 ( t , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 7 . 20 - 7 . 41 ( m , 7h ); 7 . 68 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 89 ( d , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 8 . 10 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 55 - 8 . 61 ( m , 1h ); 8 . 65 ( d , j = 9 hz , 1h ); 9 . 60 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 17 n 3 o 2 ): 355 . 1 ; found : 356 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 13 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0067 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 89 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 81 ( m , 1h ); 8 . 38 ( m , 2h ); 8 . 07 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 78 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 36 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 08 ( m , 2h ); 6 . 89 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 23 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated ( c 22 h 16 cln 3 o 2 ): 389 . 1 ; found : 390 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 12 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0070 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 77 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 66 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 1h ); 8 . 40 ( m , 2h ); 8 . 06 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 81 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 35 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 26 ( m , 4h ); 4 . 24 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated ( c 22 h 16 fn 3 o 2 ): 373 . 1 ; found : 374 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 15 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 8 . [ 0073 ] 1 h - nmr ( cd 3 cocd 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 93 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 30 - 8 . 39 ( m , 2h ); 8 . 12 - 8 . 02 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 90 - 7 . 76 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 38 - 7 . 28 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 18 - 7 . 02 ( m , 3h ); 6 . 76 - 7 . 70 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 22 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 16 fn 3 o 3 ): 389 . 12 ; found : 390 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 16 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0076 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) 6 ( ppm ): 4 . 36 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 95 ( t , j = 3 . 8 hz , 1h ); 7 . 3 - 7 . 5 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 6 - 7 . 7 ( m , 4h ); 7 . 80 ( d , j = 3 . 9 hz , 1h ); 8 . 05 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 5 - 8 . 7 ( m , 3h ); 9 . 60 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated ( c 23 h 16 n 4 o 2 ): 380 . 13 ; found : 381 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 17 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0079 ] 1 h nmr ( dmso - d 6 ) δ ( ppm ): 11 . 01 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 49 ( d , j = 6 . 3 hz , 2h ); 8 . 47 - 8 . 39 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 81 ( d , j = 6 . 3 hz , 2h ); 7 . 46 - 7 . 53 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 31 - 7 . 36 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 12 - 7 . 18 ( m , 3h ); 4 . 31 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated ( c 22 h 16 fn 3 o 2 ): 373 . 38 ; found 374 . 4 ( m + h ) + . compound 18 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0082 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 48 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 66 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 8 . 59 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 03 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 81 ( d , j = 10 , 1h ); 7 . 62 ( d , j = 11 . 5 hz , 2h ); 7 . 41 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 32 ( d , j = 11 . 5 hz , 1h ); 6 . 95 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 32 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 14 cl 2 n 4 o 2 ): 448 . 05 ; found : 449 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 19 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 8 . [ 0085 ] 1 h - nmr ( cd 3 cocd 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 98 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 62 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 19 ( d , j = 11 hz , 1h ); 8 . 03 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 64 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 38 - 6 . 77 ( m , 5h ); 4 . 29 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 14 cl 2 fn 3 o 3 ): 457 . 04 ; found : 458 . 0 ( m + h ) + . compound 20 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0088 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 49 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 63 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 8 . 59 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 01 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 84 ( d , j = 11 hz , 1h ); 7 . 43 - 6 . 92 ( m , 6h ); 4 . 21 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 14 cl 2 fn 3 o 2 ): 441 . 04 ; found : 440 . 0 ( m − h ) − . compound 21 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0091 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 49 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 64 ( m , 3h ); 8 . 03 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 84 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 1h ); 7 . 39 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 28 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 14 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 2h ); 6 . 95 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 22 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated ( c 22 h 16 cl 2 n 3 o 2 ): 457 . 0 ; found : 458 . 0 ( m + h ) + . compound 22 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 8 . [ 0094 ] 1 h - nmr ( cd 3 socd 3 ) δ ( ppm ); 10 . 93 ( s , 1h ); 10 . 85 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 46 ( d , j = 4 . 5 hz , 2h ); 8 . 23 ( d , j = 9 hz , 1h ); 7 . 82 ( s , 1h ), 7 . 78 ( d , j = 4 . 5 hz , 2h ); 7 . 36 - 7 . 10 ( m , 5h ); 4 . 21 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 16 fn 3 o 3 ): 389 . 12 ; found : 390 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 23 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0097 ] 1 h nmr ( dmso - d 6 ) δ ( ppm ): 4 . 40 ( s , 2h ); 7 . 18 ( t , j = 6 . 9 hz , 1h ); 7 . 30 - 7 . 56 ( m , 5h ); 7 . 80 - 7 . 86 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 90 - 7 . 96 ( br , 2h ); 8 . 38 - 8 . 52 ( m , 4h ); 11 . 00 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 18 n 4 o 3 ): 398 . 1 ; found : 399 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 24 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0100 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 59 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 65 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 1h ); 8 . 58 ( d , j = 6 . 0 hz , 2h ); 8 . 09 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 84 ( d , j = 6 . 0 hz , 1h ); 7 . 66 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 40 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 38 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 15 ( d , j = 6 . 0 hz , 2h ); 6 . 96 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 24 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated ( c 22 h 16 cln 3 o 2 ): 389 . 1 ; found : 390 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 25 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0103 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 4 . 20 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 80 ( t , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 6 . 95 - 7 . 40 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 12 - 7 . 30 ( m , 6h ); 7 . 68 ( t , j = 8 hz , 1h ); 7 . 78 ( d , j = 7 hz , 1h ); 8 . 02 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 26 - 8 . 34 ( m , 2h ); 8 . 60 ( d , j = 9 hz , 1h ); 9 . 82 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 17 n 3 o 2 ): 355 . 1 ; found : 356 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 26 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0106 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 57 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 64 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 8 . 41 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 07 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 80 ( d , j = 12 hz , 1h ); 7 . 61 ( d , j = 12 . 5 hz , 2h ); 7 . 42 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 31 ( d , j = 12 . 5 hz , 2h ); 6 . 98 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 32 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 13 cl 3 n 4 o 2 ): 482 . 01 ; found : 483 . 1 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 27 was prepared in a similar manner as described in example 1 . [ 0109 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 4 . 32 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 92 ( dd , j = 7 hz , 2 hz , 1h ); 7 . 20 - 7 . 35 ( m , 3h ); 7 . 55 - 7 . 72 ( m , 4h ); 8 . 09 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 59 ( d , j = 6 hz , 2h ); 8 . 68 ( d , j = 2 hz , 1h ); 9 . 52 ( s , 1h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 15 cln 4 o 2 ): 414 . 1 ; found : 415 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 28 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0112 ] 1 h nmr ( 300 mhz , cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 49 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 65 ( d , j = 2 . 4 hz , 1h ); 8 . 57 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 00 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 72 ( d , j = 7 . 2 hz , 1h ); 7 . 26 ( d , j = 8 . 4 hz , 2h ); 7 . 17 ( d , j = 8 . 4 hz , 2h ); 6 . 89 ( dd , j = 7 . 2 hz , 2 . 4 hz , 1h ); 4 . 19 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 14 cl 4 n 3 o 2 ): 490 . 98 ; found : 492 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 29 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0115 ] 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 5 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 66 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 1h ); 8 . 58 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 01 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 89 ( d , j = 6 . 9 hz , 1h ); 7 . 39 ( t , j = 7 . 8 hz , 1h ); 7 . 12 ( d , j = 8 . 7 hz , 2h ); 6 . 93 ( t , j = 6 . 9 hz , 1h ); 6 . 84 ( d , j = 8 . 7 hz , 2h ); 4 . 19 ( s , 2h ); 3 . 78 ( s , 3h ); esms calculated for ( c 23 h 17 cl 2 n 3 o 3 ): 453 . 06 ; found : 476 . 1 ( m + na ) + . compound 30 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0118 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 42 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 69 ( d , j = 2 . 1 hz , 1h ); 8 . 58 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 01 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 75 ( d , j = 7 . 2 hz , 1h ); 7 . 17 - 7 . 13 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 03 - 6 . 97 ( m , 2h ); 6 . 90 ( dd , j = 2 . 1 hz , 7 . 2 hz , 1h ); 4 . 20 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 13 cl 3 fn 3 o 2 ): 476 . 71 found : 500 . 0 ( m + na ) + . compound 31 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0121 ] 1 h nmr ( 300 mhz , cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 51 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 63 ( d , j = 2 . 4 hz , 1h ); 8 . 55 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 00 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 71 ( d , j = 7 . 2 hz , 1h ); 7 . 58 ( d , j = 8 . 1 hz , 2h ); 7 . 30 ( d , j = 8 . 1 hz , 2h ); 6 . 90 ( dd , j = 7 . 2 hz , 2 . 4 hz , 1h ); 4 . 29 ( s , 2h ); esms calculated for ( c 23 h 14 cl 3 n 4 o 2 ): 483 . 0 ; found : 484 . 0 ( m + h ) + . compound 32 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 47 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 67 ( d , j = 8 . 7 hz , 1h ); 8 . 57 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 06 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 98 ( d , j = 8 . 1 hz , 2h ); 7 . 82 ( d , j = 7 . 2 hz , 1h ); 7 . 43 - 737 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 26 ( s , 2h ); 6 . 95 - 6 . 93 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 34 ( q , j = 7 . 2 hz , 14 . 4 hz , 2h ); 4 . 31 ( s , 2h ), 1 . 37 ( t , j = 7 . 2 hz , 3h ). esms calculated for ( c 25 h 19 cl 2 n 3 o 4 ): 495 . 08 ; found : 494 . 2 ( m − h ) − . compound 33 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0127 ] 1 h - nmr ( cd 3 od ) δ ( ppm ): 8 . 62 - 8 . 55 ( m , 3h ); 8 . 16 ( d , j = 6 . 0 hz , 1h ); 7 . 90 - 7 . 88 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 67 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 48 - 7 . 42 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 25 ( s , 2h ); 7 . 06 - 6 . 98 ( m , 1h ); 4 . 34 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 15 cl 2 n 3 o 4 ): 467 . 04 ; found : 468 . 0 ( m + h ) + . compound 34 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0130 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 55 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 57 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 09 ( d , j = 2 . 7 hz , 1h ); 7 . 88 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 69 ( dd , j = 0 . 3 hz , 7 . 2 hz , 1h ); 7 . 19 - 7 . 14 ( m 2h ); 7 . 01 - 6 . 95 ( m , 2h ); 6 . 63 ( dd , j = 2 . 7 hz , 7 . 2 hz , 1h ); 4 . 16 ( s , 2h ); 3 . 97 ( s , 3h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 16 cl 2 fn 3 o 3 ) ( m +): 471 . 60 ; found : 494 . 0 ( m + na ) + . compound 35 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0133 ] 1 h - nmr ( cd 3 cocd 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 10 . 25 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 67 - 8 . 61 ( m , 2h ); 8 . 52 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 37 ( d , j = 10 hz , 1h ); 7 . 94 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 60 - 7 . 09 ( m , 6h ); 4 . 21 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 15 clfn 3 o 2 ): 407 . 08 ; found : 408 . 0 ( m + h ) + . compound 36 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0136 ] 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 50 ( s , 1h ); 8 . 67 - 85 . 7 ( m , 3h ); 8 . 06 - 8 . 03 ( m , 2h ); 7 . 43 - 7 . 38 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 07 - 7 . 02 ( m , 1h ) 2 . 74 ( d , j = 6 . 6 hz , 2h ); 1 . 30 - 1 . 18 ( m , 1h ); 0 . 70 - 0 . 64 ( m . 2h ); 0 . 28 - 0 . 25 ( m , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 19 h 15 cl 2 n 3 o 2 ): 387 . 05 ; found : 410 . 0 ( m + na ) + . compound 37 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0139 ] 1 h nmr ( 300 mhz , dmso - d 6 ), δ ( ppm ): 8 . 90 ( s , 2h ); 8 . 38 ( d , j = 6 . 9 hz , 1h ); 7 . 85 ( d , j = 9 . 0 hz , 1h ); 7 . 11 - 7 . 32 ( m , 4h ); 2 . 50 ( s , 3h ). esms calculated for ( c 11 h 10 no 2 ): 347 . 1 ; found : 346 . 1 ( m − h ) − . compound 38 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0142 ] 1 h nmr ( 300 mhz , dmso - d 6 ) δ ( ppm ): 9 . 74 ( br , s , 1h ); 8 . 65 ( d , j = 9 hz , 2h ); 8 . 20 ( d , j = 7 . 2 hz , 2h ); 8 . 06 ( s , 1h ); 7 . 8 - 7 . 6 ( m , 5h ); 7 . 4 ( m , 1h ); 7 . 35 ( d , j = 7 . 8 hz , 2h ); 6 . 9 ( m , 2h ); 4 . 34 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 23 h 16 n 4 o 3 ): 396 . 12 ; found : 397 . 1 ( m + h ) + . compound 39 was prepared in a manner similar to that described in example 1 . [ 0145 ] 1 h - nmr ( cd 3 cocd 3 ) δ ( ppm ): 8 . 41 ( d , j = 10 , 1h ); 8 . 22 ( d , j = 8 , 1h ); 7 . 43 - 6 . 95 ( m , 9h ); 4 . 36 ( s , 2h ). esms calculated for ( c 22 h 14 fcl 2 n 3 o 3 ): 457 . 04 ; found : 457 . 0 . reagents . lipopolysaccharide ( lps , serratia marscencens ) was obtained from sigma ( st . louis , mo .). rpmi - 1640 medium and fetal calf serum ( fcs ) were purchased from the atcc ( manassas , va .). human in vitro assay . human peripheral blood cells ( pbmc ) were isolated by centrifugation using ficoll - paque ( pharmacia biotech , uppsala , sweden ) and suspended in rpmi - 1640 medium supplemented with 10 % fcs , 100 u / ml penicillin , and 100 μg / ml streptomycin . the cells were then plated in the wells of a 96 - well plate at a concentration of 5 × 105 cells / well , and stimulated by adding lps ( 1 μg / ml ). each test compound was dissolved in dmso and added to the wells . the final dmso concentration was adjusted to 0 . 25 % in all cultures , including the compound - free control , and the concentrations of each test compound ranged from 0 to 10 μm . cell - free supernatants were taken 18 h later for measurement of cytokines . cell viability was assessed using the bioreduction of mts [ 3 -( 4 , 5 - dimethylthiazol - 2 - yl )- 5 -( 3 - carboxymethoxyphenyl )- 2 -( 4 - sulophenyl )- 2h - tetrazolium ] after 18 h and 48 h . cell survival was estimated by determining the ratio of the absorbance in each of the compound - treated cultures to that in the compound - free control . the supernatant was assayed for the amount of tnfα by using an elisa assay with antihuman tnfα antibodies ( cell sciences , norwood , mass .). the assay was carried out following the manufacturer &# 39 ; s instructions . compounds 1 - 8 , 11 - 32 , 34 , and 36 - 38 were tested . unexpectedly , 32 of the compounds tested showed ic 50 values lower than 5 μm , and 5 showed ic 50 values of 10 nm or lower . even at the highest concentration ( 10 um ), none of the test compounds affected cell viability after 48 h . pde4 was prepared from u937 human monocytic cells according to the method of tenor et al . ( clin exp allegy ( 1995 ) 25 : 625 - 633 ). briefly , u937 cells were homogenized in a mixture of ph 7 . 4 containing 10 mm hepes , 1 mm b - mercaptoethanol , 1 mm mgcl 2 , 1 mm egta , 137 mm nacl , 2 . 7 mm kcl , 1 . 5 mm kh 2 po 4 , 8 . 1 mm na 2 hpo 4 , 5 μm pepstain a , 10 μm leupeptin , 50 μm pmsf , 10 μm soybean trypsin inhibitor , and 2 mm benzamindine . the homogenate was centrifuged at 200 , 000 × g for 30 min . pde4 activity in the supernatant was assayed in a 200 μl reaction containing 40 mm tris - hcl , ph 7 . 5 , 23 nm [ 3 h ]- adenosine 3 ′, 5 ′ cyclic monophosphate ( camp ), 8 . 3 mm mgcl 2 , 1 . 7 mm egta , 0 . 25 % dmso , and a testing compound . the assay mixture was incubated at 37 ° c . for 30 min and the reaction was terminated by the addition of 100 μl of yttrium silicate spa beads ( amersham pharmacia biotech , piscataway , n . j .) suspended in 18 mm znso 4 . the assay mixture was rotated for 3 min to ensure the binding of [ 3 h ]- 5 ′ adenosine monophosphate to the beads . finally , the beads was spun down , washed twice with 6 mm znso 4 , resuspended in 100 μl of 0 . 1 n naoh , and then counted for radioactivity in a liquid scintillation counter . compounds 1 , 2 - 4 , 8 - 10 , 11 , 15 - 23 , 28 - 32 , 35 , 36 , and 39 were tested . all tested compounds showed ic 50 values lower than 5 μm , and 4 of them showed ic 50 values lower than 100 nm . male sprague - dawley rats ( charles river laboratories , wilmington , mass . ), weighing 120 - 180 gram , were used throughout this study . a 1 % ( wt / vol ) solution of lambda carrageenan ( sigma , st . louis , mo .) in saline was prepared freshly for each experiment . compound 16 was formulated in 10 % dmso and 18 % cremophore for intravenous administration and formulated in 1 % methylcellulose ( mc ) ( mol . wt . 5000 ) for oral administration . groups of 5 male rats were selected for study . before carrageenan injection , compound 16 was intravenously or orally administered . thirty minutes later , the rats were lightly anesthetized and 0 . 1 ml of carrageenan solution was injected by a subplantar route into the right hind paw . paw volumes before and after carrageenan challenge were measured using hydroplethysmograph ( socrel , varese , italy ), and the increase in volume caused by the irritant was determined after subtracting the volume of the paw before injection . up to 69 % inhibition of paw volume increase was achieved . septic shock was elicited by two consecutive injection of e . coli 055 : b5 lps in 9 week old female balb / c mice ( taconic farms , germantown , n . y .). the test compounds were formulated in 10 % dmso and 18 % cremophore . groups of 5 female mice weighing 19 - 20 gram were selected for study . e . coli 055 : b5 was reconstituted in phosphate buffered saline ( pbs ). the priming injection was given in the footpad with 1 . 5 μg lps per mouse . 24 h later the test compounds were intravenously or orally administered , followed by a challenge of 250 μg of lps injected intravenously . mortality was monitored after 24 , 48 and 72 hours . compounds 11 , 16 , 17 , 19 , and 20 were tested . mice in the vehicle control group were all dead after 24 hours . mice treated with the tested compounds showed a higher survival rate . indeed , all mice in groups treated with compounds 16 and 20 survived after 72 hours . wistar derived male or female rats ( charles river laboratories , wilmington , mass .) weighing 200 ± 20 g and fasted for 24 hours , were used . distal colitis was induced by intra - colonic instillation of 2 , 4 - dinitrobenzene sulfonic acid ( dnbs , 25 mg in 0 . 5 ml 30 % ethanol solution ) after which 2 ml of air was gently injected through the cannula to ensure that the solution remained in the colon . compound 20 was administered orally 24 hours and 2 hours daily for 5 days before the dnbs instillation . one control group was treated with vehicle alone , while the other was treated with both dnbs and vehicle . the animals were sacrificed 24 hours after the final administration and the colons were removed and weighed . the colon - to - body weight ratio was then calculated for each animal . the increase in ratio of dnbs + vehicle control group relative to vehicle control group was used as a base for comparison . in the treated group , a 45 % deduction in the inflammatory response was observed . all of the features disclosed in this specification may be combined in any combination . each feature disclosed in this specification may be replaced by an alternative feature serving the same , equivalent , or similar purpose . thus , unless expressly stated otherwise , each feature disclosed is only an example of a generic series of equivalent or similar features . from the above description , one skilled in the art can easily ascertain the essential characteristics of the present invention , and without departing from the spirit and scope thereof , can make various changes and modifications of the invention to adapt it to various usages and conditions . thus , other embodiments are also within the scope of the following claims . for example , the indolizine compounds of this invention can also be used to treat tnfα - or pde4 - related diseases other than inflammatory disorders . further , these compounds can bring about therapeutic effects either via inhibition of tnfα or pde4 , or via any other mechanisms . additional utilities include their applications in screening , research , and diagnosis .

2Chemistry; Metallurgy

fig1 is a signal transmission system including a filter device according to the present invention . the signal transmission system 100 includes a transmitter 110 , a transmission path 120 and a receiver 130 . therein , the transmitter 110 operates according to a conventional transmitter and modulates an information signal onto a transmission signal , which will be transmitted via the transmission path 120 to the receiver 130 . the receiver 130 finally reconstructs the modulation signal from the received transmission signal and provides the information signal based on the reconstructed modulation signal . as described later in further detail , the transmission path 120 distorts the transmission signal by noise , such that the receiver 130 does not receive an exact copy of the original transmission signal . however , this distortion influences the reconstruction of the information signal . with the filter device according to the present invention , the noise in the received transmission signal or the reconstructed modulation signal can be reduced or even completely removed . in a preferred embodiment , the transmitter 110 includes a modulator 111 , an up - mixer 112 , a coil driver 114 and a first antenna 115 . the modulator 111 takes the information signal and creates based thereon the modulation signal . this modulation signal is then mixed with a high - frequency signal in the up - mixer 112 to create the transmission signal , which is finally provided to the coil driver 114 . the coil driver 114 prepares the transmission signal by e . g . amplifying and transmits it via the first antenna 115 to the receiver 130 . the receiver 130 preferably includes a second antenna 135 , a front end 134 , a low - noise amplifier 133 , a down - mixer 132 and a demodulator 131 . the frond end 134 receives the transmission signal on the frequency of the high - frequency signal via the second antenna 135 . the low - noise amplifier 133 amplifies the received transmission signal and provides it to the down - mixer 132 , which removes the high frequency signal from the received transmission signal . thus , in the down - mixer 132 , the modulation signal is reconstructed . finally , the demodulator 131 reconstructs the information signal based on the reconstructed modulation signal . for facilitating the reconstruction of the information signal , the demodulator 131 includes the filter device according to the present invention . it enables to stabilize the reconstructed modulation signal and to improve the reconstruction of the information signal . prior discussing the working principle of the present invention in further detail , a model for the transmission path 120 should be discussed in further detail . fig2 is diagram discussing the h - field around the first antenna 115 of the signal transmission system 100 versus the distance . in the diagram , it is assumed that the signal transmission system 100 is based on magnetic induction technology . thereafter , the first antenna 115 is a coil through which a sinusoidal current representing the transmission signal is flowing to generate a magnetic flux in a quasi - static magnetic field . the second antenna 135 is also a coil , through which the magnetic flux generated from the first antenna 115 is passing and inducing a modulated current representing the received transmission signal . the quasi - static magnetic field generated by the first antenna 115 can be divided into three basic components , a linear inverse term r − 1 , a square inverse term r − 2 and a cube inverse term r − 3 . square and cube inverse terms r − 2 , r − 3 are called “ near field term ” and used to calculate matching pairs of e and b vectors standing orthogonal to each other and to the radial vector of the first antenna 115 . the linear inverse term r − 1 is called “ far field term ” used to calculate both , the e and b vectors , at distances much greater that the wavelength . at short distance from the current loop , near field term dominates and is the major contributor . the cube inverse term r − 3 is used to calculate the magnetic field component . it is independent of frequency , such that any frequency can be employed in the near - field domain , for the current in the first antenna 115 , to generate a specified magnetic flux through the second antenna 135 in the receiver 130 . in the near - field region of the first antenna 115 , the properties of the quasi - static magnetic field are primarily determined by the source characteristics , and the electric field component is much weaker than the magnetic field component . the total power radiated by the first antenna 115 is however frequency dependent and proportional to λ 2 , wherein λ is the wavelength of the transmission signal transmitted from the first antenna 115 . at the distance of λ / 2π from the first antenna 115 , the linear , square and cube inverse terms r − 1 , r − 2 , r − 3 equally contribute to the quasi - static magnetic field . this distance is often referred to as “ near field — far field boundary ”. at distances larger than λ / 2π from the first antenna 115 , the far - field components dominate , the electric and magnetic field components are directly proportional to one another , and the properties of the quasi - static magnetic field depend primarily on the characteristics of the medium through which the quasi - static magnetic field is propagating . fig3 is a demodulator included in the signal transmission system . the demodulator 131 preferably consists of a mixing element 310 , a baseband element 320 , a deciding element 330 , a pre - processing element 340 , a processing element 350 and a post - processing element 360 . the mixing element 310 , the baseband element 320 and the deciding element 330 can be summarized as separation element for separating at least one signal component from a modulation signal . the mixing element 310 receives a modulation signal x ( t ) and generates a in - phase signal component i ( t ) and a quadrature signal component q ( t ) based thereon . these components are provided to the baseband element 320 generating a baseband signal mα ( t ) turning in the complex area . based on the baseband signal mα ( t ), the deciding element 330 generates crossing signals c ∝( t ) indicating whether the phase of the baseband signal mα ( t ) is larger or smaller than a predetermined phase . in the present embodiment these predetermined phases are 0 ° and 90 °. the crossing signals c ∝( t ) are next provided to the pre - processor 340 for sampling . further , the pre - processor 340 removes noise from the crossing signals c ∝( t ) according to the principle of the present invention . the sampled and filtered crossing signals c ∝ α [ k ] are provided to the processor 350 generating a pulse sequence p [ k ] indicating the number of phase crossings of the baseband signal mα ( t ) in positive and negative direction in the complex area . in view of the present embodiment , this means that the pulse sequence p [ k ] indicates whether and how often the baseband signal mα ( t ) crossed the phases 0 ° and 90 ° clockwise or anti - clockwise . finally , the pulse sequence p [ k ] is provided to the post - processor 360 reconstructing the information signal in form of a bit stream b [ n ] out of the pulse sequence p [ k ]. further , the post - processor 360 derives boundary information l [ k ] for facilitating the pre - processing in the pre - processor 340 . the mixing element 310 includes two orthogonal signal sources 311 , 312 , with which the modulation signal x ( t ) is respectively multiplied . this results into a modulated in - phase signal m i ( t ) and modulated quadrature signal m q ( t ) each comprising a high frequency and a low frequency portion . the low frequency portion is respectively filtered by low - pass filters 313 , 314 resulting into the in - phase signal component i ( t ) and the quadrature signal component q ( t ). the baseband element 320 includes a mixing element 321 mixing the in - phase signal component i ( t ) and the quadrature signal component q ( t ) together to the baseband signal mα ( t ). in the present embodiment , the deciding element 330 includes a first decider 331 for outputting a first crossing signal c 0 ( t ) depending on whether the phase of the baseband signal mα ( t ) is smaller or larger than the 0 ° and a second decider 332 for outputting a second crossing signal c 90 ( t ) depending on whether the phase of the baseband signal mα ( t ) is smaller or larger than the 90 °. the pre - processor 340 includes a first and second filter device 341 , 342 according to the present invention for respectively filtering and sampling the first crossing signal c 0 ( t ) and second crossing signal c 90 ( t ). both filter devices 341 , 342 may further receive the boundary information l [ k ] for receiving information about the limits of the bit sequence b [ n ] to be demodulated by the demodulator 131 . the processor 350 includes two delay elements 351 , 352 , three summers 353 , 354 , 357 and two multipliers 355 , 356 . these elements together are used to realize the following equation : p [ k ]= c 0 [ k ]· c 90 [ k − 1 ] − c 0 [ k − 1 ] · c 90 [ k ] ( 1 ) this equation represents the basic principle for a zero - crossing demodulator enabling to detect whether and how often the baseband signal mα ( t ) crosses one of the two phases 0 ° and 90 ° clockwise or anti - clockwise . in case of clockwise crossing , a positive pulse will be generated based on equation ( 1 ). in case of anti - clockwise crossing , a negative pulse will be generated based on equation ( 1 ). as well known for a skilled person , a detection in a zero - crossing demodulator can be performed based on more than two predetermined phases . thus , in a zero - crossing demodulator , equation ( 1 ) can also be applied to more predetermined phases standing orthogonal to each other in the complex area , such that the detection of the movement of the baseband signal mα ( t ) can be performed arbitrarily exactly with a suitable sensitivity . a further detailed explanation of the zero crossing demodulation principle will be given later . the post - processor 360 includes a counter 361 and a phased locked loop 362 . the counter 361 counts the pulses in the pulse sequence p [ k ] and generates the bit stream b [ n ]. the generation of the bit stream b [ n ] based on the pulse sequence p [ k ] is a well known procedure and should not be explained in further detail . as for example , in the case of fsk modulation , the bit stream b [ n ] can be recovered by counting when the pulse sequence p [ k ] is sampled . however , if the pulse signal p [ k ] is analog , the bit stream b [ n ] can be recovered by integrating a pulse over a bit period . in every case , if the integration or counting result is negative , the output bit of the bit stream b [ n ] should be a ‘ 1 ’. otherwise it should be a ‘ 0 ’. further , the phased locked loop 362 derives the required bit period as boundary information based on the pulses to indicate the limits of each pulse facilitating the sampling and filtering of the crossing signals c 0 ( t ), c 90 ( t ) in the pre - processor 340 . fig4 is a diagram illustrating the principle of the pulse generation in a zero crossing demodulator . the diagram shows the complex area , wherein two phases 0 ° and 90 ° and their respective linear dependent phases − 0 ° and − 90 ° are indicated . the baseband signal mα ( t ) is shown by its quadrature components q ( t ), i ( t ) at two different points in time t , t + t 0 . between these two different points in time , the baseband signal mα ( t ) crosses the phase 0 ° clockwise . this phase crossing will be detected as follows . in the deciding element 330 at the time point t , the first decider 331 will output a negative first crossing signal c 0 ( t ) and the second decider 332 will output a negative second crossing signal c 90 ( t ), since the phase of the baseband signal mα ( t ) is smaller than 0 ° and 90 °. thus , the sampled values for the crossing signals c 0 ( t ), c 90 ( t ) at the time point t will be c 0 [ k ]=− 1 and c 90 [ k ]=− 1 . after the time t 0 , the baseband signal mα ( t ) moved , the first decider 331 will now output a positive value , since the phase of the baseband signal mα ( t ) is now larger than 0 °. the output of the second decider 332 will not change . therefore , the sampled values for the crossing signals c 0 ( t + t 0 ), c 90 ( t + t 0 ) at the time point t + t 0 will be c 0 [ k + 1 ]= 1 and c 90 [ k + 1 ]=− 1 . based on the calculation scheme provided by equation ( 1 ), the processor 350 will calculate and output : thus , based on the rule provided above ( negative pulse = clockwise turning , positive pulse = anti - clockwise turning ), the pulse sequence p [ k ] indicates that the baseband signal mα ( t ) turns clockwise during the time points t and t + t 0 . however , the deciders 331 , 332 in the deciding element 330 output analog crossing signals c ∝( t ). these analog crossing signals c ∝( t ) are prone to noise especially if the baseband signal mα ( t ) jitters around the phases 0 ° or 90 ° due to noise in the baseband signal mα ( t ). this would lead to noise pulses in the crossing signals c ∝( t ). these noise pulses are called parasitic pulses reducing the robustness of the whole zero crossing demodulator . therefore , the filter device according to the present invention is especially suitable to increase the robustness of a zero crossing demodulator . this filter device can be preferably realized according to the two embodiments hereinafter shown . fig5 is a first embodiment of the filter device according to the present invention . thereafter , the filter device 341 , 342 includes a plurality of summing units 510 - 51 n , a plurality of serially connected buffers 521 - 52 n , a sampling element 530 and a correction element 540 . the sampling element 530 samples the incoming crossing signal c ∝( t ) according to a predetermined sampling frequency f s . the sampled values c ∝[ k ] are stored into the first buffer 521 of the plurality of the buffers 521 - 52 n . synchronously , the content of the first buffer 521 is moved to the second buffer , and so on . the input of the first buffer 521 and the output of all buffers 521 - 52 n is summed together by the plurality of summing units 510 - 51 n to create an intermediate signal is [ k ]. based on this intermediate signal , the correction element decides whether to output the content of the first buffer 521 or the content of the second buffer as filtered crossing signal c ∝ α [ k ]. the decision is made based on the following thought . the incoming crossing signal c ∝( t ) includes pulses indicating whether the baseband signal mα ( t ) is higher or lower a predetermined phase . due to the principle of the used modulation scheme , phase crossings can only occur after predetermined time periods . it is therefore proposed to choose a reference interval , which is lower than these predetermined time periods during which the shape of the incoming crossing signal c ∝( t ) should be constant . since the incoming crossing signal c ∝( t ) is sampled , this reference time interval is chosen as a numeric value n . now , if the summed sampled incoming crossing signal c ∝( t )— namely the intermediate signal is [ k ]— is equal to one of the ideal signal shapes , the filter device should output the currently sampled crossing signal value c ∝[ k ]. otherwise , the filter device should start a correction procedure based on a preceding sampled crossing signal values c ∝[ k − 1 ], c ∝[ k − 2 ]. in the simplest case , this correction procedure comprises to output the content of the first preceding sampled signal crossing value c ∝[ k − 1 ] as indicated in the present embodiment . fig6 is a second embodiment of the filter device according to the present invention . thereafter , the filter device 341 , 342 includes an integrator 610 , a sampling element 630 and a correction element 640 . the integrator 610 integrates the incoming crossing signal c ∝( t ) over a reference interval . according to the considerations taken out in the first embodiment , this reference interval should be shorter than the time periods between the phase crossings of the baseband signal mα ( t ). the integrated incoming crossing signal c ∝( t ) of the integrator 610 is sampled by the sampling element 630 , such that the output of the sampling element 630 represents the intermediate signal is [ k ] analog to the first embodiment . in case of that the incoming crossing signal c ∝( t ) is already a discrete signal , the integrator 610 and the sampling element 630 can be substituted by a counter , which directly outputs the intermediate signal is [ k ]. in the present embodiment , the correction element 640 decides whether the intermediate signal is [ k ] raises a predetermined threshold level δc ∝. based on this threshold level , the correction element 640 outputs a first or a second corrected crossing signal value c ∝ α [ k ]. thus , independently of the application of the filter device according to the first or second embodiment , the pre - processor 340 always outputs a noise free crossing signal c ∝ α [ k ]. this increases the robustness of the zero - crossing detection and facilitates the overall demodulation procedure . in other words , the present invention provides a filter device applicable in mobile communication , radio broadcasting or satellite transmission and in the fields of information transmission . the filter device allows removing noise from an input signal by summing the input signal , such that the robustness of the input signal is increased by simple means .

7Electricity

referring now to the figures of the drawing in detail and first , particularly , to fig1 thereof , there is shown a cross - sectional view of a bulk acoustic wave ( baw ) resonator 10 having a membrane 11 or bridge structure . fig2 is a top view of the bulk acoustic wave resonator 10 . the bulk acoustic wave ( baw ) resonator 10 includes a piezoelectric layer 12 , a first protective layer 13 a , a second protective layer 13 b , a first electrode 14 , a second electrode 15 , the membrane 11 , etch windows 16 a and 16 b , an air gap 17 , and a substrate 18 . the piezoelectric layer 12 includes , for example , a piezoelectric material that can be fabricated as a thin film such as , for example , zinc - oxide ( zno ), or aluminum - nitride ( aln ). the membrane 11 includes two layers , namely , a top layer 19 and a bottom layer 20 . the top layer 19 is made of , for example , poly - silicon or aluminum - nitride ( aln ), and the bottom layer 20 is made of , for example , silicon - dioxide ( sio 2 ) or gallium arsenide ( gaas ). the substrate 18 is included of a material such as , for example , silicon ( si ), sio 2 , gaas , or glass . through the etch windows 16 a and 16 b , a portion of the substrate 18 is etched to form the air gap 17 after the membrane layers have been deposited over the substrate 18 . in fig3 another bulk acoustic wave ( baw ) resonator 30 is shown . this resonator 30 has a similar structure as that of the bulk acoustic wave ( baw ) resonator 10 of fig1 except that only a single protective layer 13 is provided , and the membrane 11 and the air gap 17 are replaced with an acoustic mirror 31 which acoustically isolates vibrations produced by the piezoelectric layer 12 from the substrate 18 . the acoustic mirror 31 includes a number of layers with alternating high and low acoustic impedances arrenged so that a reflection of the acoustic wave at the mirror - resonator interface is obtained . the acoustic mirror 31 shown in fig3 includes three layers , namely a top layer 31 a , a middle layer 31 b , and a bottom layer 31 c . each layer 31 a , 31 b and 31 c has a thickness that is , for example , approximately equal to one quarter wavelength . the top layer 31 a and bottom layer 31 c are made of materials having low acoustic impedances such as , for example , silicon ( si ), poly - silicon , aluminum ( al ), or a polymer . furthermore , the middle layer 31 b is made of a material having a high acoustic impedance such as , for example , gold ( au ), molybdenum ( mo ), or tungsten ( w ). the substrate 18 may be included of various high acoustic impedance materials or low acoustic impedance materials ( e . g ., si , sio 2 , gaas , glass , or a ceramic material ) [ 0041 ] fig4 shows a first embodiment of an inventive filter device . the filter device shown in fig4 includes two filters units that are directly connected via a series resonator of the first filter unit . the first filter unit 41 preferably includes an odd number of resonators , three in the present example , in a ladder configuration . the first filter unit 41 is a bulk acoustic wave ( baw ) filter including two types of bulk acoustic wave resonators — series resonators 42 and shunt resonators 43 . preferably , the first filter unit 41 is a bulk acoustic wave ( baw ) filter including bulk acoustic wave resonators such as those shown in fig1 to 3 . furthermore , the first filter unit 41 includes one unbalanced terminal 44 , to which , for example , the output signal of an antenna can be connected . in addition to the terminal 44 , the first filter unit 41 includes the terminal 45 , which is connected to ground in the present example . the second filter unit 46 includes four resonators in a lattice configuration . like the first filter unit 41 , the second filter unit 46 is bulk acoustic wave ( baw ) filter including two types of bulk acoustic wave resonators — series resonators 42 ′ and shunt resonators 43 ′. thereby , the series resonators 42 in the first filter unit 41 and the series resonators 42 ′ in the second filter unit 46 exhibit substantially equal resonance frequencies . the same applies to the shunt resonators 43 in the first filter unit 41 and the shunt resonators 43 ′ in the second filter unit 46 which also exhibit substantially equal resonance frequencies . furthermore , the second filter unit 46 includes two balanced terminals 47 and 48 , to which , for example , a low noise amplifier ( lna ) can be connected . the second filter unit 46 is connected to the first filter unit 41 via a series resonator 42 of the first filter unit 41 , because otherwise an impedance mismatch between the two filter units would arise . due to the fact that the first filter unit 41 ends with a series resonator and not with shunt resonator , the first filter unit 41 and the second filter unit 46 are well matched . the inventive filter device exhibits an excellent response , especially when the node between the loads at the balanced side is not grounded ( floating ). furthermore , the inventive filter device has a steeper transition from the passband to the stopband than a balanced filter or a balanced filter with different capacitance ratios . accordingly , the inventive filter device exhibits a better selectivity than the other two filters . the results of a comparison are shown in fig5 . [ 0046 ] fig6 shows a second embodiment of the inventive filter device . the filter device shown in fig6 also includes two filter units that are directly connected via a series resonator of the first filter unit . the first filter unit 51 preferably includes an odd number of resonators , five in this example , in a ladder configuration . again , the first filter unit 51 is bulk acoustic wave ( baw ) filter including two types of bulk acoustic wave resonators , series resonators 42 and shunt resonators 43 . the second filter unit 46 is constructed similarly to that shown in fig4 . [ 0047 ] fig7 shows a further embodiment of the present invention in which filter devices are integrated with a low noise amplifier ( lna ) or a power amplifier on a single chip . fig7 schematically shows the reception side ( rx ) as well as the transmission side ( tx ) of a mobile telecommunication device . a signal received from the antenna 60 is guided via a switch 61 to the chip 62 which integrates a filter device 63 and a low noise amplifier ( lna ) 64 . the filter device 63 includes a first filter unit that has an odd number of resonators in a ladder configuration and a second filter unit that has at least four resonators in a lattice configuration . the filter device 63 filters the signal from the antenna 60 and performs a conversion from an unbalanced to a balanced signal . the resulting balanced signal is amplified by the low noise amplifier ( lna ) 64 and is guided to a mixer 65 . a signal that is to be transmitted via the antenna 60 is produced by a mixer 66 and is guided to the chip 67 , which integrates a filter device 68 and a power amplifier 69 . the filter device 68 also includes a first filter unit that has an odd number of resonators in a ladder configuration and a second filter unit that has at least four resonators in a lattice configuration . the filter device 68 filters the signal from the mixer and performs a conversion from an balanced to an unbalanced signal . the resulting unbalanced signal is amplified by the power amplifier 69 and is guided to the antenna 60 via the switch 61 . using the inventive filter device , an integrated unbalanced - to - balanced filter device can be realized . accordingly , a substancial decrease in the number of components can be achieved . furthermore , the inventive filter device can be integrated with further components , preferably a low noise amplifier ( lna ), on a single chip . in addition , the inventive filter device preferably uses baw filters , because baw filters are more cost effective than existing saw filters .

7Electricity

the first embodiment of the invention comprises an angle bar or bracket formed from steel stock 10 adapted to be secured by e . g . bolt 24 and anchor 23 to a mine roof 33 . the bar or bracket 10 is adapted to be disposed transversely of the conveyor belt , and is provided with a series of keyhole - shaped slots 22 of basically circular configuration , with a downwardly depending slot 22a for receiving a chain link . a pair of heavy chains 12 , 12 &# 39 ; are adapted to be passed one through each of the openings 22 so that individual links of the chain can drop into the slots 22a . the chains 12 , 12 &# 39 ; are thus locked in position , with vertical and horizontal location as required . secured to the lower ends of the two chains 12 , 12 &# 39 ; by eyes 32 , 32 &# 39 ; is a pair of inwardly facing steel channel elements 14 , 14 &# 39 ; bridged by a tubular roller support frame 13 , welded to elements 14 , 14 &# 39 ;. in a manner known in the art , idler rollers 16 are mounted for free rotation on frame 13 . the rollers 16 do not form part of the invention , are well known in the art and therefore they need not be described in detail . in a pair of keyhole - shaped openings 19 , 19 &# 39 ; in the elements 14 , 14 &# 39 ; respectively are chains 18 , 18 &# 39 ; for supporting a return roller 17 . the latter is journalled in known manner in steel fish plates 31 , 31 &# 39 ; secured to the lower ends of the chains 18 , 18 &# 39 ;. as can be seen more clearly from fig2 and 5 , rigid spacer rods or bars 21 , 21 &# 39 ; are adapted to be secured by clamping assemblies 15 , 15 &# 39 ; to the sides of each idler frame to fix the distance , usually 5 feet , between adjacent idlers in a string in a mine . these spacer rods , which may be tubular , and are of nominal 6 &# 39 ; length , are releasably attached to the elements 14 , 14 &# 39 ;. the clamping assemblies 15 , 15 &# 39 ; are identical on each side of the idler frame so that only one , 15 &# 39 ;, needs to be described . securely welded to channel member 14 &# 39 ;, or plate 63 &# 39 ; in the fig3 embodiment , is a tongue 25 ( fig5 and 6 ) which is provided with a pair of circular openings 30 closely adjacent the channel member 14 &# 39 ; or plate 63 &# 39 ;. these openings are adapted to receive the rods 21 , 21 &# 39 ;, and while a pair of openings is disclosed , a single elongated slot may be provided . a rectangular opening 29 is provided in the tongue , centrally between the openings 30 . a plate 26 is also provided , with a slot 34 therein of a size to mate with the cross - section of the tongue 25 . the plate 26 is placed over the tongue where it may rest against the rods 21 , 21 &# 39 ;. a wedge 28 , which engages in the slot 29 , is then driven into position to lock the plate 26 , and thus the rods 21 , 21 &# 39 ;, firmly in position . plate 26 comprises means serving to distribute pressure from the locking means , which specifically in this embodiment is provided by wedge 28 engaged in slot 29 , for detachably securing the spacer rods 21 , 21 &# 39 ; to the idler frame . in manufacture of this assembly , the tongue is first welded to an element 14 or 14 &# 39 ; or a plate 63 , 63 &# 39 ;. then , a plate 26 is placed over the tongue . a wedge 28 is inserted in the slot 29 . since wedges of this type are frequently lost in mining operations , it is necessary to ensure that it is not possible to remove the wedge any more than is desired , i . e ., from its locking position to its release position . to prevent such loss , a u - shaped handle 27 is welded to the ends of the wedge 28 directly after the latter is placed in the slot and the plate 26 placed over the tongue 25 . by this means an assembly is provided that freely permits disengagement or engagement of the wedge 28 without risk of its removal , and the removal of the plate 26 , from the structure and their consequent loss . in fig7 and 8 , there is disclosed an alternative method of securing the chains to a typical mine support structure ( not shown ) for transverse adjustment . in fig7 an i - beam 80 of the support structure having a web 81 and upper and lower flanges 82 and 83 is a cross member of known support structure , and attached to the lower flange of the i - beam is a hanger comprising left hand and right hand elements 85 and 86 ( fig8 ) secured together by nuts and bolts 87 to engage the lower flange 83 of the i - beam securely . as in the embodiment of fig1 keyhole shaped openings 22 are provided for securing a link of the chain . in this case , however , transverse adjustment is provided by loosening the bolts 87 and sliding the hanger along the lower flange of the i - beam . it should be noted that both with the embodiment of fig1 more than one anchor may be used , especially if the integrity of the mine roof 33 is in doubt . turning now to the embodiment of fig3 and 4 , the manner of attachment of the chain 68 to the mine roof is identical to that of the embodiments of fig1 and 2 or 7 and 8 and therefore will not be described . the embodiment of fig3 and 4 differs from the embodiment of fig1 in two respects . a single chain 68 is used for suspension of the frame from the mine roof and the frame of fig3 further comprises a downwardly facing u - shaped element 60 , formed from structural stock , which is secured to idler frame 13 by means permitting limited pivotal movement of the idler frame 13 in relation to the element 60 . to the lower and outer portions of the legs of the frame 60 are welded plates 61 , 61 &# 39 ; having , at right angles thereto , flanges 62 , 62 &# 39 ;. bolted to the flanges 62 , 62 &# 39 ; are plates 63 , 63 &# 39 ;, the bolts being identified by the reference numerals 64 , 64 &# 39 ;. at the upper end of each of the plates 63 , 63 &# 39 ; the bolts 65 , 65 &# 39 ; engage in slots 66 ( fig4 ). thus , by loosening the pairs of bolts , the plates 63 , 63 &# 39 ; may pivot about the bolts 64 , 64 &# 39 ; respectively to an extent limited by the length of the slot 66 . thus , if the mine roof slopes , provision is made for alteration of the angle of the idler roller frame to accommodate the slope of the mine roof within certain limits , typically 15 °. the construction and operation of the clamping assemblies 15 , 15 &# 39 ; in this embodiment is identical to that of the first embodiment and therefore will not be described in detail . it will be obvious that the use of the single chain 68 to locate the complete idler assembly transversely of the mine shaft has the same function as that of fig1 similarly , the adjustment of the height of the idler rollers by disposing appropriate chain links in the openings 22 will be obvious . the embodiment illustrated in fig9 and 10 is generally similar to the embodiment of fig1 and 2 , however , further means of adjustment are provided . to the extent that the embodiment of fig9 and 10 is similar to the embodiment of fig1 and 2 , it will not be described and only the differences will be addressed . in fig9 it will be noted that the elements 14 , 14 &# 39 ; are replaced by plates 114 , 114 &# 39 ; which serve the same purpose as the elements 14 , 14 &# 39 ; but instead of being oriented generally vertically , they are welded to the frame 13 normal to the outer frame elements . as can be seen from fig1 , the plates 114 , 114 &# 39 ; include an upper opening 135 through which the chains 12 , 12 &# 39 ; can pass . at the terminal ends of the chains 12 , 12 &# 39 ; are secured hooks 136 , 136 &# 39 ;. thus , a chain such as 12 &# 39 ; can be passed through the opening 135 &# 39 ; ( fig1 ) and the hook 136 &# 39 ; secured through one of the links of the chain 12 &# 39 ;, providing for adjustment of the height of the respective side of the frame 13 , link by link , supplementing the adjustment provided by selective use of the chain 12 or 12 &# 39 ; and the keyhole slots 22 in the element 10 . a further difference in the embodiment of fig9 and 10 is in the lower portion of the plates 114 , 114 &# 39 ; which , as shown in fig1 , are provided at their lower ends with an opening 137 having a plurality of downwardly extending slots 138 for selectively receiving a chain link of the chain 18 &# 39 ; that is used for suspending the returning idler 17 . the combination of the openings 137 , slots 138 , and chain 18 , 18 &# 39 ; provide for rotation about a vertical axis of the point of suspension of the return idler 17 for precision of alignment of a conveyor belt on its return reach . it can thus be seen that in the embodiment of fig9 and 10 , a desirable result is achieved in that four points of adjustment are provided for the main idler frame 13 , i . e ., the chains 12 and 12 &# 39 ; can each be secured in a different opening 22 in the element 10 to provide for both lateral and vertical adjustment , and likewise the chains 12 , 12 &# 39 ; can be vertically adjusted in relation to the plates 114 , 114 &# 39 ; on the frame 13 . the adjustment on the plates 114 , 114 &# 39 ; is much easier to carry out on the job in a mine where the roof 33 may be as high as 10 feet from the floor . thus , if in operation it is perceived that a vertical adjustment is required , this can easily be carried out by supporting the frame 13 , elevating it to loosen the respective chain , and securing a hook 136 or 136 &# 39 ; in a higher or lower chain link . likewise , in addition to providing for vertical adjustment of the return idlers 17 by selecting the appropriate link in the chains 18 , 18 &# 39 ; to insert in the openings in the elements 14 and 14 &# 39 ;, in the embodiment of fig9 and 10 the provision of , in effect , multiple hanging avoids potential problems caused by misalignment of the return idlers 17 in relation to the return reach of the conveyor belt , which problems can be dealt with by selecting the appropriate slot 138 from which to hang the chain 18 or 18 &# 39 ;. finally , it will be noted that in the embodiment of fig9 and 10 , the two openings 30 for the spacer rods 21 , 21 &# 39 ; are as suggested earlier replaced by a slot 130 ( fig9 ) into which the two spacer rods 21 , 21 &# 39 ; are inserted prior to securing the plate 26 in position by driving in the wedge 28 . as is well known to those skilled in the art , idler frames of the general type disclosed above are normally spaced apart by 5 foot intervals . thus , the spacer rods 21 , 21 &# 39 ; will have a nominal 6 foot length to allow for overlap and proper securement to the idler frames 13 . the rods may be bar stock , but are preferably three quarter inch standard pipe in all the embodiments described above . it can thus be seen that the present invention provides an idler roller assembly that can be cheaply constructed , can readily be adjusted , precisely , vertically in relation to the mine shaft roof , and longitudinally and transversely of the mine shaft , without requiring any special skills on the part of the person installing the apparatus and without requiring special tools .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

referring to the drawings more particularly by reference numbers , fig1 shows a soft drink dispenser 10 which is attached to a beverage container 12 . the beverage container 12 is typically a plastic pet bottle which is both light and disposable . although a plastic pet bottle is shown and described , it is to be understood that the dispenser can be used with other types of beverage containers 12 . the container may contain a beverage which is either carbonated or uncarbonated . the dispenser 10 includes a housing 14 which has a first internal thread 16 which can be screwed onto an external thread 18 of the beverage container 12 . adjacent to the internal thread is an o - ring 20 which seals the container to the housing 14 . the housing 14 has a second internal thread 22 which is adapted to receive a cartridge housing 24 . the cartridge housing 24 has a cartridge 26 which contains pressurized co 2 . the housing 14 has a regulator seat insert 28 pressed into a brass insert 30 . the seat 28 is sealed to the insert by o - ring 32 . pressed into the seat 28 is a sintered metal member 34 which filters out any impurities introduced to the dispenser 10 by the co 2 cartridge . adjacent to the metal member 34 is a needle 36 which is adapted to puncture the gasket of cartridge 26 to allow co 2 to flow into the dispenser 10 . the needle 34 is held in place by a cap screw 38 which is screwed into the insert 30 . the housing 22 has an internal passage 40 which provided fluid communication between the needle 36 and the beverage container 12 . the passage 40 has an outlet port 42 which is located in an annular flange 44 . attached to the annular flange 44 is an elastic band 46 that covers the port 42 . the elastic band 46 functions as a one - way valve which allows co 2 to flow from the dispenser 10 into the beverage container 12 , but does not allow fluid to flow from the beverage container 12 into dispenser 10 . located within a regulator valve chamber 48 of the housing 14 is a regulator valve 50 . the regulator valve 50 is normally seated against a seat 52 . the valve 50 is adapted to move between a closed position and an opened position . the valve 50 allows co 2 to flow into the beverage container when in the open position and prevents the flow of co 2 when in the closed position . as shown in fig3 and 4 , the regulator valve 50 is attached to a valve member 54 located within a pressure relief valve chamber 56 in the housing 14 . the valve member 54 is sealed to the housing 14 by o - ring 57 and is adapted to move within chamber 56 , so that the valve 50 can move between the closed and opened positions . the valve member 54 is in fluid communication with the beverage container and has an area much larger than the opening of the seat 52 . the area ratio is such that the regulator valve 50 is moved to the open position when the pressure of the co 2 creates a force on the valve 50 , which is greater than the counteractive force on the valve 50 and valve member 54 that is created by the pressure within the container 12 . the valve 50 closes when the force on the valve 50 and valve member 54 is greater than the force on the valve 50 from the co 2 cartridge . the valve member 54 contains a spring 58 that is coupled to ball valve 60 and captured by cap 62 . the ball valve 60 is normally seated within a ball valve opening 63 in the valve member 54 . the ball valve opening 63 is in fluid communication with the regulator valve chamber 48 . the ball valve 60 provides pressure relief in the event that the regulator valve 50 remains open and co 2 continues to flow into the beverage container 12 . the ball valve 60 moves into an open position when the pressure within the container exceeds the spring force of spring 58 . the co 2 flows past the ball valve 60 and through a vent port 64 in the cap 62 . the dispenser 10 includes a button 66 which is coupled to the cap 62 by spring 68 . depressing the button 66 compresses the spring 68 and increases the pressure within the beverage container 21 . the container pressure can be varied by moving the button 66 relative to the housing 12 . once the regulator valve 50 is opened , by the button 66 and / or the pressure of the co 2 cartridge 26 the valve 50 will remain open until the pressure within the container 12 is great enough to create forces on the valve 50 and valve member 54 which are greater than the combined force of the spring 68 and the force on the regulator valve 50 from the cartridge co 2 . the button 66 has a vent port 69 that is in fluid communication with the vent port 64 of cap 62 . the port 69 allows co 2 to flow into the ambient when the ball valve 60 moves into the open position . extending through the housing is a tube 70 that has an inlet 72 in fluid communication with the beverage container and an outlet 74 that is in fluid communication with the ambient . the tube 70 may include a flexible hose 76 that is coupled to a lever valve 78 . the lever valve 78 has a nose portion 80 which can collapse the flexible hose 76 and prevent the beverage from flowing through the tube . the lever 78 pivots about pin 82 and can rotate between an opened position and the closed position . the user can rotate the lever 78 by pushing handle 84 . a lever spring 86 is coupled to the lever valve 78 to bias the valve 78 into the closed position . soda can be dispensed from the beverage container by pushing the handle 84 and rotating the lever 78 into the open position . the pressure within the container 12 causes the soft drink to flow out of the tube 70 when the lever 78 is in the open position . in operation , the dispenser 10 is screwed onto the container 12 and the co 2 cartridge 26 is attached to the housing 14 . if the pressure of the container is such that the force on the valve member 54 is smaller than the force on the regulator valve 50 from the cartridge co 2 , the pressure of the co 2 cartridge 26 opens the valve 50 and co 2 flows into the container 12 . the valve 50 remains open until the force on the valve member 54 exceeds the counteracting force on the valve 50 . once the container 12 is pressurized , the user can remove the beverage by rotating the lever valve 78 into the open position . removing soda , reduces the pressure within the container 12 and opens the regulator valve 50 for another charge of co 2 . it may be desirable to increase the amount of co 2 that is introduced to the container . for example , it may be desirable to carbonate an uncarbonated soft drink . the additional carbonation may require an increase in the co 2 pressure provided to the container . the container co 2 pressure can be increased by depressing the button 66 . the regulator valve 50 will remain open until the force on the valve member 54 overcomes the cartridge co 2 pressure on the valve 50 and the force of the spring 68 . the pressure can be varied by varying the amount of button movement . what is thus provided is a dispenser which automatically maintains the carbonation of a soft drink and allows the user vary the carbonation pressure of the beverage . while certain exemplary embodiments have been described and shown in the accompanying drawings , it is to be understood that such embodiments are merely illustrative of and not restrictive on the broad invention , and that this invention not be limited to the specific constructions and arrangements shown and described , since various other modifications may occur to those ordinarily skilled in the art .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

fig3 is a linked list of located -- object data structures ; fig4 a and 4b show an example of base -- reference chains for a particular workstation ; fig5 shows selected operators and iterators of the located -- object class ; fig6 shows a partial type heirarchy of robots and motion axes ; fig7 shows selected attributes of the motion -- axis class ; fig9 shows selected attributes and operators of the robot type class ; fig1 is a flow chart of the dynamic robot selection process that is implemented by operators of located -- object ; and fig1 is a flow chart of the operation of the move -- robot operator of the robot type ; and as shown in functional block diagram form of fig1 a robotic system 10 embodying the invention includes an application progam 12 , a robot interface 14 , and a set of robots 16 which make up a workstation . robot interface 14 includes two subsystems , namely , a motion manager 18 and a robot manager 20 , which in combination possess a model of the configuration of the workstation . as will be described in greater detail below , robot interface 14 serves to isolate application program 12 from having to know details about the configuration of the workstation thereby enabling it to operate on objects within the workstation without having to know about or to directly control the robots that move or handle those objects . robot interface 14 maintains the relative location of objects within the workstation separate from the application program . examples of typical objects found within the workstation are feeders , parts , robots , and tools . in the described embodiment , robotic system 10 uses object oriented data types to model the configuration of the workstation . a brief functional overview of robotics system 10 will be provided , followed by a description of the details of a particular implementation . application programs in robotics must move objects around the workstation in order to perform automated tasks . examples are putting parts in pallets or moving a welding torch along a seam . in the described embodiment , application program 12 commands objects of interest ( e . g . a part in a tool ) to move to some position relative to some object ( e . g . a pallet position ). thus , for example , application program 12 issues a move command that directs the object of interest to a location ( e . g . to another object of interest ). the move command may be of the form move ( part , board , traj , motion -- type ) where part and board are both objects located within the workstation environment and identified in the model of that environment that is maintained by robot interface 14 . this command instructs the robotics system to move the part to the board over a trajectory defined by traj using a specified motion type ( e . g . asynchronous or synchronous ). note that the command does not make reference to the location of the objects within the workstation or to the particular robots that may be required to carry out the operation . motion manager 18 provides the motion interface to command the objects of interest to move around the workstation . motion manager 18 responds to the command by searching its model of the workstation to automatically determine what set of motion axes are required to carry out the move that is being commanded . motion manager 18 takes the first and second objects of interest specified in the command and identifies the set of motion axes that connect those objects of interest to the workstation and thus to each other . it passes the identified set of motion axes to robot manager 20 . robot manager 20 describes a robot as a collection of motion axes that can produce coordinated motion of its end effector . robot manager 20 maintains a lookup table of all robots that are defined within the workstation . this table is set up at the time that the system is configured by the user . the table identifies each robot within the system as a unique set of motion axes . note that only robots that are identified within this table are accessible to the application program . robot manager 20 compares the identified set of axes to the different sets of axes in its tables . if it finds a matching set of axes , robot manager 20 returns the identity of the robot to which that set of axes belongs . if no matching set is found , an error is returned to motion manager 18 indicating that the requested move command cannot be implemented by the robotics system . if a unique robot is returned by robot manager 20 , motion manager 18 automatically computes the tool center point ( tcp ) for the identified robot . it does this by searching its model for the first robot that is connected to the robot and the location of the object of interest . as will be described in greater detail later , the model of the workstation contains relative location information which makes this determination both possible and relatively easy . after motion manager 18 determines the tcp for the identified robot , it sends a traditional move command to the identified robot . the move command specifies the tcp for the object of interest and the trajectory over which the move is to take place . the robot then carries out the requested motion using techniques and mechanisms that are standard in the art . thus , robot interface 14 dynamically determines which robot to select , thus providing the desired robot independence for the application program . also , traditional robotics describe the motion of the robot &# 39 ; s end effector , the tool center point ( tcp ), through space . robot interface 14 enables application programs to work directly on the objects of interest thereby reducing the emphasis on the end effector . the end effector is typically only occasionally of interest to the application program . the real objects of interest are more often other objects such as parts and feeders . robot interface 14 accommodates these varying points of application interest by dynamically determining the tcp for the dynamically selected robot . in the described embodiment , robot interface 14 and the robots are implemented using an object oriented type library of different types or classes that achieve the above - described objectives . a type or a class is a grouping of particular data with functions that are to be used with that data . the types used in the described embodiment will now be described , beginning with a description of the spatial representations that are used . to express the concepts of locations in space and a path of connected points through space , robotic system 10 uses location types and trajectory types , respectively . a location is a point in space . robotic system 10 uses the standard homogeous transformation representation to describe a point in space and its orientation ( e . g . see richard p . paul , robot manipulators : mathematics , programming , and control , mit press , 1981 ). a location type which is constructed as : encapsulates the data representation and the location operators . this allows convenient specification of the location . the coordinate system chosen is the x , y , z position vector and the orientation angles are the euler angles for rotations about the z axis , then the next y axis , and then the last z axis . any trailing values may be omitted and are zero filled . this choice of euler angles and zero filling of missing values allows concise specification of locations that are just translations , or , that can be expressed as a translation and a rotation about the z axis , as often occurs in planar applications such as electronic assembly . the x , y , and z components of a location l may be addressed as the major operations that are definded on robotic transformations are the multiplication and inverse operators . the notation for location multiplication is where a , b , and c are locations . the inverse syntax is a trajectory is defined as a path through space as a function of time : this completely general concept is the abstract supertype for more specialized trajectories such as the traditional robotic paths made from linear line segments and circular arcs . more complex types such as splines or time varying traversal of a path are possible . fig2 shows the type heirarchy for some trajectories employed in robotic system 10 . trajectory is the abstract supertype for all trajectories . it defines the interface to a trajectory as position ( me , time ), velocity ( me , time ), and acceleration ( me , time ). position ( me , time ) returns a location along the trajectory at the specified time . velocity ( me , time ) returns the translation speed along the trajectory at the specified time . and acceleration ( me , time ) returns the translation acceleration along the trajectory at the specified time . there are at least three derived classes from the abstract class trajectory , namely , compound -- traj , line -- traj , and arc -- traj . compound -- traj is a compound trajectory made up of a series of other trajectories . an example is a trajectory that consists of a straight - line path followed by a circular arc followed by a parabolic arc , or a trajectory of straight line paths at different speeds . line -- traj is a constant speed linear translation path . line -- traj &# 39 ; s are specified by the points in their path where changes in the linear direction of the path but not the translational speed occur . examples are a constant speed rectangular path , or a constant speed zig - zag path . the traditional robotic line segment path is a compound -- traj made from line traj &# 39 ; s of different speeds . and arc -- traj could be a trajectory that is described by a continuous analytic function . subtypes could be circle trajectories or parabolic trajectories . trajectories may be offset by relative transformations using the * operator . for example , where a and b are relative transformations ( locations ) and new -- traj , old -- traj are trajectories . offsets are applied to the entire trajectory . the precedence of the * operator is lower than that of the location @ operator . this provides for descriptions of compounded offsets without the use of parentheses . example : to maintain the location of objects within a workstation , robot interface 14 provides an abstract data type called located -- object 30 ( see fig3 ) that describes the location of an object relative to another object . the other object may also be relative to yet another object . this forms a relative reference chain of located -- objects 30 . the root of a relative reference chain is the &# 34 ; world reference point &# 34 ;, which is a common located position object to which all objects in the workstation are referenced . a workstation object is usually the next located -- object in the chain and it represents the relative reference point for all of the robots within the workstation . this model or representation gives the position of each object relative to each other . robot interface 14 uses the information in located -- objects 30 to determine how to achieve the application commanded motion of objects throughout the workstation . in addition to identifying the type or subtype of the object being represented , the located -- object type has four data attributes for tracking the location of objects relative to other objects . as shown in fig3 each located -- object 30 has a base -- reference attribute 32 , a base -- frame attribute 34 , a location attribute 36 , and a location -- frame attribute 38 . as represented by field 40 , located -- objects 30 also include other attributes and operators , which will be described later . base -- reference attribute 32 points to a located -- object 30 that the location is relative to . this forms a backwards chain of relative locations . the first object in the chain , i . e ., the &# 34 ; world reference point &# 34 ;, has a baser -- reference that is nil . location attribute 36 is the location of this object relative to its base -- reference , i . e ., the next located -- object 30 in the base reference chain . this may be a static field or a dynamic computation . for example , a subtype that is moved by other objects has this location modified as a static field update by the object that moved it . a subtype that moves itself such as a robot computes this value based on its internal information such as the position of its motion axes . location -- frame attribute 38 is a computed attribute that describes the location of this object in the &# 34 ; world &# 34 ; reference frame ( the very beginning reference of the co - ordinate system ). it is the product of all the locations in the reference chain . finally , base -- frame attribute 34 is the location -- frame of this object &# 39 ; s base reference . its inclusion simplifies the computation of the location -- frame . since there typically are multiple robots and other objects within a workstation , the complete data structure formed by the located -- object data type for the workstation environment is a tree structure such as is illustrated by fig4 a . in that example , the workstation environment includes three robots , namely , robot1 , robot2 , and robot3 . each robot is represented by a located -- object 30 of type robot . robot1 holds an object tool1 which in turn holds another object part . robot2 holds an object pallet . and robot3 holds an object board . the root of the three base reference chains is the &# 34 ; world reference point &# 34 ;. the application program or application library procedures alter the structures of the base -- reference chains to reflect the outcomes of completed commands that are implemented by the robots . for example , application program 12 might issue a move command which instructs part to be moved to board over some specified trajectory . when that command has been completed and part is on board , application program 12 breaks the link from the located -- object for part to the located -- object for tool1 and creates a new link , linking the located -- object for part to the located object for board . the resulting configuration of the linked lists of located -- objects is as shown in fig4 b . in terms of the convention presented earlier , the relative location of one located -- object b to another located -- object a is given by : as shown in a more complete representation of the contents of located -- object 30 , it also includes a relative -- location () operation which computes this equation . relative -- location () attempts to minimize the number of location multiplications required by examining the reference chain of the me and reference -- object for references to each other . the location -- frame data attribute need only be computed from the common base reference , not from the very root of the reference chain , the &# 34 ; world reference point &# 34 ;. finding certain objects or certain types of objects that are in the located -- object reference chain of a particular located -- object a is easily accomplished by searching through the base -- reference chain for the desired object . referring to fig5 located -- object provides several iterators to hide the implementation details of this search and it provides some other operations to perform other common functions . for example , there are two iterators , namely , base -- references ( me ) and matching -- base -- references ( me , search -- type ). base -- references ( me ) yields up each base -- reference in the chain , one at time , going backwards through the chain . matching -- base -- references ( me , search -- type ) yields up each base -- reference in the chain that is the same type as & lt ; search type & gt ;, one at time , going backwards through the chain . there are also three other operators that return useful information about the base -- reference chain . an in -- base -- references ? ( me , search -- object ) operator returns true or false if the & lt ; search object & gt ; is in the base -- reference chain . a first -- base -- ref -- match ( me , search -- type ) operator returns the first object in the base -- reference chain that is of type & lt ; search type & gt ;. and , an all -- base -- ref matches ( me , search -- type ) operator returns a sequence of all the objects in the base -- reference chain that are of type & lt ; search -- type & gt ;. applications which use robot interface 14 directly command objects to move . this isolates the application program from having knowledge of what robot will actually move the object . the operation move ( me , destination -- object , traj , motion -- command -- type ) is the motion command interface for application programs . among the arguments required by this command , & lt ; me & gt ; is the located -- object that should move , & lt ; destination -- object & gt ; is another located -- object that is the destination , & lt ; traj & gt ; is the trajectory to traverse to get to the destination ( it is relative to the destination ), and & lt ; motion -- command -- type & gt ; is a qualifier on how the motion command should be performed . an example of such a command is : move ( part , pallet . slot [ 1 ], approach -- trajectory , mot -- async ) this command tells the part to move itself to the first slot in a pallet . it should approach the first pallet slot along the path and with the speed specified in the trajectory approach -- trajectory . the move command starts the motion and returns to the application program immediately so that the next application command can happen asynchronously with the motion . note that robot interface 14 does not provide a task planning environment . thus , the example move command assumes that the part is somehow attached to a set of axes that can move the part to the board . typically this would be accomplished by having the application program commanding the tool to pickup the part first . robot system 10 provides various operations as applications libraries that perform commonly used tasks such as getting a part from a feeder ( get -- part -- from -- feeder ), or returning a part to a feeder ( return -- part -- to -- feeder ). robot interface 14 does not attempt to assemble a whole task sequence from just the command to move a part to a board as a task planning system might . it is the job of the application program to decide which tool to use , when to pick up a part , and what to do with the part . a robot is defined in the robotic system as a collection of motion axes that performs coordinated , world space moves of a tool center point ( tcp ). there may be one or more motion axes that make up a robot . motion axes may be shared among different robots . and robots may be made from other robots . the robotic system provides access control over shared axes to prevent conflicting motion commands being issued to the shared axis . the primary interface to the robots is a move () command 48 found in the located -- object type ( see fig5 ). the located -- object move (. sup . [) command 47 determines which robot is required to achieve the desired motion and then calls a move -- robot command of the robot . robot interface 14 automatically selects the required tcp for each move of a robot . the motion of the robot is to move the desired object at the calculated tcp along the specified trajectory . this requires the coordinated motion of the robot &# 39 ; s set of axes . in the described embodiment , robots and motion -- axes are subtypes of located -- object and other types which form a hierarchy of types as shown in fig6 . briefly , the types are as follows . man -- task -- owner types 60 have a bill of process ( bop ) that stores application programs that work for this type . examples would be workstation calibration and configuration programs . man -- resource types 62 provide access control to manufacturing resources , typically equipment . smart -- tool types 64 have an intelligent controller that controls the resource and accepts commands to perform actions with the resource . examples are robot and vision controllers . the mechanism type 66 serves as a common supertype for a robot type 68 and a motion -- axis type 70 which brings together common behavior . a motion -- axis in the robot interface is a one degree of freedom ( dof ) motion axis . a motion axis is commanded to move in its position space by the operation a motion -- axis may be either a rotary type of axis or a linear translation type of axis . the prime difference between rotary and translation motion -- axis is just the allowable units on the position command arguments . the position commands must be of the linear unit type for translation commands and of the angular unit type for angular axis commands . a motion -- axis type 50 includes the data attributes shown in fig7 to maintain the state of the axis . a me . encoder attribute 51 represents the position of the axis in raw position feedback device ( the encoder ) units . the default behavior of a motion -- axis is for this value to equal the last command sent to the device . an update -- position () operation 58 is used to interrogate an axis for its true present reading . a me . dist -- per -- enc attribute 52 is the conversion factor from raw encoder counts to engineering units , the distance per encoder count . a me . joint attribute 53 is the position of the axis in engineering units . it is the product of me . encoder and me . dist -- per -- enc . a me . location attribute 54 returns a location of the axis on the me . joint value . me . max -- position and me . min -- position attributes 55 and 56 are the maximum and minimum position limits , respectively , to which the axis can move . and a me . max -- speed attribute 57 is the maximum speed at which the axis can move . the robot system provides a transparent layer between the motion -- axes and the application programs . thus , application programs need not deal with motion axis operations or data attributes directly . as indicated in fig6 a motion -- axis is a smart -- tool which means that it has an intelligent motion controller that executes the motion commands . the robot interface as implemented by the object oriented data types provides the communication interface to this smart controller and translates generic motion commands into the required specific controller syntax . this allows the robot interface to be easily configured to work with a variety of different motion controllers . the application program never uses a device dependent syntax so it can maintain its independence from specific vendor &# 39 ; s motion controllers . the robot type provides control to the set of axes that make up a robot . it provides for robot management and robot motion . under robot management function , it registers all the robots in the workstation and provides selection facilities to determine which robot is required to move for a given motion command . under the robot motion function , it determines how to perform the required coordinated moves to move the tcp along the specified trajectory . fig8 shows a type heirarchy for robot . the native -- robot type provides the coordinated robot motion functionality for a set of axes that do not have a robot controller external to the robot interface . the foreign -- robot type communicates robot interface motion commands directly to a set of motion axes that do have an external robot controller . the robot management functionality is provided as type operations of the robot type . these are referred to as the robot manger operations and implement the functionality of robot manager 20 shown in fig1 . the purpose of the robot manager is to determine which robot is made up from a set of motion axes . this functionality is used by a located -- objectmove () operation ( to be described shortly ) to select the required robot to perform a desired move . the robot manager system provides the attributes and operations shown in fig9 . a mytype . robots attribute 82 is a set of all the robots in a workstation . in other words , mytype . robots 82 implements the table used by robot manager 20 to determine which set of axis corresponds to which robot in the workstation . a me . made -- of attribute 84 is a set of all the robots that make up a particular instance of a robot . a me . axes attribute 86 is the collection of motion -- axis that make up a particular instance of a robot . a robot -- signup () operator 88 registers a newly created robot into the mytype . robots set . and , a combined -- robot () operator 90 returns a specific robot that is made from the collection of robots passed as input arguments . the robot manager section of the robot type also provides for access control over the motion axes that make up a robot . robot type reimplements two operators from man -- resource , namely , new -- key () and set -- our -- key (). new -- key () has all robots and motion axes use a common lock to provide access control while attempting to gain control of a set of axes . set -- our -- key () updates individual motion -- axis access keys in all axes that make up a selected robot . as noted earlier , application programs command a located -- object to move along a trajectory . the motion manger dynamically determines which robot is required to move and then commands that robot to move along the desired trajectory . this isolates the application program from the details of the configurations of robots in a workstation . the selection process in the located -- object type is as follows shown in fig1 . the application program calls the move operation on a located -- object instance ( step 100 ). for example , located -- objectmove () calls located -- objectselect -- robot ( ) to determine which robot is required to move for this command . located -- objectselect -- robot () takes the two located objects in the move command ( in this example part and board ) and searches the base reference chain for any robots against which the object may be referenced ( step 102 ). it combines these robots into a set of robots and calls robotcombined -- robot () to retrieve an instance of a particular robot that is made from a combination of these robots ( step 104 ). robotcombined -- robot () searches the robot . robots registry of robots to find the unique robot that is made from a combination of these robots ( step 106 ). these last two steps are performed by first determining the unique set of axes associated with the combination of robots and then finding a unique robot that corresponds to the unique set of axes . it returns either the selected robot to the select -- robot () call or an exception if no robot is specified for that particular combination of input robots . then , located -- objectselect -- robot () checks that a robot was selected to perform the move ( step 108 ). exceptions are possible if no robots were in the base -- reference chain of either referenced input arguments or if no robot was registered for that particular combination of axes . for example , if both board and part were referenced off of the same axis , there would be no way to move the part to the board using only that one axis . the application program would have had to be designed to have a tool pickup the part first . finally , located -- objectmove () calls the robotmove -- robot () operation on the returned selected robot instance ( see below ) ( step 110 ). in the described embodiment , the process of identifying the unique robot involves first identifying the set of axes represented by the set of robots and then determining whether that set of axes correspond to a unique robot within the workstation . this proceeds as follows . after the set of robots in the two base reference chains are identified , the select -- robot operator uses the me . made -- of operator to determine for each of the identified robots whether it is made up of other robots . in this way , the robot manager decomposes the robots into constituent robots wherever possible . when no further decomposition into constituent robots is possible , the robot manager uses the me . axes attribute of the robot type to determine the complete set of motion axes represented by the collection of robots . that is , it goes through each robot on the list of robots and converts them into the corresponding set of motion axes . in the set of identified motion axes , each motion axes is represented only once even though it may be used by more than one robot in the identified set of robots . after the complete set of motion axes is determined , the robot manager checks whether this set corresponds to a unique robot within the workstation . to do this , it looks at each robot in the workstation ( as identified in mytype . robots ) and for each robot , it identifies the motion axes which make up that robot ( as determined from the me . made -- of attribute ). it then compares that set to motion axes which make up the robot to the set of identified motion axes to find a match . the goal of robot motion is to move a specified object along some trajectory relative to another specified object . the robotics system automatically computes the tool center point ( tcp ) for each move . this gives the application program independence from specific details of the tooling attached to a robot . an example of this independence is that it should not make a difference to the application program if a part is in a tool directly attached to a robot or is in a tool that is held by another tool that is then attached to the robot . the application program simply directs the part to move along the desired trajectory . operators that are associated with the robot type compute the tcp to the part automatically . as noted above , located -- objectmove () calls robotmove -- robot () on the robot that it chose as being required to perform the move . robotmove -- robot () performs the steps shown in the flow diagram of fig1 . first , it acquires use of the robot ( step 200 ). this is accomplished by using reimplemented access operations from man -- resource . the robotics system allows sharing of axes among robots and also allows possible parallel application tasks . if any of the axes of the robot are being used by another task , an exception is returned that the robot is in use . next , it computes the new tcp ( step 202 ). the tcp location is computed by finding the location of the first located -- object argument ( i . e ., the part in our example ) relative to the robot in its base -- reference chain . this is done by relative -- location ( part , robot ) operator described earlier . once the tcp has been computed , move -- robot () moves the tcp along the specified trajectory ( step 204 ). if the robot is a foreign robot with its own robot controller , then the appropriate tcp and move command is sent to its controller . if the robot is a native robot , then the robotics system computes the required motion axis commands to achieve coordinated motion of the tcp along the trajectory ( see description below ). when the robot has completed the move , move -- robot () releases control of the robot , which is accomplished through the man -- resource access control facilities ( step 206 ). thus , when the motion command is finished , the axes of the robot are released for use by other move commands . finally , move -- robot () returns to the caller located -- objectmove () with successful completion or any exceptions ( step 208 ). possible exceptions are motion errors such as the command would cause an axis to exceed a limit , motion controller errors such as amplifier faults , etc . the robotics system implements coordinated multi - axis robotic control for those axes that do not have a robot controller . robotic coordinated control algorithms are described in the literature ( see , for example , richard p . paul cited above or john j . craig , introduction to robotics mechanics and control , addison - wesley publishing , 1986 .). in the described embodiment , the robotics system does not implement the servo loops to control the axis . instead , it relies on the axes motion controller to provide the servo control and the interpolation to achieve good straight line trajectory following performance . the robotics system provides the arm solutions and the motion planning to achieve the commanded tcp trajectory . the system &# 39 ; s robotic control computes the velocity and position commands to send to each axes motion controller . these commands are derived from the specified world tcp trajectory and the axis configuration of the robot . the robotics system converts the world space trajectory into an encoder space position and velocity command to issue to the axes motion controller . the algorithm that converts from a cartesian x , y , z tcp location to a set of encoder positions for the robot &# 39 ; s motion axes is known as the reverse arm solution . the forward arm solution converts from encoder space for a set of robot axes into the cartesian space for the tcp of the robot . the abstract native -- robot type of the robot interface provides the structure for computing any robot &# 39 ; s arm solutions . the implementation details for a particular robot &# 39 ; s axes configuration is performed by subtypes of robot ( see fig6 ). both algorithms employ principles and techniques well known to persons skilled in the art . the robot subtype heirarchy of the system is centered around cartesian style robots of various configurations . the derived classes include , for example , the following types : a slide -- robot , a yz robot , a yz -- theta robot , a yz -- x -- by -- theta robot , xyz -- theta robot , and a slide -- and -- bridge robot . the slide -- robot type is a 1 dof linear axis robot . the axis may provide motion in the x , the y , or the z direction . the slide -- robot type provides the arm solution routines for world space commands that the translation motion -- axis does not provide . the yz type is a 2 dof cartesian robot in the y and z directions . the yz -- theta type is a 3 dof cartesian robot that provides y and z translation and a rotation about the z axis . the yz -- x -- by -- theta type is a 3 dof cartesian robot that provides x , y , and z motion . the x motion is provided by using the theta axis . this robot cannot put the tcp at any arbitrary orientation since the theta rotation is used to position the tcp in x . the xyz -- theta type is a 4 dof cartesian robot that provides x , y , z and a theta rotation about the z axis . and , the slide -- and -- bridge type is a 2 + dof cartesian split axis robot . a split axis robot does not carry the y axis on the x axis ( the y axis is on a separate bridge that spans perpendicular to the x axis ). it is made up of a slide -- robot to provide the x motion and another robot that provides the y motion and any optional dof . an example is a slide -- robot and a yz robot , or a slide -- robot and a yz -- theta robot . this implemented robot subtype heirarchy is flat . the design could be readdressed to group similar behavior differently , such as by the same number of dof , cartesian or non - cartesian , etc . the robotics system could also provide native -- robot subtypes for other types including , for example , articulated arm , scara , cyclindrical , or spherical styles of robots . these additional styles of robots require a higher interpolation rate of the trajectory from world space to encoder space than the described embodiment requires . the higher rate provides good straight line trajectory performance of the tcp ( see discussion below ). the robotics system can specify the programming interface to any type of native -- robots arm solution . individual arm solutions may have different algorithms for computing the solution so long as the calling arguments and return values conform to the specifications of the robot interface . the following sections describes the design of the relevant portions of that interface . there are different coordinate spaces that can represent the desired configuration of a set of robotic motion axes . these spatial representations are grouped into a location -- spaces data packet type . it has fields for the following attributes : me . encoders , me . joints , me . no -- tool , me . robot , and me . world . the me . encoders attribute is the set of encoder values for each axis of the robot that put the tcp at the desired world location . the me . joints attribute is the set of axis positions in engineering units that put the tcp at the desired world location . the me . no -- tool attribute is the location of the tcp base reference ( its mount to the robot ) that places the tcp at the desired world location . the me . robot attribute is the location of the tcp in the robot &# 39 ; s reference frame . the robot &# 39 ; s reference frame does not include the offset from the robot to the global world reference . and the me . world attribute is the location of the tcp in the world reference frame . this is the desired commanded location of the tcp . the robot interface uses instances of location -- spaces to make available all representations of the spaces that give the desired tcp location to its internal routines . the reverse arm solution for any native -- robot type is performed by a robotworld -- to -- spaces () operator . this generic routine performs the location mathematics to fill in a location -- spaces data packet . world -- to -- spaces () calls other routines , including robotreverse -- arm -- solution () and robotjoints -- to -- encoders (). robotreverse -- arm -- solution () is an operation in native -- robot that implements the appropriate algorithm to specify the axis joint positions that will give the desired tcp location . robotjoints -- to -- encoders () is a routine that converts axis positions from engineering units to encoder values . the default in native -- robot assumes no inter - axis coupling and that just a linear scale factor converts from engineering joint space to encoder space . if there is inter - axis coupling , or non - linear conversion factors are required , subtypes of native -- robot reimplement this routine . some robots do not have enough degrees of freedom , dof , to achieve any desired location . the minimum number of dof to achieve arbitrary positions and orientations of a tcp is 6 dof . the located -- object type allows the full 6 dof specification for the tcp . it is possible that a commanded location cannot be achieved by a particular robot due to having too few dof . the system allows a robot to decide if it wants to ignore the part of the location command it cannot achieve or to raise an exception . a robotdof -- compensation () operator returns a compensation location frame that world -- to -- spaces () can apply to the tcp command to convert it into an achievable command for how many dof the robot may actually have . an example is to return a location frame that would undue the orientation part of the tcp location for a robot that does not have a rotation axis . the default is to return the identity location frame which does not apply any compensation . subtypes can reimplement this routine to raise an exception or to produce a compensating location frame . the forward arm solution for any robot is performed by the routine robotencoder -- to -- spaces (). this routine creates a filled in location -- spaces data packet for a set of axes encoder values . encoder -- to -- spaces () calls two other routines , namely , robotencoders -- to -- joints () and robotforward -- arm -- solution . robotencoders -- to -- joints () converts from encoder values into engineering unit joint positions . the default assumes a linear conversion factor and no inter - axis coupling . native -- robot subtypes reimplement this routine to provide non - linear conversion or inter - axis coupling . robotforward -- arm -- solution performs the forward arm solution algorithm for its particular axis configuration . as noted earlier , robots are a subtype of located -- object . they describe the location of some point on the robot relative to some base reference . the point of interest on a robot is the place that is used as the base -- reference position of the tcp , typically referred to as the tcp mounting point . each robot may select where this point is located but must then compute its arm solutions to that point . typically , this point is some mounting flange on the robot where the tools are attached , but any position is possible as long as the arm solutions are consistent and the locations of objects attached to the robot are measured from this point . in the located -- object for the robot subtype , me . location is a computed field that reimplements the located -- objectme . location field . it expresses the location of the base reference for the tcp ( the tool &# 39 ; s mounting point on the robot ) in the robot &# 39 ; s reference frame . this field is critical to the proper determination of the location of located -- objects that have a robot in their base -- reference chain . it calls the forward arm solution to compute the location of the tcp reference . for example , the forward arm solution gives the x , y , z and orientation values of the mounting flange . the base -- reference of the robot is the origin position for the robot coordinate system that the arm solutions use . this position is referred to as the robot origin . any constant position on the robot is possible and is robot specific . the base -- reference of the robot origin is the workstation . the location of the robot origin is the offset from the origin of the workstation to the base of the robot . the robot subtype also includes a me . robot -- origin attribute . it is a located -- position that describes the location of the robot &# 39 ; s coordinate system relative to the workstation &# 39 ; s coordinate system . some robotic motion axes have position encoders that report only a relative position for the axis . these types of encoders are referred to as incremental encoders . the motion controllers can establish a known reference position for each encoder and then report the encoder position relative to that known position . this reference position is typically determined by having a special index mark on the encoder . the motion controller moves the axis until this special index mark is found , and then resets its encoder counting circuitry to a known value . the motion controller can then report absolute encoder positions based from this special index mark . this process is known as &# 34 ; homing the axis &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; calibrating &# 34 ; an axis . the system provides the following routines to initiate this process . the robot subtype includes a robotcalibrate ( me ) operation that can be used to have the robot perform a calibration routine that establishes absolute position of each motion axis of the robot . it is primarily used on robots that have incremental encoders that must be moved to a special known position , usually an index mark on the encoder , to establish the zero position of the encoder . robotcalibrate ( mytype ) is an operation that calibrates all of the registered robots in the robotmytype . robots collection . the described embodiment of the invention is a coupled motion system that works in conjunction with axis motion controllers . the system provides direct interfaces to the motion controllers through its communications pipeline facilities . it is possible to move the axes of the robot by directly commanding the motion controller . this would bypass the internal knowledge that the robot interface maintains on where an axis is located . this information is vital to correctly plan any subsequent motion under the control of the system . the system provides the following operations to update its knowledge of position of the axes of a robot . they are called whenever direct axis motion through the axis controller was performed . a robotupdate -- all -- positions ( mytype ) operator updates the me . encoder values for each robot by directly asking the axis motion controllers . this operation updates the values for all the registered robots in the workstation . it finds the unique set of motion axes and then updates each axis encoder value and then updates the me . spaces field for each robot . a robotupdate -- position ( me ) operator updates the me . encoder value for only the specified robot instance , me . it updates each axis encoder value and then updates the me . spaces field for this robot . the robots maintain several variables that describe some information about the state of the robot , including , me . here , me . spaces , and me . tool -- frame . the me . here data field returns a location that represents the position of the last automatically determined tcp in the world reference frame . me . spaces is a location -- spaces object that represents the present state of the robot as described in encoder , joint , robot , and world space . it is maintained by the internal arm solution routines . and , me . tool -- frame stores the automatically computed tcp and will typically vary for each move of the robot . these variables are of limited usefulness to application programs and are primarily useful for internal robot operations . it is helpful to compare the syntax used by the robotics system described herein to traditional robotic move syntax . at first glance , the motion command syntax of the robot interface does not appear to be vastly different from other robotic language motion commands . for example , an equivalent command in another robotic language ( rail ( r )- automatix , inc .) is : this command tells a robot to move its tool center point , tcp , along the path approach -- path with a certain speed . the approach -- path is relative to the location of the first pallet slot . the motion command should be performed asynchronously with the application program . the implications of this traditional command are the following . first , the command is directed to a robot . if there are several robots in the workstation , the application needs to have a statement that selects which robot is the active robot for the move statement . this requires that the application have knowledge of the workstation configuration and thus limits its reusability in other environments or with other workstations . for example , if there is only one robot , the application contains this implicit assumption and will not be reusable for configurations that have multiple robots . second , the tcp is moved rather than the part . though this application example desires to move the part to the pallet , there is no knowledge of the part in this command . the application has to set the tcp location to be equal to the part location relative to the robot &# 39 ; s tcp reference origin . this imbeds the knowledge of the tool and how it holds parts into the application . if a different tool or part is used , the application program will need to be modified . third , the motion path is relative to a location , namely , the pallet -- slot [ 1 ]. this builds in knowledge of how the workstation is configured . consider the situation if the pallet is placed on a cart and the cart is moved . this application program did not anticipate this situation and would need to be modified as follows : this knowledge is stored in the application program . if the configuration changes again , the program must be modified , again limiting reusability . though these differences may appear to be minor at first , careful consideration shows the large impact on the reusability of the application program . each of the points raised above could be addressed by a carefully designed application program . traditional robotic language constructs place a large burden on the application programmer to design a program for maximum reuse . the architecture of the robot interface shifts the burden for reusable code from the application programmer to the basic robot interface environment . the traditional syntax also does not work directly with what the application program is typically interested in most , the part , tool , etc . instead it limits the command to the tcp . the robot interface of the invention allows move commands on any located -- object , e . g . part , tool , robot , and pallet . the robot interface then automatically selects the robot that must be moved and computes the correct tcp for the desired object . the important part of this automatic selection is that the application program does not need to know the structure of the workstation configuration . this is contained and maintained by the base -- reference chain of located -- object . the information is in the data and not the program . this allows reconfiguration of the workspace by modifying the base -- reference chain data without needing to search all the application code and reprogram the application . this aids reusability and maintainability .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

in the following detailed description , reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof , and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced . these embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention , and it is to be understood that the embodiments may be combined , or that other embodiments may be utilized and that structural , logical and electrical changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention . the following detailed description is , therefore , not to be taken in a limiting sense , and the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents . the present method and apparatus will be described in applications involving implantable medical devices including , but not limited to , implantable cardiac rhythm management systems such as pacemakers , cardioverter / defibrillators , pacer / defibrillators , and biventricular or other multi - site coordination devices . however , it is understood that the present methods and apparatus may be employed in unimplanted devices , including , but not limited to , external pacemakers , cardioverter / defibrillators , pacer / defibrillators , biventricular or other multi - site coordination devices , monitors , programmers and recorders . [ 0013 ] fig1 is a schematic drawing illustrating , by way of example , one embodiment of portions of a cardiac rhythm management system 100 and an environment in which it is used . in fig1 system 100 includes an implantable cardiac rhythm management device 105 , which is coupled by an intravascular endocardial lead 110 , or other lead , to a heart 115 of patient 120 . device 105 typically contains electronic circuitry . system 100 also includes an external programmer 125 providing wireless communication with device 105 using a telemetry device 130 . catheter lead 110 includes a proximal end 135 , which is coupled to device 105 , and a distal end 140 , which is coupled to one or more portions of heart 115 . [ 0014 ] fig2 is a schematic drawing illustrating , by way of example , one embodiment of device 105 coupled by leads 110 a - b to heart 115 , which includes a right atrium 200 a , a left atrium 200 b , a right ventricle 205 a , a left ventricle 205 b , and a coronary sinus 220 extending from right atrium 200 a . in this embodiment , atrial lead 110 a includes electrodes ( electrical contacts ) disposed in , around , or near an atrium 200 of heart 115 , such as ring electrode 225 and tip electrode 230 , for sensing signals and / or delivering pacing therapy ( atrial pacing ) to the atrium 200 . lead 110 a optionally also includes additional electrodes , such as for delivering atrial and / or ventricular cardioversion / defibrillation and / or pacing therapy to heart 115 . in fig2 ventricular lead 110 b includes one or more electrodes , such as tip electrode 235 and ring electrode 240 , for delivering sensing signals and / or delivering pacing therapy . lead 110 b optionally also includes additional electrodes , such as for delivering atrial and / or ventricular cardioversion / defibrillation and / or pacing therapy to heart 115 . device 105 includes components that are enclosed in a hermetically - sealed housing , which is sometimes referred to as a can . additional electrodes may be located on the can , or on an insulating header , or on other portions of device 105 , for providing pacing and / or defibrillation energy in conjunction with the electrodes disposed on or around heart 115 . other forms of electrodes include meshes and patches which may be applied to portions of heart 115 or which may be implanted in other areas of the body to help “ steer ” electrical currents produced by device 105 . the present method and apparatus will work in a variety of configurations and with a variety of electrical contacts or “ electrodes .” [ 0016 ] fig3 is a schematic diagram illustrating generally , by way of example , one embodiment of portions of device 105 , which is coupled to heart 115 . device 105 includes a power source 300 , an atrial sensing circuit 305 , an atrial therapy circuit 306 , a ventricular sensing circuit 310 , a ventricular therapy circuit 320 , and a controller 325 . atrial sensing circuit 305 is coupled by atrial lead 110 a to heart 115 for receiving , sensing , and / or detecting electrical atrial heart signals . such atrial heart signals include atrial activations ( also referred to as atrial depolarizations or p - waves ), which correspond to atrial contractions . such atrial heart signals include normal atrial rhythms , and abnormal atrial rhythms including atrial tachyarrhythmias , such as atrial fibrillation , and other atrial activity . atrial sensing circuit 305 provides one or more signals to controller 325 , via node / bus 327 , based on the received atrial heart signals . such signals provided to controller 325 indicate , among other things , the presence of atrial fibrillation . atrial therapy circuit 306 provides atrial pacing therapy , as appropriate , to electrodes located at or near one of the atriums 200 of heart 115 for obtaining resulting evoked atrial depolarizations . in one embodiment , atrial therapy circuit 306 also provides cardioversion / defibrillation therapy , as appropriate , to electrodes located at or near one , or both , of the atriums 205 of heart 115 , for terminating atrial fibrillation and / or other atrial arrhythmias . ventricular sensing circuit 310 is coupled by ventricular leads 110 b , 110 c to heart 115 for receiving , sensing , and / or detecting electrical ventricular heart signals , such as ventricular activations ( also referred to as ventricular depolarizations or r - waves ), which correspond to ventricular contractions . ventricular lead 110 c is similar to lead 110 b described above . such ventricular heart signals include normal ventricular rhythms , and abnormal ventricular rhythms , including ventricular tachyarrhythmias , such as ventricular fibrillation , and other ventricular activity , such as irregular ventricular contractions resulting from conducted signals from atrial fibrillation . ventricular sensing circuit 310 provides one or more signals to controller 325 , via node / bus 327 , based on the received ventricular heart signals . such signals provided to controller 325 indicate , among other things , the presence of ventricular depolarizations , whether regular or irregular in rhythm . ventricular therapy circuit 320 provides ventricular pacing therapy , as appropriate , to electrodes located at or near one of the ventricles 205 of heart 115 for obtaining resulting evoked ventricular depolarizations . in one embodiment , ventricular therapy circuit 320 also provides cardioversion / defibrillation therapy , as appropriate , to electrodes located at or near one , or both , of the ventricles 205 of heart 115 , for terminating ventricular fibrillation and / or other ventricular tachyarrhythmias . controller 325 controls the delivery of therapy by ventricular therapy circuit 320 and / or other circuits , based on heart activity signals received from atrial sensing circuit 305 and ventricular sensing circuit 310 . controller 325 includes various modules , which are implemented either in hardware or as one or more sequences of steps carried out on a microprocessor or other controller . such modules are illustrated separately for conceptual clarity ; it is understood that the various modules of controller 325 need not be separately embodied , but may be combined and / or otherwise implemented , such as in software / firmware . in an embodiment , the controller 325 includes a memory in which is stored default parameters , which are used by the programmer to control various therapies . one such default parameter may be a maximum pacing rate . in general terms , sensing circuits 305 and 310 sense electrical signals from heart tissue in contact with the catheter leads 110 a - c to which these sensing circuits 305 and 310 are coupled . sensing circuits 305 and 310 and / or controller 325 process these sensed signals . based on these sensed signals , controller 325 issues control signals to therapy circuits , such as atrial therapy circuit 306 and / or ventricular therapy circuit 320 , if necessary , for the delivery of electrical energy ( e . g ., pacing and / or defibrillation pulses ) to the appropriate electrodes of leads 110 a - c . controller 325 may include a microprocessor or other controller for execution of software and / or firmware instructions . the software of controller 325 may be modified ( e . g ., by remote external programmer 105 ) to provide different parameters , modes , and / or functions for the implantable device 105 or to adapt or improve performance of device 105 . in one further embodiment , one or more sensors , such as sensor 330 , may serve as inputs to controller 325 for adjusting the rate at which pacing or other therapy is delivered to heart 115 . one such sensor 330 includes an accelerometer that provides an input to controller 325 indicating increases and decreases in physical activity , for which controller 325 increases and decreases pacing rate , respectively . another such sensor includes an impedance measurement , obtained from body electrodes , which provides an indication of increases and decreases in the patient &# 39 ; s respiration , for example , for which controller 325 increases and decreases pacing rate , respectively . any other sensor 330 providing an indicated pacing rate can be used . [ 0024 ] fig4 is a schematic diagram illustrating generally , by way of example , controller 325 that includes several different inputs to modify various programmable parameters of the cardiac rhythm management device 105 . however , only one of the inputs is a maximum pacing rate . accordingly , in an embodiment controller 325 limits the maximum pacing rate for all of the therapies using the single maximum pacing rate input . for example , ventricle and atrium pacing are limited by the single maximum pacing rate . in another embodiment , rate smoothing , biventricular triggered pacing and ventricular rate regulation are limited by the single maximum pacing rate . ventricular rate regulation provides nearly continuous ( i . e ., to the desired degree ) biventricular pacing when the ventricular heart rate is substantially constant . in another embodiment , tracking rate , sensor rate , rate smoothing , atrial pacing preference , ventricular rate regulation are limited by the single maximum pacing rate . the maximum tracking rate limits how quickly the ventricle is paced . the maximum sensor rate limits how fast a heart is paced based on sensed variables . the maximum rate smoothing prevents the pacing rate interval from changing to quickly from one cycle to the next . it will be understood that the single maximum pacing rate is used to limit the pacing rate of more than one therapy , for example any two of the therapies listed herein . accordingly , a medical care provider need only input the maximum pacing rate into the programmer 125 once . programmer 125 transmits the maximum pacing rate to the crm device 105 . limited by the single maximum pacing rate and based on other inputs , controller 325 provides an output indication of pacing rate as a control signal delivered to a therapy circuit , such as to atrial therapy circuit 306 or ventricular therapy circuit 320 . atrial or ventricular therapy circuit 306 or 320 issues pacing pulses based on one or more such control signals received from controller 325 . control of the pacing rate may be performed by controller 325 , either alone or in combination with peripheral circuits or modules , using software , hardware , firmware , or any combination of the like . the software embodiments provide flexibility in how inputs are processed and may also provide the opportunity to remotely upgrade the device software while still implanted in the patient without having to perform surgery to remove and / or replace the device 105 . in an embodiment of controller 325 , the controller is configured to provide biventricular triggered pacing , which is pacing one or both ventricles based on sensed ventricular contractions in one ventricle and triggers ventricular pace in the other or both ventricles . controller 325 uses the maximum pacing rate to limit how fast it will pace one or both of the ventricles to treat hemodynamic dysfunction , e . g . bundle branch blocks or slow conduction in a portion of the ventricles , so as to improve the efficiency of the heart . in another embodiment of controller 325 , it is configured to receive maximum pacing rate offsets from programmer 125 . in some therapies it is necessary to deviate from the single maximum pacing rate , for example atrial pacing preference such that an appropriate limit on how fast the atrium is paced by crm device 105 or an appropriate limit as to when the atrium is paced by crm device 105 are respectively imposed . [ 0027 ] fig5 shows an embodiment of crm device 105 having hardware , e . g . circuitry , and software for a plurality of possible therapies 525 . each of the possible therapies is adapted to pace a patient &# 39 ; s heart . each therapy is limited by a single maximum pacing rate 530 . the maximum pacing rate 530 is a default maximum pacing rate stored in the controller or a downloaded maximum pacing rate , for example downloaded by programmer 125 . some therapies , e . g . atrial pacing preference , require a different maximum pacing rate than the other therapies . offsets include a percentage offset from the maximum pacing rate , a fractional offset , and a discrete number offset . the offsets can increase or decrease the pacing rate from the maximum pacing rate . additionally , the offsets can be different for different therapies . offsets 536 , 537 are loaded into the crm device 105 , for example by programmer 125 . these offsets 536 , 537 are used by crm device 105 to increase or decrease the maximum pacing rate for the therapies requiring a different maximum pacing rate . the crm device 105 outputs a pacing signal 540 that is limited by the maximum pacing rate 530 and , if any , offsets 536 , 537 . in one embodiment of the system 100 , programmer 125 stores which of the possible therapies of a given crm device 105 might require an offset . the programmer 125 prompts the user for an offset when these therapies are activated in the crm device 105 . it is within the scope of the present invention for the offset to be an integer which is added or subtracted from the single maximum pacing rate , or a fraction which is multiplied times the single maximum pacing rate . previous crm devices had separate maximum pacing rates for each therapy . crm devices provide a plurality of therapies and hence a user must program a corresponding plurality of maximum pacing rates . for example , such a crm device would include a first input providing rate smoothing maximum pacing rate , a second input providing biventricular trigger maximum pacing rate , and a third input providing a ventricular rate regulation maximum pacing rate . the inputs may further include maximum tracking rate , maximum sensor rate , rate smoothing maximum pacing rate , atrial pacing preference maximum pacing rate , ventricular rate regulation maximum pacing rates . a physician must accordingly program all of these various maximum pacing rates so that the crm device will administer the appropriate therapy which is limited by a specific maximum pacing rate corresponding to the therapy . however , due to the numerous different maximum pacing rates a physician may overlook one of the maximum pacing rate parameters when programming the crm device , especially if the programmer accesses the different variables on different display screens . this could result in the crm device administering unintended therapy to a patient by the crm device relying on an unintended maximum pacing rate that was not correctly set . the above - described system provides , among other things , a cardiac rhythm management system including techniques for reducing the number of variables which must be adjusted to reduce potential conflicts parameters . in an embodiment , the parameters are maximum pacing rates . this embodiment attempts to reduce the occurrence of users failing to adjust all maximum pacing rates when it is necessary to do so . it is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative , and not restrictive . many other embodiments will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description . the scope of the invention should , therefore , be determined with reference to the appended claims , along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled .

0Human Necessities

reverting specifically to fig1 a of the drawings , there is disclosed a graft or prosthesis 10 which , in this embodiment , is a bifurcated aorta - iliac vascular prosthesis having an upper segment 12 which is an aortic junction which faces the direction of incoming blood flow from the aorta , wherein the bifurcated lower end of the prosthesis 10 which is connected to the aorta segment 12 includes left and right iliac branches 14 and 16 . this graft 10 may be readily constituted from a flexible material , such as for example , a textile , ptfe , biological materials , polyurethane , or hybrids thereof , as is widely known in the art of producing vascular prostheses . the vascular graft or prosthesis of fig1 b of the drawings is similar to that of fig1 a ; however , in this embodiment , the graft 18 is essentially tubular in nature . the materials which may be employed for this graft 18 are basically the same as those employed for the bifurcated graft 10 . as illustrated in fig2 of the drawings , there is diagrammatically shown a perspective view of an anastomotic coupler 20 which includes a tubularly shaped structure 22 consisting of cells 24 which allow for radial expansion and forming a compliant annular body . preferably , the construction thereof is constituted of a shape memory metal or alloy material , such as stainless steel , nitinol ( nickel - titanium alloy ) or similar material , as is well known in the art . moreover , the coupler body structure 22 can be formed of a suture - based device rather than a shape memory alloy . attached to the opposite ends 24 , 26 of the annular compliant body 22 are vessel or graft engaging elements , such as axially and outwardly bent staples 28 , 30 which are spaced around the periphery of the body structure 22 . these staples 28 , 30 , may be constituted of nitinol , or of any suitable shape memory alloy material . [ 0044 ] fig3 of the drawings illustrates the upper end portion 32 of the vascular graft or endoprostheses 10 ( or 18 ) with the anastomotic coupler 20 positioned thereover and having the end of the graft everted such that the staples 28 at the one end 24 of the coupler 20 pierce engagingly through the graft and the wall of the aorta 36 , whereas the other staples 30 below the everted upper end portion of the graft are adapted engage into the wall of the body vessel . the foregoing construction is also applicable to similar anastomotic couplers which are attached to the lower ends of , respectively the two iliac branches of the graft or prosthesis , as in fig1 a , or the lower end of the tubular vascular prosthesis or graft , as in fig1 b . as illustrated in fig4 of the drawings , this is schematically shown a delivery system and device 40 for emplacement of the graft 10 . the prosthesis delivery device includes an essentially hollow tubular or cylindrical syringe - like or catheter member 41 having an axially movable handle 42 for pushing or deploying the device in the body vessel , with a rod member 43 extending towards the upper end of member 41 into engagement with the aortic anastomotic coupler 20 , the staples 28 of which engage the wall of the aorta 36 . upon pushing the handle 42 into the cylindrical member 42 the entire prosthesis 10 located therein is by means of the rod member 43 deployed into the body vessel towards a surgical incision formed in the aorta for suitable emplacement . as shown in fig5 the upper end of the aortic anastomotic coupler 20 has the staples 28 engage into the aortic wall structure 36 , whereas the lower bifurcated ends 14 , 16 of the vascular prosthesis is engaged into , respectively , the left and right iliac branches by means of iliac anastomotic couplers 50 , 52 which are essentially similar in construction to the aortic anastomotic coupler 20 , although understandably of somewhat smaller sized diameters . as shown in fig5 the delivery system 40 of fig4 is introduced through the wall 56 of a patient &# 39 ; s body into the abdominal cavity 58 , with a laparoscopic instrument and light source 60 extending towards the region of an aneurysm , and a further instrument and light source 62 extending into the region proximate the iliac anastomotic couplers 50 , 52 . the two laparoscopic instruments with light sources 60 , 62 which , respectively , are adapted to provide access to the aortic anastomotic coupler 20 and to the iliac anastomotic couplers 50 , 52 require only very small incisions to be formed in the body of the patient . this is also applicable to the incision required for the relatively small - sized delivery system or instrument 40 which includes the entire prosthesis , in effect ; the preassembled graft 10 with the aortic and iliac anastomotic couplers 20 , 50 , 52 having all be previously attached to the graft body . other laparoscopic instruments such as scissors , forceps , clamps , and clips can be used to assist in attaching the prosthesis to the aorta . thus , it becomes readily apparent to one of skill in the art , that through the utilization a single system and delivery device it is possible to laparoscopically emplace or deploy an entire graft 10 ( or 18 ) and anastomotic means preattached thereto in one piece , and in essentially a single procedure . although the foregoing description focuses on the use of the anastomosis system in thoraco - abdominal vascular surgery , the system is equally applicable to other situations which may require vessel anastomosis , including , but not limited to renal artery bypass grafting , femoral - femoral bypass and arterio - venous shunting , such as is commonly used for dialysis . surgical anastomoses are also performed for various reasons on many different tubular organs of the body other than blood vessels , including the bowel , intestines , stomach and esophagus . while the devices and methods of the present invention are described herein as being intended primarily for vascular anastomoses , some or all of the embodiments could also be modified for performing end - to - side anastomoses on other tubular organs . any one of the one or two - piece embodiments of the anastomosis staple device can be supplied preattached to a prosthetic graft vessel . for instance , the two - piece anastomosis staple device could be supplied in a kit , including a natural or artificial graft that is prepared with an anastomotic coupling member attached to one or both ends thereof , and one or two anchor members for attachment to the target vessel ( s ). likewise , the one - piece anastomosis staple device can be supplied in a procedural kit preattached to a prosthetic graft vessel . this is equally applicable to artificial graft materials , such ptfe or dacron ( registered ™) grafts , or to natural biological graft materials ; including allografts of human graft vessels , or xenografts such as bovine or porcine graft vessels , either freshly harvested , glutaraldehyde treated or cryogenically preserved . an anastomotic device application or deployment instrument , such as those described above , could also be supplied in the procedural kit with one of the anastomotic devices already attached to the distal end of the instrument . while the invention has been particularly shown and described with respect to preferred embodiments thereof , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing and other changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .

0Human Necessities

the description is first directed primarily to the subject matter of applicant &# 39 ; s prior u . s . pat . no . 6 , 378 , 537 and later to the specific improvements , which are the subject matter of the present invention . much of the beginning description will necessarily repeat description of the &# 39 ; 537 patent , whereas the later description will describe those improvements , which constitute the present invention . in accordance with the objects disclosed above , fig1 illustrates improved table 10 of the present invention including an integral dishwasher and potwasher . table 10 is formed generally of a top portion comprised of dining surface 12 mounted on support base 14 . since the present invention was developed for reasons of aesthetics , efficiency , more sanitary eating area , and ease of use , table 10 is substantially permanently mounted in a selected location , and a water line , a waste line , and electric line ( not shown ) are appropriately connected to the enclosed dishwasher unit . dining surface 12 contains sink 22 and electrical outlet 26 and a series of dials or switches 24 for operating the dishwasher and an optional warming surface 18 . a heating element 18 ′ is located beneath warming surface 18 . while dining surface 12 could be configured to accommodate a single individual , dining surface 12 is illustrated in the preferred embodiment configured to accommodate at least two people . accordingly , an access cover 20 a is in a position suited to a first person being seated at table 10 . an extension panel 20 b illustrated by way of example as being of substantially the same thickness as that of access cover 20 a joined by a hinge to access cover 20 a operates in conjunction with access cover 20 a and can be folded underneath access cover 20 a when not in use as in fig1 . also to be noted is that when access cover 20 a is positioned , as in fig1 , its top surface is substantially flush with the top of dining surface 12 and is illustrated in fig2 with a typical set of dishes and utensils ( shown in dashed lines ) placed for use . the access cover 20 a is adapted to be positioned so as to either cover ( as in fig1 , 3 , or 11 ) or uncover ( as in fig1 ) the operative portion of the dishwasher below . as further explained below , one side of table 10 is fitted with an access cover 20 a and extension panel 20 b , and the opposite side of table 10 is fitted with a comparable access cover 20 c and extension panel 20 d . the respective extension panels 20 b and 20 d basically have two parallel positions , referred to as being high and low . the high position places their respective surfaces in the same plane as that of the dining surface 12 , as shown in fig3 , and 16 . the respective low position of extension panel 20 b is illustrated in fig1 , 11 , and 15 . the extension panels 20 b , 20 d are supported , positioned , latched , and unlatched by the later - explained mechanism . by contrast , with regard to the manner in which the extension panels 20 b , 20 d are supported , positioned , latched , and unlatched , the access cover 20 a is supported by means of a flange 90 secured to access cover 20 a as in fig1 and 16 . the flange fits into a groove 91 integral to table 10 as in fig1 . thus , access cover 20 a can be slid towards and away from a diner . access cover 20 c operates by the same principle . with this preliminary introduction to the outer and inner access covers and their operation , the description now continues with other aspects of the invention . sink 22 is equipped with an electrically heated water spigot 42 for making instant coffee , tea or soup , in addition to the usual water connection 44 . pot insertion doors 28 a and 28 b are located at the left end ( as seen in fig1 and 2 ) of support base 14 for placing larger cooking and serving utensils into the dishwasher unit of the invention . here it should be noted that with respect to pot insertion doors 28 a and 28 b that the improvement to which the present invention relates is especially intended to include the means employed for accessing the pot washer basket 30 in a manner which permits the diner , irrespective of on which side of table 10 the diner is sitting , to load and unload items to be washed by the pot washer while seated at the table 10 and load and unload items to be washed by the dishwasher . as best seen in fig3 , the apparatus with the access covers 20 a and 20 c in their respective closed positions shown in solid line in fig3 and extension panels 20 b and 20 c in their respective extended positions provide additional dining surfaces . warming surface 18 , in which heating element 18 ′ is enclosed , is located in dining surface 12 , in a location between the access cover 20 a and the opposite access cover 20 c . warming surface 18 is preferably of a different appearance than dining surface 12 for visibility and safety reasons . a washer control panel 16 and preferred locations for detergent reservoirs 65 and 66 are shown in fig4 . fig5 is a right end view of table 10 and illustrates an access door 60 that can be removed to provide maintenance on the internal mechanisms of the washer apparatus . fig6 is a side elevation view of table 10 showing the ease of use of table 10 by a person p seated in a wheelchair w at the table 10 . fig7 and 8 in side views of table 10 illustrate the pot washer doors 28 a and 28 b as well as access doors 61 , 62 , 63 , and 64 in their respective closed positions . fig9 in an end view of dining table 10 as seen in fig1 , illustrates the pot washer doors 28 a and 28 b closed and ready for a washing cycle for the pots and pans . with pot insertion door 28 b open , as in fig1 , and the pot washer basket 30 pulled outwards through the opening of door 28 b the diner is able to load or remove pots and pans into and from the pot washer basket 30 . the pot washer basket 30 slides through a slidable connection along a rail 31 which provides a fixed support and allows the basket 30 to go through the opening of either pot insertion door 28 a or 28 b , so as to make basket 30 available to a diner for loading on either end of the table . the rail 31 is located as seen in fig9 and 10 so as to be substantially parallel to the plane of the surface of table 10 and is laterally offset so as to be below but not directly below either of access covers 20 a or 20 c as indicated in fig2 . dish - washing water - distributor arm 30 a and pot - washing water - distributor arm 30 c ( fig1 and 12 ) are positioned within support base 14 in separated , horizontally and vertically spaced locations along a substantially central line c / l that is parallel to the long dimension of the dining table 10 as shown in fig1 . dish - washing water - distributor arm 30 a is positioned relatively low in a center portion , substantially parallel to the plane of the dining surface 12 , and potwashing water - distributor arm 30 c is positioned relatively high and in a plane which is substantially perpendicular to the plane of dining surface 12 , as best seen in fig1 and 12 . when the dishwasher function operates , water distribution arm 30 a sprays water in the direction of arrow s ( fig1 ) onto the dishes in chutes 36 a and 36 b when the pot washer function operates , the pot washing water distribution arm 30 c sprays towards the basket 30 to wash pots in basket 30 . the perforate pot washer basket 30 is operatively associated with the pot washer water - distributing arm 30 c , mounted within the support base 14 and movable along a fixed support path of restricted length established by rail 31 , which extends between the side walls of support base 14 and that is located below but laterally offset from being directly below the location of the openings occupied by access covers 20 a and 20 c . the pot washer basket 30 is configured for receiving and holding selected pots , pans and the like in position for being washed by the pot washer water distributing arm 30 c . the table end portions , access cover openings , access covers , dishwasher chutes and pot washer basket are arranged so as to be accessible to the apparatus being used by a single individual sitting on either side of the support base , or by two individuals sitting on opposite sides of the support base and in either case in a manner which permits the legs of any such individual when sitting to be positioned below a selected one of the table end portions 11 as seen in fig6 . referring next to fig1 and 12 and the perforate chutes 36 a and 36 b , it is to be noted that the upper right and left side panels 40 a , 40 b on the supportive right and left sides ( as shown in fig1 ) of support base 14 are oriented angularly to accommodate the shape of perforate chutes 36 a and 36 b , thus maximizing the space available for the knees of the users . chutes 36 a and 36 b provide a mesh housing for dishes and utensils through which water can pass to permit thorough washing ( fig1 ). at the completion of a meal , dishes are placed in dishwashing chutes 36 a and 36 b for washing ( fig1 ). when all dishes are in their respective positions for washing , access covers 20 a and / or 20 c are closed securely . the dishwasher unit is operated to wash dishes that have been placed in chutes 36 a and 36 b . as best shown in fig1 and 12 , the dishwasher chutes 36 a and 36 b assume an angular position for loading and unloading as seen in fig1 . however , when in the washing position , as seen in fig1 , the chutes 36 a and 36 b assume a vertical position . it can also be observed that access doors 20 a and 20 c , through a pivotal connection to the respective chutes 36 a and 36 b , cause the angular position whenever access doors 20 a and 20 c are moved outwardly and permit the respective chutes 36 a and 36 b to assume a vertical position when access covers 20 a and 20 c are moved inwardly as in fig1 . fig1 shows an end view of dining table 10 with integral dishwasher as seen in fig1 , and optional hot water heater point of use 75 , with access doors 61 , 62 , 63 , and 64 closed . the space within table 10 behind doors 61 , 62 , 63 , and 64 also serves as a storage area for pots and pans when not in use . fig1 shows an end view of dining table 10 with integral dishwasher as seen in fig1 , but with access doors 61 , 62 , 63 , and 64 open . also shown in fig1 and 14 are the hot water supply 80 , cold water supply 81 , and waste water line 82 . fig1 and 16 illustrate the operation of the access cover and extension panel support and positioning mechanism through a series of sequential positions . in fig1 , the extension panel 20 b is shown in its low position , connected to access cover 20 a by a hinge 27 , and secured parallel to the underside of access cover 20 a by a gripping means 52 . when extension panel 20 b is extended to the high position ( as in fig1 ), a relatively flat securing mechanism 51 swivels on pivot 53 to the underside of extension panel 20 b , providing support for the dining surface above . also shown in fig1 and 17 are the flange 90 for sliding access cover 20 a in and out of the table 10 and hooks 54 and 55 , which grip the dish washer basket 36 a ( as shown in fig1 and 12 ). an alternative embodiment of access door 20 a and extension panel 20 b in operation with extension panel securing mechanism 78 is shown in fig1 . the securing mechanism 78 is shown rotated along pivot 53 towards a diner , stopped by a downwardly angled catch 79 , supporting the extension panel 20 b in its high position . when the extension panel 20 b is moved to its low position , the securing mechanism 78 is rotated about pivot 53 towards hook 53 . the extension panel 20 b is then moved to its low position about hinge 27 and secured into its low position when hook 76 grips flange 77 . the invention further recognizes that there are a substantial number of single person households . in such a single person situation , eating may most commonly be done at a kitchen counter rather than at a table . the present invention therefore recognizes that the invention apparatus can be built into a counter with a single access cover , a single chute for one - side use , and a pot washer basket mounted so as to travel inwardly and outwardly with respect to only one sidewall . such a one - sided mechanism could similarly be built into a dining table if desired . in summary , it will be seen from the foregoing description that the table - dishwasher apparatus of the invention provides among other features the following two highly unique features : ( 1 ) a table - washer apparatus which permits the items being washed , particularly pots and pans , to be loaded into a basket that can be positioned in one position for loading the items being washed and which position is outward of a selected one of opposite sides of the apparatus and can be positioned in another position between said opposite sides for washing the items thereby permitting a diner sitting on either side to use said apparatus ; and ( 2 ) a table - washer apparatus which permits a diner while sitting on one side of the apparatus to sit below an end portion of the table on which the diner dines and simultaneously have access to washing apparatus particularly suited for pots and pans other dishwashing apparatus as well as having access to one or more storage compartments built into a side of said apparatus . the above detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention is further intended to set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor for carrying out the invention at the time of filing this application and is provided by way of example and not as a limitation . accordingly , various modifications and variations obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to which it pertains are deemed to lie within the scope and spirit of the invention as set forth in the following claims .

0Human Necessities

fig1 - 4 illustrate one version of an in - dwelling port 10 where separation of body spaces may be required on a recurring basis . this in - dwelling port 10 may be used to reinflate the space between the abdominal wall and the organs below ( peritoneal cavity ). the port 10 includes an outer flange 12 and a collapsible insertion portion 14 . the outer flange 12 may have a greater diameter than that of the collapsible insertion portion 14 to stabilize the port in the patient and prevent over - insertion into an incision . a proximal port opening 16 is defined by the flange 12 to allow one or more lumens or medical devices access into the collapsible insertion portion 14 . a distal port opening 18 is positioned at the end of the collapsible insertion portion 14 and permits access to the body cavity . a replaceable plug 20 is removably insertable into the proximal port opening to prevent an infection or other foreign substances to enter the body when the in - dwelling port 10 is not in use . the plug 20 may be attached to the outer flange 12 by a tether 22 . the tether may be formed from the same piece of material as the outer flange , or it may be a separate material attached to the outer flange 14 . the plug may be a compression - style plug that is elastic enough to fill the proximal port opening 16 when pressed in place . alternatively , the plug 20 may be a discrete component unattached by a tether . any of a number of other fastening means , such as threaded ends , collapsible detents or other mechanisms may also be used to connect the plug and the proximal port opening . the outer flange may include recessed regions 24 on one or more sides . the recessed regions may be sized to provide an anchor for sutures , adhesives or other devices for holding the in - dwelling port in place on the body . the outer flange may also be held in place by having an optional adhesive surface to keep it against the skin . the adhesive surface may be islands of adhesive positioned about the underside of the flange . alternatively , to provide a more complete seal and to help prevent deterioration of the tissue through which the in - dwelling port is inserted , a continuous ring of adhesive or adhesive material may be positioned on the underside of the flange to prevent tearing and strengthen the integrity of the tissue surface . thus , the in - dwelling port 10 may be affixed in a number of ways , individually or collectively , by suturing the recessed regions of the flange , adhering the underside of the flange to the outer tissue surface , and even covering the flange with an adhesive bandage ( regular and medicated ) to help keep it in place and to further help resist infection . the collapsible insertion portion 14 of the in - dwelling port 10 may be fabricated in any manner that permits it to collapse when not in use , for example in the form of a bellows or accordion - like structure . once past the abdominal wall or other body structure , it can gently collapse back to an almost flat shape . the flat shape may assist in reducing irritation and trauma , as well as provide very little restriction to normal body motion and limited visibility of its presence . a feature of the bellows structure of the collapsible insertion portion is that it will present a reduced diameter when elongated and may more easily go through a relatively small incision or wound site , or even a natural body passage way . once in place , the structure will allow the collapsible insertion portion to collapse into a larger diameter so as not to work itself out of the incision , wound , or body passage . referring to fig4 , the collapsed state of the in - dwelling port expands the bellows portion to hold , for example , the abdomen wall between the flange 12 and the collapsible insertion portion 14 for a secure and low - profile point of re - entry . referring to fig5 , a stylus 26 is designed to fit in the collapsible insertion portion 14 via the proximal port opening 16 and extend the in - dwelling port 10 to its smallest diameter for insertion into an incision . if , for example , the in - dwelling port was intended for insertion into an abdomen wall , the stylus would first be inserted into the proximal port , extending the collapsible insertion portion and thus reducing its diameter . the distal port opening 18 may be provided with a smaller diameter than the proximal port opening 16 so that the stylus 26 remains in the collapsible insertion portion during insertion . a physician may then push the in - dwelling port into position from outside the abdomen wall and into the peritoneum , for example via a trocar wound ( not shown ). once inserted , and optionally secured at the flange to the abdomen , the stylus 26 would typically be removed and one or more lumens may be introduced and later reintroduced , through the in - dwelling port . the in - dwelling port 10 may allow for the insertion of medical devices after placement by maintaining one or more access lumens to pass a medical device through it such as a catheter , or a small needle or trocar , an optical endoscope , an operative instrument or any number of surgical , diagnostic , or palliative devices . when all lumens in the port 10 are removed and the port is not in use , the collapsible insertion portion will collapse down and allow the abdomen wall to collapse to a more relaxed position that may be substantially close to its pre - insertion shape . the plug 20 may then be inserted to provide a barrier to contaminants . having a way to allow the separation ( or re - separation ) of the abdominal wall or cavity from the organs below for purposes of examination , application of medicines , or even operative tasks is desirable and is usually accomplished by insufflation of the peritoneal space . because the port is intended for access to the bodily space for the purpose of re - expanding the separation of one layer or body structure from another the port also permits the body structure to return to its substantially normal ( collapsed ) position . an alternative embodiment of the in - dwelling port 30 is shown in fig6 - 7 . in this arrangement , a re - sealable membrane 32 is positioned across the proximal port opening 34 . a needle or other sharp - ended introducing device may be used to pierce the membrane 32 or surface and introduce a lumen or instrument through the membrane and subsequently into the body via the distal port opening 36 . the membrane would reseal itself after removal . this pierceable membrane or cover may be manufactured from any of a number of materials , for example polysoprene , isoprene or silicone . in an alternative embodiment , the in - dwelling port may have a second proximal port opening that could be connected to a filter in order to release pressure from an expanded space , for example the peritoneum during a laparoscopic procedure , without permitting organisms to be released into the air . in an alternative embodiment shown in fig8 - 9 , the in - dwelling port 40 may have a tear - away seam 44 disposed along the entire length of the port . the seam 44 may traverse the flange 42 and the collapsible insertion portion 45 to form a continuous line of perforations from the proximal port opening 46 to the distal port opening 48 . in one embodiment , the seam 44 may be a line of perforations extending longitudinally down the device from proximal 46 to distal 28 port opening , multiple parallel lines of perforations to allow for tearing the indwelling port from one or more sides of the flange 42 , or any desired pattern of perforations to allow segmented destruction and removal of the indwelling port . in alternative embodiments , the lines of perforations may be other types of weakened seams defining a continuous line of weakened or reduced thickness material that permit for a substantially clean tear when a user desires to remove the in - dwelling port . one advantage of an in - dwelling port as shown in fig8 - 9 with a tear - away seam is that a new in - dwelling port may be inserted into an old indwelling port already positioned in a body and the old port could be removed by splitting and pulling out the old port . alternatively , the old port could pulled into a sleeve device and removed , the sleeve serving to keep the space open to place a new port in place of the old port , or even a tool or a finger could be pushed along side the old port while a new port is positioned next to the tool or finger , and inserted . the in - dwelling ports in fig1 - 9 are shown with one lumen through the center . in other implementations , two or more lumens may be fabricated so that more than instrument could be inserted into it , or one lumen could be attached to a pressure source such as an insufflator and the other to a suction source , or a commercially available pressure relief device ( such as manufactured by smart products ), or a mini - endoscope may be inserted into one lumen an and instrument or catheter or some other operative device may be inserted into another . the device is not limited to a single useful lumen , and multiple lumens could be utilized with many other medical devices seeking entry into the body space . other uses for the lumen ( s ) may include applications requiring the insertion of a fluid catheter , the use of an aerosolization or nebulizing device for the purpose of coating or treating organ cavity . as shown in fig1 - 12 , an in - dwelling port 50 may be constructed with two proximal openings 52 that each lead to a respective half of the interior of a single collapsible insertion portion 62 . each proximal opening 52 may have its own removable plug 54 attached to the flange 64 by respective tethers 56 . a collapsible partition 60 extending through the interior of the area enclosed by the collapsible insertion portion 62 defines two separate access paths 66 terminating at respective distal openings 58 . although the access paths 66 are shown as equal in size in fig1 - 12 , access paths of unequal size or more than two paths in the single collapsible portion 62 are contemplated as well . fig1 and 14 illustrate another version of an in - dwelling port 70 for allowing access for multiple devices such as noted above . in the version of fig1 - 14 , two completely separate collapsible insertion portions 72 are formed in a single flange member 74 . each collapsible portion has its own proximal and distal opening 76 , 78 , where the proximal openings 76 may have a greater radius than the distal openings 78 or may be covered with a membrane suitable for piercing by a needle or other sharp instrument . additionally , one or both collapsible portions may be partitioned internally as shown in fig1 - 12 to provide separate access for even more devices or instruments into a body cavity . although the example of in - dwelling ports described above include collapsible insertion portions , shown as bellows , that are expandable into a body cavity , there may be a need to insure that the collapsible insertion portion or bellows of the device stays up to the distal surface ( i . e . the interior surface ) of the tissue or organ into which the device is inserted . fig1 - 16 illustrate an implementation of an in - dwelling port 80 that allows for the collapsible insertion portion 82 to remain secure , and prevent it from “ relaxing ” or loosening and becoming partially extended in the bodily cavity . this is accomplished by having one or more threads or tethers 84 attached to the distal portion of the insertion portion , which can be used to draw - up or retract the collapsible insertion portion 82 , either through holes 86 in the top flange 88 , or along the outside of the collapsible insertion portion 82 and the outside ( s ) of the top flange to be secured by some means such as tying , suturing , taping or any other method of securing the tether ( s ) 84 in such a way as to keep the collapsible insertion portion 82 collapsed , or loosening them to allow the collapsible insertion portion 82 to be expanded . the tethers 84 can be constructed of the same material as the in - dwelling port 80 , from thread , or from any other flexible thin material . it could be accomplished with one or more such tethers 84 . the tethers 84 can be attached to the collapsible insertion portion 82 in the molding process , by heat sealing ( melting ), tying , gluing , or any other method of attaching the tethers to the collapsible insertion portion of the device . in yet additional alternative embodiments , where additional rigidity of the collapsible insertion portion may be desired , a stylus such as shown in fig5 may include a central bore through which instruments or lumens may be inserted . such a modified stylus may remain in the indwelling port during a procedure and removed to allow the in - dwelling port to collapse when not in use any of the in - dwelling port versions described above may be coated or impregnated with antibacterial and or antimicrobial medications to prevent infection from occurring during its time in place . such a coating for example could consist of , but is not limited to , rifamacin , rifampin , minocycline , silver sulfadiazine , or bardex r ic . the in - dwelling port may be constructed of a resilient material that has the ability to reform its shape or accept a “ retracted ” shape after it is in place . suitable materials include , but are not limited to , silicone , rubber , latex , nylon , and fabric like materials . although any number of in - dwelling port sizes and dimensions are contemplated , and may vary depending on intended use , the example shown in fig2 may have a flange major axis length a of 1 . 75 inches , a flange minor axis length b of 0 . 875 inches , and a tether length c of 0 . 875 inches . the proximal port opening diameter may be 0 . 196 inches and the distal port opening may be 0 . 112 inches . accordingly , the stylus used to insert this specific version of the in - dwelling port would need to have a minimum diameter of greater than 0 . 112 inches and a maximum diameter of less than 0 . 196 inches . referring again to fig3 and 4 , the collapsible insertion portion in this example may have a collapsed depth g of 0 . 375 inches and a maximum extended depth f of 5 . 0 inches for a greater than 5 to 1 ratio . the extended diameter h of the collapsible insertion portion is preferably less than the collapsed diameter i , however the ratio may vary depending on , for example , the number and length of the folds that form the bellows or accordion - like structure of the collapsible insertion portion . it is therefore intended that the foregoing detailed description be regarded as illustrative rather than limiting , and that it be understood that it is the following claims , including all equivalents , that are intended to define the spirit and scope of this invention .

0Human Necessities

as shown in fig1 , the implemented pipeline exhaust fan includes housing 1 and the four following main parts placed on housing 1 : panel module b placed on the end face of housing 1 , motor module c placed in housing 1 , light source module a placed between panel module b and motor module c , and exhaust assembly connected with vent - pipe and placed on outer side of housing 1 . as shown in fig1 and fig5 through 8 , this example indicates that panel module b of the exhaust fan consists of panel strut member 19 , panel garnish member 24 , panel main body 23 , four panel connection members 25 , bolt 21 , bush 22 and garnish cover 26 . both panel garnish member 24 and panel strut member 19 are of hollow structure with frames . panel strut member 19 uses bolts and nuts to connect with both housing 1 and motor module c to form one entity . panel strut member 19 has four corners where keyholes 191 are made with slots and round apertures and aligned in identical direction . connection member 25 is of cylinder shape , one end of which contains internal thread 252 , wherein bolt 21 is to go through bush 22 to connect with internal thread 252 , thereby consolidating panel garnish member 24 and panel main body 23 into one entity as shown in fig8 . in this setting the design of bush 22 is primarily to offset the limitation in processing art on panel main body 23 using glass and ceramic materials , as it is difficult to drill holes in glassware with high precision ; therefore one may opt to use plastic materials to make bush 22 to be capped by garnish cover 26 . as shown in fig6 , on the other axial end of connection member 25 is located shoulder 251 , to be commeasurable with keyholes : on the same axis whereupon shoulder 251 is , location steps 253 and 254 reside between shoulder 251 and screw thread 252 ; the distance between location step 253 and shoulder 251 is equal to or slightly larger than thickness of panel strut member 19 near keyhole 191 , whereas the radial size of location step 253 is bigger than the diameter of the round aperture of keyhole 191 . location step 254 functions primarily to define the axial position of connection member 25 on panel garnish member 24 . in installation one should insert connection member &# 39 ; s 25 shoulder 251 through the round aperture of keyhole 191 , and then move horizontally along slot to snap connection member 25 at keyhole 191 slot . this structural design is especially adaptive to such panel main body as made of glass or ceramics , because the greater weight of the latter would rule out the kind of snap device as used by panel main body 23 made of plastic materials to achieve quick and easy positioning . therefore , by adopting above connection method , it is much easier and faster to attach such panel main body as made of glass or ceramics to housing 1 so as to form one entity . moreover , on the back of panel strut member 19 near keyhole &# 39 ; s 191 round aperture , there is a check block 192 with the same arc as round aperture , whose main function is to ensure that , as he moves panel main body 23 horizontally until shoulder 251 touches check block 192 , the operator may pull off panel main body 23 along the axial line of round aperture without having to align precisely to the center of round aperture . meanwhile , location steps 253 and 254 of connection member 25 would always provide certain space between panel main body 23 , panel garnish member 24 and panel strut member 19 , thereby enabling strip lamp 17 to dissipate heat ; moreover , since location step 253 has an axial size greater than that of round aperture , its installation may have some ornamental effect by being able to cover keyhole 191 . as shown in fig1 , motor module c comprises primarily of volute 8 , vane wheel 7 , cover plate 9 and motor 5 . motor 5 and cover plate 9 are fixed together , whereupon vane wheel 7 is fixed to motor shaft , whereas cover plate 9 and volute 8 are fixed together ; capacitor is fixed in capacitance box 10 which is molded together with volute 8 as one entity ; both l line and ground line of motor 5 connect to male socket connector 6 jacket , thereby making motor module c an independent entity capable of connecting to external power source through male socket connector 6 and female socket connector 2 . if capacitor needs repair or replacement , one can take out motor module c as an independent entity from housing 1 . also , sponge layer is adhered to the bottom of volute 8 ( the drawing does not show this ), which will then adhere to the bottom of housing 1 wherein volute 8 is installed , thereby reducing vibration and noise of exhaust fan in operation . as shown in fig1 through 4 , this example of present invention indicates that light source module a includes lamp socket 16 , lamp cap swivel gantry 15 and reflective cover 14 for connecting energy - saving lamp 17 which is to snap into lamp socket 16 . lamp cap swivel gantry 15 is composed of mounting plate 151 and safely apron 152 placed upon mounting plate 151 to form l shape , whereupon joint plate 153 is located on both sides of lamp cap swivel gantry 15 so that reflective cover 14 should clip onto clip - on connecting aperture 156 . lamp socket 16 is bolt - fixed onto mounting plate 151 of lamp cap swivel gantry 15 , whereas lamp cap swivel gantry 15 and reflective cover 14 clip onto each other through connecting shaft 11 of clip - on connecting aperture 156 . since reflective cover 14 is equipped with check block 143 at the bottom , lamp socket 16 can only turn in certain angles . since lamp cap swivel gantry 15 adopts clip - on structure with free swivel , hook 154 is placed on inner side of safety apron 152 of lamp cap swivel gantry 15 along with a corresponding snap 142 positioned on reflective cover 154 , thereby ensuring that , after energy - saving lamp 17 is installed , the strip lamp would lock into u - shape groove of reflective cover . to change energy - saving lamp 17 , one may cause hook 154 to detach from snap 142 , thereby enabling energy - saving lamp 17 and lamp socket 16 to turn together with lamp cap swivel gantry 15 to such angle so that one can conveniently take out strip lamp without bumping into a sealing plate 141 on the end face of the reflective cover 14 nor risking broken strip lamp that may harm the operator . moreover , by turning strip lamp 17 to a point , the operator may be given needed space between strip lamp 17 and reflective cover 14 so as to reach into reflective cover 14 to take on and off strip lamp by hand - grasping it . as shown in fig8 through 11 , the present example indicates that exhaust assembly consists of exhaust assembly 3 , two pieces of stopping flake 4 , axis of rotation 31 and one or two pieces of torsion spring 32 . exhaust assembly 3 is , on one end , bolt - fixed to the side of housing 1 while it is , on the other end , connected with vent - pipe . the two pieces of half - circled stopping flake 4 and torsion spring 32 are installed on connecting shaft 31 , whose two ends are , in turn , fixed onto the two pieces of stopping flake respectively . during the operation of exhaust fan , air flow will so overcome the elasticity of torsion spring 32 as to push open stopping flake 4 to go out through vent - pipe , but once exhaust fan stops working , the two pieces of stopping flake 4 will return to their original position by torsion spring 32 to close the exit door of exhaust assembly 3 . because of the lower elasticity of torsion spring , the friction against air flow is minimal . to install exhaust fan , one should first install exhaust assembly onto housing 1 which is fixed on a wood piece , and then he should fix motor module c and panel strut member 19 onto housing 1 ; next one should install light source module a on cover plate 9 of motor module c ; and lastly he should install panel module b by connecting connection member 25 with panel strut member 19 inside keyhole 191 . preferred embodiment 2 differs from example 1 in flexible connection fitting of panel module b . example 1 can apply to panels made of both light and heavier materials such as ceramics and glass , whereas example 2 employs flexible connection fitting which applies primarily to panels made of light materials such as plastics . as shown in fig1 through 14 , example 2 indicates that panel module b includes panel 20 composed of panel frame and transparent plate , spring suppress piece 12 , garter spring 18 and set screw . garter spring 18 has two jaws 181 spreading outward in arc , whereas spring suppress piece 12 has one end exerted into round aperture of garter spring 18 to be fixed onto panel frame of panel 20 by set screw . upon volute 8 of motor module where lies garter spring 18 , there is a mounting base 83 with two long grooves 84 that are symmetrically placed and perpendicular to the end face of volute 8 ; the installation of volute 8 should ensure the top of long groove 84 to be higher than the opening end face of housing 1 whereas the two jaws 181 of garter spring 18 lock into long grooves 84 . since installed garter spring 18 ensures long groove 84 to be higher than the end face of housing 1 , the operator may , while installing panel 20 , see the position of long groove 84 to align it with much easy ; moreover , since the two jaws 181 of garter spring 18 bend with an arc , once garter spring 18 lock into long groove 84 , panel 19 would automatically usher into its designated and installed position .

5Mechanical Engineering; Lightning; Heating; Weapons; Blasting

an example embodiment is described in detail herein with reference to the accompanying drawings , like reference numerals being used for like corresponding parts in the various drawings . in fig1 , a side of an image reading apparatus 1 on which a discharge opening 13 is disposed may be defined as the front side of the image reading apparatus 1 . a side of the image reading apparatus 1 that is placed on the left when viewed from the side facing the discharge opening 13 may be defined as the left side of the image reading apparatus 1 . to facilitate understanding of the orientation and relationship of the various elements disclosed herein , the front , rear , left , right , up , and down of the image reading apparatus 1 may be determined with reference to axes of the three - dimensional cartesian coordinate system included in each of the relevant drawings . as depicted in fig1 - 8 , the image reading apparatus 1 may comprise a housing 30 and a sheet tray 36 . the housing 30 may comprise a first chute member 31 , a second chute member 32 , and a pair of left and right side frames 33 l and 33 r that may be combined . left and right side frames 33 l and 33 r may be spaced apart in the left and right direction . the upper end of each of the left and right side frames 33 l and 33 r may be connected to each of the left and right ends of the first chute member 31 , respectively . the lower end of each of the left and right side frames 33 l and 33 r may be connected to each of the left and right ends of the second chute member 32 , respectively . the first chute member 31 disposed on the upper side of the image reading apparatus 1 and the second chute member 32 disposed on the lower side of the image reading apparatus 1 may oppose one another in a vertical direction , e . g ., an up - down direction , with a distance therebetween . the first chute member 31 and the second chute member 32 may be interposed between the left and right side frames 33 l and 33 r . as depicted in fig1 and 5 - 7 , the first chute member 31 may comprise an upper surface 31 a , a front surface 31 b , and an upper guide surface 31 g . the upper surface 31 a may comprise a flat surface facing upward . the upper surface 31 a may slantingly extend forwardly and downwardly from its rear side in a slanted manner . a touch panel 70 may be disposed at a central portion of the upper surface 31 a . the front surface 31 b may comprise a flat surface facing forward . the front surface 31 b may extend vertically downward from the front end of the upper surface 31 a to a lower end 31 ba . as depicted in fig5 - 7 , the upper guide surface 31 g may comprise a curved surface disposed on a rear portion thereof and a flat surface disposed on a front portion thereof . the curved surface , e . g ., an inclined portion , of the upper guide surface 31 g may extend forwardly and downwardly from a rear end 31 ga thereof , e . g ., the rear end of the lower side of the upper surface 31 a , in a slanted manner . the flat surface , e . g ., a horizontal portion , of the upper guide surface 31 g may extend forwardly from a central portion of the first chute member 31 in the front - rear direction to the lower end 31 ba of the front surface 31 b . in one example , the first chute member 31 may extend forwardly and downwardly from its rear side in a slanted manner . as depicted in fig1 , 2 and fig5 - 7 , the second chute member 32 may comprise a front surface 32 b , a lower guide surface 32 g and a rear surface 32 c . the front surface 32 b may comprise a flat surface facing forward . the front surface 32 b may comprise an upper end 32 ba . the upper end 32 ba may be positioned below the lower end 31 ba of the front surface 31 b with a distance therebetween . the front surface 32 b may extend vertically downward from the upper end 32 ba . as depicted in fig5 - 7 , the lower guide surface 32 g may comprise a curved surface disposed on a rear portion thereof . the curved surface , e . g ., an inclined portion , of the lower guide surface 32 g may extend forward and downward from a rear end 32 ga thereof , e . g ., the upper end of the rear surface 32 c , in a slanted manner along the inclined portion of the upper guide surface 31 g . a horizontal portion of the lower guide surface 32 g may extend forward from a central portion of the second chute member 32 in the front - rear direction to the upper end 32 ba of the front surface 32 b . the rear surface 32 c may comprise a flat surface facing rearward . the rear surface 32 c may extend downward from its upper end in a generally vertical direction . as depicted in fig6 and 8 , the second chute member 32 may comprise a lower card guide surface 32 j and an upper card guide surface 32 h . the lower card guide surface 32 j may extend horizontally rearward to the rear surface 32 c from a right end in fig6 , e . g ., the rear end , of the horizontal portion of the lower guide surface 32 g . the upper card guide surface 32 h may be positioned above the lower card guide surface 32 j with a distance therebetween . the upper card guide surface 32 h may extend horizontally rearward from the right end in fig6 , e . g ., the rear end , of the horizontal portion of the upper guide surface 31 g to the rear surface 32 c in parallel with the lower card guide surface 32 j . as depicted in fig6 , the height or level of the upper card guide surface 32 h in the vertical direction may be the same as the height or level of the horizontal portion of the upper guide surface 31 g in the vertical direction . the upper guide surface 31 g , the lower guide surface 32 g , the upper card guide surface 32 h , and the lower card guide surface 32 j might not be limited to a smooth continuous surface , but may be constituted by , for example , tips of ribs or protrusions . as depicted in fig4 and 6 , a junction j1 may be disposed at a position where the lower card guide surface 32 j may extend to the right end in fig6 , e . g ., the rear end , of the horizontal portion of the lower guide surface 32 g . as depicted in fig1 and 5 , the housing 30 may have a first introduction opening 11 and a discharge opening 13 . one or more sheets sh may be inserted into the first introduction opening 11 . the sheet sh may comprise , for example , a sheet of paper or an overhead projector ( ohp ) sheet . the sheet sh may be an example of a medium . in one example , as depicted in fig5 , the first introduction opening 11 may be defined between the first chute member 31 and the second chute member 32 . the first introduction opening 11 may be may be defined by a space between the rear edge 31 ga of the upper guide surface 31 g and the rear edge 32 ga of the lower guide surface 32 g . as depicted in fig1 , the first introduction opening 11 may extend in the left - right direction from a portion near the left side frame 33 l to a portion near the right side frame 33 r . in one example , the length of the first introduction opening 11 in the left - right direction may be longer than the width of the sheet sh . as depicted in fig1 and 5 , the sheet sh may be discharged from the discharge opening 13 . the discharge opening 13 may be defined between the first chute member 31 and the second chute member 32 . for example , the discharge opening 13 may be defined by a space between the lower end 31 ba of the front surface 31 b and the upper end 32 ba of the front surface 32 b . the discharge opening 13 may extend in the left - right direction from a portion near the left side frame 33 l to a portion near the right side frame 33 r . in one example , the length of the discharge opening 13 in the left - right direction may be longer than the width of the sheet sh , similar to the first introduction opening 11 . as depicted in fig4 - 6 , the image reading apparatus 1 may comprise a first guide portion 10 . the first guide portion 10 may comprise the first chute member 31 and the second chute member 32 . the first guide portion 10 may comprise a first conveyance path p1 that may be defined between the upper guide surface 31 g of the first chute member 31 and the lower guide surface 32 g of the second chute member 32 in the vertical direction . the first guide portion 10 may be configured to guide the sheet sh from the first introduction opening 11 to the discharge opening 13 along the first conveyance path p1 . a portion of the first guide portion 10 may extend frontward and downward from the first introduction opening 11 in a slanted manner . one or more other portions of the first guide portion 10 may extend horizontally forward from a central portion of the housing 30 in the front - rear direction to the discharge opening 13 . as depicted in fig7 , the first chute member 31 may be pivotally attached to the housing 30 about a rotation axis x 31 . the rotation axis x 31 may extend in the left - right direction at the lower end 31 ba of the front surface 31 b of the first chute member 31 . as the first chute member 31 pivotally moves to separate from the second chute member 32 in an upward direction , the first guide portion 10 may open . as depicted in fig4 , a portion of the first guide portion 10 on the right side and on the discharge opening 13 side with respect to the junction j1 may correspond to a card conveyance area 29 . as depicted in fig2 and 6 , the housing 30 may have a second introduction opening 12 . a card ca having a width smaller than that of the sheet sh may be inserted into the second introduction opening 12 . the card ca may be a medium having an area smaller than that of the sheet sh . the card ca may be , for example , a business card , an atm card , a membership card , a license card . the card ca may be , for example , a business card , an atm card , a membership card , and a license card . in one example , the length of the shorter side , e . g ., width , and length of the longer side of the card ca may be , for example , 53 . 98 mm and 85 . 60 mm , respectively , of an id - 1 format card whose size is specified by international organization for standardization ( iso )/ international electrotechnical commission ( iec ). the card ca may be thicker and more rigid than the sheet sh . according to one or more arrangements , the second introduction opening 12 may be provided in the second chute member 32 , as depicted in fig6 . the second introduction opening 12 may be disposed at a portion of the rear surface 32 c on the side of the right side frame 33 r . the second introduction opening 12 may extend in the left - right direction . the length of the second introduction opening 12 in the left - right direction may be shorter than the length of the first introduction opening 11 in the left - right direction . in one example , the length of the second introduction opening 12 in the left - right direction may be longer than the width of the card ca , e . g ., 85 . 60 mm . the height of the second introduction opening 12 in the vertical direction may be the same as the height of the horizontal portion of the first guide portion 10 and the discharge opening 13 in the vertical direction . the second introduction opening 12 may be disposed below a right end portion of the first introduction opening 11 in the vertical direction . the left - right direction of the image reading apparatus 1 may be an example of a width direction . in the example embodiment , one end and an opposite end in the width direction may be examples of a right end and a left end , respectively . as depicted in fig3 and 6 , the card ca may be discharged from a right end portion of the discharge opening 13 . for example , the discharge opening 13 may be shared to discharge the sheet sh inserted through the first introduction opening 11 and the card ca inserted through the second introduction opening 12 . as depicted in fig4 , 6 and 8 , the image reading apparatus 1 may comprise a second guide portion 20 . the second guide portion 20 may comprise a second conveyance path p2 that may be defined between the upper card guide surface 32 h of the second chute member 32 and the lower card guide surface 32 j in vertical direction , as depicted in fig6 . the second guide portion 20 may extend frontward from the second introduction opening 12 and may join the first guide portion 10 at the junction j1 . the second guide portion 20 may be configured to guide the card ca inserted through the second introduction opening 12 along the second conveyance path p2 , to the first guide portion 10 . the junction j1 may be disposed between the inclined portion and the horizontal portion of the upper guide surface 31 g . thus , the second guide portion 20 and a right side portion of the first guide portion 10 where the card conveyance area 29 may be disposed , may define a path extending horizontally from the second introduction opening 12 disposed on the rear side of the image reading apparatus 1 to the right end portion of the discharge opening 13 disposed on the front side of the image reading apparatus 1 . the card ca may be guided from the second introduction opening 12 to the right side portion of the discharge opening 13 along the path . as depicted in fig1 , the sheet tray 36 may comprise a base portion 36 a , a central portion 36 b and a tip portion 36 c . the base portion 36 a may be pivotally supported by the side frames 33 l and 33 r about a rotation axis x 36 a extending along the left - right direction . the central portion 36 b may be connected to an end of the base portion 36 a further from the rotation axis x 36 a . the tip portion 36 c may be connected to an end of the central portion 36 b further from the base portion 36 a . the central portion 36 b may have an opening 39 of a rectangular shape at a central portion thereof . when the sheet tray 36 is open as depicted in fig1 and 5 , the base portion 36 a , the central portion 36 b and the tip portion 36 c may extend upward and rearward so as to continue to the inclined portion of the lower guide surface 32 g . when the sheet tray 36 is opened , the first introduction opening 11 may open . one or more sheets sh may be placed on the sheet tray 36 . the sheet tray 36 may comprise a pair of left and right width regulation guides 36 w . the width regulation guides 36 w may be configured to interpose one or more sheets sh placed on the sheet tray 36 therebetween in the left - right direction , to position the sheets sh on the sheet tray 36 with respect to the left - right direction . the sheets sh placed on the sheet tray 36 may be inserted into the first introduction opening 11 and be guided to the discharge opening 13 by the first guide portion 10 . when the sheet tray 36 is closed as depicted in fig2 , 3 and 6 , the base portion 36 a may extend vertically and be flush with the rear surface 32 c of the second chute member 32 . the central portion 36 b may cover the upper surface 31 a of the first chute member 31 from above . the tip portion 36 c may cover the front surface 31 b of the first chute member 31 from the front side of the front surface 31 b . as depicted in fig2 and 3 , the opening 39 may allow the touch panel 70 to be exposed outside the image reading apparatus 1 when the sheet tray 36 is closed . as depicted in fig4 - 6 , the image reading apparatus 1 may comprise a control board 54 , a drive source 40 m , a conveyor 40 and a reader 55 . as depicted in fig5 and 6 , the control board 54 may be disposed at a bottom portion of the second chute member 32 . the control board 54 may be a flat - shaped electronic circuit board comprising a central processing unit ( cpu ), a read - only memory ( rom ), and a random - access memory (“ ram ”). power may be supplied to the control board 54 from a home electric outlet , via an ac adapter and a power supply cord . the control board 54 may be electrically connected to , for example , the drive source 40 m , the reader 55 , and the touch panel 70 . as depicted in fig4 , the drive source 40 m may be disposed in the housing 30 at the left side frame 33 l . the drive source 40 m may comprise a motor and transmission gears . the drive source 40 m may be configured to generate the drive force while the motor is controlled by the control board 54 . as depicted in fig4 - 8 , the conveyor 40 may comprise a separation roller 48 , a drive shaft 48 s , a separation pad 49 , an upstream - side conveyor portion 41 , and a downstream - side conveyor portion 42 . the reader 55 may comprise a first reader 55 a and a second reader 55 b . in the first guide portion 10 , the separation roller 48 and the separation pad 49 may be followed by the upstream - side conveyor portion 41 , the second reader 55 b , the first reader 55 a , and the downstream - side conveyor portion 42 that may be arranged in this order from the upstream side to the downstream side in a conveyance direction . the sheet sh and the card ca may be conveyed in the conveyance direction from the first introduction opening 11 and the second introduction opening 12 , respectively , toward the discharge opening 13 . the separation roller 48 and the separation pad 49 may be disposed on the first introduction opening 11 side with respect to the junction j1 . the upstream - side conveyor portion 41 , the second reader 55 b , the first reader 55 a and the downstream - side conveyor portion 42 may be disposed on the discharge opening 13 side with respect to the junction j1 . as depicted in fig5 and 8 , the separation roller 48 may be rotatably supported in the second chute member 32 . an upper portion of the separation roller 48 may be exposed from the inclined portion of the lower guide surface 32 g toward the first guide portion 10 . as depicted in fig4 and 8 , the separation roller 48 may be disposed at a central portion of the first guide portion 10 in the left - right direction . at least a part of the central portion of the first guide portion 10 in the left - right direction may be disposed on a left side of the card conveyance area 29 . the separation roller 48 may be connected to the drive source 40 m by the drive shaft 48 s . the drive shaft 48 s may be coaxial with the separation roller 48 and extend in the left - right direction . the right end of the drive shaft 48 s may protrude rightward from a right end surface 48 r of the separation roller 48 . the drive shaft 48 s may be rotatably supported by the second chute member 32 . the right end of the drive shaft 48 s may stop or be positioned at the left of the card conveyance area 29 , e . g ., on the left side with respect to the card conveyance area 29 . the drive shaft 48 s may be configured to transmit the drive force from the drive source 40 m to the separation roller 48 . the separation roller 48 may be configured to be driven by the drive source 40 m , via the drive shaft 48 s . the control board 54 may be configured to control the drive source 40 m . as depicted in fig5 , the separation roller 48 may be configured to rotate while making contact with the sheets sh placed on the sheet tray 36 to feed the sheets sh to the first guide portion 10 . as depicted in fig7 , the separation pad 49 may be disposed at the first chute member 31 . as depicted in fig5 , the separation pad 49 may be exposed to the first guide portion 10 in the upper guide surface 31 g . the separation pad 49 may comprise a friction member , e . g ., rubber and elastomer , having a plate shape . the separation pad 49 may be urged by an urging member ( not depicted ) so that the separation pad 49 may be pressed against the separation roller 48 when the first chute member 31 is closed . the separation roller 48 and the separation pad 49 may be configured to separate the sheets sh to be conveyed in the first guide portion 10 one by one while holding the sheets sh therebetween . as depicted in fig4 - 8 , the upstream - side conveyor portion 41 may comprise first conveyance roller pairs 42 a and 42 b and a second conveyance roller pair 41 d . the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a and 42 b and the second conveyance roller pair 41 d may be disposed in the horizontal portions of the upper guide surface 31 g and the lower guide surface 32 g at the same positions in the conveyance direction . each of the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a and 42 b and the second conveyance roller pair 41 d may comprise a drive roller configured to be rotated by the drive source 40 m and a driven roller facing the drive roller in the vertical direction when the first chute member 31 is closed . the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a and 42 b may be disposed outside the card conveyance area 29 in the left - right direction . the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a and 42 b may be configured to rotate while holding or nipping the sheet sh to convey the sheet sh in the first guide portion 10 . the second conveyance roller pair 41 d may be disposed at the card conveyance area 29 . the second conveyance roller pair 41 d may be configured to rotate while holding or nipping the card ca , to convey the card ca at the card conveyance area 29 in the first guide portion 10 . as depicted in fig4 and 6 , the second conveyance roller pair 41 d may be disposed in front of the junction j1 . for example , the junction j1 may be disposed between the separation roller 48 and the second conveyance roller pair 41 d in the front - rear direction . the second reader 55 b may be attached to the second chute member 32 . for example , the second reader 55 b may comprise a contact image sensor (“ cis ”), a cis holder and a contact glass . the upper surface of the second reader 55 b may be exposed to the first guide portion 10 at the horizontal portion of the lower guide surface 32 g . the first reader 55 a may be attached to the first chute member 31 . for example , the first reader 55 a may comprise a contact image sensor (“ cis ”), a cis holder and a contact glass . the lower surface of the first reader 55 a may be exposed to the first guide portion 10 at the horizontal portion of the upper guide surface 31 g . the first reader 55 a may be disposed closer to the discharge opening 13 than the second reader 55 b . in one or more examples , the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b may be disposed across an entire length of the first guide portion 10 . the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b may be disposed opposite to each other in the vertical direction to interpose the first guide portion 10 . with the above - described structure , the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b may be configured to read an image on each side of the sheet sh when the sheet sh is conveyed in the first guide portion 10 . the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b may also be configured to read an image on each side of the card ca when the card ca guided by the second guide portion 20 is conveyed in the card conveyance area 29 . the downstream - side conveyor portion 42 may comprise first conveyance roller pairs 42 a , 42 b , and 42 c and a second conveyance roller pair 42 d . the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a , 42 b , and 42 c and the second conveyance roller pair 42 d may be disposed in the horizontal portions of the upper guide surface 31 g and the lower guide surface 32 g at the same position in the conveyance direction . each of the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a , 42 b , and 42 c and the second conveyance roller pair 42 d may comprise a drive roller configured to be rotated by the drive source 40 m and a driven roller facing the drive roller in the vertical direction when the first chute member 31 is closed . the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a , 42 b , and 42 c may be disposed outside the card conveyance area 29 in the left - right direction . the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a , 42 b , and 42 c may be configured to rotate while holding or nipping the sheet sh being conveyed in the first guide portion 10 , to discharge the sheet sh outside the housing 30 through the discharge opening 13 . the second conveyance roller pair 42 d may be disposed at the card conveyance area 29 . the second conveyance roller pair 42 d may be configured to rotate while holding or nipping the card ca whose image has been read in the card conveyance area 29 , to discharge the card ca outside the housing 30 through the right portion of the discharge opening 13 . as depicted in fig1 and 5 , the touch panel 70 may be attached to an interior of the first chute member 31 on the upper surface 31 a side . the touch panel 70 may be exposed outside the first chute member 31 through a rectangular - shaped touch panel opening 31 h that may be provided in the upper surface 31 a . the touch panel 70 may comprise a liquid crystal display panel , a light source , e . g ., fluorescent lamp or a light - emitting diode ( led ), configured to irradiate the liquid crystal display panel with light from the back side of the liquid crystal display panel , and a contact sensing film attached to a surface of the liquid crystal display panel . the touch panel 70 may be configured to display an operational status of the image reading apparatus 1 , e . g ., a processing status of an image reading operation and errors , and various buttons , e . g ., buttons to start an image reading operation and to make settings , under the control of the control board 54 . the touch panel 70 may be configured to permit an external input . when a button displayed in the touch panel 70 is touched ( e . g ., selected ) to perform an operation or setting corresponding to the button , the touch panel 70 may transmit a signal in response to the touch operation , to the control board 54 . as depicted in fig4 , 5 and 7 , the image reading apparatus 1 may comprise actuators 111 f and 111 r for the sheets sh . as depicted in fig5 , the image reading apparatus 1 may comprise photo - interrupters 112 f and 112 r for the sheets sh . the actuator 111 f and the photo - interrupter 112 f for the sheets sh may be an example of a first detection portion . the actuator 111 r and the photo - interrupter 112 r may be an example of the first detection portion . the actuators 111 f and 111 r may be an example of a first pivot member . the photo - interrupters 112 f and 112 r may be an example of a first sensor . as depicted in fig4 and 5 , the actuator 111 f may be positioned in the first guide portion 10 upstream of the junction j1 in the conveyance direction . the actuator 111 r may be positioned in the first guide portion 10 downstream of the junction j1 in the conveyance direction . as depicted in fig5 and 7 , the actuators 111 f and 111 r may be disposed at the upper side of the first guide portion 10 , e . g ., the upper guide surface 31 g . as depicted in fig5 , the actuator 111 f may be pivotally supported by the first chute member 31 . more specifically , an upper end portion of the actuator 111 f may be pivotally supported by the first chute member 31 about a rotation axis x 111 f extending along the left - right direction . the rotation axis x 111 f may be positioned above the separation roller 48 . the actuator 111 f may extend downward from the rotation axis x 111 f toward the separation roller 48 . as depicted in fig4 and 5 , a lower end portion of the actuator 111 f may be positioned near the right end surface 48 r of the separation roller 48 . for example , the actuator 111 f may be positioned at a generally central portion of the first guide portion 10 in the left - right direction . as depicted in fig5 , a shield portion 113 f , that may protrude forward from the rotation axis x 111 f , may be connected to the actuator 111 f . the shield portion 113 f may be configured to pivotally move in the vertical direction , together with the actuator 111 f . when the sheet sh inserted from the first introduction opening 11 is held or nipped between the separation roller 48 and the separation pad 49 , the actuator 111 f may contact the sheet sh . thus , the actuator 111 f may be pushed by the sheet sh , as depicted by the alternate long and two short dashed line in fig5 , and may pivotally move clockwise ( in the orientation shown in fig5 ) toward the discharge opening 13 . the actuator 111 r may be pivotally supported by the first chute member 31 . for example , an upper end portion of the actuator 111 r may be pivotally supported by the first chute member 31 about a rotation axis x 111 r extending along the left - right direction . the rotation axis x 111 r may be positioned above the first conveyance roller pair 41 a . the actuator 111 r may extend from the rotation axis x 111 r forwardly and bend downwardly toward a lower roller of the first conveyance roller pair 41 a disposed in the second chute member 32 . as depicted in fig4 and 5 , a lower end portion of the actuator 111 r may be positioned near the right end face of the lower roller of the first conveyance roller pair 41 a . the actuator 111 f may be positioned at a generally central portion of the first guide portion 10 in the left - right direction . as depicted in fig5 , a shield portion 113 r , that may protrude forward and upward from the rotation axis x 111 r , may be connected to the actuator 111 r . the shield portion 113 r may be configured to pivotally move in the front - rear direction ( e . g ., counterclockwise direction in the orientation shown in fig5 ), together with the actuator 111 r . when the sheet sh inserted through the first introduction opening 11 is held or nipped by the first conveyance roller pairs 41 a and 41 b , the actuator 111 r may contact the sheet sh . thus , the actuator 111 r may be pushed by the sheet sh , as depicted by the alternate long and two short dashes line in fig5 , to pivotally move toward the discharge opening 13 . the photo - interrupter 112 f may be disposed in the first chute member 31 . the photo - interrupter 112 f may comprise a light - emitting element and a light - receiving element . the photo - interrupter 112 f may be configured to detect whether the actuator 111 f is pivotally moved , based on whether the light - receiving element receives the light emitted from the light - emitting element . more specifically , the photo - interrupter 112 f may detect that the actuator 111 f is not pivotally moved , when the shield portion 113 f blocks the emitted light . the photo - interrupter 112 f may detect that the actuator 111 f is pivotally moved , when the shield portion 113 f moves in a clockwise direction ( e . g ., according to the orientation shown in fig5 ) so as not to block the emitted light . the result of the detection by the photo - interrupter 112 f may be transmitted to the control board 54 . the photo - interrupter 112 r may be disposed in the first chute member 31 . the photo - interrupter 112 r may comprise a light - emitting element and a light - receiving element . the photo - interrupter 112 r may be configured to detect whether the actuator 111 r is pivotally moved , based on whether the light - receiving element receives the light emitted from the light - emitting element . more specifically , the photo - interrupter 112 r may detect that the actuator 111 r is not pivotally moved when the shield portion 113 r blocks the emitted light . the photo - interrupter 112 r may detect that the actuator 111 r is pivotally moved , when the shield portion 113 r moves in a clockwise direction ( e . g ., according to the orientation shown in fig5 ) so as not to block the emitted light . the result of the detection by the photo - interrupter 112 r may be transmitted to the control board 54 . as depicted in fig4 and 6 - 8 , the image reading apparatus 1 may comprise actuators 121 f , 121 r for the card ca . as depicted in fig6 , the image reading apparatus 1 may comprise photo - interrupters 122 f , 122 r for the card ca . the actuator 121 f and the photo - interrupter 122 f may be an example of a second detection portion . the actuator 121 f may be an example of a second pivot member . the photo - interrupter 122 f may be an example of a second sensor . as depicted in fig4 and 6 , the actuator 121 f may be positioned in the second guide portion 20 . the actuator 121 r may be positioned in the first guide portion 10 downstream of the junction j1 in the conveyance direction of the card ca . as depicted in fig4 , the actuator 121 r may be positioned in a right end portion of the first guide portion 10 , e . g ., the card conveyance area 29 in the left - right direction . as depicted in fig6 , the actuator 121 f may be pivotally supported by the second chute member 32 . for example , a lower end portion of the actuator 121 f may be pivotally supported by the second chute member 32 about a rotation axis x 121 f extending along the left - right direction . the rotation axis x 121 f may be positioned below the lower card guide surface 32 j . the actuator 121 f may extend upward from the rotation axis x 121 f , to intersect the second guide portion 20 . a shield portion 123 f that may protrude downward from the rotation axis x 121 f may be provided for the actuator 121 f . the shield portion 123 f may be configured to pivotally move in the vertical direction ( e . g ., rotationally ), together with the actuator 121 f . when the card ca inserted from the second introduction opening 12 passes the second guide portion 20 , the actuator 121 f may contact the card ca . thus , the actuator 121 f may be pushed by the card ca , as depicted by the alternate long and two short dashes line in fig6 , and may pivotally move toward the discharge opening 13 . the actuator 121 r may be pivotally supported by the first chute member 31 . for example , an upper end portion of the actuator 121 r may be pivotally supported by the first chute member 31 about a rotation axis x 121 r extending along the left - right direction . the rotation axis x 121 r may be positioned above the second conveyance roller pair 41 d . the actuator 121 r may extend from the rotation axis x 121 r forwardly and bend downward toward a lower roller of the second conveyance roller pair 41 d disposed in the second chute member 32 . as depicted in fig4 and 6 , a lower end portion of the actuator 121 r may be positioned near the right end face of the lower roller of the second conveyance roller pair 41 d . the actuator 121 r may be positioned closer to the right end of the housing 30 than the actuator 111 r for the sheet sh . as depicted in fig6 , a shield portion 123 r that may protrude forward and upward from the rotation axis x 121 r may be provided for the actuator 121 r . the shield portion 123 r may be configured to pivotally move in the front - rear direction , together with the actuator 121 r . when the card ca inserted through the second introduction opening 12 is held or nipped by the second conveyance roller pair 41 d , the actuator 121 r may contact the card ca . thus , the actuator 121 r may be pushed by the card ca , as depicted by the alternate long and two short dashed line in fig6 , to pivotally move toward the discharge opening 13 . when the sheet sh inserted through the first introduction opening 11 passes the second conveyance roller pair 41 d , the actuator 121 r may contact the sheet sh . thus , the actuator 121 r may be pushed by the sheet sh , as depicted by the alternate long and two short dashed line in fig6 , to pivotally move toward the discharge opening 13 . the photo - interrupter 122 f may be disposed in the second chute member 32 . the photo - interrupter 122 f may comprise a light - emitting element and a light - receiving element . the photo - interrupter 122 f may be configured to detect whether the actuator 121 f is pivotally moved , based on whether the light - receiving element receives the light emitted from the light - emitting element . for example , the photo - interrupter 122 f may detect that the actuator 121 f is not pivotally moved , when the shield portion 123 f blocks the emitted light . the photo - interrupter 122 f may detect that the actuator 121 f is pivotally moved when the shield portion 123 f moves upward , as depicted by the alternate long and two short dashes line in fig6 , so as not to block the emitted light . the detection result of the photo - interrupter 122 f may be transmitted to the control board 54 . the photo - interrupter 122 r may be disposed in the first chute member 31 . the photo - interrupter 122 r may comprise a light - emitting element and a light - receiving element . the photo - interrupter 122 r may be configured to detect whether the actuator 121 r is pivotally moved , based on whether the light - receiving element receives the light emitted from the light - emitting element . more specifically , the photo - interrupter 122 r may detect that the actuator 121 r is not pivotally moved when the shield portion 123 r blocks the emitted light . the photo - interrupter 122 r may detect that the actuator 121 r is pivotally moved when the shield portion 123 r moves rearward , as depicted by the alternate long and two short dashes line in fig6 , so as not to block the emitted light . the result of the detection by the photo - interrupter 122 r may be transmitted to the control board 54 . the image reading apparatus 1 may be configured to read an image on the sheet sh and the card ca . when an image on the sheet sh is read , the sheet tray 36 may be open , as depicted in fig1 and 5 . one or more sheets sh may be placed on the sheet tray 36 . when the control board 54 receives an instruction to read an image on the sheet sh from the touch panel 70 , the control board 54 may refer to the detection result of the photo - interrupter 112 f . when the photo - interrupter 112 f detect that the actuator 111 f is pivotally moved , the control board 54 may determine that at least one sheet sh placed on the sheet tray 36 is held or nipped between the separation roller 48 and the separation pad 49 , and may start the operation of reading an image on the sheet sh . the control board 54 may send an instruction to generate the drive force to the drive source 40 m . in response to the instruction , the separation roller 48 may be first rotated while holding the sheet sh together with the separation pad 49 . the separation roller 48 may introduce the sheet sh placed on the sheet tray 36 through the first introduction opening 11 and feed the sheet sh to the first guide portion 10 . at this time , the sheets sh may be separated one by one due to frictional force between the separation pad 49 and the sheet sh . thereafter , the first conveyance roller pairs 41 a and 41 b of the upstream - side conveyor portion 41 may convey the sheet sh fed by the separation roller 48 in the first guide portion 10 . the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b may be read an image on each side of the sheet sh being conveyed in the first guide portion 10 . at this time , to control the start timing of image reading by the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b , the control board 54 may refer to the detection result of the photo - interrupter 112 r . the control board 54 may determine whether the sheet sh is held or nipped by the first conveyance roller pairs 41 a and 41 b , based on the detection result that the photo - interrupter 112 r detects that the actuator 111 r is pivotally moved . thus , the control board 54 may control the start timing of an image reading by the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b . the first conveyance roller pairs 42 a , 42 b , and 42 c of the downstream - side conveyor portion 42 may discharge the sheet sh whose image has been read , outside the housing 30 through the discharge opening 13 . when an image on the card ca is read , the sheet tray 36 may be closed , as depicted in fig2 , 3 and 6 . when the sheet tray 36 is closed , the card ca may be inserted into the second introduction opening 12 from the rear side of the housing 30 , as depicted in fig2 . thereafter , the card ca may pass through the second guide portion 20 . the leading end of the card ca may reach the card conveyance area 29 . when the control board 54 receives an instruction to read an image on the card ca from the touch panel 70 , the control board 54 may refer to the detection result of the photo - interrupter 122 f . when the photo - interrupter 122 f detects that the actuator 121 f is pivotally moved , the control board 54 may determine that the card ca inserted from the second introduction opening 12 passes the second guide portion 20 , and the leading end of the card ca reaches the card conveyance area 29 . the control board 54 may start the operation of reading an image on the card ca . the control board 54 may be configured to send an instruction to generate the drive force to the drive source 40 m . the second conveyance roller pair 41 d of the upstream - side conveyor portion 41 may convey the card ca in the card conveyance area 29 . the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b may read an image on each side of the card ca being conveyed in the card conveyance area 29 . at this time , to control the start timing of an image reading by the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b , the control board 54 may refer to the detection result of the photo - interrupter 122 r . the control board 54 may determine whether the card ca is held or nipped by the second conveyance roller pair 41 d , based on the detection result that the photo - interrupter 122 r detects that the actuator 121 r is pivotally moved . thus , the control board 54 may control the start timing of image reading by the first reader 55 a and the second reader 55 b . as depicted in fig3 , the second conveyance roller pair 42 d of the downstream - side conveyor portion 42 may discharge the card ca whose image has been read , outside the housing 30 through the discharge opening 13 . in the image reading apparatus 1 , the actuator 111 f and the photo - interrupter 112 f for the sheets sh may be employed as the first detection portion . in the image reading apparatus 1 , the actuator 111 r and the photo - interrupter 112 r may also be employed as the first detection portion . further , in the image reading apparatus 1 , the actuator 121 f and the photo - interrupter 122 f may be employed as the second detection portion . thus , manufacturing costs may be reduced in the image reading apparatus 1 , as compared with a case in which , for example , a reflective optical sensor is employed as the first detection portion and the second detection portion . further , in the image reading apparatus 1 , as depicted in fig4 , the separation roller 48 may be disposed at a central portion of the housing 30 in the left - right direction . the drive shaft 48 s that may be coaxially disposed with the separation roller 48 may be configured to transmit the drive force from the drive source 40 m that may be disposed on the left end portion of the housing 30 , to the separation roller 48 . in the image reading apparatus 1 , an available space may be provided in the right side of the housing 30 because the right end of the drive shaft 48 s may stop or be positioned near the right end surface 48 r of the separation roller 48 . therefore , the second guide portion 20 , the actuator 121 f and the photo - interrupter 122 f may be readily arranged in the available space . consequently , the reduction in the size of the image reading apparatus 1 may be realized . while the disclosure has been described in detail with reference to the specific embodiment thereof , this is merely an example , and various changes , arrangements and modifications may be applied therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure . for example , the first detection portion and the second detection portion may be configured to detect a medium in a noncontact manner , e . g ., optically or sonically . the first detection portion and the second detection portion may comprise a microswitch configured to switch on or off by contacting a medium .

7Electricity

the present invention provides a formulation for the inhibition of estrogen - dependent tumors comprising a 1 , 3 , 6 , 8 - substituted or 2 , 4 , 6 , 8 - substituted alkyl pcdf used in combination with a second compound of the triphenylethylene class . possible substituents include halogens such as bromine , chlorine , fluorine and / or linear or branched substituents such as alkyl groups of about one to about five carbons . the 2 , 4 , 6 or 8 and 1 , 3 , 6 or 8 positions may also be individually and independently occupied by a hydrogen instead of a substituent . suitable alkyl substituents include , but are not limited to , methyl , ethyl , propyl , isopropyl ( i - propyl ), n - butyl , sec - butyl , or tert - butyl groups . the pcdfs used in the present invention are described , for example , in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 516 , 790 , issued to stephen safe on may 14 , 1996 , which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety . the pcdfs may include , but are not limited to , those having the formula : ## str2 ## wherein r 1 , r 3 , r 6 and r 8 or r 2 , r 4 , r 6 and r 8 are individually and independently a hydrogen or a substituent selected from the group consisting of chlorine , fluorine and bromine , and a linear or branched alkyl group of one to four carbons , and wherein the compound has at least one alkyl substituent and at least two halogen substituents ; furthermore , the halogen may be chlorine , the alkyl substituent may be selected from the group consisting of methyl , ethyl and propyl ; r 6 may be an alkyl substituent and r 1 , r 3 , and r 8 may be selected from the group consisting of chlorine , fluorine and bromine ; further still r 8 may be an alkyl substituent and r 1 , r 3 , and r 6 may be selected from the group consisting of chlorine , fluorine and bromine , the alkly substituent may be methyl ; still further r 6 may be an alkyl and r 2 , r 4 , and r 8 may be selected from the group consisting of chlorine , fluorine and bromine ; and , for example , r 8 may be an alkyl substituent and r 2 , r 4 , and r 6 may be selected from the group consisting of chlorine , fluorine and bromine . examples of pcdfs may include , but are not limited to , in one embodiment , pcdfs possessing two lateral substituents (` lateral ` substituents may be on position 2 , 3 , 7 , or 8 of dibenzofuran ) is used in combination with tamoxifen . in a preferred embodiment , 6 - mcdf is used as a representative pcdf in combination with tamoxifen . in another preferred embodiment , 6 - i - propyl - 1 , 3 , 8 - tricdf is used in combination with tamoxifen . in yet another preferred embodiment , 8 - mcdf is used as a representative pcdf in combination with tamoxifen . the pcdf and the triphenylethylene class compounds are combined in a ratio by weight essentially 50 : 1 to 1 : 50 , preferably 25 : 1 to 1 : 25 , and more preferably 10 : 1 to 1 : 10 . most preferred ratios for alkyl pcdf : tamoxifen are 1 : 1 to 1 : 4 to 4 : 1 ( pcdf : tamoxifen ). the present invention also provides a method for the treatment of estrogen - dependent tumors comprising administering to a patient a therapeutically effective amount of a pcdf in combination with a triphenylethylene class compound ( see above ). the pcdf and the triphenylethylene class compounds are administered simultaneously or sequentially . simultaneous administration of the compounds is the preferred method of delivery . in the event of sequential delivery , however , it is preferred that the first administered compound still be bioactive at the time that the second compound is delivered . in one embodiment , both the pcdf and the triphenylethylene class compounds are delivered orally . they may also , for example , be administered intraperotineally . female virgin sprague - dawley rats were obtained from harlan ( houston ) and were allowed to acclimate for 10 days , allowed access to food and water ad libitum , and maintained on a 12 h light / dark schedule . mammary tumors were induced in 50 ± 3 day old - rats by administering a single gavage dose of 20 mg dmba in 0 . 5 ml corn oil . after 30 to 75 days , tumors could be detected by palpitation in the ductal tubes of the mammary glands . multiple tumors often developed on a single rat . when the tumor or the largest of the tumors reached a small size ( 50 - 100 mm 3 ), rats were treated daily by gavage with corn oil alone ( vehicle control ), 0 . 4 mg / kg 6 - mcdf , 0 . 4 mg / kg tamoxifen , or a cotreatment of 0 . 4 mg / kg 6 - mcdf plus 0 . 4 mg / kg tamoxifen for 20 days , and then euthanized on the 21 st day . tumor sizes were measured with calipers , and volumes were calculated by formula ( length × width × depth )/ 6π and are expressed as percent control . one week after their last injection , rats were euthanized by asphyxiation . all tumors were removed , weighed , and sectioned . one portion was frozen in liquid nitrogen for pcr analysis ; one portion was placed in 10 % formalin for histopathological analysis ; and the majority was immediately homogenized for the preparation of microsomal and cytosolic fractions . livers were perfused and weighed , and cytosol and microsomes were prepared as previously described . the results of this study are summarized in table 1 . at doses of 0 . 4 mg / kg / day , both tamoxifen and 6 - mcdf alone significantly inhibited tumor volume ( 58 . 5 and 66 . 4 % inhibition , respectively ). table 1______________________________________ % inhibitiontreatment tumor volume tumor weight______________________________________tamoxifen 58 . 5 * ns decrease 6 - mcdf 66 . 4 * ns decrease tamoxifen / 6 - mcdf 86 . 2 * 78 . 0 * ______________________________________ percent inhibition of tumor volume or tumor weight with tamoxifen alone ( 0 . 4 mg / kg / day ), 6mcdf alone ( 0 . 4 mg / kg / day ), and tamoxifen plus 6mcdf ( each 0 . 4 mg / kg / day ). * p & lt ; 0 . 05 compared to untreated control using anova and duncan &# 39 ; s statistical test for significance . both drugs alone also decreased tumor weight ; however , this inhibitory response was not significant . in contrast , there was a significant 86 . 2 and 78 . 0 % inhibition of both mammary tumor volume and tumor weight in animals cotreated with tamoxifen plus 6 - mcdf . the results illustrated in table 1 clearly show that tumor growth in animals cotreated with both drugs is essentially blocked . moreover , treatment with the compounds alone or in combination did not affect body or organ weights or cause any apparent histopathological changes in these tissues . the induction of cyp1a1 - dependent erod activity by toxic halogenated aromatics such as tcdd is one of the most sensitive indicators of exposure to these compounds and there is an excellent correlation between toxic versus erod induction potencies . alternate - substituted pcdfs are characterized by their low toxicity and low potency as inducers of hepatic erod activity . the results summarized in table 1 show that tamoxifen , 6 - mcdf and tamoxifen plus 6 - mcdf did not induce hapatic erod activity and this is consistent with the low toxicity of 6 - mcdf . these results clearly demonstrate that 6 - mcdf enhances the antitumorigenic activity of tamoxifen in the dmba - induced rat mammary tumor model indicating that combined treatment with tamoxifen plus alkyl pcdfs is a new and more effacious endocrine therapy for treatment of mammary cancer . example 2 , summarized in table 2 and fig1 shows the effects of 6 - mcdf and tamoxifen , alone and in combination in the dmba - induced rat mammary tumor model . methods : exact aged virgin female sprague - dawley rats were dosed on day 55 in the afternoon with 20 mg / rat 7 , 12 - dimethylbenz [ a ] anthacene in a volume of 0 . 5 ml / rat corn oil ( rats weigh approximately 165 g , resulting in 120 mg / kg dmba and 3 ml / kg corn oil ). rats were treated by gavage daily with corn oil ( vehicle ), 0 . 4 mg / kg 6 - mcdf , 0 . 4 mg / kg tamoxifen , or a cotreatment of 0 . 4 mg / kg 6 - mcdf plus 0 . 4 mg / kg tamoxifen for 20 days , and then euthanized on the 21 st day . table 2__________________________________________________________________________effects of 6 - mcdf and tamoxifen , alone and in combination , in the dmba - induced rat mammary tumor model control tamoxifen 6 - mcdf tam ± mcdf__________________________________________________________________________number of 13 13 11 10 animals final tumor 2734 ± 956 1135 ± 587 * 918 ± 305 * 376 ± 111 ** volume ( mm . sup . 3 ) final tumor 100 ± 31 . 5 41 . 5 ± 20 * 33 . 6 ± 11 . 2 * 18 . 8 ± 4 . 1 ** volume (% control ) tumor 3 . 82 ± 1 . 18 2 , 35 ± 1 . 16 1 . 68 ± 0 . 53 0 . 84 ± 0 . 27 * weight ( g ) tumor wt 100 ± 27 . 7 61 . 5 ± 30 . 4 43 . 9 ± 12 . 8 22 . 0 ± 6 . 3 * (% control ) erod 118 ± 40 169 ± 74 140 ± 32 92 ± 21 activity ( pmol / mg / min ) final body 250 ± 5 243 ± 4 247 ± 4 244 ± 4 weight ( g ) liver weight 3 . 13 ± 0 . 12 3 . 64 ± 0 . 18 3 . 49 ± 0 . 16 3 . 32 ± 0 . 19 (% bw ) uterine wt . 0 . 212 ± 0 . 017 0 . 142 ± 0 . 006 * 0 . 230 ± 0 . 037 0 . 146 ± 0 . 10 (% bw ) heart weight 0 . 374 ± 0 . 005 0 . 420 ± 0 . 018 0 . 405 ± 0 . 10 0 . 395 ± 011 (% bw ) spleen wt . 0 . 257 ± . 022 0 . 236 ± 0 . 019 0 . 255 ± 0 . 017 0 . 213 ± 0 . 008 (% bw ) kidney 0 . 349 ± 0 . 007 0 . 386 ± 0 . 012 0 . 361 ± 0 . 016 0 . 397 ± 0 . 027 weight (% bw ) __________________________________________________________________________ * p & lt ; 0 . 05 ** p & lt ; 0 . 01 statistical analysis was done using anova , and significance was determine using the duncan new multiple range test . fig1 shows tumor volume and the effect of treatment on mammary tumors of 0 . 4 mg / kg / day tamoxifen , mcdf , or co - treatment . example 3 shows bone effects of daily doses of tamoxifen and 6 - mcdf in ovariectomized rats . the ovariectomized rat is used as a model for osteoporosis . current studies measure bone histomorphometry ( evans et al . ( 1996 ) or bone mineral density with x - ray abosrptiometry ( ezawa ( 1995 ) as well as bone length , wet weight and dry weight ( takahashi et al . ( 1996 ). in 1987 it was reported that tamoxifen acted as an estrogen agonist in bone tissue of ovariectomized rats ( turner et al . ( 1987 ), although a study indicates that tamoxifen has no effect in cycling rats ( takahashi et al . ( 1996 ). the femurs of rats treated with tamoxifen , mcdf , or tamoxifen + mcdf were analyzed to determine the tissue - specific antiestrogenicity of mcdf . methods : rats were ovariectomized at 97 days of age . after approximately 3 weeks , rats were orally closed for 20 days with corn oil ( vehicle ), 0 . 4 mg / kg / day tamoxifen , 0 . 8 mg / kg / day 6 - mcdf , or cotreatment of 0 . 4 mg / kg tamoxifen plus 0 . 8 mg / kg 6 - mcdf daily . rats were euthanized on day 21 . after uteri were excised and processed , both left and right femurs were excised and the length measured with calipers . because there was no cheap protocol in the literature for loosening all the muscle from the bone , a 4 hour wash with pbs , ph 2 . 0 , was used , and softened the connective tissue without visibly affecting the bone . wet weight was measured after residual connective tissue was stripped away . dry weight was measured after the bones were dried for 12 ours at 130 ° c . table 3__________________________________________________________________________bone effects of daily doses of tamoxifen ( 0 . 4 mg / kg ) and 6 - mcdf ( 0 . 8 mg / kg ) in the ovariectomized sprague - dawley rat control tamoxifen 6 - mcdf tam + mcdf__________________________________________________________________________wet bone 0 . 347 ± 0 . 009 0 . 403 ± 0 . 007 * 0 . 341 ± 0 . 008 0 . 412 ± 0 . 020 * weight (% body weight ) dry bone 0 . 180 ± 0 . 005 0 . 216 ± 0 . 005 * 0 . 183 ± 0 . 003 0 . 235 ± 0 . 010 * weight (% body weight ) bone length 12 . 1 ± 0 . 4 14 . 2 ± 0 . 3 * 12 . 17 ± 0 . 3 15 . 0 ± 0 . 9 * index ( mm / body weight × 100 ) __________________________________________________________________________ values expressed as means ± standard errors . * significantly different ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 ) from control treatment . example 4 shows uterine effects of daily doses of tamoxifen and 6 - mcdf in ovariectomized rats . methods : rats were ovariectomized at 97 days of age , and treatments began at 117 days of age . rats were orally dosed for 20 days with corn oil ( vehicle ), 0 . 4 mg / kg / day tamoxifen , 0 . 4 mg / kg / day 6 - mcdf , or a co - treatment of 0 . 4 mg / kg / day tamoxifen plus 0 . 4 mg / kg / day 6 - mcdf , with 5 rats in each treatment group . rats were euthanized on day 21 . 6 - mcdf caused a slight but significant increase in splenic wet weight . table 4__________________________________________________________________________uterine effects of daily doses of tamoxifen ( 0 . 4 mg / kg ) and 6 - mcdf ( 0 . 4 mg / kg ) in the ovariectomized sprague - dawley rate control tamoxifen mcdf tam + mcdf__________________________________________________________________________uterine wet 0 . 045 ± 0 . 002 0 . 085 ± 0 . 004 * 0 . 060 ± 0 . 006 0 . 078 ± 0 . 004 * weight (% body wt ) uterine wet 0 . 131 ± 0 . 006 0 . 211 ± 0 . 011 * 0 . 180 ± 0 . 019 * 0 . 195 ± 0 . 012 * weight ( g ) uterine 1 . 00 ± 0 . 06 17 . 5 ± 0 . 60 ** 1 . 05 ± 0 . 02 11 . 48 ± 0 . 24 ** peroxidase assay ( abs / mg protein ) ( fold increase over control ) uterine 1 . 00 ± 0 . 06 28 . 41 ± 0 . 73 ** 1 . 56 ± 0 . 03 22 . 06 ± 0 . 46 ** peroxidase assay ( abs / uterus ) ( fold increase over control ) uterine 1 . 00 ± 0 . 06 17 . 7 ± 0 . 45 ** 1 . 14 ± 0 . 02 14 . 84 ± 0 . 31 ** peroxidase assay ( abs / g uterus ) fold increase over control ) uterine 308 ± 142 674 ± 52 * 338 ± 31 677 ± 108 * cytosolic pr levels ( fmol / mg protein ) uterine 1100 ± 508 4501 ± 350 * 1925 ± 177 3685 ± 122 * cytosolic pr levels ( fmol / uterus ) uterine 8368 ± 3868 21301 ± 1655 * 10693 ± 986 18863 ± 625 * cytosolic pr levels ( fmol / g uterus ) __________________________________________________________________________ * significantly different ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 ) from control . ** significantly different ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 ) from control . example 5 shows the effect on body and organ weight of treatment with tamoxifen , mcdf , and co - treatment . methods : the procedure for preparing the dosing solutions is as follows : mcdf requires gentle heating to dissolve , and tamoxifen requires that it be dissolved in ethanol ( 5 % of final volume ) which is then added to corn oil . the ethanol is evaporated off with a gentle stream of air . first , the corn oil for the tamoxifen dose was heated in a boiling water bath , and allowed to cool . then , mcdf for both mcdf alone and tam ± mcdf was weighed and dissolved in appropriate amounts of corn oil with heating . for the control vehicle and the mcdf vehicle ethanol was added ( 5 % v / v ) and then evaporated away . tamoxifen for both the tamoxifen treatment and the tam ± mcdf was dissolved in ethanol . an aliquot from each was then added to the appropriate corn oil vehicle ( the preheated corn oil for tamoxifen , and the corn oil containing mcdf for tam + mcdf ), and the ethanol was evaporated away . table 5__________________________________________________________________________effect of treatment on body and organ weights control tamoxifen mcdf tam + mcdf__________________________________________________________________________rat weight at start 273 . 1 ± 8 . 1 275 . 7 ± 7 . 6 274 . 7 ± 7 . 0 278 . 3 ± 7 . 1 of treatments ( g ) rat weight prior 293 . 2 ± 10 . 9 249 . 8 ± 7 . 6 * 298 . 3 ± 5 . 0 250 . 0 ± 4 . 5 * to euthanasia ( g ) spleen wet 0 . 247 ± 0 . 007 0 . 252 ± . 008 0 . 298 ± 0 . 015 * 0 . 253 ± 0 . 005 weight (% body wt ) spleen wet 0 . 72o ± 0 . 012 0 . 631 ± 0 . 037 0 . 887 ± 0 . 043 * 0 . 632 ± 0 . 011 weight ( g ) liver weight (% 4 . 06 ± 0 . 23 4 . 26 ± 0 . 26 4 . 37 ± 0 . 26 4 . 03 ± 0 . 09 body wt ) liver weight ( g ) 11 . 88 ± 0 . 78 10 . 70 ± 0 . 92 13 . 04 ± 0 . 87 10 . 06 ± 0 . 24 heart weight (% 0 . 319 ± 0 . 006 0 . 346 ± 0 . 005 0 . 344 ± 0 . 014 0 . 354 ± 0 . 012 body wt ) heart weight ( g ) 0 . 935 ± 0 . 039 0 . 864 ± 0 . 031 1 . 024 ± 0 . 037 0 . 863 ± 0 . 013 kidney weight (% 0 . 318 ± 0 . 010 0 . 334 ± 0 . 008 0 . 332 ± . 004 0 . 323 ± 0 . 005 body wt ) kidney weight ( g ) 0 . 933 ± 0 . 038 0 . 837 ± 0 . 045 0 . 991 ± 0 . 026 0 . 807 ± 0 . 016__________________________________________________________________________ example 6 ( tables 6 and 7 and fig2 and 3 ) show uterine effects of daily doses of tamoxifen and 6 - mcdf in ovariectomized rats . for table 6 and fig2 rats were ovariectomized at 97 days of age . after approximately 3 weeks , rats were orally dosed for 20 days with corn oil ( vehicle ), 0 . 4 mg / kg / day tamoxifen , 0 . 8 mg / kg / day 6 - mcdf , or a cotreatment of 0 . 4 mg / kg tamoxifen plus 0 . 8 mg / kg 6 - mcdf daily . rats were euthanized on day 21 . table 6__________________________________________________________________________uterine effects of daily doses of tamoxifen ( 0 . 4 mg / kg ) and 6 - mcdf ( 0 . 8 mg / kg ) in the ovariectomized sprague - dawley rat effects of treatment on uterine assaysassay control tamoxifen 6 - mcdf tam + mcdf__________________________________________________________________________ # rats / treatment group 4 5 5 6 uterine wet weight ( g ) 0 . 171 ± 0 . 15 0 . 208 ± 0 . 009 * 0 . 131 ± 0 . 004 *† 0 . 197 ± 0 . 009 uterine wet weight 0 . 0583 ± 0 . 0055 0 . 0857 ± 0 . 0036 * 0 . 0454 ± 0 . 018 ±† 0 . 0848 ± 0 . 0062 * (% body weight ) uterine peroxidase 1 . 00 ± 0 . 01 26 . 76 ± 0 . 22 * 0 . 99 ± 0 . 01 . dagger . 20 . 87 ± 0 . 36 * activity ( absorbance / mg protein )( fold increase over control ) uterine peroxidase 1 . 00 ± 0 . 01 38 . 66 ± 0 . 32 * 0 . 57 ± 0 . 01 *. dagge r . 19 . 55 ± 0 . 33 *† activity ( absorbance / uterus ) ( fold increase over control ) uterine peroxidase 1 . 00 ± 0 . 01 31 . 94 ± 0 . 26 * 0 . 88 ± 0 . 01 * 19 . 69 ± 0 . 34 *† activity ( absorbance / g uterus ) ( fold increase over control ) uterine progesterone 198 ± 15 790 ± 21 * 152 . 9 ± 35 † 375 ± 61 *† receptor ( fmol / mg protein ) uterine progesterone 765 ± 69 9062 ± 244 * 441 . 5 ± 100 † 1875 ± 306 *† receptor ( fmol / uterus ) uterine progesterone 4462 ± 343 43666 ± 1175 * 3985 ± 907 . dagger . 11403 ± 1852 *† receptor ( fmol / g uterus ) __________________________________________________________________________ values expressed as means ± standard deviations . + significantly different ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 ) from control treatment . † significantly different ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 ) from tamoxifen treatment . fig2 a , 2b and 2c show uterine peroxidase activity ( nuclear extracts ) with treatment with tamoxifen , mcdf and co - treatment . for table 7 and fig3 and 3b , exact aged virgin female sprague - dawley rats were dosed on day 55 in the afternoon with 20 mg / rat 7 , 12 - dimethylbenz [ a ] anthacene in a volume of 0 . 5 ml / rat corn oil ( rats weigh approximately 165 g , resulting in 120 mg / kg dmba and 3 ml / kg corn oil ). rats were treated by gavage daily with corn oil ( vehicle ), 0 . 4 mg / kg 6 - mcdf , 0 . 4 mg / kg tamoxifen , or a cotreatment of 0 . 4 mg / kg 6 - mcdf plus 0 . 4 mg / kg tamoxifen for 20 days , and then euthanized on the 21 st day . table 7__________________________________________________________________________effects of treatment on body and organ weights control tamoxifen 6 - mcdf tam ± mcdf__________________________________________________________________________rat weight at 255 ± 3 261 ± 9 257 ± 4 244 ± 16 start of treatments ( g ) rat weight 295 ± 11 242 ± 6 * 289 ± 7 † 236 ± 11 * prior to euthanasia ( g ) liver weight 3 . 95 ± 0 . 16 4 . 03 ± 0 . 15 3 . 78 ± 0 . 11 4 . 07 ± 0 . 20 (% body weight ) heart weight 0 . 360 ± 0 . 010 0 . 357 ± 0 . 023 0 . 356 ± 0 . 012 0 . 374 ± 0 . 23 (% body weight ) spleen weight 0 . 289 ± 0 . 018 0 . 254 ± 0 . 018 0 . 265 ± 0 . 014 0 . 250 ± 0 . 004 (% body weight ) kidney weight 0 . 334 ± 0 . 010 0 . 369 ± 0 . 017 0 . 352 ± 0 . 015 0 . 357 ± 0 . 013 (% body weight ) __________________________________________________________________________ values expressed as means ± standard error . * significantly different ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 ) from control treatment . † significantly different ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 ) from tamoxifen treatment . fig3 a and 3b show uterine weights with treatment with tamoxifen , mcdf and co - treatment . 1 . b . astroff et al ., 6 - methyl - 1 , 3 , 8 - trichlorodibenzofuran as a 2 , 3 , 7 , 8 - tetrachlorodibenzo - p - dioxin antagonist inhibition of the induction of rat cytochrome p - 450 isozymes and related monoxygenase activites , mol . pharmacol . 33 ( 1988 ) 231 - 236 ; 2 . b . astroff et al ., comparative antiestrongenic activities of 2 , 3 , 7 , 8 - tetrachlorodibenzo - p - dioxin and 6 - methyl - 1 , 3 , 8 - trichlorodibenozofuran in the female rat , itoxicol . appl . pharmacol . 95 ( 1988 ) 435 - 443 ; 3 . b . astroff et al ., 6 - substituted - 1 , 3 , 8 - trichlorodibenzofurans as 2 , 3 , 7 , 8 - tetrachlorodibenzo - p - dioxin antagonists in the rat : structure - activity relationships , toxicology , 59 ( 1989 ) 285 - 296 ; 4 . b . astroff et al ., 6 - alkyl - 1 , 3 , 8 - trichlorodibenzofurans as antiestrogens in female sprague - dawley rats , toxicology 69 ( 1991 ) 187 - 197 ; 5 . r . bannister et al ., 6 - methyl - 1 , 3 , 8 - trichlorodibenzofuran ( mcdf ) as a 2 , 3 , 7 , 8 - tetrachlorodibenzo - p - dioxin antagonist in c57bl / 6 mice , toxicology 54 ( 1989 ) 139 - 150 ; 6 . r . dickerson et al ., alkyl polychlorinated dibenzofurans and related compounds as antiestrogens in the female rat uterus ; structure - activity studies , toxicol . appl . pharnacol . 135 ( 1995 ) 287 - 298 ; 7 . g . l . evans et al ., raloxifene inhibits bone turnover and prevents further cancellous bone loss in adult ovariectomized rats with established osteropenia , endo . ( 1996 ) 137 : 4139 - 4144 ; 8 . i . ezawa et al ., the effect of ovariectomy on bone metabolism in rats , bone 17 : 163s - 167s ; 11 . m . harris et al ., partial antagonism of 2 , 3 , 7 , 8 - tetrachlorodibenzo - p - dioxin - mediated induction of aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase by 6 - methyl - 1 , 3 , 8 - trichlorodibenzofuran ; mechanistic studies , mol . pharmacol . 35 ( 1989 ) 729 - 735 ; 12 . a . mcdougal et al ., inhibition of 7 , 12 - dimethylbenz [ a ] anthracene - induced rat mammary tumor growth by aryl hydrocarbon receptor agonists , cancer letters ( 1997 ) 120 : 53 - 63 ; 14 . ribeiro et al ., j . natl . cancer inst . monogr . ( 1992 ); ( 11 ): 121 - 125 ; 19 . takahashi et al ., the effect of tamoxifen on bone metabolism and skeletal growth is different in ovariectomized and intact rats , calcif tissue int . 59 : 271 - 276 ; 20 . r . t . turner et al ., tamoxifen prevents the skeletal effects of ovarian hormone deficiency in rats , j . bone and min . res . 2 : 449 - 456 ; 21 . c . yao et al ., 2 , 3 , 7 , 8 - tetrachlorodibenzo - p - dioxin - induced porphyria in genetically inbred mice ; partial antagonism and mechanistic studies , toxicol . appl . pharmacol . 100 ( 1989 ) 208 - 216 );

0Human Necessities

the invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings , in which one aspect of the invention is shown . this invention may , however , be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the aspects set forth herein . rather , these aspects are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete and will fully convey the concept of the invention to those skilled in the art . although the invention is described with respect to ic chips , the invention could be used for other devices where packaging is needed , i . e ., silicon mems devices . fig4 through 10 illustrate one aspect of the invention for fabricating a wafer - level chip scale package containing a re - distributed line ( rdl ) pattern that is not inclined between the bottom of a solder bump and the top surface of a chip pad . referring to fig4 , a substrate 100 is prepared on which a passivation layer 110 and a chip pad 115 are formed . the substrate 100 can be any known semiconductor substrate known in the art , including “ compound ” semiconductors and single crystal silicon . the passivation layer 110 can be made of any dielectric material known in the art , such as silicon nitride , silicon oxide , or sog . then , the chip pad 115 is formed on the upper surface of substrate 100 . first , a portion of passivation layer in this area is removed by a conventional masking and etching process . then , the metal for the chip pad 115 is blanket deposited and the portions of the metal layer not needed for the bond pad are removed by etching or planarization . the chip pad 115 can be made of conductive material , such as metals and metal alloys . in one aspect of the invention , the chip pad comprises aluminum . a wire 120 is next attached to the chip pad 115 using a capillary 130 . as shown in fig5 , the bottom of the wire 120 is bonded to the chip pad 115 . then a coining process is performed to press the wire 120 under a predetermined pressure , thereby forming a coined stud bump 125 . by using the capillary 130 , the coined stud bump 125 can be formed with a simple structure and with a simple manufacturing process . as depicted in fig6 , a first insulating layer 135 is then deposited to cover the coined stud bump 125 and passivation layer 110 . in this aspect of the invention , the first insulating layer 135 is formed of a dielectric polymer material such as bcb , polyimide ( pi ), and emc . as illustrated in fig7 , the first insulating layer 135 and the coined stud bump 125 are planarized using conventional processing . in the planarization process , a stud bump 125 ′ and a first insulating layer 135 ′ are formed . in one aspect of the invention , a chemical mechanical polishing ( cmp ) process is used to planarize the first insulating layer 135 and the stud bump 125 . as shown in fig8 , a re - distributed line ( rdl ) pattern 140 is formed on the stud bump 125 ′ and the first insulating layer 135 ′. the rdl pattern 140 electrically connects the stud bump 125 ′ and the solder bump that is formed during subsequent processing ( as described below ). the rdl pattern is formed by blanket depositing a metal layer and then removing — typically by masking and etching — the portions of the metal layer not needed for the drl pattern 140 . the rdl pattern 140 can contain any electrically conductive material , such as metals and metal alloys . examples of such metal and metal alloys include cu , al , cr , niv , and ti . in one aspect of the invention , the rdl comprises a composite layer of cu , al , cr , and cu , or a material selected from niv and ti . in conventional wafer - level chip scale package as shown in fig1 , the rdl pattern 20 was formed of al , niv , cu , niv , and cu that are sequentially deposited on the chip pad 40 . such a configuration has poor adhesive characteristics and reliability , is not easy to fabricate , and has high manufacturing costs . as depicted in fig9 , a second insulating layer 150 is then formed to cover the rdl pattern 140 and the first insulating layer 135 ′. a portion of the second insulating layer 150 is removed — typically by masking and etching — to expose a portion of the rdl pattern 140 to which a solder bump is later attached . as shown in fig1 , a solder bump 160 is then attached to the exposed portion of the rdl pattern 140 as known in the art . the stud bump comprises any conductive material such as metal and metal alloys . in one aspect of the invention , the stud bump comprises gold ( au ) or copper ( cu ). the wafer - level chip scale package 1000 is illustrated in fig1 . the silicon substrate 100 contains an ic ( not shown ) and chip pad 115 which extends into the passivation layer 110 and is encircled by the passivation layer 110 . electrical signals from the ic contained in substrate 100 are transmitted through chip pad 115 , through rdl pattern 140 , to solder bump 160 , and then to the outside of the packaged semiconductor device ( i . e ., to a circuit board ). in the device of fig1 , the first insulating layer 135 ′ encircles and covers the stud bump 125 ′. since the top surface of the first insulating layer 135 ′ and stud bump 125 ′ are coplanar in this aspect of the invention , the rdl pattern 140 may be formed as a substantially planar layer without an inclined portion . therefore , cracks in the rdl pattern 140 due to stresses are prevented . the rdl pattern 140 shown in fig1 is illustrated as on only a portion of the upper surface of the stud bump 125 ′. in another aspect of the invention , the rdl pattern can be formed to cover the entire stud bump 125 ′, thus enhancing the electrical characteristics and reliability of the wafer - level chip scale package 1000 . the rdl pattern 20 of fig1 contains an inclined portion in the conventional wafer - level chip scale package . accordingly , it is extremely difficult to form a thick first insulating layer 15 in fig1 . in this aspect of the invention , however , the first insulating layer 135 ′ in fig1 is formed as a thick layer . fig1 illustrates another aspect of the invention where a wafer - level chip scale package has a two - layer rdl pattern . a wafer - level chip scale package 2000 contains : a substrate 100 ; a passivation layer 110 ; chip pads 115 ; stud bumps 125 ′ that are formed on chip pads 115 and are encircled by a first insulating layer 135 ′; intermediate rdl pattern 210 that connects the stud bumps 125 ′ and intermediate stud bumps 220 ; an intermediate insulating layer 230 that insulates the intermediate rdl pattern 210 ; rdl pattern 140 that connects the intermediate stud bumps 220 and solder bumps 160 ; a second insulating layer 150 that insulates the rdl patterns 140 ; and solder bumps 160 that are attached to a portion of each of the rdl pattern 140 . components not described in fig1 are the same as those components explained with reference to fig1 . the same reference numerals in fig1 and 11 denote the same elements that have substantially the same functions and are formed of the same materials and in substantially the same manner . the structure , functions , materials , and effects of the intermediate stud bumps 220 , the intermediate rdl pattern 210 and the intermediate insulating layer 230 are substantially the same as those of the stud bump 125 , the rdl pattern 140 , and the second insulating layer 150 , respectively . the intermediate stud bumps 220 connect the intermediate rdl pattern 210 and the rdl pattern 140 . each intermediate rdl pattern 210 is formed at the bottom of each intermediate stud bump 220 . the intermediate insulating layer 230 exposes a portion of the intermediate rdl pattern 210 so it can be connected with the intermediate stud bumps 220 . in another aspect of the invention , additional intermediate stud bumps , intermediate rdl patterns , and intermediate insulating layers may be formed to make a three ( or more ) layer rdl pattern rather than the two layer rdl pattern illustrated in fig1 . in the aspects of the invention described above , it is possible to reduce or prevent an inclined portion of a rdl pattern in the art between a solder bump and a chip pad . such a configuration suppresses cracks in the rdl pattern , even where an underlying insulating layer has a large thickness . further , a stud bump can be easily and inexpensively formed using a capillary . in another aspect of the invention , the wafer level chip scale package is manufactured in the manner depicted in fig1 - 17 so as to not contain a ubm between the chip pad the rdl pattern and to contain a single non - polymeric insulating layer . in this aspect of the invention , and as depicted in fig1 , the bond pads are first redistributed ( as depicted in more detail in fig1 - 15 ). then , the stud bumps are formed on the wafer ( as depicted in more detail in fig1 ). the solder balls are then attached to the stud bumps , either directly or by using solder paste , and the solder balls are re - flowed . the resulting packaged semiconductor device can then be mounted on a circuit board as known in the art . in this aspect of the invention , and as illustrated in fig1 - 13 , a substrate 300 ( substantially similar to substrate 100 ) containing ic 305 is obtained . a passivation layer 310 ( substantially similar to passivation layer 110 ) is then formed on substrate 300 . a portion of the passivation layer is then removed and a chip pad 315 ( substantially similar to chip pad 115 ) is formed in that exposed portion . the methods used for these processes are substantially similar to those described above . next , as depicted in fig1 , a re - distributed ( rdl ) pattern 340 is formed directly on the chip pad 315 and the passivation layer 310 . the rdl pattern 340 electrically connects the chip pad 315 and the solder bump 365 that is formed during subsequent processing ( as described below ). the rdl pattern 340 is formed by blanket depositing a metal layer and then removing — typically by masking and etching — the portions of the metal layer not needed for the rdl pattern 340 . the rdl pattern 340 can contain any electrically conductive material , such as metals and metal alloys . examples of such metal and metal alloys include cu , al , cr , niv , and ti . in one aspect of the invention , the rdl pattern comprises al . next , as shown in fig1 , an insulating layer 350 is formed to cover the rdl pattern 340 . in this aspect of the invention , the material for the insulating layer is blanket deposited on the rdl pattern 340 . a masking and etching process is then used to remove a portion of this insulating material in the area of region 375 ( where stud bumps 365 will later be formed ). the material for the insulating layer 350 does not comprise a polymer material like bcb , pi , and emc . as described above , such materials are often used in conventional wlcsp . to form such layers , however , the structure containing the material is subjected to a high temperature heating process . this heating is necessary to cure the polymer material . unfortunately , such a high temperature heating process damages the structure underlying the polymeric material including the ic 305 in substrate 300 . in this aspect of the invention , the insulating layer 350 is not made of polymeric materials . rather , the insulating layer 350 is made of dielectric non - polymeric materials . examples of such non - polymeric dielectric materials include silicon nitride , silicon oxide , and silicon oxynitride . such materials can be deposited by any known method in the art . in this aspect of the invention , only a single layer is used as the redistribution layer . in the aspect of the invention shown in fig4 - 10 , a ubm and a metal layer are used to redistribute the electrical signal from the chip pad 115 to the stud bump 160 . by using only a metal layer in this aspect of the invention , the cost of the manufacturing the ubm can be eliminated . thus , this aspect of the invention uses only a single conductive layer as the rdl pattern in the wlscp . as depicted in fig1 , the stud bumps are then formed on the exposed portion of the rdl pattern 340 ( in the area 375 ). the stud bumps 365 a can be formed by electroplating the material for the stud bumps with a cladding as known in the art . in this aspect of the invention , the material for the study bumps is cu and the cladding is a ni / au alloy . alternatively , the stud bumps 365 b can be formed by a wire bonding process . in this aspect of the invention , a coated wire 380 is attached to the rdl pattern 340 using a capillary 385 . as shown in fig1 , the bottom of the wire 380 is first bonded to the metal of the rdl pattern 340 . then a coining process is performed to press the wire 380 under a predetermined pressure to form a coined stud bump 365 b . by using the capillary , the coined stud bump 365 b can be formed with a simple structure and with a simple manufacturing process . in one aspect of the invention , the material for the wire comprises cu and the coating comprises pd . finally , as shown in fig1 , the solder balls are then attached to the stud bumps , either directly or by using solder paste , and the solder balls are re - flowed . both of these processes are performed using conventional processing that is known in the art . having described these aspects of the invention , it is understood that the invention defined by the appended claims is not to be limited by particular details set forth in the above description , as many apparent variations thereof are possible without departing from the spirit or scope thereof .

7Electricity

the preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings . identical elements in the various figures are identified , as far as possible , with the same reference numerals . reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present invention . such embodiments are provided by way of explanation of the present invention , which is not intended to be limited thereto . in fact , those of ordinary skill in the art may appreciate upon reading the present specification and viewing the present drawings that various modifications and variations can be made thereto without deviating from the innovative concepts of the invention . fig1 shows a schematic illustration of a firearm safety system of the current invention . shown in fig1 is the firearm safety system comprising : a firearm detecting device 10 including a detecting device receiver 20 and a detecting device transmitter 30 ; a firearm control module 40 including a control module transmitter 45 , a control module receiver 50 , and an actuator 60 , wherein the control module 40 is affixed to a firearm 100 , and the actuator 60 includes a safety catch blocker 70 that engages a firearm safety catch 110 , allowing the actuator 60 to prevent the firearm 100 from firing . the firearm detecting device 10 is capable of detecting the firearm 100 when the firearm 100 and the control module 40 are in a safety zone 90 surrounded by safety zone border 95 . the firearm safety system is capable of communicating with an established signaling network 80 . fig2 shows a schematic illustration to demonstrate how the firearm safety system works . shown in fig2 is the firearm safety system comprising : a firearm detecting device 10 including a detecting device receiver 20 and a detecting device transmitter 30 ; a firearm control module 40 including a control module transmitter 45 , a control module receiver 50 , and an actuator 60 , wherein the control module 40 is affixed to a firearm 100 , and the actuator 60 is capable of preventing the firearm 100 from firing . the firearm detecting device 10 is capable of detecting the firearm 100 when the firearm 100 and the control module 40 are in a safety zone 90 surrounded by safety zone border 95 . the firearm safety system is capable of communicating with an established signaling network 80 , which may , in turn , send a signal to the control module receiver 50 and notify law enforcement authorities 200 . the arrows indicate the transmission of signaling between the various components of the firearm safety system and between the firearm safety system and external elements . as shown in fig1 and 2 , the control module 40 is physically affixed to a firearm 100 , providing real - time positioning of the firearm 100 . the control module transmitter 45 may send out signals that may be detected by the detecting device receiver 20 when the control module 40 , and thus the firearm 100 , are in a safety zone 90 surrounded by a safety zone boundary 95 . the control module transmitter 45 may send out signals in a continuous manner or in intervals . if the signals are sent out in intervals , the intervals are preferred to be short , e . g . less than 5 seconds , ensuring that the firearm 100 is detected in a timely manner . the detecting device receiver 20 and the detecting device transmitter 30 are closely associated . although fig1 shows the two structures as distinct components of the detecting device 10 , it should be noted that the detecting device receiver 20 and the detecting device transmitter 30 may be integrated into a single unit with dual functions . referring to fig1 and 2 , the control module transmitter 45 and the detecting device receiver 20 are the essential components for the detection of the firearm 100 . the transmitter - receiver communication may be implemented by any kind of technology that can serve the basic goals of the current invention . such technology may include but not be limited to the bluetooth ® wireless communication and the radio frequency identification ( rfid ) systems . the control module transmitter 45 and detecting device receiver 20 may , for instance , be a lock and key pair of active radio frequency identification ( rfid ) tags , such as , but not limited to , the lock and key tag pairs twn400 and twr400 made by winlab , of north brunswick , n . j . these transmit and receive in the 2 . 45 ghz frequency band using gaussian frequency - shift keying ( gfsk ), i . e . frequency shift keying in which the signal is smoothed by a gaussian filter before transmission . this is the same encoding used in bluetooth ® devices . referring to fig1 and 2 , as soon as the detecting device receiver 20 detects the presence of the firearm 100 in the safety zone 90 , the detecting device transmitter 30 is prompted to send out signals that may reach an established signaling network 80 , as shown in fig2 , triggering a series of subsequent actions . the established signaling network 80 may be any kind of network that has already been set up for private or public use and that is capable of wide - range wireless communications . preferably , the established signaling network 80 is a cellular network that distributed over land areas with each served by at least one fixed - location transceiver . the cellular network may use any kind of digital cellular technologies , including but not limited to : global system for mobile communications ( gsm ), general packet radio service ( gprs ), cdma one , cdma 2000 , evolution - data optimized ( ev - do ), enhanced data rates for gsm evolution ( edge ), universal mobile telecommunications system ( umts ), digital enhanced cordless telecommunications ( dect ), digital amps ( is - 136 / tdma ), and integrated digital enhanced network ( iden ). alternatively , the established signaling network 80 may employ radio or television signaling or satellite communication networks . using established signaling networks lowers the cost for the firearm safety system . most importantly , the established signaling networks are generally more reliable and the signaling is more stable , reducing the chances of malfunction of the firearm safety system . further , the present invention may take advantage of the above described and other established signaling networks 80 , namely global positioning systems . the detecting device transmitter 30 may be capable of emitting a signal that can be received by at least one of the satellites comprising the current and future global positioning system ( s ) ( gps ). the detecting device transmitter 30 may constantly emit such a signal or may only send a signal under certain conditions ( i . e . the safety has been disengaged ) attributable to a firearm 100 . thus , once such a signal is emitted from the detecting device transmitter 30 or comparable device , the gps can triangulate or otherwise calculate the location of the firearm 100 . this , in turn , enables an entity to closely monitor the location and movements of a particular firearm 100 . the gps also allows for the assistance in finding lost , misplaced , or stolen firearms . the benefits in such a scenario are numerous as stolen firearms are often used to commit other crimes and it prevents lost items from falling into the wrong hands . preferably , the firearm 100 can be tracked and located as to prevent others from finding it or the firearm being used to commit a crime . it may be preferable to require a reset detecting device transmitter 30 when activated . this prevents a lost or stolen firearm from having its location tracking blocked by a deactivation of the detecting device transmitter 30 . the reset may be required to be performed by a law enforcement or other official with appropriate credentials to perform the reset upon ascertaining proper ownership . further , during this time of activation of the gps , the firearm is also prevented from firing in accordance with the firearm safety system and methodology as described . as shown in fig1 and 2 , after receiving signals from the control module transmitter 45 , the established signaling network 80 may communicate with the control module receiver 50 , which may in turn set the actuator 60 in motion to disable the firearm 100 . the recognition of the specific control module may be achieved by any technology . in particular , similar to cell phone recognition , each control module 40 may be assigned a mobile subscriber identity number , which is usually 15 - 16 digits . the technology is known in the art and may be implemented to achieve the goal of disabling single firearm 100 . the actuator 60 may take any form as long as it can prevent the firearm 100 from firing . in particular , the actuator 60 may include a firearm safety catch blocker 70 that limits the engagement of the firearm safety catch 110 , preventing the firearm 100 from being fired . alternatively , the actuator 60 may comprise mechanisms that block the firearm trigger or the loading of ammunition . in general , the actuator 60 , as a component of the control module 40 , may be initiated and disarmed by the control module receiver 50 . referring to fig1 and 2 , it is preferred that the firearm safety system is effective within a certain safety zone 90 . such safety zone may be any property or locale that requires or needs protection from firearm related violence . for example , the safety zone may be a school or a public building such as a courthouse or municipality complex . the safety zone may also be a private home or a business property . the possible entities that desire protection from gun violence may very well be limitless . the range of the safety zone 90 may be simply set by the capacity of signaling between the control module transmitter 45 and the detecting device receiver 20 . such capacity may be determined by a number of factors , among which the most crucial and universal is probably the distance between the control module transmitter 45 and the detecting device receiver 20 . preferably , such a distance may range between 1 to 10 , 000 meters . the owner or manager of the safety zone may adjust other parameters such as the power of the transmitter to fit the size of the property , ensuring full detection and reducing false alarms . alternatively , the range of the safety zone may be controlled by adding signal - blocking or signal - absorbing material to the boundary of the safety zone . such an approach may be more expensive but enhances the flexible use of the safety system . referring to fig2 , besides disabling the firearm 100 , through the established signaling network 80 , the user of the firearm safety system may also inform law enforcement authorities 200 , allowing timely response by law enforcement personnel and further prevention of violence . such a feature may be automatic or may require the additional set up of the user of the firearm safety system . the current invention , if used effectively , may significantly reduce firearm related violence . by implementing the control module in the firearms and positioning the detecting device in the safety zone , the presence of the firearm may be promptly detected and the firearm may be timely disabled to prevent violence . in such a manner , schools , public buildings and private properties may be protected . it is preferred that firearms of law enforcement authorities do not incorporate the control module , allowing law enforcement personnel to use their firearms in the safety zone to prevent violence . alternatively , different types of control modules may be implemented in different firearms , whereas the detecting device is capable of detecting , distinguishing , and disabling some or all of the firearms by communicating with some or all of the control modules . the choices are limitless and one skilled in the art could understand that all approaches are encompassed by the spirit of the current invention . although this invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity , it is to be understood that the present disclosure has been made only by way of illustration and that numerous changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention .

5Mechanical Engineering; Lightning; Heating; Weapons; Blasting

thus , the present invention provides a method for manufacturing a photoconductor drum , having a non - conductive layer , with an area of good electrical conduct . specifically , the present method involves removing the non - conductive layer from at least a portion of the surface of a photoconductor drum having a non - conductive layer , by means of a laser beam , to create an area of good electrical contact . suitably , the present invention may be practiced with any metal drum , having a non - conductive layer , which requires an area of good electrical contact . although there are no particular size limitations placed on the metal drum , such drums are typically a hollow cylinder which is 10 to 100 cm long and 2 to 30 cm in outer diameter . typically , the thickness of the aluminum is 0 . 5 to 2 mm , and thus the inner diameter of the drum is usually close in size to the outside diameter of the drum . there is no particular limitation on the metal which composes the metal drum , and any of those used conventionally in the art may be employed . preferably , the metal drum is an aluminum drum . in the context of the present invention , the term &# 34 ; non - conductive &# 34 ; layer refers to ( i ) an oxide layer formed by , e . g ., an anodizing process , a plating process , or a wet oxidation process using h 2 so 4 or hno 3 , or ( ii ) a coating of an inorganic ( e . g ., a glass or ceramic ) or organic ( e . g ., a rubber or other non - conductive polymer ) material . such non - conductive layer - forming processes may be carried out by the conventional methods well known in the art ( see e . g ., kirk - othmer , encyclopedia of chemical technology , 3rd ed ., vol . 15 , pp . 296 - 324 , wiley , n . y ., 1981 , which is incorporated herein by reference ). good results have been achieved by applying the present method to anodized aluminum drums . the photoconductor drum may be coated on the outside with any of the conventional photoconductors used in electrophotography or laser beam printing . such photoconductors include inorganic photoconductors , such as vitreous selenium , and organic photoconductors , such as polynuclear aromatic and heterocyclic compounds . such photoconductors are disclosed in u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 037 , 861 , 3 , 232 , 755 , 3 , 271 , 144 , 3 , 287 , 120 , 3 , 573 , 906 , 3 , 725 , 058 , 3 , 837 , 851 , 3 , 839 , 034 , 3 , 850 , 630 , 4 , 746 , 756 , 4 , 792 , 508 , 4 , 808 , 506 , 4 , 833 , 052 , 4 , 855 , 201 , 4 , 874 , 682 , 8 , 882 , 254 , 4 , 925 , 760 , 4 , 937 , 164 , 4 , 946 , 754 , 4 , 952 , 471 , 4 , 952 , 472 , 4 , 959 , 288 , 4 , 983 , 482 , 5 , 008 , 169 , 5 , 011 , 906 , 5 , 030 , 533 , 5 , 034 , 296 , 5 , 055 , 367 , 5 , 066 , 796 , 5 , 077 , 160 , 5 , 077 , 161 , 5 , 080 , 987 , 5 , 106 , 713 , and 5 , 130 , 217 , which are incorporated herein by reference . the photoconductor may also include a dye for wavelength sensitization . depending on the final application of the photoconductor drum , the entire outside surface of the drum may be coated with photoconductor , or the photoconductor coating may be omitted from either one or both of the end portions of the outside surface of the photoconductor drum . the omission of a photoconductive layer from a single end region of the drum may be accomplished by simply controlling the depth of immersion of the drum into the coating both during the coating step , and the omission of the photoconductive coating from both ends of the drum can be accomplished by combining controlling the depth of immersion with either wiping the end portion of the drum immersed in the coating bath or equipping this end portion with a mask during immersion . it is suitable to create the area of electrical contact by laser etching either before or after the drum , having a non - conductive layer , is coated with the layer ( s ) of photoconductor and / or dielectric ( injection ) barrier , and no particular preference is attached to carrying out the laser etching step either before or after the coating of the drum with the photoconductor and / or dielectric ( injection ) barrier . in theory , it is possible to use the laser etching step to create the area of electrical contact on either the outside surface or the inside surface of the drum . however , it is preferred that the area of electrical contact be made on the inside surface of the drum , so that electrical contact can be made with a metal piece contained on a cap inserted into an end of the drum . there are no particular limitations on the shape and size of the area of electrical contact so long as this area does not interfere with the photoconductor coating . in fact , it is possible to use the present method to create more than one region of electrical contact in the same drum , and the present invention includes those drums containing more than one region of electrical contact . when more than one area of electrical contact is present in the same drum , it is again preferred that these areas be present on the inside surface of one end of the drum . typically , the area of electrical contact will be ≧ 1 mm 2 and preferably ≧ about 3 mm 2 . good results have been achieved using areas of electrical contact which are 5 mm × 9 mm rectangles , although other shapes such as squares , circles , ovals , etc . may be used . in addition , it is possible to use a plurality of such regions of electrical contact . alternatively , the area of electrical contact may take the shape of a band which covers a continuous path around the inside surface of the drum . such a band is typically ≧ 1 mm wide , preferably ≧ 3 mm wide . typically , the non - conductive layer on the metal drum will have a thickness of 3 - 9 μm , usually about 6 μm . thus , it is necessary to use a laser with sufficient power for a sufficient time to remove the non - conductive layer . moreover , it has been found that it is preferable to remove a portion of the metal beneath the non - conductive layer removed . thus , for a drum with a thickness of 750 μm , it has been found advantageous to remove the metal , beneath the removed non - conductive layer , to a depth of 50 to 100 μm . the particular type of laser used in the present method is not critical , so long as the laser has sufficient power at an appropriate wavelength to remove the non - conductive layer . good results have been achieved using a signature nd : yag laser manufactured by control laser of orlando , fla ., with a wavelength of 1 . 064 nm and maximum power of 50 watts . the particular power setting of the laser and time of the laser etching will , of course , depend on the thickness of the non - conductive layer , the depth of the underlying metal to be removed , the identity of the metal , the size of the area from which the non - conductive layer is to be removed , and the wavelength of light used . however , the selection of an appropriate laser power and time of etching is well within the abilities of one of skill in the art . suitably , the irradiation time will be 0 . 01 to 0 . 2 sec / mm 2 of surface etched , preferably 0 . 04 to 0 . 1 sec / mm 2 of surface etched . suitably , the power will be 10 to 200 watts , preferably 20 to 50 watts . as an example , good results have been achieved by using a signature nd : yag laser manufactured by control laser of orlando , fla . with a power setting intensity of 30 watts at 1 . 064 nm , to remove 6 μm of anodized aluminum and 50 μm of underlying aluminum , with an irradiation time of about 0 . 064 sec / mm 2 of irradiated area . the laser beam may be brought to bear on the drum by conventional optics , and the precise location of the incidence of the beam on the drum may be controlled by adjusting either the location of the drum , the optics ( and / or laser itself ) or both . thus , the relative position of the drum and the laser beam may be controlled by either : ( i ) holding the drum stationary and moving the laser beam ; ( ii ) holding the laser beam stationary and moving the drum : or ( iii ) moving both the drum and the laser beam . such manipulations are within the abilities of those skilled in the art . the drum may be moved by means of a rotary table which is , in a preferred embodiment , controlled by a computer system , and the optics ( and / or laser itself ) may be moved by means of a conventional drive mechanism which is capable of imparting the required degree of movement to the beam and which , in a preferred embodiment , is also controlled by a computer system . in this way , the entire operation of laser etching can be completely automated . such computer control of the positioning of a work piece and / or laser beam is well known in the art and numerous computer hardware systems and the attendant software are commercially available . referring now to the drawings , wherein like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several view , fig1 schematically illustrates an apparatus for carrying out the present method . in this embodiment a robot ( 1 ) is used to transfer the drum from a conveyor to a rotary table ( 2 ), which is housed in a safety enclosure ( 3 ). the laser ( 4 ) is located adjacent to the safety enclosure ( 3 ). fig2 a also illustrates an apparatus for carrying out the present method . as in fig1 the drum ( 5 ) is placed on a rotary table ( 2 ) which is housed in a safety enclosure ( 3 ). the safety enclosure ( 3 ) is equipped with an access door ( 6 ) with viewport . the laser is mounted on a laser rail ( 7 ) and may be adjusted along the z axis with a manual z axis adjust ( 8 ). fig2 b presents a top view of the same apparatus . fig3 a depicts a drum with an area of electrical contact according to the present invention . the drum ( 5 ) is coated with a layer of photoconductor ( 9 ). the area of electrical contact ( 10 ) is on the inside surface of the drum and is in the shape of a rectangle . when installed into , e . g ., a photocopier , a conductive material flange ( 11 ) would be inserted into the drum at the end containing the area of electrical contact , and a drive gear ( 12 ) would be inserted into the other end of the drum . fig3 b provides an enlargement of the end of the drum with the area of electrical contact . fig4 a and b depict a drum ( 5 ) similar to that shown in fig3 a and b , except that the area of electrical contact ( 10 ) is in the shape of a continuous band on the inside surface of one end of the drum . as noted above , the present method offers a number of advantages . first , there is practically no loss or fall out rate ( defined as the percentage of units found to be defective ) due to the laser etching step . in contrast , manual grinding is accompanied by a 1 % loss rate and masking techniques are attended by a 2 to 5 % loss rate . further , the present method is completely reliable and yields a drum with a good electrical contact 100 % of the time . in contrast , masking techniques are so unreliable that manual grinding must be employed on every drum so treated to ensure adequate electrical contact for a given lot . hence , masking techniques are essentially useless . even manual grinding yields 5 to 10 % of drums with poor electrical contact . the drums produced by the present process also display a number of advantages as compared to those prepared by other methods . the present drums are not marred by scratches , which arise from mechanical grinding , or areas exposed to chemical drips , which arise from chemical etching or masking techniques . further , the present drums are characterized by a smooth and even surface in the area of electrical contact . in contrast , the drums subjected to either mechanical or manual grinding are marred by scratches . the drums subjected to masking techniques often exhibit poor electrical contact , and both masking techniques and chemical etching can leave chemical residues on the drum . moreover , chemical etching can suffer from the problem of leakage from the bonnet which can cause drips . in addition , if the chemical etch is too deep , then there might not be good contact between the drum and the insert , which can lead to arcing and loss of conductivity . although it was previously known to use lasers to inscribe indicia on nonanodized drums , the fact that the present method would be successful was completely unexpected , for a number of reasons . first , the method of the present invention involves removing a layer of non - conductive material , which was expected to cause a high degree of local heating . it was expected that this localized heating would give rise to problems with the adherence of the photoconductor layer to the drum . it was also expected that the localized heating would give rise to electrostatic or memory problems with the coating layer . another serious consideration which raised doubts about the ultimate success of the present method was that , since metals such as aluminum are good heat conductors , the application of the laser beam to the drum would cause heat to be transmitted to the coating layer and cause decomposition of the coating layer . for example , in many drums the coating layer contains a polymer such as polycarbonate , and it is known that temperatures as low as 270 ° f . can give rise to defective drums due to the thermal sensitivity of the coating layer . thus , the possibility that the use of a laser beam would generate heat which would be conducted to and adversely affect the photoconductive layer raised serious doubts about the ultimate success of the present method . however , the inventors have discovered that the present method exhibits none of these drawbacks and that the present drums exhibit none of these deficiencies . other features of the invention will become apparent in the course of the following descriptions of exemplary embodiments which are give for illustration of the invention and are not intended to be limiting thereof . a drum ( hollow cylinder ) of anodized aluminum , having an outer diameter of 30 mm , a length of 26 cm , and a wall thickness of 1 . 00 mm , and coated with a photoconductive layer on the outside surface , was etched with a laser using the apparatus depicted in fig2 a and b . the laser employed was a signature nd : yag laser ( wavelength , 1 . 064 nm ; maximum power , 50 watts ) manufactured by control laser of orlando , fla . the etch was carried out using a power setting of 30 watts and a rectangle having dimensions 5 mm × 9 mm was etched on the inside surface of one end of the drum using an exposure time of about 0 . 064 sec / mm 2 of etched surface . the drum so produced was free of scratches and chemical residue on the surface of the area of electrical contact . further , the area of electrical contact was characterized by a smooth and even surface . moreover , the drum exhibited excellent electrical contact between the drum and the ground and no adverse effects on the photoconductive layer were observed . obviously , numerous modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings . it is therefore to be understood that , within the scope of the appended claims , the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

with the apparatus of the invention , a substrate is placed in the vapor deposition section , while a solid semiconductor material is placed in the semiconductor material supply passage . the vapor deposition section is then heated by the first heating means so that the substrate may be heated to a predetermined temperature . at the same time , the semiconductor material supply passage and the alkoxide material supply passage are heated to respectively predetermined temperatures by the second and third heating means . in this case the temperature of a semiconductor material supply furnace is necessarily the highest in the semiconductor material supply passage and which is higher than the predetermined substrate temperature . on the other hand , the temperature of an alkoxide supply furnace is necessarily maintained constant and which is lower than the predetermined substrate temperature . the first , second and third heating means are independently controlled by the control means ( e . g ., a microprocessor ) to maintain the respectively predetermined temperatures . when a semiconductor layer is to be formed , a carrier gas is introduced into the semiconductor material supply passage from the outside of the apparatus and which holds vapor of the semiconductor material and leads it onto the substrate , so that the semiconductor layer is formed . on the other hand , when an insulating layer is to be formed , vapor of the alkoxide material is held by a carrier gas with an external device of the present apparatus and which is led onto the substrate through the alkoxide material supply passage , so that the insulating layer is formed . hereinafter , a preferred embodiment is described in more detail with reference to the drawings . referring to fig1 the embodiment apparatus is so constructed that a vapor deposition section 4b in which a substrate 5 is to be placed is connected with a semiconductor material supply passage 4a and with an alkoxide material supply passage 4c . provided with a heater 7 is the vapor deposition section 4b , with heaters 8a and 8b is the semiconductor material supply passage 4a , and with heaters 9a and 9b is the alkoxide material supply passage 4c . since an el layer is formed as a semiconductor layer in the present embodiment , a source material region a of the semiconductor material supply passage 4a is provided with a parent material supply tube 2 and a luminescent center material supply tube 3 , the temperature of the source material region a being controlled by the heater 8a . the heater 8b controls the temperature of a temperature preadjusting region b . the alkoxide material supply passage 4c is provided with introduction tubes 6 , 6 which are respectively connected to bubbling systems 1 and 1 &# 39 ;. the heater 9a heats a part of the alkoxide material supply passage 4c which is hence defined as a temperature preadjusting region b &# 39 ;, while the heater 9b heats the introduction tubes 6 , 6 which are hence defined as a preheating region a &# 39 ;. in the present apparatus the heater 7 , the heaters 8a and 8b , and the heaters 9a and 9b constitute the first , second and third heating means , respectively . it should be noted that the bubbling systems 1 and 1 &# 39 ; also have respective heating means . to be described next is the case of fabricating an el device shown in fig2 by the use of the present apparatus . a transparent substrate 31 made of glass and the like is formed with an ito film 32 of about 3000 a thick which is subsequently etched to form a striped pattern , so that the substrate 5 is formed . the substrate 5 is placed within the present apparatus , then the apparatus is heated so as to have a predetermined temperature profile as shown in fig1 ( b ). thereafter , al ( oc 3 h 7 ) 3 and ta ( oc 2 h 5 ) 5 as the alkoxide materials are respectively put into the bubbling systems 1 and 1 &# 39 ; in which an inert gas such as n 2 and he is used as a bubbling gas . the alkoxide materials thus bubbled are introduced into a reactor 4 and led onto the substrate 5 maintained at about 450 ° c . thereby forming an insulating layer thereon to about 3000 a thick through pyrolysis . al ( oc 3 h 7 ) 3 and ta ( oc 2 h 5 ) 5 are maintained at about 120 ° c . and about 140 ° c . in the respective bubbling systems . the introduction tubes 6 , 6 are heated to about 180 ° c . for preventing the vaporized alkoxide materials from condensing ( liquefying ). since the deposition rate of the insulating layer depends greatly on the supply rate of the source material and the substrate temperature , the deposition rate can be controlled by adjusting the supply rate of the source material on the basis of the temperature of the bubbling systems and the flow rate of the bubbling gas . the substrate temperature is usually set to 300 °- 600 ° c . in the present invention . in this embodiment , since the substrate temperature is specifically set to about 450 ° c ., setting the flow rate of the n 2 bubbling gas to 25 - 100 sccm can obtain the deposition rates of 200 a / min and 100 a / min for an al 2 o 3 film and ta 2 o 5 film , respectively . under such conditions , varying the deposition time makes it possible to easily obtain a laminated film of al 2 o 3 and ta 2 o 5 layers each having a desired thickness or a film of taalo x of a desired thickness as a mixed film of the aforesaid layers . it is noted that if o 2 or o 3 gas is introduced with the bubbling gas , the pyrolyzing temperature can be controlled . incidentally , the temperature preadjusting region b &# 39 ; is maintained at 200 °- 250 ° c . as in the formerly devised apparatus . as soon as the insulating layer is formed , supply of the source material thereof is stopped , then the temperature of a substrate temperature region c is raised so that the substrate temperature may reach about 500 ° c . this takes about 10 minutes . thereafter , zns as a parent material for an el layer 34 along with mn as a luminescent center material is supplied to form a zns : mn film of about 6000 a thick as the el layer 34 . in this case the deposition rate of the zns : mn film is about 100 a / min . the parent material zns is heated up to about 900 °- 1000 ° c . to evaporate , then the vapor is supplied by means of an h 2 carrier gas . he or a like gas may be used as the carrier gas instead of h 2 . the luminescent center material mn is heated up to about 800 °- 900 ° c . and which is subjected to a flow of an hcl gas thereby causing the following reaction : and the resulting gas is introduced into a reactor 4 . a source gas of the luminescent center material such as zncl 2 , h 2 and mncl 2 may be directly introduced into the reactor 4 . for differentiating in temperature between the zns material and the mn material , only to do is make the positions of the materials in the respective material supply tubes 2 and 3 different from each other . the temperature preadjusting region b is maintained at 600 °- 700 ° c . once the el layer is formed , the substrate temperature is lowered back to about 450 ° c ., then an insulating layer 35 is formed in the same manner in which the insulating layer 33 is formed . thus , the three - layer structure ( insulating layer 33 - el layer 34 - insulating layer 35 ) is formed . thereafter , the substrate is removed from the present apparatus and which is then formed with an al electrode 36 of striped shape so that it may extend in the direction perpendicular to the stripe direction of the ito electrode . thus , a thin film el device is completed . with the apparatus of the invention , as described above , the three - layer structure ( insulating layer 33 - el layer 34 - insulating layer 35 ) can be formed in a continuous manner . in the following table 1 , compared are processes for forming the above three - layer structure respectively using ( a ) a conventional apparatus , ( b ) the formerly devised cvd apparatus and ( c ) the apparatus of the embodiment according to the invention . table 1______________________________________ ( a ) conventional ( b ) formerly ( c ) apparatus of theapparatus devised apparatus present embodiment______________________________________1 ) placing a 1 ) placing a 1 ) placing a substrate substrate substrate fig4 ( a ) fig1 ( b ) ↓ ↓ ↓ 2 ) raising the 2 ) raising the 2 ) raising the temperature temperature temperature ↓ ↓ ↓ 3 ) forming the first 3 ) forming the first 3 ) forming the first insulating layer insulating layer insulating layer ↓ ↓ ↓ 4 ) lowering the 4 ) changing the 4 ) changing the temperature distribution of substrate temperature in temperature the reactor fig4 ( b ) ↓ 5 ) placing a substrate ↓ 6 ) raising the temperature ↓ ↓ ↓ 7 ) forming an el 5 ) forming an el 5 ) forming an el layer layer layer ↓ ↓ ↓ 8 ) lowering the 6 ) changing the 6 ) changing the temperature distribution of substrate temperature in temperature the reactor fig4 ( a ) ↓ 9 ) placing a substrate ↓ 10 ) raising the temperature ↓ ↓ ↓ 11 ) forming the 7 ) forming the 7 ) forming the second second second insulating layer insulating layer insulating layer ↓ ↓ ↓ 12 ) lowering the 8 ) lowering the 8 ) lowering the temperature temperature temperature______________________________________ as can be understood from table 1 , with the apparatus of the present invention , four steps can be omitted as compared with the conventional method in which a plurality of apparatus are used . further , as compared with the case of using the apparatus of fig3 the apparatus of the present invention enable to considerably shorten the time required for fabricating the three - layer structure , though the number of the fabricating steps is the same . this is because the apparatus of fig3 requires about 150 minutes at each step of step 4 and step 6 since each of the steps involves varying the temperature by about 800 ° c ., while in contrast the apparatus of the present invention requires only about 10 minutes since each of the steps involves the temperature variation by only about 50 ° c . furthermore , if the substrate temperature is set to the same for forming the insulating layer and the el layer , the steps 4 and 6 can be further omitted , whereby the three - layer structure can be continuously formed in a further shortened time without entailing a so - called waiting time . while only a certain presently preferred embodiment has been described in detail , as will be apparent with familiar with the art , certain changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention . for instance , the semiconductor material supply passage may be divided , for example , into two supply passages for the parent material and the luminescent center material , respectively ; and the alkoxide material supply passage may also be divided into a plurality of passages . further , the el layer is not limited to that in the embodiment , it may be of , for example , zns : mn , zns : tb , zns : sm , cas : eu , srs : ce ; and any alkoxide material may be used for the insulating layer , for example , al ( oc 2 h 5 ) 3 , ti ( oc 2 h 5 ) 4 and si ( oc 2 h 5 ) 4 .

2Chemistry; Metallurgy

the following description is not to be taken in a limiting sense , but is made merely for the purpose of describing the general principles of exemplary embodiments . the scope of the disclosure should be determined with reference to the claims . reference throughout this specification to “ one embodiment ,” “ an embodiment ,” or similar language means that a particular feature , structure , or characteristic that is described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure . thus , appearances of the phrases “ in one embodiment ,” “ in an embodiment ,” and similar language throughout this specification may , but do not necessarily , all refer to the same embodiment . further , the described features , structures , or characteristics of the present disclosure may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments . in the detailed description , numerous specific details are provided for a thorough understanding of embodiments of the disclosure . that the embodiments of the present disclosure can be practiced , without one or more of the specific details , or with other methods , components , materials , and so forth is contemplated as being encompassed by the present disclosure . the following description of any preferred embodiment ( s ) is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the disclosure , its application , or uses . for ease of description , only one exemplary embodiment is herein described in detail . however , understood is that any of a plurality of embodiments may utilize the same themed cemetery system construction for many different themed including stadiums , landmarks , buildings , parks , and the like , and are encompassed by the present disclosure . understood is that the use of a car racing stadium is utilized only for illustration purposes only and is in no way limited to only race car stadiums . referring to fig1 , this schematic diagram illustrates an overall perspective view of a themed cemetery system 1 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure . the themed cemetery system 1 may take any of a plurality of shapes and sizes , depending on the desires and accommodations necessary for those wishing to be accommodated , e . g ., interred , at the location . the themed cemetery system 1 comprises a representation of a car racing facility 3 as illustrated in fig1 , but themed cemetery system 1 may also comprise a representation of any preferred landmarks , including sports stadiums , arenas , famous landmarks such as parks , buildings , structures , vehicles , trains , planes and the like . for illustrative purposes , fig1 illustrates a themed cemetery system 1 in the form of a racing car facility 3 such as those found in famous car racing tracks like daytona raceway , ( not shown ) california raceway , e . g ., irwindale raceway or laguna seca raceway ( not shown ), and / or the indianapolis raceway ( not shown ). still referring to fig1 , the themed cemetery system 1 in the form of a racing car facility 3 may have a plurality of sections included therein . for example , the racing car facility 3 may have many of the same features commonly found on the actual racing car facility 3 for which it is modeled . the themed cemetery system 1 may include grandstand areas 5 , commonly found in most real world racing car facilities . the grandstand areas 5 may include a plurality of areas including at least a seating area 7 , media box areas 9 , and grandstand burial areas 11 . it is contemplated that the grandstand 5 take the same form and shape as the real world racing car facilities and be approximately the same relational size to the real facilities . still referring to fig1 , the grandstand areas 5 of the themed cemetery system 1 may have a seating area 7 which may be used by those individuals that come to visit those accommodated , e . g ., interred , there . the seating area 7 of the grandstand areas 5 may also provide an area which may be suitably familiar to the individuals that may be visiting loved ones buried in the themed cemetery system 1 . for example , friends that may have attended baseball games together and held season passes or attended race car events together and sat in the same location for years , may desire to sit in those same locations in the grandstand areas 5 when visiting the friends and / or relatives that may be buried at the themed cemetery system 1 . a greater sense of familiarity may be provided with the seating area 7 of the grandstand 5 . moreover , providing adequate seating area 7 may also allow for the accommodation of more people in the themed cemetery system 1 and may also relax some of the anxiety related to visiting individuals at a cemetery . still referring to fig1 , the themed cemetery system 1 may also have a grandstand area 5 which may include media boxes 9 or luxury boxes . these media / luxury boxes 9 may be located in similar locations as those in the real world facilities . many individuals have luxury boxes and a great deal of their social life while they were alive revolved around these luxury boxes 9 . these media / luxury boxes 9 may be utilized as either visitor areas or , in the alternative , may be utilized as burial areas for those wishing to be buried in the areas in which the deceased has spent so much time . however , as these media / luxury boxes 9 in real life cost significantly more than regular seating areas 7 , similarly , the media / luxury boxes 9 may cost more to be buried therein which may increase the exclusivity and profitability to the owner of the themed cemetery system 1 facility . the luxury boxes 9 may encompass the entirety of the outside edge 13 of the themed cemetery system 1 and may have the added advantage of looking out away from the themed cemetery system 1 to property located adjacent ( not shown ). these luxury boxes 9 may include similar characteristics as those found in the real world facilities including glass 15 which looks towards the infield area 17 , the grandstand seating area 7 and even into the winning circle 25 , and the track 29 itself . still referring to fig1 , the grandstand areas 5 comprise a grandstand burial area 11 . as enumerated above , many individuals may have spent much of their time at a particular sporting event , such as season tickets for baseball games where the season ticket holder held the same seats for many years . the themed cemetery system 1 may provide the individual with the ability to be buried or accommodated , e . g ., interred , in much the same location or seating area where that individual may have spent so much of their leisure time . additionally , visitors that knew the individual well , would know that the individual had been buried in the grandstand burial area 11 at a location that was close or at the location where that individual spent much of their leisure time . many visitors may have at one point or the other , gone to a sporting event with the person accommodated , e . g ., interred , or buried there and may have fond memories of their time with that individual . the grandstand burial area 11 may also provide nostalgic and / or fond memories for the individuals that visit the deceased , creating a positive atmosphere as opposed to the deserted , and desolate prior art cemetery grounds that provide the atmosphere that would provoke the fond and happy memories , thereby creating a positive cemetery visitor experience . still referring to fig1 , the track area 29 of the themed cemetery system 1 car racing facility 3 is shown . the track area 29 could be akin to the baseball field , football field , etc . of another type of facility and is utilized for illustrative purposes only . the track area 29 may have been the focus of the deceased individuals &# 39 ; attention when they were participating or viewing the event . the individual may have some fondness for being buried in the place for which they focused so much of their attention . from the facility owner &# 39 ; s standpoint , the track area 29 or the field area in the case of a baseball field , or football field may comprise the majority of the area of the facility and may be the least expensive portion of the themed cemetery system 1 to buy . moreover , because the track area 29 may comprise a large portion of the surface area of the themed cemetery system 1 , the facility owners may utilize the space to promote aesthetic features of the cemetery 1 including different vegetation / plants 31 , along with statues 35 , benches 37 ( see also fig2 ), and the like . the track area 29 may allow for a park - like atmosphere which includes plants 31 , traditional seating areas 37 and walkways 39 which may allow visitors to walk around the track area 29 to view other parts of the themed cemetery system 1 , sit in the grandstand areas 5 and to find the appropriate loved family or friend that may be accommodated , e . g ., interred , or buried at a particular location within the track area 29 . referring to fig2 , this schematic diagram illustrates the track area 29 comprising a first area 41 and a second area 43 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure . the first area 41 comprise more uniform tombstones 47 that lie at ground level and may complete the aesthetic appearance of a track area 29 . moreover , for at least the reason of their proximity to other tombstones 49 , the first area 41 may be marketed as a cheaper area to purchase than other areas of the themed cemetery system 1 . the second area 43 of the track area 29 may be marketed by the facility owners as a more expensive , larger plot area of the themed cemetery system 1 . more ornate tombstones 51 are located in this second area 43 than those present in the first area 41 of the track area 29 . the tombstones 51 may include larger headstones 55 , mausoleums 57 and / or more decorative and specific memorials 59 . these specific memorials 59 may include figurines , such as large figurines , e . g ., racing cars 61 , favorite players / drivers , favorite number designators 63 , and many other optional indicia that may show the deceased &# 39 ; s preferred and / or love for a specific pastime . still referring to fig2 , the themed cemetery system 1 and the continuation of the themed throughout the entire facility is shown , which , in the case of the race car facility 3 , may include the general presence of racing flags , such as winner &# 39 ; s flags , caution flags , and the like that may be incorporated both figuratively into the ground coverings , and other memorial areas and may even include things like trophies 69 which may be placed ornamentally around the entirety of the race car facility 3 themed cemetery system 1 . additionally , contemplated by the present disclosure is that the second area 43 comprises specific memorials 59 and larger headstones 55 , which would likely necessitate larger spaces between a first plot 71 and a second plot 73 , whereby walkways 39 may be incorporated between a first plot 71 and a second plot 73 , wherein vegetation 31 may be incorporated into the spaces therebetween . still referring to fig2 , the winner &# 39 ; s circle area 25 of the themed cemetery system 1 is shown . the winner &# 39 ; s circle area 25 may be set up similarly to the winner &# 39 ; s circle of the real world facility . moreover , the winner &# 39 ; s circle area 25 may be marked with ornate decorations , such as vegetation 31 and trophies 69 . additionally , contemplated is that the winner &# 39 ; s circle is utilizable as a burial place for those wishing to be buried in this specific area , whereby the facility owner may choose to charge a premium for burial at that specific location or may use the winner &# 39 ; s circle as a visitor &# 39 ; s area only with seating areas and the like set up . the winner &# 39 ; s circle 25 may be at a focal point to the entire themed cemetery system 1 , whereby the grandstand areas 5 and the track area 29 all encircle the winner &# 39 ; s circle 25 which may increase the value and location of the burial spots close to the winner &# 39 ; s circle 25 . individuals may wish to be buried near that area as many people will desire to visit this area because of its unique ornamentation including plaques and potentially other memorabilia from actual races / sporting events . still referring to fig2 , the outside edge 79 of the second area 42 of the track area 29 is shown . as can be seen , larger headstones 55 are located in this area which may be adjacent to the winner &# 39 ; s circle 25 . moreover , statues 81 may also be placed in this area . in an exemplary embodiment , a statute 81 , representing the likeness of a deceased individual , may be disposed , whereby the individual statue 81 may be wearing their favorite jacket / article 83 of clothing having the indicia of the sporting event or the racing number 85 of their favorite driver thereon . the statue 81 is displayable for demonstrating the deceased individual &# 39 ; s love and enthusiasm for a particular sport , event , or a particular individual , driver , or the like , yet still maintains a personalized touch of bearing the likeness of the deceased individual . again , the use of the deceased individuals &# 39 ; pastimes may bring joy and fond memories to those visitors that are visiting the themed cemetery system 1 . the atmosphere may also play a part in encouraging the fond memories of visitors that come into the themed cemetery system 1 such that they may re - live some of the experiences that they may have had with their departed loved ones . referring to fig3 , the grandstand area 5 and the entrance area 87 of the themed cemetery system 1 are shown , in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure . as can be appreciated , the entrance area 87 may lead directly onto the track area 29 and into the grandstand area 5 as would be normally found in a real world facility . facility owners may also lease the space in the entrance area , or the outside surface of the themed cemetery system 1 to potential sponsors and / or advertisers that may wish to advertise and sponsor the facility . this may allow for increased revenue in the themed cemetery system 1 and may also lead to the credibility of the facility as many of the real world facilities have similar sponsorships and advertising appearances throughout the entire facility . for example , if a stadium has advertisements placed along the outfield wall , the themed cemetery system 1 may lease the space to potential sponsors or businesses that wish to lease the space which would make the themed cemetery system 1 look similar to the real world stadium advertisements that people have come accustomed to seeing in the real world facility . still referring to fig3 , the grandstand area 5 with stairs 89 leading to the grandstand area 5 and stairs 89 leading to the track area 29 is shown . the grandstand area 5 may have a plurality of walls 91 which may separate the grandstand areas 5 from the track area 29 . the walls 91 are configured to accept urns holding the cremated remains of the deceased . each section of the wall 91 comprises plaques 93 located thereon which may identify the final resting place of the individuals accommodated , e . g ., interred , within that area . understood is that the walls 91 comprise a sufficient thickness to allow for a plurality of cremated remains to be placed within them , along with the plaques 93 which identify the individual &# 39 ; s identity . also included in the grandstand area 5 as illustrated in fig1 may be a seating area for visitors to come and spend time at the themed cemetery system 1 when visiting loved ones . referring to fig4 , the inner field area 101 of the themed cemetery system 1 is shown , in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure . the inner field area 101 may continue the themed of the facility . in this exemplary embodiment , the inner field area 101 of a race car facility may comprise mechanic pits and other holding areas . in this particular embodiment , it may be more desirable to have an inner field area 101 which may be more park like with ponds 103 , seating areas 105 and other ornamental features 107 which are still consistent with the overall themed cemetery system 1 which may include pedestals 111 having cars , trophies and other activities associated with the themed . additionally , walkways 113 are provided to allow walking from one side 115 of the track area 29 to a second side 117 of the track area 29 . other ornamental features and characteristics may be provided to enhance the themed of the cemetery while not detracting from the aesthetic pleasure of the surrounding areas . referring to fig5 - 10 , the themed cemetery system 1 comprises any of a plurality of shapes and sizes , depending on the desires and accommodations necessary for those wishing to be accommodated , e . g ., interred , at the location , in accordance with alternative embodiments of the present disclosure . for example , the themed cemetery system 1 may take the form of a baseball stadium ( fig5 ), a football stadium ( fig7 ), a hockey arena ( fig8 ), golf course ( fig6 ), a park ( fig1 ), and / or an entertainment venue , such as a casino ( fig9 ), by example only . advertising and promotional space may also be provided within the themed cemetery system 1 to coincide with the advertising and promotional space provided at the corresponding facility after which the themed cemetery system is represented . for example , the advertising and promotional space 120 may be disposed on an outside wall of the modeled facility of the themed cemetery system 1 . referring to fig5 - 8 , a themed cemetery system 1 comprises : a property simulating a entertainment facility comprising at least one entertainment themed , the property comprising : at least one portion simulating at least one entertaining area 500 of the entertainment facility ; a plurality of burial plots 510 located in relation to the property simulating the entertainment facility , each plot 510 of the plurality of burial plots 510 capable of accommodating at least one of a casket ( not shown ), an urn ( not shown ), a mausoleum ( not shown ), and contents thereof ( not shown ), each plot 510 comprising a distinct revenue value relative to any other plot 510 at a given time , and the distinct revenue value depending on a location of each plot 510 within the property simulating the entertainment facility ; and at least a portion 502 comprising at least one advertising space , such as the advertising and promotional space 120 , in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present disclosure . still referring to fig5 - 8 , the at least one entertainment themed comprises at least one of live theatre , cinema , concert , an art exhibition , a television , radio , gambling , convening , resort , and any other form of entertainment , wherein entertainment includes music , art , performing art , cinema , television , any other amusement associated with a venue . the at least one advertising space , such as the advertising and promotional space 120 , is disposed in relation to at least one wall 91 of the property and is disposed on the property in manner that is consistent with at least one advertising and promotional space of the entertainment facility , e . g ., the facility after which the themed cemetery represents , such as the grauman &# 39 ; s chinese theatre , the hollywood bowl , the hollywood palladium , disneyland , the walt disney concert hall , the greek theatre , cesar &# 39 ; s palace , the mgm grand hotel , the bellagio , and the like . still referring to fig5 - 8 , the system 1 further comprises burial headstones 512 having memorabilia related to the entertainment facility . the property further comprises at least one seating area , such as seating areas 7 , 37 . the at least one entertaining area 500 comprises a first area 501 and a second area 502 , the first area 501 comprising a plurality of generally uniform , ground level tombstones 51 at a first revenue value , and the second area comprising a plurality of ornate tombstones 55 at a second revenue value , the second revenue value being higher than the first revenue value ( see also . fig2 .). the plurality of generally ground level tombstones 51 of the first area are disposed in a manner resembling a entertaining surface for the entertainment facility . the plurality of ornate tombstones 55 of the second area comprises a plurality of headstones ( not shown ) corresponding to a plurality of specific memorials . the plurality of specific memorials comprises at least one at least one representation ( not shown ) of an entertainment poster , a stage actor , a movie star , a television star , a celebrity , an entertainment personality , a studio owner , a studio executive , a reality show personality , an online personality , a newscaster , a broadcaster , and the like . the first area 501 comprises a plurality of ornamental features ( not shown ) consistent with the at least one entertainment themed of the entertainment facility . still referring to fig5 - 8 , a method of creating a themed cemetery system 1 comprises : providing a property simulating a entertainment facility comprising at least one entertainment themed , the property comprising : providing at least one portion simulating at least one entertaining area 500 of the entertainment facility ; providing a plurality of burial plots 510 located in relation to the property simulating the entertainment facility , each plot 510 of the plurality of burial plots 510 capable of accommodating at least one of a casket ( not shown ), an urn ( not shown ), a mausoleum ( not shown ), and contents thereof ( not shown ), each plot 510 comprising a distinct revenue value relative to any other plot 510 at a given time , and the distinct revenue value depending on a location of each plot 510 within the property simulating the entertainment facility ; and providing at least a portion comprising at least one advertising space , such as the advertising and promotional space 120 , in accordance with another alternative embodiment of the present disclosure , still referring to fig5 - 8 , in the method of creating a themed cemetery system 1 , providing the at least one entertainment themed comprises providing at least one of live theatre , cinema , concert , an art exhibition , a television , radio , gambling , convening , resort , and any other form of entertainment , wherein entertainment includes music , art , performing art , cinema , television , any other amusement associated with a venue . still referring to fig5 - 8 , in the method of creating a themed cemetery system 1 , providing the at least a portion , comprising the at least one advertising space , such as the advertising and promotional space 120 , comprises disposing the at least one advertising space in relation to at least one wall , such as the wall 91 , of the property ; and providing the at least a portion , comprising the at least one advertising space , such as the advertising and promotional space 120 , comprises disposing the at least one advertising space on the property in a manner that is consistent with at least one advertising and promotional space of the entertainment facility , e . g ., the facility after which the themed cemetery represents , such as grauman &# 39 ; s chinese theatre , the hollywood bowl , the hollywood palladium , disneyland , the walt disney concert hall , the greek theatre , cesar &# 39 ; s palace , the mgm grand hotel , the bellagio , and the like . the method further comprises providing burial headstones having memorabilia related to the entertainment facility after which the system 1 represents . also , the step of providing the property further comprises providing at least one seating area , such as seating areas 7 , 37 . still referring to fig5 - 8 , in the method of creating a themed cemetery system 1 , providing the at least one portion , simulating at least one entertaining area 500 , comprises providing the at least one entertaining area 500 with a first area 501 and a second area 502 , the first area 501 providing comprising providing generally uniform , ground level tombstones 51 at a first revenue value , and the second area 502 providing comprising providing ornate tombstones 55 at a second revenue value , the second revenue value being higher than the first revenue value . the step of providing the generally ground level tombstones 51 of the first area 501 comprises disposing the generally ground level tombstones 51 in a manner resembling a entertaining surface for the first area 501 , wherein providing the ornate tombstones 55 of the second area 502 comprises providing the headstones ( not shown ) corresponding to specific memorials . the step of providing the headstones corresponding to specific memorials comprises providing at least one representation ( not shown ) of an entertainment poster , a stage actor , a movie star , a television star , a celebrity , an entertainment personality , a studio owner , a studio executive , a reality show personality , an online personality , a newscaster , a broadcaster , and the like . the step of providing the at least one entertaining area 500 comprises providing the first area 501 with ornamental features consistent with the at least one entertainment themed of the entertainment facility after which the system 1 represents . information as herein shown and described in detail is fully capable of attaining the above - described object of the present disclosure , the presently preferred embodiment of the present disclosure , and is , thus , representative of the subject matter which is broadly contemplated by the present disclosure . the scope of the present disclosure fully encompasses other embodiments which may become obvious to those skilled in the art , and is to be limited , accordingly , by nothing other than the appended claims , wherein any reference to an element being made in the singular is not intended to mean “ one and only one ” unless explicitly so stated , but rather “ one or more .” all structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the above - described preferred embodiment and additional embodiments as regarded by those of ordinary skill in the art are hereby expressly incorporated by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the present claims . moreover , no requirement exists for a system or method to address each and every problem sought to be resolved by the present disclosure , for such to be encompassed by the present claims . furthermore , no element , component , or method step in the present disclosure is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether the element , component , or method step is explicitly recited in the claims . however , that various changes and modifications in form , material , work - piece , and fabrication material detail may be made , without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure , as set forth in the appended claims , as may be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art , are also encompassed by the present disclosure .

4Fixed Constructions

[ 0020 ] fig2 is a diagram showing an apparatus for continuity testing of a pogo pin in a probe according to one embodiment of the invention . a continuity test apparatus 2 comprises circularly arranged leds 22 corresponding to the pogo pins 11 and 12 shown in fig1 . the leds 22 are all mounted on a substrate 21 to signal contact faults of the pogo pins 11 and 12 . [ 0021 ] fig3 is a cross - sectional diagram cut along the line aa ′ in fig2 . the substrate 21 comprises pads 23 corresponding to the pogo pins 11 and 12 on the opposite side of the leds 22 . pads 23 are electrically connected to the negative terminals of corresponding leds 22 through via holes ( not shown ). the positive terminals of the leds are electrically connected together through conducting traces ( not shown ) laid on the substrate 21 . a power supply 13 in a tester is connected between the pogo pins 11 and 12 , and the leds 22 to generate a voltage difference 2v between the pogo pins 11 , 12 and the leds 22 . please refer to fig4 in which the substrate 21 is mounted on the probe 1 and brought into contact with the pogo pins 11 and 12 so that the pads 23 of the substrate 21 contact the corresponding pogo pins 11 and 12 . close loops are formed among the power supply 13 , leds 22 , pads 23 and pogo pins 11 and 12 . the voltage difference results in currents flowing through the loops , which light the leds 22 . please refer to fig5 in which pogo pins 11 2 and 12 4 fail . they are shorter than the others due to lack of elasticity . please refer to fig6 in which a continuity test is implemented with the failed pogo pins 11 2 and 12 4 . there are contact faults between the pad 23 3 and pogo pin 11 2 , and the pad 23 8 and pogo pin 12 4 . the closed loops among the power supply 13 , led 22 3 , pad 23 3 and pogo pin 11 2 , and the power supply 13 , led 22 8 , pad 23 8 and pogo pin 12 4 are not completed . thus , the leds 22 are lit except for the leds 22 3 and 22 8 . accordingly , the operator can easily identify the failed pogo pins as 11 2 and 12 4 . the previously described leds 22 are used to detect the formation of the closed loops by sensing the currents in the loops . they can be electrically connected between any two of the led , the pad and the pogo pin . [ 0027 ] fig7 is a flowchart of a method for continuity testing of pogo pins in a probe according to one embodiment of the invention . in step 71 , a substrate is provided , which has pads corresponding to the pogo pins and via holes through which the pads electrically connected to terminals . in step 72 , a voltage difference is generated between the terminals and the pogo pins . in step 73 , the substrate is placed into the probe so that the pads contact the normal pogo pins forming closed loops . the failed pogo pins do not contact the pads , resulting in incomplete loops . in step 74 , leds corresponding to the pogo pins are connected to sensor currents in the closed and open loops . the pogo pins &# 39 ; contact with the pads results in the currents lighting the corresponding leds , while the failed pogo pins result in no current , with the corresponding leds remaining unlit . in conclusion , the present invention provides a substrate with leds for implementation of the continuity test , whereby the operator can easily identify the failed pogo pins thus the wafer , probe card and test head used in the conventional method are not required . while the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiment , it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments . on the contrary , it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements as would be apparent to those skilled in the art . therefore , the scope of the appended claims must be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements .

6Physics

the invention relates , in general , to a protection circuit that is capable of disabling an apparatus after sensing a predetermined condition . more particularly , the protection circuit may be used in appliances that are dangerous if left unattended especially if oriented in certain positions . one embodiment of the invention is directed towards a protective circuit for an apparatus . the apparatus may be any apparatus capable of implementing the protective circuit . for example , the apparatus may be an electric iron , soldering iron , hair dryer , electric heater and the like . the protective circuit includes an accelerometer having an output and a microcontroller coupled to the output of the accelerometer . a switch to control a power source is coupled to an output of the microcontroller and a load of the apparatus . the switch is capable of being activated by a signal output from the microcontroller . when utilizing an alternating current ( ac ) power source the switch may be a triac . alternatively , when utilizing a direct current ( dc ) power source the switch may be a field effect transistor ( fet ). of course , other switches as known in the art may also be utilized . in a preferred embodiment , the microcontroller is configured to output a control signal to turn off the switch when it receives output values from the accelerometer that are substantially equal to predetermined values after a predetermined time period . the predetermined values correspond to a potentially dangerous orientation of the apparatus . the predetermined time period is chosen based on the hazard of leaving an apparatus in a potentially dangerous orientation for a period of time . for example , the predetermined time period for an apparatus left unattended on its heating surface may be less than that for the apparatus left unattended on its heel , e . g ., 5 minutes and 10 minutes , respectively . the accelerometer may include any axis accelerometer , e . g ., a four - axis accelerometer , three - axis accelerometer , two - axis accelerometer , and one - axis accelerometer . in a preferred embodiment , a two - axis accelerometer is utilized in the apparatus . the accelerometer may include any axis mems accelerometer as known in the art . in a preferred embodiment , a two - axis mems accelerometer is used having an orientation axes generally at right angles to each other . the mems accelerometer operates in - plane and is designed to be sensitive only to a direction in the plane of the die . accelerometers may be either digital or analog . in a preferred embodiment , the accelerometers are digital accelerometers . when utilizing an analog accelerometer the device may be using an internal analog to digital ( a / d ) converter in the microcontroller . an additional axis may be added , e . g ., adding an additional out - of - plane axis , thereby forming a 3 - axis accelerometer . mems accelerometers are available in a wide variety of measuring ranges , reaching up to thousands of gs . the designer optimizes the apparatus by compromising between sensitivity and the maximal acceleration that can be measured . some example mems accelerometers include stmicroelectronics lis302dl mems motion sensor , the data sheet of which is incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein ; stmicroelectronics lis202dl mems motion sensor , the data sheet of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein ; stmicroelectronics lis331dl mems motion sensor , the data sheet of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein ; stmicroelectronics lis244al mems motion sensor , the data sheet of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein ; and stmicroelectronics lis244alh mems motion sensor , the data sheet of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein . of course other accelerometers as known in the art may also be used , such as , laser accelerometers and the like . the microcontroller may be any conventional microcontroller . for example , the microcontroller may include 8 bit architecture , 16 bit architecture or higher architectures . in a preferred embodiment , a low cost microcontroller is utilized , such as , stmicroelectronics 8 - bit st7lite39 microcontroller ; the data sheet for st7lite39 is hereby incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein . reference will now be made in detail to other embodiments of the invention , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . fig1 illustrates a block diagram of a protection circuit in an apparatus according to one aspect of the invention . referring to fig1 , the protection circuit is generally depicted as reference number 100 . the protection circuit includes a two - axis mems accelerometer 102 coupled to a microcontroller 104 . output signals 106 from the mems accelerometer 102 are input into the microcontroller 104 . the output signals 106 are described with more specificity in fig3 a - 3e below . switches 112 provide inputs to microcontroller 104 that may be used to turn the appliance on or off or to select various settings . the microcontroller 104 has an output signal 114 coupled to a switch 116 . the output signal 114 controls the state of the switch 116 , e . g ., on or off . the switch 116 is coupled to a load 118 and power source 120 . in a preferred embodiment the power source is an alternating current ( ac ) power source and the switch 116 is a triac . however , in an alternative embodiment the power source may be a direct current ( dc ) power source and switch 116 may be a field effect transistor ( fet ). the microcontroller 104 can act to turn the device off if the appliance is in an unsafe orientation and / or left unattended for a predetermined period of time . fig2 a illustrates a side view of an electric iron implementing a protective circuit in accordance with another embodiment of the invention . fig2 b illustrates a face view of an electric iron implementing a protective circuit in accordance with another embodiment of the invention . referring to fig2 a and 2b , the electric iron apparatus is generally depicted as reference number 200 and includes a protective circuit 100 to turn off the iron 200 after a predetermined condition for a predetermined amount of time . the protective circuit includes a two - axis mems accelerometer as shown in fig1 . the two - axis accelerometer is oriented in the apparatus 200 such that the first axis of measurement 202 is in the y - direction and is substantially parallel to a heating surface of the iron . the second axis of measurement 206 is in the x - direction and is oriented substantially parallel to the heating surface of the iron and is also oriented to be substantially perpendicular to the first axis of measurement 202 . fig3 a illustrates a theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer in an electric iron positioned stationary upright on the iron &# 39 ; s heel . referring to fig3 a , a graph includes a y - axis measuring the average acceleration produced by gravity at the earth &# 39 ; s surface ( g ) and an x - axis measuring time ( ms ). the graph represents a theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer positioned as described with reference to fig2 . by way of example , if the iron is at rest on its heel with its heating surface 204 perpendicular to the gravitational field , an output 302 of the first axis of measurement 202 is shown at about 1 g . moreover , an output 304 of the second axis of measurement 206 is shown at about 0 g . fig3 b illustrates a theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer in an electric iron when moving the iron in a front to back motion primarily along an axis parallel to the face of the iron and substantially parallel to a line running from toe to heel of the iron . fig3 c illustrates a theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer in an electric iron when moving the iron in a side to side motion primarily along the axis substantially parallel to the face of the iron and substantially perpendicular to a line running from toe to heel of the apparatus . referring now to fig3 b , the graph represents the theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer . accelerations of the two - axis mems accelerometer are theoretically measured as the iron is moved in a back and forth motion . as shown , an output 306 of the second axis of measurement 206 is shown at about 0 g . the output 308 measuring the gravitational field on the first axis of measurement 202 corresponds to movement of the iron . as shown , as the iron theoretically moves back and forth so does the output signal 308 while the output signal 306 remains relatively static . referring now to fig3 c , the graph represents the theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer . accelerations of the two - axis accelerometer are theoretically measured as the iron is moved in a side to side motion . as shown , an output 310 measuring the gravitational field on the first axis of measurement 202 is shown at about 0 g . the output 312 measuring the gravitational field on the second axis of measurement 206 corresponds to movement of the iron . as shown , as the iron theoretically moves side to side so does the output signal 312 while the output signal 310 remains relatively static . fig3 d illustrates a theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer in an electric iron positioned stationary on its heating surface . referring now to fig3 d , the graph represents the theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer . accelerations of the two - axis accelerometer are theoretically measured as the iron is laying stationary on its heating surface . as shown , an output 314 measuring the gravitational field on the first axis of measurement 202 is shown at about 0 g . the output 316 measuring the gravitational field on the second axis of measurement 206 is also at about 0 g . fig3 e illustrates a theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer in an electric iron positioned stationary laying on its side having the heating surface of the iron apparatus substantially perpendicular to the axis of gravity . the graph represents the theoretical output of a two - axis mems accelerometer . an output 318 measuring the gravitational field on the first axis of measurement 202 is shown at about 0 g . also , an output 320 measuring the gravitational field on the second axis of measurement 206 has a value of about 1 g . fig4 is a flowchart illustrating functionality of a microcontroller according to another embodiment of the invention . referring to fig4 , a flowchart depicts functionality of a microcontroller in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . the flowchart is generally depicted as reference number 400 . the flowchart 400 is a graphical illustration of the functionality of the microcontroller . step 402 provides a periodic interrupt to execute functionality of the microcontroller as depicted in the flowchart 400 . the periodic interrupt can be configured to occur in accordance with the characteristics of the microcontroller as would be known to one of ordinary skill in the art . for example , depending on the architecture of the microcontroller , i . e ., 8 bit , 16 bit , a suitable time for the periodic cycle may be chosen . in one embodiment , the periodic interrupt is set to 30 ms . in step 404 output values of the accelerometer are read . this reading may include multiple readings and averaging the average values to filter noise as known in the art . moreover , the reading may also include debounce logic as known in the art . these additional techniques ( averaging , filter , debounce logic ) are instituted to remove unwanted noise ; of course other conventional techniques may also be utilized . step 406 compares the read values with previously read values to determine if they are approximately equal . in one embodiment , a tolerance ranging from about 5 percent to about 10 percent or higher is utilized in order to eliminate noise . other tolerancences may be used to maximize the accuracy of the comparison , thereby eliminating noise . if the values are substantially equal then step 408 is performed . if the values are not substantially equal then step 410 is performed . in a two - axis mems accelerometer the values include a gravitational measurement in an x - direction and a gravitational measurement in a y - direction . in a three - axis mems accelerometer the values would also include a gravitational measurement in a z - direction . in step 408 , the previously read values and the currently read values are not substantially equal , thereby indicating the apparatus has been moved or is in some form of motion as compared to the time the previously read values were read . in this step , the no motion counter is reset indicating there has been motion of the apparatus . in step 410 , the previously read values and the currently read values are substantially equal . in this step , the no motion counter is incremented thereby indicating there has been no motion of the apparatus from the time the previously read values were read . next in step 412 , the no motion counter is compared to a predetermined maximum count ( max 1 ). if the no motion counter is greater than max 1 then step 414 is executed . if the no motion counter is less than or equal to max 1 then a return 416 is executed . in step 414 , an orientation of the apparatus is determined by comparing predetermined orientation values with measured values of step 404 . in this embodiment , the predetermined orientation values correspond to an orientation shown in fig3 d . that is , an orientation where the apparatus is resting on a heating surface . this may also be referred to as a predetermined condition . as shown with reference to fig3 d , a first output of a two - axis mems accelerometer measuring the gravitational field on the first axis of measurement 202 has a value of about 0 g . a second output measuring the gravitational field on the second axis of measurement 206 has a value of about 0 g . in this comparison step 414 , the values of step 404 are compared to determine if they are approximately equal to the predetermined condition representing a predetermined orientation . if the values 404 are approximately equal to the values of the predetermined values then step 418 is executed . if the values are not approximately equal to predetermined values then step 416 is executed . it is noted that an error tolerance may be used to account for noise , for example , a tolerance ranging from about 1 percent to 5 percent or higher . in step 418 , the microcontroller sends an off signal to turn off a switch thereby disabling power to a load on the apparatus . by way of example and referring to fig1 , an off signal 114 is sent to switch 116 to turn off power supply 120 to the load 118 . of course any predetermined value may be utilized as a comparison value . these predetermined values correspond to orientations of the apparatus . some example values from a two - axis mems accelerometer are shown in fig3 a - 3e . also , more than one predetermined value may be utilized in the flowchart 400 by adding additional logic blocks as shown in steps 420 and 422 . that is , optionally these blocks may be added to monitor additional predetermined conditions in the same flow diagram 400 . in one embodiment , this is accomplished as shown in fig4 . more specifically , when the comparison step 414 is not satisfied , step 420 is executed rather than proceeding to the return step 416 . in step 420 , the no motion counter is compared to a second predetermined maximum ( max 2 ). if the no motion counter is greater than max 2 then step 422 is executed . in this comparison step 422 , the values of step 404 are compared to determine if they are approximately equal to a second predetermined condition representing a second predetermined orientation and having a second predetermined value . if the values of step 404 are approximately equal to the second predetermined values then step 418 is executed . if the values of step 404 are not approximately equal to the second predetermined values then step 416 is executed . it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention . thus , it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents .

3Textiles; Paper

reference will now be made in detail to a substrate for an organic light - emitting device , a method of fabricating the same and an organic light - emitting device including the same according to the present invention , embodiments of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below , so that a person skilled in the art to which the present invention relates can easily put the present invention into practice . throughout this document , reference should be made to the drawings , in which the same reference numerals and signs are used throughout the different drawings to designate the same or similar components . in the following description of the present invention , detailed descriptions of known functions and components incorporated herein will be omitted when they may make the subject matter of the present invention unclear . as shown in fig1 , a substrate 100 for an organic light - emitting device according to an exemplary embodiment is disposed on one surface of an organic light - emitting device through which light from the organic light - emitting device is emitted in order to improve the light extraction efficiency of the organic light - emitting device . the substrate 100 for the organic light - emitting device includes a base substrate 110 , a light - scattering layer 120 and a transparent conductive film 130 . although not specifically shown , the organic light - emitting diode 10 has a multilayer structure in which an anode , an organic light - emitting layer and a cathode are sandwiched between the base substrate 110 according to this exemplary embodiment and another substrate that faces the base substrate 110 . in this case , the transparent conductive film 130 according to this exemplary embodiment serves as the anode , i . e . the transparent electrode of the organic light - emitting diode 10 . according to this exemplary embodiment , the anode can be formed from zno to which a dopant is added . in addition , the cathode can be formed from a metal thin film of al , al : li or mg : ag which has a smaller work function in order to facilitate the electron injection . the organic light - emitting layer can includes a hole injection layer , a hole transport layer , an emissive layer , an electron transport layer and an electron injection layer which are sequentially stacked on the anode . when the organic light - emitting diode 10 according to this exemplary embodiment is a white organic light - emitting diode that is applied for lighting , the light - emitting layer can have , for example , a multilayer structure that includes a high - molecular light - emitting layer which emits blue light and a low - molecular light - emitting layer which emits orange - red light . the light - emitting layer can also have a variety of other structures to emit white light . in addition , the organic light - emitting diode 10 can have a tandem structure . specifically , the organic light - emitting diode 10 can include a plurality of organic light - emitting layers and interconnecting layers which alternate with the organic light - emitting layers . with this structure , when a forward voltage is induced between the anode and the cathode , electrons from the cathode migrate to the emissive layer through the electron injection layer and the electron transport layer , and holes from the anode migrate to the emissive layer through the hole injection layer and the hole transport layer . the electrons and holes that have migrated into the emissive layer recombine with each other , thereby generating excitons . when these excitons transit from an excited state to a ground state , light is emitted . the brightness of the light emitted is proportional to the amount of current that flows between the anode and the cathode . the base substrate 110 supports the light - scattering layer 120 and the transparent conductive film 130 which are disposed on one surface thereof . the base substrate 110 also serves as an encapsulation substrate which is disposed on one surface of the organic light - emitting device through which light from the organic light - emitting device is emitted , in order to allow the light from the organic light - emitting device to exit while protecting the organic light - emitting diode 10 from the external environment . the base substrate 110 may be any transparent substrate that has superior light transmittance and mechanical properties . for example , the base substrate 110 can be formed from a polymeric material , such as a heat or ultraviolet ( uv ) curable organic film , or a chemically strengthened glass , such as a soda - lime glass ( sio 2 — cao — na 2 o ) or an aluminosilicate glass ( sio 2 — al 2 o 3 — na 2 o )). when the organic light - emitting device including the organic light - emitting diode 10 and the light extraction substrate 100 according to this exemplary embodiment is applied for lighting , the base substrate 110 can be formed from the soda - lime glass . the base substrate 110 may be a substrate that is formed from a metal oxide or a metal nitride . the base substrate 110 can be formed from a piece of thin glass having a thickness of 1 . 5 mm or less . the thin glass can be made by a fusion process or a floating process . the light - scattering layer 120 is disposed on the base substrate 110 . the light - scattering layer 120 is formed as a layer of a number of light - scattering particles 121 which is uniformly distributed . the light - scattering layer 120 serves to improve the light extraction efficiency of the organic light - emitting device by diversifying paths along which the light from the organic light - emitting device is emitted . according to this exemplary embodiment , the scattering layer 120 is closer to the organic light - emitting layer of the organic light - emitting diode 10 than in the related art since the transparent conductive film 130 serving as the anode of the organic light - emitting diode 10 is directly disposed on the light - scattering layer 120 . accordingly , the ability of the light - scattering layer 120 to improve light extraction efficiency by scattering light can be further enhanced . the light - scattering layer 120 according to this exemplary embodiment is the layer in which the number of light - scattering particles 121 are arranged . the bonding force between the light - scattering layer 120 and the base substrate 110 is maintained only by van der waals force . pores are formed between the light - scattering particles 121 . some or all of the pores can be filled with zno , the metal oxide of the transparent conductive film 130 . the bonding between the zno and the base substrate 110 allows the light - scattering layer 120 to more reliably maintain its shape on the base substrate 110 . the phenomenon in which the pores of the light - scattering layer 120 are filled with the metal oxide of the transparent conductive film 130 occurs during the process of forming the transparent conductive film 130 on the light - scattering layer 120 by chemical vapor deposition ( cvd ). this will be described in more detail later in relation to the method of fabricating an substrate for an organic light - emitting device . the remaining pores that are not filled with the zno serve to scatter light like the light - scattering particles 121 . according to this exemplary embodiment , the number of light - scattering particles 121 can be formed from at least one selected from among , but not limited to , zno , sio 2 and tio 2 . the diameters of the light - scattering particles 121 may range from 50 to 500 nm . it is preferred that the light - scattering particles 121 have a variety of diameters within this range in order to realize a better light - scattering effect . the transparent conductive film 130 is disposed on the light - scattering layer 120 . the metal oxide of the transparent conductive film 130 occupies some of the pores defined between the light - scattering particles 121 of the light - scattering layer 120 , and during this process , comes into contact with the base substrate 110 . in the structural aspect , the light - scattering layer 120 is disposed inside the transparent conductive film 130 , more particularly , inside the lower layer portion of the transparent conductive film 130 which forms the boundary to the base substrate 110 . in addition , the upper layer of the transparent conductive film 130 is made only of the metal oxide . accordingly , the transparent conductive film 130 has dual structural roles as a matrix layer which fixes the light - scattering particles 121 therein and as the anode of the organic light - emitting diode 10 . since the substrate 100 for the organic light - emitting device according to this exemplary embodiment is provided with the transparent conductive film 130 which serves as the anode of the organic light - emitting diode 10 , the fabrication process for the organic light - emitting diode 10 can be simplified . the transparent conductive film 130 according to this exemplary embodiment can be formed from zno to which a dopant is added . the dopant can be , for example , ga or al . a description will be given below of the method of fabricating an substrate for organic light - emitting device with reference to fig2 . the method of fabricating the substrate for the organic light - emitting device includes a first dry deposition step and a second dry deposition step . first , as shown in fig2 , the first dry deposition step is carried out by forming a light - scattering layer 120 by depositing light - scattering particles 121 on a base substrate 110 by a dry deposition process . the dry deposition process can be chemical vapor deposition ( cvd ). in particular , according to this exemplary embodiment , the first dry deposition step can be carried out by atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition ( apcvd ). accordingly , at the first dry deposition step , first , the base substrate 110 is loaded into a deposition chamber ( not shown ). the base substrate 110 can be heated in order to improve the deposition efficiency of the light - scattering particles 121 . afterwards , one selected from among a zno precursor of diethyl zinc ( dez ), a sio 2 precursor of tetraethyl orthosilicate ( teos ) and a tio 2 precursor of titanium isoproxide ( ttip ) and an oxidizer which are supposed to form the light - scattering particles 121 are supplied into a deposition chamber ( not shown ). the oxidizer can be at least one of vapor ( h 2 o ) and ozone ( o 3 ). at the first dry deposition step , it is preferred that the deposition temperature be controlled to be in the range from 300 to 500 ° c . when the light - scattering particles 121 are deposited on the base substrate 110 by apcvd at the first dry deposition step , a number of the light - scattering particles 121 is uniformly distributed on the base substrate 110 and forms into a layer , whereby the light - scattering layer 120 is made . fig3 is electron microscopy pictures showing light - scattering layers that are deposited by this process . afterwards , the second dry deposition step is carried out by forming a transparent conductive film 130 by depositing a conductive metal oxide on the light - scattering layer 120 by apcvd as at the first dry deposition step . at the second dry deposition step , the base substrate 110 which was initially loaded into the deposition chamber ( not shown ) for the first dry deposition step continues to be positioned on a conveyor belt 20 inside the deposition chamber ( not shown ). accordingly , after the first dry deposition step , the base substrate 110 with the light - scattering layer 120 formed thereon is carried on the conveyor belt 20 for the second dry deposition step . according to this exemplary embodiment , the first dry deposition step and the second dry deposition step are continuously carried out in - line using the conveyor belt 20 . this can consequently improve productivity in the fabrication of a substrate 100 for an organic light - emitting device . at the second dry deposition step , the base substrate 110 can be heated as at the first dry deposition step . afterwards , according to this exemplary embodiment , an organic solvent of hydrocarbon such as oxtane is supplied , together with a zno precursor which are diluted in the organic solvent and an oxidizer , into the deposition chamber ( not shown ). the zno precursor may be diethyl zinc ( dez ) or dimethyl zinc ( dmz ). the oxidizer can be at least one of vapor ( h 2 o ) and ethanol . in addition , at the second dry deposition step , it is preferred that the deposition temperature be controlled to be in the range from 250 to 550 ° c . since this exemplary embodiment forms the transparent conductive film 130 serving as the anode of the organic light - emitting diode ( 10 in fig1 ) on the light - scattering layer 120 , zno may be doped by injecting a dopant into the deposition chamber ( not shown ) while zno is being deposited or by ion implantation after the deposition of zno . the dopant can be ga or al . fig4 is electron microscopy pictures showing transparent conductive layers that are formed by this process . in the process of depositing the transparent conductive film 130 on the light - scattering layer 120 , the material that forms the transparent conductive film 130 , i . e . zno , can be disposed between the number of light - scattering particles 121 . this leads to a configuration in which the light - scattering layer 120 is disposed inside the transparent conductive film 130 . thus , the light - scattering layer 120 which otherwise is fixed to the upper surface of the base substrate 110 only by van der waals force can be more reliably fixed thereto , thereby achieving structural stability . when the second dry deposition step is completed in this manner , the substrate 100 for the organic light - emitting device according to this exemplary embodiment is fabricated . as set forth above , the method of fabricating the substrate for the organic light - emitting device can continuously deposit the light - scattering particles 121 and the transparent conductive film 130 on the base substrate 110 by the in - line process of the dry deposition process such as cvd , thereby improving productivity and efficiency in the fabrication of the substrate 100 . it is also possible to form the transparent conductive film 130 which serves as the anode of the organic light - emitting diode ( 10 in fig1 ) and the matrix layer of the light - scattering particles 121 , thereby simplifying future diode fabrication processes . the foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been presented with respect to the drawings . they are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present invention to the precise forms disclosed , and obviously many modifications and variations are possible for a person having ordinary skill in the art in light of the above teachings . it is intended therefore that the scope of the present invention not be limited to the foregoing embodiments , but be defined by the claims appended hereto and their equivalents .

7Electricity

a spot - scanning technique , developed at the psi in recent years , takes full advantage of the intrinsic potential of the proton depth dose distribution for medical applications for the treatment of deep seated tumors as this proton depth dose distribution can be applied by an experimental setup working as a proton irradiator 2 as shown in fig1 . the desired dose distribution is given by a three dimensional distribution of individual thin pencil beams 4 of protons applied to a target volume 6 . the pencil beams 4 are so modulated to give a homogeneous radiation dose within the tumor . this is possible thanks to a unique proton gantry 7 . the gantry 7 typically comprises a rotating beam delivery system 10 and a patient table 8 . a so called sweeper magnet moves the beam 4 laterally parallel to itself in one direction . then with the help of the range shifter , the energy of the beam 4 is modulated ( scan in depth ). the range shifter inserts polyethylene plates in the beam . the scan in the third direction , namely in the second lateral direction , is done by the shift of the patient table 8 . the intensity of each spot is controlled by two independent monitors ( ionization chambers ) placed before the range shifter plates . in this sense , it is mentioned that a four dimensional modulation of the beam 4 takes place — three dimensions for the position and one dimension for the time . this is an ideal technique for providing the intensity modulated proton therapy ( impt ). to ensure a safe patient treatment , sophisticated beam monitoring instruments and therapy plan verification tools are required . steering files are the core for a completely computer controlled running therapy . they are responsible for the delivered dose by steering the position and the intensity of each individual proton pencil beam 4 . in order to achieve the perfect running therapy , the quality approach of the actually applied proton dose and its &# 39 ; distribution have to be known both highly reliably and exactly . therefore , the applied proton dose is monitored by a testing arrangement using a sensor assembly as described in detail below . the measurements for determining the characteristics of the different intended scintillating powders are done with the scintillating detector &# 39 ; s heads ( one head 12 is shown in fig2 ) placed directly in a water phantom 14 and kept at a fixed position . the depth dose curve is then obtained by stepwise changing the water level . the gantry 7 is at the 0 degree position ( see fig1 ). the water phantom 14 and the detector are placed on the patient table 8 of the gantry 7 . thus , the beam direction is orthogonal to the water surface . the water phantom 14 comprises an open plexiglas ™ box 116 , which can be filled up with water thanks to a pump connected to a water tank . little steps of about 1 mm water thickness and big steps of about 10 - 20 mm have been respectively chosen in the bragg - peak region and in the plateau for the curves as shown in fig5 . the used steering file delivers a surface dose for a 6 × 6 cm flat field . this means that for each spot of the field , the number of range - shifter plates inserted in the beam and the intensity were constant . the entrance energy of the protons was 138 mev and the bragg peak was located about 13 . 25 cm below the water surface . the reference curve in water for the bragg curve of 138 mev proton beam has been measured with a markus chamber . the used ptw markus chamber is a small parallel - plate ionization chamber . it has a plate diameter of 6 mm and a plate distance of 2 mm . this gives a sensitive volume of 0 . 055 cm 3 . the chamber is waterproof so that measurements have been performed directly in the water phantom 14 as shown in fig5 with respect to the dashed curve for the markus chamber . the sensor head 12 produced for these experimental measurements uses a multiclad bicron fiber ( bcf - 98 ) as the optical fiber 16 . this optical fiber 16 comprises a polystyrene - based core and two layers of cladding . the outermost layer has the lowest refractive index n thus permitting total internal reflection at the second boundary . the fiber &# 39 ; s diameter is 2 mm and the numerical aperture is 0 . 74 . a fiber sensor 18 can be divided in two main components as follows : the sensor head 12 as the light production device and the optical fiber 16 as part of the light readout device . the light production device is the scintillating sensor head 12 of the fiber sensor 18 , where the deposited proton energy is converted into light thanks to the presence of the phosphor powder . the light is then transferred to the light readout device by means of the optical fiber 16 . the signal is then focused on a ccd ( charge coupled device ) 20 and analyzed via computer . fig1 and 2 schematically show these main components . a bicron bc - 600 optical cement has been used to ensure an optimal coupling between the phosphor powder used in the sensor head 12 and the light guide of the optical fiber 16 . bc - 600 is a clear epoxy resin formulated specifically for making optical joints with plastic scintillators and acrylic light guide . in one embodiment for the preparation of a millimeter big scintillating volume in the sensor head 12 , first , a mixture of optical cement and phosphor powder in a certain concentration is carefully prepared . then a small amount of the mixture ( about 0 . 02 g ) is dropped into a cylindrical plexiglas ™ holder member 22 and then coupled to the optical fiber 16 . the holder member 22 is made of a 150 mm long cylindrical plexiglas ™ rod with a 15 mm cylindrical hole drilled in it in different depths for different fiber sensors 18 as described below the respect to fig4 and 6 . it is mentioned that the material for the holder member 22 can be chosen in a broad versatility of materials , like pe , polystyrole etc . for each prepared scintillating head 12 , a protocol is compiled describing the steps of the preparation and the quantities of cement and powder involved in order to know exactly the prepared concentration and the amount of powder coupled to the fiber . this method gives a high flexibility in the preparation of the scintillating heads with different powder concentrations and different mixture thicknesses δx on the top of the fiber in order to compare their response when they are exposed to ionizing radiation . according to the present invention , two different phosphor powders were mixed together to obtain a new powder composition that satisfies specific requirements as is described below . the signal transferred by the optical fiber is focused on a ccd 20 by an optical lens in a lightproof black box . the lens is the nikkor ™ af - s 17 - 35 mm f / 2 . 8d if - ed wide - angle zoom . in all the measurements the zoom was set to 17 mm focal length and maximal aperture , namely f / 2 . 8 . the system can focus on more than one fiber in order to study several detector heads at once . the full - frame ccd image sensor used is a kodak ™ kaf - 0401e ( apogee instruments ). it is a high performance monochrome area ccd image sensor with 768 × 512 photoactive pixels ( 9 μm ). table 1 shows the physical properties for scintillating heads manufactured from two different types of initial powders . this table gives an exemplarily plot of the scintillating heads 12 used to investigate their ionization density dependence . with respect to the known prior art , a first type of initial scintillating powder gd 2 o 2 s : tb ( referred to as p 43 ) has been used . the second type of sensor heads comprises the inventive mixture of both ( zn , cd ) s : ag ( referred to as p 20 ) and p 43 in different compositions . in the first column of table 1 , c is the concentration of phosphor powder in the optical cement . thus c = m p /( m p + m c ), where m p and m c are respectively the powder mass and the optical cement mass in the mixture . hence m p = m 43 + m 20 , where m 43 and m 20 are respectively the mass of gd 2 o 2 s : tb ( p 43 ) and the mass of ( zn , cd ) s : ag ( p 20 ). in the table m 43 and m 20 are respectively the masses of the two powders relative to the total powder mass in the mixture , thus m 43 = m 43 / m p and m 20 = m 20 / m p . examples for a pure p 43 mixture are given , as well as for the inventive p 43 + p 20 mixture in a given ratio . the powder concentration c and the phosphor ratio m 20 / m 43 are input to calculate , respectively , the effective density ρ eff and the relative stopping power ρ s of the radiation sensitive volume . the densities of the optical cement , p 43 and p 20 are respectively 1 . 18 , 7 . 3 , 4 . 35 . in the last column , q is the quantity of powder in the sensitive volume of a thickness δx of 3 mm . the dimension of q is mg / cm 2 and indicates the amount of powder on the top of optical fiber per unit surface . as seen in fig5 , gd 2 o 2 s : tb ( p 43 ) and ( zn , cd ) s : ag ( p 20 ) have opposite responses in the bragg peak . the first p 43 shows a significant decrease in the relative dose in the so - called bragg peak due to its squenching characteristics . the second p 20 on the contrary , shows a tremendously unexpected increase in the relative dose in the bragg peaks . only the inventive mixture p 43 + p 20 was prepared so that the loss of efficiency for gd 2 o 2 s : tb ( p 43 ) could be compensated by the presence of ( zn , cd ) s : ag ( p 20 ). it is expected , that small amount of ( zn , cd ) s : ag mixed with gd 2 o 2 s : tb will raise the peak - to - entrance ratio of gd 2 o 2 s : tb , in order to get a ratio closer to the one measured with ionization chambers as given by the dashed line in fig5 . by assuming that the system has a linear response and with the help of the data of the measurement shown in fig5 , it is possible to estimate the amount of ( zn , cd ) s : ag , that should be added to achieve this goal . the results of the estimation in the experimental setup according to fig1 is a phosphor mixture comprising 80 % wt of gd 2 o 2 s : tb and 20 % wt of ( zn , cd ) s : ag . hence , such a mixture has been prepared and tested as shown in fig5 . the good match of the curves is an indication that the system is linear and that with this method it is possible to modulate the height of the bragg peak so as to obtain the same peak - to - entrance ratio as with the ionization chambers used so far . fig3 now depicts the disposition of the fiber sensors 18 when designing a three - dimensional array of sensor head positions . the fiber sensors 18 are disposed in a hexagonal lattice allowing one to dispose the fiber sensors 18 at an equal distance away from each of the directly adjacent fiber sensors 18 . in this example , the center - to - center distance is 8 mm . fig4 is view of a dummy holder block 24 showing a variety of dummy glass rods 26 kept in a holder plate 28 . the dummy glass rods 26 represent the fiber sensors 18 ( shown in fig2 ) in an intermediate step of manufacturing the three - dimensional array of sensor heads 12 ( shown in fig1 ). at the tip of each dummy glass rod 26 , a sensor head 12 will be located in the latter sensor assembly . from fig4 , it can be easily understood that the sensor heads 12 will be disposed in a plane similar to a 111 - plane in a cuboid crystal structure . therefore , an incident proton is absorbed only in one distinct sensor head 12 in order to generate a reliable signal for the absorbed dose in the volume of sensor head 12 . for manufacturing a sensor assembly , this dummy holder block can be casted with a tissue equivalent material , like rubber , such as caoutchouc , and the dummy glass rods 26 can be removed after the tissue equivalent material , in this example , rubber , is hardened . subsequently , the fiber sensors 18 can be inserted instead of the dummy glass rods 26 until they reach their stop position in the rubber block . as a result , the sensor heads 12 are disposed in the same three dimensional appearance that was given by the former arrangement of the dummy glass rods 26 . additionally , the arrangement according to fig4 can also be used to manufacture a sensor assembly as will be described below with reference to fig6 . in this case , the holder plate 28 in fig4 is equivalent to the holder plate 32 a in fig6 . the sensor heads 12 for this embodiment , in the illustration of fig4 , represent an intermediate state of the manufacturing process disposed in the plane of the holder plate 28 . an alternate embodiment for designing a three - dimensional array of sensors heads 12 is given in fig6 which , as an example shows a two - dimensional section of a three - dimensional sensor assembly 30 . this sensor assembly 30 comprises a holder plate 32 having openings 34 in which the fiber sensors 18 are inserted until they reach their end position defined by a stop plate 36 . the final end position is supported by a sealing ring 136 that is disposed in an annular notch 38 formed in the cylindrical plexiglas ™ holding member 22 and which snaps into a corresponding notch 40 in the holder plate 32 . the holder plate 32 comprises , in this specific embodiment , two parts 32 a , 32 b that are attached to each other by detachable means , which are known to the person skilled in the art , such as screws etc ., in order to improve the possibility of assembling the fiber sensors 18 and even disassembling those which failed in function . in order to design the three dimensional shape of the array of sensor heads 12 , in this embodiment the ingenious act is to provide cylindrical cavities 42 in the desired depth of the cylindrical plexiglas ™ member 22 . in general , the fiber sensor 18 will be assembled prior to its insertion into the holder plate 32 as it is described with reference to fig2 . the cavities 42 might be generated by drilling or other suitable forming techniques as known to the person skilled in the art . by varying the depth of the cavities 42 and the respective disposal of the fiber sensor 18 in the lattice network , the desired three - dimensional structure is obtained . in an exemplary manner , the advantages of this three - dimensional structure is illustrated in fig6 using four different portions 4 a to 4 d of the proton beam 4 . the different portions 4 a to 4 c are absorbed in the respective sensors heads 12 a to 12 c . the light generated by the scintillating mixture p 43 / p 20 that is comprised in the sensor head 12 is proportional to the respective dose in the respective sensor heads 12 . the beam portion 4 d is absorbed in a further sensor head that is located outside the section shown in fig6 . anyway , due to the three - dimensional arrangement of the sensor heads 12 , each beam section “ sees ”, on its way towards the sensor volume that is defined by the three - dimensional array of the sensor heads 12 , only one distinct sensor head 12 , even in the case where the beam direction varies . in the shown embodiment , it is apparent that the situation does not change significantly when beam direction has a vector component perpendicular to the plane of the drawing . for instance , in case the three - dimensional array is designed according to the 111 - plane in a cubic crystal lattice and comprises small discrete sensor heads , as shown in fig2 , the beam direction can be broadly varied . only orienting the beam parallel to the 111 - plane the arrangement of sensor heads 12 is no longer suitable . however , a very broad range of spatial beam orientations can be checked with this arrangement which has a vast impact on the improvement of quality securing procedures in proton therapy . it is also possible to change the 3d arrangement of the sensor for practical purposes into any desired shape . in summarizing the aforementioned description , the new phosphor composition can be applied in the realization of a phantom ( sensor volume ) comprising a large quantity of small sensitive volumes ( sensor heads 12 ), which can be irradiated from every arbitrary direction , so as to verify the dose distribution of impt plans . the sensitive volumes could have a cross section coupled to the optical fiber of 3 . 14 mm 2 and a thickness of 1 . 6 mm , which results in a small volume of 0 . 005 cm 3 . as already mentioned , the relative stopping power of above suggested mixture p 43 / p 20 is 1 . 8 . this high value has to be kept in mind in the 3d - distribution of the sensitive volumes in the phantom in order to minimize disturbances on the dose distribution . the proposed arrangement avoids placing the sensitive volumes one after the other along the proton path , so that one volume sees the shadow of another one . the knowledge of the specific geometry and composition of the detector &# 39 ; s head permits the realization of a virtual phantom for therapy plan calculation and monte carlo simulation , which could then take into account the presence of material with high stopping power so to verify the dose distribution calculated with such plans . the phosphor gd 2 o 2 s : tb +( zn , cd ) s : ag could be used for the preparation of scintillating screens , as those applied in the diagnostic radiology . dose measurements with the intensifier screens ( lanex screen ) used at the psi need a quenching correction , but this would not be the case for a screen with the right phosphor composition , as suggested above . the measured peak - to - entrance ratio can be modulated by steering the ratio of the two powders p 43 and p 20 in the mixture . this could be exploited to make a detector that can simulate , to some extent , the biological response of irradiated tissues . the biological cellular damage is higher ( higher rbe ) for radiation with high let . this is the case in the region of the bragg peak where the discrepancy from the physical proton dose is larger . the measured peak - to - entrance ratio can be modulated by steering the ratio of the two powders p 43 / p 20 in the mixture . this could be exploited to make a detector that can simulate , to some extent , the biological response of irradiated tissues . the biological cellular damage is higher ( higher relative biological effectiveness rbe ) for radiation with high let . this is the case in the region of the bragg peak where the discrepancy from the physical proton dose is larger . during therapy plan calculation , the dose distribution is optimized so to obtain a homogeneous physical dose within the target volume . thus usually efforts are made to get a flat profile of the physical dose pd for a given beam direction within the target volume ( see fig7 and 8 , where sobp represents the so - called spread out bragg peak ). the clinical prescribed dose in the cobalt gray equivalent ( cge ) is then obtained by multiplying the physical proton dose by constant rbe value of 1 . 1 , which is the average rbe of protons used in clinical applications . but the biological response of the tissue , which can be described by introducing the concept of a “ biological equivalent dose bed ”, is not completely flat as is the physical one , due to the fact that rbe changes with depth . this can be seen in fig7 , where the bed is scaled by the constant factor of 1 . 1 in case of proton irradiation . in the distal region of the sobp , the dose is given primarily by protons with low energy ( high let ), thus by the superposition of bragg peaks , instead in the proximal region the dose is given primarily by the superposition of protons of the plateau . therefore , an increasing biological equivalent dose with depth is expected while the physical dose is flat . the discrepancy between the physical and the biological equivalent dose is not significantly pronounced for protons , but it becomes relevant for heavy ion applications like the use of carbon ions in radiotherapy . in this case , an optimization of the biological equivalent dose bed instead of the physical dose pd is absolutely necessary and is always the case . the result of such an optimization for protons is plotted in fig8 . now the profile of the biological equivalent dose bed is flat while the physical dose pd decreases with depth . as well for protons this would be the best optimization process . the development of models that describe the biological equivalent dose bed is a big challenge , which is based on in - depth biological examinations , like the interpretation of the damage of irradiated biological cells . due to the strong tissue and dose dependence of the biological response a unique model is not expected . what has to be pointed out is that , by steering the ratio of the two scintillating powders , it is possible to create dosimeters that simulate a given biological model in order to measure the biological equivalent dose bed , and others that at the same time can measure the physical dose pd , and to make a comparison between them . thus , with these detectors , it is much easier to measure the biological equivalent dose bed because the use of “ biological dosimeters ”, i . e . biological cells , is avoided .

6Physics

according to one aspect of the present invention , a two - step process is used to form an aerosol with organoleptic properties suitable to be delivered with e - cigarettes . in the first step of the process , an aerosol is formed from a non - flavored formulation located in a first chamber or zone of the e - cigarette . any aerosol formation mechanism ( e . g ., thermal , mechanical , piezoelectric ) may be used in the present invention . the aerosol is then subjected to a taste , fragrance and / or nicotine carrying matrix adapted to transfer the desired organoleptic properties to the aerosol . during this step , taste , fragrance and / or nicotine delivery components in a high vapor pressure solvent are released into the aerosol prior to exiting the e - cigarette mouth piece . the sketch below shows this two - step process wherein a fragrance insert is employed to deliver fragrance to the e - cigarette aerosol . the formation of an unflavored aerosol in an e - cigarette may involve any known nebulizer mechanism . for example , ultrasonic wave nebulization ( with a piezoelectric element vibrating and creating high - frequency ultrasound waves to cause vibrations and atomization of liquid formulations ), electric nebulization ( with a heating element built on a high surface component in direct contact with an aerosol forming material ), or spraying jet atomization by passing an aerosol solution through small venturi injection channels . in general , the aerosol characteristics depend on the rheological and thermodynamics properties of the aerosol forming liquid as well as the nebulization mechanism . because of physical chemical stresses ( i . e . thermal degradation , shear induced phase separation , etc .) of the aerosol forming material during nebulization , the aerosol characteristics and delivery consistency can be affected when the liquid is nebulized . this is very relevant to aerosol quality if the affected aerosol material component is organoleptic . for example , nicotine might degrade under thermal nebulization ; menthol and other hydrophobic taste material might precipitate due to incompatibility with hydrophilic forming aerosol formulations . in other cases , desirable organoleptic materials , i . e . menthol , tobacco extracts , etc ., can be insoluble in the aerosol forming liquid at the appropriate viscosity and / or surface tension to deliver an acceptable aerosol , therefore , limiting the amount of delivered organoleptic . furthermore , improvements to the consistency of aerosol delivery might be possible with this strategy because the organoleptic material — which are absent during aerosol formation — would not affect the viscosity and the surface tension . these material variables affect aerosol particle size distribution . having an aerosol formation process prior to flavoring insures aerosol consistency , in particular , when it is desirable to deliver a consistent nicotine amount by the aerosol exiting the mouth piece of the e - cigarette . therein , that an unflavored aerosol formulation , located in the first chamber or zone , suitable to form aerosols with particle size distribution and deliver desired user experience , and that can be later further tailored for organoleptic delivery is attractive to e - cigarette manufacturers . base aerosol formulations suitable for the present invention comprise aerosol forming materials , vapor pressure modifiers , buffers , salts , nucleation site structures , surfactants , preservatives , and an excipient . furthermore , any of the components that form the unflavored aerosol formulation can be used to trigger chemically another component located downstream the nebulizer . for example , water can be used to activate exothermic or endothermic reactions of salts located in a downstream insert to induce heat changes that either heat a sublimable material insert or change deliverable aerosol particle size distribution . non - limiting examples of unflavored aerosol forming formulations are included in table i below . taste , fragrance and / or nicotine carrying matrix formulations , applicable to this invention to change the organoleptic properties of the delivered aerosol are presented in the embodiments below . these formulations can be liquids , dispersions , gels , encapsulate fragrances , fibers or any other forms and shapes that allow intimate contact with the unflavored aerosol stream . these formulations may have a high vapor pressure to allow maximizing their fragrance contribution to the aerosol stream . illustrative examples of functionalized formulations which may be incorporated in the e - cigarette are presented below . the major formulation components in this embodiment , when the formulation is in a liquid state , consist of a fragrance , a vapor pressure modifier , a preservative and an excipient . these formulations might also contain other components to further modify the delivered aerosol stream such as surfactants , nucleation sites , buffers , etc . table ii shows non - limiting examples for solutions , dispersions , encapsulates and gel formulation physical forms . these formulations might contain nicotine as required by a final aerosol delivery specification . when the solubility of the organoleptic material is low , there is a limit to the amount of organoleptic in an aerosol compatible formulation . by placing the organoleptic downstream from the aerosol forming part of the e - cigarette , it is possible to have formulations with high concentration of delivered organoleptics since they are not constrained by their low solubility in aerosol forming formulations . the formulation components in this embodiment can consist of a fragrance , a vapor pressure modifier , a preservative and an excipient . these formulations might also contain other components to further modify the delivered aerosol stream such as surfactants , nucleation sites , buffers , etc . the table below shows non - limiting examples for liquids , solutions and dispersions . because in the practice of this invention two or more chambers , compartments or zones are used having different formulations , the invention also enables benefits resulting from their different nature to obtain further improvements in aerosol delivery . these improvements are inclusive for the embodiments disclosed in table i , ii and iii above . two specific cases are noted below : according to this embodiment , the unflavored formulation may comprise a chemical component that can either react or affect another chemical component included in the downstream functionalized formulation . for example , it is known that nicotine in solution is in a chemical equilibrium as per the bronsted - lowry acid / base theory . therefore , acidic or basic component — such as acetic , citric , etc ., buffers — carried by the unflavored aerosol can be useful to control the ionization of nicotine in the final delivered aerosol . therein , according to this embodiment , improvement in nicotine delivery consistency is possible . in addition , the formation in situ of fragile flavors and taste component is possible if reactants are kept separated until mixing in the aerosol vapor prior to delivery . the inclusion of a chemical component in the unflavored formulation that can react with another chemical component included in the downstream formulation to exothermically or endothermically change the temperature of the aerosol . for example , water in the unflavored aerosol can react with a salt pod in the downstream portion of the e - cigarette to release heat of hydration , i . e ., cuso 4 , etc . this heat can be used to assist in the sublimation of organoleptic in the downstream portion of the e - cigarette . another example is the use of an endothermic reaction , i . e ., nh 4 cl , etc . this would allow cooling of the aerosol vapor after its formation and therefore improve delivery consistency of the aerosol particle size distribution . fig2 further illustrates this concept , whereby the unflavored aerosol is formed in the aerosol forming cartridge where an aerosol forming liquid is in contact with the heating element . as the aerosol moves downstream and interacts with the flavored insert , the aerosol becomes flavored . though the sketch in fig2 shows separate e - cigarette major components , it will be understood that any combination of the battery , aerosol cartridge and / or fragrance insert may be physically integrated with each other as long as the fragrance insert is disposed downstream the aerosol cartridge as indicated by the arrows . this concept separates aerosol formation from taste , fragrance and / or nicotine delivery . therefore , the aerosol is improved by removing any degradation of quality , nicotine delivery and taste caused by either the interaction of the aerosol forming liquid formulation with the formulation contained in the fragrance insert or its thermal degradation / inactivation when in contact with the heating element of the e - cigarette . in addition , the fragrance formulations in the inserts can be made with a broad range of materials such as normal solutions , dispersions , emulsions , gels , creams , powders , pastes , waxes , etc . the fragrance release can occur thermally , chemically , dissolution , vapor pressure driven , moisture , electric , etc . the insert can use fabricated using one or combination of different fragrance matrixes such as surface coating , dissolvable matrix , encapsulated fragrance , wicking web , coated web , etc . although , this concept is based on aerosol flow dynamics , it can be further enhanced by placing a heating element in the insert to control the release of fragrance . an embodiment of an apparatus of the present invention depicted below in fig3 comprises an e - cigarette having a cartomizer loaded with a glycol / water solution in addition to a paper filter insert coated with tobacco extract located prior to the mouth end . the aerosol delivered under this construction tasted as ‘ tobacco flavored aerosol ’. by way of further example , a vanilla flavored insert may be used to deliver a vanilla flavorant to aerosol delivery . the sketches proved in the following figures illustrate numerous embodiments of the proposed inserts for the practice of the present invention . these embodiments are non - limiting , and it will be understood that the present invention may comprise combinations of one or more of these embodiments . porous matrix of embedded coated fibers or hollow fibers filled with fragrance formulations fig4 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising fragrance formulations in a porous matrix of embedded fibers . the fragrance may be coated on the fibers on contained within hollow fibers . according to this embodiment , the fragrance migrates into the aerosol stream to flavor the aerosol stream . it can be activated electrically or by dissolving a fragrance carrier . a similar release mechanism is applicable to numerous of the other embodiments described below . single / multiple layer screen insert where the screen carries fragrances as coated fibers , fragrances as encapsulated fibers , etc . fig5 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising fragrances embedded in single or multiple layer screens for delivery to the unflavored aerosol vapor . according to this embodiment , for example , the release of encapsulated fragrances might be activated by water / glycol in an unflavored aerosol formulation . woven or non - woven web or sheet form with erodible material or any of the previously described fragrance carriers fig6 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a web fabricated such that fragrances are released on interaction with the unflavored aerosol . fig7 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a diffusible or erodible disk containing a functionalized formulation . for example , the disk can be formulated with a fragrance in a hygroscopic matrix that erodes during inhalation . coil wrapped insert with a coated high area or webbed structure fig8 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a coil wrapped insert having a coated area or webbed structure . the purpose of this design is to maximize the effective interaction between the unflavored aerosol and the flavoring insert . this design is also applicable to several of the embodiments disclosed herein . fig9 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising the use of a porous membrane or open cell foam / sponge structure the porous membrane can be made of cellulose or any other highly absorbing material applicable for fragrance / nicotine carrying . the e - cigarette shown in fig3 with a tobacco extract embedded material placed toward the mouth end is an embodiment of this design . fig1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a plaited flavor coated insert . in addition of maximizing the effective interaction area for the un - flavored aerosol and the flavoring insert , this plaited design benefits from venturi acceleration to drive fragrance into the aerosol stream . fig1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a configured flavor coated insert . in addition to the ease of construction of a solid insert , the insert can be fabricated from an erodible fragrance / nicotine matrix . one or multiple flow path can be used to control the flow dynamic and maximize the impacting energy of the un - flavored aerosol on the flavoring insert . fig1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising bundled tubes containing fragrances / nicotine that is releasable on differential pressure , temperature or electrical activation . inhalation can also be a fragrance releasing force . fig1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a honeycomb cell structure with fragrance / nicotine pods . control of release can be obtained by having different releasing rates distributed among the honeycomb cells . this concept of controlling the fragrance releasing rate by changing the rate of activation across the flavoring insert is applicable to other embodiments of the present invention . fig1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a capsule containing fragrance / nicotine which releases its load under inhalation pressure . this approach can be used to change the flagrance as an off / on flavor option . although fig1 shows the flavoring of an unflavored aerosol stream , it is also applicable for changing the flavor of a flavored aerosol . this insert can be used sequentially . these concepts are also applicable below to the embodiments directed to fragrance release by inhalation or by being physically crushed . fig1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a fragrance insert that can be broken under inhalation pressure or by being physically crushed to release fragrance into the aerosol stream . fig1 illustrates an embodiment of the present invention comprising a pouch having a non - woven web of non - woven sensitive material normally having interstices capable of passing smoke upon activation . the web is compressed and bonded , while compressed , to hold the fibers in compressed condition filling the interstices to prevent passage of its load outwardly thereof . the payload can be fragrance ( s ), tobacco extract , nicotine delivery enhancing chemical material ( s ) s , or other material ( s ) desired for modification of the unflavored aerosol . the pouch releases its load on puncturing . the web can react or dissolve with one or more chemical components in the unflavored aerosol to be activated . therefore , the pouch formulation provides the benefit of improved shelf life by being protected from interaction with the environment and with each other prior to usage . fig1 and 18 illustrate embodiments of the present invention comprising a pouch containing a payload . the load can be fragrance ( s ), tobacco extract ( s ), nicotine ( s ), nicotine delivery enhancing chemical materials , or other material ( s ) desired for the modification of the aerosol organoleptic properties . this pouch releases its load on mechanical , thermal activation or similar mixing mechanism such as puncturing , crushing , opening a valve , etc . because the pouch formulation is within a sealed container , the users have an on / off option of using it to modify the aerosol organoleptic experience . this invention is inclusive of the use of multiple pouches or chambers placed in a carrousel arrangement in alignment with the aerosol stream such that users can select a particular flavor to be delivered during usage of the e - cigarette . in addition , the formulations benefit of improved shelf life by being protected from interaction with the environment and with each other prior to usage .

0Human Necessities

while it is not fully understood as to why the invention operates to provide such significantly useful electrically conductive nickel coatings , particularly in the area of emi shielding coatings , the following preferred embodiments and preferred aspects of the invention will now be described . the nickel pigment material used in the coating composition is substantially of nickel . the nickel pigment material broadly stated is finely divided nickel powder having an average particle size of less than about 10 microns and over about 99 % purity . preferably , the nickel powder used herein should be formed by the carbonyl process and have an average particle size of between about 2 . 0 microns and about 7 . 0 microns and 99 +% in purity . best results are obtained where the average particle size is between about 2 . 9 microns and about 3 . 6 microns . such nickel pigment material broadly stated should have a surface area of approximately 0 . 25 - 0 . 75 m 2 / gram and preferably of approximately 0 . 34 - 0 . 68 m 2 / gram . best results are obtained where the surface area of the nickel powder is approximately 0 . 58 m 2 / gram . small amounts of other conductive metals such as silver , copper and the like may also be present in amounts of about 2 - 3 % or less by weight without substantially effecting performance characteristics . nickel - plated glass beads , nickel - plated copper particles , nickel - plated ceramic particles and the like may also be used in this invention . the additional pigment material used in the composition , which has been found to give very good properties to the coating is a refractory ferro alloy . such ferro alloys include materials which are selected from at least one of the group consisting of ferrophosphorous , ferromanganese , ferromolybdenum , ferrosilicon , ferrochrome , ferrovanadium , ferrozirconium , ferrotitanium , ferrotungsten , ferroboron , and ferrocarbide or iron carbide . the ferro alloys discovered for use herein are described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 562 , 124 , the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference . of the refractory ferro alloys indicated hereinabove , the preferred material is ferrophosphorous , and especially preferred is di - iron phosphide . the preferred ferrophosphorous refractory ferro alloy is an iron phosphide composition , generally containing from about 20 to 28 % weight of phosphorous and corresponding to a mixture of fe 2 p and fep . the principal impurities occurring in ferrophosphorous are silicon , vanadium , chromium , nickel and manganese , as well as trace amounts of other elements . of these , silicon and manganese are the major impurities , typically being present in amounts up to about 7 % by weight . ferrophosphorous is commercially available from the hooker chemicals and plastics corp . under the trademark ferrophos ® and is usually denominated di - iron phosphide . the ferro alloy component of the present coating composition is a powder preferably having a random and angular particle shape . the particles of the ferro alloy constituent have an average particle size less than about 70 microns on a broad basis , and preferably less than about 30 microns . best results are obtained where the average particle size is less than about 20 microns . the ferro alloy used in this composition is present within the broad range of about 5 % to about 90 % by weight of the total pigment material in the composition . preferably it is within the range of about 10 % to about 50 % by weight of the pigment material , and best results are obtained within the range of about 15 % to about 35 %. the solvent carrier used with the coatings can be the conventional organic solvents or solvent blends useful for dissolving or dispersing the binder resin which will subsequently be described . the solvent used is one which is compatible with the binder resin , nickel particles , and ferro alloy particles . also , because one use of the coating composition is to obtain an electromagnetic interference shield on the interior surfaces of plastic enclosed electronic devices , the solvent blend should be one which is compatible with the plastic containers and one which will not degrade the plastic materials . for example , with many solvent sensitive plastics , a blend of isopropanol and toluol has been found desirable . broadly stated , solvents such as glycols , glycol ethers , esters , ketones , alcohols , acetates , etc ., or water can be used as diluents . generally suitable solvents are water , ketones , aromatics , alcohols , aliphatics or blends of same . the binder resin used in the coating composition may be of any of a number of different materials . the binder resin may be a thermoplastic resin material which is compatible with the nickel particles and with the ferro alloy materials used in the coating composition . thermosetting resin materials and silicates may also be used as the binder resin herein . the binder resin broadly stated is selected from at least one of the group consisting of thermoplastic acrylic , vinyl , urethane , alkyd , polyester , hydrocarbon , fluoroelastomer and cellulosic resins ; and thermosetting acrylic , polyester , epoxy , phenolic , urethane , and alkyd resins . vinyls , polyesters , and acrylics are preferred . the particular binder resin material chosen is dictated by the desired application method and which is also compatible with the substrate . the pigment to binder ratio by weight in the coating composition of this invention should broadly be within the range between about 20 to 1 and about 2 to 1 . preferably it should be maintained in the range between about 10 to 1 and about 3 to 1 . other materials which may also optionally be present in the coating composition are for example various thixotropic agents ( anti - settling agents ) selected from at least one of the group consisting of finely divided silicas , castor oil derivatives or organo - clays . particularly suitable materials for this purpose are the bentonite clays . when used , the thixotropic agent may be present in an amount of between about 0 . 1 % and about 8 % by weight of the total solids . preferably , it should be within the range of about 0 . 1 % to about 4 % by weight of total solids and best results are obtained between about 1 % and about 2 %. the percent total solids in the coating composition of the present invention should broadly be within the range of about 20 % up to about 100 % by weight . preferably , it should be within the range of about 30 % to about 85 % and best results are obtained at about 60 % to about 80 % by weight . the properties of the new coating composition as referred to herein are believed to be highly advantageous and unique . broadly stated , the conductivity of the coating is within the range of about 0 . 2 to about 1000 ohms per square at 1 mil . on a preferred basis , the conductivity is within the range of about 0 . 5 to about 5 ohms per square at 1 mil , and particularly preferred embodiments exhibit conductivity of about 0 . 5 to about 3 ohms per square at 1 mil . it has been found that the new coating compositions disclosed herein exhibit generally excellent abrasion resistance , adhesion , humidity resistance and heat resistance properties . in order to further illustrate the invention , the following examples are provided . it is to be understood however that the examples are included for illustrative purposes and are not intended to be limiting of the scope of the invention as set forth in the subjoined claims . ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 5 . 9di - iron phosphidenickel powder 53 . 0formulating procedure : ( 1 ) predissolve resin in mixed solvents ( 2 ) add nickel powder and anti - settling agent ( 3 ) disperse in a ball mill for seven hours ( 4 ) add di - iron phosphide and disperse for 15 minutes ( 5 ) unloadstandardized application ( 1 ) sprayed on lexan ® plasticand evaluation procedure sheets ( 2 ) air dryed for 24 hours ( 3 ) resistance measured and standardized to 1 mil thicknessresults of 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 28 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ test coatings of examples 1 to 12 made by spraying on lexan ® ( registered trademark of general electric co .) plastic sheets and air drying for 24 hours . ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 11 . 8di - iron phosphidenickel powder 47 . 1formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 77 ohms per squareat 1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 17 . 7di - iron phosphidenickel powder 41 . 2formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 72 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 23 . 6di - iron phosphidenickel powder 35 . 3formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 2 . 96 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 29 . 5di - iron phosphidenickel powder 29 . 5formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 4 . 42 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0nickel powder 44 . 2iron carbide 14 . 7formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 42 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0nickel powder 44 . 2ferrotitanium 14 . 7formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 17 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 14 . 7di - iron phosphidenickel powder 44 . 2formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 19 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0nickel powder 44 . 2ferroboron 14 . 7formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 34 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0nickel powder 44 . 2ferrovanadium 14 . 7formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 51 ohms per squareat 1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0nickel powder 44 . 2ferromanganese 14 . 7formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 11 ohms per squareat 1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl methacrylate polymer ( binder resin ) 9 . 8castor oil derivative ( anti - settling agent ) 2 . 0ethylene glycol monoethyl ether ( solvent ) 7 . 9denatured ethyl alcohol ( solvent ) 1 . 6toluol 6 . 8n - butyl acetate 13 . 0nickel powder 44 . 2ferrotungsten 14 . 7formulating procedure same as example 1 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of . 942 ohms per squareat 1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl butyl methacrylate copolymer ( binder resin ) 5 . 5bentonite clay 0 . 6bentone ® 27nickel powder 35 . 4ferromanganese 8 . 8n - butanol 4 . 2n - propyl acetate 32 . 4isopropanol 1 . 4toluol 11 . 7formulating procedure : ( 1 ) predissolve binder resin in mixed solvents ( 2 ) add dissolved resin , nickel powder and clay ( 3 ) load all ingredients into shot mill and mix for 15 minutesresults for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 32 ohms per square atmil . ______________________________________ test coatings for examples 13 , 14 , 16 , 17 , 19 , 21 and 22 made by spraying on lexan ® sheets and air drying for 72 hours . ______________________________________union carbide corp . vroh 6 . 9vinyl terpolymer resinn - butanol 5 . 1n - propyl acetate 40 . 3isopropanol 1 . 8toluol 14 . 6fumed colloidal silica 0 . 4 ( cabosil m - 5 ) nickel powder 24 . 0iron carbide 6 . 9formulating procedure as in example 13 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 97 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________rohm and haas co . 11 . 8acryloid ® at - 50thermosetting acrylic polymer ( binder resin ) ethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate ( solvent ) 11 . 7methyl ethyl ketone ( solvent ) 35 . 3nickel powder 29 . 4ferrotitanium 11 . 8formulating procedure as in example 13 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 20 . 8 ohms per squareat 1 mil . ______________________________________ test coating for examples 15 and 20 made by spraying on glass plate and curing for 30 minutes at 325 ° f . ______________________________________shell chemical co . 7 . 1epon ® 1007 epoxy resinmethyl ethyl ketone 28 . 5toluol 28 . 5nickel powder 21 . 3ferrovanadium 14 . 2formulating procedure as in example 13 . before coating , add shell chemical co . epon ® h - 3 0 . 4curing agentresults for 1 mil thick applied coating : - electrical resistance of 5 . 59ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________mobay chemical corp . 11 . 4multron r - 221 - 75 saturated polyester resinethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate 22 . 7butyl acetate 11 . 3nickel powder 31 . 8ferroboron 11 . 4formulating procedure as in example 13 . before coating , add mobay chemical corp . desmodur 11 . 4il polyisocyanateresults for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 3 . 04 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________kasil # 1 ( aqueous potassium silicate solution ) 34 . 8nickel powder 35 . 6hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 23 . 8di - iron phosphidedeionized water 5 . 8formulating procedure as in example 13 . test coating after spraying on glass plates and curingfor 30 minutes at 200 ° f . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 6 . 64 ohms per square at1 mil . test coating after spraying on glass plates and curingfor 15 minutes at 1000 ° f . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 2 . 72 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________mobay chemical corp . multron r - 221 - 75 11 . 4saturated polyester resinnickel powder 31 . 8hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 11 . 4di - iron phosphideethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate 22 . 7butyl acetate 11 . 3formulating procedure same as in example 13 . before coating , add mobay chemical corp . desmodur 11 . 4il polyisocyanateresults for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 2 . 06 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________rohm and haas co . 11 . 8acryloid ® at - 50thermosetting acrylic polymerethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate 11 . 7methyl ethyl ketone 35 . 3nickel powder 30 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 15 . 0di - iron phosphideformulating procedure same as in example 13 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 20 . 4 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________methyl butyl methacrylate copolymer 5 . 5n - butanol 4 . 2toluol 11 . 7n - propyl acetate 32 . 4isopropanol 1 . 4bentonite clay 0 . 6bentone ® 27nickel powder 36 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 9 . 0di - iron phosphideformulating procedure same as in example 13 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 5 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ ______________________________________union carbide corp . vroh 6 . 9vinyl terpolymer resinn - butanol 5 . 1toluol 14 . 6n - propyl acetate 40 . 3isopropanol 1 . 8fumed colloidal silica 0 . 5 ( cabosil m - 5 ) nickel powder 25 . 0hooker corp . ferrophos ® 2131 7 . 0di - iron phosphideformulating procedure same as in example 13 . results for 1 mil thick applied coating : electrical resistance of 1 . 55 ohms per square at1 mil . ______________________________________ while it will be apparent that the preferred embodiments of the invention disclosed are well calculated to fulfill the objects above stated , it will be appreciated that the invention is susceptible to modification , variation and change without departing from the proper scope or fair meaning of the subjoined claims .

7Electricity

[ 0022 ] fig1 illustrates an overall system for providing global technical and field service support network in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig1 the global technical and field service support network 100 includes factory support center ( fsc ) 110 configured to directly communicate with each of continental support centers ( cscs ) 121 , 122 , 123 . also shown in fig1 are factory service engineers ( fses ) 131 , 132 , 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 , each of whom , as shown , may communicate directly with a corresponding continental support center ( csc ), or directly with the factory support center ( fsc ). furthermore , each of the customer sites ( css ) 140 a , 140 b , 140 c , 140 d , 140 e , 140 f , 140 g , 140 h , 140 i , 140 j , 140 k , 140 l , 140 m as shown may directly communicate with a corresponding on of the factory service engineers ( fses ) 131 , 132 , 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 . geographically , factory service engineers ( fses ) 131 , 132 , 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 may be located in close proximity to the corresponding customer sites ( css ), or in some cases , may actually be on - site at the customer sites ( css ) 140 a , 140 b , 140 c , 140 d , 140 e , 140 f , 140 g , 140 h , 140 i , 140 j , 140 k , 140 l , 140 m . moreover , the continental support centers ( cscs ) 121 , 122 , 123 may be strategically located based on factors such as the density of customer base within a geographic region , the size of customer accounts within a geographic region , and so on . the factory support center ( fsc ) 110 may comprise a group of technical experts with direct access to research and development as well as production , who may be available for assistance around the clock . for example , lamda physik , the assignee of the present invention , maintains its factory support center ( fsc ) in goettingen , germany . each of the various continental support centers ( cscs ) 121 , 122 , 123 may include technical experts who are primarily responsible for assisting the field service engineers ( fses ) 131 , 132 , 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 to quickly diagnose and repair problems arising from the operation and maintenance of the laser systems . as with the factory support center ( fsc ) 110 , the continental support centers ( cscs ) 121 , 122 , 123 may be available 24 hours a day , seven days a week to assist the respective field service engineers ( fses ) 131 , 132 , 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 . it should be noted that field service engineers ( fses ) 131 , 132 , 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 are generally responsible for maintaining , diagnosing and repairing the laser systems at the respective customer sites ( css ) 140 a , 140 b , 140 c , 140 d , 140 e , 140 f , 140 g , 140 h , 140 i , 140 j , 140 k , 140 l , 140 m . [ 0026 ] fig2 illustrates a flow chart for providing technical and field service support in the overall system shown in fig1 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig2 upon receiving equipment failure notification at a customer site ( cs ) at step 210 , a corresponding field service engineer ( fse ) is dispatched to the customer site , and the field service engineer ( fse ) declares the customer &# 39 ; s laser system “ in repair ” status at step 220 . thereafter , at step 230 , it is determined whether the dispatched field service engineer ( fse ) has identified the source of the laser system failure and repaired the laser system within four hours of declaring “ in repair ” status . if at step 230 it is determined that the field service engineer ( fse ) has accurately identified the source of the laser system failure and repaired the system within four hours of declaring “ in repair ” status , then the procedure terminate . on the other hand , if at step 230 it is determined that either the field service engineer ( fse ) has not corrected the laser system failure and more than four hours has passed since the “ in repair ” status of the laser system was declared , at step 240 , a corresponding continental service center ( csc ) is notified and the resident technical experts at the continental service center ( csc ) attempts to address the laser system failure , for example , by attempting to identify the source of the system failure , and to provide repair services with the field service engineer ( fse ) on site . thereafter , at step 250 , it is determined whether the technical experts resident at the continental service center ( csc ) and the field service engineer ( fse ) have properly repaired the failed laser system within 16 hours from the time when the failed laser system was declared to be “ in repair ” status . if the combined efforts of the technical experts at the continental service center ( csc ) and the field service engineer ( fse ) have properly addressed the laser system failure within 16 hours from being declared “ in repair ”, then the procedure terminates . on the other hand , if at step 250 it is determined that even the combined efforts of the technical experts that the continental service center ( csc ) and the field service engineer ( fse ) were not successful in addressing the customer &# 39 ; s laser system failure within 16 hours of declaring “ in repair ” status , then at step 260 , the factory service center ( fsc ) is notified of the failed laser system , and the technical experts resident at the factory service center ( fsc ) works directly in conjunction with the field service engineer ( fse ) to attempt to isolate the source of the laser system failure and to correct the identified problems to bring the laser system back into operation . thereafter , at step 270 , it is determined whether the combined efforts of the technical experts resident at the factory service center ( fsc ) and the field service engineer ( fse ) successfully isolated the source of the customer &# 39 ; s laser system failure and provided repair services to place the laser system in operation within 36 hours of declaring the laser system “ in repair ” status . if at step 270 it is determined that the combined efforts of the technical experts at the factory service center ( fsc ) and the on - site field service engineer ( fse ) successfully provided repair services to bring the customer &# 39 ; s laser system back into operation within the 36 hour window , then the procedure terminates . on the other hand , if at step 270 it is determined that the combined efforts of the on - site field service engineer ( fse ) and the technical experts at the factory service center ( fsc ) were unsuccessful in providing repair services to the customer &# 39 ; s failed laser system within the 36 hour window , then at step 280 , a technical expert from the factory service center ( fsc ) is dispatched to the customer &# 39 ; s site for repair services . in the manner described above , a multi - layered , escalated support service procedure for repair and / or replacement of laser systems and parts thereof , whether for scheduled or unscheduled downtime , it is possible to effectively and efficiently provide repair and / or replacement services for customer &# 39 ; s laser systems . indeed , given the high level of costs involved in deploying technical experts from the factory service center ( fsc ) on site to the customer &# 39 ; s premises , significant cost savings may be provided to the customer of laser systems in the event of equipment failures by implementing the escalated procedure set forth above with a predetermined diagnosis time frame and dedicated field service engineers ( fses ) resident on site or near the customer &# 39 ; s site . [ 0031 ] fig3 illustrates a flow chart for providing a predictable cost allocation procedure in the purchase of a laser system in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig3 at step 310 , the consumable components of the purchased laser system is retrieved from a database or other data source . thereafter at step 320 , the average and / or predicted lifetime for each of the consumable components retrieved at step 310 is determined . at step 330 , the repair and / or replacement cost for each consumable component for the purchased laser system is determined . in one embodiment , the step of retrieving the average and / or predicted lifetime for each of the consumable components at step 320 and the step of determining the repair and / or replacement cost for each consumable component may be interchangeable such that the step of determining the repair and / or replacement cost for each consumable component may be calculated before the step of determining the average and / or predicted lifetime of each component . alternatively , in another embodiment , the step of determining the repair and / or replacement cost for each consumable component and the step of retrieving the average and / or predicted lifetime for each consumable component may be performed concurrently . referring back to fig3 having retrieved the average and / or predicted lifetime of each consumable component of the purchased laser system at step 320 , and having determined the repair and / or replacement cost for each consumable component at step 330 , at step 340 , a support payment schedule for the purchaser designated support program is generated and stored in a database or memory . thereafter , at step 350 , the generated support payment schedule is transmitted to the purchaser of the laser system . in one aspect of the present invention , the support payment schedule generated at step 340 and transmitted to the laser system purchaser at step 350 may include a total payment schedule time period ( for example , two years ), divided into a predetermined payment schedule period ( such as every quarter ), a predetermined amount for each predetermined payment period , and a total support payment schedule amount , which includes the sum of all of the amount for the predetermined payment periods . furthermore , in one aspect , the average and / or predicted lifetime for each component of the laser system purchased , and the estimated repair and / or replacement cost for each component may be factored in determining the total support payment schedule amount , as well as the amount for each predetermined payment period . in one embodiment , the amount for each predetermined payment period may be the same for each period of the total payment schedule time period , or alternatively , the amount for the predetermined payment period may vary , depending upon several factors , including but not limited to , the type of use of the laser system , the purchase history of the laser system purchaser , the type of laser system service support program designated by the purchaser , and so on . [ 0034 ] fig4 illustrates a flow chart for generating a predictable cost allocation schedule for a laser system in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig4 at step 410 , the date of the laser system acceptance by the purchaser , or the date on which the initial support service coverage plan expires . in one aspect , for purchasers of new laser systems , the initial support service coverage may include providing on - site field service engineer ( fses ) support for the first six months free of charge to the laser system purchaser . in particular , the initial support service coverage may include a predetermined schedule for the field service engineer ( fse ) support such as on - site support during normal working hours ( for example , from 8 am to 5 pm , monday through friday ), providing availability of the field service engineer ( fse ) on site within eight hours during after hour on work days ( for example , from 5 pm to 8 am , monday through friday ), and finally , providing availability of the field service engineer ( fse ) on site within 12 hours during non - working hours ( for example , from 5 pm on friday to 8 am on monday including local and national holidays ). additionally , the initial support service coverage may further include a 24 hour , seven days per week telephone support network with an assured response time of less than two hours . referring back to fig4 upon retrieving the date of the laser system acceptance by the purchaser , or the date on which the initial support service coverage plan expires ( date x ) at step 410 , it is determined whether a 10 % installment for the first of the scheduled support service program is received from the laser system purchaser at step 420 . if it is determined that the 10 % installment payment has not been received from the laser system purchaser at step 420 for the particular laser system which corresponds to the system acceptance date or the expiration of the initial support service coverage date of date x , then the procedure returns to step 410 . on the other hand , if at step 420 , it is determined that the 10 % installment payment for the purchaser designated support service program has been received , then at step 430 , the variable date x is incremented by a predetermined amount . in one aspect of the present invention , the predetermined amount may include three months , which corresponds to a quarter in a calendar year . thereafter at step 440 , it is determined whether on date x ( which is incremented by the predetermined amount at step 420 ) a 15 % installment payment for the purchaser designated support service program has been received . if it is determined that the 15 % installment payment has not been received at step 440 , then at step 450 , the purchaser designated support service program is declared to be in default , and the purchaser of the laser system is notified of the default status at step 460 . on the other hand , if at step 440 it is determined that the 15 % installment payment has been received from the laser system purchaser , at step 470 , it is determined whether the pulse count for the laser system purchased by the customer has reached a predetermined count . it is noted that another countable parameter may be used such as time , accumulated energy input to a discharge of the laser system or number of workpieces processed . in one aspect of the present invention , the predetermined count of the laser system pulse count may be 8 billion pulses . if it is determined at step 470 that the predetermined pulse count has not been reached , then at step 490 , it is determined whether the 15 % installment payment received at step 440 is the final installment payment for the corresponding purchaser designated support service program . if it is determined at step 490 that the 15 % installment payment received from the customer is not the final 15 % installment payment for the purchaser designated support service program , then the procedure returns to step 430 , and steps 430 through steps 470 are repeated . on the other hand , if at step 490 it is determined that the 15 % installment payment received from the customer is the final 15 % installment payment for the purchaser designated support service program , then the procedure set forth in fig4 terminates . referring back to step 470 , if it is determined that the predetermined pulse count is reached , then at step 480 , the remaining outstanding balance of the payment schedule for the purchaser designated support service program is determined to be due on 30 days from date x determined at step 430 , and correspondingly , the purchaser is notified of the accelerated due date for the payment of the remaining outstanding balance . in the manner described above , by generating and providing payment schedule for support services of laser systems to the purchasers with periodic and set amounts , purchasers of laser systems may be provided with a predictable allocation of costs related to supporting the laser systems . furthermore , by tailoring the periodically scheduled payment date , for example , at every three - month interval , the purchasers may conveniently allocate costs related to supporting the purchased laser system in conjunction with their respective accounting practices . [ 0041 ] fig5 illustrates a communication network including purchasers of laser systems and the system provider in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig5 the laser system procurement communication network 500 includes a laser system provider 510 coupled to a communication network 530 via a communication link 511 . also shown in fig5 are a plurality of customers ( customer terminals ) 520 a , 520 b , 520 c , each coupled to the communication network 530 via a corresponding communication link 521 a , 521 b , 521 c . each of the plurality of customer terminals 520 a , 520 b , 520 c may include a computer terminal , a facsimile machine , or other communication devices which are capable of receiving and transmitting data from and to the communication network 530 . the communication network may include an internet network operating under data protocols such as tcp / ip , and so on . alternatively , the communication network 530 may include data network enabled for facsimile data transmission . referring back to fig5 the laser system provider 510 includes a controller 512 , an interface unit 513 , a storage unit 515 and an applications section 514 . as shown , the interface unit is configured to communicate with the data network 530 , and the controller 512 is coupled to the interface unit 513 for controlling the data transmission and reception by the interface unit 513 to and from the data network 530 . the controller 12 is further coupled to the applications section 514 which may include application programs or software resident in the laser system provider 510 , and which is configured to manipulate the information that is received from the customer terminals 521 a , 521 b , 521 c , and likewise , to transmit data to the customer terminals 521 a , 521 b , 521 c . the storage unit 515 of the laser system provider 510 is coupled to the controller 512 and the applications section 514 , and is configured to store data under the control of the controller 512 . in one aspect , the storage unit 515 may include a components database 515 a for each laser system available for purchase , a cost allocation schedule database 515 b for each purchaser designated support service program , and a customer database 515 c . in one embodiment , the components database 515 a may be configured to store data corresponding to the components of each available laser system for purchase , including but not limited to , the determined average and / or predicted lifetime for each consumable component , the repair cost estimate for each consumable component , the replacement cost for each consumable component , the availability status of each consumable component , and the estimated delivery time for each consumable component . furthermore , the cost allocation schedule database 515 b may include the scheduled payment date for the purchaser designated support service program , the installment amount corresponding to the scheduled payment dates , the estimated used pulse count corresponding to the scheduled payment dates , and the actual pulse count of the laser system corresponding to the payment dates . additionally , the customer database 515 c may include information corresponding to the purchasers of the laser systems such as contact information , billing information , account information ( including account status such as default status , current status and so on ), payment history information , component delivery address information , and the type of laser system purchased for each laser system purchaser . [ 0044 ] fig6 illustrates a laser system components database 515 a of fig5 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig6 the consumable components database 515 a includes a consumable component field 610 , an average / predicted lifetime field 620 , a repair cost estimate field 630 , a replacement estimate field 640 , an availability field 650 and a delivery time field 660 . for example , as shown in fig6 for the consumable component laser tube stored in row 671 under the consumable component field 610 , the corresponding average / predicted lifetime stored in the average / predicted lifetime field 620 five years , with a repair cost estimate stored in the repair cost estimate field 630 at 20 hours ( at , for example , $ 80 per hours cost ), and the replacement component estimate field 640 indicating a laser tube replacement cost estimate at $ 15 , 000 . 00 . furthermore , the availability field 650 indicates that the laser tube is available with a delivery time of three days as shown in the delivery time field 660 . in the manner described above , the components database 515 a may be configured to store data corresponding to each consumable component of a laser system , including but not limited to , tube windows ( row 672 ), front optics module ( row 673 ), rear optics module ( row 674 ), monitor optics module ( row 675 ), and halogen filter ( row 676 ), and their corresponding average / predicted lifetime , cost of repair or replacement , availability and the corresponding delivery time . additionally , it should be noted that while the components database 515 a shown in fig6 includes fields for the average / predicted lifetime 620 , the repair cost estimate field 630 , the replacement estimate field 640 , the availability field 650 , and the delivery time field 660 , in accordance with the present invention , other data relevant to each consumable component may be stored in additional fields in the components database 515 a . [ 0046 ] fig7 illustrates the cost allocation schedule database 515 b of fig5 for a laser system in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig7 the cost allocation schedule database 515 b includes a payment due date field 710 , an installment amount field 720 , a percentage of total balance field 730 , an estimated used pulse count field 740 , and an actual used pulse count field 750 . for example , as shown in fig7 for the payment due date x stored in row 761 under the payment due date field 710 , the corresponding installment amount stored in the installment amount field 720 is $ 20 , 000 . 00 u . s ., with a percentage of total balance stored in the percentage of total balance filed 730 of 10 %, and the estimated used pulse count stored in the estimated used pulse count field is 114 × 106 pulses , and the actual used pulse count stored in the actual used pulse count field is 130 × 106 pulses . in the manner described above , the cost allocation schedule database 515 b may be configured to store data corresponding to many payment due dates , such as may periodically occur every , e . g ., three months from payment due date x , as stored in payment due date field 761 . for example , payment due date field 762 may correspond to a payment due date 3 months after payment due date x . payment due dates 763 - 767 may respectively correspond to payment due dates x + 6 months , x + 9 months , x + 12 months , x + 15 months and x + 18 months , as shown at fig7 . additional and / or alternative payment due dates may be included in payment due date field 710 of the cost allocation schedule of fig7 wherein installment amounts at the installment amount field 720 , percentages of total balance at the percentatge of total balance field 730 , estimated used pulse counts in the estimated used pulse count field 740 and actual used pulse counts in the actual used pulse counts field 750 will be generally varied from those provided in the exemplary cost allocation schedule illustrated at fig7 . [ 0048 ] fig8 illustrates a customer database 515 c of fig5 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig8 the customer database 515 c includes a customer field 810 , an identification symbol ( id ) field 820 , a billing address field 830 , a delivery address field 840 , a payment history field 850 and an account status field 860 . for example , as shown in fig8 for the customer company a stored in row 871 under the customer field 810 , the corresponding id stored in the id field 820 is ax1 , having a billing address of 200 harbor drive , vancouver , b . c ., canada stored in billing address field 830 and having a same delivery address as the billing address as shown stored in delivery address field 840 . the customer database 515 c further shows that the payment history for company a is no defaults as indicated at payment history field 850 , and that the account status of company a is current as indicated at account status field 860 . in the manner described above , the customer database 515 c may be configured to store data corresponding to each subscribing customer , such as may include company b - company e , as stored in rows 872 - 875 of the customer field 810 having id &# 39 ; s bq1 , cx2 , dx1 and ex2 , respectively , stored in the id field . the billing and delivery addresses of each of companies b - e are also shown in the billing address and delivery address fields 830 and 840 , respectively , of the customer database 515 c of fig8 as well as are payment histories and account statuses shown at the payment history and account status fields 850 and 860 . other relevant data may be stored in additional or alternate fields of the customer database 515 c of fig8 and a very large number of additional customers may be included in the customer database 515 c . various other modifications and alterations in the structure and method of operation of this invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention . although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments , it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments . it is intended that the following claims define the scope of the present invention and that structures and methods within the scope of these claims and their equivalents be covered thereby . in addition , in the method claims that follow , the operations have been ordered in selected typographical sequences . however , the sequences have been selected and so ordered for typographical convenience and are not intended to imply any particular order for performing the operations , except for those claims wherein a particular ordering of steps is expressly set forth or understood by one of ordinary skill in the art as being necessary .

6Physics

the numerous innovative teachings of the present application will be described with particular reference to the presently preferred embodiment . however , it should be understood that this class of embodiments provides only a few examples of the many advantageous uses of the innovative teachings herein . in general , statements made in the specification of the present application do not necessarily delimit any of the various claimed inventions . moreover , some statements may apply to some inventive features but not to others . the presently preferred embodiment provides a 80c286 or 386sx laptop computer , with hard disk and lcd display , powered by rechargeable ni - cd batteries and a nonrechargeable lithium battery . fig8 a - 8j show various views of the external physical appearance of the portable laptop computer of the presently preferred embodiment . this provides a &# 34 ; laptop &# 34 ; computer , which can provide the full power of a normal personal computer for several hours of operation between battery recharges . this is a &# 34 ; notebook &# 34 ; size laptop computer , measuring approximately 8 . 5 × 11 × 2 inches , in the presently preferred embodiment . weight , cost and power consumption ae important considerations in such products . fig8 a shows a perspective view of the notebook computer of the presently preferred embodiment in the open position . visible elements include case 802 , cover 804 , hinges 806 , display screen 810 , keyboard 820 , floppy disk drive 830 , and battery door 803 ( which covers the receptacle for the rechargeable battery pack ). fig8 b shows a front view of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover open . note that the dual - purpose standby / sleep button , described below , is visible . fig8 c shows a front view of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover closed . fig8 d shows a rear view of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover open . note that keyboard , display , and serial port connectors are visible . fig8 e shows a rear view of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover closed . fig8 f shows a rear view of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover closed , and with a dust cover 805 emplaced to cover the external connectors visible in fig8 d and 8e . fig8 g shows the right side of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover open , and fig8 h shows the right side of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover closed . fig8 i shows the left side of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover open , and fig8 j shows the left side of the computer of fig8 a , with the cover closed . fig1 shows the overall electrical organization of the portable laptop computer of the presently preferred embodiment . the presently preferred embodiment is actually planned for production in two versions , one using a cmos version of the 80286 processor and one using a cmos version of a 386sx processor . of course , these two processors are extremely similar to each other , and the differences between them have little relevance to the power of management architecture features described . disclosed innovations can be applied not only to other intel 8086 - derived processors , such as the 80386 and 80486 , but can also be applied to other processor families which may , in the future , find use in low - power portable computer systems . the presently preferred embodiment relates to systems used in the isa architecture . ( such systems are also referred to as systems which use the &# 34 ; at bus .&# 34 ;) however , it is alternatively possible to adapt at least some of the disclosed teachings to other architectures , such as eisa bus systems or to other buses which may find use in the future . in the presently preferred embodiment , an ht21 chip , from headland technologies , is used to provide a variety of peripheral support functions to the main microprocessor . these include bus management , memory management , interrupt control , and dma control . serial port management and keyboard interface are provided by an 82c186 combination chip from vti . of course , other implementations of support logic and glue logic can be used if desired , within this well - known architecture . the presently preferred system embodiment is a family of two highly similar notebook computers , varying primarily in the processors used . both have an external closed size of about 8 . 5 × 11 × 2 inches . one version is based on an intel 80c286 microprocessor running at 12 . 5 mhz , and the other version is based on an intel 386sx processor running at 20 mhz . both notebooks contain similar i / o devices , including , in the presently preferred embodiment : conners peripherals 222 or 242 20 or 40 mb 2 . 5 &# 34 ; hard disk ; power management microcontroller , with the microcontroller interface chip (&# 34 ; miles &# 34 ;) gate array assembly . in addition , the following i / o connectors are available on the back panel for external devices : also available , through slide off panels , are an expansion connector for an optional modem , an 80387sx numeric coprocessor socket , and the 2 expansion memory connectors . fig9 shows generally how circuit boards are emplaced and connected in the portable laptop computer of the presently preferred embodiment . top board 920 , and power module 930 , are docked into bottom board 910 . fig1 is a detail view of the case - closing switch and button of the presently preferred embodiment . ( this is a cutaway view , looking from the right side of the case , showing the lid in the process of closing .) when the lid 904 is closed , it bears against movable lever 1002 , which in turn bears against switch 1004 . however , when the lid is open , button 1002 is easily accessible to the user &# 39 ; s finger , as may be seen in fig8 a . thus , the cam - like action of lever 1002 provides reliable button depression when the case is closed . the switch 1004 is mounted , in the presently preferred embodiment , on the power module board 930 . fig7 a shows the physical structure , and fig7 b shows the electrical connections , of the rechargeable battery module of the presently preferred embodiment , containing two electrically separate banks of 7 batteries each . note that a fuse is included in the middle of each bank of batteries . in the presently preferred embodiment , the battery module is configured as two banks of 7 ni - cd batteries in series . thus , each bank provides a rated voltage of 8 . 4 volts . the battery sizes are selected , in the presently preferred embodiment , to provide a charge capacity of 1700 ma - hr for each bank ; but of course the battery sizings could be changed if needed . fig2 shows the analog connections used , in the presently preferred embodiment , for monitoring the state of the two battery banks . fig3 shows further details of the power - supply and power - control circuitry in the preferred embodiment . the power system for any battery powered computer varies quite a bit from a standard desktop computer . the power system used in the presently preferred embodiment is unusual , even for battery powered systems . power is available from several sources ; the main battery , a reserve battery , and an ac to dc adapter which is external to the system . power from the main battery and the ac to dc converter must be regulated to 5 volts through the dc to dc converter 210 . this is located on the system power module 930 , which is located along the back right hand wall of the case . the on / off switch is also located on the spm , and protrudes through the plastic case on the right side of the unit ( as seen in fig8 a ). since the external ac to dc adapter and main battery are on a common node on the input to the dc to dc converter , the battery banks are protected from overcurrent from the ac adapter by diodes d1a and d1b . diodes d1 can dissipate up to 900 mw at their 2 amp nominal current draw . a significant dissipation results even when a low voltage drop schottky barrier diode is used . in the presently preferred embodiment , this power loss is reduced by shorting diodes d1 with a pair of fets whenever there is no external power being supplied . ( this circuit arrangement , with fet pair q3 &# 39 ; and q4 &# 39 ;, may be seen in fig3 .) the battery management circuitry , in the presently preferred embodiment , is centered around a national semiconductor cop888cf microcontroller ( shown as u5 in fig2 ). this device has 8 analog inputs to an analog to digital converter , 2 timer outputs that can be set up as pulse generators , several digital i / o lines and internal program rom . the microcontroller monitors both banks of batteries 220a and 220b for both the current through , and the voltage of , each string of 7 cells . ( in the presently preferred embodiment , each battery bank includes seven kr - 1700ae ni - cd cells , as shown in fig7 a and 7b .) the microcontroller software applies a very short duty cycle pulse for a period of time to check that the battery is accepting the charge current properly , and is not shorted . then , when the battery voltage reaches about 7 volts , the pulse width is increased until about 800 ma are being applied . the microcontroller has a feature called the &# 34 ; watchdog timer output &# 34 ;. through a fairly safe scheme , this output will generate a pulse on line wpout if the microcontroller is not executing its program properly . if this occurs , u6 latches the condition , which tristates u7a and u7b . a pullup on the output causes the gate of q1a and q2b to be pulled to ground , shutting the charger &# 39 ; s current path off to the battery . this provides a safe condition during reset , and a safe condition in case the microcontroller should fail . the charge current is regulated through a pulse width modulation scheme in which q1a and q1b are switched at a frequency of about 10 khz . the width of the pulse determines how much average current is allowed to flow through the battery . l1a and l1b are toroidal core inductors that prevent excessive amounts of current to be sourced from the ac adapter . the two diodes d2a and d2b provide negative current to flow through l1a and l1b after q1a and q1b are turned off , and the field induced in l1 collapses . transistors q3a and q2a are turned on to allow the gate of q1a to be pulled to the 21 volt level of the dc to dc converter . op amp u2a is used as a differential amplifier across r1a ( 0 . 01 ohms ) to obtain a signal i a which measures the current from battery bank 220b . the output of u2a is filtered and scaled by u3a , and is read by the microcontroller u5 through one of its analog to digital converter inputs . the pulse width is adjusted by the microcontroller u5 to maintain a constant current of about 800 milliamps . u3a is also used to filter and prescale the battery voltage measurements , to produce an analog signal v a to u5 . signals v b and i b are similarly generated to measure the voltage and current of the other main battery bank 220b . q3 is turned on by the microcontroller pulse through u7 and u8 . turning on q3 pulls the base of q2 low , which causes it to conduct , allowing 21 volts to be supplied to the gate of the power fet , q1 . u1 inverts the signal from the microcontroller , turning q4 off whenever q3 is on . when the signal rocontroller goes inactive ( high ), the base of q4 is driven high , causing q4 to conduct and drain the gate capacitor of q1 through a small resistor ( about 220 ohms ) to ground . this allows for a fast turn off and turn on time for the fet ( q1 ). keeping q1 in its non - linear region keeps it from becoming heated , so that no heat sink is needed for these fets . fig3 shows some additional details of the power management circuitry . this circuitry is shown primarily for very full compliance with the best mode requirements of the u . s . patent law . note , however , the relay 310 , which switches back and forth between the two battery banks 220a and 220b . the following high - level pseudo - code shows the program structure which is a actually used , in the presently preferred embodiment , for power management . ______________________________________power on perform basic integrity check check power switch if switch on go to normal start if switch off go to normal charge modenormal start turn on power on led initialize port direction and interrupt registers initialize timers test for ac available begin normal operation main loop main - ( normal operation ) monitor - battery voltage standby switch ac available system on switch and blink charge led if on activity lines ( reset timeouts when active ) if dynamic adjustment enabled reset hd and floppy timeouts during keyboard activity . timer interrupt - 5 . 12 msec . service watch dog timer register store current battery voltage compare with past for rapid drop detection compare with minimum absolute level compare with warning level test alternate battery before activating alarm and switch batteries if indicateddecrement seconds timer each second : decrement timeout counters battery change hard disk system sleep backlight timeoutif beeper active decrement pause counter and call beep test and debounce standby switchbattery detect interrupt switch to reserve battery start 2 minute timeout for system power off turn off lcd to reduce power consumption if floppy and hd not active , put system in standby modeaccumulate reserve battery use time ( after 1 minute of reserve on time , of operation , the reserve charger will be enabled during the next battery charge cycle . after 2 minutes of use the reserve battery will be charged from the main battery if no ac is available . ) monitor bdt * line for new battery installed to terminate functiontest new battery and switch reserve off if voltage goodbattery change read current battery voltage read target battery voltage switch if alternate is same or higher low - power - 1 mode beep for 5 seconds ( 2 times every second ) ( cop should enable speaker on low volume if user has it off ) turn on low battery led set low power 1 flag low - power - 2 mode beep for 5 seconds ( 2 times every second ) ( cop should enable speaker on high volume regardless of the user setting ) flash low battery led turn off lcd back light set cpu clock to slow speed set low power 2 flag enable keyboard interrupt and turn lcd backlight on with any keyscan for presence of external power or new battery low - power - 3 mode place main cpu in standby mode if not already there output continuous beep for 3 seconds save voltage reading for future comparison turn off the power module power on alarm ( standby switch held low for 5 sec or more ) exit immediately if external video active lcd back light is turned off . cpu clock speed goes to slow speed . flash power on led indicating standby mode a beep alarm is sounded if operating on batteries . ( 2 beeps every 4 minutes ) monitor the standby switch to determine when the lcd panel is opened to exit this mode . exit standby immediately when the cover is opened . stand - by / resume key enter and exit standby when button lifted cpu clock set to slow speed lcd back light is turned off cpu is placed in hold mode for minimum power consumptionpower led is flashing (. 5 sec on 2 sec off ) cop pulses the ht21 refresh line to refresh memory monitor the stand - by / resume key to exit stand - by modeexit hold for a fixed period on each timer interrupt to allow system time to be maintained . mask keyboard and mouse interrupts and have cop clear the keyboard controller buffer and restore the interrupt controller mask register before exiting standby . sleep mode reduce clock speed to slow turn off lcd backlight enable keyboard interrupt monitor system activity ( keyboard , ports , and restore full speed if any activity detectedif inactive for more than 1 minute and ac is available , begin sleep charge modeallow standby key press to exit sleep mode normal charge mode turn on charge led if reserve charge flag set , start reserve charge with 2 . 5 hour fail safe timeoutminimum duty cycle for 3 minutes monitor voltage rise and current if max voltage and no current then battery open if current rise with no voltage then sr rted if ok gradually increase current to target value of 750 ma . start fail safe timeout of 4 hoursmonitor voltage until it starts to decline or holds constant for xx minutesif voltage reaches the power supply maximum then monitor the charge current watching for an increase or a constant value for xx minutes to indicate end of chargewhen end conditions are reached shut off charging current flash charge led at a low duty cycle when chargedwait . 5 hour with charge off before resuming trickle charge on batteries to allow them to cool off from chargesleep charge mode turn on charge led miniinum duty cycle for 3 minutes monitor voltage rise and current if max voltage and no current then battery open if current rise with no voltage then shorted if ok gradually increase current to target value of xxx ma . start fail safe timeout of xx hoursmonitor voltage until it starts to decline or holds constant for xx minutesif voltage reaches the power supply maximum then monitor the charge current watching for an increase or a constant value for xx minutes to indicate end of chargeexit charge mode and start blink of charge led before system exits sleep modeflash charge led at a low duty cycle when charged when end conditions are reached shut off charging currenthost bios functions post reset cop checksum miles sram and compare version number if necessary reload cop program start cop transfer setup parameters to sram and clear cdone to interrupt cop check for proper operation of cop set processor to compatibility speed ( per setup ) turn on lcd backlight switch displays send display . sub .-- type command to cop ( lcd / crt ) wait for key ( int 16h function 0 ) if no character is available issue a cpu - hold command to the copsetup cop returns status of standby button , etc . to setup transfer interrupt mask to be used in standby to coptransfer parameters to cop before exiting setup ctl / alt / del ( soft boot ) place cop in reset before resetting cpu external program interface verify power status before programming flash epromsenable reserve battery for flash programming power backup______________________________________ a computer program listing , in the application &# 39 ; s file of this patent , shows a detailed implementation of the cop code to perform these functions , in the presently preferred embodiment . however , the foregoing listing shows the key relations of the preferred program structure . the presently preferred embodiment provides two versions , differing primarily in the choice of cpu : one version with an intel 80c286 , and one version with an intel 386sx . the presently preferred embodiment relates to systems used in the isa architecture . ( such systems are also referred to as systems which use the &# 34 ; at bus .&# 34 ;) however , it is alternatively possible to adapt at least some of the disclosed teachings to other architectures , such as eisa bus systems or to other buses which may find use in the future . in the presently preferred embodiment , an ht21 chip , from headland technologies , is used to provide a variety of peripheral support functions to the main microprocessor . these include bus management , memory management , interrupt control , and dma control . additional information regarding this chip may be found in its data sheet , which is available from headland technologies , and which is hereby incorporated by reference . serial port management and keyboard interface are provided by an 82c186 combination chip from vti . of course , other implementations of support logic and glue logic can be used if desired , within this well - known architecture . in the presently preferred system embodiment , the bios is carried in flash eprom . thus , bios update requires erasing the flash eprom . if power were lost while this operation were in progress , the machine would become nonfunctional . therefore , in the presently preferred embodiment , the on / off switch is disregarded while flash eprom programmation is in progress . a cop888cf microcontroller is used to perform the power - management functions , in the presently preferred embodiment . this microcontroller has an unusual feature : a / d converter circuitry is included on - chip , so that the chip can directly receive 8 channels of analog input . however , alternatively , other microcontrollers could be used , with off - chip converters or analog interface chips if desired . fig4 is a block diagram of the microcontroller interface chip , in the presently preferred embodiment . this figure shows significant signals which interface to the other chips , and also shows some important on - chip registers . the significance of these signals and registers will now be described . the microcontroller interface chip ( which is often referred to herein as &# 34 ; miles &# 34 ;) is an interface chip between the national semiconductor cop888cf microcontroller , its sram for program memory , and the at bus . the microcontroller interface chip allows the bios to download programs to the sram , and the cop888cf can thus execute in romless mode by fetching code from the sram . this is accomplished via a serial communication channel between the microcontroller interface chip and the microcontroller . the microcontroller interface chip also allows the cop888cf to read and write to the at bus , so that it can control the system clock speed register in the ht21 chip , etc . the at bus also has the capability to perform i / o reads or writes to the sram while the cop888cf is executing code . the cop888cf performs power management functions such as monitoring the battery level , turning off the display when not in use , and powering down the machine after programmable periods of inactivity . the main function of the microcontroller interface chip is to interface between cop888cf microcontroller , an external sram , and the at bus ( which is driven by the ht21 chip by headland technologies ). this interface ( schematically shown in fig4 ) controls the at address , data , and control signals ( iorc ˜, 2 iowc ˜, aen , iochrdy ) when executing at i / o cycles to the microcontroller interface chip . this interface handles both slave and master cycles on the at bus by providing an intelligent state machine . this state machine keeps track of at cycles as well as tristating the address / data busses and control signals . address bits are be latched , and data bits are not latched , on slave cycles ( i . e ., when an at master is writing to the sram ). data is read from or written directly to the sram . this interface ( schematically shown in fig4 ) includes a serial / parallel shift register for both the address and the data paths . the sram address is supplied from the ah and al registers . the cop888cf always provides the address and data serially , and expects to receive the data requested serially on the next cycle . as will be described later , cop888cf reads from certain addresses are treated as exception cycles by the microcontroller interface chip . the microcontroller address is first shifted into the microcontroller interface chip serially via the cop888cf d port pins d1 and d3 and then , depending on the cycle type , is passed to the sram or the at bus . the cop888cf read data is then latched in the microcontroller interface chip and shifted serially into the d0 pin of the microcontroller while the d port write data is shifted into the microcontroller interface chip from the d7 pin and redirected to the sram , or the at bus . this block also includes two 8 - bit control registers which can be loaded from the output data from the d7 pin of the microcontroller . fifteen of these status bits are output directly to miles output pins to control various external devices . the remaining bit selects either 1 ) at i / o cycles or 2 ) sram or register cycles for the cop888cf exception cycles . ( see sect 1 . 3 . 4 .) this interface ( schematically shown in fig4 ) generates the sram control signals ( oe ˜, we ˜, ce ˜) as well as tristating the data bus during sram read cycles . internal handshake signals , between the sram , the microcontroller and the at bus , are mainly decode signals to distinguish between cycle types . the sram interface is compatible with 8k × 8 memory as well as 32k × 8 . the microcontroller interface chip gate array includes two state machines : 1 ) a slave state machine , and 2 ) a master ( exception cycle ) state machine . the slave state machine tracks any at bus cycles to the sram and generates the at system data ( sd ) tristate enables . it also monitors the at signals sa , iowc ˜, iorc ˜, and aen to distinguish between read and write cycles . it also generates iochrdy to insert wait states on the microcontroller interface chip slave i / o cycles to sram until the cop888cf is finished accessing the sram . this prevents conflicts between microcontroller accesses and at accesses to the sram . the second state machine , the master state machine , controls all exception cycles . this includes microcontroller writes to the sram , the microcontroller interface chip master i / o cycles to the at bus , and the set cdone bit cycles . this state machine drives the necessary at control signals and busses required for the master i / o cycles ( sd , sa , aen , iowc ˜, and iorc ˜). this block includes latches for at control signals ( iowc ˜, iorc ˜, iochrdy ). it also includes logic to generate the state machine reset signal when the microcontroller is halted since the cop888cf shift clock does not clock during halt . it also includes the slave state machine time out signal generated from a 3 - bit counter . these four registers and one chip select are the only the microcontroller interface chip registers that appear in the at address space . the address in the table heading is the at address . the index register ( ir ) is an 8 - bit index into the internal interface registers ( iir ) of the microcontroller interface chip . when the at bus master reads or writes to the virtual data register ( vd ), it accesses the ( iir ) indicated by the contents of the ( ir ). only bits 2 - 0 are implemented . all other bits will be read as zeroes . writing to bits 7 - 3 has no effect . on reset -- in ˜ low , this register is set to zero . the virtual data register ( vd ) is an 8 - bit port into the ( iir ) of the microcontroller interface chip . when the at bus master accesses the ( vd ), it actually accesses the ( iir ) indicated by the current value of the ( ir ). the parallel port direction register ( ppd ) is a single - bit register used in conjunction with the parallel port mode register ( ppm ) to control the direction of the parallel port . when the ( ppm ) is set for extended mode operation , this register controls the lpt -- dir pin out of the microcontroller interface chip . when the ( ppm ) is set for compatibility mode operation , then the lpt -- dir pin is always forced high ( i . e ., the port is always an output ) and the ( ppd ) has no effect on the port . only bit 5 is implemented . writing to any other bits will have no effect . this register cannot be read from the microcontroller interface chip . when this address is read , the microcontroller interface chip will not drive the sd bus ; another device may drive the data ( but not necessarily ). on reset -- in ˜ low , this register is set to zero . the parallel port mode register ( ppm ) is a single - bit register used to set the mode of operation of the parallel port . when bit 7 , sd [ 7 ], is written low , the port is set to extended mode operation . when bit 7 is written high , the port is set to compatibility mode operation , with the port configured as an output . writing to any other bits will have no effect . in the presently preferred embodiment , only bit 7 is implemented . this register cannot be read from the microcontroller interface chip . when this address is read , the microcontroller interface chip will not drive the sd bus , another device may drive the data ( but not necessarily ). on reset -- in ˜ low , this register ( bit 7 only ) is set to one . ## str5 ## the com2cs ˜ ( c2 ) is a direct decode of the above at addresses . whenever there is an i / o read or write in this address range , the com2cs ˜ pin on the microcontroller interface chip will be driven low . all other times it is inactive high . the microcontroller interface chip does not drive onto the sd bus during these accesses . reset has no effect . these four registers are used to generate and control at read and write accesses to the sram . they are accessed indirectly from the at bus by writing the address f the desired register into the ( ir ) and performing a read or write cycle to the ( vd ) register . the address high register ( ah ) contains the 7 high order address bits of the 14 - bit address to be applied to the sram . during at i / o reads or writes to the sram , the contents of this register are input to address pins a8 - a13 of the sram . a14 is output on pin op14 if it is enabled by the a14en bit in the control register . the ah register does not increment after access to the data register . the unused bit ( 7 ) is not implemented and will be read as a 0 . writing to the unused bit has no effect . the ah register is undefined after reset -- in ˜ goes low . the address low register ( al ) contains the 8 low - order address bits of the 13 - bit address to be applied to the sram . during at i / o reads or writes to the sram , the contents of this register are input to address pins a0 - a7 of the sram . during sram accesses , the al register auto increments as an 8 - bit counter . the register is incremented at the completion of an access to the data register . the al register is undefined after reset -- in ˜ goes low . the data register ( dr ) is the data port to the sram for at master and slave i / o cycles . since the al register auto - increments , sequential reads can be accomplished by multiple reads from the dr . likewise , sequential writes to sram can be accomplished by multiple writes to the dr . the dr does not actually latch data ; it is a data port between the microcontroller interface chip and the at . the control register ( cr ) contains 4 bits which control or contain information about the state of the microcontroller interface chip gate array . the unused bits ( 7 - 4 ) are not implemented and will be read as 0 &# 39 ; s . writing to the unused bits has no effect . the control register bits are described on the following page : the microcontroller int aface chip control register ( cr ) bits are defined as follows : a14en : a14en controls whether a14 is output form port op14 during sram accesses . this allows the upper 16k of a 32k × 8 sram to be used . wdout ˜: wdout ˜ reflects the value of the wdout ˜ signal from the cop888cf . wdout ˜ can be set / cleared in three ways : 1 ) set to 1 by writing a 1 to the wdout ˜ bit in the control register . 2 ) set to 1 by asserting the reset -- in ˜ pin low . 3 ) cleared to 0 by asserting the wdout ˜ pin from the microcontroller . the cop888cf asserts a pulse when the watchdog times out ; it does not hold it . rst ˜: the rst ˜ bit controls the reset ˜ output to the cop888cf microcontroller . when rst ˜ is low , the cop888cf is held in reset and at i / o cycles to the ( dr ), and sram accesses will complete with no wait states . when rst ˜ is high , the cop888cf will be executing code , and at i / o cycles to the ( dr ) may have wait states inserted by iochrdy while the microcontroller interface chip waits for the proper time in the cop888cf instruction cycle to access the sram . 0 is the reset -- in ˜ value ( the microcontroller interface chip reset ) cdone : the controller done bit is a handshake bit between the at host and the cop888cf microcontroller . the cop888cf will set this bit to indicate that it has performed the action requested by the at host . to indicate that it wants the cop888cf to perform an operation , the at host should load a command into the sram , clear the cdone bit , and poll the cdone bit to see when the cop888cf has completed executing it . when the microcontroller interface chip sees the cdone bit has been cleared , it asserts int ( interrupt ) to the cop888cf . the interrupt handling routine will fetch the command from sram , execute it , and then execute the set cdone exception cycle setting the cdone bit which deasserts the int signal . the cdone bit can be set / cleared in four ways : 4 ) cleared by an at i / o write of 0 to the cdone bit . an i / o read or write to this address will cause pin gcs ˜ ( generic chip select ) to be asserted low while iowc ˜ or iorc ˜ is asserted . these registers are part of the serial interface to the cop888cf and are not directly accessible to the at channel . the internal address high register ( iah ) contains the upper byte of the address the cop888cf shifted out of the d3 pin . this address will be combined with the ial register and presented to the sram or at address bus , depending on the cycle . the internal address low register ( ial ) contains the lower byte of the address the cop888cf shifted out of the d1 pin . this address will be combined with the iah register and presented to the sram or at address bus , depending on the cycle . the internal data out register ( idout ) is written with the cop888cf d - port data . it is serially shifted out of the d7 pin at the same time as the address . this data is the microcontroller output data for all microcontroller write cycles to the sram or at channel . the internal data in register ( idin ) contains the byte of data that was read from the sram and will be shifted into the d0 pin of the cop888cf . the internal output port high register ( oph ) and the internal port low register ( opl ) and internal registers that are controlled by the c1 and c0 pins of the cop888cf c - port . on xld , if c1 = 1 , the data from the idout register is latched into the op register indicated by the c0 bit . the io -- m ˜ bit is a dedicated control bit . during exception cycles , it selects either 1 ) i / o read / write cycles or 2 ) sram writes or set cdone bit cycles . all the other bits are output on the op [ 14 : 8 ] pins . when reset -- in ˜ goes low , the oph register is cleared to all zeros . the internal output port low register ( opl ) and the ( ioh ) register are internal registers that are controlled by the c1 and c0 pins of the cop888cf c - port . on xld , if c1 = 1 , the data from the idout register is latched into the op register indicated by the c0 pin . all the opl bits are output on the op [ 7 : 0 ] pins . when reset -- in ˜ goes low , the opl register is cleared to all zeros . the internal address compare register ( iac ) is loaded with the value of the upper bit of the iah register , bit 14 , on cop888cf exception cycles . it is then compared with each subsequent cycle &# 39 ; s bit 14 and will prevent the exception action ( sram write for example ) from repeating if there is a match . this will continue until the first compare fails , at which time normal operation will resume . the reason for this is to prevent multiple exception cycles from being generated erroneously . when the cop888cf generates a subroutine call to an address with bit 14 set , it will generate a read to that address . the microcontroller interface chip will recognize this and jam a ret ( urn from subroutine ) instruction into the input data pin , d0 , of the cop888cf . while the microcontroller is executing this instruction , it will continue to prefetch data from the location of the bogus subroutine . since the microcontroller interface chip will ignore these fetches , it will not generate additional exception cycles . while the iac is active during exception cycles , the iah and ial bits 0 - 13 will be latched until a14 is cleared to prevent the at address from changing during at i / o exception cycles . miles slave i / o reads and writes to the microcontroller interface chip internal interface registers ( iir ) are accomplished by accessing the at interface registers at address h1ea and h1eb , using the appropriate index as was described above . when an at device initiates an i / o read or write to the microcontroller interface chip &# 39 ; sram , it must supply the appropriate indices to provide the memory address which will be latched in the al and ah registers in the microcontroller interface chip . these addresses are then passed to the sram . during the data phase of the cycle ( when the dr is indexed ), the at state machine in the microcontroller interface chip will immediately drive and hold iochrdy low until the sram is available for access by the at device . iochrdy will then be released and the cycle completed . after every access to the dr , the al is auto incremented in the microcontroller interface chip . ( note : data for slave cycles is never latched in the microcontroller interface chip .) for no wait state reads or writes ( i . e ., loading sram with code or for executing a quick check sum on the sram ), the rst ˜ bit should be asserted low prior to initiating the slave block reads or writes . when rst ˜ is asserted , the microcontroller will be held in reset so that the at state machine in the microcontroller interface chip will not drive iochrdy to insert waits . when the cop888cf microcontroller reads from the sram , it generates the address via its d1 and d3 pins serially through the microcontroller interface chip to the sram . the sram data will then be shifted serially out of the microcontroller interface chip into the cop888cf via pin d0 . when the cop888cf wants to write a value to the oph or opl registers , it should write that value to its d port into the microcontroller interface chip idout register . it should then write the appropriate control value to the c port . when xld is asserted at the end of a microcontroller sram read cycle , if cl of the c port is high , the 8 - bit op latch indicated by the c0 bit will be open . the input data for the op registers is the idout register . when xld is deasserted , the latch will close and retain the data from the idout register which is driven out the corresponding op pins of the microcontroller interface chip . these are special cycles that are implemented by the microcontroller interface chip . the cop888cf initiates an exception cycle by performing a subroutine call to the top 16k of its program memory map ; e . g ., address bit 14 is set . the microcontroller interface chip will recognize the address as an indication of an exception cycle and stuff a ret ( urn from subroutine ) instruction into the idin register . the microcontroller interface chip then takes whatever action is indicated by the exception during the next serial code fetch from the cop888cf . to the cop888cf , it will appear that the first instruction of the routine is a return and it will pop the old pc off its internal stack and continue to execute instructions after the subroutine call . since the cop888cf takes 5 cycles to complete the ret instruction , and since it will prefetch instructions from the virtual subroutine it thought it jumped to , the microcontroller interface chip will ignore all subsequent cycles to the exception space until it sees a microcontroller read from sram cycle . this will prevent the microcontroller interface chip from taking erroneous exceptions while still allowing back - to - back exception cycles by the cop888cf code . io -- m ˜ is a control bit in bit 7 of the oph register . it selects between : 1 ) i / o read / write cycles and 2 ) sram or set cdone bit cycles . it is the microcontrollers &# 39 ; responsibility to set this bit to the proper value prior to initiating the exception cycle . for all exceptions cycles , the cop888cf must first acquire the at bus by asserting dma -- req ( dma request ) and waiting for dmack ( dma acknowledge ). it must then assert master ˜ for proper execution of the i / o cycle . during a miles master i / o read from the at bus , the microcontroller provides the address for the at bus on the ten low - order bits of the microcontroller interface chip iah and ial registers . the lower 13 address bits control where the data read from the at bus will be stored in sram . the highest order bit , a14 , indicates to the microcontroller interface chip that this is an exception cycle and its decode , along with the io -- m ˜ bit from the oph register , indicates which exception cycle . the at data will flow directly into the sram without being latched in the microcontroller interface chip . the microcontroller then accesses that data by reading the sram at the same location where the at data was stored . during a miles master i / o write to the at bus , the microcontroller will shift the address into the microcontroller interface chip iah and ial registers which will then drive the at address . the at bus state machine will write the data from the idout register to the at data bus . the cop888cf should have written the intended at write data to its d - port before executing the exception cycle . address and data are shifted into the microcontroller interface chip serially to generate the sram address and data . the address is collected in the iah and ial registers as for reads , the data is collected in the idout register . the cop888cf should have written the intended at write data to its d - port before executing the exception cycle . the microcontroller interface chip will stuff a ret ( urn from subroutine ) instruction into the idin register and complete the write during execution of the ret . when the microcontroller interface chip detects a read to the address for the set cdone bit exception , it will cram a ret ( return from subroutine ) instruction into the idin register and set the cdone bit in the control register , also clearing the cop888cf interrupt previously set when cdone was cleared . the actual circuit implementation of the presently preferred embodiment will now be described in very great detail . however , it must be noted that the drawings shown are actual engineering drawings , and therefore include a great deal of detail . most of the signal names on these drawings correspond to those discussed above , but the significance of the others will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art of digital design . fig6 is a diagram of the microcontroller interface chip , in the presently preferred embodiment . note that this diagram is somewhat more detailed , in certain respects , than the diagram of fig4 . the at -- interface block provides the interface to the at bus , and is shown in more detail in fig6 b . the atmas block is a state machine , for accessing the at bus as master , and corresponds to the state diagram of fig5 b . the atslv block is a state machine , for accessing the at bus as slave , and corresponds to the state diagram of fig5 a . the misc -- blk block is shown in detail in fig6 d . the mc -- top block provides the interface to the microcontroller , and is shown in more detail in fig6 a . fig6 a is a diagram of the mc -- top block shown in fig6 and fig6 a - 1 is a diagram of the mc -- intfc block shown in fig6 a . the block mc -- pads merely represents pads and pad drivers . block ret -- mux8 is an 8 - bit - wide multiplexer , which implements the return - cramming function : if line ret -- sel is low , data from the program memory will be selected ; if line ret -- sel is high , data from the return crammer memory will be selected . block cdata -- reg is simply a double register , which multiplexes the in byte onto the a and b bytes . blocks lat15 and lat8 are latches . block sclk -- cnt3 is a 3 - bit counter , which counts 8 sclock signals and then generates a len signal on the folowing sclock edge . block s2p -- reg8 is simply a serial - to - parallel register , and p2s -- blk is a parallel - to - serial converter . block addr -- sr is a shift register for address conversion . fig6 b is a detailed diagram of the at -- interface block shown in fig6 . block decode is simply a decoder , which implements tests for signal values as described above . block sdpad is an 8 - bit bidirectional interface ( with registers ) to i / o pads , and block sapad is a simple 10 - bit bidirectional pad interface . block at -- regs is simply a large collection of registers . fig6 b - 1 is a detailed diagram of the index block shown in fig6 b . this block shows the logical used to implement four wr ˜ bits , and the resulting boolean relationships . fig6 c is a detailed diagram of the sram -- intfc block shown in fig6 which implements the sram interface . fig6 d is a diagram of the misc -- blk block shown in fig6 . note that this includes a 3 bit binary counter which will time out about 375 ns after to -- en is asserted . it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that the innovative concepts disclosed in the present application can be applied in a wide variety of contexts . moreover , the preferred implementation can be modified in a tremendous variety of ways . accordingly , it should be understood that the modifications and variations suggested below and above are merely illustrative . these examples may help to show some of the scope of the inventive concepts , but these examples do not nearly exhaust the full scope of variations in the disclosed novel concepts . the presently preferred embodiments , as discussed above , use intel microprocessor for the cpu . however , of course , the disclosed innovations can also be applied to systems using other non - intel microprocessors of comparable architecture . the disclosed innovations can also be applied to other systems using other types of cpu , such as 680 × 0 , sparc , mips , or others . it is contemplated that , in the future , the disclosed innovations can also be applied to systems using a multiprocessor cpu . the presently preferred embodiment relates to systems used in the isa architecture . however , it is alternatively possible to adapt at least some of the disclosed teachings to other bus architectures , including not only the eisa bus architecture ( which is an extension of isa ), but also the many other buses which are now in use or which may find use in the future . the presently preferred embodiment uses headland technology and vti chips for cpu support functions . however , of course , a wide variety of other chips are available to perform these functions , and many substitutions are possible . in particular , some microprocessors have been proposed with added support functions on - chip . for another example , compact modules incorporating a microprocessor with peripheral support functions are also available . a huge variety of such substitutions can be made , while still obtaining the benefits of the disclosed inventions . of course , many i / o and storage peripherals can be added into a laptop system . the disclosed innovations are generally applicable to such systems , regardless of what peripherals have or have not been added . thus , for example , a laptop which contains a large bank of nvsram , or which is connected to an ethernet adapter , or which includes speech recognition or synthesis , would still present many power - management issues similar to those discussed above . for example , the principal disclosed embodiment , as presently practiced , does not include any available expansion slots for the user to add cards into . however , it is contemplated that addition of an expansion bus might be advantageous , and particularly so in combination with the microcontroller power - management architecture described above . for another example , the principal disclosed embodiment , as presently practiced , never stops the system clock . in the 286 embodiment , the clock is slowed to 250 khz , and in the sx embodiment the clock is slowed to 2 mhz . a fully static chip set , which would permit the system clock to be stopped would be even more advantageous ; but , in the presently preferred embodiment , the ht21 chip and the sx chip are not compatible with fully static operation . nevertheless , this is an obviously desirable modification , as the appropriate chipsets become available . for another example , the principal disclosed embodiment , as presently practiced , uses ni - cd rechargeable batteries , and a small lithium cell as a nonrechargeable backup battery ; but at least some of the disclosed innovative teachings can be practiced with other rechargeable battery technologies ( such as nih cells ), if such technologies become commercially practicable , and / or can be practiced with nonrechargeable batteries in place of the nicds of the preferred embodiment , and / or can be practiced with nonrechargeable batteries other than lithium cells . as will be recognized by those skilled in the art , the innovative concepts described in the present application can be modified and varied over a tremendous range of applications , and accordingly the scope of patented subject matter is not limited by any of the specific exemplary teachings given .

6Physics

a preferred embodiment provides a smoking article 10 comprising a tobacco rod 12 and a filter 14 which are joined together by a tipping paper 16 . the filter 14 comprises a first filter segment 20 adjacent the tipped end 21 of the tobacco rod 12 . preferably , the first filter segment 20 is constructed of a fibrous cellulose acetate ( ca ) tow or a plug of cellulose acetate tow laden with activated carbon particles ( cot ), beads or other absorbents . the filter 14 further comprises a second filter segment 22 in downstream relation to the first segment 20 ( in the sense of direction that mainstream smoke is drawn through the filter 14 during a puff ). the second filter segment 22 includes a hollow frusto - conical upstream portion 24 and a fluted downstream portion 26 . the fluted downstream section can include one or more planar or non - planar walls defining voids 28 . the diameter of the second filter segment 22 is approximately equal to that of the filter 14 , such that the outer peripheries of portions 24 , 26 and any ( optional ) plug wrap 29 are adjacent ( abut ) the tipping paper 16 . the second filter segment 22 further includes one or more , preferably at least 2 orifices 34 at locations about the frusto - conical portion 24 that communicate the interior space 25 of the upstream frusto - conical portion 24 with one or more of the flutes ( or “ voids ”) 28 defined between the downstream fluted portion 26 and adjacent portions of a plug wrap 29 and / or the tipping paper 16 . preferably , the filter 14 further comprises a mouthpiece filter segment 30 at the buccal end of the filter 14 and one or more rows of ventilation holes 32 . the ventilation holes 34 are at a location along the filter 14 downstream of the orifices 34 and preferably are in superposed relation to the flutes (“ voids ”) 28 of the downstream segment portion 26 . during a puff on the cigarette 10 , mainstream smoke is drawn from the tobacco rod 12 into the filter 14 through the first segment 20 and then into the space 25 and through the orifices 34 of the upstream portion 24 of the second filter segment 22 . upon entering the flutes 28 of the downstream segment portion 26 , the mainstream smoke is mixed with ventilation air that is drawn through the ventilation holes 32 . the ventilated mainstream smoke is then drawn through the mouthpiece filter and out the cigarette 10 . in the preferred embodiment , the downstream filter segment is formed to establish four ( 4 ) flutes 28 , whereas three ( 3 ), two ( 2 ) or one ( 1 ) flutes might be arranged instead ( 28 ′, 28 ″ in fig3 ). more than four flutes are also a possibility . a preferred material for construction of the second filter segment 22 is a heavy wrapping paper such as non - permeable 0 . 006 inch thick paper similar to that used in a parliament recessed filter cigarette or stiff porous plug wrap . however , other materials may be used such as polyethylene , polypropylene and the like , non - woven stable fibers , and / or extruded open - celled foamed material , e . g ., cellulose acetate filamentary tow material . for example , the second filter segment can be made from high density polyethylene and / or polypropylene . the first filter segment 20 prevents tobacco particles and the like from clogging the orifices 34 of the second filter segment 22 . preferably , it is constructed of cellulose acetate tow of low particulate efficiency , e . g ., cellulose acetate tow of 8 . 0 denier per filament and 35000 total denier . the mouthpiece filter segment 30 is preferably constructed from cellulose acetate tow and is of low particulate efficiency , e . g ., cellulose acetate tow of 8 . 0 denier per filament and 35000 total denier . the ventilation holes 32 are preferably laser perforations made by known online laser perforation techniques . however , pre - perforated tipping paper can also be used . the orifices 34 may be located and aligned relative to the flutes 28 such that they promote mixing of mainstream smoke with ventilation air along the flutes 28 . referring now to fig2 , in addition or in the alternative , the orifices 34 may be arranged to direct mainstream smoke toward adjacent surface regions 125 of the downstream fluted portion such that impaction of mainstream smoke is promoted to thereby remove a larger contingent of particles of tar from the mainstream smoke and to increase smoke particle filtration efficiency under higher flow rate or larger puff volume . the cigarette 10 and the layout of its filter 14 are conducive to high speed manufacturing techniques including those taught in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 357 , 950 , hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety . referring now to fig3 , a method of manufacturing the cigarette 10 includes production of a continuous hollow tube 50 which is fed through a set of crimping wheels 54 whose perimeters form at their nip the aforementioned downstream fluted portions 26 of the second filter segments 22 . optionally , a plug wrap 29 can be added using a garniture 56 or other expedient . a laser 58 is employed to establish the orifices 34 at location ( s ) about the frusto - conical portion 24 of the second filter segment 22 . a knife 60 severs the continuous , crimped rod into 2 - up plugs of second filter segments 22 , 22 ′, which are combined with 2 - up plugs of first filter segments 20 , 20 ′, which are severed in the middle of the 2 - up second filter segments 22 , 22 ′ and combined with 2 - up plugs of mouthpiece filter segments 30 , 30 ′ to form 2 - up filters 14 , 14 ′. pairs of tobacco rods 12 , 12 ′ are tipped with 2 - up filters 14 , 14 ′ and tipping paper 16 to form 2 - up cigarettes , which are severed and laser perforated to establish ventilation holes 32 . preferably , the size of the orifices 34 can range from 0 . 4 to 0 . 8 mm in diameter and are sized to produce a desired range of resistance to draw , e . g ., at least 50 mm water or greater , preferably 60 to 90 mm water , measured at a flow rate of 1050 cc / min ; whereas the ventilation holes 32 are of such size and number so as to produce ventilation in the range of approximately 45 to 90 %, more preferably in the range of approximately 50 to 80 %. with such filter and cigarette construction , there is achieved a mass - producible filter and smoking article of elevated ventilation with acceptable levels of rtd and with desirable organoleptic qualities of its smoke . in another embodiment , when the second filter segment is constructed of polyethylene , polypropylene , and the like , the second filter segment can be fabricated using injection molding in either individual pieces or in multiples of 2 , 4 or 6 ( 2 - up , 4 - up or 6 - up ) instead of the continuous process using a crimping wheel . the 2 - up , 4 - up or 6 - up second filter segments fabricated by injection molding can be wrapped in a plug wrap of desired thickness and mechanical strength when combined with the upstream and / or downstream plugs of filter material such that the outer peripheries of the frusto - conical portion and the fluted portion and any optional plug wrap are adjacent the tipping paper . the preferred embodiments are merely illustrative and should not be considered restrictive in any way . the scope of the invention is given by the appended claims , rather than the preceding description , and all variations and equivalents which fall within the range of the claims are intended to be embraced therein .

0Human Necessities

in some configurations and referring to fig1 , a wind turbine 100 comprises a nacelle 102 housing a generator ( not shown in fig1 ). nacelle 102 is mounted atop a tall tower 104 , only a portion of which is shown in fig1 . wind turbine 100 also comprises a rotor 106 that includes one or more rotor blades 108 attached to a rotating hub 110 . although wind turbine 100 illustrated in fig1 includes three rotor blades 108 , there are no specific limits on the number of rotor blades 108 required by the present invention . in some configurations and referring to fig2 , various components are housed in nacelle 102 atop tower 104 of wind turbine 100 . the height of tower 104 is selected based upon factors and conditions known in the art . in some configurations , one or more microcontrollers within control panel 112 comprise a control system used for overall system monitoring and control . alternative distributed or centralized control architectures are used in some configurations . in some configurations , a variable blade pitch drive 114 is provided to control the pitch of blades 108 ( not shown in fig2 ) that drive hub 110 as a result of wind . in some configurations , the pitches of blades 108 are individually controlled by blade pitch drive 114 . hub 110 and blades 108 together comprise wind turbine rotor 106 . the drive train of the wind turbine includes a main rotor shaft 116 ( also referred to as a “ low speed shaft ”) connected to hub 110 via main bearing 130 and ( in some configurations ), at an opposite end of shaft 116 to a gear box 118 . gear box 118 drives a high speed shaft of generator 120 . in other configurations , main rotor shaft 116 is coupled directly to generator 120 . the high speed shaft ( not identified in fig2 ) is used to drive generator 120 , which is mounted on main frame 132 . in some configurations , rotor torque is transmitted via coupling 122 . in configurations of the present invention , generator 120 is a direct drive permanent magnet generator . yaw drive 124 and yaw deck 126 provide a yaw orientation system for wind turbine 100 . a meterological boom 128 provides information for turbine control system 300 , which may include wind direction and / or wind speed . in some configurations , the yaw system is mounted on a flange provided atop tower 104 . in some configurations of the present invention and referring to fig3 , generator 120 ( shown only in part in fig3 and subsequent figures ) is a direct drive generator with permanent magnets 302 . generator 120 is provided with removable ( change - out ) bearings 304 installed on a removable bearing sub - assembly 306 . ( configurations can use at least one up to any number of bearings 304 , even though fig3 shows a configuration using exactly two bearings .) to change or upgrade a bearing 304 , rotor 106 and stator 308 of generator 120 are locked using locking bolts 310 to ensure that stator 308 and rotor 106 remain in place up - tower where generator 120 is installed . hub 312 and blades 108 are then disassembled on locked generator 120 . bearing sub - assembly 306 is then dismounted by , for example and referring to fig4 , removing mounting bolts 314 along two flanges 314 . alternatively , the entire generator 120 may be lowered to the ground , locking bolts 310 installed , and bearing sub - assembly 306 replaced . in yet other configurations of the present invention and referring to fig5 , a two - bearing generator 520 is provided with removable bearings 304 . generator 520 configurations can generally be substituted for , but are otherwise distinguished from generator 120 configurations in that generator 520 configurations do not require removal of hub 312 . ( configurations of generator 520 can use at least one up to any number of bearings 304 , even though fig5 shows a configuration using exactly two bearings .) shrunk - on bearings 304 are installed on a removable bearing sub - assembly 506 . to change or upgrade a bearing 304 , rotor 106 and stator 508 are locked using , for example , locking bolts 310 , to ensure that stator 508 and rotor 106 will remain in place up - tower where generator 520 is installed . bearing subassembly 506 is then dismounted by removing mounting bolts 314 along two flanges 314 . bearing subassembly 506 can be removed within the tower cabin or nacelle 102 as shown in fig6 and later lowered to the ground via an exit hatch or door 710 , which are provided , for example , at the top or rear of generator housing 512 , as shown in fig7 . in some configurations , to ensure that hub 312 and blades 108 are held stably , several turn - buckle locks 514 are inserted either before disengaging bearing subassembly 506 , or simultaneously or shortly thereafter . turn - buckle locks 514 can be inserted before disengaging bearing subassembly 506 using access ports 516 shown in fig5 . the use of turn - buckle locks 514 ensures direct load - path from hub 312 and blades 108 into generator housing 512 and tower 104 with bearings 304 removed . alternatively , the entire generator 520 may be lowered to the ground , locking bolts 310 installed , and bearing sub - assembly 506 replaced . in some configurations of the present invention and referring to an example configuration shown in fig8 , either stator sub - assembly 800 or rotor sub - assembly 802 , or both , may comprise carbon fiber and / or another suitable composite material . the use of such material or materials results in a low weight wind generator modular unit . another example of a two - bearing wind generator using carbon fiber and / or composite material is shown in fig9 , and an example of a single - bearing generator using such material is shown in fig1 . further , in some configurations of the present invention and referring again to fig3 , damping inserts 316 can be provided that isolate hub and blade dynamics and noise from the generator and the tower . exemplary embodiments of maintenance / assembly methods and apparatus are described above in detail . the methods and the apparatus are not limited to the specific embodiments described herein nor to the specific components being replaced or assembled , but rather , the maintenance / assembly methods described herein may be utilized independently and separately from other methods described herein or to replace other components not described herein . for example , other turbine components can also be replaced using the methods described herein . while the invention has been described in terms of various specific embodiments , those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the claims .

7Electricity

the document shredder 11 comprises the following main components : a self - supporting casing 12 , a cutting mechanism 13 , which is connected by means of a gear 14 to an electric motor 15 and a hood 16 . this unit is mounted on a container 17 . the casing 11 is made in one piece from plastic and has the basic structure of a rectangular frame with side and end walls 18 , 19 running round three outside and extending virtually over the entire height of the shredder . adjacent to a wall 18 is constructed a channel or trough - like motor chamber 20 , in which are located the electric motor 15 and optionally circuitry components and the like , so as to be protected from the cutting mechanism area . the trough reinforces the casing . parallel thereto is formed a cutting mechanism chamber 21 , which is on the casing side open at the top and bottom . in it is located the cutting mechanism 13 , which comprises two horizontal , parallel , juxtaposed cutting rollers 2 , whose cooperating cutting disks 23 engage in one another . the cutting disk 23 are worked from the cutting roller material with the spacing of the strip width to be cut and have in each case a substantially radially directed face or edge 24 and a bevelled face or edge 25 . the cutting rollers 22 are arranged in such a way that in each case two radial faces are adjacent or engage with one another in such a way that they can make a cut in the manner of scissors . the cutting rollers are mounted at their two ends in bearing inserts 26 , which can be made from a high - grade , elastic plastic with bearing characteristics . they are inserted from above in u - shaped recesses 27 in the rear end wall 19 and a partition 28 opposite thereto and terminating the motor and cutting mechanism chambers 20 , 21 and are fixed by screws 29 . fig1 shows that the bearing inserts have all - round rib 30 in the vicinity of the recess and engage in a corresponding groove shaped into the recess 27 . as can be gathered from fig3 each bearing insert has on the inside facing the cutting mechanism a strong flange 31 , which is supported on the partition 28 and can absorb axial forces . thus , the bearing inserts form a radial and axial bearing for the cutting rollers 22 and are so intrinsically elastic that they can absorb the necessary axial pressing forces or bring about the corresponding positioning of the cutting rollers . they form together with the two cutting rollers and the synchronization gear wheels 32 mounted on the shaft journals projecting on one side through the bearing insert 26 , a prefittable unit , which can only be inserted from above in the corresponding casing recesses 27 and which requires fixing . one of the two identical synchronization gear wheels ensuring the contrarotating drive of the cutting rollers 22 , engages in a pinion of the final gear step 35 . the gear 14 has three gear steps 33 , 34 , 35 in each case comprising a plastic pinion / gear wheel combination and which in each case is fitted to a metal pivot pin 36 . they are mounted on one side in bearing depressions of the partition 28 and on the other side in bearing depressions in a gear cover 37 , supported and fixed on a strong edge 39 of the casing surrounding a gear chamber 38 . the gear chamber is adapted to the gear shape and perfectly reinforced as a result of a strong construction of the partition 38 , edge 39 and cover 37 . this also contributes to the reinforcement of the overall casing , which is also assisted by the trough shape of the motor chamber 20 . the driving pinion 40 of the motor 15 engages in the gear wheel of the first gear step 33 . thus , in all the gear forms four transmission steps . it can therefore be brought with favourable individual transmissions of around 1 : 4 with good efficiency and in low wear and noise manner to overall transmission ratios of 1 : 200 to 1 : 300 , which permits a high motor speed of up to 20 , 000 r . p . m . in the cutting mechanism chamber 21 run under the cutting rollers 22 transverse beams 41 in one piece with the casing and which on their top surface form , by corresponding shaping , strippers 42 ( cf . fig2 and 4 ). they have a profiling adapted to the cutting mechanism profile , i . e . serrated in a slightly sawtooth manner and engage in gaps between the cutting disks 23 and prevent the paper adhering to the cutting disks from being drawn around the cutting rollers . under normal conditions the cutting mechanism operates without any need for a stripper . however , the stripper serves as a security measure against strongly adhering papers and the like . the strippers have a segmental construction and extend over an angle of approximately 45 ° to 60 ° about the lower cutting roller circumference and in each case displaced from the centre outwards . the cross - sectionally , inverted u - shaped transverse beams 41 additionally reinforce the casing in the most highly loaded areas . it is therefore clear that the casing is a self - supporting , highly stable unit , which combines in one piece the motor , cutting mechanism , gear , chassis , stripper and outer casing . it is manufactured as a plastic injection moulding , preferably from a plastic , which is internally given a sandwich structure by slight foaming and is not critical with respect to larger wall thicknesses or wall thickness jumps . the top of the elongated , relatively flat casing is covered by the hood 16 , which has a substantially planar upper surface 43 and a downwardly directed , all - round edge 44 . as can also be gathered from fig6 it is supported by the inner ribs 45 provided in the marginal area on an outwardly directed flange 46 of the casing 12 . however , the edge 44 engages over the flange 46 at the bottom and forms there a groove - like , all - round recess 48 bounded by the edge 44 , the underside of the flange 46 and the lateral surface 47 of the lower casing portion which widens slightly upwards . in the vicinity thereof the noses 49 of a snap connection are fitted to the edge 44 and by means of these the hood 16 is snapped onto the casing flange 46 . in the embodiment the container 17 is made from a high - grade corrugated paper material . the upper container edge 50 has an open corrugated paper cut edge , because on mounting the shredder on the container it engages in the recess 48 and is covered by the latter . thus , the hood 46 engages over and beyond the outer edge of the container rim , so that it is the only surface visible from the outside . thus , in the case of different colourings , there is no need to give a different colour to the casing and it can be made from the most favourable material for the particular purpose without any special requirements existing regarding the appearance . fig2 and 6 show that on mounting the container rim widens somewhat as a result of the slope of the outer wall portion 47 and therefore permits a reliable , tight connection . fig2 and 5 show that on the upper face 43 of the hood 16 there are two bead - like , parallel protuberances 51 which , between them , define an insertion slot 52 , which runs at right angles to the engagement area 53 of the cutting rollers 22 . the beads , whose arcuate structure mainly has a decorative function , are also used for reinforcing the walls 54 bounding the insertion slot and as an insertion aid . in the variant of fig5 on the lower edges thereof reverse strippers 55 are provided , i . e . teeth roughly corresponding to those of fig4 and which engage in the gaps between the cutting disks 23 . during the return of the cutting rollers ( opposite to rotation direction 56 ), which e . g . takes place in the case of blockages , they serve to prevent any winding round the cutting rollers . thus , as a result of its integral , self - supporting casing construction , the described document shredder is easy to manufacture and assemble , whilst having a stable , durable construction .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

a pulsed irrigation handpiece 10 ( fig1 and 2 ) embodying the invention comprises a hand - held housing 11 having a handle 12 and a barrel 13 which extends forward from the upper end of the handle 12 at about a 130 ° to 150 ° ( here about 145 °) angle thereto . the housing 11 is hollow and , for convenience in assembling the handpiece 10 , is constructed as laterally opposed concave left and right housing parts 14 and 15 ( fig2 ). the housing parts 14 and 15 are preferably molded rigid plastic elements held together rigidly by any convenient means , here comprising undercut snap fit tabs 16 protruding from the top and bottom edges of the right housing part 15 to snap over an interior edge flange ( not shown ) on the top and bottom edge of the left housing part 14 . if desired , precise registry together of the two housing parts can be assisted by laterally projecting pins 20 distributed along the edges of one housing part ( here the left housing part 14 ) piloted in holes 21 ( fig4 ) in the opposed edges of the other housing part ( here 15 ). upon completion of assembly of the handpiece 10 , the two housing parts 14 and 15 may be adhesively bonded together . the handpiece is intended to be a disposable item and therefore access to the interior of the housing for purposes of repair is not needed . the drive unit 25 ( fig2 - 15 ) is self contained in its own shell 26 ( fig2 ). for convenience in assembly , the shell 26 comprises two opposed concave shell parts 30 and 31 respectively disposed to the left and right in fig2 . the shell parts 30 and 31 are preferably of rigid molded plastics material . when the drive unit 25 has been assembled , as in fig2 and 9 , the shell parts 30 and 31 are held fixedly together by any convenient means , here by resilient snap connection of generally u - shaped clips 32 , molded in spaced relation along the perimeter edge of the shell part 31 which overlap the perimeter edge of the shell part 30 and snap over tabs 33 protruding therefrom , as seen in fig5 - 7 . precise location of the shell parts 30 and 31 with respect to each other is assisted by locator pins 34 fixedly protruding from the shell part 31 and holes 35 in the opposed portions of the shell part 30 . a conventional dc energizable electric motor 36 ( fig4 and 5 ) is snugly housed in the space between the left and right ( fig2 ) shell parts 30 and 31 at the rear ( left in fig5 - 7 , 10 and 12 ) thereof . the motor 36 is snugly axially located between the rear end wall 40 and a transverse internal bulkhead 41 of the shell 26 ( fig5 - 7 , 10 and 12 ). the rear end wall 40 and bulkhead 41 have opposed parts in the left and right shell parts 30 and 31 , as seen in fig6 and 7 . rear and front bosses 42 and 43 respectively extend rearward and forward from the cylindrical casing 44 of the motor 36 , as seen in fig1 and 12 ), and are supported in corresponding coaxial recesses 45 and 46 in the rear end wall 40 and bulkhead 41 respectively , so as to support the motor casing 44 with respect to the shell 26 . a flat 47 on the rear boss 42 ( fig9 ) co - acts with a corresponding flat in the surrounding recess 45 to prevent rotation of the motor casing 44 with respect to the shell parts 30 and 31 , such that the motor 36 is antirotationally fixed within the shell 26 . the drive unit 25 further includes a transmission 50 ( fig5 ) coaxial with and forward of the motor 36 . the transmission includes a reciprocating link member 51 and is driven from the forward extending , rotating output shaft 52 of the motor 36 . the shaft 52 extends coaxially forward through the front boss 43 ( fig1 ) of the motor 36 . the transmission 50 ( fig5 and 12 ) includes a pinion gear 53 fixed on the motor shaft 52 for rotation thereby , and a face gear 54 which , as seen in fig1 , underlies the pinion gear 53 . the face gear 54 has a relatively large diameter central disk 56 carrying upward facing teeth 55 engaging corresponding teeth on the pinion gear 53 for rotation thereby . the face gear 54 includes a secondary pinion gear 57 fixed coaxially beneath the disk 56 , and of substantially lesser diameter , which in turn drives a relatively large diameter output gear 60 . it will be understood that the pinion gear 53 , face gear 54 , secondary pinion 57 and output gear 60 are all provided with a full circumferential ( 360 °) set of teeth , so that continuous rotation of the motor shaft 52 results in continuous rotation of the output gear 60 . for convenience in drawing , some or all the gear teeth are not shown in various of the drawings , the toothed meshing connection of the gears therein thus being only schematically shown . see for example fig4 , 12 , 13 and 14 . an output shaft 61 is fixed to and coaxially upstanding from the output gear 60 ( fig1 ) and fixedly rotatably drives an eccentric member 62 ( fig5 and 12 ) spaced above the output gear 60 . in this embodiment , the output shaft is of rectangular cross - section to maximize its torque transmitting capability . the eccentric member 62 comprises a radially extending disk 63 ( fig5 ) coaxial with the output shaft 61 and fixedly surmounted by an eccentric circular cylinder 64 eccentrically rotatable with the output shaft 61 . the link member 51 is generally t - shaped , as seen in fig1 , having a plate - like body 70 overlying the disk 63 of the eccentric member 62 and lying at right angles to the output shaft 61 , and further having a plate - like fork 71 fixed at the rightward ( fig5 , 12 and 13 ) end of the plate - like body 70 and extending in a plane substantially parallel to the output shaft 61 . the plane of the plate - like fork 71 is perpendicular to the intended direction of reciprocating movement of the link member 51 . the body 70 , at its end portion remote from the fork 71 , has an oblong through opening 72 snugly radially receiving the rotating eccentric cylinder 64 of the eccentric member 62 , as seen in fig1 . more particularly , the length direction of the oblong opening 72 extends parallel to the plane of the fork 71 and is of sufficient length to accommodate 360 ° rotation of the eccentric cylinder 64 without movement of the body 70 parallel to the plane of the fork 71 . on the other hand , the width of the oblong opening 72 , namely in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the fork 71 , corresponds substantially to the diameter of the eccentric cylinder 64 , providing a sliding clearance between the body 70 and eccentric cylinder 64 , so that rotation of the eccentric cylinder 64 will result in reciprocation of the link member 51 in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the fork 71 . the plate - like body 70 includes a thickened rim 73 ( fig5 ) around the oblong opening 72 and may thus be said to form a yoke for coaction with the eccentric cylinder 64 . the side edges of the body 70 are preferably also thickened to form parallel longitudinal guide rails 74 ( fig1 ). the above discussed moving elements of the transmission 50 are located and movably supported within the shell 26 as follows . the face gear 54 has coaxial downward and upward ( fig5 - 7 , 10 and 12 ) extending stub shafts 75 and 76 respectively rotatably supported in coaxial bearing bosses 80 and 81 respectively fixed on the opposing faces of the shell parts 31 and 30 ( fig6 and 12 ). similarly , the output gear 60 and the eccentric member 62 have respective downward and upward extending stub shafts 82 and 83 coaxial with the output shaft 61 and rotatably supported in respective cylindrical bearing bosses 84 and 85 in the respective shells 31 and 30 ( fig5 - 7 and 12 ). the link member 51 is slidably guided for reciprocation in a notch 90 ( fig5 and 7 ) in the peripheral wall 91 of the left ( upper in fig5 ) shell part 30 . the notch 90 has parallel opposed guide faces 92 ( fig7 ) spaced apart to snugly slidably guide therebetween the opposite guide rails 74 of the link member 51 , and thus spaced at substantially at the maximum width of the link member . the thickness of the link member is guided for reciprocation between the peripheral edge 93 of the right ( lower in fig5 ) shell 31 and the width wall 94 ( fig5 and 7 ) of the other shell part 30 . the central length axis la ( fig1 ) of the link member intersects the central length axis ma of the motor shaft 52 at the axis sa of the output shaft 61 and stub shaft 83 ( fig1 and 12 ), at an angle equal to the angle between the central length axis of the handle 12 and barrel 13 of the housing 11 . moreover , the length axes of the handle and barrel also intersect at the axis sa of the output shaft 61 when the drive unit 25 is installed in the handpiece housing 11 as hereafter discussed . in effect then , the link member longitudinal axis la and motor shaft axis ma define the length axis of the barrel 13 and handle 12 , respectively , when the drive unit 25 is installed in the handpiece housing 11 . the drive unit 25 is located within the handle 12 , as follows . as seen in fig3 and 4 , transverse ribs 95 are molded into the interior surface of the handle 12 at opposing locations in the left and right housing parts 14 and 15 ( fig2 - 4 ). for drawing convenience , only the ribs in the right housing part 15 are shown , the ribs in the left housing part 14 being compatible . the ribs 95 locate the drive unit 25 in the rightward / leftward direction in fig2 . further , the drive unit shell bosses 84 and 85 ( fig5 ) protrude sideways from the drive unit shell and are pivotally received in corresponding hollow cylindrical bosses , one of which is shown at 96 in fig2 and which extend toward each other from the interior of the left and right housing parts 14 and 15 . the hollow cylindrical boss 96 of the left housing part 14 is not shown but is opposed to and compatible with the housing part 96 shown in the right housing part 15 of fig2 . the drive unit 25 is thus , except for the lateral positioning defined by the ribs 95 , pivotally located within the handpiece housing 11 and is thus capable of some pivotal floating in the housing to achieve proper alignment of the longitudinal movement axis la ( fig7 ) of the link member 51 with respect to the barrel 13 and a pump unit 100 ( fig2 - 4 and 16 - 18 ) located in the barrel 13 as hereafter discussed . turning now to the pump unit 100 , attention is directed to fig2 - 4 and 16 - 18 . the pump unit 100 includes a bellows 101 including an axially expandable and contractible flexible bellows wall 114 ( fig1 ) and a forwardly extending , rigid , annular flange wall 102 . such flange wall 102 is loosely telescoped over a rigid rearwardly extending annular flange 103 of a rigid , forwardly extending coaxial bellows housing 104 . the bellows 101 and bellows housing 104 are preferably of molded plastics material . a resilient o - ring 105 ( fig1 and 19 ) is snugly radially disposed between the radially opposed , axially extending annular flanges 102 and 103 , to create a fluid seal therebetween and hence between the bellows 101 and bellows housing 104 , to prevent fluid leakage therebetween . the bellows 101 and bellows housing 104 have respective axially spaced radially extending steps 106 and 107 joined to the respective annular flanges 102 and 103 and axially spaced apart at a distance substantially greater than the diameter of the o - ring 105 , as seen in fig1 . the axial extending flanges 102 and 103 and radially extending steps 105 and 106 define an annular chamber 110 in which the o - ring 105 is axially loosely , and radially snugly and sealingly , disposed . note that the radially opposed surfaces of the axially extending annular flanges 102 and 103 are cylindrical , such that neither has an annular groove in which the o - ring seats . thus , the o - ring is free to roll on the radially opposed cylindrical surfaces of the axially extending flanges 102 and 103 and the o - ring 105 does not significantly interfere with axial separation of the bellows 101 and bellows housing 104 from each other . instead , such axial separation is prevented , as hereinafter further discussed , by a forwardly - rearwardly ( leftwardly - rightwardly in fig2 ) spaced pair of ribs 111 ( fig2 ) extending radially inward from the interior wall of the right housing part 15 and a corresponding , laterally opposed pair of mirror imaged ribs ( not shown ) extending laterally inward from the interior wall of the left housing part 14 . such ribs 111 are also schematically indicated in fig1 . the rear ( right in fig1 ) end of the bellows housing axial flange 103 abuts the radially extending step 106 of the bellows 101 and the forward ( leftward in fig1 ) end of the bellows axial flange 102 axially abuts a radial flange 112 which extends radially outward from and forwardly from the bellows housing step 107 . the forward end of the bellows axial flange 102 thus radially overlaps the bellows housing step 107 in snug but axially slidable relation thereto . a small forwardly extending annular rib 113 protrudes forwardly from the bellows radial step 106 toward the o - ring 105 to prevent rearward escape of the o - ring 105 from the space between the axially extending flanges 102 and 103 , in the event of slight axial shifting of the bellows 101 and bellows housing 104 away from each other . the above mentioned radially inward extending ribs 111 of the handpiece housing 11 snugly axially oppose and sandwich therebetween the bellows radial step 106 and bellows housing radial flange 112 to positively prevent axial separation of the bellows 101 from the bellows housing 104 , when the pump unit 100 is installed in the housing 11 . the above - mentioned bellows wall 114 extends rearward from the inner periphery of the radially extending annular step 106 of the bellows 101 ( fig1 ) and consists of an axially collapsible and extensible , flexible , wave cross - section , peripheral wall 114 . the bellows wall 114 surrounds an axially expansible and contractible pumping chamber 115 . at the rear end of the bellows 101 , a radially extending drive end wall 116 closes the rear end of the bellows wall 114 and pumping chamber 115 . a stub 120 , having a radially enlarged head 121 , is fixed to and extends coaxially rearwardly from the drive end wall 116 . to axially reciprocatingly drive ( repetitively axially contract and expand ) the bellows 101 , the above discussed link member 51 ( fig5 ) of the drive unit 25 has its fork 71 provided with a central , radially opening , generally u - shaped slot 122 ( fig1 - 13 ). the slot 122 divides the fork 71 into a pair of tines 123 ( fig1 ). the slot 122 opens leftwardly in fig2 namely away from the rightward housing part 15 and toward the leftward housing part 14 . thus , with the drive unit 25 located in the right housing part 12 as seen in fig3 the pump unit 100 can be inserted into the rightward housing part 15 , with the stub 120 ( fig1 ) inserted in the slot 122 of the fork 71 ( fig1 ) so as to trap the tines 123 axially between the drive end wall 116 and head 121 of the bellows 101 , as generally indicated in fig3 and 4 . to prevent the bellows stub 120 from accidentally radially escaping out the open end of the slot 122 in the fork 71 , the central portion 124 ( fig1 ) of the slot 122 is undercut by inward tapering of an intermediate portion 125 of the slot 122 as seen in fig1 . the tapered portion 125 of the slot 122 ( fig1 ) defines a snap fit detente for resiliently trapping the bellows stub 120 in the drive unit slot 122 . thus , to install the bellows stub 120 in the slot 122 , the bellows stub 120 must be resiliently forced through the tapered portion 125 of the slot 122 and upon passing the latter , the stub resiliently snaps into the central portion 124 of the slot . the inner ends of the tapered portion 125 of the slot resiliently maintain the stub radially inboard thereof , in the central portion 124 of the slot 122 . the stub 120 and hence the bellows 101 , and indeed the entire pump unit 100 , is thus freely rotatable about its length axis with respect to the fork 71 , so that the circumferential orientation of the drive unit 25 and the pump unit 100 is determined by the location thereof in the housing . the drive unit 25 and pump unit 100 are thus , to an extent , free to circumferentially float with respect to each other , about the connection of the stub 120 and fork 71 , without interfering with the circumferential location of the drive unit 25 and pump unit 100 in the housing 11 . further , the edges of the slot 122 , in particular of the central portion 124 thereof , are rounded in cross - section , as is the stub 120 , to permit a modest amount of angular adjustment between the length axes ma and la of the drive unit 25 and pump unit 100 and to allow the drive unit 25 and pump unit 100 to easily settle into their proper operating positions in the housing 11 . a cylindrical plug 126 is coaxially fixed to the interior side ( left side in fig1 ) of the bellows drive end wall 116 by a coaxial , rearward extending , undercut pin 127 snap fitted in a forwardly ( leftwardly in fig1 ) opening recess in the stub 120 . the plug 126 has a diametral slot 130 opening forward from its front end and which faces forward toward a resilient valve member 131 ( fig1 and 18 ) to maintain liquid communication between the central and radially outer portions of the pumping chamber 115 . the bellows 101 is thus a single element which carries out four different functions , namely sealing at the forward end , changing the pump chamber size in the middle thereof , the rearend acts as a piston and as a drive point . in addition , the front annular flange 102 helps locate the pump unit with respect to the housing barrel . the pump unit 100 further includes a valve member 131 , which is a one piece member of suitable resilient material and which by itself constitutes the entire moveable inlet and outlet valve system for the pump unit 100 . more particularly , the valve member 131 comprises a short tubular central portion 132 ( fig1 ) which coaxially connects a forward ( leftward in fig1 ) tapering , duck bill type , outlet valve 133 and a rearwardly and radially outwardly extending umbrella type , inlet valve 134 . the umbrella valve 134 is annular and has a central opening 135 which communicates coaxially from the pumping chamber 115 in the bellows 101 forwardly through the tubular central portion 132 and outlet duck bill valve 133 of the valve member 131 . the bellows housing 104 comprises a rear ( right in fig1 and 18c ) facing recess having a perimeter defined by the annular flange 103 of the bellows housing 104 and a rear facing radial wall 136 which defines the front end of the pumping chamber 115 . the umbrella valve 134 lies coaxially in the resulting recess 103 , 136 . the forward facing perimeter 137 of the umbrella valve 134 , in its closed condition shown in fig1 and 18c , presses forward against the radial wall 136 to seal thereagainst . the valve member 131 is held against the right ( rearward ) movement away from the bellows housing wall 136 by axial interference between a rightward facing , radially outward extending , annular step 140 ( fig1 c ) at the rear ( right ) end of the duck bill valve 133 , and a radially inward extending , leftward facing , annular flange 141 of the bellows housing 104 . the radially inward directed , annular flange 141 is axially interposed between , and forms a port 142 between , the rear facing recess 103 , 136 and a coaxial , forwardly extending , cylindrical , irrigation liquid outlet conduit 143 ( fig1 and 18c ). the tubular central portion 132 of the valve member 131 extends snugly axially through the port 142 . to install the valve member 131 in the bellows housing 104 , the tapered outlet duck bill valve 133 is pushed forward through the port 142 , the bellows valve step 140 snaps forwardly ( leftwardly in fig1 c ) past the bellows housing flange 141 , and the sealing perimeter 137 of the umbrella valve 134 is thereby pulled forwardly resiliently against the rearward facing bellows housing wall 136 , leaving the valve member 131 with its duck bill valve 133 and umbrella valve 134 both in their closed condition shown in fig1 and 18c . the bellows housing 104 further includes an annular liquid jacket 144 ( fig1 and 18c ) surrounding the rear portion of the liquid outlet conduit 143 and defining radially therebetween an annular liquid inlet chamber 145 ( fig1 , 18c and 19 ). the inlet chamber 145 communicates between a radial inlet port 146 ( fig1 and 19 ), which opens radially outward through the side of the bellows housing 104 , and an annular space 147 ( fig1 c ). the annular space 147 is bounded by the forward face 150 and tubular central portion 132 and sealing perimeter 137 of the umbrella valve 134 and the radial face 136 of the recess 103 , 136 of the bellows housing 104 . thus , a rightward pullback of the bellows head 121 axially expands the bellows , from its fig1 a position towards its fig1 position . this reduces the pressure within the bellows . this in turn keeps the duck bill valve 133 closed and pulls the sealing perimeter 137 of the umbrella valve 134 rightwardly away from the bellows housing recess radial wall 136 and draws liquid from the port 146 through the annular inlet chamber 145 , around the perimeter 137 of the open umbrella valve and into the interior of bellows . on the other hand , a leftward push forward of the bellows head 121 axially compresses the bellows from its fig1 position toward its fig1 b position and raises the pressure in the bellows , to close the umbrella valve 134 and open the duck bill valve 133 and force a pulse of liquid out of the bellows forwardly through the duck bill valve 133 and liquid outlet conduit 143 . irrigation liquid is drawn to the inlet port 146 of the bellows housing 104 through an elbow 151 ( fig1 ). the outlet end 152 of the elbow and the inlet port 146 are cylindrical , with the elbow outlet end 152 being a snug axially sliding fit in the inlet port 146 . an axially elongate , annular groove 153 in the outer periphery of the elbow outlet 152 houses a seal ring , here an o - ring , 154 which bears sealing and rollingly on the radially opposed and surrounding surface of the inlet port 146 to prevent liquid leakage out of the elbow 151 at its interface with the inlet port 146 . the elbow 151 is not mechanically interlocked with the inlet port 146 but can slide in and out with respect thereto . the elbow 151 is held in place with its outlet end 152 sealingly within the port 146 by bearing of a portion 155 ( fig4 ) of the handpiece housing barrel 13 against the outboard surface 156 of the elbow 151 , with the pump unit installed in the handpiece housing 11 . the elbow 151 here fixedly carries a pair of parallel fins 157 ( fig1 , 17 and 19 ). the fins 157 extend radially from the rear inlet end portion of the elbow 151 and axially sandwich therebetween the flanges 106 and 112 of the bellows 101 and bellows housing 104 , at least to help the housing ribs 111 ( fig1 ) fins 157 prevent axial separation of the bellows and bellows housing . the housing ribs 111 and fins 157 are more or less evenly circumferentially located around the bellows 101 and bellows housing 104 . an elongate flexible irrigation liquid supply hose 160 ( fig2 , 16 , 17 , 19 , 22 , 23 , 25 and 29 ) has a forward end 161 which telescopes sealing and fixedly over the rear end 162 of the elbow 151 as seen in fig1 and 29 . although an annular barb is shown at 162 ( for example in fig1 ) a barbless , cylindrical end 162 is satisfactory . in the assembled handpiece , the irrigation liquid hose 160 extends rearward from the elbow 151 ( fig4 ) in the barrel 13 of the housing and angles downwardly and rearwardly along the bottom of the handpiece handle 12 to exit rearwardly and downwardly through a hole 163 ( fig2 ) in the bottom end wall 164 of the handpiece housing 11 . a clamp plate 165 ( fig2 , 3 and 4 ) of bent cross - section has a perimeter groove 166 for receiving the edges of the hole 163 in the housing bottom end wall 164 , such that the clamp plate 165 is trapped in and partly closes the hole 163 in the bottom end 164 of the housing handle 12 when the housing is fully assembled . a notch 167 ( fig2 ) in the rightward end of the clamp plate 165 permits exit therethrough of irrigation liquid supply hose 160 from the handpiece housing 11 and snugly and frictionally grips such hose , without crushing or collapsing it , so that such hose 160 cannot easily be pulled out of the housing 11 or off the elbow 151 . the irrigation liquid hose 160 has fixed on the outside thereof , as by extruding or molding integrally therewith , a smaller diameter rib 170 ( fig2 and 17 ). a plurality ( here three ) of insulated electrical conductors ( wires ) 171 have intermediate portions contained within and extending the length of the rib 170 . forward end portions of the insulated wires 171 emerge from the forward end of the rib 170 and carry conventional electrically conductive connectors 175 . the forward end of the rib 170 extends through the notch 167 ( fig2 ) and ends just inside the bottom portion of the handle 12 of the housing 11 , as seen in fig4 . the forward ends of the conductors 171 , carrying the connectors 175 , extend into the lower portion of the handpiece handle 12 for purposes appearing hereinafter . the insulated electrical conductors 171 extend along the length of the central portion of the liquid supply hose 160 and have rear ends provided with respective electrically conductive connectors 176 ( fig2 and 29 ), such that electric current can flow from a given rear connector 176 through its corresponding insulated electrical conductor 171 and to its corresponding front electrically conductive connector 175 in a conventional manner . short rear portions of the conductors 171 are loose and moveable with respect to the liquid supply hose 160 as seen in fig2 and 29 . the electrical connectors 175 and 176 are conventional crimp type connectors . instead of being molded in or otherwise constrained within the generally circular cross section rib 170 in fig2 the elongate central portion of the insulated electrical conductors 171 may be fixed side by side , in a flat array , to the outside of the liquid hose 160 , as shown in fig2 and 29 , and such can be accomplished by adhesive bonding or by any other convenient means . the hose 160 , 170 thus serves the dual use of conveying both irrigation liquid and electric operating power . the length of the central portion of the liquid hose 160 , to which the insulated conductors 170 are fixed , preferably extends several feet ( for example 8 to 10 feet ) from the handpiece 10 . the rear end 177 ( fig2 and 23 ) of the liquid hose is here provided with a fitting 180 of hollow tubular construction open to axial liquid flow therethrough . the fitting 180 comprises a forward end portion 181 ( fig2 ) fixed sealingly telescoped in the rear end 177 of the liquid hose 160 , a square central flange 182 ( fig2 ) and a rear end portion ( or “ spike ”) 183 having a sharpened tip 184 . the tip 184 is capable of conventional insertion into a conventional source s ( fig2 ) of irrigation liquid , for example a conventional supply bag , for conveying irrigation liquid therefrom forward into the hose 160 . the square flange 182 prevents rotation of the fitting 180 in the casing 191 , which helps when removing the spike 183 from the liquid supply bag . in the embodiment shown , the rear end portion 183 is covered by a protective cap 185 prior to use so that the sharpened tip 184 will not accidentally be dulled . thus , the length of the liquid supply hose 160 allows the irrigation liquid source s to be located at a distance from the handpiece and thus out of the way of the surgical personnel at the operating table where the handpiece 10 is to be used . to provide operating electrical power to the motor 36 , a compact , self contained electrical power supply unit 190 ( fig2 - 25 ) is fixed on the rear end portion 177 of the liquid hose 160 , and is thus located remotely from the handpiece 10 , adjacent to the source s of irrigation liquid . the power supply unit 190 comprises a casing 191 preferably of rigid molded plastics material . the casing 191 here comprises a relatively deep , substantially rectangular pan 192 ( fig2 ) whose top ( as oriented in fig2 and 23 ) is fixedly closed by a cover 193 . the pan 192 has front and rear end walls 194 and 195 ( fig2 , 23a and 24 ) having fixed upward opening slots 200 each defined by a laterally spaced , opposed pair of u - shaped flanges 201 ( fig2 a and 23b ). the slots 200 are undercut in that each has a mouth 202 laterally narrower than the remainder of the slot 200 and communicating between the remainder of the slot 200 and the interior cavity of the pan 192 . the undercut slots 200 are of constant cross - sectional size and shape vertically ( i . e . into and out of the page in fig2 and up and down in fig2 ). for convenient reference in the drawings , the reference numerals 200 and 201 are suffixed , so that the undercut slots and u - shaped flanges on the front pan wall 194 are indicated by the reference characters 200 f and 201 f and the undercut slots and u - shaped flanges on the rear pan wall 195 are indicated at 200 r and 201 r . the u - shaped flanges 201 f defining the slots 200 f on the forward end wall 194 start substantially from the pan bottom wall 196 and extend a bit less than half way up the front end wall 194 . on the other hand , the u - shaped flanges 201 r of the slots 200 r on the rearward end wall 195 of the pan are spaced above the bottom wall 196 of the pan upon respective block - like pillars 203 which define an up - facing bottom 204 for each of the u - shaped flanges 201 r on the rear pan wall 195 . rising from bottom wall 196 of the pan between the two central pillars 203 to a height below the bottoms 204 of the slots 200 r thereof , is a central block 205 from which forwardly extends , along the pan bottom wall 196 , a t - shaped flange 206 ( fig2 b ) of constant cross section vertically and defining a pair of vertically open and laterally oppositely opening grooves 207 disposed immediately forward from the two central pillars 203 on the rear pan wall 195 . two such undercut slots 200 f are spaced symmetrically side by side on the front pan wall 194 . similarly , and at the same effective lateral spacing , two such slots 200 r are spaced laterally side by side on the pan rear wall 195 . springy , electrically conductive sheet metal battery contacts of three different kinds are indicated at 210 and 211 and 212 and fig2 , 27 and 28 respectively . a pair of such contacts 210 are provided and each comprises a generally rectangular foot 213 adapted to snugly slide down into a respective undercut slot 200 f at the pan front wall 194 . each foot 213 is provided with resilient toes 214 angled out of the plane of the foot 213 and adapted to bite against the interior of the corresponding undercut slot 200 f to fix the corresponding battery contact 210 in place therein . similarly , each of a pair of battery contacts 212 ( fig2 ) has a resilient fork - shaped foot 215 adapted to fit snugly and slidingly down into the corresponding undercut groove 200 r at the rear wall 195 of the pan 192 and with springy toes 216 for fixedly gripping the interior of the corresponding undercut slot 200 r . in a generally similar manner the single , low speed battery contact 211 ( fig2 ) has a resilient u - shaped foot 217 for sliding down over the t - shaped flange 206 ( fig2 b ), with springy toes 218 bent out of the plane of the foot 217 for bitingly engaging the walls of the grooves 207 of the t - shaped flange 206 . each of the battery contacts 210 , 211 and 212 thus slides with its corresponding foot into the desired location with respect to the grooves 200 f , 200 r and 207 and locks fixedly therein . this is generally indicated in fig2 - 24 . the battery contacts 210 , 211 and 212 have respective resilient fingers 221 , 222 and 223 ( fig2 , 27 and 28 respectively ), two each for the battery contacts 210 and 211 and one each for the battery contacts 212 . such fingers 221 , 222 and 223 protrude from the respective slots 200 f , 200 r and 207 into the interior of the pan 192 for electrically contacting batteries 230 ( fig2 ) to be housed in the pan 192 . further , the battery contact 211 and each of the battery contacts 212 ( fig2 and 28 respectively ) have an upstanding terminal ( 224 and 225 respectively ) of simple rectangular shape for releasable telescoped engagement within a respective one of the connectors 176 at the rear ends of the three insulated electrical conductors 171 ( fig2 ). turning now to the arrangement of the batteries 230 within the pan 192 , one embodiment according to the invention advantageously uses batteries of a kind widely available in retail stores , namely aa size alkaline batteries . in addition to their wide availability to the public , these batteries advantageously are inexpensive , have a long shelf life and provide full operating voltage until almost fully discharged . in the embodiment shown , eight such batteries 230 are provided and are individually indicated at b 1 , b 2 , b 3 , b 4 , b 5 , b 6 , b 7 and b 8 . as shown in fig2 - 24 , ribs 231 extending circumferentially within the pan 192 cradle the batteries 230 fixedly but removably within the pan 192 . the polarity of the eight batteries is indicated by “ plus ” signs marked thereon . as seen in the drawings , the batteries 230 are arranged in four rows of two head - to - tail batteries each . four of the batteries 230 lie in the bottom ( fig2 and 23 ) of the pan in two rows of two each and the remaining four batteries 230 lie on top of those . the ends of the battery rows bear variously on the above discussed battery contacts 210 , 211 and 212 as generally indicated for example in fig2 and also in the schematic circuit drawing in fig2 a . more particularly , the four batteries b 1 , b 2 , b 3 and b 4 defining a vertical plane nearest to the viewer in fig2 are connected in series from the near connector 212 leftwardly through the top row of batteries , down through the near upstanding connector 210 and thence rightwardly through the bottom pair of batteries to the lower rear connector 211 . the remaining four batteries b 5 - b 8 are arranged in a vertical plane behind above - mentioned batteries b 1 - b 4 . more particularly , the batteries b 5 - b 8 connect in series from the far side of the lower rear connector 211 forwardly ( leftwardly in fig2 ) to the far connector 210 , upwardly therethrough , and then rearwardly back to the far upper connector 212 . the cover 193 ( fig2 and 25 ) has plural , laterally extending , depending ribs 232 ( fig2 and 25 ) intended to seat upon the uppermost batteries b 1 , b 2 , b 7 and b 8 and fix the batteries b 1 - b 8 in the pan with the cover 193 fixed in its normal closed position atop the pan 192 . the cover is fixedly securable atop the pan by any convenient means , such as snap fit connectors , a portion of which are generally shown in 233 in fig2 , and generally like those discussed above with respect to the handpiece housing 11 , as at 16 , and as generally discussed with respect to the drive unit shell 26 , as at 32 , 33 . the aforementioned rear end 177 of the hose 160 extends through the casing 191 along the horizontal parting plane between the pan 192 and cover 193 , and so lies close adjacent the topmost batteries b 1 , b 2 , b 7 and b 8 . hollow front and rear bosses 234 and 235 ( fig2 and 25 ) extend forward and rearward respectively , from the casing 191 . at the parting plane between the pan 192 and cover 193 , the bosses 234 and 235 are notched ( for example at 236 in fig2 ) for extension therethrough of the rear end 177 of the liquid hose 160 . the rear hollow boss 235 is sized and shaped to receive radially therein the square flange 182 ( fig2 ) on the rear end of the liquid hose 160 , and thereby axially fix the rear end of the liquid supply hose 160 within the casing 191 and nonrotatably fix the fitting 180 to the battery casing 191 . the notch 236 in the front boss portion 234 on the cover 193 is indented by one or more small recesses 237 for receiving axially therethrough the rib 170 containing the insulated electrical conductors 171 , whose rear end connectors 176 are respectively fixed to the terminals 224 and 225 of the battery contacts 211 and 212 . the handpiece 10 further includes a trigger unit 240 ( fig2 - 4 ) for controlling actuation of the motor 36 . the trigger unit 240 comprises a generally l - shaped trigger member 241 ( fig2 and 4 a ) comprising an elongate trigger lever 242 . the upper , forward ( leftward in fig2 and 4 ) end of the trigger lever is pivoted by laterally extending integral pins 243 pivotally receivable in suitable holes in laterally opposed bosses 244 ( one of which is shown in fig2 ) in the opposing lower edges of the housing parts 14 and 15 , near the rear end of the barrel 13 . snapping together of the two housing parts 14 and 15 thus captures the pivot pins 243 and pivotally mounts the trigger with respect to the handpiece housing 11 . the trigger lever 242 includes a transverse ridge 245 ( fig4 ) near to but spaced rearwardly from the pivot pins 243 and facing the underside of the barrel 13 and adapted to bear on the underside thereof in the manner of a fulcrum . by far the major length 246 of the trigger lever 242 is to the rear ( right in fig4 ) of the fulcrum ridge 245 . this rearward trigger part 246 is relatively rigid in the portion thereof spaced at least somewhat to the rear of the fulcrum ridge 245 . such rigidity is assisted by a forward facing longitudinal reinforcement rib 247 extending rearward along the front face of the trigger lever 242 from a point near the fulcrum ridge 245 . the front of the trigger lever 242 , to the rear of the fulcrum ridge 245 is , in the embodiment shown , provided with transversely extending ribs 248 to provide the user with a non - slip grip of the trigger lever 242 . the trigger lever 242 is bendable near the fulcrum ridge 245 , both to the front and rear thereof , in a resilient manner . in this way , the resilience of the trigger lever tends to hold it in its forward , inactive position shown in fig4 with the fulcrum ridge 245 bearing on the underside of the handpiece barrel 13 . on the other hand , when the user grips the handle 12 and squeezes the trigger lever 245 toward it , in the direction indicated by the arrow ta in fig4 the trigger lever bends in the region of the fulcrum ridge 245 , tending to straighten from its relaxed convexly forwardly curved configuration of fig4 so that the rear face of the trigger lever can be pulled into the dotted line position 242 p , substantially against the front face of the handle 12 . upon release of the trigger by the user , the natural resilience of the trigger lever 242 unbends it back to its solid line forward position shown in fig4 . accordingly , the trigger naturally returns forward to its non - operative position without need for a separate return spring . the trigger arm 251 fixedly carries a thumb 250 ( fig4 a ) intermediate it ends in the housing handle 15 and which interferes with the housing wall adjacent the hole 252 , to prevent the resilient restoring force of the trigger lever 242 from pulling the trigger arm 251 leftwardly ( fig4 a ) out of the housing handle 12 . a plank - like switch contact support arm 251 ( fig2 and 4 a ) protrudes substantially at a right angle from the rear , or bottom , end of the trigger lever 242 and extends upwardly and rearwardly ( in fig4 ) into the lower portion of the handle 12 , loosely through a hole 252 ( fig4 a ) in the opposing bottom wall of the handle . a plate - like electrically conductive contact blade 253 fixedly extends through the thickness of the arm 251 , and has a front portion exposed towards said motor and a rear portion exposed toward the bottom end 164 of the handpiece handle . a pair of rectangular posts 255 and 256 protrude fixedly into the interior of the handle 12 from the inside of the right housing part 15 , about midway between the drive unit 25 and the housing bottom end 164 ( fig4 a and 4b ). each post 255 and 256 includes a t - shaped flange 260 extending substantially forward toward the drive unit 25 . each t - shaped flange 260 defines a pair of oppositely facing grooves 261 ( fig4 c ). electrically conductive , spring - like metal contacts 262 and 263 ( fig4 a and 4c ) each have a substantially u - shaped foot 264 for reception on the t - shaped flange 260 of the corresponding posts 255 and 256 . the contacts 262 and 263 further each have a substantially rectangular , projecting terminal 265 for telescopic fixing thereon , in electrically connected relation , a corresponding one of the front connectors 175 of the three insulated electrical conductors 171 . the electrical contacts 262 and 263 further have respective , generally l - shaped , plate - like , flexible contact leaves 266 and 267 ( fig4 c ). the contact leaves 266 and 267 extend toward the drive unit 25 as seen in fig4 a . protruding rearwardly from the motor 36 are a pair of electrically conductive contacts 270 and 271 ( fig4 a and 9 ). the contact 271 is a conventional terminal ( like those at 224 , 225 and 265 ) for receiving one of the front connectors 175 in fixed and electrically conductive relation thereon . in contrast , the contact 270 is an elongate , springy rectangular piece , bent intermediate its ends in dogleg fashion , and angling from the rear end of the motor 36 rearwardly and somewhat rightwardly ( in fig4 a ) to a free end portion spaced near the contact leaves 266 and 267 . gradual pressing of the trigger lever 242 toward the handle housing ( rightwardly in fig4 and 4a ) moves the arm 251 and hence the contact blade 253 progressively further into the handle 12 through a series of positions , three of which are indicated in broken lines at 253 a , 253 b and 253 c in fig4 a . the free ( rightward in fig4 a ) end of the arm 251 is beveled at 272 to help it ride over the contacts 266 and 267 as the trigger lever 242 is sequentially squeezed more and more toward the handle 12 . the arm 251 is progressively resiliently bent , like a leaf - spring , as its free end rides over the fixed contacts 266 and 267 , to firmly press its contact blade 253 against the latter . thus , as the trigger lever 242 is pressed toward the handle 12 , the beveled free end of the arm 251 rides over the contact leaf 266 past its dotted line position 253 a and toward its dotted line position 253 b . as the free arm end approaches position 253 b , the contact blade 253 slides into electrical contact with the contact leaf 266 and the motor contact 270 to establish electrical connection therebetween . the motor contact 270 resiliently bends to allow continued travel of the contact blade 253 and arm 251 further into the handle , as indicated in dotted line at 270 b , and to press firmly against the contact blade 253 . given only a light pull on the trigger lever 242 , the arm 251 and contact blade 253 tend to stop in the position indicated in dotted lines at 253 b , by reason of the free end of the arm 251 colliding with the contact leaf 267 . in this “ b ” position , electric current is fed to the motor 36 only from half the battery collection , namely batteries b 1 , b 2 , b 3 and b 4 in fig2 a . the motor 36 thus runs at only a preselected fraction of its full speed and the pump unit 100 outputs irrigation liquid pulses at a desired frequency and amplitude , which are less than the maximum available . the apparatus is thus operated in its low output mode . the colliding of the free end of the trigger arm 251 with the contact leaf 267 gives tactile feedback to the user , that the low output mode of the handpiece has been selected . further pulling in of the trigger lever 242 by the user causes the beveled free end of the arm 251 to bend rightwardly ( fig4 a ) the contact leaf 267 to a dotted line position indicated at 267 c , allowing the free end of the arm 251 to override the contact leaf 267 , such that the contact blade 253 moves into its “ full - pull ” dotted line position 253 c and further bends the motor contact 270 its dotted line position 270 c . in this final position , the contact blade 253 establishes electrical contact between the motor contact 270 and the contact leaf 267 , thereby applying the full series voltage of all eight of the batteries b 1 - b 8 to the motor 36 to operate the latter at its full speed and thereby drive the pump unit 100 at its full output , namely to provide irrigation liquid pulses out of the pump unit 100 at maximum pulse amplitude and frequency . when the user releases the trigger lever 242 , the resiliently bent trigger lever 242 , due to its inherent resilience , springs back from its fully pulled - in position indicated in broken lines at 242 p , to its solid line rest position indicated at 242 ( fig4 a ). a flexible suction hose 280 ( fig2 and 3 ) is led along within the housing ( within the lower part of the housing in fig3 ) past the drive unit 25 and pump unit 100 . the above - mentioned clamp plate 165 includes a tubular structure molded thereinto and defined by a forward nipple 282 in the handle 12 and , in coaxial fluid communicating relation therewith , a rearward nipple 283 which extends rearwardly out of the bottom end 164 of the handpiece handle 12 . the rear end portion 281 of the suction hose 280 is sealingly and fixedly telescoped over the front nipple 282 . a conventional flexible hose , not shown , is conventionally and sealing telescopable over the rear nipple 283 for connecting same to a conventional suction source , as schematically indicated at ss in fig3 . the front end portion 284 of the suction nose 280 is sealingly telescoped over a rearward opening nipple 285 on a short suction conduit 286 ( fig2 , 16 , 17 and 18 ). the suction conduit 286 ( fig1 ) is fixed side by side , in piggyback fashion , on the periphery of the irrigation liquid conduit 143 and hence is a part of ( preferably an integral plastic molded part of ) the bellows housing 104 . the clamp plate 165 serves several purposes . it provides a suction hose connection , bears on the irrigation liquid hose where it enters the handpiece housing , and helps align the rear ( rightward in fig4 ) end wall portions of the housing halves as they are assembled together , and in so doing , is itself fixed on the housing . in addition , the clamp plate 165 is of one piece , preferably a plastic molding , and is partially recessed into the handpiece so that it does not make the handpiece look any bigger . a tip unit 291 ( fig8 a and 8 b ) is releasably fixable on the front end of the handpiece 10 and extends forward therefrom for applying irrigation liquid pulses and / or suction to a surgical site indicated schematically at su in fig8 and 8b . the tip unit 291 ( fig8 ) comprises a coupling 292 , a front cover 293 fixed to the front of the coupling 292 , and an elongate hollow wand 294 extending forwardly from the coupling and front cover for aiming at a surgical site su . the coupling 292 , cover 293 and wand 294 are preferably one piece molded plastic units . the wand 294 is preferably of clear plastics material . the tip unit 291 , and more specifically the coupling 292 , is releasably fitted in fluid tight relation to the front of the bellows housing 104 of the pump unit 100 and is releasably latched within the open front end of the handpiece housing barrel 13 as hereinafter discussed . more particularly , the coupling 292 ( fig8 ) comprises a shallow , forward opening cup 295 having a flat base wall 296 from which forwardly extends a shallow peripheral wall 297 , thereby defining a forward opening recess 300 . coaxial irrigation liquid nipples 301 and 302 extend fixing rearwardly and forwardly , respectively , from the base wall 296 and together define a coaxial bore 303 therethrough and through the base wall 296 . the rear nipple 301 is snugly but slidably receivable rearwardly into the open front portion of the liquid outlet conduit 143 of the bellows housing 104 . an o - ring 304 seats in an annular groove outward facing on the rear nipple 301 and sealingly engages the interior of the liquid outlet conduit 143 to prevent irrigation liquid leakage therebetween . the wand 294 includes a coaxial , relatively small diameter , irrigation liquid outlet tube 305 which at its rear end is telescoped fixedly and sealingly within the bore 303 of the front and rear nipples 301 and 302 for receiving a pulsed flow of irrigation liquid from the irrigation liquid outlet conduit 143 of the bellows housing 104 . the coupling 292 further includes a suction nipple 306 fixedly extending rearward from the base wall 296 in spaced parallel relation with the irrigation liquid nipple 301 . the suction nipple 306 is snugly insertable rearwardly coaxially into the front opening suction conduit 286 of the bellows housing 104 . an o - ring 310 is axially sandwiched between the rear end of the suction nipple 306 and a front facing annular step 311 at the rear end of the suction conduit 286 to prevent leakage therebetween . the coupling 292 further includes a leaf spring - like , generally u - shaped latch arm 312 which extends rearward from the peripheral portion of the base wall 296 , curves radially outwardly and forwardly , and extends forward past the front cover 293 , in radially outwardly spaced relation from the wand 294 . a wedge - shaped , transverse ridge 313 on the exterior base of the latch arm 312 is approximately centered between the front and rear ends of the latch arm . a circumferentially extending , radially inward protruding rib 314 ( fig2 and 8 ) on the interior face and at the open front end of the right housing part 15 ( at the front end of the barrel 13 ) opposes the latch arm 312 , immediately ahead of the ridge 313 , with the tip unit 291 installed on the front end of the handpiece 10 as shown in fig8 . the ridge 313 has a front facing step which abuts interferingly with the housing rib 314 to releasably block removal of the tip unit from its installed condition shown in fig8 . to remove the tip unit from the front end of the handpiece , the user simply presses radially inward against the forward protruding end portion 315 of the springy latch arm 312 , sufficient to radially inward displace the ridge 313 out of interfering relation with the rib 314 and thereby unlatch the tip unit from the front end of the handpiece . this allows forward removing the tip unit 291 from the open front end of the handpiece barrel 13 and removing of the irrigation liquid and suction nipples 301 and 306 from the liquid outlet conduit 143 and suction conduit 286 of the bellows housing 104 . the tip unit 291 , or any alternative tip unit having a substantially identical coupling and front cover , can be installed operatively on the front end of the handpiece 10 by inserting same into the open front end of the handpiece barrel 13 so that the nipples 301 and 306 enter the liquid and suction conduits 143 and 286 respectively , to their position shown in fig8 . during this installation , the forward facing slope of the wedge cross - section transverse ridge 313 slides rearwardly past the housing rib 314 , bending the springy latch arm 312 radially inward as generally indicated by the arrow l in fig8 so that the wedge cross - section ridge 313 can snap rearwardly past the rib 314 at the open front end of the housing barrel 13 . thus , the tip unit 314 can be slid axially into the front end of the barrel 13 and upon reaching its innermost position latches itself against unintended removal . in its installed condition of fig8 the tip unit is substantially rigidly fixed with respect to the front end of the bellows housing 104 and hence with respect to the handpiece barrel 13 . the front cover 293 ( fig8 ) comprises a plate 320 which extends radially of the wand 294 and of the length axes of the barrel 13 and the pump unit 100 . the peripheral shape of the plate 320 conforms to the cross - sectional shape of the front end of the barrel 13 , so that the perimeter of the plate 320 is substantially flush with the outer periphery of the open front end of the barrel 13 , and so that the plate 320 effectively covers the open front end of the barrel 13 . the peripheral shape of the plate 320 and cross - sectional shape of the front end of the barrel 13 in one embodiment is generally d - shaped , with a generally flat underside and a convexly curved top and sides . the plate 320 is not intended to seal the open front end of the barrel 13 and so need not tightly abut same . since the peripheral wall 297 of the cup 295 fits easily within the open front end of the barrel 13 , the plate 320 extends radially outwardly beyond the cup 295 , as seen in fig8 a and 8 b . the front cover 293 includes an annular flange 322 extending axially rearwardly therefrom , radially snugly into the cup 295 of the coupling 292 to bottom rearwardly and sealingly against a resilient gasket 321 which is disposed against the front face of the base wall 296 of the cup 295 . respective holes in the gasket 321 loosely surround the front nipple 302 and leave fully open the communication between the interior of the suction nipple 306 and the interior of the cup 295 . the front cover 293 further includes a further annular flange 323 extending fixedly and forwardly from the plate 320 in coaxial alignment with the through hole 324 in the plate 320 . the rearward annular flange 322 of the front cover 293 is fixedly secured within the cup 295 of the coupling 292 by any convenient means , for example by snap fit connectors on the opposing faces of such flange 322 and the peripheral wall 297 of the cup 295 . for example , the cup peripheral wall 297 may be provided with several circumferentially spaced rectangular holes 325 ( fig8 a and 8b ) for snap fit reception therein of small radially outward extending protrusions schematically indicated at 326 on the outside of the rearward annular flange 322 . the wand 294 further includes a relatively large diameter elongate suction tube 330 ( fig8 a and 8b ) which loosely coaxially surrounds the irrigation liquid outlet tube 305 ( fig8 ) and extends substantially to the front end of the latter . the rear end portion 331 of the suction tube 330 is radially enlarged to provide a radially shallow , axially elongate flange protruding radially outward therefrom and which is axially trapped between the plate 320 and the gasket 321 backed by the base wall 296 . this serves to rigidly fix the suction tube 330 with respect to the coupling 292 and front cover 293 . a port 332 in the sidewall of the suction tube 330 near its rear end communicates with a loosely surrounding annular chamber 333 defined between the plate 320 and base wall 296 of the front cover 293 and coupling 292 respectively . the front end of the irrigation liquid tube 305 is held coaxially fixed within the front end portion of the surrounding suction tube 330 by any convenient means , such as radial , circumferentially spaced , webs 334 ( fig8 ). accordingly , with a tip unit 291 , of the general type above described , installed on the front end of the handpiece , as shown in fig8 irrigation liquid pulses from the pump 100 pass forwardly within the liquid tube 305 and are projected from the front ( left in fig8 ) end thereof , as schematically indicated by the arrows pl . at the same time , liquid and particulate debris at the surgical site su are drawn into the front ( left in fig8 ) end of the suction tube 330 , pass rearwardly along the length thereof , through the port 332 into the chamber 333 and rearwardly through the nipple 306 and suction nipple 285 . with the exception of a few components such as the motor 44 , the various electrically conductive contacts , the elongate insulated conductors , the various seal rings ( for example 105 , 154 , 304 and 310 , the gasket 321 , as well as the suction and irrigation liquid hoses , the remaining major components , while possibly manufacturable of a variety of materials , are economically manufacturable of available molded plastics materials . for example , the valve member 131 may be of rubber or a synthetic substitute or similar resilient plastic . similarly , the bellows 101 is preferably molded of a suitable resilient plastic material capable of the bellows expansion and contraction movements shown in the drawings . the trigger unit 240 and the latch arm 312 , while of substantially rigid plastics material , are elastically bendable to the extent required to suit the present description . similarly , components to be snap - fitted together are substantially rigid but have sufficient resilience to permit the required described snap fitting . the present invention can be constructed at relatively low cost and is thus practically manufacturable as a disposable tool , both the handpiece 10 itself and the accompanying electric power supply unit 190 being disposable after use with a single surgery patient . the apparatus is quickly and easily assembled . the drive unit 25 ( fig1 ) is assembled by , in effect , “ dropping in ” elements in proper sequence into the right ( lower in fig1 ) shell 31 and covering same with the other shell 30 . more particularly , output gear 60 , face gear 54 and motor 36 ( with attached pinion gear 53 and electric contacts 270 and 271 ) are “ dropped ” into their respective locations in the upturned shell part 31 , in that sequence . the rectangular shaft 61 , topped by the eccentric member 62 , drops into the corresponding hole in the output gear 60 and the link member 51 drops onto the eccentric member . the other shell part 30 is then snap fitted over the filled shell part 31 , completing the drive unit 25 . the pump unit 100 is assembled by coaxially telescoping together its elements shown in fig1 and then plugging into the inlet port 146 ( fig1 ) the elbow 151 with the o - ring 154 and hose 160 assembled thereon . the stub 120 ( fig1 ) of the drive unit 100 can then be snapped into the slot 122 of the drive unit fork 71 ( fig2 ) to connect the drive unit 25 operatively to the pump unit 100 . the suction hose 280 can then be connected to the pump unit nipple 285 and to the nipple 282 on the clamp plate 165 . thereafter , the two assemblies above described can be laid into the rightward ( fig2 ) housing part 15 in the following order , namely liquid hose 160 ( fig4 ), drive unit 25 and pump unit 100 ( fig3 ) and , last , suction hose 280 and clamp plate 165 . the trigger unit 240 is then placed , with its rightward ( fig2 ) pivot stub 243 located in the corresponding boss 244 in the rightward housing part 15 , and its arm 251 inserted through the hole 252 ( fig4 a ) into the interior of the handle portion of the rightward housing part 15 , as seen in fig4 and 4a . the trigger arm 251 is “ covered ” by the rear portion 281 of the suction hose 280 in fig3 . the electrical contacts 262 and 263 are placed on their respective posts 255 and 256 in the rear portion of the rightward housing part 15 and the three forward electrical connectors 175 are secured respectively to the mentioned contacts 262 and 263 and the motor contact 271 ( fig4 a ). thereafter , the leftward ( fig2 ) housing part 14 can be snap fitted to the rightward housing part 15 to close same and enclose the above mentioned apparatus , shown in fig3 therein . in the thus assembled handpiece , the drive unit is fixedly located by engagement of its drive axis bosses 84 and 85 ( fig5 ) in corresponding bosses in the housing parts 14 and 15 ( see for example at 96 in housing part 15 in fig2 ). location of the drive unit 25 is assisted by the ribs 95 within the housing parts 14 and 15 and by snug resilient engagement of the drive unit 25 by the hoses 160 and 280 which flank it . the drive unit shell 26 is configured to maintain the proper tolerances between meshing gears and related parts . location of all the drive unit parts in the drive unit shell 26 reduces the need to maintain close tolerances in the larger and less specialized handle housing 11 . even the housing tolerances , for locating the pump unit 100 with respect to the drive unit 25 in the housing 11 , need not be close since the bellows 101 are flexible enough to bend or otherwise distort to absorb minor mis - alignment or angulation of the reciprocation axis of the link member 51 with respect to the length axis of the pump unit 100 . indeed , the ribs 95 in the housing 11 permit pivoting of the drive unit 25 about the axis of the bosses 96 to allow the drive unit 25 and pump unit 100 to settle into their own working relative orientation . accordingly , the precision in the handpiece housing 11 can be concentrated in aspects of fitting together of the two housing halves . the electric power supply unit 190 ( fig2 ) is quickly and easily assembled . more particularly , the feet of the respective battery contacts 210 , 211 , 212 ( fig2 - 28 ) are slid downward into their respective grooves ( fig2 a and 23b ) in the pan 192 ( fig2 ) with their protruding toes resiliently gripping the sides of the grooves . the rear connectors 176 are connected to the battery contact fingers 224 and 225 in the order shown in fig2 a . the batteries b 1 - b 8 are then slipped down into the pan in the orientation shown in fig2 and into electrically conductive engagement with the battery contacts 210 , 211 and 212 indicated in fig2 a . the rear portion of the liquid hose 160 is laid atop the batteries as indicated in fig2 , with the square flange 182 nonrotatable in the boss 235 , and the cover 193 is snap fitted atop the liquid hose 160 and battery filled pan 192 , as shown in fig2 , to complete assembly of the power supply unit . the cap 185 is pressed onto the sharpened tip 184 to protect it prior to use . the result is a disposable pulsed irrigation handpiece unit which is entirely self - contained , including its own power supply , and which is ready for use upon having its sharpened tip 184 plugged into a conventional irrigation liquid supply bag or the like , and a conventional manner . it should be noted that virtually the entire handpiece 10 and power supply unit 190 can be assembled without need for any adhesives , the parts going together with friction or snap fits or , in the case of the joinder of the bellows housing 104 to the bellows 100 and elbow 151 , by being held together by surrounding structure which in turn is snap fitted together . this greatly eases and speeds assembly . a minor exception is that the fitting 180 is here adhesively fixed to the hose 160 . to use the handpiece assembly in surgery , the cap 185 ( fig2 ) is removed from the pointed tip 183 , which is then plugged into a standard output fitting on a conventional irrigation liquid supply bag . the power supply unit 190 , being fixed to the rear end of the irrigation liquid hose 160 , can be allowed to simply hang from the irrigation liquid supply bag ( not shown but schematically indicated at s in fig2 ). by providing a substantial length of irrigation liquid hose 160 ( for example 10 feet ), the liquid supply bag s and power supply unit 190 can be located well out of the way of the surgical team during use of the handpiece 10 at the surgical site . even then , the power supply unit 190 is compact as compared to the adjacent conventional irrigational liquid supply bag ( being very little larger than the eight conventional double aa batteries that it houses ). if suction will be desired at the surgical site , the handpiece nipple 283 ( fig3 ) can be connected by a conventional hose not shown to a conventional suction source ss ( fig3 ). a variety of tip units 291 of differing characteristics ( e . g . differing irrigation liquid spray patterns , etc .) may be made available for alternative mounting on the handpiece 10 . one example is shown in fig8 a and 8 b . in any event , the user selects a tip unit 291 having a wand 294 of desired configuration , and rearwardly inserts its coupling 292 into the front end of the handpiece 11 . more particularly , the nipples 301 and 306 of the tip unit are inserted coaxially rearwardly , in sealed relation ( see fig8 ) in the conduits 143 and 286 respectively of the bellows housing 104 . the resilient latch arm 312 enters the barrel 13 of the handpiece housing 11 adjacent to the bellows housing 104 until the plate 320 of the front cover 293 abuts the front end of the handpiece housing barrel 13 . in the last part of this tip installation movement , the wedge shaped ridge 313 ( fig8 ) on the latch arm 312 snaps past the rib 314 of the housing barrel 13 to positively prevent forward removal of the tip unit from the handpiece . to use the apparatus for irrigation of a surgical site , the user grips the handpiece , either by the handle 12 , in a pistol - like manner , or where the barrel 13 joins the handle 12 , in a wand like manner . in either position , the user has one or more fingers that can bear on and press inwardly the trigger lever 242 from its inoperative rest position shown in solid line in fig4 a forward and through its low speed and high speed positions indicated in broken lines at 253 b and 253 c in fig4 a . in the first operative position 253 b , the blade 253 connects the low speed ( here six - volt ) contact 266 to the motor contact 270 . on the other hand , in the fully depressed condition of the trigger , indicated at 253 c , the blade 253 connects the high speed , 12 volt contact 267 with the motor contact 270 . accordingly , the user can select between “ off ”, lower power pulsing and high power pulsing . in one embodiment pump stroke was about ¼ ″. in one embodiment shown , the motor speed was about 15 , 000 rpm and the speed reduction afforded by the transmission was about 15 - 1 , providing the eccentric with about 1 , 000 rpm speed . depending on the flow resistance of the particular tip unit attached to the handpiece , the liquid pulse frequency may change . in one example , a handpiece according to the invention produced about 1200 pulses per minute , dispensing about 1600 ml per minute of irrigation liquid in about 1 . 3 ml liquid pulses . the positive drive of the pump unit by the drive unit and the location of the pump unit , near the front end of the barrel 13 and in direct engagement with the tip unit , provides liquid pulses at the output of the tip unit which have sharp rise and fall slopes . thus , the relationship of liquid pulse amplitude to time approximates a square wave form , more so than for example , the aforementioned device of u . s . pat . no . 5 , 046 , 486 . further , the force applied to the pulses by the present apparatus is higher ( somewhat above one newton ) than in that prior art device , at the full power position of the trigger . in one embodiment according to the invention , a tab 316 ( fig1 and 8b ) extends forward from the front plate 320 of the front cover 293 , on the opposite side of the wand 294 from the latch arm 312 . to release the latch arm 312 from the housing 11 , the user can thus simply simultaneously grip with opposite fingers and pinch toward each other the latch arm 312 and tab 316 . in other words the tab 316 provides base toward which to pinch , or pull , the latch arm 312 to release the tip unit 291 from the handpiece 11 . in the present invention , the liquid and suction nipples of the tip unit connect directly to the pump unit 100 , and do not contact any part of the handpiece housing 11 . accordingly , neither the pump unit 100 nor tip unit 291 need fit with close tolerances the handpiece housing 11 . the connection of the tip unit to the handpiece housing is merely to latch the tip unit against loss from the handpiece housing and to casually cover the open front end of the handpiece housing . accordingly , the liquid tight fit is between the nipples of the tip unit and conduits of the pump unit , not with the housing . although a particular preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed in detail for illustrative purposes , it will be recognized that variations or modifications of the disclosed apparatus , including the rearrangement of parts , lie within the scope of the present invention .

0Human Necessities

a topping dispenser formed in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown in fig1 and 2 , and is identified generally by reference numeral 10 . topping dispenser 10 comprises a housing 12 having a cantilevered front portion 14 defining an open space 3 for receiving a user &# 39 ; s cup , glass , mug , or other serving container 4 into which topping product may be dispensed . dispenser 10 is intended to serve a portion of a topping product , such as chilled whipped topping , onto beverages , desserts , and the like . dispenser 10 receives electrical power through a standard power cord ( not shown ) connected to an ac power outlet , and a power switch 16 is provided externally on housing 12 for turning power to dispenser 10 on and off . a wire cup brace 18 may be arranged to extend from housing 12 to guide user placement of serving container 4 and help stabilize the serving container during a dispensing operation . housing 12 may be provided with feet or suction cups 19 to prevent the dispenser from sliding on a countertop or other support surface . housing 12 may be formed of a material that withstands moisture and is easily cleaned , such as stainless steel , plastic , ceramic , or the like . reference is also made now to fig3 - 6 . housing 12 includes a main body 20 and a drawer 22 mounted on main body 20 by drawer slides 24 so as to be movable into and out of the main body 20 . housing 12 defines a product compartment 26 ( fig5 ) for receiving a plastic bag 5 filled with whipped topping or other product to be dispensed , and a drive compartment 28 for enclosing a carriage assembly 30 as will be described in detail below . product compartment 26 and drive compartment 28 may be associated with drawer 22 so that access to the compartments may be gained by opening drawer 22 . housing 12 further includes a dispensing port 32 enabling flow communication between product compartment 26 and open space 3 . in the embodiment shown , dispenser 10 includes a refrigeration system 15 located in a bottom portion of housing main body 20 , as indicated schematically in fig2 . refrigeration system 15 regulates temperature within housing 12 , including product compartment 26 , to keep topping within bag 5 properly chilled . in this regard , the walls of housing main body 20 , and a front wall 34 of drawer 22 , may be thermally insulated for energy efficiency . a peripheral seal 36 is preferably provided on front wall 34 to form a seal between front wall 34 and main body 20 when drawer 22 is in a closed position . a handle 35 , visible in fig1 , may be provided on drawer front wall 34 . drawer 22 is depicted as having a bottom wall 38 , a side wall 40 and a truncated side wall 42 extending upwardly from opposite sides of bottom wall 38 , a front flange 43 extending from a front end of truncated side wall 42 , a truncated front wall 44 and a truncated rear wall 46 extending from opposite ends of side wall 40 to enclose drive compartment 28 , and a top wall 48 extending from side wall 40 to cover drive compartment 28 and product compartment 26 . the walls 38 , 40 , 42 , 44 , 46 , and 48 , and flange 43 , may be formed from a single piece of sheet metal using known manufacturing forming methods . flange 43 and truncated front wall 44 provide structure to which front wall 34 may be fastened . a partition 50 is provided between drive compartment 28 and product compartment 26 , and a panel 52 is provided on an opposite side of product compartment 26 from partition 50 . panel 52 may be removably mounted on drawer 22 , for example by insertion of tabs 53 provided along a bottom edge of the panel into corresponding slots 54 formed in bottom wall 38 , and by insertion of tabs 55 provided along an edge of top wall 48 into corresponding slots 56 in panel 52 . other means of removably mounting panel 52 on drawer 22 may be employed , for example toggle latches , snap fittings , pins , threaded fasteners , or the like . a plurality of hang tabs 58 may be spaced along the underside of top wall 48 for use in suspending product bag 5 within product compartment 26 , or tabs 55 may be used for hanging the product bag . attention is directed additionally to fig8 - 10 . dispensing port 32 may be configured as a dual size opening through bottom wall 38 of drawer 22 . a slotted collar member 60 may be fixed to the underside of bottom wall 38 beneath the smaller open portion of dispensing port 32 to receive and support a valve assembly 70 for controlling the flow of topping from bag 5 and imparting a decorative appearance to each ribbon of topping that is dispensed through the valve assembly . in the embodiment shown , valve assembly 70 includes a valve housing 72 , a discharge valve 74 received within valve housing 72 , and a retaining ring 76 for securing the discharge valve within the valve housing . valve housing 72 includes a circumferential flange 78 near a top end thereof , a neck 79 above flange 78 , an axial passage 80 therethrough having an upper threaded portion 81 , and an abutment ring 82 and a retaining ridge 84 formed on a wall of passage 80 near a bottom end of valve housing 72 . discharge valve 74 , which may be manufactured of a resiliently deformable material , such as silicone , includes a seating flap 86 and a plurality of fingers 87 defined by a plurality of slits 88 . as may be seen , seating flap 86 may be confined against abutment ring 82 in valve housing 72 by retaining ring 76 , which in turn may be snap fitted into valve housing 72 and held against retaining ridge 84 . slits 88 allow discharge valve 74 to perform as an automatically closing pressure valve , whereby the valve fingers 87 will deflect open as topping under pressure is forced downward through passage 80 , and will close immediately when the pressure decreases . in this way , a clean cut - off of the topping ribbon is achieved , and residual topping portions hanging from the bottom of valve assembly 70 ( so - called “ danglers ”) are substantially eliminated . a suitable discharge valve may be obtained from liquid molding systems , inc . of midland , mich . under the trademark sureflo ®. in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention , a plurality of projections 89 may be provided on fingers 87 such that when discharge valve 74 is forced open and fingers 87 are deflected , the projections 89 protrude into the flow path of the topping to form decorative ridges along the discharged ribbon of topping for a pleasing appearance . as may be seen in fig1 , valve assembly 70 may be mounted on the underside of drawer 22 adjacent dispensing port 32 by collar member 60 . in the illustrated embodiment , collar member 60 includes a slot 62 open in the direction of the larger open portion of dispensing port 32 , and a shelf 64 surrounding the slot . as may be understood , valve housing 72 may be inserted downward through the larger open portion of dispensing port 32 and then valve housing 72 may be slid forward toward the smaller open portion of dispensing port 32 and into slot 62 until flange 78 is confined between shelf 64 and the underside of bottom wall 38 . in this manner , valve assembly 70 may be mounted on drawer 22 for easy removal to facilitate cleaning and replacement of the valve assembly or any constituent parts of the valve assembly . product bag 5 may have a generally rectangular configuration as shown in fig3 so as to fit within product compartment 26 and substantially occupy the available space . bag 5 may have a top marginal portion above an upper seam 9 of the bag , and a plurality of holes 6 may be provided through the marginal portion for respectively receiving hang tabs 58 on top wall 48 to suspend product bag 5 within product compartment 26 as shown in fig3 ( topping product remains below seam 9 as seen in fig3 ). of course , alternatives for suspending bag 5 may be used , such as clamps or clips . bag 5 includes a neck portion 7 at a bottom corner thereof terminating in a dispensing tip 8 adapted for detachable connection with valve housing 72 . in the embodiment described at present , dispensing tip 8 may be threaded to mate with threaded portion 81 of passage 80 . other detachable connection schemes may be used , including for example snap - fittings and frictional attachment arrangements . dispensing tip 8 may be connected to valve housing 72 before the valve housing is inserted downward into dispensing port 32 . in order to force contents from product bag 5 , a pressure member 90 is arranged in product compartment 26 , and a pressure surface 57 , which may be a surface of removable panel 52 , is provided closely proximate to pressure member 90 . when product bag 5 is loaded into product compartment 26 , the bag resides between pressure member 90 on one side and pressure surface 57 on an opposite side . as will be described below , pressure member 90 is movable relative to pressure surface 57 to squeeze product downward under pressure . in the embodiment shown in the figures , pressure member 90 is in the form of a cylindrical roller 91 positioned to rotate about a horizontal axis , however non - roller configurations are possible , including for example a plow or scraper configuration having a generally horizontal edge . for the remainder of this detailed description , a roller configuration is assumed , it being understood that pressure member 90 may have other configurations . it is advantageous , but not necessary , that either the surface of pressure member 90 or pressure surface 57 of panel 52 be resiliently deformable , and the other rigid , to ensure continuous contact between pressure member 90 , bag 5 , and pressure surface 57 , thereby maximizing evacuation of product from bag 5 . for example , roller 91 may have a foam or rubber exterior , and panel 52 may simply be a rigid portion of sheet metal . however , pressure member 90 and pressure surface 57 may both be rigid without straying from the invention . as mentioned above , a carriage assembly 30 is housed within drive compartment 28 . carriage assembly 30 , best shown in fig6 , includes a carriage 92 elongated in a horizontal direction and having a pair of journal arms 94 which extend from opposite ends of the carriage through travel slots 51 in partition 50 and into product compartment 26 . each journal arm 94 includes an open journal slot 95 for receiving a respective hub member 93 of roller 91 to removably support roller 91 for rotation about its horizontal axis . carriage assembly 30 further includes a pair of guide rods 96 and a threaded rod 98 extending parallel to one another , carriage 92 being mounted on the guide rods and threaded rod for travel therealong . movement of carriage 92 is driven by a motor 100 . motor 100 may be mounted directly on carriage 92 and be of a type having a captive , internally - threaded rotor 102 that may be mated with threaded rod 98 , such that when the motor is energized to rotate the rotor 102 , the motor 100 and carriage 92 coupled thereto will travel up or down threaded rod 98 depending upon the direction of rotation of the rotor . a suitable motor having a captive , internally threaded rotor for travel along a stationary threaded rod is available from haydon switch and instrument , inc . of waterbury , conn . guide rods 96 are slidably received through bushings 97 on carriage 92 . fig7 depicts a drawer 122 formed in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention , wherein product compartment 26 is defined by a cylinder 152 at a front portion of the drawer and separated from drive compartment 28 by a transverse partition 150 having a vertical travel slot 151 therethrough . a piston 191 is connected to carriage 92 to serve as the pressure member , and an inner wall 157 of cylinder 152 serves as a pressure surface . piston 191 is shown partially cut away to reveal dispensing port 32 . inner wall 157 may be sloped to converge in conical fashion ( not shown ) at a region near dispensing port 32 . carriage 92 is connected to piston 191 through arm 194 extending through travel slot 151 , whereby piston 191 may be moved relative to cylinder wall 157 by operation of motor 100 . if this embodiment is practiced , bag 5 may be generally cylindrical in shape to fill the available space within the product compartment . returning now to fig6 , electrical wiring for motor 100 may be routed through a cable 104 running through carriage 92 and then along an underside of drawer 22 to control electronics 106 mounted within housing main body 20 and connected to a power source ( not shown ) also within the main body . control electronics 106 includes a motor controller and driver for energizing motor 100 . a user control element , shown here for example in the form of a push button 108 on front wall 34 , is connected to the motor controller for enabling a user to activate motor 100 via the motor controller . the motor controller may be programmed to drive motor 100 to achieve a predetermined displacement of carriage 92 and roller 91 when button 108 is pressed and released by a user . alternatively , the motor controller may be programmed to drive the motor only while button 108 is depressed by a user . if the latter approach is adopted , it may be desirable to program the motor controller to shut the motor off after a predetermined time period or number of revolutions so as to prevent a user from dispensing too much topping . those skilled in the art will recognize that other motor drive configurations are possible , including configurations wherein the motor 100 does not travel with carriage 92 . for example , a motor may be mounted remote from carriage 92 to rotate threaded rod 98 , and carriage 92 may be provided with a follower nut causing the carriage to travel up and down the rotating threaded rod . also , it will be readily apparent that other user control elements , such as a switch , a lever , a knob , or the like , may be substituted for push button 108 . in addition to push button 108 , other user controls connected to control electronics 106 may be provided on housing 12 , including a temperature control 110 and a temperature display 112 for regulating refrigeration system 15 , and a status indicator led 114 for indicating that dispenser 10 is ready to dispense , low on product , emptied of product , or out of service . a reset button ( not shown ) may be provided to return the carriage 92 and roller 91 to an upper start position . housing 12 may be a customized version of a refrigerated liquid dispenser available from a . c . dispensing equipment inc . of sackville , nova scotia , canada under the trademark sureshot . dispenser 10 is simple to use . initially , drawer 22 is opened and panel 52 is removed to expose product compartment 26 . roller 91 is set to an upper start position ( this may be triggered automatically upon emptying a prior bag , or a reset button may be provided as mentioned above ). an empty bag ( if any ) is removed , and a full bag 5 is inserted into product compartment 26 , where its discharge tip 8 is connected to valve housing 72 and the bag is suspended from hang tabs 58 or tabs 55 . the valve housing 72 may then be mounted on drawer 22 as described above , panel 52 may be replaced , and drawer 22 may be closed . refrigeration system 15 may be set to a desired temperature setting using temperature control 110 . the alternative embodiment of fig7 may be loaded in an analogous manner . for self - service of topping , a cup or other container 4 is located in space 3 beneath valve assembly 70 using wire brace 18 as a locating guide . button 108 is depressed to move carriage 92 and roller 91 ( or piston 191 ) downward to force product from bag 5 , through valve assembly 70 , and into container 4 . when the contents of bag 5 have been exhausted , roller 91 ( or piston 191 ) may be reset and the bag replaced as described above . while the invention has been described in connection exemplary embodiments , the detailed description is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to the particular forms set forth . the invention is intended to cover such alternatives , modifications , and equivalents of the described embodiment as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

the following description is provided to enable any person in the art to make and use the described embodiments and sets forth the best mode contemplated for carrying out some embodiments . various modifications , however , will remain readily apparent to those in the art . fig1 is a cutaway side view of apparatus 100 according to some embodiments . apparatus 100 includes substantially light - transparent core 105 and solar cell 110 . core 105 may be composed of any suitable material or combination of materials . according to some embodiments , core 105 is configured to manipulate and / or pass desired wavelengths of light . core 105 may be molded from low - iron glass , formed from a single piece of clear plastic , or formed from separate pieces which are glued or otherwise coupled together to form core 105 . solar cell 110 may comprise a iii - v solar cell , a ii - vi solar cell , a silicon solar cell , or any other type of solar cell that is or becomes known . solar cell 110 may comprise any number of active , dielectric and metallization layers , and may be fabricated using any suitable methods that are or become known . solar cell 110 is capable of generating charge carriers ( i . e ., holes and electrons ) in response to received photons . although solar cell 110 is shown recessed into core 105 , solar cell 110 may be disposed at any suitable position with respect to core 105 . primary mirror 120 is disposed on convex surface 125 of core 105 and reflective material 130 is disposed on flat surface 140 of core 105 as shown . fig2 , which is a top view of the fig1 apparatus , shows reflective material 130 disposed in a ring - like shape . primary mirror 120 and reflective material 130 may comprise any suitable reflective material , including but not limited to silver or aluminum . primary mirror 120 and reflective material 130 may be fabricated by sputtering or otherwise depositing a reflective material directly onto the larger convex surface of core 105 and the illustrated ring - shaped area of surface 140 . a reflective side of the deposited material faces the surface on which the material is deposited . refractive lens 150 is disposed opposite from primary mirror 120 . core 105 and lens 150 may comprise a single molded piece , or lens 150 may be fabricated separately and attached to core 105 . accordingly , lens 150 may comprise a material different from core 105 in some embodiments . in operation , incoming on - axis ( e . g ., normal to surface 140 ) light 160 passes through ambient air and is received at surface 140 and lens 150 of apparatus 100 . for clarity , fig1 shows only incoming light 160 received on one half of apparatus 100 . some of incoming light 160 is received at area a of surface 140 and is represented by dashed lines in fig1 . this light 160 received at area a passes through core 105 and reflects off of primary mirror 120 . the reflected light returns to an area at the interface of surface 140 and ambient air , where the reflected light experiences total internal reflection . more specifically , and with respect to the fig1 embodiment , the angle at which the reflected light 160 meets the area at the interface is greater than arc sin ( n air / n core ), where n x represents a refractive index of medium x . the reflective properties ( efficiency , chromatic aberration , etc .) of a total internal reflection are superior to that of a reflective material coating . the reflected light proceeds from the interface toward an active area of solar cell 110 as shown . dotted lines represent the incoming light 160 received at area b of surface 140 . this light 160 passes through core 105 and reflects off of primary mirror 120 as described above . this reflected light also returns to an area at the interface of surface 140 and ambient air , however , the angle at which the light meets the area is less than or equal to arc sin ( n air / n core ). since this light would not experience total internal reflection , reflective material 130 serves to reflect the light toward the active area of solar cell 110 . the reflectivity of a non - total internal reflection ( angle of incidence ≦ arc sin ( n air / n core ) may in some instances be greater than that provided by a reflective coating such as material 130 . therefore , the exterior diameter of material 130 may be reduced so that the light received at some small annular zone immediately interior to area a reflects off of the air / surface 140 interface via a non - total internal reflection . as also shown in fig1 , incoming light 160 may reach reflective coating 130 . this light 160 is stopped at 130 and is not directed into core 105 and toward solar cell 110 . incoming light 160 is also received by lens 150 . lens 150 is shaped to refract the received light and to direct the light to the active area of solar cell 110 . lens 150 may comprise a fresnel lens , a continuous lens , a gradient index lens or some combination thereof . refracted light may introduce chromatic dispersion , therefore some embodiments are designed to reduce a size and refractive angle of lens 150 . in some embodiments , the shape of lens 150 is less difficult to manufacture than the secondary mirror surfaces of prior designs . the dimensions of area a , area b , reflective material 130 , and lens 150 are subject to the geometry of primary mirror 120 and the refractive index of core 105 . in some embodiments , primary mirror 120 is paraboloidial - shaped and the refractive index of core 105 is ˜ 1 . 5 . any suitable mirror geometry and core material having any suitable refractive index may be used in some embodiments . fig3 is an exploded view of apparatus 200 according to some embodiments . apparatus 200 includes core 205 , primary mirror 220 , reflective material 230 , surface 240 , and lens 250 . apparatus 200 may operate similarly to apparatus 100 described above . an upper periphery of core 205 of fig3 includes six contiguous facets . this six - sided arrangement may facilitate the formation of large arrays of apparatus 200 in a space - efficient manner . fig4 provides a perspective view of array 300 of apparatuses 200 according to some embodiments . embodiments are not limited to the illustrated arrangement . for example , some embodiments may include four contiguous facets or no facets ( e . g ., apparatus 100 ). irregular or semi - regular tessellations ( e . g ., a combination of octagons and squares ) may also be employed . primary mirror 220 includes conductive portion 222 and conductive portion 224 . conductive portion 222 defines opening 226 through which concentrated light may exit apparatus 200 and be received by a solar cell . primary mirror 120 of apparatus 100 may be substituted with primary mirror 220 and / or any other primary mirror illustrated and / or described herein . alternatively , primary mirror 220 of apparatus 200 may be substituted with primary mirror 120 and / or any other primary mirror illustrated and / or described herein . gap 227 is defined between conductive portions 222 and 224 to facilitate electrical isolation thereof . accordingly , conductive portions 222 and 224 of primary mirror 220 may create a conductive path for electrical current generated by the solar cell . conductive portions 222 and 224 may also , as described in above - mentioned application publication no . 2006 / 0231133 , electrically link photovoltaic cells of adjacent collectors in a concentrating solar collector array . fig5 is a cutaway side view and fig6 is a perspective top view of apparatus 400 according to some embodiments . apparatus 400 includes substantially light - transparent core 405 , solar cell 410 , and primary mirror 420 , which may be implemented as described with respect to core 105 , cell 110 and mirror 120 of apparatus 100 . apparatus 400 also includes lens 450 disposed at a distance d from surface 440 of core 405 . lens 450 may comprise a material different from core 450 according to some embodiments . lens 450 may reduce a need for reflective material disposed on surface 440 . as will be described below , some embodiments of apparatus 400 include reflective material on surface 440 . according to some embodiments , molding tolerances associated with lens 450 and core 405 provide improved manufacturability and decreased cost . in operation , incoming light 460 passes through ambient air and is received at surface 440 of apparatus 400 . fig5 shows only incoming light 460 received on one half of surface 440 for clarity . light 460 received at area c passes through core 405 and reflects off of primary mirror 420 . the reflected light returns to the interface of surface 440 and ambient air where it experiences total internal reflection as described above . the reflected light proceeds from the interface toward an active area of solar cell 410 as shown . for some combinations of primary mirror geometries and core indices of refraction , some or all of the incoming on - axis light may be reflected using total internal reflection . for example , primary mirror 420 is not present along a periphery of surface 425 of core 405 . light passing through core 405 and received at this periphery may intercept surface 425 at an angle sufficient to cause total internal reflection of the light toward surface 440 . even if primary mirror 420 was present along the periphery of surface 425 , the light incident thereto ( if received at a sufficient angle ) may be reflected via total internal reflection rather than by primary mirror 420 . as total internal reflection exhibits substantially higher reflectivity than alternate reflective materials , the foregoing feature may improve system efficiency . lens 450 receives incoming light 465 . lens 450 is shaped to refract light 465 and to direct the light toward surface 440 . as shown in fig5 , light 465 is refracted three times prior to reaching solar cell 410 . distance d , a shape of lens 450 , and a refractive index of lens 450 are therefore selected such that these refractions result in the delivery of light 465 to solar cell 410 . in addition , any suitable geometry of mirror 420 and refractive index of core 405 may be used in some embodiments . in some embodiments , some incoming normal light may miss lens 465 and intercept surface 440 at an area other than area c . reflective material may be deposited on appropriate locations of surface 440 to reflect this light toward solar cell 410 . this reflective material may be disposed between lens 450 and surface 440 in some embodiments . fig7 is a perspective view of apparatus 500 according to some embodiments . apparatus 500 includes core 505 , primary mirror 520 , surface 540 , and lens 550 . apparatus 500 may operate similarly to apparatus 400 described above . an upper periphery of core 505 includes six contiguous facets , but embodiments are not limited thereto . primary mirror 520 may comprise a contiguous material , may be separated as described with respect to mirror 220 , and / or may comprise any suitable configuration . fig4 provides a perspective view of array 600 of apparatuses 500 according to some embodiments . each lens 550 is coupled to cover glass 650 , which provides environmental protection as well as a mounting surface for lenses 550 . each lens may be coupled to glass 650 using an epoxy or other optically - transparent material . selection of such a material may take into account a refractive index of glass 650 , a refractive index of lenses 550 , and / or thermal expansion properties to glass 650 and lenses 550 . a position of cover glass 650 may determine a distance d between lenses 550 and cores 505 of array 600 . in some embodiments , lenses 550 are mounted such that glass 650 is located between lenses 550 and cores 505 .

7Electricity

reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings , wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout . fig1 shows a valve by way of example for better understanding of the instrument for controlling fluid flows . the valve is constructed from a body 1 made of a plastic material and an elastomer compound 2 . the body 1 constitutes a support , or a substrate , and may have the form of a chip card , an electrochemical sensor array for the detection of biochemical substances being arranged on the embedded chip . for the sake of simplicity , the configuration of the chip card will not be discussed in further detail here . embodiments without a chip are also possible , for example in optical analysis instruments . a first recess 4 is formed in the support body 1 . the first recess 4 is open toward a front side 10 of the support body 1 . it has the form of a channel and is used as a flow channel 4 ′. liquids or gases can flow through the flow channel 4 ′. a second recess 3 is formed in direct proximity to the first recess 4 , adjacent to the flow channel . it has a common interface with the first recess 4 in a subregion 9 of the first recess 4 . the second recess 3 , as shown in fig1 , is formed continuously from the front side 10 to the rear side 11 of the support body 1 . it is fully filled , or occupied , with the elastomer compound 2 . a self - adhesive film 5 is applied flat on the front side 10 of the support body 1 . the adhesive layer 6 of the self - adhesive film 5 ensures good adhesion of the film 5 on the support body 1 and on the elastomer compound 2 . the film 5 with its adhesive layer 6 , in conjunction with the support body 1 and the elastomer compound 2 , seals the flow channel 4 ′ from the surroundings in an air - or gas - tight and / or liquid - tight fashion . in order for the valve to be usable in biochemical devices , the materials which come in contact with the liquids or gases must be compatible with the substances to be examined . liquids used in biochemical examinations are for example blood , urine , water , alcohols or other solvents . substances which , for example , are intended to be analyzed or detected by biochemical devices are for example proteins , dna or antibodies . these must not be influenced or modified by the materials used . possible materials to be used for the support body 1 are hard polymers , which for the sake of simple production should be processable by injection molding technology . the material should be plastic , i . e . difficult to deform or undeformable . such materials are provided , for example , by polycarbonate or polypropylene . in a prefabricated mold , the support body 1 of a chip card would be produced with its first recess 4 and second recess 3 in one operation by injection molding technology . in a second operation , the elastomer compound 2 would be introduced into the second recess by injection molding technology . thermoplastic elastomers , in particular , are suitable as possible materials for the elastomer compound 2 . one example of a particularly highly suitable thermoplastic elastomer is a mixture of polypropylene and ethylene propylene diene m - class elastomer , which is known by the brand name santoprene ®. a chip with a sensor array can be inserted from the rear side 11 into the support body 1 , which can be contacted and read out from the rear side by a reader unit 7 . the front side of the support body 1 , on which the flow channels 4 ′ and reaction chambers are arranged , may be fully covered in a sterile fashion with the aid of a self - adhesive film . this provides gas - and liquid - tight flow channels 4 ′ and reaction chambers . one possible material for a film is polyethylene . it is , however , also possible to use other film materials . fig2 represents a device for controlling fluid flows in lab - on - a - chip systems in a plan view and in sectional representations along the section line a - a ′ and along the section line b - b ′ with an instrument for controlling the valves . the support or substrate body 1 with the valves is fastened in a sandwich fashion in a reader unit 7 . parts of the reader unit 7 are pressed against the front side 10 and against the rear side 11 of the body 1 . the body 1 is thereby mounted immobile in the reader unit 7 . if the body 1 is configured in the form of a chip card with an electrical chip , then the reader unit 7 can read out and process signals of the sensor array . a valve can be actuated by the reader unit 7 in order to control fluidic processes and chemical reactions in the first recess 4 of the body 1 . as shown in fig2 in the section b - b ′, two valves , which are represented by way of example for the functionality of the valves , are arranged in the support or substrate body 1 . plungers 8 can put the valves into an open state ( right - hand valve i ) or a closed state ( left - hand valve ii ). a first recess 4 , or a flow channel 4 ′, can be closed in a liquid - tight and / or gas - tight fashion by actuating a valve . a plunger 8 , which is arranged in the reader unit 7 and is controlled by the latter , exerts a pressure force from the rear side 11 on the elastomer compound 2 . this is done by moving the plunger 8 in the direction of the elastomer compound 2 . the pressure force , which is exerted by the plunger 8 on the elastomer compound 2 , causes deformation of the elastomer . since the elastomer can only expand in the direction of the first recess 4 , it is pressed into the first recess 4 . this continues until the first recess 4 is fully filled with elastomer along a cross section of the first recess 4 . if the plunger 8 is moved away from the elastomer compound 2 , then less to no pressure force acts on the elastomer so that the elastomer returns to its original shape . the elastomer is retracted from the first recess and therefore frees it . the valve is opened again . for simultaneous actuation of the valves , the plungers 8 are fastened on a fixed plate 7 a of the reader unit 7 . the fixed plate 7 a lies on the rear side 11 of the plastic body 1 . the plungers 8 are prestressed to opening of the valves by a spring ( not shown ) so that they exert no pressure on the valves in this state . a plane plate with elevations 12 is arranged movably behind the fixed plate 7 a of the reader unit 7 . “ behind the fixed plate 7 a ” refers to that side of the fixed plate 7 a which lies on the other side from the body 1 . if an elevation of the mobile plane plate 12 lies immediately behind i . e . in contact with a plunger 8 , then the latter is pressed in the direction of the elastomer compound 2 of the associated valve and the valve is closed . if there is no elevation of the mobile plane plate 12 behind a plunger 8 , then the plunger is pressed , or prestressed , by the spring in the direction of the mobile plane plate 12 and exerts no pressure on the elastomer 2 . the valve associated with the plunger 8 is opened . the mobile plane plate with elevations 12 , in conjunction with the reader unit 7 , especially the fixed plate 7 a of the reader unit 7 with plungers 8 , provides the instrument for actuating or controlling the valves 13 . the mobile plane plate with elevations 12 and the fixed plate 7 a of the reader unit 7 , as well as the plungers 8 , are generally made of a metal , for example steel , for stability reasons . nevertheless , other solid materials such as hard plastic may also be used . the springs are generally made of spring steel . simultaneous actuation or non - actuation of all the valves of the array of valves according to a predetermined program is carried out by the instrument for actuating the valves 13 and , in particular , by the essentially plane plate 12 . when the mobile plane plate with elevations 12 is moved relative to the fixed plate 7 a of the reader unit and therefore relative to the plastic body 1 with the valves , valves below which an elevation is inserted during the movement are actuated according to the arrangement of the elevations on the plate 12 . if a region of the plate 12 without an elevation is inserted below a valve , the valve remains open . if an elevation lying below a valve is moved away from below the valve and a region of the plate 12 is inserted below the valve in its place , the valve is opened . by the arrangement of the valves in rows z n and columns s m and the elevations in rows z n ′ and columns s m ′ , the spacing of the rows of the elevations being equal to the spacing of the columns of the valve array , and by movement of the plate 12 along a direction which is parallel to a column , all the valves are actuated simultaneously according to a set program . since only one valve is arranged in each column s m , an elevation only actuates a valve once . with a fixed predetermined arrangement of the valves , the program is determined by the arrangement of the elevations . a program step is determined by z n ′ = z n columns . when the plate 12 is moved through the spacing of a row , the next program step is carried out according to the arrangement of the elevations in the next row . if a valve is intended to remain closed between two program steps , then an elevation must be formed continuously along a column s n ′ between two rows . with uniform movement of the plate 12 , with a fixed predetermined spacing of the rows of the valves z n , the duration of a program step for a predetermined constant speed of advance of the plate 12 relative to the plate 7 a is determined by the spacing of the rows of the elevations z n ′ . as an alternative , however , with predetermined spacings of the rows of the elevations z n ′ , the speed of advance may be varied according to the desired duration of a process step . as represented in fig2 in the plan view , the valves are arranged only at particular points of the array of valves . each column s m has only one valve . an appropriate number of valves are arranged in a row z n according to the chemical reactions to be carried out and the desired microfluidics . the flow channels and reaction chambers , the latter not being represented for the sake of simplicity , are formed as recesses in the front side 10 of the plastic body 1 according to the arrangement of the valves . complex chemical or biochemical reactions can thus be controlled easily by the method described above . the program , which controls the fluid flows by controlling the valves , is determined by the arrangement of the elevations on the plate 12 . for the sake of simplicity , the valves in fig2 are arranged with equal spacings from one another in the columns s n and rows z m in the body 1 . the valves are all simultaneously controlled , i . e . actuated or not actuated , by the movement of the plate 12 . other embodiments , which are not represented in the figures , for example with different spacings of the valves from one another in the columns s n and rows z m in the support or substrate body 1 made of plastic material , may likewise be implemented . control of the plungers 8 by the plate 12 may also be carried out using indentations instead of elevations in the plate 12 . in this case , an indentation corresponds to opening of a valve . it is also conceivable for the plungers 8 not to be prestressed so as to exert no pressure on a valve , but instead for them to be pressed onto the body 1 in the prestressed state or not prestressed at all . a reduced pressure may then contribute to movement of the plungers 8 over the plate 12 . a description has been provided with particular reference to preferred embodiments thereof and examples , but it will be understood that variations and modifications can be effected within the spirit and scope of the claims which may include the phrase “ at least one of a , b and c ” as an alternative expression that means one or more of a , b and c may be used , contrary to the holding in superguide v . directv , 358 f3d 870 , 69 uspq2d 1865 ( fed . cir . 2004 ).

5Mechanical Engineering; Lightning; Heating; Weapons; Blasting

referring now to the drawing , wherein similar parts are provided with similar numerals , and particularly to fig1 and 2 , an optical radiation source forming illuminator 10 includes a tubular arc lamp 12 of the type wherein a gaseous arc discharge is created between opposite electrodes 14 and 16 by means of an ac electrical power source 18 . the arc tube 12 includes a thinwall generally cylindrical central portion 20 that is positioned within the bore 22 of the constricting enclosure or housing 24 , with the clearance 23 between the lamp and housing bore being minimal in configuration , for purposes set forth hereinafter . the arc tube 12 is deformed inwardly , at opposite ends of the central portion 20 , as indicated at 26 . this serves to limit the volume of gas in the tube that is not increased in temperature by the arc and helps to provide a higher operating gas pressure . these factors improve arc lamp efficiency and brightness . additionally , this constriction also permits use of reflective material at the ends of the arc chamber , which reduces light loss from the ends and further helps to improve efficiency and brightness . terminal connections 30 are made to the exposed ends of the electrodes 14 , 16 by means of spring elements 32 which are adapted to accommodate the differential in the coefficient of thermal expansion between the arc lamp 12 and the enclosure 24 . one or both of the terminal connections 30 can be insulated from the housing 24 by use of insulation 34 . additionally , insulating sleeves 36 are used to prevent arcing between terminal connections 30 and housing 24 when high voltage is used to initiate the arc in the tubular arc lamp 12 ; and heat conducting sleeves 38 encircle the constricted portions 26 of the tube 20 to serve as a means for increasing the conduction of heat generated by the arc in the end regions 52 . the open ends of the bore 22 in the enclosure 24 are sealed by end ferrules 40 , in a gas tight manner , either by soldering or by the use of high pressure gaskets . the subassemblies of wire 30 and insulating glass 34 plus the ferrule 40 can be purchased as an &# 34 ; insulated lead - in &# 34 ;. the radiation created by the arc tube 12 is transmitted through the housing 24 by the use of one or more light conducting windows 42 . preferably such windows 42 are fabricated from a clear material having good thermal conductivity and a coefficient of thermal expansion compatible with the rate of thermal expansion of the material utilized in the fabrication of housing 24 . one such material is an aluminum oxide preferably known as synthetic sapphire . the windows , in the preferred embodiment illustrated , are generally rectangular in configuration , for reasons spelled out hereinafter , and are complimentarily accepted in one or more apertures while being sealed to the housing 24 by a suitable sealing / adhesive material 44 that is compatible with and adheres to both the windows 42 and the housing 24 . to avoid absorption of the light by the sealing material , the seal surfaces are first coated by a dielectric material that causes total internal reflection within the windows , or , alternatively , the seal surfaces are coated by a highly reflective metallic film . as was indicated above the windows are preferably made of synthetic sapphire to provide good conduction of heat away from the lamp 12 . the inner ends of the windows 42 are juxtaposed to the lamp in the same close proximity as the wall of the bore 22 of the housing 24 , namely , separated only by the minimal clearance 23 , and capable of productive heat transmission from said lamp to the enclosure housing 24 as well as to the opposite end of the windows . as an additional means for removal of heat from this environment , the enclosure housing 24 is provided with longitudinally extending internal passages 46 that run through the housing 24 , at least in the region of the arc tube 20 . the passages are connected to input and output conduits 48 , 50 for the recirculation of a coolant fluid , such as water . the passages 46 are not limited to the region of the arc tube but can extend for the entire length of the housing 24 . to insure maximum efficiency in the deliverance of light at its highest brightness , the interface between the arc tube lamp 12 and the bore 22 must be provided with radiation reflecting material to reduce the loss of radiation developed by the arc . in the present embodiment , the complete outer surface 21 of the arc tube 20 , including its tapered constricted ends 52 down to the constrictions 26 , ( as best seen in fig3 ), is coated with a reflecting material except for one or more areas or ports 54 that are disposed to coincide with the one or more windows 42 . light not radiating directly to the windows is thereby reflected and a substantial portion is caused to subsequently be radiated out of the windows or to be reabsorbed in the arc discharge . an alternate arrangement , not shown , has the internal surface of the enclosure bore 22 reflection coated , in which case only the ends 52 of the arc tube 12 need to be coated . in accordance with the teachings of this invention , the interior bore 22 of the enclosure 24 containing the lamp tube 20 is highly pressurized with a fluid , either gas or liquid , for example , hydrogen , nitrogen or water are suitable . the pressurized fluid fills all voids , including clearance 23 , between the lamp 12 and the wall of bore 22 . the pressure of this fluid must be at least adequate to counteract that amount of arc lamp internal pressure which , in combination with the stress induced by thermal gradients , would produce excessive stress in thin wall of the tube 20 of the lamp 12 . it is likely that such pressure would fall in the range between 1000 and 10 , 000 psi . one system for establishing such an internal constrictive pressure is shown in fig1 wherein a cylinder 56 of pressurized gas is connected to the bore 22 of the enclosure 24 by means of a tube 58 . after establishing the desired internal pressure within bore 22 , the tube 58 can be subsequently sealed by fusion of the solder 60 within the tube 58 and thereby permit removal of the cylinder 56 . it will be recognized that it is necessary to provide a gas or vapor under pressure within the tubular portion 20 to create a gaseous arc discharge when an arc is struck between the electrodes 14 , 16 . the particular gas or vapor chosen will be dependent upon the specific use to be made of the radiation passing through the windows 42 . it should be understood that the use of this device is not limited solely to visible light . for example , mercury vapor gives off a large amount of ultraviolet ; xenon gas is generally neutral in the visible spectrum but does extend into the infra - red range of the spectrum ; while krypton is generally not as efficient as xenon in visible light but has good infra - red qualities . the methods of fabricating sealed arc lamps having such gases or vapors are well known in the art and are not discussed . the efficient use of such a source of radiation must include means for conveying the light to its intended use , with a minimum loss of such radiation . referring now to fig4 and 5 , the light source is schematically shown to include the arc tube 20 and pressurized enclosure 24 with windows 42 . adjacent the oppositely extending windows 42 are a pair of prisms 62 , 64 that communicate with elongated generally rectangular light conductors 66 , 68 , respectively . while the light conductors 66 , 68 accept light from the prisms 62 , 64 after deflection at approximately right angles by the prisms , an intermediate light conductor 67 accepts light from the third or intermediately disposed window 42 . the three conductors 66 , 67 , 68 combine at their opposite ends to provide a rectangular output format 70 of a low aspect ratio suitable for photographic film projection . the outwardly tapered expansion of conduit cross - section serves to reduce the angular divergence of the light being transmitted . an expansion of approximately three times in width and thickness is capable of reducing the divergence to approximately that suitable for a f / 1 . 8 projection lens , not shown . while the preferred embodiment discussed above utilizes windows 42 which are substantially rectangular , it must be appreciated that other window configurations can be utilized dependent upon the specific end use of the radiation . similarly , the internal end configurations can be varied to provide differing interfaces with the tube 20 . referring to the schematic illustration in fig6 the enclosure 80 includes a longitudinal bore 82 adapted to accept in close tolerance the tube 84 and three different styles of window , namely , 86 , 88 , and 90 . also illustrated is the manner in which a prism 92 can be used to deflect light from the window 86 to a light conductor 94 lying at substantially right angles to the principal direction of light emanating from the window . to reduce the angular divergence of the light accepted by the window 86 , the window input surface 87 is provided with a convex segmental cylindrical surface . in using this configuration of window 86 the efficiency of the combination is enhanced by having a complimentary concave section 96 in the tube 84 adjacent to and adapted to accept the window 86 in juxtaposed relation . this contact permits good thermal contact between the tube 84 and window 86 as well as causing the concave portion of the wall of tube 84 to act as a lens in conjunction with the window . the concavity also permits the window to be in closer proximity to the arc 98 to thereby improve its collection efficiency . the window 88 does not have the convex input surface 87 to minimize the divergence of the input light , however , it does make use of reflecting tapered edge surfaces 100 to partially collimate the light rays 102 . in doing this the amount of beam expansion required is minimized and the loss of some light by total internal reflection at surface 104 is avoided . the window 90 has neither an input surface to minimize the input divergence nor edge surfaces to assist in the collimation of the beam . the consequence of this is the loss of some light by internal reflection at the surface 106 . however , by providing reflection at the surfaces 108 and also at the transverse surfaces interconnecting surfaces 108 and extending between opposite ends of the windows serves to cause essentially all input radiation to be transmitted to the output surfaces 104 , 106 and 111 of the windows 88 , 90 and 86 , respectively . the prism 92 is in close proximity to the surface 111 but is separated from it by a thin layer that has a lower index of refraction than the material of the prism . this layer causes light reflected from the prism surface 112 that is subsequently incident on surface 110 to be reflected from it by total internal reflection . its loss is thereby prevented . this layer does not interfere with the transmission of light from the window to the prism . the prism deflects the light to the light conductor 94 . the prism 92 is also preferably separated from the conductor 94 by a thin transparent layer 114 having a lower index of refraction than the material from which the prism 94 is made . this layer causes total internal reflection of light in the prism that has not yet been incident on the surface 112 of the prism . it thereby prevents the loss of this light through the side surfaces of the light conductor . as was previously indicated , the light conductors can serve the function of directing light from several proximity inputs from the lamp to a common output that has an aspect ration reduced from that of the light source . such conductors can serve the concurrent function of reducing the divergence from that accepted to that convenient for utilization . in fig7 there is found an illustration that provides the function of a light conductor in reducing the divergence of the light with a minimum expansion in area . it is assumed that it is required to accept radiation at the input 118 up to a maximum angle a 1 to be directed to the output up to a maximum angle of a 2 . light at this input angle is refracted to the input surface to angle b 1 . the surface 120 between the points defined as 122 and 124 is set at an angle c 1 such that the reflected rays when refracted at the output surface 126 will be at the maximum output angle a 2 . all rays from the input striking this section of surface at a lesser angle will exit at the output at a lesser angle also . the surface 128 between the points 124 and 130 is a parabola having its focal point at 132 and its axis along the phantom line 134 . the angle d 1 for this axis is equal to angle b 2 which is the refracted angle for the ray having maximum output a 2 . all rays from point 132 striking this surface between 124 and 130 will be at the maximum output angle . all rays from other points on the input will be at a lesser angle . the procedure for the generation of surface 136 is identical but use is made of point 122 instead of point 132 . the length of the light conductor needed for the collimation is established by the intersection of ray 138 with the surface 126 , as being the output length . a further embodiment of the present invention is best seen in fig8 and 9 , wherein a generally cylindrical tube 140 forming the thin walled arc lamp 142 is intimately engaged by the wall of bore 144 and the inner end of windows 146 in a compressive force relationship by direct contact or contact through a solid interface 150 , i . e . a reflective coating . the compression in this arrangement can be brought about by the method of heating the enclosure 148 and inserting a very close fitting lamp 142 , possibly with the two members having a slight matching taper . the enclosure 148 on cooling shrinks down upon the lamp and compresses it . if the arc tube is of fused silica , the enclosure is molybdenum and the windows are a synthetic sapphire , a longitudinal and tangential compressive force of close to 30 , 000 psi . can be exerted on the arc tube 140 if the enclosure 148 is cooled from 600 degrees centigrade . a force of 12 , 000 psi . is adequate for an arc tube having an od : id ratio of 1 . 20 and an internal pressure of 3 , 000 psi . the excess pressure allows for an adequate temperature rise of the enclosure during operation of the arc lamp , which temperature rise will cause some reduction in compression by the enclosure 148 . an additional embodiment of the present invention is set forth in fig1 wherein the arc lamp 152 is positioned within the sealed enclosure 154 having windows 155 . the lamp is cooled by the flow of a fluid , such as water , in the region 156 between the lamp 152 and the enclosure 154 . the coolant fluid is circulated by the pump 158 through the pipes 162 and 164 which pass intermediately through a heat exchanger 166 suitably interposed for purposes of cooling the fluid coolant prior to recirculation . like the other embodiments of this invention , this embodiment requires a high static pressure to be applied by the circulating coolant on the arc lamp to adequately contain same to prevent lamp explosion from internal pressure stress . in this embodiment the force to create a high static pressure is provided by a diaphragm 168 , the interior of which is exposed to the coolant being recirculated through pipe 164 and the exterior of which is confronted with the gas pressure within the closed chamber 170 . suitable means such a pressurized gas bottle 172 can be utilized to establish the necessary pressure within chamber 170 . thus , the recirculating fluid in this embodiment serves not only as a coolant but also as the pressure interface between the arc lamp and the enclosure to maintain adequate external support for the lamp and thereby prevent stresses which could result in an explosion . the heat exchanger 166 , tubing 162 - 164 , and circulating pump 158 must all be designed to operate at the high static pressure . preferably , the pump 158 should be driven with a magnetic coupling between it and its motor 160 to permit isolation of the high pressure region . an additional embodiment of the invention is set forth in fig1 , wherein , the arc lamp electrodes 180 are sealed to the enclosure 182 utilizing a sleeve 184 and the tube 186 . the arc chamber tube 188 is made of a transparent insulating material such as fused silica , sapphire , or a high temperature glass and is supported by contact with the enclosure 182 and window 190 . these latter serve to apply a compressive force to the tube 188 during operation and thereby counteract the tensile forces in it resulting from thermal gradients and internal gas pressure . this embodiment further incorporates auxiliary electrode means 192 at one end of the arc chamber 194 . means 192 can be used to assist in the initiation of the arc by providing a shorter pathway for the initial gas ionization . lower starting voltage can then be used which would be less likely to initiate an arc discharge puncturing of the arc chamber wall . an electrical circuit utilizing the auxiliary electrode is shown schematically in fig1 . the circuit shown incorporates a source of high voltage 196 for initiating the arc , circuit 198 for passage of current to the auxiliary electrode 192 , current limiting capacitor 200 to limit current to the auxiliary electrode 192 , and a primary power source 202 to supply the main arc discharge between the electrodes 180 in the arc chamber 194 . thus , the present invention which has been generally and specifically disclosed hereinabove is a vast improvement over prior existing devices , both in the quality of light transmitted from the radiation device as well as in the optical means utilized to collimate the light and deliver it to the preferred location in an economical properly shaped configuration without appreciable loss thereof . while other embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art it is my intent to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents .

7Electricity

referring now to the drawings and in particular to fig1 a . this figure schematically illustrates a surface vessel 1 positioned in the vicinity of a location 2 of a sea / river bed 3 at which it is required to install an upstanding columns / pile 4 . as illustrated in the figure the surface vessel 1 carries a column / pile 4 or several columns / piles 4 to be mounted in the sea / river bed 3 . in the figure such columns / piles are shown as being located at the stern end 5 of the vessel 1 . a derrick / crane installation 6 is located at the stem end 7 of the vessel supports a drilling machine 8 which incorporates a main platform section 9 mounting a plurality of telescopic legs 10 having profiled feet 11 that are intended to engage with the lake , sea or river bed 3 in the vicinity of the required location 2 . the drilling machine 8 is suspended for deployment into the water by means of a cable 12 and an associated winch assembly 13 . at this stage a column / pile 4 to be installed in the sea / river bed 3 is shown as being vertically positioned on the drilling machine 8 in its drilling position . in other words a column / pile 4 is pre - installed on the drilling machine 8 . the drilling machine 8 incorporates equipment for rotating the column / pile 4 carried thereby in order to carry out an installing operation . arrangements for operating the drilling machine are provided in the form of flexible umbilical connections 15 , 16 operationally connected between the drilling machine 8 and associated control equipment ( not shown ) provided on the vessel 1 . the vessel 1 is maintained in its required operational position throughout a drilling operation by appropriate vessel positioning arrangements such as mooring cables and / or a dynamic vessel positioning systems ( not shown ) it will be appreciated that during travel of the vessel 1 to the required column / pile installation position 2 the drilling machine 8 would be positioned by the winch assembly 13 inboard of the vessel and once the required position 2 of the lake , sea or river bed 3 at which it is required to install the column / pile 4 has been reached the drilling machine 8 is moved by the winch assembly 13 to a positional setting at in which it can be lowered by the winch assembly 13 down to the sea machine bed 3 to the position as shown in fig1 b . at this stage of the installation of the drilling it will be noted that since the lake , sea or river bed is uneven the drilling machine 8 is not level , and that the weight of the drilling machine 8 is totally supported by the fact of its resting on the lake , sea or river bed 3 . in this situation the winch assembly cable 12 is arranged to be slack as are the umbilical connections 15 / 16 . this situation accommodates possible displacement and heave movements of the vessel 1 arising from the action of wind , tide , and wave motions on the vessel . it will be understood that during such deploying of the drilling machine 8 the vessel is positioned to ensure that the drilling machine 8 is deposited upon the lake , sea or river bed as accurately as possible to the required site 2 of the column / pile to be mounted . this accuracy of positioning , in practice , is a matter of importance particularly where more than one column / pile 4 is involved in the mounting of a base support unit for a larger column / pile or installation . once the drilling machine 8 is resting upon the lake sea or river bed 3 it is necessary to adjust the levelling of the drilling machine platform 9 such that it is horizontal and that the column / pile 4 to be inserted into the sea bed is positioned immediately above the required mounting position . this levelling is achieved by appropriate adjustments to the lengths of the telescopic legs 10 projecting beneath the platform 9 . this levelling operation is discussed in relation to fig1 c from which it will be noted that the drilling rig platform 9 has been set to a horizontal operational setting by appropriate height adjustment of the legs 10 together with any lateral positional adjustment to position the column / pile above the lake , sea or riverbed location 2 at which it is to be positioned and to ensure that the platform 9 is positionally stable . as mentioned this positional adjustment of the drilling machine 8 may be effected by using hydraulic or electrical actuators ( not shown ) controlled from the vessel 1 by way of the umbilical connections 15 / 16 . in practice lateral forces exerted upon the drilling machine by the action of currents and waves are reacted through the legs 10 into the sea / river bed by means of friction . in the embodiment shown the socket / bore 17 for receiving the column / pile is created by a rotary drilling operation using the lower / toe end 18 of the column / pile 4 as a drill bit . for this purpose the lower end / toe 18 of the column / pile 4 is equipped with cutters regarded as being suitable for the expected lake , sea or river bed conditions . the required rotational drilling torque is applied to the column / pile by a rotary drill drive 20 . the required force necessary to move the column / pile downwards during the drilling rotation is supplied by the weight of the column / pile . if , in practice , this is found not to be sufficient the column / pile can be ballasted by the application of weight to the column / pile . if necessary additional force can be obtained from hydraulic cylinders 21 . a guide tube 22 within which the column / pile 4 is located whilst on the drilling machine serves to maintain the column / pile 4 in a vertical position during the drilling operation . in practice , power for the drilling operation and the control of the actual drilling operation is derived from the vessel 1 by way of the umbilicals 15 and 16 . furthermore other services to the column / pile such as compressed air for the removal of drilling debris / cutings can be supplies by way of the umbilicals 15 and 16 between the vessel 1 and the drilling machine 8 . referring now to fig1 d , this figure schematically illustrates the stage at which the column / pile 4 has been advanced to a required depth in the lake , sea or river bed 3 . at this stage the annulus 17 a that has been produced by the drilling operation around inserted part of the column / pile 4 needs to be filled with grout to ensure that the column / pile 4 is firmly secured in position . this grout can be mixed on the vessel 1 and can be fed to the annulus 17 a by the umbilical 15 used for the pumping in of air . once the annulus 17 has been filed the umbilicals 15 , 16 can be released and recovered to the surface vessel . in situations in which it is required to insert into the lake , sea or river bed 3 more than one column / pile 4 , for example , in close relationship to each other the drilling unit 20 and in particular the column / pile guide 22 , the torque drive and associated hydraulic cylinders 21 can be moved to the required location for the next column / pile 4 to be inserted in the lake , sea or river bed . this displacement can be achieved in many different ways , for example , by using a yaw drive to move the drilling unit 20 to a new position as is illustrated in fig1 e . a new column / pile 4 can then be lowered into the guide tube 22 from the vessel 1 . it is to be noted that the first column / pile 4 to be installed could be separate from the deploying of the drilling machine 8 to the lake , sea or river bed . in this case the drilling machine can be deployed without the column / pile 4 being in place in particular as may be seen from fig1 e once the displacement of the drilling machine 8 has been effected that is the guide tube 22 has been set above the position 2 in which the next column / pile 4 is to be inserted into the lake , sea or river bed 3 the next column / pile 4 to be inserted is lowered from the vessel 1 and entered into the guide tube 22 . as is indicated in fig1 e this is shown as being located to the right of the position shown in fig1 c and 1 d . in other words the guide tube 22 and associated drill unit 20 can be displaced relative to the drilling machine platform 9 by a drive unit 23 which is such as to displace the guide tube 22 to a selected one of a number of possible operational positions relative to the platform 9 . fig1 f illustrates an installation stage in which the first column / pile 4 has been inserted and the guide tube 22 has been moved to the next required position and the next column / pile 4 to be mounted in the lake , sea or river bed has been installed in a manner as discussed in relation to fig1 c and 1 d and grout has been or is being inserted into the annulus 17 produced in the lake , sea or river bed by the drilling operation . the above discussed process is repeated for each column / pile 4 to be positioned in the lake , sea or river bed 3 . once the drilling pile installation has been completed the machine 8 is withdrawn by the winch assembly to be repositioned onto the vessel . this is illustrated in fig1 g . it will be noted from fig1 g that a series of columns / piles 4 are upstanding from the lake , sea or river bed . fig1 h illustrates very schematically the mounting of a turbine and rotor installation 25 being mounted to the columns / piles previously inserted as herein before described in relation to the previously discussed fig1 a to 1 g . referring now to fig2 a and 2 b which illustrate a second embodiment of a drilling machine apparatus in which the platform of the previous figures is effectively replaced by arrangement of sealed ballast tanks 26 which when filled with air are able to float in water so that they drilling machine can be moved to a required drilling position by being towed by the control vessel 1 . with this embodiment once the drilling machine 8 has been positioned in the required position for inserting a column / pile 4 the ballast tanks 26 are partially flooded with water to an extent that the ballast tanks and the associated drilling machine exhibits a slightly negative buoyancy so that the drilling machine 8 can be lowered to the lake , sea or river bed 3 by the winch assembly 13 . once the drilling machine is at the lake , sea or river bed 3 and the machine has been levelled so the drilling machine platform 9 is horizontal and the guide tube 22 is vertical the ballast tanks 26 are fully flooded with water thereby maximising the submerged weight of the drilling machine 8 and therefore its frictional engagement with the lake , sea or river bed 3 . after the required number of columns / piles 4 have been inserted into the lake , sea or river bed 4 the water is exhausted from the ballast tanks 26 to cause the drilling machine 8 to be readily liftable back to the vessel 1 . fig3 schematically illustrates a further embodiment of a drilling machine 8 which is such that weight required to stabilise the drilling machine whilst on a lake , sea or river bed 3 is reduced . for this purpose the machine is provided with positionally adjustable hydrofoils settable such that down force is produced by tide or river flows , thereby increasing the requisite friction between the machine feet 11 and the lake , sea or bed 3 thereby helping to counteract water flow drag on the drilling machine .

4Fixed Constructions

the optical comparator is completely contained in a casing 10 , having a front panel 12 with a back projection type viewing screen 14 inset in the upper portion , the casing having a hood 16 with sides 18 which extend forwardly to shield the screen . for added shielding , from overhead lights , a hood extension 20 is attached to the top of the casing by a hinge 22 and normally rests flat on the casing to extend beyond hood 16 , as in the broken line position in fig1 . when not in use the hood extension 20 can be propped up by a leg 24 hinged on the underside thereof . the exact configuration of the casing is not critical and may vary for the purpose of appearance . in the lower portion of casing 10 are two spaced parallel rails 26 supporting a carriage 28 , which comprises a pair of longitudinal slide members 30 connected by cross rails 32 , the slide members being slidable along the rails 26 . on top of carriage 28 is a frame 34 , having a pair of cross slide members 36 which slide on cross rails 32 . the rail and slide member combinations are preferably roller type elements similar to drawer slides , for smooth action . frame 34 is manually operated and can be pulled out through an elongated slot 38 in one side 40 of the casing 10 . the carriage 28 is driven by a motor 42 , having a friction drive roller 44 which rides on one slide member 30 , the motor having speed and reversing controls described in more detail hereinafter . frame 34 has a pair of side bars 46 and 48 fixed to opposite ends of slide members 36 to form a rigid rectangular frame . the outside bar 46 , which is normally exposed in slot 38 , is provided with a handle 50 to facilitate sliding the frame in and out of the casing . at opposite ends of side bars 46 and 48 are threaded traverse rods 52 and 54 , journalled in the side bars and extending parallel to slide members 36 . on the inside ends of the traverse rods 52 and 54 are bevel gears 58 , the two rods being interconnected by a connecting shaft 58 rotatably mounted in bearings 60 on side bar 48 and having bevel gears 56 . traverse rod 52 projects outwardly from side bar 46 and is fitted with a knob 64 , so that both traverse rods can be rotated in synchronization . the traverse rod 52 is oppositely threaded from the center out and a pair of traverse blocks 66 and 68 are threaded on the opposite ends . traverse rod 54 is similarly threaded and carries a pair of traverse blocks 70 and 72 . fixed between the traverse blocks 66 and 70 is a channelled track 74 , and fixed between traverse blocks 68 and 72 is a similar track 76 . when knob 64 is turned , the tracks 74 and 76 are moved toward or away from each other in parallel relation . slidably mounted in tracks 74 and 76 are two pairs of clamp blocks 78 and 80 , having inwardly opposed fingers 82 to grip the corners of a rectangular master component 84 , which rests on top of the tracks . each track has a longitudinal slot 86 and the clamp blocks are secured from below by any suitable screw or clamp means . as shown , the component 84 is a simple rectangular board used for a printed circuit , but the clamp blocks could be arranged to hold any other configuration . in normal use , the master component is fixed at one end of the frame between the tracks which are adjusted to the proper width by means of knob 64 , and is left in that position until all sample components of that type have been checked . a sample component 88 rests on tracks 74 and 76 at the other end of frame 34 and is held between stop blocks 90 and 92 and adjustable clamp blocks 94 and 96 . stop blocks 90 and 92 have inwardly opposed spring fingers 100 , against which the sample component is held by fingers 102 on the clamp blocks 94 and 96 . below track 74 is a nut 104 fixed to clamp block 94 through slot 86 , the nut running on a threaded rod 106 supported between traverse block 70 and a bearing 108 under the center portion of the track . a similar nut and threaded rod adjustment means is coupled to clamp block 96 below track 76 . the threaded rods 106 extend through the supporting traverse blocks 70 and 72 and are fitted with bevel gears 110 . the traverse blocks have forwardly extending flanges 112 , through which passes a shaft 114 , journaled at its ends in side bars 46 and 48 . shaft 114 is shown as being square in cross section , but could be suitably splined , and at each transverse block 70 and 72 is a bevel gear 116 meshing with the adjacent bevel gear 110 . bevel gears 116 rotate with shaft 114 but are slidable thereon to allow for adjustment in the spacing of the tracks . shaft 114 projects from side bar 46 and is provided with a knob 118 , by which the clamp blocks 94 and 96 can be simultaneously adjusted to hold the sample component 88 . spring fingers 100 allow the sample component to be inserted and removed , as in the broken line position in fig5 without disturbing the positioning of the clamps . mounted directly above frame 34 , substantially at the center of its range of travel , is a lamp house 120 . ideally the light should be concentrated on similar narrow transverse strips of the two components and the arrangement shown has been found particularly effective . the top of the lamp house comprises a reflector 122 of cylindrical form extending across the full width of the carriage structure . it is well known that light from a source at one focal point of an elliptical reflector will be concentrated at the other focal point of the ellipse . as shown in fig1 , the reflector 122 in arcuate cross section is closely similar to the section of a pair of overlapping ellipses 124 and 126 with a common focal point 138 , the arcuate form being simple to manufacture . spaced below reflector 122 is a secondary reflector 130 of inverted v configuration , the apex of which has an arcuately concave portion 32 . a tubular lamp 134 is mounted at the effective common focal point of reflector 120 and the center of radius of concave portion 132 is spaced below the lamp , so that light reflected from the concave portion will pass to the side of the lamp and strike the primary reflector . the inclined walls of the secondary reflector 130 subtend an angle of less than 90 degrees , so that light is reflected at a shallow angle , as in fig1 . a large percentage of the light is thus concentrated through the open sides 136 of the lamp house , to the areas of the components immediately adjacent to the lamp house . if additional light is needed , a second lamp 138 may be mounted above the concave portion 132 , as indicated in broken line in fig1 . to provide adequate cooling , a duct 140 from a suitable blower , not shown , is led into the plenum chamber 142 formed under the secondary reflector 130 . the plenum chamber has a bottom panel 144 with slotted outlets 146 formed by flanges 148 spaced from and parallel to the lower edges of the inclined walls . additional slotted outlets 150 are provided near the center to increase airflow . it has been found that this type of airflow , directed downwardly and outwardly in a thin sheet across the surface of each component , has the greatest cooling effect and allows prolonged operation without excess heating . mounted above the illuminated portion of the master component 84 is a wide angle projection lens 152 , above which is an inclined mirror 154 to reflect the image to the upper portion of screen 14 . above the illuminated portion of sample component 88 is a similar lens 156 , directing light to a first mirror 158 above the optical path of the master component image . first mirror 158 is inclined to direct light downwardly to a second mirror 160 , which directs the image to the lower portion of the screen 14 . by using a single mirror for one image and two mirrors for the other , an upright image of the sample component is seen with an inverted and effectively mirror image ( reverted image ) of the master component . as the carriage 28 is moved , the two images converge or diverge with a flowing motion , depending on the direction of motion . the corresponding ends of the components and their images are marked o and x for reference . to obtain a sharp line of separation between the images and avoid confusing overlap , a shield or stop 162 is fixed to the lower rear edge of secondary reflector 130 . another stop 164 is secured to a platform 166 fixed in the forward portion of the casing immediately above the frame 34 . an alternative optical system , which may be desirable for some purposes , is shown in fig1 , in which both images are upright and move in a common direction . the optical path for the sample component is as described above , but the lens 152 over the master component 84 directs the light to a first mirror 168 and a second mirror 170 to provide an upright image . in either form the two optical paths are of equal length to ensure images of matching size . the lenses are suspended from a supporting plate 174 , or comparable structure , mounted in any suitable manner in casing 10 . lens 156 , which is a mounted cylindrical unit of conventional type , slides vertically in a sleeve 176 fixed in plate 174 , the lens extending through a mounting bar 178 and being pivotally attached thereto between lugs 180 , as in fig8 and 9 . one end of the mounting bar 178 is held on a threaded post 182 extending downwardly from plate 174 and biased away from the plate by a spring 184 , a large adjustment nut 186 on the post below the mounting bar providing for vertical adjustment . the other end of mounting bar 178 is held on another threaded post 188 extending downwardly from plate 174 and spaced therefrom by a spring 190 . below the mounting bar is a pulley 192 , which is threaded on post 188 . since the lens is guided and held in vertical axial alignment by sleeve 176 and pivotally attached to mounting bar 178 , the bar need not be parallel to plate 174 , and one or both ends can be adjusted as hereinafter described . the mounting of lens 152 shown in fig1 , is the same in all respects , except that the adjustment nut 186 is replaced by a lock nut 194 , since adjustment at both ends is not necessary for both lens mountings . pulleys 192 are coupled together by an endless belt or cord 196 , wrapped around the pulleys for positive drive , the cord extending to a control pulley 198 mounted on a bracket 200 on front panel 12 . a focussing wheel 202 , fixed to control pulley 198 , protrudes through the front panel 12 , so that the operator can turn the wheel and adjust the focus of both lenses equally . adjustment nut 186 is used for initial adjustment to equalize image sizes and normally does not need to be changed once set . in initially setting up the apparatus , it may be necessary to shift one image laterally for precise registration . to do this , mirror 154 is mounted in a frame 204 , which has a pivotal connection 208 at one end to a support member 208 fixed in casing 10 , as in fig1 and 12 . on the other end of frame 204 is a bracket 210 , an adjustment screw 212 being fitted through support member 208 and threaded into the bracket . a spring 214 between bracket 210 and support member 208 maintains the setting . longitudinal adjustment of the sample component to obtain proper registration of the images is made by positioning of the stop blocks 90 and 92 on their respective tracks . with a sample component in place , the final precise adjustment is made by turning knob 118 , the spring fingers 100 allowing limited longitudinal movement of the sample component , while retaining a holding grip against the clamp blocks . in the inspection of printed circuit boards it may be desirable to compare a sample board with a negative or transparency of the printed circuit layout . for this purpose , backlight lamps 216 are mounted under carriage 28 , below the position of the normally illuminated portion of the master component , as in fig1 . a diffuser 218 is placed above the lamps for even lighting and the transparency is secured in the master component position . to shut off the light and heat from the lamp house , a shutter 220 is pivotally mounted in the rear portion of the lamp house , to swing up and close the open end , as in the broken line position . when not in use , the shutter serves as a portion of the secondary reflector 130 , or could be made removable . in the wiring diagram shown in fig1 , a power supply is connected through a main switch 222 to the lights and blower of the lamp house . the backlight circuit is separately controlled through a switch 224 and dimmer 226 for balancing the image intensities when used . motor 42 is energized through a direct current speed control 228 , such as a silicon controlled rectifier circuit of well known type , and has a reversing switch 230 with a center off position . limit switches 231 and 232 are mounted in suitable positions in the casing to limit the travel of the carriage . the reversing switch and a knob 233 for the speed control are mounted on a recessed control panel 234 in front panel 12 , and are shown positioned for convenient one handed operation . the main switch and the backlight controls can be at any convenient location . a typical image presentation is shown in fig1 in which it can be seen that the sample in the lower image has a reversed polarity capacitor 236 and an incorrect transistor 238 , when compared to the master . to facilitate marking the faulty elements , front panel 12 is provided with a large trap door 240 hinged at its lower edge by a spring loaded hinge 242 to swing inwardly and down on top of platform 166 , the spring hinge holding the trap door closed . it has been found that marking is best done with a water based fluorescent ink dispensed from a squeeze type pen 244 with a long thin nozzle 246 . the operator &# 39 ; s arm is pushed through trap door 240 , as in fig1 , and a drop of ink is placed on the faulty circuit element . since the marking operation can be seen on the screen , the action is quick and simple and , with the effective cooling system , the operator is in no danger of being burned . if necessary the platform 186 can have a covering of thermal insulation of low reflectivity , such as black velvet or flocking . several pens 244 , with different colored inks , are conveniently stored in a rack 248 , mounted on front panel 12 below the trap door . to avoid clogging of the nozzle by dried ink , each pen has a cap 250 lined with resilient material 252 , such as silicone rubber with a central socket 253 which is a tight fit for nozzle 246 . when the cap is pushed over the nozzle , the air trapped in socket 253 forces the ink back down the nozzle by a pumping action and seals the nozzle to prevent clogging by dried ink . in another optical system , see fig2 , mirrors 303 and 300 direct the light image of component 88 to the upper portion of the screen 14 . mirror 302 directs the image of component 84 to the lower portion of the screen 14 . thus as the carriage 28 is moved , the two images provide an abutting merging mirror , image display of the illuminated portions of components 84 and 88 . however the center edge of the forward component 88 is opposite the forward edge of the component . thus it is possible to insert the market pen 244 into the display to mark the defective transistor 306 with market dye 308 , without having the hand of the user obstruct the display , see fig2 . for close inspection of small details , an inspection lens 254 is slidably mounted on a rod 256 extending across hood 16 , the lens being hinged to swing upward clear of the screen when not in use , as in fig2 . to make a complete inspection record and facilitate identification of faults , a grid system is used . the lower edge of screen 14 is numbered from left to right , as in fig1 , and vertical reference is provided by letters spaced along track 76 , as shown in fig4 so as to be visible in the image . a record is made on a printed form 258 , with a grid 260 corresponding to the grid of the image . thus the chart is marked at grid positions d3 and f14 , to indicate the faulty elements . at the side of form 258 is a fault table 262 of typical faults , and a line is drawn from each marked position on the grid to the appropriate fault , as shown in fig1 , to facilitate later correction . the form 258 is scaled to the actual size of the grid in relation to the component itself , so that by superimposing the form on the component , the markings fall over the faulty elements . to simplify inspection , the form is placed on the backlighted window 264 of a viewer 266 . inclined forward of the window is a beam splitter mirror 268 and a platform 270 on which the faulty sample component is placed . from a suitable viewing direction , indicated by arrow 272 of fig1 , the composite images of the component and form are seen in the beam splitter mirror . lamp 274 may be provided with a dimmer to balance the image intensities . the faulty sample component 88 rests on a fixed stop 276 in vertical alignment with the form 258 , lateral alignment being set by an adjustable stop 278 against one edge of the component . stop 278 is held by a suitable clamp screw 280 through a transverse slot 282 in platform 270 . by this means , a relatively unskilled operator can correctly identify faults , and a record of each component is provided . when it is not desired to mark a component then the grid system can be used separately to indicate a fault . this allows the faults to be recorded even through the test procedure does not allow marking the components directly . a single operator can set up the apparatus and inspect components quickly , the sample component being changed by pulling out the frame by handle 50 , lifting out the sample just checked and inserting the next , then pushing in the frame . with components assembled , on a production basis , there should be little if any need for adjustment of the image each time a component is changed . image motion is under full control of the operator and can be stopped instantly when a fault is detected , or for careful scrutiny . the adjustment means incorporated in the component carrying frame will accommodate a variety of types and sizes of printed circuit boards or other components .

6Physics

particular embodiments of the present disclosure are described hereinbelow with reference to the accompanying drawings . in the following description , well - known functions or constructions are not described in detail to avoid obscuring the present disclosure in unnecessary detail . the present disclosure provides for a system and method for determining a volume of an ablation lesion and providing a geometric reconstruction of the ablation volume . the ablation lesion may be created by applying any suitable energy , such as radiofrequency (“ rf ”), microwave , electrical , ultrasound , heat , cryogenic , and laser . for the purposes of illustration , the following description assumes the application of rf energy to create ablation lesions in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure . referring to fig1 a , an ablation electrode 100 is shown having an insulated shaft 102 and an electrically exposed tip 103 . electrode 100 may be , for example , a high frequency or ri thermo - ablation electrode configured to be placed in the body of a patient ( not explicitly shown ) so that the tip 103 is near a target volume , such as a cancerous tumor or other tissue structure within the body . a hub or junction connector element illustrated schematically by 106 may be any type of connection device such as jacks , hoses , ports , etc . that connect the rf electrode to a power source , such as a radiofrequency ( rf ) generator 107 . the generator 107 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure can perform monopolar and bipolar electrosurgical procedures , including tissue ablation procedures . the generator may include a plurality of outputs for interfacing with various electrosurgical instruments ( e . g ., a monopolar active electrode , return electrode , bipolar electrosurgical forceps , footswitch , etc .). further , the generator includes suitable electronic circuitry configured for generating radio frequency power specifically suited for various electrosurgical modes ( e . g ., cutting , blending , division , etc .) and procedures ( e . g ., monopolar , bipolar , vessel sealing , tissue ablation ). also shown is a control system 109 coupled to generator 107 , which may be a computer , a microprocessor , or an electromechanical device configured to receive rf energy input parameters from rf generator 107 , such as power , current , voltage , energy , time , impedance , etc . in some embodiments , a coolant supply system ( not explicitly shown ) may also be included , for example , in operative cooperation with rf generator 107 and / or incorporated within rf generator 107 . the coolant supply system is configured to output various feedback parameters such as temperature , multiple temperatures at different points , and the like into the control system 109 . the coolant supply system parameters can then be used as feedback control input parameters . based on one or more of these parameters , the control system 109 modulates , moderates , or otherwise monitors output response at the generator 107 . also shown in fig1 is a computer system 111 , which may be , for example , a pc or computer graphic workstation . the computer system 111 is coupled to the control system 109 . computer system 111 processes the parameters of the rf generator 107 and coolant supply system ( not explicitly shown ) plus other geometric parameters regarding the electrode as well as image scan data taken before , during or after thermo - surgery . computer system 111 assimilates all of these parameters and displays them in various representations , digital representations , and analog meter type representations , as an interface to the operator or controller of the processor during the preplan process or during the process of ablation heating itself . in one embodiment , image data 120 might represent image scan data from such image scanners such as from ct , mri , pet , or other tomographic or x - ray , plain film , or digitized image scan data . that data may be stored in the computer system 111 and be represented as an array of raw data , slices , reconstructed slices , three - dimensional renderings , “ slice and dice ” three - dimensional or two - dimensional renderings , contoured or segmented anatomical structures , color rendered , differentiated structures , both pathological and normal so that the surgeon may substantially visualize the anatomy and pathology of the patient prior to , during , or after the procedure . data from ct or mri may be taken days or even months prior , and could be put into stereotactic or non - stereotactic space , for example , by utilizing any suitable imaging software and / or image processing software in conjunction with one or more graphic references or other suitable marking systems or software . image data 121 may represent ultrasound scan data or sonic monitoring data such as from a sonic detector system that can visualize before , during , and after the thermo - surgery procedure the course of the electrode in the body , electrode position with respect to anatomy , and even the process of the heating mechanism and result thereof . this data could also be fed into computer system 111 and represented in various ways alternatively on a graphics display screen . image data 121 may be stored in computer system 111 to correspond with particular configurations of electrode 100 , such as , for example , geometric parameters of the electrode tip 103 . in this manner , a library of feedback data may be stored in computer system 111 and indexed according to particular configurations of the electrode , thereby assisting the surgeon in predicting future ablation results for a given electrode configuration . further , there may be calculation algorithms , look - up tables , heuristic algorithms , historical clinical data , etc . that can be used in a preplan setting and displayed , implemented , overlaid , and used to control the image data , course of rf generator output , as well as the control system to tailor or preplan the results of the ablation that can be visualized again on the computer system 111 and further computed and stored therein . computer system 111 includes a display 115 for outputting image data 120 and 121 , such as the real - time or preplanned trajectory of a probe path 126 and electrode tip as the tip 126 is inserted into the body and / or a tumor structure represented by a cloud of dots 125 . this might also be , for example , the display from an ultrasonic , ct , or mri scanner that actually visualizes the probe 126 and a tumor 125 or a profused volume corresponding to the destructive ablation volume , perhaps represented or visualizable as volume 125 . use of ct contrast agents or dyes can be used to mark the ablation volume following ablation , and this can give a direct view of the results immediately following the heating process . display 115 may also be configured to show a preplanned path of an electrode in a particular slice or reconstructed slice plane of volumetric rendering in a three - dimensional aspect ( not explicitly shown ), and also configured to show isotherm surfaces or intersected surfaces or isotherm lines ( not explicitly shown ), which might represent a preplan or a calculation of the ablation volume around the tip of the electrode . display 115 may also be configured to show a view , slice , or reconstructed slice , and within it a preplanned or actual plan or post - thermosurgery path representing the approach of a thermosurgical probe 100 into the patient &# 39 ; s anatomy to achieve a target volume that might be seen on that image slice such as for example a tumor as seen on image data 120 and 121 . volumetric calculations for ablation volumes may be determined from cross - sectional perimeters of slices of a target tissue site and / or block of tissue and subsequently reconstructed and graphically represented in a 2 - d and / or 3 - d manner on display 115 , as will be discussed in further detail below . turning now to fig1 b , a trajectory or path 131 of electrode 100 through ablation volume 125 is shown . path 131 may also be defined as an axis of electrode 100 through ablation volume 125 . electrode 100 is used to create an ablation lesion at a targeted site such as volume 125 by heating tissue via application of rf energy from the generator 107 to the tissue . path 131 of electrode 100 through volume 125 provides a trajectory reference or point 135 from which volumetric calculations may be made for volume 125 , as will be discussed in further detail below . volume 125 may be deconstructed into a plurality of slices , depicted here as 125 a , 125 b , 125 c , and 125 d , for enabling volumetric determination of volume 125 and , further , graphical representation in display 115 , fig1 c shows a cross - sectional view of any slice 125 n of the plurality of slices 125 a - d indicated by line 1 c - 1 c in fig1 b . each of the plurality of slices 125 n defines a cross - sectional perimeter 140 n generally concentric about trajectory point 135 n . in one embodiment of the present disclosure , the reconstructed graphical representation is fitted to a specific geometry ( e . g ., ellipsoidal , spherical , etc .) for viewing on display 115 . for example , euclidean distances between perimeter 140 of volume 125 and the perimeter of a pre - specified geometry may be minimized to fit volume 125 to the pre - specified geometry . in this manner , valuable feedback may be provided to a surgeon on the consistency and / or the predictability of the ablation volume achieved based on given energy applicator configurations ( e . g ., electrode size , electrode tip geometry , etc .). the graphical representation of the reconstructed ablation also allows the surgeon to qualify the completeness or a completeness factor of the ablation lesion achieved based on geometrical similarity between the lesion and any one or more of a particular preplanned geometry provided , for example , by the control system 109 . the graphical representation of the reconstructed ablation may also be used to determine the impact from adjacent structures such as , for example , other electrodes , lungs , bones , vessels , tissue extraneous to the present procedure , etc . on a given ablation , as will be discussed in further detail below . a method for volumetric determination of an ablation volume for subsequent geometric reconstruction and graphical representation according to embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to fig2 in conjunction with fig1 b and 1c . in step 300 , electrosurgical energy is supplied from the rf generator 107 to the electrode 100 . as illustrated in fig1 b , electrode 100 is used to create an ablation lesion by heating volume 125 via application of rf energy from the generator 107 to volume 125 . in step 310 , path or trajectory 131 of electrode 100 through a target site such as , for example , volume 125 ( fig1 b ) is indicated . path 131 of electrode 100 through volume 125 defines trajectory point 135 therethrough relative to perimeter 140 of tissue block 125 . trajectory point 135 may be substantially defined through the center of mass of tissue block 125 . trajectory 131 and / or trajectory point 135 may be marked with ct contrast agents or dyes following ablation , giving a direct view of the results immediately following the heating process . in step 320 , volume 125 is cut or “ sliced ” substantially perpendicular to trajectory point 135 into a plurality of slices 125 a - d . slices 125 a - d may be obtained via an image scanner such as , for example , ct , mri , pet , or other tomographic or x - ray , plain film , or digitized image scan data for subsequent 2d or 3d graphical representation . in this manner ; various dimensions and / or measurements of each of the plurality slices 125 a - d may be indicated such as , for example , thicknesses , volume , cross - sectional perimeter , etc . for each of the plurality of slices . in step 330 , a thickness , indicated in fig1 b as a , and a cross - sectional perimeter 140 a - d for each of the plurality of slices 125 a - d is determined . cross - sectional perimeters 140 a - d for each of the plurality of slices 125 a - d may be derived , for example , from scan data 121 in the computer system 111 such as post - ablation mr images that may or may not include ct contrast agent . other embodiments of the present disclosure may include deriving from a measurement taken using conventional means such as , for example , dial calipers , slide calipers , digital calipers , electronic calipers , or the like . in step 340 , the volume of each of the plurality of slices 125 a - d is determined . any suitable method for determining volume may be used such as , for example , the contour or perimeter method . this method utilizes each slice of volumetric data individually and models the shape of the volume as defined on each slice . for example , cross sectional perimeter 140 a - d for each slice 125 a - d may be used to determine the volume using such method . alternatively , for each slice 125 n , thickness a may be multiplied by the perimeter area of that particular slice to determine the slice volume . this determination is carried out for each of the plurality of slices 125 a - d . in step 350 , the volume determinations derived in step 340 for each of the plurality of slices 125 a - d are summed to yield an ablation volume . in this manner , an accurate volumetric determination is made rather than approximated calculations yielded by conventional and / or presently competing volumetric calculation methods . referring now to fig3 in conjunction with fig1 b , 1c , and 2 , a patient &# 39 ; s body is represented schematically by element p , and there is a target volume represented by the dashed line 301 . a thermosurgery probe 302 is inserted into the patient &# 39 ; s body such that the tip of the probe 303 is placed within the target volume 301 . attached to or in conjunction with or cooperatively coupled with the probe ( or probes ) 302 is an imaging device 311 which , when placed against the surface of the patient &# 39 ; s skin or an organ within the patient &# 39 ; s body , images a portion of the patient &# 39 ; s body p , including the probe 302 and the target volume 301 or the environment around these elements . the radiofrequency , laser , high frequency , or other power generator is represented by 304 , and in the case of a high frequency generator , a reference electrode 305 is attached to the patient &# 39 ; s body around the shoulder region is shown in fig3 . the reference electrode 305 might be a gel pad , large area , conductive pad or other type of standard reference electrode that is used in electrosurgery . the imaging device 311 is connected to a monitoring circuit or controller system 360 that can be used to image , analyze , filter , and monitor the image scan data or the like which is received from the imaging device 311 . this system 360 may also involve a power source and processor for the imaging device 311 . the system 360 includes a feedback unit 309 configured to control monitoring , preplanning , and / or imaging of an ablation area . feedback unit 309 includes at least one display 315 and / or 325 configured to graphically display 2d or 3d image data . for example , in display 315 there may be represented in 2d or 3d slice or volume representations , image scan data taken from an image scanner such as ct , mr , pet , or ultrasound prior to , during , or after the thermal ablation . in this instance , a patient &# 39 ; s skin 317 is defined , a target volume ( e . g ., tumor 316 ) is shown , and in the dashed line is a preplanned probe path 318 for a thermal ablation high frequency electrode ( e . g ., probe 326 ). by means of such visualization , the probe path 318 can be manipulated within the image or image stack of ct or mr slices , and an optimal path for placement can be achieved . this path could be achieved by criterion from the surgeon such as bringing the probe path along a principal axis of the tumor 316 or from a direction that avoids some critical structures such as arteries , lung , optic nerve , neural structures , etc . thus , based on image scan data taken from the imaging device 311 prior to the thermal ablation , the surgeon can do a preplanned study and decide on the optimal positioning of the probe 326 . on the display 325 is shown a real - time representation of the probe 326 as it is inserted into the patient &# 39 ; s body . the margin 327 may be a reconstruction , either theoretical or actual , of the result of the rf heat ablation . for example , if the window represents an ultrasonic reconstruction , this could be a theoretically generated graphic representation within a preplanned ultrasonic slice direction and probe direction to show what the ecogenic or ultrasonic image would look like when particular cooled tip rf , generator parameters are invoked or used . this window may alternatively represent real - time image data from the ct or mr or other type of scanning means , if the patient is within such a scanner during the rf heating process . the window may also represent the changes or modifications or digitally subtracted differential changes of the tissue volume as a result , directly or indirectly , of the ablation isotherms . thus , one may visualize directly the effect of heating on the patients tissue , and this may be displayed in such a window . there may be a superposition of a preplanned or prescanned tumor volume , as compared to the actual volume of the tumor at the time of surgery or the ablation volume as one detects it during surgery . direct detection of changes in the physiology as a result of the heating to gauge the extent of the ablation volume can be done by ultrasound , ct , mri , pet , and other imaging modalities , and can be displayed on the display 325 of the feedback unit 309 or , indeed , on the graphics display of the ultrasound or ct , mr , or other scanning machine as supplied by standard manufacturers . each of these scanning devices has a graphics display on a crt , liquid crystal , or other means which can display the results of the tomographic or volumetric scanning . these can be used in conjugation with the thermosurgery to evaluate the effect of the thermosurgery itself . use of ultrasound and standard sonic detection and scanning may be used in conjugation with the thermosurgery to evaluate the effect of the lesion or ablation process . the entire process of the heating could be preplanned by the operator hours or days before based on the imaging and preplanned calculations of ablation volume with the tip geometry and ablation parameters described with respect to fig1 . thus , system 360 could basically mediate the entire process of supply of rf power from generator 304 . indwelling controllers , electronics , microprocessors , or software may be programmed to govern the entire process or allow preplan parameters by the operator based on his selection of a tip geometry and overall ablation volume as selected according to a tumor or pathological volume to be destroyed . many variants or interconnections of the block diagram shown in fig3 or additions of said diagram could be devised by those skilled in the art of regulation systems . while several embodiments of the disclosure have been shown in the drawings and / or discussed herein , it is not intended that the disclosure be limited thereto , as it is intended that the disclosure be as broad in scope as the art will allow and that the specification be read likewise . therefore , the above description should not be construed as limiting , but merely as exemplifications of particular embodiments . those skilled in the art will envision other modifications within the scope and spirit of the claims appended hereto .

0Human Necessities

[ 0045 ] fig1 shows a system for analyzing biological tissues or organs in accordance with one embodiment of the invention . a transducer 100 contains a wave generator 105 for generating waves . the generated waves may be sonic waves or electromagnetic waves . the transducer also comprises an array of detectors 110 that detect reflected waves . a processor 115 is used to select the properties of the generated waves ( e . g . amplitude and wavelength ) via a signal 118 input to the wave generator 105 . the wave generator 105 is used to produce generated waves 120 that irradiate a tissue or organ 125 . waves 130 reflected by the organ or tissue 125 are detected by the detectors 110 in the transducer 105 . the wave detected by each detector is converted by the detector into an analog voltage dependent signal that is sampled by an analog to digital converter 140 . the digital samples 142 are then input to the processor 115 . the processor 115 calculates a phase for each sample based upon the signal 118 and stores the digital samples in a memory 135 in the form of complex raw data r ( x , y ). a second processor 145 is configured to receive the complex raw data r ( x , y ) from the memory 135 and process the complex raw data into an image i ( x , y ) as is known in the art . the image may be displayed on a display such as a crt 150 . in accordance with the invention , a third processor 155 is configured to analyze the tissue by processing either the raw data r ( x , y ) or the processed image data i ( x , y ). the results of the analysis may be displayed on a display such as the crt 160 . [ 0048 ] fig2 shows an ultrasound image i ( x , y ) of human ovary tissue from a healthy ovary ( a ) from a malignant ovarian tumor ( b ), and a benign ovarian tumor ( c ), as determined by histological examination of the tissues . ( e ) ( f ) and ( g ) show the fourier transform f ( y , ω )=∫ i ( x , y ) e iωx dx of a 30 × 30 pixel square from the image shown in ( a ) ( b ) and ( c ), respectively . the energy of each fourier transform was measured by evaluating the sum σ |∂ f /∂ y | over the range of 1 ≦ ω ≦ 28 and 34 ≦ ω ≦ 64 . the energy calculated for the normal tissue ( a , d ) was 3 , for the malignant tissue ( b , e ) 8 , and for the benign tissue , 3 . an analysis of 30 ovarian tissues showed that by this method of calculating energy , healthy ovarian tissues have an energy in the range of about 2 to 4 , while malignant ovarian tissues have an energy in the range of about 7 - 9 . ovarian tissues having a benign growth were indistinguishable from healthy ovarian tissues . the method of the invention may thus be used for identifying malignant tissues . other methods may be used for measuring energy may also be used in accordance with the invention such as calculating a volume under the fourier transform . [ 0049 ] fig3 shows a wavelet analysis of the three images i ( x , y ) shown in fig2 . the 30 × 30 pixel square from each image was input to the wavelet analysis software of the matlab ™ wavelet toolbox . the b - orthogonal filter was used with a decomposition level equal to 1 . the output of this software is four matrices known as the principle image coefficients ( a ), horizontal coefficients ( h ), vertical image coefficients ( v ) and the diagonal coefficients ( d ). fig3 shows the contour graph of the coefficients of the a matrix obtained for each image . the maximum of each contour graph was used as an index . the index of the malignant tissue is 204 , of the benign tissue 162 and the healthy tissue 90 . an analysis of 30 ovarian tissues showed that malignant tissues have indices 2 - 2 . 5 times those of healthy tissues . other indices maybe also used in accordance with the invention when using wavelet analysis such as the maximum coefficient in sum of the h , v , and d coefficient matrices . other filters may be used in accordance with the invention such as a mexican hat filter , as are known in the art . [ 0051 ] fig4 shows the results of an analysis of entropy in 60 images of ovaries . the state ( healthy , benign or malignant ) was determined for each ovary by histological methods . for each image , a 30 × 30 pixel square was selected and an entropy e was calculated for each square as follows . for each pixel i ( x , y ), a parameter a ( x , y ) was calculated a  ( x , y ) = 1 n  ∑  i  ( x , y ) - i  ( x ′ , y ′ )  2 was calculated , where the sum extends over all pixels ( x ′, y ′) in the square neighboring the pixel ( x , y ), and n is the number of pixels neighboring the pixel ( x , y ). the entropy was then calculated as the average of the a ( x , y ) over the entire square . as shown in fig4 images of healthy ovaries were found to have the lowest entropy ( in the range of 2 to 4 . 3 ). images from malignant ovaries have high entropies ( 6 . 9 - 8 . 3 ). images from benign tissues have intermediate to high values of entropy ( 4 . 9 - 8 . 3 ).

0Human Necessities

referring now to the figures and in particular to fig1 there is illustrated a truck 10 including a cab 12 supported on a vehicle frame 13 . frame 13 provides for the attachment of wheels 11 and includes a pair of side rails 14 , which are running substantially the length of the vehicle . cab 12 is suspended above frame 13 on cab suspension elements 15 and 16 . the forward cab suspension 15 is conventional and secures the forward portion of the cab 12 to the frame 13 . forward cab suspension 15 may include a vibration isolating sub element . rear cab suspension 16 , according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention , is attached to a rear sill of the cab 12 in a way largely eliminating the application of twisting motions to the sill to prolong the service life of spot welds to the rear sill . referring now to fig2 the positioning of rear cab suspension attachment plate 20 between a cab 12 and frame 13 of truck 10 is better illustrated . attachment plate 20 is mounted above a cross member 18 which in turn is positioned extending between parallel side frame rails 14 . attachment plate 20 is positioned directly below the bottom of cab 12 to support the cab from below . attachment plate 20 may be connected by appropriate fasteners to the framing for cab 12 . [ 0025 ] fig3 illustrates rear cab suspension assembly 16 in greater detail . cab suspension assembly 16 is mounted on top of a cross member 18 . cross member 18 is positioned latitudinally oriented between the frame siderails at a position under the intended installation point for the aft portion of vehicle cab 12 . cross member 18 includes two end brackets 19 for attachment , one each , to each of the respective side rails . end brackets 19 are positionable along the frame side rails allowing the cross member 18 to be correctly positioned . a c - channel 21 is mounted between the brackets 19 and provides a support point to the suspension assembly 16 . cab suspension assembly 16 underlies a rear sill 22 , which is part of the structural assembly of cab 12 and is one member to which the cab floor is mounted . cab suspension assembly 16 includes a support plate 24 resting on and attached to cross member 18 and attachment plate 20 , which is positioned above and parallel to the support plate in supporting contact with rear sill 22 . attachment plate 20 is suspended above support plate 24 by a pair of air springs 26 and 28 , which are aligned with one another in the direction of elongation of cross member 18 . air springs 26 and 28 have vertical axes perpendicular to attachment plate 20 and support plate 24 and are attached to the attachment plate and support plate by conventional means . attachment plate 20 and support plate 24 each have associated brackets 32 and 34 , respectively , for the attachment of a forward shock absorber 30 . forward shock absorber 30 is mounted to exert damping force in the plane of the longitudinal center line a of the vehicle , being mounted predominantly vertically , but inclined toward the rear of the vehicle at the top . attachment of the bottom of the shock absorber 30 to bracket 34 is by a pivot mount 38 , while the top of the shock absorber is mounted in bracket 32 by a similar pivoting mount 36 . referring to fig4 and 5 suspension assembly 16 is presented in perspective from the rear quarter , looking down . in fig4 the suspension assembly is presented in its preferred operating environment , and in fig5 cab suspension assembly 16 is illustrated free of other vehicle structural elements . the remaining major elements of suspension assembly 16 are now illustrated , including a panhard rod 52 providing side to side positional stability of the cab 12 to counter roll occurring during cornering . an aft or rear shock absorber 40 dampens oscillation of cab 12 , generating forces aligned with a plane including the center line a of the vehicle . panhard rod 52 is pivotally mounted in brackets 48 and 50 , with bracket 48 extending downwardly from attachment plate 20 along one end of the cross member 18 and bracket 50 extending upwardly from support plate 24 toward the opposite end of the cross member . rear shock absorber 40 is mounted between brackets 42 and 44 , with bracket 42 extending rearwardly from attachment plate 20 and bracket 44 extending rearwardly and downwardly from the back of support plate 24 . the top end of shock absorber 40 is attached to bracket 42 by a pivot mount 46 and the bottom end of the shock absorber is attached in bracket 44 on a pivoting mount 47 . shock absorber 40 is inclined toward the front of the vehicle from bottom to top , meaning that damping force exerted by the shock absorber is in the plane including the vehicle center line and intersects the line of force from the forward shock absorber above the assembly . shock absorbers 30 and 40 are located between air springs 26 and 28 on the center line a of the vehicle . front shock absorber 30 is typically located somewhat higher than rear shock absorber 40 to provide room below the assembly 16 to accommodate the rear end of a transmission housing ( not shown ). air springs 26 and 28 are aligned perpendicular to and on either side of the center line . [ 0029 ] fig6 presents a side elevation of cab suspension assembly 16 illustrating the cooperating inclination of the front and rear shock absorbers 30 and 40 . it may be seen in the figure that the top ends of shock absorbers 30 and 40 are attached by brackets 32 and 42 , respectively , which depend from opposite edges of attachment plate 20 . the top ends of shock absorbers 30 and 40 are inclined toward one another , resulting in damping forces generated by the shock absorbers converging on one another , approximately above the center line b of sill 22 , which is also aligned with a bolt 202 used to attach the sill to attachment plate 20 . referring now to fig7 - 10 , an alternative embodiment of a cab suspension assembly 116 is illustrated , modified for greater spacing between a cab 12 and cross member 18 . a pair of air springs 126 and 128 are positioned between a support plate 124 and an attachment plate 120 . forward and rear shock absorbers 130 and 140 are mounted by brackets , including brackets 142 and 144 for shock absorber 140 and brackets 132 and 134 for shock absorber 130 . shock absorbers 130 and 140 function in the same manner as the shock absorbers described in connection with the first embodiment and again are positioned on the vehicle center line a . the air pressure of the air springs 126 and 128 may be adjusted through a displacement sensitive valve 70 , which depends from attachment plate 120 and which is actuated by a rod arm 68 . rod arm 68 is connected at one end to an arm of support plate 124 and at its opposite end to an valve 70 actuation arm 71 . an air line 74 is connected from valve 70 to air springs 126 and 128 by connectors 74 and 76 , respectively . valve 70 receives air from compressed air source ( not shown ) commonly available on trucks and delivers the air to the springs if displacement is less than a datum . air may be discharged from the springs through valve 70 when displacement exceeds the datum . valve 70 depends from an extension of attachment plate 120 . a valve actuation arm 71 extends forward from valve 70 , and moves up and down depending upon the changes in spacing between attachment plate 120 and a support plate 124 , which are transmitted to the arm by a push rod 68 . a panhard rod 152 is mounted between a downward oriented bracket 148 , depending from attachment plate 120 , and a upward oriented bracket 150 , resting on support plate 124 . [ 0034 ] fig1 illustrates location and orientation of shock absorbers 30 and 40 ( and in a way equally applicable to shock absorbers 130 and 140 ) to effect a minimum offset between the line e of mounting fasteners 200 between attachment plate and a cab rear sill and the load line f of forces generated by the shock absorbers . shock absorbers 30 and 40 generate forces in line with the central axes of the shock absorbers , which intersect at point c . the effective load line f , a line intersecting point c and perpendicular to attachment plate 20 should have a minimum offset from the line e of the mounting fasteners to minimize twisting about the fasteners . the invention provides cab suspension with a minimum of twisting about the rear sill element of the cab frame . the size of the mechanism in minimal and it is mechanically simple , while providing good mechanical isolation against vibration and shock . while the invention is shown in only one of its forms , it is not thus limited but is susceptible to various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

as seen in fig1 a &# 34 ; stent &# 34 ; 1 which is known per se consists of a microstructural network of lengthwise ribs 2 and crosswise ribs 3 connecting the latter . the lengthwise ribs 2 branch into parallel strands 4 which are joined by twos at their ends by way of an arc 5 . by their branching strands 4 , the lengthwise ribs 2 continue to the left and to the right of fig1 as far as to the end of the tubular &# 34 ; stent &# 34 ;. in the direction of the crosswise ribs 3 , the structure is bent cylindrically so that the crosswise ribs 3 ending at the top of fig1 pass into the crosswise ribs 3 ending at the bottom . as regards the order of magnitude , the widths b of the ribs 2 , 3 are in the range of submillimeters . the &# 34 ; stent &# 34 ; seen in fig1 is bioresorbable . it consists of the material of poly - hydroxybutyrate ( phb ). the apparatus seen in fig2 serves to produce the &# 34 ; stent &# 34 ; 1 with its structure of lengthwise and crosswise ribs 2 , 3 as well as strands 4 and arcs 5 . a cylindrical phb stent blank 6 is fixed on a manipulator 7 which provides for a displacement of the blank 6 relative to laser beam 9 which is stationary in its axis 8 . the laser beam 9 is produced by a tunable titanium sapphire laser 10 , having a variable wavelength of 760 to 810 mm . the pulse energy is approximately 1 mj , it may however be selected to be as low as 10 μj or less . the pulse length is variable , amounting at least to 120 fs . the laser works at a frequency of pulse repetition in the range from 0 . 1 to 10 khz at maximum . corresponding completions of the commercially available titanium sapphire laser have allowed for the laser system to be further adapted to the method according to the invention . for instance a so - called half - wave plate is integrated for energy variation and a rapid mechanical shutter for computer controlled triggering of the laser . as regards the path of the laser beam 9 , fig2 roughly outlines that the laser beam 9 is led through a diaphragm 11 and projected on the &# 34 ; stent &# 34 ; blank 6 by means of the lens 13 with a tilted mirror 12 being interconnected . the mentioned manipulator 17 is lodged in a vacuum chamber 14 . laser processing takes place at a pressure of less than 10 - 4 mbar . working under a processing gas or in the air is also possible . the manipulator 7 possesses two axes relative to the workpiece 6 , namely a linear axis 15 in the form of a correspondingly adjustable support 16 . a turning gear 17 is disposed on the support , having the axis of rotation 18 , relative to which the &# 34 ; stent &# 34 ; blank 6 is held concentrically in a chuck ( not shown ). by means of overlapped motion of the blank 6 along the linear axis 15 and by rotation about the axis of rotation 18 combined with simultaneous exposure of the blank to ultra - short high performance laser pulses , a &# 34 ; stent &# 34 ; of the structure seen in fig1 can be cut from the blank 6 accurately and without flashing on the edges . in doing so , also thermal or photochemical impairment of the phb material is avoided owing to the conditions of exposure , as a result of which the material properties such as resorbability and mechanical elasticity remain unchanged . attention is drawn to the fact that the laser beam , instead of being projected by the diaphragm 11 , may also be focused on the workpiece . another possibility resides in directing the laser beam on to the workpiece by means of a diffractive optic , which is frequently called a &# 34 ; hologram &# 34 ; in technical language . furthermore , use can be made not only of a stationary axis 8 of the laser beam 9 , but the laser beam 9 -- possibly by the overlapping of workpiece motion -- can be passed over the workpiece by means of a laser scanner . the respective mode of working will depend on the structure to be attained an on the material of the workpiece .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

fig1 is a drawing 100 illustrating exemplary base station transmitter timing relationships in accordance with methods of the present invention . fig1 includes a horizontal axis 102 representing time and a first period of time 104 , e . g ., a 2 sec interval . in some embodiments , the 1 st period of time 104 is larger than 2 seconds . the exemplary base station transmitter , e . g ., an ofdm signal sector transmitter , in an exemplary frequency division multiplexed communications system , e . g ., an exemplary ofdm system , is operated to communicate information using a set of n tones over the first period of time 104 using first signals into a first region , e . g ., a sector of a cell , where n is greater than 20 . in some embodiments , the transmitter is a sector transmitter corresponding to one carrier frequency in a sector of a cell which uses multiple carrier frequencies . the set of n tones , e . g ., 113 tones , may be a set of tones used for downlink signaling from the base station transmitter to wireless terminals , said downlink signaling including broadcast signals including beacon signals and assignments , as well as user specific signals , e . g ., user specific downlink traffic channel signals including user data . during an exemplary second period of time 106 , e . g ., an ofdm symbol transmission period , the transmitter is operated to transmit a second signal including a set of x tones into said first region , where x is less than 5 and where less than 80 % of a maximum average total base station transmission power used by said base station to transmit signals into the first region during any one second period during said first period of time is allocated to set of x tones and each one of said x tones to which power is allocated is allocated at least 20 times the per average tone power allocated to tones during said first period of time . for example , the set of x tones during the second period of time 106 may comprise a beacon signal , and the second period of time may be an ofdm transmission time interval in a sequence of successive ofdm transmission time intervals which has been designated for beacon signals . in some embodiments , user data including at least one of voice , text and image data is communicated on at least one of the n tones transmitted during said first period of time 104 , and transmitter information including at least one of sector , cell and carrier frequency information is transmitted on at least one of said x tones during said second period of time 106 . an exemplary 1 sec interval 108 of maximum average total bs transmission power used by said base station transmitter to transmit signals into the first region is shown in fig1 . in general , the one second interval 108 of maximum power may slide or occur at different locations within the first period of time 104 . fig1 includes an exemplary fifth period of time 110 , e . g ., an exemplary ofdm symbol transmission time interval during the 1 second interval 108 . fig1 also includes an exemplary third period of time 112 , e . g . an exemplary ofdm symbol transmission interval . during the third period of time , the transmitter is operated to transmit a third signal into said first region including a set of y tones , where y ≦ n , each tone in said third set of tones to which power is allocated is allocated at most 8 times the average per tone power allocated to tones during said 1 second interval of time 108 . in fig1 , the third period of time 112 has the same duration as the second period of time 106 , e . g ., an ofdm symbol transmission time interval . in some embodiments , the second and third periods of time ( 106 , 112 ) overlap . in the example of fig1 , the second and third periods of time ( 106 , 112 ) fully overlap . in some embodiments , the second and third periods of time ( 106 , 112 ) are disjoint . in various embodiments , the transmitter is operated to modulate at least two of data control , and pilot signals on at least some of said set of y tones during the third period of time . in some embodiments , the transmitter is operated to transmit user data using y tones during said second period of time , said y tones being within the set of n tones that are not included in said x tones , where y is a positive integer greater than one , more than 20 % of the total transmitter power used during said second period of time 106 being allocated to the y tones during said second period of time 106 . in some embodiments , more than 50 % of the total transmitter power used during said second period of time 106 being allocated to the y tones . in various embodiments , transmitting user data includes transmitting modulated symbols on said y tones , each of the y tone tones communicating one symbol one symbol , e . g ., one ofdm modulation symbol in one ofdm symbol transmission interval . in some embodiments , an exemplary fourth time period also occurs during the 1 st period of time 104 , the fourth time period having the same duration as the 2 nd time period and being non - overlapping with respect to the 2 nd time period . for example , the fourth time period can be an interval used to transmit another beacon signal on a set of g tones , the beacon signal transmitted in the fourth time period being different than the beacon signal transmitted in the 2 nd time period . note that fig1 is not drawn to scale . for example , the duration of an ofdm symbol transmission interval is significantly smaller than shown , e . g ., each ofdm symbol transmission interval , in some embodiments , being 10 micro - sec in duration . fig2 is a drawing 200 illustrating exemplary per tone power relationships in an exemplary 2 nd time interval 106 . fig2 is a plot of per tone power for 2 nd time period 106 divided by average per tone power over one second interval 108 on vertical axis 202 vs tone index on horizontal axis 204 . the exemplary system corresponding to fig2 , uses n = 50 tones ( tone index 0 . . . 49 ) 206 for downlink signaling . the exemplary beacon signal 208 uses one tone with tone index 34 and 25 times the average per tone power over the one second interval . thus , in this example , the tone set x includes one tone . in some embodiments , the tone set x includes two tones . this relatively high concentration of power on a narrow frequency , as shown in fig2 , makes the beacon signal 208 easy to detect and identify by wts receiving downlink signaling . fig3 is a drawing 300 illustrating another exemplary per tone power relationships in an exemplary 2 nd time interval 106 . fig3 is a plot of per tone power for 2 nd time period 106 divided by average per tone power over one second interval 108 on vertical axis 302 vs tone index on horizontal axis 304 . the exemplary system corresponding to fig3 , uses n = 500 tones ( tone index 0 . . . 49 ) 306 for downlink signaling . the exemplary beacon signal 307 transmitted during second time period 106 uses four tones with tone index values ( 7 , 12 , 17 , 21 ) and 25 times the average per tone power over the one second interval for each tone , as represented by blocks ( 308 , 310 , 312 , and 314 ), respectively . in some embodiments , at least one said x tones , e . g ., beacon tones , is transmitted at predetermined frequency , and at least one of said x tones is transmitted using a frequency having a fixed frequency offset ≧ 0 from the lowest frequency tone in said set of n tones . for example , a carrier beacon signal may use such x tones . in some embodiments , at least one of said x tones is transmitted at a frequency which is determined as a function of at least one of a base station identifier and a sector identifier . in the example of fig2 the exemplary second signal , e . g ., beacon signal , using the set of x tones , where x = 1 , is transmitted using 50 % of the max average total base station transmission power used by said base station transmitter to transmit signals into the first region during the 1 sec interval 108 . in the example of fig3 the exemplary second signal , e . g ., beacon signal , using the set of x tones , where x = 4 , is transmitted using 20 % of the max average total base station transmission power used by said base station transmitter to transmit signals into the first region during the 1 sec interval 108 . in the examples of fig2 and 3 , none of the n − x tones in said set of n tones are used during the second period of time 106 , as transmitter power is concentrated on the beacon signal ( x tones ) and not on the other ( n − x ) tones during this time . fig4 is a drawing 400 illustrating another exemplary per tone power relationships in an exemplary 2 nd time interval 106 . fig4 corresponds to an embodiment where the 2 nd time period 106 and the third time period 112 are fully overlapping . fig4 is a plot of per tone power for 2 nd time period 106 divided by average per tone power over one second interval 108 on vertical axis 402 vs tone index on horizontal axis 404 . in the fig4 example , the 2 nd time period 106 is the same as the third time period 112 . the exemplary system corresponding to fig4 , uses n = 100 tones ( tone index 0 . . . 99 ) 406 for downlink signaling . the exemplary beacon signal 408 transmitted during second time period 106 uses one tone with tone index = 68 and 25 times the average per tone power over the one second interval for each tone . thus , in this example , the tone set x , of the beacon signal 408 , includes one tone . in fig4 a set of y tones , the set having 99 tones includes each of the tones in the set of n tones not in the set of x tones . tones of the set of y tones have 5 times , 1 time or 0 . 5 times the per tone power divided by the average per tone power over the 1 sec interval . for example exemplary signal 410 using tone 0 at the 5 × relative power level may be part of a pilot signal , while exemplary signal 412 using tone 12 at the 1 × relative power level may be part of a control signal such as an assignment , acknowledgement , timing control signal , or power control signal . exemplary signal 414 using tone 99 at the 0 . 5 × relative power level may be part of a downlink traffic channel signal conveying user data . fig5 is a drawing 500 illustrating exemplary per tone power relationships in an exemplary 5 th time interval 110 . fig5 is a plot of per tone power for 5 th time period 110 divided by average per tone power over one second interval 108 on vertical axis 502 vs tone index on horizontal axis 504 . the exemplary system corresponding to fig5 , uses n = 100 tones ( tone index 0 . . . 99 ) 506 for downlink signaling . tones shown in the example of fig5 have 2 ×, 1 × or 0 . 5 × the per tone power divided by the average per tone power over the 1 sec interval . for example exemplary signal component 512 uses tone 38 at the 2 × power level and may be part of a control signal such as a pilot signal , an assignment signal , an acknowledgement signal , a timing control signal or a power control signal ; exemplary component 510 uses tone 13 at 1 × power level and may be part of a user data signal , while exemplary component 508 at 0 . 5 × power level uses tone 9 and may be part of another user data signal . during exemplary 5 th interval 110 shown , the total transmission power is 100 % the average transmission power during the 1 sec interval 108 of max average total bs transmit power into the first region . in the example of fig5 , there are two tones with signal components of type 512 representing 4 % of the total power , ninety - four tones with signal components of type 510 representing 94 % of the total power , and four tones with signal components of type 508 representing 2 % of the total power . in general , the total power during each 5 th interval 110 , e . g ., each ofdm symbol transmission interval , will deviate from the average power of the 1 sec interval 108 . fig6 is a drawing 600 illustrating exemplary base station transmitter timing relationships in accordance with methods of the present invention . fig6 shows an exemplary variation of fig1 in accordance with the present invention . exemplary first time period 604 of fig6 is similar or the same as exemplary first time period 104 of fig1 . exemplary one second interval 608 of maximum average total bs transmit power of fig6 is similar or the same as interval 108 of fig1 . exemplary second time periods ( 606 , 606 ′) of fig6 are similar or the same as exemplary second time period 106 of fig1 . exemplary 1 st 2 nd time period 606 and exemplary 2 nd 2 nd time period 606 ′ illustrate that the second time period periodically repeats during the first time period 604 . fig6 includes repetitions of the 3 rd time period ( 1 st 3 rd time period 612 , 2 nd 1 st time period 612 ′, 3 rd 1 st time period 612 ″ . . . . nth 3 rd time period 612 ′″) within the first time period 604 . each 3 rd time period ( 612 , 612 ′, 612 ″, 612 ′″) is similar or the same as exemplary 3 rd time period 112 of fig1 . in some embodiments , for each repetition of said second time period there are at least z repetitions of said 3 rd time period , where z is at least 10 . in some embodiments , z is at least 400 . fig7 is a drawing 700 illustrating another exemplary per tone power relationships in an exemplary 2 nd time interval 106 . fig7 corresponds to an embodiment where the 2 nd time period 106 and the third time period 112 are fully overlapping . fig7 is a plot of per tone power for 2 nd time period 106 divided by average per tone power over one second interval 108 on vertical axis 702 vs tone index on horizontal axis 704 . in the fig4 example , the 2 nd time period 106 is the same as the third time period 112 . the exemplary system corresponding to fig7 , uses n = 100 tones ( tone index 0 . . . 99 ) 706 for downlink signaling . the exemplary beacon signal 708 transmitted during second time period 106 uses one tone with tone index = 68 and 25 times the average per tone power over the one second interval for each tone . thus , in this example , the tone set x , of the beacon signal 708 , includes one tone . in fig7 a set of y tones , the set including 35 tones in the set of n tones not in the set of x tones . tones of the set of y tones have 5 ×, 1 × or 0 . 5 × the per tone power divided by the average per tone power over the 1 sec interval . for example , exemplary signal 710 using tone 0 at the 5 × relative power level may be part of a pilot signal , while exemplary signal 712 using tone 12 at the 1 × relative power level may be part of a control signal such as an assignment , acknowledgement , timing control signal , or power control signal . exemplary signal 714 using tone 99 at the 0 . 5 × relative power level may be part of a downlink traffic channel signal conveying user data . exemplary tone 26 716 is an unused tone from the set of n tones . in this embodiment , 64 tones from the set of n − x = 99 tones go unused during the second period of time 106 in the first region . in some embodiments , at least half of the n − x tones which are in said set of n tones but not in said set of x tones go unused during said second period of time in the first region . fig8 is a drawing 800 illustrating another exemplary per tone power relationships in an exemplary 2 nd time interval 106 . fig8 corresponds to an embodiment where the 2 nd time period 106 and the third time period 112 are fully overlapping . fig8 is a plot of per tone power for 2 nd time period 106 divided by average per tone power over one second interval 108 on vertical axis 802 vs tone index on horizontal axis 804 . in the fig8 example , the 2 nd time period 106 is the same as the third time period 112 . the exemplary system corresponding to fig8 , uses n = 100 tones ( tone index 0 . . . 99 ) 806 for downlink signaling . the exemplary beacon signal 808 transmitted during second time period 106 uses one tone with tone index = 68 and 25 times the average per tone power over the one second interval for each tone . thus , in this example , the tone set x , of the beacon signal 808 , includes one tone . in fig8 a set of y tones , the set including 2 tones ( tone index = 12 and tone index = 26 ) in the set of n tones not in the set of x tones , are associated with signal components ( 812 , 812 ′), respectively . in this example , tones of the set of y tones have 1 × the per tone power divided by the average per tone power over the 1 sec interval . for example exemplary signal 812 using tone 12 at the 1 × relative power level may be part of a control signal such as a pilot , an assignment , acknowledgement , timing control signal , or power control signal or part of a user data signal such as a signal including voice , text , and / or user application data . exemplary tone 26 816 is an unused tone from the set of n tones . in this embodiment , 97 tones from the set of n − x = 99 tones go unused during the second period of time 106 in the first region . in some embodiments , multiple ones of the n − x tones in the set of n tones but not in the set of x tones are used during said second period of time in the first region . fig9 shows an exemplary wireless communications system 900 , supporting beacon signaling , implemented in accordance with the present invention . the system 900 uses apparatus and methods of the present invention . fig9 includes a plurality of exemplary multi - sector cells , cell 1 902 , cell 2 904 , cell 3 906 . each cell ( 902 , 904 , 906 ) represents a wireless coverage area for a base station ( bs ), ( bs 1 908 , bs 2 910 , bs 3 912 ), respectively . in the exemplary embodiment , each cell 902 , 904 , 906 includes three sectors ( a , b , c ). cell 1 902 includes sector a 914 , sector b 916 , and sector c 918 . cell 2 904 includes sector a 920 , sector b 922 , and sector c 924 . cell 3 906 includes sector a 926 , sector b 928 , and sector c 930 . in other embodiments , different numbers of sectors per cell are possible , e . g ., 1 sector per cell , 2 sectors per cell , or more than 3 sectors per cell . in addition , different cells may include different numbers of sectors . wireless terminals ( wts ), e . g ., mobile nodes ( mns ), may move throughout the system and communicate with peer nodes , e . g ., other mns , via wireless links to bss . in cell 1 902 sector a 914 , wts ( 932 , 934 ) are coupled to bs 1 908 via wireless links ( 933 , 935 ), respectively . in cell 1 902 sector b 916 , wts ( 936 , 938 ) are coupled to bs 1 908 via wireless links ( 937 , 939 ), respectively . in cell 1 902 sector c 918 , wts ( 940 , 942 ) are coupled to bs 1 908 via wireless links ( 941 , 943 ), respectively . in cell 2 904 sector a 920 , wts ( 944 , 946 ) are coupled to bs 2 910 via wireless links ( 945 , 947 ), respectively . in cell 2 904 sector b 922 , wts ( 948 , 950 ) are coupled to bs 2 910 via wireless links ( 949 , 951 ), respectively . in cell 2 904 sector c 924 , wts ( 952 , 954 ) are coupled to bs 2 910 via wireless links ( 953 , 955 ), respectively . bss may be coupled together via a network , thus providing connectivity for wts within a given cell to peers located outside the given cell . in system 900 , bss ( 908 , 910 , 912 ) are coupled to network node 968 via network links ( 970 , 972 , 974 ), respectively . network node 968 , e . g ., a router , is coupled to other network nodes , e . g ., other base stations , routers , home agent nodes , aaa server nodes , etc ., and the internet via network link 976 . networks links 970 , 972 , 974 , 976 may be , e . g ., fiber optic links . bss 908 , 910 , 912 include sectorized transmitters , each sector transmitter using a specific assigned carrier frequency for ordinary signaling e . g ., downlink traffic signals such as user data directed to specific wt ( s ), in accordance with the invention . the sector transmitter &# 39 ; s assigned carrier frequency used for ordinary signaling also conveys broadcast signals such as , e . g ., assignment signals , pilot signals , and / or beacon signals , from the bs to wts . bss 908 , 910 , 910 transmit beacon signals conveying carrier information , cell identification information and / or sector identification information . in addition , in accordance with some embodiments of the invention , each base station sector transmitter transmits additional downlink signals such as , e . g ., pilot signals and / or beacon signals within the carrier frequency bands assigned to adjacent cell / sector transmitters for their ordinary signaling . such downlink signals provide information to the wts , e . g ., wt 932 , which may be used to evaluate and decide which carrier frequency to select and which corresponding base station sector / cell to use as an attachment point . the wts , e . g ., wt 932 , include receivers with the capability to process information from bss 908 , 910 , 912 sector transmitters providing information on alternative carrier frequencies bands that may be used for ordinary communications , e . g ., downlink traffic channel signaling , and that may be selected by the wt . fig1 illustrates an exemplary base station 1000 , alternately referred to as an access node , implemented in accordance with the present invention . the bs is called an access node because it serves as a wt &# 39 ; s point of network attachment and provides the wt access to the network . the base station 1000 of fig1 may be a more detailed representation of any of the base stations 908 , 910 , 912 of the system 900 of fig9 . the base station 1000 includes a sectorized receiver 1002 , a sectorized transmitter 1004 , a processor 1006 , e . g ., a cpu , an i / o interface 1008 , and a memory 1010 coupled together via a bus 1012 over which the various elements may interchange data and information . the sectorized receiver 1002 includes a plurality of receivers ( sector 1 receiver 1016 , sector n receiver 1020 ), each receiver coupled to a receive antenna ( receive antenna 1 1018 , receive antenna n 1022 ), respectively . each receiver ( 1016 , 1020 ) includes a decoder ( 1024 , 1026 ), respectively . uplink signals from a plurality of wireless terminals 1100 ( see fig1 ) are received via sectorized antenna ( 1018 , 1022 ) and processed by sectorized receivers ( 1016 , 1020 ). each receiver &# 39 ; s decoder ( 1024 , 1026 ) decodes received uplink signals and extracts the information encoded by the wts 1100 prior to transmission . the sectorized transmitter 1004 includes a plurality of transmitters , a sector 1 transmitter 1028 , a sector n transmitter 1030 . each sector transmitter ( 1028 , 1030 ) includes an encoder ( 1036 , 1038 ), for encoding downlink data / information , and is coupled to a sector transmit antenna ( 1030 , 1034 ), respectively . each antenna 1030 , 1034 corresponds to a different sector and is normally oriented to transmit into the sector to which the antenna corresponds and may be located . antennas 1030 , 1034 may be separate or may correspond to different elements of a single multi - sector antenna which has different antenna elements for different sectors . each sector transmitter ( 1030 , 1034 ) has an assigned carrier frequency band to be used for ordinary signaling , e . g ., downlink traffic signaling . each sector transmitter ( 1030 , 1034 ) is capable of transmitting downlink signals , e . g ., assignment signals , data and control signals , pilot signals , and / or beacon signals in its own assigned carrier frequency band . each sector transmitter ( 1030 , 1034 ), in accordance with some embodiments of the invention , also transmits additional downlink signals , e . g ., pilot signals and / or beacon signals into other carrier frequency bands , e . g ., the carrier frequency bands assigned to adjacent cells / sectors for their ordinary signaling . the base station i / o interface 1008 couples the base station 1000 to other network nodes , e . g ., other access nodes , routers , aaa servers , home agent nodes , and the internet . the memory 1010 includes routines 1040 and data / information 1042 . the processor 1006 executes routines 1040 and uses the data / information 1042 in the memory 1010 to control the operation of the base station 1000 including scheduling users on different carrier frequencies using different power levels , power control , timing control , communication , signaling , and beacon signaling in accordance with the invention . routines 1040 includes a plurality of set of routines ( sector 1 routines 1044 , sector n routines 1046 ), each set corresponding to a sector covered by the bs 1000 . in some embodiments , e . g ., embodiments where multiple carrier frequencies are used for ordinary signaling , e . g ., downlink traffic channel signaling including user data , in a single sector , additional sets of routines may exist for the sector corresponding to the different carriers corresponding to different bs sector attachment points . exemplary sector 1 routines 1044 include communications routines 1048 and base station control routines 1050 . communications routines 1048 perform the various communications protocols used by the bs 1000 . base station control routines 1050 uses the data / information 1042 to control the operations of the bs 1000 including operation of sector 1 receiver 1016 , operation of sector 1 transmitter 1028 , operation of i / o interface 1008 , and implementation of methods of the present invention including beacon signaling . scheduler module 1052 schedules users , e . g ., assigning air link resources such as uplink and downlink traffic channel segments to wts . signaling module 1054 uses the data / information 1042 in memory 1010 to perform control of the downlink and uplink signaling in regard to sector 1 signaling . signaling module 1054 controls sector 1 transmitter 1028 to transmit over periods of time , e . g ., intervals 2 sec or longer , using downlink signals into the first sector of the cell corresponding to bs 1000 . some of the downlink signals transmitted include downlink traffic channel signals including user data such as voice , text , and / or image information , pilot signals and other control information such as assignments , acknowledgement , timing control and power control information . signaling module 1054 uses the sets of tones assigned to the bs 1000 including a set of n downlink tones , where n is larger than 20 . signaling module 1054 controls timing operations , e . g ., ofdm symbol transmission timing operations and beacon activation timing control operations . beacon module 1056 includes a sector 1 beacon module 1058 and an adjacent sector beacon module 1060 . beacon module 1056 uses the data / information 1042 in memory 1010 to control the sector 1 transmitter beacon functions including beacon signal generation and transmission , in accordance with the present invention . beacon module 1056 controls the sector 1 transmitter 1028 to transmit beacon signals during designated beacon signaling intervals , a beacon signal using a set of x tones where x is a positive number less than 5 , and where the power allocated to the set of x tones of the beacon signal is less than 80 % of a maximum average base station transmission power used by the base station to transmitter to transmit into sector 1 during any 1 second interval of time during a first designated time period of at least 2 seconds , the at least 2 second interval including the beacon signal , and where each one of said x tones to which power is allocated is at least 20 times the per tone average power allocated to tones during the any one second time period in the at least 2 sec long interval . sector 1 beacon module 1058 performs control operations related to beacons signals generated and transmitted within the carrier frequency band used by sector 1 transmitter 1028 for ordinary downlink signaling , e . g ., downlink signaling including user data . adjacent sector beacon module 1060 performs operation related to beacon signals generated and transmitted within the carrier frequency band used by adjacent sectors for transmitting ordinary downlink signaling . by transmitting beacon signals in adjacent bands , a wt with a single receiver chain tuned , to a single carrier , can receive beacon signals conveying information about different potential carrier frequency bs sector attachment points while still operating on its current attachment point carrier frequency . data / information 1042 includes a plurality of sets of data / information ( sector 1 data / information 1062 , sector n data / information 1064 ). sector 1 data / information 1062 includes data 1066 , sector information 1068 , a plurality of sets of carrier information ( carrier 1 information 1070 , carrier n information 1072 ), tone information 1074 , non - beacon downlink tone information 1076 , beacon information 1078 , wt data / information 1080 , average transmitter power information 1082 , current transmitter power information 1084 , timing information 1086 , and downlink signals 1088 . data 1066 includes user data / information received from and user data / information to be transmitted to a plurality of wts , e . g ., wts using sector 1 of bs 1000 as a network attachment point and wts in a communications session with a wt using sector 1 of bs 1000 as a network attachment point . sector information 1068 includes information identifying sector 1 , e . g ., specific bs sector identifiers . carrier information ( carrier 1 info 1070 and carrier n info 1072 ) includes information associated with each of the carriers used in sector 1 for downlink signaling . in some embodiments , a given sector of a cell may use multiple carriers for user data downlink signaling with each of the multiple carriers corresponding to a different alternative network attachment point . in such an embodiment , each carrier within the sector may be associated with a different bs sector transmitter , and a given sector may have multiple bs sector transmitters , e . g ., multiple sector 1 transmitters 1028 . in some embodiments , e . g ., an embodiment using adjacent sector beacon module 1060 , carrier information ( 1070 , 1072 ) includes information identifying whether the carrier is the carrier used by transmitter 1028 in sector 1 for ordinary downlink signaling including user data , and beacon signals and other control signals or whether the carrier is the carrier used for user data downlink signaling by an adjacent sector in which case the sector 1 transmitter transmits beacon signals using the carrier but not user data . carrier information ( 1070 , 1072 ) also includes information identifying bandwidth , e . g ., about which the downlink carrier is centered . carrier information ( 1070 , 1072 ) includes information pertaining to downlink and / or uplink carriers used in sector 1 . downlink carrier information is used in tuning the sector 1 transmitter 1028 , while uplink carrier information is used in tuning the sector 1 receiver 1016 . tone information 1074 includes downlink tone information 1090 corresponding to downlink signaling and uplink tone information 1092 corresponding to uplink signaling with respect to sector 1 of bs 1000 . downlink tone information 1090 includes tone set information 1094 and power information 1096 . tone set information 1094 includes a set of n tones , where n is larger than 20 , used by the sector 1 transmitter 1028 for downlink signaling including user data , beacon signals , pilot signals , and other control signals such as assignments , acknowledgements , timing control signals , and power control signals . in some embodiments , the set of n tones is a contiguous set of tones using the bandwidth allocated for downlink signaling for the sector 1 transmitter 1028 . in some embodiments , downlink tone information 1090 includes tone hopping information , where information is mapped to logical tones and the logical tones are hopped to physical tones over time according to a periodic predetermined tone hopping sequence which may be a function of the base station and / or base station sector . power information 1096 includes power level information including total sector transmit power allocated to the set of n tones , power level information on a per tone basis , and / or power information on an average basis . uplink tone information 1092 includes information such as tone set information associated with the set of tones in the uplink band to which sector 1 receiver 1016 is tuned . beacon information 1078 includes tone set information 1097 power information 1095 , and transmitter information 1093 . tone set information 1097 includes information on a set or sets of x tones from the set of n tones , x being less than 5 , where each set of x tones comprises the tones of a beacon signal . power information 1095 includes information identifying the power level to be used on each of the n tones of the beacon signal , where each one of x tones to which power is allocated is allocated at least 20 × the per tone average power allocated to tones during any one second period of time in a first period of time of at least 2 seconds , the first period including the beacon signal ; power information 1095 also includes information identifying the power level to be used on the combined set of x tones comprising the beacon signal , where the power is less than 80 % of a maximum average total base station transmission power used by base station sector 1 transmitter 1028 during the any one second period of time . transmitter information 1093 includes cell identification information 1091 , sector id information 1089 , and carrier identification information 1087 . the various types of transmitter identification information in info 1093 may be conveyed by beacon signals , e . g ., by the set of x tones associated with the beacon and the time at which the sector 1 transmitter 1028 transmits the beacon in a repeating sequence of beacon signals . non - beacon downlink tone information 1076 includes information on sets of y tones , y ≦ n , which are used to transmit non - beacon downlink signals such as user data , pilot signals , and other control signals . during different time intervals , e . g ., different ofdm symbol transmission intervals , the set of y tones may change . for example , when the ofdm transmission time interval is an interval during which a beacon signal is not transmitted , the set of y tones may include each of the n tones . in some embodiments , during a beacon transmission interval , the set of y tones includes 0 tones . in other embodiments , during a beacon interval , a set of n − x tones exists , and a subset of y tones from the set of n − x tones is used to transmit user data at the same time as the beacon signal transmission . in some embodiments , the set of y tones during the beacon transmission interval is a set of greater than 50 tones . power information 1099 includes information identifying the power allocated to the set of y tones and to each of the tones in the set of y tones . in some embodiments , more than 20 % of the total sector transmitter power during a beacon transmission interval is allocated to the set of y tones during that beacon interval . in some embodiments , more than 50 % of the total sector transmitter power during a beacon transmission interval is allocated to the set of y tones during that beacon interval . wt data / information 1042 includes a plurality of sets of information ( wt 1 data / info 1085 , wt n data / info 1073 ). each set of information , e . g ., wt 1 data / information 1085 , may correspond to a wt using bs 1000 sector 1 as its network attachment point . wt 1 data / info 1085 includes user data 1083 in route from / to wt 1 and resource / user / session information 1075 . user data 1083 includes voice information 1081 , text information 1079 , and image information 1077 . resource / user / session information 1075 includes information identifying resources allocated to wt 1 such as a base station assigned identifier and allocated segments , e . g ., dedicated uplink and downlink traffic channel segments . resource / user / session information 1075 also includes information identifying users , e . g ., other wts , in communications sessions with wt 1 and routing information associated with those other wts . average transmission power information 1082 includes information of the sector 1 transmitter 1028 average transmission power , e . g ., over a 1 sec intervals . current transmission power information 1084 includes information on the transmission power of the sector 1 transmitter 1028 transmissions during the current ofdm symbol transmission interval including power levels of each of the tones used during the current ofdm symbol transmission interval . when the current ofdm symbol transmission interval is a beacon interval , the current transmission power information 1084 also includes information on the combined power on the set of tones comprising the beacon signal . the transmission power allocated to the tones is controlled in accordance with the methods of the invention , e . g ., allocating a relatively high level of power on a per tone basis to beacon tones , in comparison to the level of power on a per tone basis allocated to user data or other non - beacon control signals . timing information 1086 includes interval information 1071 and repetition information 1069 . interval information 1071 includes timing structure information on transmission intervals , e . g ., periods of time at least two seconds long in which sector 1 transmitter 1028 is controlled to transmit signals into sector 1 . interval information also includes information on periods of time in which sector 1 transmitter 1028 is controlled to transmit beacon signals into sector 1 and information on periods of time during which sector 1 transmitter 1028 is controlled to transmit non - beacon signals into sector 1 . interval information 1071 includes information such as ofdm symbol timing information , e . g ., the duration of a single ofdm symbol transmission interval , and timing synchronization information , e . g ., with respect to other sectors of the cell and between the downlink and the uplink . repetition information 1069 includes information on the periodic repetition of beacon signals and / or beacon signaling intervals . repetition information 1069 includes on structure which repeat , e . g ., slots ( grouping of successive ofdm symbol transmission intervals ), superslots ( grouping of slots ), beacon slots ( grouping of superlots including one beacon signal ), ultra slots ( grouping of beacons slots , where some beacon slots within the ultra slot include different beacon signals ). downlink signals 1088 include ofdm modulation symbols 1067 , beacon signals 1065 , non - beacon control signals 1063 , and user data signals 1061 . ofdm modulation symbols 1067 include information conveyed on a modulation symbol , e . g ., data , control , and / or pilot information modulated on a symbol , the modulation symbol being conveyed by using a non - beacon tone . beacon signals 1065 include information identifying a beacon signal to be transmitted , e . g ., a beacon signal conveying transmitter information such as carrier information , sector id information , and / or cell id information . non - beacons control signals 1063 include information on signals such assignments , acknowledgements , power control , timing control , and pilot signals and corresponding control segment information . user data signals 1065 include information on user signals such as downlink traffic channel segment signals and corresponding segment information . fig1 is a drawing of an exemplary wireless terminal ( wt ) 1100 , e . g ., mobile node , implemented in accordance with and using methods of the present invention . exemplary wt 1100 may be any of the wts ( 932 , 934 , 936 , 938 , 940 , 942 , 944 , 946 , 948 , 950 , 952 , 954 , 956 , 958 , 960 , 962 , 964 , 966 ) of the exemplary system 900 of fig9 . wt 1100 includes a receiver 1102 , a transmitter 1104 , a processor 1106 , e . g ., a cpu , user i / o devices 1108 , and memory 1110 coupled together via a bus 1112 over which the various elements may interchange data and information . memory 1110 includes routines 1136 and data / information 1138 . the processor 1106 executes the routines 1136 and data / information 1138 in memory 1110 to control the operation of the wt and implement methods in accordance with the present invention . user i / o devices 1108 , e . g ., microphone , keyboard , keypad , mouse , video camera , speaker , display , etc ., allow a user of the wt to input user data / information to be communicated to another wt participating in a communications session with wt 1100 and to output user data received from another wt participating in a communications session with wt 1100 . receiver 1102 is coupled to a receive antenna 1114 through which wt 1100 can receive downlink signals from base stations , the downlink signals including beacon signals , user data signals , and non - beacon control signals such as pilot signals , timing control signals , power control signals , assignments , and acknowledgements . receiver 1118 includes a 1 st rf module 1118 , a first receiver chain 1120 , a digital signal processing module 1122 , an energy detection / snr detection module 1124 , and a band selection controller 1126 . in some embodiments , e . g ., some dual rf receiver chain embodiments , receiver 1102 includes a 2 nd rf module 1128 and a 2 nd receiver chain 1130 . 1 st rf module 1118 is tuned to a carrier signal and accepts and processes downlink signals within the carrier signals associated band . 1 st receiver chain 1120 accepts and process the output signals from the 1 st rf module 1118 . 1 st rf module 1118 may include an rf filter and / or mixer circuitry . the 1 st rf module 1118 receives a control input from the band selection controller 1126 , e . g ., selecting a carrier frequency and tuning the receiver 1102 to the selection . 1 st receiver chain 1120 includes an a / d module 1119 for performing an analog to digital conversion and a fft / dft ( fast fourier transform / discrete fourier transform ) module 1121 which performs either a fft or a dft on the digital signal from the a / d module 1119 output . 1 st rf chain 1120 may also include additional filters , e . g ., baseband filters . output from the 1 st receiver chain 1120 is input to the energy detection / snr detection module 1124 . energy detection / snr module 1124 detects energy associated with each of the tones of the downlink band . beacon signal components may be identified by their relatively high power per tone power with respect to other non - beacon tones . in some embodiments beacon signals may also be detected by snr measurement information . note that beacons may be detected without the need for precise timing synchronization , e . g ., allowing beacons from multiple unsynchronized base station transmitters transmitted in the same carrier band to be detected and processed . non - beacon components , e . g ., lower power tones not classified as beacon tones and which have been transmitted from the attachment point base station sector , are processed by the digital signal processing module 1122 . the digital signal processing module 1122 performs symbol detection and recovery . digital signal processing module 1122 operations includes timing synchronization operations . the digital signal processing module 1122 includes a decoder 1132 for decoding information which was encoded by the bs prior to transmission . in some embodiments , the decoder 1132 uses redundant information in the encoded signal to recover information which was lost due to the concurrent transmission of a beacon tone on the same tone used for data or a non - beacon control signal . in some embodiments , the energy detection / snr detection module 1124 is included as part of the digital signal processing module 1122 . in some embodiments , a 2 nd rf module 1128 and a 2 nd receiver chain 1130 are used . the 2 nd rf module 1128 is similar or the same as st rf module 1128 , while 2 nd receiver chain 1130 is similar or the same as 1 st receiver chain 1120 . in some embodiments , the 2 nd rf module 1128 and / or 2 nd receiver chain 1130 are simpler in complexity , e . g ., in terms of the number of gates and / or operations performed , than 1 st rf module 1118 and 1 st receiver chain 1120 . in an embodiment with both 1 st and 2 nd receiver chains , the 1 st rf module 1118 is tuned to the carrier of the base station sector attachment point transmitters allowing the reception and processing of downlink beacon signals , user data signals , and non - beacon control signals , while the 2 nd rf module 1128 is tuned , via a band selection controller 1126 control signal to an alternate carrier band and beacon signals within that band are received and processed but no user data signals . signaling forwarded through the 2 nd rf module 1128 and 2 nd receiver chain 1130 is forwarded to the energy detection / snr detection module 1124 for beacon detection and identification , but is not forwarded to the digital signal processing module 1122 for ofdm modulation symbol information recovery operations . transmitter 1104 is coupled to a transmit antenna 1116 through which the wt can send uplink signals including user data and requests for a change of network attachment point , to bss . transmitter 1104 includes an encoder 1134 for encoding data / information to be transmitted , e . g ., user data . routines 1136 includes a communications routine 1140 and wireless terminal control routines 1142 . the communications routine 1140 implements the various communications protocols used by wt 1100 . the wireless terminal control routines 1142 using the data / information 1138 control the operation of the wt 1100 including implementing methods of the present invention . wireless terminal control routines 1142 include signaling routines 1144 , receiver controller module 1146 , and a carrier band selection module 1148 . signaling routines 1144 include downlink signaling routines 1150 and uplink signaling routines 1152 . the downlink signaling routines 1150 control operations pertaining to the reception , recovery , and processing of downlink signals received by receiver 1102 . the uplink signaling routines 1152 control operations pertaining to the transmission of uplink signals to the bs sector network attachment point via transmitter 1104 . the downlink signaling routines 1150 include beacon module 1154 and ordinary signaling module 1156 . beacon module 1154 controls operations pertaining to recovery , detection , and identification of beacon signals . for example , based on the signal energy level of a detected received tone exceeding a threshold level , the received tone may be identified by the beacon module 1154 as beacon component tone . then , by operations including comparing the frequency of the beacon component tone to stored system characteristic information 1178 , the beacon module 1154 may identify the beacon signal and obtain beacon source transmitter identification information 1190 such as , e . g ., carrier identification , cell identification , and / or sector identification . ordinary signaling module 1156 controls operations pertaining to recovery , detection , and identification of data / and information conveyed on non - beacon downlink signals including modulation symbols , e . g ., ofdm modulation symbols , which are processed by the digital signal processing module 1122 . ordinary signaling module 1156 includes a user data module 1158 for controlling operations including the recovery of user data , e . g ., voice , text , and or video data / information from a peer of wt 1100 . ordinary signaling module 1156 also includes a non - beacon control module 1160 for performing control operation pertaining to the recovery and processing of non - beacon downlink control signals such as , e . g ., pilot signals , timing control signals , power control signals , assignments of identifiers and segments , and acknowledgements . carrier band selection module 1148 selects the carrier to tune the 1 st rf module 1118 , and in some embodiments , the optional 2 nd rf module 1128 . the carrier band selection module 1146 makes band selection decisions using detected beacon information 1166 , e . g ., selecting an attachment point and / or selecting to change an attachment point and initiate a handoff . for example , the carrier band selection module 1126 may select to set to 1 st rf module 1118 to the carrier used for ordinary signaling corresponding to the strongest received beacon signal . in embodiments , using second rf module 1128 , the carrier band selection module 1148 may select to set the 2 nd rf module 1128 to different alternative potential carriers at different times so as to search for additional beacons to evaluate . output selection signals from the carrier band selection module 1148 are input to the receiver controller module 1146 which signals the band selection controller 1126 in the receiver 1102 to implement the selection decisions . data / information 1138 includes user data 1162 , user / device / session / resource information 1164 , detected beacon information 1166 , carrier frequency information 1168 , cell / sector information 1170 , downlink user data signals 1172 , downlink non - beacon control signals 1174 , uplink signals 1176 , and system characteristic information 1178 . user data 1162 includes voice , text , and / or video data information to / from a peer wt in a communications session with wt 1100 . user / device / session / resource information 1164 includes information identifying users / other wts , e . g ., peers of wt 1100 in communication sessions with wt 1100 , routing information , base station identifiers assigned to wt 1100 , and segments assigned to wt 1100 , e . g ., uplink and downlink traffic channel segments . detected beacon information 1166 includes a plurality of sets of detected beacon information ( beacon 1 information 1180 , beacon n information 1182 ), each set of beacon information corresponding to a detected beacon signal . beacon 1 information 1180 includes signal energy information 1184 , e . g ., the energy level of the detected beacon tone or tones , snr ( signal to noise ratio ) information 1186 of the detected beacon signal , tone information 1188 , e . g ., the identified tone or tones of the detected beacon signal each tone with a corresponding energy level in info 1184 . beacon 1 information 1180 also includes transmitter information 1190 , e . g ., an identified carrier , an identified cell , an identified sector which has been determined to be associated with the source transmitter of the beacon signal . in some embodiments , multiple different beacon signals , e . g ., in a sequence of beacon signals from the same base station sector transmitter are received to determine transmitter information 1190 . carrier frequency information 1168 includes information identifying the current attachment point downlink carrier , e . g ., the carrier to which 1 st rf module 1118 is tuned . carrier frequency information 1168 also includes information identifying the carrier frequency for uplink signaling to which the transmitter 1104 is tuned . cell / sector information 1170 includes information identifying the current bs cell and / or sector attachment point , e . g ., a cell identifier such as a value of slope in a pilot tone sequence , and a sector identifier identifying a sector type . downlink user data signals 1172 include information from received signals including ofdm modulation symbols which have been communicated over downlink traffic channel segments to wt 1100 . downlink non - beacon control signal 1174 include information from received signals including ofdm modulation symbols which have been communicated over downlink control channel segments , such as assignment segments , acknowledgment segments , power control segments , timing control segments , and / or pilot segments to wt 1100 . uplink signals 1176 includes information to be conveyed on uplink channel segments to the bs sector attachment point . uplink signals 1176 include user data conveyed on uplink traffic channel segments . uplink signals 1176 also includes handoff request messages 1192 to initiate a handoff request , e . g ., in response to a comparison of detected beacon signals . uplink signals 1176 may also include access signals sent to establish a new wireless link with a base station sector attachment point , e . g ., where the base station sector attachment point has been selected based on received and compared beacon signals . system characteristic information 1178 includes a plurality of sets of bs attachment point information ( bs attachment point 1 information 1194 , bs attachment point n information 1196 ), corresponding to the different potential attachment points in the system , e . g ., based on cell , sector , and / or carrier frequency . system characteristic information 1178 may be used by the beacon module 1154 when evaluating received beacon information , e . g ., tone information 1188 to determine transmitter information 1190 . bs attachment point 1 information 1194 includes beacon information 1198 , timing structure information 1199 , tone information 1195 , and carrier information 1197 . beacon information 1198 includes information used to identify the beacons transmitted by the bs attachment point 1 transmitter , e . g ., tone sets used for beacon signals , transmission power levels of the beacon tones , types of beacon signals , position of beacon tones within the band of with respect to the lowest tone of the band or with respect to the carrier frequency , and / or tone hopping used by the beacon signals . timing structure information 1199 includes timing information and / or timing relationships used by the bs attachment point 1 such as ofdm symbol timing , slot timing , superslot timing , beacon slot timing , ultra slot timing , and / or timing relationships to other bs attachment points , e . g ., within the same cell . carrier information 1197 includes information identifying the carriers used for downlink and uplink signaling and associated bandwidths . tone information 1195 includes information identifying sets of tones associated with the downlink carrier and used to convey downlink signals , as well as any structural information associating specific tones with specific downlink segments at specific times with the timing sequence . tone information 1195 also includes information identifying sets of tones associated with the uplink carrier and used to convey uplink signals , as well as any structural information associating specific tones with specific uplink segments at specific times with the timing sequence . fig1 is a flowchart 1200 of an exemplary method of operating a base station transmitter , in a frequency division multiplexed communications system , e . g ., and ofdm system , in accordance with the present invention . the transmitter may be , e . g ., an ofdm signal transmitter which is a sector transmitter in the base station , and the sector transmitter may correspond to one carrier frequency in a sector of a cell which uses multiple carrier frequencies . operation starts in step 1202 where the base station is power on and initialized and proceeds to step 1204 . in step 1204 , the base station transmitter is operated to transmit first signals into a first region , e . g ., a sector of a cell , using a set of n tones to communicate information over a first period of time using first signals in a first region , said first period of time being at least 2 seconds long and n being larger than 20 . step 1204 includes sub - step 1206 and , in some embodiments , optional step 1208 . for each second period of time , steps 1206 is performed , and , in some embodiments , optional step 1208 is performed in parallel . in some embodiments , the second period of time periodically repeats during the first period of time . in step 1206 , the base station is operated to transmit during a second period of time a second signal into said first region , where x is less than 5 , and where less than 80 % of a maximum average total base station power used by said base station to transmit signals into the first region during any one second period of time is allocated to said set of x tones and each one of said x tones is allocated at least 20 times the per tone average power allocated to tones during any one second period . in some ofdm embodiments , the second period of time is a period of time used to transmit an orthogonal frequency division multiplexed symbol . in some embodiments , the second period of time occurs within the first period of time and the set of x tones is a subset of the set of n tones . in various embodiments , the user data including at least one of voice , text and image data is communicated on at least one of the n tones transmitted during said first period of time and transmitter information including at least one of sector , cell , and carrier frequency information is transmitted on at least one of said x tones during said second period of time . in some embodiments x is equal to one or two . in some embodiments , e . g ., an embodiment without step 1208 , none of the n − x tones in said set of n tones but not in said set of x tones are used during said second period of time . in some embodiments , at least half of the n − x tones which are in the set of n tones but not in said set on x tones go unused during said second period of time in the first region . in various embodiments , multiple ones of the n − x tones in said set of x tones are used during said second period of time in the first region . in step 1208 , the base station is operated to transmit user data using y tones during said second period of time , said y tones being tones within said set of x tones , where y is a positive integer greater than one , more than 20 % of the total transmitter power used during said second period of time to transmit signals into the first region being allocated to the y tones during said second period of time . in some embodiments more than 50 % of the total transmitter power used during said second period of time to transmit signals into the first region is allocated to the y tones during said second period of time . in some embodiments , said y tones includes at least 70 tones . in various embodiments , transmitting user data includes transmitting modulated symbols on said y tones , each of the y tones communicating one symbol . fig1 is flowchart 1300 of another exemplary method of operating a base station in a frequency division multiplexed system in accordance with the present invention . operation starts in step 1302 where the base station is powered on and initialized and proceeds to step 1304 . in step 1304 , the base station transmitter is operated to transmit first signals into a first region using a set of n tones to communicate information over a first period of time using first signals in a first region , said first period of time being at least two seconds long , where n is larger than 20 . step 1304 includes sub - steps 1306 , 1308 , and 1310 . in sub - step 1306 , for each second period of time , the base station transmitter is operated to transmit during a second period of time a second signal including a set of x tones into said first region , where x is less than 5 , and where less than 80 % of a maximum average total base station power used by said base station transmitter to transmit signals into the first region during any one second period during said first period of time is allocated to said set of x tones and each one of said x tones to which power is allocated is allocated at least 20 times the per tone average power allocated to tones during said any one second period . in sub - step 1308 , for each third period of time , the base station transmitter is operated to transmit during a third period of time a third signal into said first region including a set of y tones , where y ≦ n , each tone in said third set of tones to which power is allocated is allocated at most 8 times the average power allocated to tones during said first period of time , said third period of time having the same duration as said second period of time . in sub - step 1310 , for each fourth period of time , the base station is operated to transmit during a fourth period of time a fourth signal including a set of g tones into said first region , where g is less than 5 , and where less than 80 % of a maximum average total base station power used by said base station transmitter to transmit signals into the first region during any one second period of time during the first period of time is allocated to said set of g tones and each one of said g tones to which power is allocated is allocated at least 20 times the per tone average power allocated to tones during said any one second period of time . in some embodiments , the third period of time and said second period of time overlap , and the method further comprises modulating at least two of data , control and pilot signals on at least some of said set of y tones . in some embodiments , the third period of time and the second period of time are disjoint , and the method further comprises modulating at least two of data , control and pilot signals on at least some of said set of y tones . in various embodiments , at least one of said x tones is transmitted at predetermined fixed frequency and said at least one of said x tones is transmitted using a frequency having a fixed frequency offset ≧ 0 from the lowest frequency tone in said set of n tones . in some embodiments , at least one of said x tones is transmitted at a frequency which is determined as a function of at least one of a base station identifier and a sector identifier . in some embodiments , for each repetition of said second period of time in said first period of time there are at least z repetitions of said third period of time in said first period of time , where z is greater than 10 . in various embodiments z is greater than 400 . in some embodiments , the frequency of at least one of said g tones is a function of at least one of a base station identifier and a sector identifier and said at least one of g tones is not one of said set of x tones . for example , the at least one of x tones may correspond to a carrier beacon signal and the at least one of g tones may correspond to a cell / sector beacon , and the second time period and the fourth time period do not overlap . in some embodiments , the second and fourth time periods periodically repeat during the first period of time . in some embodiments , the second and fourth time periods repeat at different rates . fig1 is a flowchart 1400 of an exemplary method of operating a base station transmitter in a communications system in accordance with the present invention . in some embodiments , the base station transmitter is a sector transmitter of a base station . in various embodiments , the sector transmitter corresponds to a single one of a plurality of carrier frequencies used by a sector of a base station . operation starts in step 1402 where the base station transmitter is powered on and initialized . operation proceeds from step 1402 to step 1404 . in step 1404 , the base station transmitter is operated to transmit a signal in a first period of time , said signal including a plurality of signal tones , each signal tone corresponding to a different frequency , said signal including a beacon transmitted on at least one tone and a user data signal transmitted in parallel with said beacon signal on tones which are not used to transmit said beacon signal , said user data having been transmitted by said first transmitter with average per tone power less than 1 / 20th of the transmission power of each tone used to transmit said beacon signal . step 1404 includes sub - step 1406 . in sub - step 1406 , the base station transmitter uses the frequency of a tone in said transmitted beacon signal to convey information indicating at least one of a cell identifier , a sector identifier , and a carrier identifier . operation proceeds from step 1404 to step 1408 . in some embodiments , the step of transmitting a signal in a first period of time includes transmitting user data on at least 100 tones and transmitting said beacon on less than 3 tones . in some embodiments at least n times the average per signal tone energy of said transmitted signal is transmitted on each of the tones in the signal used to transmit said beacon signal , where n is a positive value greater than 5 , 20 , 99 , or 150 . in various embodiments , the beacon signal is transmitted into a frequency band used by a base station located adjacent a cell in which said base station is located which is not used by said base station to transmit user data . in step 1408 the base station transmitter is operated to transmit a signal in a second period of time , which includes user data and which does not include any tones with a per tone transmission power that is more than 1 / 10 th of the transmission power of each tone used to transmit the beacon signal . in one particular exemplary method of operating a base station transmitter in a frequency division multiplexed communications system in accordance with the invention , the method includes the steps of : transmitting first signals into a first region , e . g ., sector , using a set of n tones to communicate information over a first period of time , said first period of time being at least two seconds long , where n is larger than 10 ; and transmitting during a second period of time a second signal including a set of x tones into said first region , where x is less than 5 , and where less than 80 % of a maximum average total base station transmission power used by said base station transmitter to transmit signals into the first region during any 1 second period during said first period of time is allocated to said set of x tones ( sometime x is one or two ) and each one of said x tones to which power is allocated receives at least 20 times ( and sometimes 40 , 60 or more times ) the per tone average power allocated to tones during said any one second period . in some implementations , the first region is a sector of a cell ; and said communications system is an orthogonal frequency division multiplexed system and wherein said second period of time is a period of time used to transmit an orthogonal frequency division multiplexed symbol . the particular exemplary method may include transmitting during a third period of time a third signal ( e . g ., a non - beacon signal ) into said first region , said third signal not including said second signal , said third signal including a set of y tones , where y ≦ n , each tone in said third set of y tones to which power is allocated at most 8 times the average per tone power allocated to tones during said first period of time . the method sometimes further includes modulating at least data , control and pilot signals on said set of y tones . the different information may be modulated on different tones , e . g ., with data being modulated on one tone or more tones , control on other tones and pilot signals on still other tones . in some implementations at least one of said x tones is transmitted at a transmission frequency which is determined as a function of at least one of a base station identifier and a sector identifier . in some implementations , for each repetition of said second period of time in said first period of time there are at least z repetitions of said third period of time in said first period of time where z is at least 10 , but in some cases at least 20 , 40 or 400 . thus , in a two second time interval , the method may involve several beacon time periods but many more time periods in which beacon signals are not transmitted , e . g ., sometimes over 400 user data time periods for each beacon signal time period . each of the second and third time periods may include one or multiple ofdm symbol transmission time periods . the second and third time periods may be the same or different in terms of duration depending on the implementation . notably , user data signal tones are normally transmitted at ⅛ the average transmission power allocated to beacon signal tones which are transmitted at much higher power levels than the user data signal tones , e . g ., 20 times or more the power level in some cases . the above described method implementations are only some exemplary implementations , and are not the only method implementations which are possible in accordance with the invention . in one exemplary embodiment , a base station transmitter for use in a communication system , includes a transmitter for transmitting signals including multiple tones , each tone corresponding to a different frequency ; and a transmitter control module for controlling the transmitter to transmit a signal in a single symbol transmission time period using a plurality of signal tones that are transmitted in parallel , each signal tone corresponding to a different frequency , said control means causing user data to be transmitted on signal tones with more than 20 % of the base stations transmitter &# 39 ; s maximum possible transmission power for a symbol time period being placed on tones used to communicate user data , said signal also including a beacon signal transmitted on at least one tone on which user data is not transmitted , said beacon signal being transmitted with more than 20 times the transmission power of any of the signal tones used to transmit user data . in some implementations , the transmitter control module controls the transmitter to transmit the beacon signal in a frequency band used by an adjacent transmitter to transmit user data and which is not used by said transmitter to transmit user data , e . g ., the beacon signal is transmitted into the frequency band normally used by a neighboring sector or base station transmitter for establishing communications links with wts being serviced by the transmitter . in some cases , the second period of time occurs within said first period of time ; and the x tones is a subset of said n tones . the base station in the exemplary base station embodiment being described includes stored user data including at least one of voice , text and image data to be communicated ; and the first control module includes control logic for controlling the transmitter to transmit user data on at least one tone during said first period of time and to transmit user data on a plurality of y tones which are a subset of said n tones , said y tones not being included in said x tones during said second period of time . in yet another exemplary base station embodiment , a base station transmitter of the invention which is for use in a communication system , e . g ., an ofdm communications system includes : a transmitter for transmitting signals including multiple tones , each tone corresponding to a different frequency ; and a transmitter control module for controlling the transmitter to transmit a signal in a single symbol transmission time period using a plurality of signal tones that are transmitted in parallel , each signal tone corresponding to a different frequency , said control means causing user data to be transmitted on signal tones with more than 20 % of the base stations transmitter &# 39 ; s maximum possible transmission power for a symbol time period being placed on tones used to communicate user data , said signal also including a beacon signal transmitted on at least one tone on which user data is not transmitted , said beacon signal being transmitted with more than 20 times the transmission power of any of the signal tones used to transmit user data . the base station transmitter control module may include logic for controlling the transmitter to transmit said beacon signal in a frequency band used by an adjacent transmitter to transmit user data and which is not used by said transmitter to transmit user data . the transmitter may be a sector transmitter in which case the first region is a sector of a cell , in some embodiments said communications system is an orthogonal frequency division multiplexed system and the second period of time is a period of time used to transmit an orthogonal frequency division multiplexed symbol . in some base station implementations , at least one of the x tones used by the base station is transmitted at a frequency which is determined as a function of at least one of a base station identifier and a sector identifier . the base station includes control circuitry and / or logic for transmitting during a third period of time a third signal into said first region , the third signal , e . g ., a user data signal , not including said second signal which may be , e . g ., a beacon signal , said third signal including a set of y tones , where y ≦ n , each tone in said third set of y tones to which power is allocated having at most 8 times the average per tone power allocated to tones during said first period of time . thus , in such an implementation , signals corresponding to user data will be transmitted with much less power , eg ., 1 / 20 or less of the power allocated to beacon signal tones . the base station includes a control module and / or logic for transmitting during a third period of time a third signal into said first region , aid third signal not including said second signal , said third signal including a set of y tones , where y ≦ n , each tone in said third set of y tones to which power is allocated at most 8 times the average per tone power allocated to tones during said first period of time , said third period of time having the same duration as said second period of time , wherein for each repetition of said second period of time in said first period of time there are at least z repetitions of said third period of time in said first period of time where z is at least 10 and , in some cases z is at least 400 . while described primarily in the context of an ofdm system , the methods and apparatus of the present invention , are applicable to a wide range of communications systems including many non - ofdm and / or non - cellular systems . control modules , e . g ., transmission control modules , implemented in accordance with the invention may perform multiple transmission control operations . in such a case , the module includes circuitry and / or logic , e . g ., stored instructions , for performing each of the control operations attributed to the control module . thus , a single control module may multiple means , one for performing each control operation attributed to the control module . similarly , routines may include instructions for performing multiple operations where the instructions corresponding to a particular operation represent a means for performing the operation . in various embodiments nodes described herein are implemented using one or more modules to perform the steps corresponding to one or more methods of the present invention , for example , carrier band selection , digital signal processing , energy detection / snr detection , decoding , timing synchronization , signal quality detection , etc . in some embodiments various features of the present invention are implemented using modules . such modules may be implemented using software , hardware or a combination of software and hardware . many of the above described methods or method steps can be implemented using machine executable instructions , such as software , included in a machine readable medium such as a memory device , e . g ., ram , floppy disk , etc . to control a machine , e . g ., general purpose computer with or without additional hardware , to implement all or portions of the above described methods , e . g ., in one or more nodes . accordingly , among other things , the present invention is directed to a machine - readable medium including machine executable instructions for causing a machine , e . g ., processor and associated hardware , to perform one or more of the steps of the above - described method ( s ). numerous additional variations on the methods and apparatus of the present invention described above will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the above description of the invention . such variations are to be considered within the scope of the invention . the methods and apparatus of the present invention may be , and in various embodiments are , used with cdma , orthogonal frequency division multiplexing ( ofdm ), and / or various other types of communications techniques which may be used to provide wireless communications links between access nodes and mobile nodes . in some embodiments the access nodes are implemented as base stations which establish communications links with mobile nodes using ofdm and / or cdma . in various embodiments the mobile nodes are implemented as notebook computers , personal data assistants ( pdas ), or other portable devices including receiver / transmitter circuits and logic and / or routines , for implementing the methods of the present invention .

7Electricity

in essence , the present invention is based , at least in part , on the discovery that current pollution control systems largely waste sensible heat in flue gases below certain temperatures , largely because of their corrosive nature at such temperatures , and that vast sums of money are spent overcoming the corrosiveness , when indeed a better approach is to employ acid - resistant materials under conditions controlled so that contained sulphur is never oxidized to sulphuric acid , but is rather recovered as marketable so 2 . the expense of neutralization is thus avoided , a marketable byproduct is produced and , most important , by utilizing the previously - wasted sensible heat to preheat combustion air going to the boiler , savings of truly surprising dimensions are achieved , as set forth in more detail hereinbelow . in its important aspects the invention is illustrated in the flow sheet of fig1 and attention is directed thereto . those skilled in the chemical process industries (&# 34 ; c . p . i .&# 34 ;) will immediately appreciate the lack of conventional recovery equipment : precipitators , bag houses and , of course , the input of limestone or dolomite necessary to chemically bind the sulfur . rather , there are a pair of pebble or rock beds . these beds are truly massive , being as large as 75 × 150 × 60 feet , and are formed of sized , acid - resistant aggregate ( manufactured or natural stone ) providing myriad tortuous paths for cooling gases and condensing fluids . before discussing these aspects of the invention in detail , however , it is important to note that fig1 is greatly simplified for purposes of clarity and , for example , does not show steam or power as an output . rather , it merely shows preheated air as an input and flue gas as an output . both of these flows are shown as passing through a high temperature regenerator , which is a conventional unit forming no part of the present invention . however , it is preferred that those units ( two are of course necessary ) be ljunstrom - type rotating wheels with closely - spaced metal vanes forming rings around the vertical axis of rotation . such units have proven efficient and economic between boiler exit gas temperatures and those lower temperatures at which so 2 starts to oxidize and become corrosive , normally below about 500 ° f . as set forth in more detail hereinbelow , however , the physical chemistry is more complex than meets the eye , and specifying a temperature or even temperature range can be a dangerous generalization . in any pair of regenerative heaters , it is manifest that the sensible heat retained in one is used to preheat incoming , ambient air prior to combustion in the boiler and , at the same time , hot flue gas is cooled in the other , giving up its heat to the walls of same . what distinguishes the present invention is the much greater extent to which this is carried out . as noted supra , at lower temperatures in the range of 500 ° to 200 ° f ., this invention makes use of porous gravel or sized pebble beds . these are in the range of about 1 . 5 to 6 inches diameter , with closely sized 2 inch diameter gravel chosen in the figures and examples described hereinbelow . preferably , the beds are large enough in area and thickness so gas flow need not be reversed by dampers more often than once every eight hours . such dampers or valves have been common in iron blast furnace stoves for about 100 years . after cooling in the pebble bed the flue gases may occupy as little as half the volume they do when entering , due both to condensation of contained water , which involves a volume reduction of 950 to 1 , and contraction according to the gas laws , e . g . pv = rt . therefore , fan power to push the clean gas up the power plant chimney is not excessive . since both particulate and gaseous pollutants that are noxious have been removed in the pebble bed , the need for a stack at all is merely to mix the co 2 and whatever minor co is present with atmospheric air . of course , in a bed preheating ambient air , more - or - less of the reverse holds true : expansion according to the gas laws and vaporization of any moisture , which will be a variable . as shown in fig1 the condensate , with its contained so 2 entrained in the water of condensation together with no x , chlorides , and other trace elements , is bled out of the bottom of the recuperator into a settling vessel or pond where clear water containing so 2 is continuously or occassionally removed to a vacuum vessel for evaporation of so 2 and its compression to a liquid , which is conventionally stored in refrigerated tank cars not under appreciable pressure . after so 2 removal , the cold water is returned to the recuperators for washing out any fly ash accumulation and to keep the lowest level of the bed cold , to collect smog while the level of the bed immediately above is reaching hot flue gas temperature . this ensures that the smog will have at least a few feet to travel a tortuous path downward through the pebbles , wet with condensate , and be entrapped thereon . the physical chemistry of this invention may be better understood by consideration of fig2 which is a simplified diagram illustrating smog recovery in condensate water while storing heat in a pebble . in essence , this involves certain physical and thermal interactions between a pebble 10 , a covering film of water 12 , and smog droplets 14 nucleated on flyash or other particulates 16 . as in nature , condensation may start on a particle of flyash 16 , since it acts as a nuclei . this condensing fog is distilled water , and , as shown by several scientific papers over the past 24 years , the reaction of so 2 with h 2 o in this miniscule state is practically instantaneous , even as acidity increases . reference is made to &# 34 ; some aspects of so 2 absorption by water - generalized treatment &# 34 ; by gregory r . carmichael and leonard k . peters , published by pergamon press ltd . 1979 in atmospheric environment vol . 13 pp . 1505 - 1513 . in nature , smog returns to earth when the droplets become large enough to make &# 34 ; heavy &# 34 ; fog or dew . as shown in fig2 droplet 14 &# 39 ; has reached film 12 and is attaching as at 18 by surface - tension , but will rapidly become part of film 12 . indeed , in climates where fogs are common , noxious smogs have sometimes produced a rash of fatalities . fig3 is an idealized cross - section through a porous , pebble wall or pebble block of the invention , wherein evenly - sized crushed rock or pebbles , shown as spheres but actually of more irregular shape , are cemented together at just the points of contact of each pebble with its adjoining pebbles . this is accomplished by mixing the pebbles with a cementing slurry or thick cementing liquid , dumping the mix into a form and jarring or vibrating the form or contained pebble mix sufficiently so that all that remains of the cementing slurry or thick cementing liquid is that which thinly coats the pebble surfaces and which adheres principally around the points of contact of one pebble with its adjoining pebbles . for many purposes in construction of porous walls , floors , ceilings or the like , the slurry may consist of portland cement with or without fine sand admixed , and water . in the case of the regenerators of this invention , acid resistance is a key element and the cementing slurry should be a fireclay , resin , plastic with or without fine quartz sand admixed and water or other liquid . the pebbles are preferably quartz or volcanic rock with lower coefficient of expansion when subjected to repeated heating and cooling . the chemical industry has produced a great many conventional acid - proof cements which may be employed . a most important aspect of the present invention is the exceptionally large area of the pebble heaters , which means that gas velocity therethrough will be very low . in the case of the incoming flue gas , this means that a substantial portion of the contained fly ash , e . g . the larger particles , will cease to be carried by the gas stream and will &# 34 ; drop out .&# 34 ; fig4 is an isometric view of means for coarse fly ash catchment over the pebble beds , with conveyance to downspouts by long prism - shaped pebble masses or blocks 22 , having a triangular cross - section , made porous as in fig3 but faced on the upper surface with a very hard and smooth slab 24 of acid resistant concrete , so the fly ash accumulating thereon will slide off into acid proof tile gutters 26 which include a gas permeable bottom , so fly ash falling therein is conveyed to downspouts ( not shown ) by fluidized flow . the prism shapes 22 are precast in forms and arranged on top of each pebble bed regenerator so they act like snow fences in causing the great bulk of fly ash to fall into the gutters directly or onto the smooth prism faces sloping at about 45 degrees , so any considerable depth of fly ash accumulating slides off into the gutters just as snow slides off a metal roof . the gas fed under the false bottom of the gutters must be very clean , dry and hot so that it will never plug the pores of the false floor of the gutters or cause the fly ash to cake in its route to the downspouts and bins ( not shown ) below the pebble beds . alongside the gutters are acid proof tile pipes 27 with perforations on their sides opposite the gutters for flooding the pebble beds occassionally as needed to quickly flush down any accumulation of light fly ash between pebbles , which has not been carried down by the water of condensation from the flue gases . the upper layers of the recuperators are easily accessible for repair or replacement of prism shapes , gutters , flooding conduits or pebbles although little maintenance is contemplated , insofar as with time - proven materials of construction the pebble bed should last the life of the power plant . some crumbling of pebbles is not serious , unless travel of flue gas becomes impeded . fig5 is a transverse . vertical section and fig6 is a longitudinal vertical cross - section through a preferred embodiment of the pebble beds 28 , 30 of this invention , and featuring low construction and operating costs in comparison with conventional means now employed to carry out the functions of collecting fly ash , cooking the flue gases and removing the noxious and very fine particulates and noxious gases therefrom . this is true despite the very substantial size of these beds . the beds are in the order of 10 to 80 feet deep or more ; this , of course , depends on the size of the power plant . preferably , the beds are closely sized , spherically - shaped , and are of acid - resistant composition , so as not to be subject to deterioration by repeated heating and cooling , over 20 , 000 cycles , between 50 ° f . and 300 ° f . any pebble ( 32 ) layer may be a single size from about 3 / 4 inches diameter to 5 inches or more , but smaller pebbles must not be above larger ones . smaller sizes have more surface to promote so 2 recovery in the condensate but have a much higher resistance to flue gas flow , and there is greater danger of plugging pore spaces . if mixed sizes were used , of course , gas flow would all but cease . the horizontal cross - section of the beds is made large enough to slow flue gas speeds downwardly to about 1 foot per second or less at the entering face , which may be only half the velocity at the bottom of the bed due to cooling - contraction . as the hot flue gases reach the enormous area of the precooled pebbles , they are slowed to perhaps one - fifth or one - tenth of their previous speed , and at once start dropping their coarse fly ash on the prism - shaped &# 34 ; show fences ,&# 34 ; and thence into the gutters . as the partially cleaned flue gases enter the previous cooled bed , the heat capacity of the first foot or two of pebble layers condenses enough moisture to produce a steam - fog and smog out of fly ash , condensed moisture and very fine fly ash . as discussed supra in connection with fig2 the droplets grows in size , its momentum inevitably causes it to collide with the already wetted surface of a pebble , where it is entrapped with further condensate and washed downwardly over colder pebbles so the so 2 , once absorbed , tends to be retained . as in &# 34 ; principles of chemical engineering &# 34 ; by walker , lewis and mcadams explained almost 60 years ago : &# 34 ; thus , if so 2 gas , whether or not mixed with inert gas , be brought in contact with water at 20 ° c ., the so 2 will continue to dissolve in the water until its concentration is sixty times that in the gaseous phase .&# 34 ; it should be noted that the cooling of the flue gas is done at the face of a pebble so condensation and simultaneous solution of so 2 must primarily occur there . it should be appreciated that the top layers of rocks in the beds will heat up first , while the layers beneath remain cool . the absorbing surface and heat capacity of the rocks is so great that the heating of layers proceeds like a wave . each successive layer will reach something close to flue gas temperature before the rate of heat transfer slows appreciably and the next layer starts to warm up . but , hot water of condensation , running downwards will speed the process somewhat . the beds must be deep enough so that the lowest layer is cool , and will condense all the water in the flue gases and , furthermore , provide a layer of cool pebbles , so that the smog in twisting and turning around pebbles will be entrapped on the water film covering each pebble . some specific examples will aid in understanding the invention are set forth hereinbelow . base - line power plant data has been taken from an e . p . a . study , &# 34 ; rocky mountain - prairie region viii : coal - fired power plant trace element study , a three - station comparison &# 34 ; by radian corp ., austin , tex . example i below is derived therefrom as denoted (*), and in example ii it is as noted thereunder (**). thus , data in table i below is * from vol . 1 , page 11 , table 2 - 2 , and in * table ii it is from vol . 2 , page 27 , table 4 - 1 . table i______________________________________station ii flow rates______________________________________coal : 2 . 75 × 10 . sup . 5 lb / hr = 3300 tons / dayflue gas : 5 . 46 × 10 . sup . 7 scfh______________________________________ table ii______________________________________station ii coal analysis as rec &# 39 ; d , pct . dry______________________________________moisture , 29 . 19ash , 5 . 12volatiles , 30 . 15fixed carbon , 35 . 54btu / lb 8290 11 , 708ultimate , pct . carbon 48 . 31hydrogen 6 . 53nitrogen 0 . 67oxygen 39 . 02sulphur 0 . 35ash 5 . 12______________________________________ by estimating the amount of heat which can be recuperated from the flue gases of one pound of coal to preheat the air needed for its combustion , the tons of coal saved by this invention each day can be readily obtained . first , the heat in the steam condensed from the gases is estimated . second , the sensible heat in cooling the gases down from 300 ° f . to 50 ° f . is estimated . the sum of these btu savings is the increase in the heating value of the coal . thus , fewer tons will be needed . heat recovered conventionally ( from gases at boiler temperature down to 300 ° f .) is not included . those familiar with heat and material balances will appreciate that total moisture in the boiler flue gases includes all water made from h 2 during combustion , plus moisture in and on the coal , and moisture in the combustion air . in table iii below , data for calculating the latter figure have been taken from &# 34 ; combustion engineering &# 34 ; ( first ed .) pp . 25 - 25 and 25 - 26 , which assume 22 % excess air and 34 % volatiles , deemed reasonable . table iii______________________________________heat of condensation / lb . coalsource h . sub . 2 o per lb . ______________________________________wet coal ( as rec &# 39 ; d .) 0 . 2919combustion ( from h . sub . 2 ) 0 . 5877 ( 0 . 0653 × 9 ) in comb . air 0 . 1007 0 . 9803______________________________________ recoverable from this water . the sensible heat in these gases is , in essence , that recoverable in cooling from 300 ° f . to about 50 ° f . table iv______________________________________sensible heat in flue gases ( per one pound of coal ) ______________________________________ 980 ( from table iii ) 5 . 46 × 10 . sup . 7 scfh / 2 . 75 × 88610 . sup . 5 = 198 . 54 scfhper lb . coal198 . 54 × 0 . 238 × 0 . 075 × 250 =[ scfh × ( sp . heat ) × lb / cf × f .° temp . change ] total 1816______________________________________ the recuperator efficiency is 95 % both in and out , = 90 . 25 %× 1816 = 1639 btu . thus , the equivalent heating value of coal , attained by invention by conservation is = 8290 + 1639 = 9929 btu . so if y = tons coal / day with invention , then y × 9929 = 3300 × 8290 . so y = 2755 tons coal per day 3300 - 2755 = 545 tons coal saved . at $ 40 / ton , this equals a saving of $ 21 , 800 / day . the design of fig4 , 6 , 7 and 8 comprises a pair of pebble beds , which , to be properly effective should each be 75 ft . wide by 150 ft . long and 60 ft . deep . pebbles are closely sized quartz pebbles or volcanic rocks about two inches in diameter . the heat capacity is calculated below for one of the pair of recuperator beds . table v__________________________________________________________________________bed heat capacityvolume rock density % solid specific temperature heatof bed of solids rock heat change / cycle capacitycu . ft . lbs / cu . ft . ( voids = 42 %) btu / lb degrees f . btu__________________________________________________________________________75 × 150 × 60 = 6 . 75 × 10 . sup . 5 × 165 × 0 . 58 × 0 . 21 × 250 = 3 . 391 × 10 . sup . 9__________________________________________________________________________ the heat recuperated per day is : 1639 / lb × 2000 × 2755 tons = 9 . 03 × 10 9 . therefore , the dampers reversing the flow through the beds need to be set to change once every 8 hour shift , although 9 hours allowable . the flue gas speed downward and combustion gas speed upward are calculated as follows : 5 . 46 × 10 7 scfh ×( 2755 / 3300 ÷[ 60 ( min ./ hr . )× 11 , 250 sq . ft . ]= 68 ft / min , or about 1 ft . per second . the pressure necessary to force this flow with 2 in . diameter pebbles is about 0 . 08 × 60 ft . ( depth ) or 4 . 8 inches water . the weight of 4 . 8 inches of water spread over 150 × 75 sq . ft . is 281 , 250 lbs . which , moving at 1 ft ./ sec ., becomes ftlb / sec . since a kilowatt is equivalent to 737 . 7 ft . lb / sec ., a fan of 281 , 250 / 737 . 7 or about 380 kw is required for each of the recuperators in the pair . each would add 380 × 0 . 948 × 60 × 60 = 12 × 10 5 btu / hr friction heat ), equivalent to about 1 . 5 tons coal / day . the recovery of so 2 is readily obtained from a calculation of the % so 2 in the flue gas , compared to the so 2 recovered in the water of condensation , bearing in mind that equilibrium will be reached and further recovery will cease , when the condensed so 2 equals 60 times the concentration by weight in the flue gas . in this example i ., if all the so 2 were to remain in the flue gas , it would contain % s = 0 . 35 × 2 = 0 . 70 % so 2 / per lb . of coal . table vi______________________________________so . sub . 2 extractiondegree of 60 × % so . sub . 2 in con - extraction of so . sub . 2 so . sub . 2 in % so . sub . 2 densate by ex - from the flue gas flue gas in flue gas traction process______________________________________0 0 . 047 %*** 2 . 82 % 020 % 0 . 0376 % 2 . 256 % 0 . 143 % 40 % 0 . 0282 % 1 . 692 % 0 . 286 % 60 % 0 . 0188 % 1 . 128 % 0 . 429 % 80 % 0 . 00940 % 0 . 564 % approx . = 0 . 572 % at approximate equilibrium90 % 0 . 00470 % 0 . 282 %* 0 . 643 % 100 % 0 0 0 . 715 ** ______________________________________ notes explaining derivation of figures in above table *** the so . sub . 2 in the flue gas at 0 % extraction is calculated as follows % so . sub . 2 in coal is 2 × % s = 0 . 70 % or 0 . 007 lbs / lb coal . since scfh flue gas / lb coal = 5 . 46 × 10 . sup . 7 / 2 . 75 × 10 . sup . 5 = 198 . 54 scfh , then lb flue gas / lb coal = 0 . 075 lb / cf × 198 . 54 = 14 . 8 lb so . sub . 2 / lb flue gas = 0 . 007 / 14 . 89 = 0 . 00047 = 0 . 047 % ** the so . sub . 2 in the condensate at 100 % extraction is calculated as follows : % so . sub . 2 in coal is 2 × % s = 0 . 70 % or 0 . 007 lbs / lb coal the condensate was previously calculated as 0 . 9796 lbs , so the so . sub . 2 / lb condensate = 0 . 007 / 0 . 9796 = 0 . 00715 = 0 . 715 % * the 90 % extraction is achievable by diluting the condensate with fresh water or condensate from which the so . sub . 2 has been removed by vacuum . this dilution would be done by flooding the lower 10 ft . of pebble bed . that is , by adding 1 . 3 lb fresh water to 1 lb condensate making 2 . 3 total the 0 . 643 % so . sub . 2 is reduced to 0 . 643 / 2 . 3 or 0 . 280 %, comparable with 0 . 282 % which is the amount of flue gas so . sub . 2 water at equilibrium with flue gas containing 0 . 00470 % ( see walker , lewis and mcadams reference , supra ). a north dakota coal is considered in the following example . references to the epa study ( supra ) are table 2 - 3 , p . 12 , vol . 1 , and table 4 - 1 , page 28 , vol . 4 . table vii______________________________________station iii flow ratesstream flow rate______________________________________coal 2 . 34 × 10 . sup . 5 lb / hrflue gas 4 . 11 × 10 . sup . 7 scfh______________________________________ table viii______________________________________station iii coal analysis as received , pct______________________________________proximatemoisture 36 . 84ash 7 . 84volatiles 26 . 24fixed carbon 29 . 08 100 . 00sulphur 0 . 91btu / lb 6214ultimate , pct . carbon 41 . 91hydrogen 6 . 77nitrogen 0 . 60oxygen 41 . 97sulphur 0 . 91ash 7 . 84 100 . 00______________________________________ to calculate the coal which can be saved with this north dakota coal used in a power plant by using the invention , the same procedure applies as used in example i . savings by recuperating the heat of the condensate and sensible heat in the flue gases are computed below and added together . __________________________________________________________________________heat of condensation = pounds h . sub . 2 o × 950 btu / lbper one pound of coalh . sub . 2 o as moisture in coal 0 . 3684h . sub . 2 o from hydrogen ( 0 . 0677 × 9 ) 0 . 6093h . sub . 2 o in air for combustion 0 . 07550 . 013 × 935 lb air0 . 006214 coal heat valueper million btutotal lb h . sub . 2 o per lb coal ## str1 ## sensible heat in flue gases ( per one pound of coal ) 4 . 11 × 10 . sup . 7 scfh / 2 . 34 × 10 . sup . 5 = 175 . 68 × 0 . 238 × 0 . 075 × 300 °( scfh / lb coal ) ( sp . ht .) ( lb / cu . ft .) f .° temp change = sensibleheat 940recuperator efficiency in & amp ; out 90 . 25 % × total 1940 = 1750heating value of coal obtained by invention = 6214 + 1750 = 7964__________________________________________________________________________btu / l to determine the coal saved per day , again let y = coal used per day , with the invention , then y × 79 . 64 = 2808 × 6214 , so y = 2191 . besides the coal saving , the invention greatly reduces so 2 pollution as the following table ix illustrates . table ix______________________________________extraction of so . sub . 2degree of 60 × % so . sub . 2 in con - extraction of so . sub . 2 so . sub . 2 in % so . sub . 2 densate by ex - from the flue gas flue gas in flue gas traction process______________________________________ 0 % 0 . 138 %*** 8 . 28 % 020 % 0 . 110 % 6 . 62 % 0 . 34 % 40 % 0 . 083 % 4 . 98 % 0 . 69 % 60 % 0 . 055 % 3 . 30 % 1 . 04 % 80 % 0 . 014 % 1 . 68 % 1 . 38 % 90 % 0 . 014 % 0 . 83 %* 1 . 56 %* 100 % 0 0 1 . 728 %** ______________________________________ notes explaining this table *** the so . sub . 2 in the flue gas at 0 % extraction is calculated as follows % so . sub . 2 in coal is 2 × % s = 1 . 85 % or 0 . 0182 lbs / lb coal and since scfh flue gas / lb coal 4 . 11 × 10 . sup . 7 / 2 . 34 × 10 . sup . 5 = 175 . 64 scfh so lb flue gas / lb coal = 0 . 075 lb / cf × 175 . 64 = 13 . 17 lb so . sub . 2 / flue gas = 0 . 0182 / 13 . 17 = 0 . 00138 = 0 . 138 % ** the so . sub . 2 in the condensate at 100 % extraction is calculated as follows : % so . sub . 2 in coal is 2 × 5s = 1 . 82 % or 0 . 0182 lbs / lb coa and since lb condensate was previously calculated as 1 . 0532 the so . sub . 2 / lb condensate is 0 . 0182 / 1 = 0 . 01728 = 1 . 728 % * the 90 % extraction is calculated achievable by diluting the condensate with fresh water or condensate from which the so . sub . 2 has been removed b vacuum . this dilution would be done by flooding the lower 10 ft , of pebbl bed . that is , if an amount of fresh water equal to that in the condensate were added , the % so . sub . 2 in the condensate would be halved from 1 . 56 % t 0 . 78 % which is lower than 0 . 83 % in equilibrium with flue gas containing 0 . 014 % so . sub . 2 . ( see walker , lewis and mcadams reference previously given ) in calculating the heat of condensation used in both examples , a figure od 950 btu / lb water condensed was used when actually the accepted standard is 1050 . 3 . this makes the above estimates of saving on the conservative side . as a rough estimate this invention recovers about 90 % of the high heating value . the recuperator efficiency of 95 % in and 95 % out equals 90 . 25 %. thus , the coal industry as well as the power industry are enormously benefitted both by the coal savings , as well as making high sulphur coal valuable without causing air pollution . although these examples show the use of coal , it will be appreciated that savings with oil and natural gas furnaces will be greater to the extent that h 2 o condensate is greater , due to more hydrogen in the oil or gas . various other changes in the details , steps , materials , and arrangements of parts , which have been herein described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of the invention , may be made by those skilled in this art within the principle and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims . for example , it will be appreciated that while this invention has been described with reference to boiler installations for power generation from fossil fuels , it is not so limited and may be employed with any large - scale furnaces burning such fuels ; copper smelting , glassmaking or pig iron or scrap melting operations come to mind .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

one embodiment of the magnetic encoder in accordance with the present invention is shown in fig1 and 2 , in which the magnetic encoder 10 includes an inner housing 11 and a rotary spindle 13 rotatably held in the inner housing 11 . a magnetized pattern m is formed on the periphery of the rotary spindle 13 and a magnetic detection head 14 is mounted to the inner housing 11 facing the magnetized pattern m on the rotary spindle 13 with a prescribed clearance . the detection head 14 is arranged in a window 15 formed in the inner housing 11 . the inner housing 11 , the rotary spindle 13 and the detection head 14 are encased in an outer housing 16 shown with chain lines . as later described in more detail , the inner housing 11 is formed by means of insert moulding . more specifically , the rotary spindle 13 is made of fe - cr - co alaloy or fe - co - mn alloy which has high workability and high magnetic properties . near one end of the rotary spindle 13 , is formed an annular recess 13a of , preferably , a semicircular transverse cross - sectional profile for engagement with an annular projection 18 formed on the inner wall of the inner housing 11 . thanks to this engagement , the rotary spindle 13 is locked against axial displacement with respect to the inner housing 11 . near the annular recess 13a , is formed the magnetized pattern m on the periphery of the rotary spindle 13 . the inner housing 11 is given substantially in the form of a rectangular solid and provided , on both longitudinal ends , with a pair of rectangular flanges 17 . further , the inner housing 11 is provided with an axial through hole 11a whose inner diameter is roughly equal to the outer diameter of the rotary spindle 13 . a transversal through hole 11b is also formed in the inner housing 11 across the axial through hole 11a . on one side of the axial through hole 11a , the transversal through hole 11b provides the above - described window 15 for the detection head 14 . a rectangular window 11c is formed in the end face of one of the flanges 17 near the magnetized pattern m in communication with the axial through hole 11a and a plate 19 is fitted into the window 11c to close the associated end of the axial through hole 11a . three sides of the inner housing 11 are embraced by an angled flexible print board or printed circuit board 20 such as shown in fig2 . more specifically , the print board 20 is made up of a pair of opposed parallel sections and a connecting section intervening the parallel sections . the parallel sections close the associated ends of the transversal through holes 11b in the inner housing 11 . the parallel section on the side of the window 15 is provided with the above - described magnetic detection head 14 attached thereto via a glass substrate 21 . the three sections are provided with various circuit elements 22 . these circuit elements 22 are electrically interconnected to each other by a circuit pattern marked on the print board 20 , and further connected to outside devices ( not shown ) via a terminal 23 formed on one corner of the print board 20 . as later described in more detail , the outer housing 16 is formed around the inner casing 11 , the rotary spindle 13 , the plate 19 and the print board 20 by means of injection moulding and is provided with a hole 25 for exposure of the terminal 23 of the print board 20 . the projecting section of the rotary spindle 13 is properly connected to the associated control system . a slight tubular clearance is left between the inner housing 11 and the rotary spindle 13 to allow free rotation of the latter . with the above - described construction of the magnetic encoder , fluctuation in clearance between the detection head 14 and the magnetized pattern m on the rotary spindle 13 is caused by production error of the rotary spindle 13 only . only strict control in machining of the rotary spindle 13 is required to maintain the clearance constant and such control in machining can be done quite easily with the current technical level of the machining industry . in addition , the rotary spindle 13 carrying the magnetized pattern m and the detection head 14 are both directly supported by a common element , i . e . the inner housing 11 . as a consequence , the clearance can be set very easily and exactly and , once set , there is no factor to cause any change in the clearance at all . direct support of the rotary spindle 13 by the inner housing 11 much simplifies the construction with reduced parts . a modified embodiment of the magnetic encoder in accordance with the present invention is shown in fig3 in which a coaxial disc 26 is formed in one body on one end of the rotary spindle 13 near the annular recess 13a and the magnetized pattern m is formed on the periphery of the disc 26 . since such a disc 26 can be formed by applying machining to the end of the rotary spindle 13 under rotation , this magnetic encoder also assures a constant clearance between the magnetized pattern m and the detection head . a further modified embodiment of the magnetic encoder in accordance with the present invention is shown in fig4 and 5 . the inner housing 11 of this embodiment is provided with no transversal through hole providing the window 15 for the magnetic detection head 14 . as a substitute , a thin section 27 is formed at a section of the inner housing 11 facing the magnetized pattern m on the rotary spindle 13 and the detection head 14 is arranged on the outer face of the thin section 27 . absence of the transversal through hole well prevents invasion of outside dusts which otherwise wield ill influence on magnetic detection . one embodiment of the method in accordance with the present invention is shown in fig6 to 10 , in which the magnetic encoder shown in fig1 is produced . in the first place , a tubular material is machined to obtain the spindle 13 shown in fig1 which has the annular recess 13a near one end . after cleaning , the magnetized pattern m is formed on the periphery of the spindle 13 . next , as shown in fig6 and 7 , the spindle 13 is set in moulds 30 after local application of parting agent . more specifically , annular cavities 30a and 30b are provided in the moulds 30 surrounding the spindle 13 and a holder piece 31 is placed in one of the annular cavities 30a in contact with one end of the spindle 13 near the magnetized pattern m . further , a pair of opposite side cavities 30c and 30d are provided in the moulds 30 in communication with the annular cavities 30a and 30b . then , resin is infused into the cavities 30a - 30d in the moulds 30 to obtain a combination shown in fig8 . this combination includes the spindle 13 and the inner housing 11 embracing the spindle 13 . as stated already , the inner housing includes the axial through hole 11a accommodating the spindle 13 , the transversal through hole 11b providing the window 15 , the end flanges 17 each having the rectangular window 11c and the annular projection 18 in engagement with the annular recess 13a in the periphery of the spindle 13 . next , the parting agent on the surface of the spindle is thermally or chemically removed . by this removal of the parting agent , a slight tubular clearance is formed between the inner casing 11 and the spindle 13 along the entire length of the latter to allow free rotation of the spindle 13 . in addition , engagement of the annular projection 18 on the inner housing 11 with the annular recess 13a in the rotary spindle 13 inhibits free axial displacement of the latter . the plates 19 are then fitted into the windows 11c in the flanges 17 and the print board 20 is coupled to the combination . the window 15 in the inner housing 11 is closed by the glass substrate 21 so that the underlying magnetic detection head 14 should face the magnetized pattern m on the rotary spindle 13 with a prscribed clearance . the terminal 23 projects from the inner houisng 11 . next , as shown in fig9 and 10 , the other end of the transversal through hole 116 is closed by a plate 41 and the circuit elements 22 are attached to the print board 20 to form an assembly . a tubular spacer 42 is inserted over the projecting section of the rotary spindle 13 and a holder piece 43 is inserted over the terminal 23 projecting from the inner housing 11 . next , the assembly is set in moulds 40 which defines a cavity 40a surrounding the assembly . finally , resin is infused into the cavity 40a to form the outer housing 16 shows with chain lines in fig1 . by removing the tubular spacer 42 and the holder piece 43 after demoulding , a slight clearance is left between the outer housing 16 and the rotary spindle 13 to allow free rotation of the latter and the hole 25 is left in the outer housing 16 to allow electric connection of the circuit elements 22 with outer devices . another embodiment of the method in accordance with the present invention is shown in fig1 , in which the magnetic encoder shown in fig4 is produced . in the case of this embodiment , a clearance 32 is provided in the moulds 30 in order to form the thin section 27 shown in fig4 . various modifications can be derived from the illustrated embodiments . for example , as the means for inhibiting axial displacement between the spindle 13 and the inner housing 11 , an annular projection may be formed on the spindle 13 for engagement with a corresponding annular recess formed in the inner housing 11 . as a substitute for such an annular engagement , a local engagement can be provided by a spot projection and a spot recess .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

in the early days of the internet , users were likely to be satisfied to be able quickly to receive textual information on a subject of their choosing . as the internet has become a more mature technology , and users have become more demanding , the use of images in content has become nearly de rigueur . as a result , there has been an increase in the number of ways to incorporate images into content , as well as in the number of ways to categorize images and to search for them . one issue that arises when viewing images in internet content is that the images may be of low quality or of low resolution , and the quality or resolution may be incommensurate with the quality of the underlying content that is provided with the images . for example , a web page on polar bears might have excellent textual content , but might include an image of a polar bear with a resolution of 100 × 200 pixels . on a laptop or tablet screen of typical size , this resolution is barely enough to see what a bear looks like . the reason this situation occurs is that the image that appears in the content is generally chosen by the creator of the content , and is therefore subject to considerations such as which images are available at the time the content is created , and the time and motivation of the content creator to find higher quality images . a user who wants to see higher quality images can perform an image search , and can even filter the search results based on resolution of the image . in one example , the user can even enter the uniform resource locator ( url ) of the image into a search engine , thereby retrieving the original image and , possibly , a set of “ visually similar ” results . however , this process involves a separate step on the part of the user . the technique of identifying the image and finding visually - similar images results in a reduced amount of physical interaction between the user and the computer or other device — e . g ., the user can find the images in fewer keystrokes , few mouse clicks , fewer taps , swipes , or other gestures , etc . the subject matter herein provides a way to enhance image - containing content with different images , which may be of higher quality than the images that appear in the content . when content is provided to a user ( e . g ., in the form of a web page , in the form of content delivered by an application , etc . ), the presence of an image in the content is detected . a query is then created . the query has the property that , if the query is carried out by a search engine , the image that appears in the content appears ( or is likely to appear ) high in the search results . it is presumed that a query with this property ( and , possibly , certain other properties that are discussed below ) can be used to locate images that are similar to the image that appears in the original content . the images that are located may be displayed to a user in some manner . in one example , when an image is detected , an icon is displayed over the image , and , when the user hovers over the icon , an overlay is displayed that allows the user to browse the similar images that have been found . in one example , the images that are provided for browsing in the overlay are chosen to be of higher resolution than the original image that appeared in the content , although the images may be chosen based on any criteria . in the overlay , the browsable images may be provided in reduced form ( e . g ., as thumbnails ); the user may select one of the thumbnails in order to see the detailed , larger version of the image . when the user is finished browsing images , the overlay may disappear from the interface , thereby returning the user to the original content that he or she was viewing . turning now to the drawings , fig1 shows an example of content 102 that may contain an image , and in which the techniques provided here may be used . in the example shown , content 102 is a web page , although content 102 could take other forms . for example , content 102 could be a screen of content displayed by an application , such as a search application , an image management application , etc . content 102 contains various content components , such as one or more of text 104 , audio link 106 , and image 108 . the foregoing are examples of content components , since content 102 could contain any types of content components . while image 108 is merely one example of a content component , for the purpose of the subject matter herein it may be treated in a specific way . in particular , software on the device on which content 102 is being displayed may analyze content 102 and detect the presence of image 108 . in one example , the content is being viewed through a browser , and the software that detects the presence of an image is a plug - in or control in the browser , or the browser software itself ; however , it will be understood that these examples are non - limiting . there are various ways to detect the presence of image 108 in content 102 . in one example , image 102 is identified through the existence of a link to an image file ( e . g ., a file with an extension such as “. jpg ”). in another example , image 108 is embedded in the content and can be identified through analysis of the content . the subject matter herein covers all appropriate ways of detecting the presence of image 108 . once the presence of image 108 is detected , hook 110 may be displayed over or near image 108 . in the example shown , hook 110 takes the form of a plus sign , although other symbols ( e . g ., a magnifying glass , a spotlight , etc .) could be used . hook 110 can be activated by an appropriate user interface ( ui ) mechanism — e . g ., clicking , tapping , hovering , etc . in one example , hook 110 is activated by the user &# 39 ; s hovering over hook 110 with a pointing mechanism for some amount of time . in the example shown in fig1 , image 108 is of seattle &# 39 ; s space needle . thus , a system that implements the subject matter herein may search for other images of space needle , and may present these images in an overlay . an example of such an overlay is shown in fig2 . fig2 shows the content 102 from fig1 , partially occluded by overlay 202 . in the example shown , overlay 202 is opaque and completely obscures the region of content 102 that coincides with overlay 202 , although overlay 202 could have an arbitrary degree of transparency . e . g ., overlay 202 could have a 50 % level of transparency that allows a version of content 102 to be shown through overlay 202 . overlay 202 shows one or more images 204 , which have been determined ( though a process described below ) to be images of the same object shown in image 108 ( shown in fig1 ). thus , images 204 , in this example , are images of space needle . in the non - limiting example shown , images 204 are shown at thumbnail size . in the ui of overlay 202 , one of the images is highlighted , which , in this example , is image 206 . overlay 202 may include a legend 208 , which identifies the highlighted image . in this example , legend 202 identifies the highlighted image as being “ space needle wallpaper 1600 × 1200 .” in the example shown , legend 208 identifies the resolution 210 of the highlighted image , which may aid the non - limiting goal of helping the user to find higher - resolution or higher - quality images than that which appear in the original content . overlay 202 may also show image 212 , which is a larger version of the highlighted image . the user may change which image is being highlighted by scrolling through images 204 ( e . g ., clicking or hovering over other images , using a wheel on a pointing device , using keyboard arrows , etc ., to move through these images ). when the user changes the highlighted image , the legend may change to indicate the currently - highlighted image , and the image that is shown in large form may also change to match the highlighted image . overlay 202 may also include a closing ui element 212 ( such as an “ x ”, as shown in the example of fig2 ), which allows the user to close the overlay . when the user closes or minimizes the overlay , the overlay may disappear from the screen , thereby allowing the user to return to viewing the original content 102 ( shown in fig1 ). fig3 shows an example process that may be used to perform enhanced image viewing . at 302 , an image is received as part of some content . the content may be a web page , or may be some other type of content , such as a unit of information delivered by any type of application . at 304 , a query that retrieves the image is created . the query may be constructed so that the image from the content appears at or near the top of the search results when the query is executed . ( in one example , the query is constructed with the goal of producing the original image as the top result . in another example , the query is constructed with the goal of producing the image as one of the top n results , where n can be any number , of which n = 3 is a non - limiting example .) constructing a query with this goal is a way of ensuring that the query is an appropriate match for the image , and is likely to retrieve similar images . it is noted that the query may be constructed with this goal in mind , irrespective of whether the query is executed . thus , the act of constructing a query that , when executed , retrieves a particular image at or near the top of the search results does not imply that the constructed query has ever been executed , or that the query has been determined to achieve its goal . thus , the act of constructing a query that , when executed , retrieves a particular image , temporally followed by the act of executing the query , is not an internally inconsistent sequence of actions . the act of constructing such a query merely implies that the query has been constructed toward the goal , but the query may or may not have been executed or tested at that time . at 306 , the query is used to perform a search on an image database . it is at this time that the query may actually be executed . it is noted that the automatic identification of an image within content , the automatic construction of a query to retrieve similar images , and the presentation of the retrieved images in an overlay ( such as the overlay described above ) has the effect of reducing the user &# 39 ; s physical interaction with the computer or other device . for example , the user can perform fewer keystrokes , fewer mouse clicks , and fewer taps , swipes , or other gestures , while still finding images other than those presented in the content that the user is viewing . at 308 , an overlay is provided that displays the images retrieved in the search , including , possibly , the original image . an example of what such an overlay may look like is shown in fig2 , and is described above . at 310 , one or more commands are received from users , where the commands indicate what images are to be shown . for example , with reference to the overlay shown in fig2 , a user might select one of the thumbnails , indicating that the user wants to see a large version of the thumbnail that is being clicked . such clicking is a non - limiting example of a command . at 312 , the image that has been clicked is shown . fig4 shows an example scenario in which image viewing is enhanced . image 108 appears in some content item , such as a web page . image 108 is provided to query generator 402 , which generates query 404 . query 404 is constructed with the goal of creating a query that , when executed by a search engine , will cause image 108 to appear at or near the top of the search results . ( as noted above , query 404 can be constructed with this goal regardless of whether query 404 has ever actually been executed to test whether it achieves this goal .) there are various ways of constructing query 404 to achieve this goal , but one way is to use machine learning ( block 406 ) to find a relationship between images and the queries that retrieve those images , and then to use the learned parameters to generate the query based on the input image . one consideration that may be taken into account in generating the query is to avoid over - specification of the query ( block 408 ). for example , if image 108 is an image of space needle that was taken on oct . 1 , 2013 , then a search for “ space needle 10 / 1 / 2013 ” will likely generate that image as a top search result . however , if the goal is to find other images of space needle , then that query is too specific ; the goal is to find a general query that still generates an image of space needle as the top search result . once query 404 has been generated ( either by the technique described above , or by any other technique ), query 404 is provided to search engine 410 . search engine 410 then performs a search on query 404 to find images from a database of images ( e . g ., a database of images available on the internet , a proprietary database , etc .). those images include image 108 and other images 412 . the images are then presented in a user interface ( block 414 ). the overlay discussed above in connection with fig2 is a non - limiting example of such a user interface . fig5 shows an example environment in which aspects of the subject matter described herein may be deployed . computer 500 includes one or more processors 502 and one or more data remembrance components 504 . processor ( s ) 502 are typically microprocessors , such as those found in a personal desktop or laptop computer , a server , a handheld computer , a wireless phone , a tablet , a set top box , or another kind of computing device . data remembrance component ( s ) 504 are components that are capable of storing data for any length of time . examples of data remembrance component ( s ) 504 include hard disks , removable disks ( including optical and magnetic disks ), volatile and non - volatile random - access memory ( ram ), read - only memory ( rom ), flash memory , magnetic tape , etc . data remembrance component ( s ) are examples of computer - readable storage media . computer 500 may comprise , or be associated with , display 512 , which may be a cathode ray tube ( crt ) monitor , a liquid crystal display ( lcd ) monitor , or any other type of monitor . software may be stored in the data remembrance component ( s ) 504 , and may execute on the one or more processor ( s ) 502 . an example of such software is image experience enhancement software 506 , which may implement some or all of the functionality described above in connection with fig1 - 4 , although any type of software could be used . software 506 may be implemented , for example , through one or more components , which may be components in a distributed system , separate files , separate functions , separate objects , separate lines of code , etc . a computer ( e . g ., personal computer , server computer , handheld computer , etc .) in which a program is stored on one or more data - remembrance components ( such as a hard disk , dvd , rom , etc . ), loaded into ram , and executed on the computer &# 39 ; s processor ( s ) typifies the scenario depicted in fig5 , although the subject matter described herein is not limited to this example . the subject matter described herein can be implemented as software that is stored in one or more of the data remembrance component ( s ) 504 and that executes on one or more of the processor ( s ) 502 . as another example , the subject matter can be implemented as instructions that are stored on one or more computer - readable media . such instructions , when executed by a computer or other machine ( e . g ., a phone , a set - top box , an automotive on - screen console , etc . ), may cause the computer or other machine to perform one or more acts of a method . the instructions to perform the acts could be stored on one medium , or could be spread out across plural media , so that the instructions might appear collectively on the one or more computer - readable media , regardless of whether all of the instructions happen to be on the same medium . computer - readable ( or device - readable ) media includes , at least , two types of computer - readable media , namely computer storage media and communication media . likewise , device - readable media includes , at least , two types of device - readable media , namely device storage media and communication media . computer storage media ( or device storage media ) includes volatile and non - volatile , removable and non - removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information such as computer readable instructions , data structures , program modules , or other data . computer storage media ( and device storage media ) includes , but is not limited to , ram , rom , eeprom , flash memory or other memory technology , cd - rom , digital versatile disks ( dvd ) or other optical storage , magnetic cassettes , magnetic tape , magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices , or any other non - transmission medium that may be used to store information for access by a computer or other type of device . in contrast , communication media may embody computer readable instructions , data structures , program modules , or other data in a modulated data signal , such as a carrier wave , or other transmission mechanism . as defined herein , computer storage media does not include communication media . likewise , device storage media does not include communication media . additionally , any acts described herein ( whether or not shown in a diagram ) may be performed by a processor ( e . g ., one or more of processors 502 ) as part of a method . thus , if the acts a , b , and c are described herein , then a method may be performed that comprises the acts of a , b , and c . moreover , if the acts of a , b , and c are described herein , then a method may be performed that comprises using a processor to perform the acts of a , b , and c . in one example environment , computer 500 may be communicatively connected to one or more other devices through network 508 . computer 510 , which may be similar in structure to computer 500 , is an example of a device that can be connected to computer 500 , although other types of devices may also be so connected . in one example , the subject matter herein provides a method of displaying images to a user , where the method comprises using a processor to perform the acts of : receiving a content page that comprises an image , creating a representative query that retrieves said image , using the query to perform a search on an image database , providing an overlay over the content page , the overlay displaying an image retrieved in the search , the overlay also providing access to other images retrieved in the search , and receiving commands from a user to show images , and showing the images in accordance with said commands . the representative query may be created such that said representative query , when searched by a search engine , returns said image as a top result . the method may further comprise testing the representative query with a search engine to determine whether the representative query returns the image as the top result . the representative query may be created such that the representative query , when searched by a search engine , returns the image as one of the top three results . the method may further comprise using parameters learned by a machine learning component to create the representative query . the method may be created in accordance with a criterion of avoiding over - specification of the representative query . in another example , the subject matter herein may provide a computer - readable medium comprising executable instructions to display images to a user , the executable instructions , when executed by a computer , causing the computer to perform acts comprising receiving a content page that comprises an image , creating a representative query that retrieves the image , using the query to perform a search on an image database , providing an interface that displays the image and that also provides access to other images retrieved in the search , and receiving commands from a user to show images , and showing the images in accordance with the commands . the representative query may be created such that the representative query , when searched by a search engine , returns the image as a top result . the representative query may be tested with a search engine to determine whether the representative query returns the image as the top result . the representative query may be created such that the representative query , when searched by a search engine , returns the image as one of the top three results . the acts may comprise using parameters learned by a machine learning component to create the representative query . the representative query may be created in accordance with a criterion of avoiding over - specification of the representative query . the interface may comprise an overlay over the content page , the overlay being provided in response to the user &# 39 ; s activation of a hook . in another example , the subject matter herein may provide a system for displaying images to a user , where the system comprises a memory , a processor , and a component that is stored in the memory , that executes on the processor , the component receiving a content page that comprises an image , the component creating a representative query that retrieves the image , the component using the query to perform a search on an image database , the component providing an interface that displays the image and that also provides access to other images retrieved in the search , and the component receiving commands from a user to show images , and showing the images in accordance with the commands . the representative query may be created such that the representative query , when searched by a search engine , returns the image as a top result . the representative query may be tested with a search engine to determine whether the representative query returns the image as the top result . the representative query may be created such that the representative query , when searched by a search engine , returns the image as one of the top three results . the component may use parameters learned by a machine learning component to create the representative query . the representative query may be created in accordance with a criterion of avoiding over - specification of the representative query . the interface may comprise an overlay over the content page , the overlay being provided in response to the user &# 39 ; s activation of a hook . although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts , it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above . rather , the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims .

6Physics

fig4 is a schematic plan view showing an embodiment of the reactor of this invention . as seen from fig4 the reactor has an unprocessed wafer storing first box 21 , a pre - processing furnace 22 , a deposition furnace 23 , and a processed wafer storing second box 24 , as well as a load lock chamber 20 maintained in a vacuum state . the load lock chamber 20 can be communicated with or sealed from each of the boxes 21 and 24 and furnaces 22 and 23 . the first box 21 is used for storing an unprocessed wafer w1 before the vapor phase growth ( epitaxial growth ). the pre - processing furnace 22 is used for removing a native oxide film on the surface of a wafer w2 . the deposition furnace 23 is used for growing an epitaxial layer on the surface of a wafer w3 . the second box 24 is used for storing a processed wafer w4 formed with a grown epitaxial layer . the load lock chamber 20 is always maintained in a vacuum state or in an inactive gas atmosphere . a movable handling robot 25 is mounted within the load lock chamber 20 . this robot 25 transfers a wafer to and from each chamber 21 to 24 . air - tight doors 21a to 24a are provided between the load lock chamber 20 and the four chambers 21 to 24 . the load lock chamber 20 can be communicated with or sealed from each of the four chambers 21 to 24 by opening or closing the corresponding one of the four doors 21a to 24a . the unprocessed wafer storing first box 21 has an air - tight door 21b for receiving an unprocessed wafer from the outside , whereas the processed wafer storing second box 24 has an air - tight door 24b for delivering a processed wafer to the outside . suction ports 20a , 21c , 22b , 23b , and 24c provided at the load lock chamber 20 and four chambers 21 to 24 are connected to a vacuum pump 26 via flow changeover valves and the like ( not shown ). the pre - processing furnace 22 and deposition furnace 23 are provided with gas inlet ports 22c and 23c and gas outlet ports 22d and 23d , respectively , for introducing or exhausting a desired type of gas . vapor phase epitaxial layer growth is realized using the reactor constructed as above in the following manner . the load lock chamber 20 is set to a vacuum state after closing the doors 21a to 24a . the door 21b is opened , and an unprocessed wafer w1 is introduced from the outside into the first box 21 . after the door 21b is closed , the first box 21 is set to a vacuum state . thereafter , the door 21a is opened and the handling robot 25 is caused to move the wafer w1 to the pre - processing chamber 22 already in the vacuum state . the wafer w2 in the pre - processing furnace 22 is placed on a disk susceptor ( made of , e . g ., a carbon base material with sic coated over it ). hydrogen , or hydrogen and hf , or hydrogen and hcl are introduced into the furnace 22 via the inlet port 22c . the wafer w2 is then heated up to about 1050 ° c . in a hydrogen atmosphere by means of radiation heating , and maintained in this condition for one or two minutes . the native oxide film on the surface of the wafer w2 is thereby removed through hydrogen reduction . the above - described radiation heating is performed by halogen lamps ( indicated at 48 in fig6 ), or resistive heaters , or the like mounted outside of the pre - processing furnace 22 made of quartz . thereafter , heating by the halogen lamps or the like is stopped to lower the temperature of the wafer w2 , and the handling robot 25 is caused to move the wafer w2 via the door 23a into the deposition furnace 23 previously scavenged . the details of the deposition furnace 23 are shown schematically in fig5 . a vessel 32 constituting a deposition chamber 31 is formed with an - inlet port 23c at the top portion and with outlet ports 23d at the bottom portion . within this chamber 31 , there is rotatably mounted a shaft 33 to which a susceptor 35 is fixedly connected . the wafer w3 is placed on the susceptor 35 and held in position within a wafer mounting recess 35a formed in the surface of the susceptor 35 . the susceptor 35 is heated by a resistive heater ( e . g ., carbon heater ) 34 mounted immediately below the susceptor 35 . the carbon heater 34 is used because of its high thermal conductivity . the wafer w3 is then heated up to about 1000 ° c ., through resistor heating by the resistor heater 34 . thereafter , reaction gas together with carrier gas h 2 ( 10 l / min or slower ) is introduced within the chamber 31 . the reaction gas may be any one of sih 2 cl 2 ( dichlorosilane ), sihcl 3 ( trichlorosilane ), and sih 4 ( monosilane ). at this time , the wafer w3 is subjected to high speed rotation in the order of 1000 to 3000 rpm . this high speed rotation provides a thin uniform thickness of a gas stagnant layer on the surface of the wafer w3 . in order to prevent turbulence generation within the deposition furnace 23 , the pressure is reduced to equal or lower than 100 torr in advance as shortly stated before . after a lapse of a period required for growing an epitaxial layer of a predetermined thickness in the vapor phase , the reaction gas flow is intercepted , and the carbon heater 34 is turned off to lower the temperature of the wafer w3 . after the chamber 31 is set to a vacuum state , the robot is caused to pick up the processed wafer w3 via the opened door 23a and move it to the second box 24 in the vacuum state via the opened door 24a . in the above manner , a series of vapor phase growing processes for one wafer is completed . such processes are sequentially repeated for other wafers for the vapor phase growth thereof . a certain number of processed wafers w4 are moved to the outside via the opened door 24b , while closing the door 24a . with the above - described vapor phase growth , a maximum vapor phase growth rate of 10 m / min can be obtained . therefore , while considering the time required for lowering and raising the temperature of a wafer , it takes about less than 10 minutes to execute a series of processes for an epitaxial layer having a thickness of 10 μm for example . fig6 shows a particular example of the structure of the reactor shown in fig4 . in fig6 like elements to those shown in fig4 and 5 are represented by using identical reference numerals and symbols . in fig6 the shaft 33 is supported by a bearing 43 , and rotated by a motor 41 via a gear train 42 . the shaft 33 has a hollow central portion . lead wires 44 for passing heating current are guided within this hollow portion to be connected to the heater 34 mounted within a hollow portion of the susceptor 35 . the handling robot 25 picks up the wafer w2 on the susceptor 47 within the pre - processing chamber 22 , and conveys it onto the susceptor 35 within the vapor phase chamber 23 . according to the embodiment of this invention , the following advantageous effects can be obtained . the wafer w3 within the - deposition chamber 23 is rotated at high speed . therefore , a high precision equal to or lower than +/- 2 % of the layer thickness uniformity can be achieved at a low carrier flow rate of 10 l / min . this flow rate is equal to or lower than about one tenth a conventional flow rate . furthermore , a vapor phase growth speed of 10 m / min can be obtained which is equal to or faster than a two - fold conventional by available maximum speed . accordingly , less than 10 minutes per one wafer is possible as the growth cycle time per one wafer . thus , the vapor phase wafer growth ability per one deposition furnace becomes more than 6 wafers per hour . if three deposition furnaces are used , it becomes 18 wafers per hour , which is an ability two times or more as great as a conventional batch type deposition furnace for 6 inch or 8 inch wafers . still further , since a native oxide film is removed at the pre - processing furnace , a low deposition temperature about 1000 ° c . or lower can be used , so that there is almost no generation of slip or dislocation otherwise caused by thermal stress , irrespective of the speed of lowering and raising the temperature of a wafer . thus , a vapor phase growing process can be performed in a short time . the productivity for a large wafer having a diameter of , e . g ., 8 inches or larger can be improved considerably , with reduced gas flow and power consumption and with greatly reduced epitaxial layer growth cost . in the above embodiment , a high temperature h 2 reduction method has been used for removing a native oxide film on the surface of a wafer . instead of this method , an ion sputtering method or an hf vapor phase etching method may also be used .

2Chemistry; Metallurgy

fig1 shows a basic cascaded mounting embodiment . three layers are shown but the invention is not limited to a specific number of layers . beginning with the first layer 1 , a metal such as copper alloy with other appropriate thermal expansion controlling material such as a piece of ceramics , carbon foam , or low expansion alloy to form a direct metal bond substrate is used as a conducting plate 11 . optional features such as modifying the conducting plates 11 , 12 , 13 with an array of small holes that enable an array of thin wires going through the thermal expansion controlling material , resulting in another option of matching thermal expansion with the dies . the semiconductor switches 6 and diodes 4 dies are metallically bonded to a surface of the conducting plate 11 to form the first layer 1 . the semiconductor switches can have built - in diodes . wirebonds 7 are used at interconnecting wiring contact points . the second layer 2 consists of three separate small conducting plates 12 . one surface of each small conducting plate 12 has a set of a switch 6 , and a diode 4 metallically bonded to it . each three - phase power leg 8 , 9 , and 10 is connected to a separate small conducting plate 12 . the third layer is a conducting plate 13 . the three plates are mounted in a cascaded form with sufficient spacing between the layers for liquid refrigerant to flow through and for bubbles formed by refrigerant nucleate boiling to be rapidly expelled by the moving liquid refrigerant . fig2 shows the basic cascaded mounting embodiment with spring - loaded contacts 29 . there are three cascaded layers 21 , 22 , 23 . on the first layer 21 , the dies of switches 30 and diodes 32 are placed on a thermal expansion controlled conducting plate 33 to form the first layer 21 . bonding material can be distributed on the conducting plate 33 prior to component placement . the second layer 22 consists of three separate small conducting plates 34 . on the lower surface of each small conducting plate 34 , a sufficient number of fine spring - loaded contacts 29 are disposed between each small conducting plate 34 and a switch 30 / diode 32 on the upper surface of the first layer 21 . there can be bonding material distributed on the small conducting plates 34 prior to assembly . the number of spring - loaded contacts 29 is determined by the permissible current density of the contacts and the required distribution on the die 30 . the upper surface of each small conducting plate 34 has a switch 30 / diode 32 disposed on the upper surface with or without use of a bonding material . the third conducting plate 35 has spring - loaded contacts 29 disposed between the lower surface of the third conducting plate 35 and each switch 30 / diode 32 on the second layer 22 . the spring - loaded contacts 29 supply contact pressure between each switch 30 / diode 32 and its respective conductive plate mounting . the three layers are assembled together under a predetermined spring load . optionally , metallic bonding of the sufficient number of fine spring - loaded contacts 29 to its respective switch 30 / diode 32 is used . the reasons for sufficient number of fine contacts are to carry sufficiently high current and not to post thermal expansion stress on the dies . there must be sufficient clearance to perform metallic bonding once the layers are assembled . for example , metallic bonding could be performed using a multiple - finger ultrasonic bonding head to create metallic bonds between the spring - loaded contacts 29 and switches 30 or diodes 32 . alternatively , a laser could be utilized for the multiple - finger bonding . another option would be placing the assembly in an oven under proper environment control to bond the switches 30 and diodes 32 to the fine spring - loaded contacts . it would be necessary to ensure the oven &# 39 ; s operating temperature did not exceed the temperature specifications of the switches 30 and diodes 32 . there are many possible methods for assembling the conducting plates . the distance between the layers is determined by ( 1 ) the required spring loads for the proper operation of the contacts , ( 2 ) the clearance for a self adjustment of the spring loads , ( 3 ) the sufficient clearance available between the layers for the liquid refrigerant to flow and for the bubbles to be rapidly expelled by the moving liquid refrigerant , ( 4 ) the mechanical integrity of the mounting structure , and ( 5 ) the tolerable maximum stray inductance of the spring contacts for specific applications . as an example , the mounting can be a structure consisting of two or more insulation bolts 25 per small conducting plate . each bolt penetrates the three layers with given insulation spacers situated between the layers for a predetermined spring load . nuts at an end of the insulation bolt 25 can be used to draw the conducting plates together . other mounting parts determined by specific application can be used for assembly . fig3 illustrates three views of a small conducting plate 34 using spring - loaded contacts 29 with or without metallic bonds . the spring - loaded contacts 29 are extended out from the copper alloy of the conducting plate 45 . bonding material can be distributed on the conducting plate 45 prior to assembly . only if needed the edges 41 of the copper alloy plate may be folded to increase the rigidity during manufacturing process . each individual spring of the spring - loaded contact 29 can be self adjusted by the bending of their spring arms 42 . an assembly guide 44 is included to allow the small conducting plate 34 sufficient freedom of movement for the self - adjustment of the spring load in the spring - loaded contacts 29 . a three - layer assembly similar to that shown in fig2 can be fabricated using this technique . the fine spring - loaded contacts 29 can be constructed with metallic bonds using ( a ) multiple - head ultrasonic bonding techniques , ( b ) laser bonding , or ( c ) oven bonding . fig4 shows an insulated holder 57 attached to a stamped tab 56 to extend a spring contact 51 to the gate 31 of a switch 30 or other isolated points . a conductive lead 55 for bringing out the gate control can be attached to the spring contact 51 . since all spring contacts 51 are precisely located after the cascaded mounting is assembled , it is possible to incorporate a reasonably simple step to bond the spring contacts 51 to a gate 31 or other isolated points with a bonding material 52 . bonding will prevent fatigue of the springs . fig5 shows the silicon switch 30 and diode 32 dies in position to mount directly onto the conducting plate 45 with the thermal expansion controlling material 58 bonded to the back side of the conducting plate 45 to thermally stabilize the plate and decrease thermal stress on the silicon die . the thermal expansion controlling material 58 can be a ceramic , low expansion metal , graphite foam , or other suitable material . fig6 shows the silicon switch 30 and diode 32 dies in position to mount onto a slotted conducting plate 59 with the thermal expansion controlling material 58 bonded to the back side of the slotted conducting plate 59 to thermally stabilize the plate and decrease thermal stress on the silicon die . various slot geometries 60 can be used to match thermal growth of the silicon dies 30 , 32 to the slotted conducting plate 59 . the thermal expansion controlling material 58 can be a ceramic , low expansion metal , graphite foam , or other suitable material . fig7 shows a three - phase , three - leg embodiment of the invention having semiconductor switches 62 cascade - mounted onto a triangular inner structure 63 . the triangular inner structure 63 supports lower switches of the phase legs and also serves as a positive dc link terminal . spring - loaded and soldered contacts 64 can be used in this embodiment . a hexagonal outer structure 61 also serves as a negative dc link terminal . fig8 is a diagram of a four leg cascade inverter embodiment having four ( 4 ) copper conductor bars 71 for output connections supported , for example , on an insulated base behind the cascade mounts . the cascade segment 73 shows a two layer silicon die stack with the outer cylinder contacts not shown . the outer dc link cylinder 72 and the inner dc link 74 feed dc power to the silicon dies . the dc power is then modified by the silicon dies to produce ac power on the four output copper conductor bars 71 . an insulating sleeve 75 is provided between the phases and dc link . the embodiments shown are suitable for generating up to four - phase output power however two - phase or other number of phases output power is generated by providing additional legs in the device . while there has been shown and described what are at present considered the preferred embodiments of the invention , it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope .

7Electricity

the described embodiments define systems and methods that provide customers superior prediction capabilities that can be readily customized to aid their decision making process in a variety of areas , for example , fraud scoring . the described embodiments are extendible to support the entire financial transaction card lifecycle including approvals , increasing card credit limits , bankruptcy , adaptive behavior control , and government compliance ( e . g ., with u . s government gao ). in addition , the described embodiments are further extendible to beyond financial card products to include areas such as a health care card that aids in benefits eligibility checks , patient fraud , doctor fraud , and identity takeover . the described prediction capability is achieved by partnering with various providers and utilizing both enterprise and external data sources . such systems , and the accompanying methods , provide a single , centralized solution for decision making . while many companies implement a single fraud scoring engine , the described decisioning system embodiments provide a highly flexible platform that facilitates scoring across multiple scoring engines . in addition , the described platform provides a plug and play type architecture with the technical effect of integrating these vendor fraud scoring products with pluggable input sources ( e . g ., input channels ) and output delivery mechanisms . the following paragraphs describe the linking together of these various components into an overall comprehensive decisioning system , or platform . implementation of such a system features a flexible , work flow based approach for accessing component plug - ins . in one example , mastercard &# 39 ; s authorization service architecture ( asa ), provides for the transfer and reception of financial transaction card transaction data in real time . if the financial transaction card is used at a merchant ( swiped ), the transaction data is sent to the merchant &# 39 ; s bank called the acquirer bank . in one practical example , the transaction data is then sent over banknet ® ( banknet is a registered trademark of mastercard international incorporated , purchase , n . y .) to the asa and on to the system for scoring . upon generation of a score , that score is sent back through the asa and onto the financial transaction card issuer where they approve or decline the proposed transaction , taking into account the scoring provided from the financial transaction card network . stated more simply , the issuer can take into account fraud scores , in real - time , to approve or decline transactions . the described embodiments relate to an architecture that provides a type of plug and play capability for the incorporation of multiple transaction scoring engines . in use , the financial transaction card network receives messages containing transaction data at which point it is determined how to process the data . for example , some preprocessing might be done to enrich , transform , and filter the transaction data as described herein . other customers ( e . g ., card issuers ) may only want certain types of transaction scores , such as those coming from high risk merchants . another component of the described embodiments relates to case management . when a transaction scores high , in terms of fraud or risk , the card issuer may decide to open a case for further investigation . the described embodiments allow a user to plug in different vendor provided case management solutions . from the customer ( card issuer ) perspective , they are able to report or access new reporting on their data or directly access the case management system . the described embodiments relate to making each piece of the described decisioning platform such as the input , scoring , case management , and output pluggable . multiple plug - ins can be incorporated for the pre - processing of transaction data , for example , to provide one or more of filtering , transformation , data enrichment , etc . in one embodiment , a computer program is provided , and the program is embodied on a computer readable medium and utilizes a structured query language ( sql ) with a client user interface front - end for administration and a web interface for standard user input and reports . in an exemplary embodiment , the system is web enabled and is run on a business - entity intranet . in yet another embodiment , the system is fully accessed by individuals having an authorized access outside the firewall of the business - entity through the internet . in yet another embodiment , the system is run on a mainframe environment and a unix ® server environment ( unix is a registered trademark of at & amp ; t , new york , n . y .). in a further exemplary embodiment , the system is being run in a windows ® environment ( windows is a registered trademark of microsoft corporation , redmond , wash .). the application is flexible and designed to run in various different environments without compromising any major functionality . the systems and processes are not limited to the specific embodiments described herein . in addition , components of each system and each process can be practiced independent and separate from other components and processes described herein . each component and process also can be used in combination with other assembly packages and processes . fig1 is a flowchart 20 illustrating a typical financial transaction using a financial transaction card payment system . the present invention is related to a financial transaction card payment system , such as a credit card payment system using the mastercard ® interchange . the mastercard ® interchange is a proprietary communications standard promulgated by mastercard international ® incorporated for the exchange of financial transaction data between financial institutions that are members of mastercard international incorporated ®. in a typical financial payment system , a financial institution called the “ issuer ” issues a financial transaction card , such as a credit card , to a consumer , who uses the financial transaction card to tender payment for a purchase from a merchant . to accept payment with the financial transaction card , the merchant must normally establish an account with a financial institution that is part of the financial payment system . this financial institution is usually called the “ merchant bank ” or the “ acquiring bank ” or “ acquirer bank .” when a consumer 22 tenders payment for a purchase with a financial transaction card , the merchant 24 requests authorization from the merchant bank 26 for the amount of the purchase . the request may be performed over the telephone , but is usually performed through the use of a point - of - sale terminal , which reads the consumer &# 39 ; s account information from the magnetic stripe on the financial transaction card and communicates electronically with the transaction processing computers of the merchant bank . alternatively , a merchant bank may authorize a third party to perform transaction processing on its behalf . in this case , the point - of - sale terminal will be configured to communicate with the third party . such a third party is usually called a “ merchant processor ” or an “ acquiring processor .” using the interchange 28 , the computers of the merchant bank or the merchant processor will communicate with the computers of the issuer bank 30 to determine whether the consumer &# 39 ; s account is in good standing and whether the purchase is covered by the consumer &# 39 ; s available credit line . based on these determinations , the request for authorization will be declined or accepted . if the request is accepted , an authorization code is issued to the merchant . when a request for authorization is accepted , the available credit line of consumer &# 39 ; s account 32 is decreased . normally , a charge is not posted immediately to a consumer &# 39 ; s account because bankcard associations , such as mastercard international ® incorporated , have promulgated rules that do not allow a merchant to charge , or “ capture ,” a transaction until goods are shipped or services are delivered . when a merchant ships or delivers the goods or services , the merchant captures the transaction by , for example , appropriate data entry procedures on the point - of - sale terminal . if a consumer cancels a transaction before it is captured , a “ void ” is generated . if a consumer returns goods after the transaction has been captured , a “ credit ” is generated . after a transaction is captured , the transaction is settled between the merchant , the merchant bank , and the issuer . settlement refers to the transfer of financial data or funds between the merchant &# 39 ; s account , the merchant bank , and the issuer related to the transaction . usually , transactions are captured and accumulated into a “ batch ,” which are settled as a group . financial transaction cards or payment cards can refer to credit cards , debit cards , and prepaid cards . these cards can all be used as a method of payment for performing a transaction . as described herein , the term “ financial transaction card ” or “ payment card ” includes cards such as credit cards , debit cards , and prepaid cards , but also includes any other devices that may hold payment account information , such as mobile phones , personal digital assistants ( pdas ), and key fobs . fig2 is a simplified block diagram of an exemplary system 100 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . in one embodiment , system 100 is the financial transaction card payment system shown in fig1 , which can be utilized for providing a decision making platform more specifically , in the example embodiment , system 100 includes a server system 112 , and a plurality of client sub - systems , also referred to as client systems 114 , connected to server system 112 . in one embodiment , client systems 114 are computers including a web browser , such that server system 112 is accessible to client systems 114 using the internet . client systems 114 are interconnected to the internet through many interfaces including a network , such as a local area network ( lan ) or a wide area network ( wan ), dial - in - connections , cable modems and special high - speed isdn lines . client systems 114 could be any device capable of interconnecting to the internet including a web - based phone , personal digital assistant ( pda ), or other web - based connectable equipment . a database server 116 is connected to a database 120 containing information on a variety of matters , as described below in greater detail . in one embodiment , centralized database 120 is stored on server system 112 and can be accessed by potential users at one of client systems 114 by logging onto server system 112 through one of client systems 114 . in an alternative embodiment , database 120 is stored remotely from server system 112 and may be non - centralized . fig3 is an expanded block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of a server architecture of a system 122 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . components in system 122 , identical to components of system 100 ( shown in fig2 ), are identified in fig3 using the same reference numerals as used in fig2 . system 122 includes server system 112 and client systems 114 . server system 112 further includes database server 116 , an application server 124 , a web server 126 , a fax server 128 , a directory server 130 , and a mail server 132 . a disk storage unit 134 is coupled to database server 116 and directory server 130 . servers 116 , 124 , 126 , 128 , 130 , and 132 are coupled in a local area network ( lan ) 136 . in addition , a system administrator &# 39 ; s workstation 138 , a user workstation 140 , and a supervisor &# 39 ; s workstation 142 are coupled to lan 136 . alternatively , workstations 138 , 140 , and 142 are coupled to lan 136 using an internet link or are connected through an intranet . each workstation , 138 , 140 , and 142 is a personal computer having a web browser . although the functions performed at the workstations typically are illustrated as being performed at respective workstations 138 , 140 , and 142 , such functions can be performed at one of many personal computers coupled to lan 136 . workstations 138 , 140 , and 142 are illustrated as being associated with separate functions only to facilitate an understanding of the different types of functions that can be performed by individuals having access to lan 136 . server system 112 is configured to be communicatively coupled to various individuals , including employees 144 and to third parties , e . g ., auditors , 146 using an isp internet connection 148 . the communication in the exemplary embodiment is illustrated as being performed using the internet , however , any other wide area network ( wan ) type communication can be utilized in other embodiments , i . e ., the systems and processes are not limited to being practiced using the internet . in addition , and rather than wan 150 , local area network 136 could be used in place of wan 150 . in the exemplary embodiment , any authorized individual having a workstation 154 can access system 122 . at least one of the client systems includes a manager workstation 156 located at a remote location . workstations 154 and 156 are personal computers having a web browser . also , workstations 154 and 156 are configured to communicate with server system 112 . furthermore , fax server 128 communicates with remotely located client systems , including a client system 156 using a telephone link . fax server 128 is configured to communicate with other client systems 138 , 140 , and 142 as well . the described embodiments provide real - time fraud prediction scoring of authorization messages from an acquirer prior to the forwarding of those messages to the transaction card issuer , and to introduce fraud management into the criteria used by a transaction card issuer when accepting or declining a transaction request . the described decisioning system and its associated methods provide an important market differentiator for a user in the area of fraud and risk management . at least one differentiator occurs in the area of real - time fraud scoring of transactions . specifically , the decisioning system enables the use of fraud prediction information as part of the criteria used by transaction card issuers when processing transaction requests . another differentiator occurs in the area of customization of fraud prediction models . specifically , the decisioning provides services not currently provided in that the creation of real - time fraud prediction models customized for a specific population of fraud patterns is enabled at a greater level of granularity than those currently provided . custom fraud prediction models are executed using embedded environment instances . these models calculate fraud prediction scores using multiple artificial intelligence and other technologies , such as neural networks , case - based reasoning system , data mining , and fuzzy logic . to support the above described real - time fraud prediction scoring of authorization messages from an acquirer , using multiple scoring engines , fig4 is an architectural diagram of a decisioning platform 200 . the decisioning platform 200 , at a high level , includes a plurality of input channels 202 that provide transaction data to a preprocessor 204 . in various specific embodiments , the decisioning system 200 receives input transactions 206 from a variety of input channels 202 . the preprocessor 204 combines the data from the various input channels 202 and provides the combined data to a scoring manager 208 . preprocessing logic within preprocessor 204 transforms , filters , and enriches the received financial card transaction data . the transaction data is then scored by various scoring engines 210 which operate under the control of the scoring manager 208 . the resulting scored transactions are filtered by an output manager 212 and delivered to users of such data via a variety of output channels 214 in appropriate formats . transaction processing is highly flexible since an ability to easily customize , an ability to plug in new components ( e . g ., input channels , output channels , transformations , filters , etc . ), and an ability to plug in best of breed products are all provided via the architecture of decisioning system 200 . in addition , the decisioning system 200 provides business intelligence to improve future decision making capability . referring again to the input channels 202 , the decisioning system 200 provides for the ability to score transactions from input channels 206 , several of which are described below . with respect to asa 0100 authorization messages 220 , for configured account ranges , the decisioning system 200 sends 0100 messages to be scored in real time prior to delivery to an issuer . with respect to banknet 0120 advice messages 222 , for configured customers , banknet 223 sends 0120 scoring request messages after the authorization transaction is completed . in addition , customers may generate these 0120 messages themselves . the 0120 message contains authorization request and response data . these transactions are scored in near real time and the resulting scores are used to determine required investigations . customers may send batch files containing 0120 transactions to be scored via , for example , the mastercard global file transfer ( gft ) 224 . these batch files may contain transactions that are not available on the banknet 223 . in one embodiment , two types of batch file formats are supported , including , 1014 format and 1162 format . 1014 format is the same as risk finder in ebcdic format , and 1162 format is an ascii format . another input channel is an authorization logs 226 input channel . for scenarios where the original transaction was sent on banknet 223 and not scored , the system 200 uses the authorization log transactions 226 to score any previously un - scored transaction , providing the account activity “ velocity counters ” with a complete picture of activity . in addition , the resulting scored transactions may be provided via an output channel 214 . initialization data 228 refers to the boarding of new customers . for these customers , historical transaction data ( initialization data ) is fed into the system 200 . this initialization data 228 is used to establish initial account usage profiles . risk finder 230 refers to an existing scoring system based on a single vendor scoring engine . risk finder transactions are sent to be scored by the system 200 to allow a scoring comparison by customers considering migrating off of the risk finder product . as mentioned above , transactions from the various input channels 202 are routed to the scoring manager 208 which provides format transformation , transaction filtering , data augmentation and routing to the appropriate scoring engine . for example and referring to fig4 , several scoring engines are shown , including the brighterions ™ iprevent ™ scoring engine , fraud mark &# 39 ; s fraud monitor scoring engine , ems ( mastercard &# 39 ; s expert monitoring system ), global analytics scoring engine , and ilog ™ jrules rules engine . the scoring manager 208 routes the transaction to the appropriate scoring engines 210 . for each scoring engine 210 , the scoring manager 208 performs the required message transformations and communicates with the engine 210 to score the transaction . for example , one scoring engine 210 uses a fraud prediction model to determine a score between 1 ( least likely to be fraud ) and 998 ( most likely to be fraud ) for the transaction . this scoring engine is initialized from a model file and a database . the fraud prediction model keeps track of account usage patterns , also called velocity , which is stored in files . the scored transactions are sent to the appropriate output channels 214 . examples of supported output channels 214 include , but are not limited to , asa , banknet , batch files , datacollector , case management , and the initialization and modeling database . for the asa output channel , scores are returned to the asa for inclusion in the 0100 authorization request that is sent to the issuer . for the banknet output channel , customers are sent an 0620 message containing the score for transactions scoring above a threshold . batch files are sent to customers at a regular interval and contain the transactions scoring above a configured threshold . for the data collector output channel , transactions are stored to the database where they are used for various reporting and billing purposes . in addition , the data collector monitors the system service level agreements ( sla ) such as the time to score a transaction for the case management output channel , transactions which exceed a threshold are sent to a case management system . in addition , transactions are stored in a database for future initialization and modeling . still referring to fig4 , a business support analyst has access to at least two mastercard online ( mol ) web applications 240 . mol is mastercard &# 39 ; s customer extranet . first , an administration web application 242 is used to configure the decisioning platform 200 . the system 200 allows the configuration of customers , card bin ranges , scoring models , input and output channels , thresholds , and billing rates . the reporting web application 244 provides scoring analytics which can be used to analyze performance as well as to provide visibility into the system operation and billing . a technical support analyst is able to access the administration web application 242 , reporting web application 244 , and case management application 246 mol web applications as well as the operations monitoring and dashboard 250 . customers are able to access the decisioning platform administration web application 242 , reporting web application 244 , and case management application 246 through a customer portal 252 . the customer portal 252 is exposed via mastercard online ( mol ). on a monthly basis , the system 200 calculates billing for the customers using a billing processor 260 and sends the resulting charges to a mastercard billing system ( mcbs ) 262 . the above described platform scores real time transactions within low latency targets and is able to readily scale for increasing transaction volumes . in addition , model creation and customer boarding times are minimized . while performance is critical , the highest performance is achieved with minimal impact to the maintainability of the system . the scoring platform is an open architecture featuring loosely coupled , pluggable , highly configurable components while readily supporting new input and output channels as well as new scoring engines . the framework for supporting the administration , licensing , billing , monitoring , and reporting functions readily supports such flexibility . fig5 is a diagram illustrating a logical architecture 300 for the above described decisioning system 200 where common components are illustrated with the same reference number as used in previous figures . the logical architecture 300 features a scoring manager 208 which is responsible for processing the transactions . the scoring manager 208 receives transactions from a variety of input channels which include the asa 220 , banknet 223 , batch files , and databases . the asa 220 sends transactions directly to the scoring manager 208 via ibm websphere mq ( mq ). customers &# 39 ; transactions are sent to the scoring manager 208 via banknet 222 . the file consumer 302 reads transactions from files and delivers these transactions to the scoring manager 208 via mq . the file consumer 304 receives customer batch files from gft 224 , risk finder transaction input files from risk finder 230 , and authorization log files 226 . the file consumer 304 watches an input landing zone , reads all delivered files , optionally filters transactions not configured for scoring , and outputs the individual transactions in an mq message . the scoring manager 208 retrieves historical transactions from the initialization and modeling database 306 for customer initializations . in addition , transactions that failed to process correctly will be retrieved from the scoring data database 308 and re - attempted . the scoring manager 208 listens on the input channels 202 via configurable adaptors . for example , a banknet input adaptor establishes a listener on banknet 223 via the mipcomm ( mastercard interface processor communication ) libraries to receive 0120 scoring request , 0630 confirmations , and 0800 login / logout messages . the transactions received from the input channels 202 are then processed using a flexible combination of transformations , filtering , and enrichment including scoring of the transactions using the brighterion iprevent scoring engine . the processing results are delivered via a variety of output channels 214 which include mq message to the asa , mipcomm communication on banknet , mq messages to the file producer , mq messages to a vendor case management system ( or other delivery mechanism ), and sql commands to load data into the scoring database 308 and modeling databases 306 . the scoring manager 208 includes a highly flexible transaction processor that is driven by database configuration data 310 and plug - in components . as an example , a 0120 message received from the banknet adaptor 223 is transformed from the cis0120 format and the account number used to retrieve the customer specific execution plan . table 1 includes example execution plan steps for an example account that is in the bin range of customer a . this same highly flexible transaction processor is also used to implement the file consumer 304 and file producer 302 . for example , the file consumer 304 is configured to read customer batch files from an input landing zone . for each transaction in the file , no transformation is performed but the following execution steps , shown in table 2 , are performed independent of the customer data : fig6 is a logical architecture diagram for a flexible transaction processor ( flextp ) 400 that is utilized in the decisioning platform of fig4 . the main components of the flexible transaction processor 400 are the controller 402 , input channel adaptors 404 , message transformers 406 , execution plan builders 408 , transaction filters 410 , data enrichment processors 412 , and output channel adaptors 414 . the flexible transaction processor 400 features a component plug - in architecture to provide a highly configurable transaction processor . the plug - ins can be added or changed at run time . in one specific implementation , plug - ins are written to be thread - safe so that multiple instances of a plug - in do not need to be constructed to save execution time . the controller 402 is configured to control the execution of the flextp 400 . at startup , the controller 402 logs a start up message to a logging server ( not shown ). the controller 402 then launches the configured plug - ins for the input channel adaptor 404 . the number of threads and priority of each adaptor 404 is configurable . the input channel adaptor 404 receives transactions from the configured input channel , creates an internal message to hold the unparsed transaction and input channel information which is then returned to the controller 402 . if the input message type is configured for a transformation , the controller 402 invokes the transform service ( message transformers 406 ) with an internal message object and the configured transformation type . the message transformers 406 looks up the appropriate transformation plug - in and use the plug - in to create the appropriate parsed transaction data object ( e . g ., 0100 , 0120 , 0100 + 0100 ), includes this parsed transaction data object in the internal message object and returns the internal message object to the controller 402 . the controller 402 then invokes the execution plan builders 408 with the configured builder name and the internal message object . the execution plan builder 408 looks up the appropriate builder plug - in and uses it to create an execution plan for the transaction . the execution plan builder 408 then includes the execution plan in the internal message object and returns it to the controller 402 . if the transaction fails the message transformation step or the execution plan builder step , the controller 402 executes the configured failure execution plan . using this execution plan , the controller 402 then invokes the specified transformations , transaction filters 410 , enrichment processors 412 ( including scoring engines ), and output delivery channels 414 as specified by the execution plan . for each step , the controller 402 passes the internal message object and the appropriate configurations to the component service . the component service looks up the appropriate plug - in and uses it to perform the appropriate processing , includes any new or altered data in the internal message object , and returns it to the controller 402 . each component returns an indication of its success or failure which is used by the controller 402 to manage the execution of the message . if the controller 402 receives an error at any processing step , it should execute the failure execution plan for that step . if any transaction filter 410 does not pass , the controller 402 executes the filter alternate flow instead of the planned execution flow . in one embodiment , the controller 402 executes all tasks sequentially . in alternative embodiments , the controller 402 includes a capability to process some steps in parallel . this “ parallel processing ” is accomplished using separate worker threads for each parallel task and waiting for all tasks to complete prior to continuing . when properly configured , the controller 402 executes within a unit of work . for example , the entire set of processing from accepting a transaction from an input channel 404 through to delivery to an output channel 414 should be performed within the same transactional unit of work . if any problems are encountered , the unit of work is rolled back . this capability is required for transaction flows that require 100 % processing without dropping any transactions in the event of a failure . while this might result in some transactions going through part of the processing twice , this insures that all transactions are successfully processed . the controller 402 also provides an ability to gracefully shutdown . to accomplish such a shutdown , all threads should complete their unit of work and not start processing any new transactions . when all threads have completed their processing , the controller 402 logs a shut down message and ends the processing . any errors not specific to a single transaction are logged via the above mentioned logging server ( not shown in fig6 ). errors isolated to a single transaction ( e . g ., missing data required for scoring ), are included in the execution plan status for the appropriate step . if configured , the data collector 214 ( shown in fig4 ) will save this information to the database . in one specific embodiment , the controller 402 is implemented as a daemon process , and periodically polls its configurations . if any changes are detected , it reconfigures as appropriate and logs an information message . also , the controller 402 listens on a control command queue using an mq input adaptor . the following control commands are supported : graceful shutdown request , forced shutdown request , pause request , resume request and log thread status . in regard to a graceful shutdown request , after each thread is finished with processing the current transaction , the controller should stop the thread . when all threads are stopped , the controller 402 shuts down . for a forced shutdown request , the controller 402 interrupts any processing threads and shuts down immediately . for a pause request , after each thread is finished with processing the current transaction , it should pause until a resume request is received . for a resume request , the processing of any paused threads is resumed . for log thread status , the controller 402 logs information about how many threads are running , their priority , status , etc . plug - ins associated with the input channel adaptor 404 are used to receive transactions . abstract input channel protocol adaptors are defined , as shown in fig6 , to support mq listeners , file input landing zones , database readers , and banknet communications via mipcomm . these abstract protocol adaptors provide helper methods for interacting with the specific protocol . they are extended by input channel adaptor plug - ins ( e . g ., asa mq input adaptor ) which provide an ability to identify the specific input channel messages and create the internal message object which includes the appropriate input channel information as well as the unparsed transaction data . each input channel adaptor listens on the specific input channel for transactions , constructs an internal message object to hold each transaction , and passes the internal message to the controller 402 for processing . a log message is generated and sent to the logging server for appropriate events such as startup / shutdown of the listener , any messages returned by the adaptor at startup and shutdown , or any non - transaction specific errors . the mq listener input channel establishes the configured number of threads as listeners on the configured mq queue name and queue manager name . the mq header information is included in the internal message as input channel specific information . this includes the reply to queue and queue manager name . if the internal message cannot establish itself as a mq listener or failures stop it from listening , it will attempt to reestablish itself as a listener . if unsuccessful , it will periodically reattempt after waiting a configurable interval . the mq message is passed to an abstract method which returns an internal message object . this method is implemented by each plug - in , including the asa plug - in , the rf plug - in , the authorization logs plug - ins , the customer files plug - in , and the control command plug - in . with respect to a file input landing zone input channel , the configured number of threads watching for files to arrive in the specified location / directory is established . to accomplish this , the input channel regularly polls the input landing zone ( s ) for files to arrive at a configured interval . when a file arrives , the adaptor determines if the file name matches any configured regular expression to determine if it should be processed . if there is a file name match , the adaptor will insure that this file has not already been processed based on a processed files database table . if the files do not pass these checks , they will not be processed and removed from the input landing zone . if the files do pass these checks , a record of the file is added to the processed files database table . in one embodiment , this database table includes a filename , a file creation date / time ( e . g ., when it was received from gft ), a customer id , a path name , a file status ( processing , duplicate , filtered out , completed , error ), a processing start time , a processing end time , a listener name , a consumer name , a transaction count , a last checkpoint id , and a last checkpoint timestamp . each transaction is then read from the file and sent to the controller 402 . the listener is configured , in one embodiment , to ignore any header or trailer data in the file . the file name and any important information in the header / trailer is included in the input channel specific information in the internal message object on all transactions in the file . the process should implement a configurable throttle to control the rate at which messages are placed on the queue so as to not swamp the system . after processing all transactions in a file , the process updates the processed file record to indicate a successful processing of the file , and sends a log message to the logging server to indicate the file was successfully processed . in addition , a performance log message is sent which includes the file name , the number of transactions processed , the processing start time , and the processing end time . the listener is configured such that no two threads attempt to process the same file . in addition , the process is written to be fail - safe by insuring that every transaction in every file that is not filtered out is delivered to the input queue at least one time . some level of duplicate delivery is acceptable as the decisioning platform will eliminate duplicates . to accomplish this duplicate elimination , the process saves a check point every configurable number of transactions for failure accommodation . if a failure occurs during file processing and the process is restarted , processing starts again at the same file , at the last check point . this strategy insures all transactions are processed and placed on the queue while minimizing the number of resends in the event of a failure . when processing of the file is finished , it is moved out of the input landing zone to the completed / archive directory . the entries in this processed file table are purged on a regularly configured basis to only retain for a pre - defined period of time . in one embodiment , the following file input landing zone plug - ins are utilized and include authorization logs files , risk finder parallel scoring files , and customer batch files . with regard to the database reader input channel , this listener is configured to periodically execute a configured query against a database at a specified interval . the query returns a set of transactions which are then sent individually to the controller 402 . the database reader input channel keeps track of which transactions have been successfully processed and which are able to recover from a failure . to accomplish this transaction monitoring , the result set is limited to a configurable amount and a configurable throttle ( e . g ., a wait time ) is used . the query is ordered by date / time and a checkpoint row id is saved after each block of transactions is processed . for the database reader input channel , the following plug - ins are supported in one embodiment , and include an initialization data loader plug - in , a retry data plug - in , and an mtf parallel score . a banknet mipcomm input channel adaptor establishes listeners on the configured banknet queues using the mipcomm libraries . the following plug - ins are used in one embodiment , and include an input message queue — for receive 0120 , 0630 , & amp ; 0800 messages and a process negative queue , where a listener is established that reports any issues with messages sent out by the decisioning system and correlated with the banknet reference number . this information is saved in the scored transaction database . fig7 is a diagram 500 showing one embodiment of a class structure for the input channels . with regard to message transformers 406 , a message transform service accepts an internal message object and a transformation type . the service looks up the specified transformation plug - in and uses it to create a new transaction . the message transformations use a plug - in design , and transformation plug - ins conforming to the transformation api will be developed . the following transformation plug - ins have been developed and include asa es request with cis0100 , cis0120 , jlog ( e . g ., cis0100 + 0110 ), ascii0120 , and xml internal format in one embodiment , the authorization systems &# 39 ; ncslib is used to perform cis message transformations . the ncslib is a 32 bit c program . to work with java , a jni interface is used and the java application is compiled and run with the 32 bit option . running the flex tp java application in 32 bit mode is not expected to have any negative impact as high precision arithmetic is not required . a positive benefit is that it will result in a smaller memory footprint . the xml internal format conversion is performed using the xstream xml parser which is a high performance parser made for transaction processing . the plug - in architecture described herein also supports definition of plug - in specific transaction objects ( e . g ., 0100 , 0120 transaction data , 0100 and 0120 ). new transaction data types can easily be added using this mechanism . referring to fig8 , and with regard to internal message formats , the flextp architecture of fig6 uses the internal message object illustrated in fig8 to pass messages between the components . in the illustrated embodiment , the flextp message object contains one input channel object that contains information about how the transaction arrived , one execution plan object that contains the steps for processing the object , one to many transaction objects that contains the details of the transaction , one instrumentation object that contains instrumentation details on the relative to the processing instance , zero to many enriched data objects that contains enriched data , and zero to many output channel objects that contains information about resulting transactions sent to an output channel . the transaction object of fig9 is an abstract class that can be sub - classed for any type of transaction . subclasses have been developed that consist of unparsedtransaction to hold any packed transaction and parsedscoringtransaction for each of the expected input transactions ( e . g ., 0100 , 0120 , and 0100 + 0110 ). now referring to fig1 , the inputchannel object is subclassed by specific input adaptors to hold protocol specific information as shown . the illustrated examples include mqinoutchannel , banknetinputchannel , fileinputchannel , asamqinputchannel , and filemqinputchannel . execution plan builder plug - ins are defined to specify the execution plan for processing a transaction . these execution plans include the ordered set of execution steps using the appropriate transaction filters , data enrichment processors , and output delivery channels . each execution step includes a type ( transformer , filter , data enrichment processor , or output channel ), a name ( the component name ), a plug - in class name ( the actual class name of the plug - in ), plug - in specific configuration parameters ( which includes any configuration parameters such as a score filter threshold value ), a failure resume step ( if execution of this step fails , processing should resume at this step ), and a filter resume step ( if a components filter check does not pass , execution resumes at this step ). a standard scoring builder uses the transaction pan and input channel type to lookup the corresponding customer account group configurations established through the admin system located in the admin database . this configuration data is used to create the customer specific execution plan . in one embodiment , these configurations are cached in memory and refreshed at a configurable interval for improved performance . with regard to transaction filters 410 , and referring to fig1 , the transaction filter service is invoked to filter a transaction using the configured plug - in for that execution step . for example , the transaction filter service uses a factory to retrieve an instance of the plug - in class that conforms to the transaction filter interface . the plug - ins are written to be thread - safe so that multiple instances of a plug - in do not need to be constructed to save execution time . the transaction filter plug - in class executes logic that analyzes the transaction data and returns a pass or fail indication to the controller 402 . if the filter check passes , the controller 402 continues the execution plan at the next step . if the filter check fails , the controller 402 skips down to the configured execution step . an operational skip filter checks to see if any operation skips are configured that apply to this transaction . operational skips can be defined using the admin application and will consist of an account range to skip processing . a score threshold filter checks if the transaction score is below the supplied threshold parameter . if so , the transaction will skip delivery to the configured output channels ( e . g ., banknet adaptor , batch file adaptor , etc .). a duplicate check filter performs a check to see if the transaction has already been scored and , if so , apply the previous score to the transaction . this duplicate check filter is a function of the input channel . a real time 0100 asa transactions filter determines if the transaction has an es status code of ‘ s ’ indicating the transaction is going to stand - in and is a potential duplicate . if so , it will check the duplicate check queue to determine if the transaction has been already been processed . if so , the previous transaction score will be looked up in the scored transaction database and included in a scoring result object . the execution plan will be altered to skip the scoring step . for all transactions going through the filter , an entry is added to the duplicate check queue consisting of the banknet reference number with a message expiration time of 30 seconds . for a near real time 0120 banknet transaction , a similar check to the real time duplicate check filter is performed except that the es status code check is not used as it does not apply . for catch - up transactions , it is determined whether this transaction score element is populated if it should have been scored in real time . if so , it was previously scored . if not , check if this transaction has been previously scored based on the scored transaction database . previous scored transactions should not be scored again . the execution plan should be altered to remove the any steps except for delivery via a data collector output adaptor for modeling and confirmation of real time delivery . for customer batch file transactions , it is determined if this transaction is present in the scored transaction database . on - us transactions are looked up based on the stan , pan , and transaction date . for risk finder input transactions for parallel scoring , the scored transaction database is checked to see if this transaction has been previously scored . such an approach features a database lookup in some cases for determining duplicates . a risk finder parallel scoring filter parses the pan out of the fixed length cis message and determines if it is applicable for parallel scoring . if not , the transaction should be discarded . an account level management ( alm ) filter uses the original cis transaction to determine if it passes any alm rules such as a rule that only scores a specific card product type . this filter is used in processing the authorization logs to determine if a transaction should have been scored . a card product type filter determines if the transaction card type was in the customer specific list of card types to be scored . a merchant category code ( mcc ) filter determines if the transaction mcc code was in the customer specific list of mcc codes to be scored . it should be noted that filters may also return enriched data objects . for example , the duplicate check filter will return the previous scored in an enriched data object if the filter check does not pass ( e . g ., transaction is a duplicate ). with regard to data enrichment processors 412 , such processors are defined which enrich the transaction by adding new data or altering existing data . each data enrichment processor 412 implements an api which consists of accepting the internal message . the processor alters the transaction data and includes new enriched data objects . the following paragraphs define several example data enrichment processors , including an issuer country code , and an iprevent scoring engine . other data enrichment processors include , for example , a last response code , a compromised account indicator , a fraud mark scoring engine , global analytics scoring engine , and a rules engine . if the issuer country code is not supplied in the transaction , this data enrichment processor will determine the issuer country code based on the appropriate auth account range . the iprevent scoring engine performs the following steps : creates an iprevent message from the internal message format , takes a time snapshot , sends a request to the iprevent tts server based on the configured ip address performs a watch over request , receives a response from iprevent , takes a time snap shot , parses out the score , reason codes , individual technology scores , and any failure codes , and return the internal message object . note that tcp socket connections to a specified ip address are pooled for increased performance . the ip address is configured based on the account group . this is needed on the batch server where multiple tts server clusters must be accessed from the same batch scoring manager ( this is because auth logs could have accounts in any scoring cluster ). in regard to the watch over request , if the request exceeds a configured time , the tcp connection is terminated and the transaction is considered as not being scored . now referring to output channels 414 , output channel adaptor plug - ins can be defined for delivering processed messages . these output channel adaptors accept an internal message and return an indication of whether the delivery was successful . abstract protocol adaptors are defined to support mq , mipcomm , sql , and gft . these abstract protocol adaptors provide helper methods for interacting with the specific protocol . the mq protocol adaptor provides methods for attaching to a configured queue and putting messages . the mipcomm adaptor provides methods to integrate with the mipcomm libraries for sending transactions on banknet the sql protocol adaptor provides connection pooling to a configured database . the gft adaptor provides an interface to the gft libraries for sending batch files via gft . plug - ins can extend an abstract protocol adaptor to simplify the plug - in development . the following output channel adaptor plug - ins will be defined : for an mq asa output channel adaptor plug - in , the asa output adaptor will creates an mq message that contains the scoring results . if the transaction was successfully scored , the actual score should be returned and the service status set to ‘ c ’ for complete . if the transaction was not successfully scored , the actual score should be left blank and the service status set to ‘ e ’ for error or blank if the scoring was not attempted . the asa time stamp in the es request message trailer is returned in the es response message trailer and is used by the asa to measure the real time scoring system response time . this mq message is delivered to the reply - to queue and queue manager from the input message . the mq batch output file producer output channel adaptor plug - in will create an mq message that contains the fields necessary for the file producer to create a file of 0620 transactions . for a sql scoring data collector output channel adaptor plug - in , this adaptor saves the scored transaction to the database . in addition , it keeps track of summarized scoring results per account range . a performance data collector output channel adaptor plug - in calculates performance statistics including min , max , and average over pre - defined intervals ( e . g ., last 30 sec , 5 min , 1 hr , 2 hr , last day , last week , etc ) for overall real time processing , individual component processing times , tps , and total number of transactions processed , and saves performance data to a database . in one embodiment , these statistics are calculated for the entire platform and per customer and should allow segregation by successfully scored vs . failed transactions . to save performance data to a database , warning messages are logged if performance is lower than pre - configured thresholds for the file transfer output channel adaptor plug - in , the 0620 file adaptor will create a file of 0620 transactions . after configured interval and / or # transactions , the file will be sent via gft to the customer . the mipcomm output channel adaptor plug - in determines the banknet routing address . if the customer override ip address is provided , it should be used . otherwise , the ip address from the input transaction should be used . note that some customers use override to use a fixed group ip address . when the transaction is routed to the address , banknet will round robin transactions to the mips belonging to the group . the 0130 output adaptor will send a cis0130 message to the specified banknet address . the 0620 output adaptor will send a cis0620 message to the specified banknet address . the 0820 output adapter stores and forwards delivery complete . the output channels described above use the class structure illustrated in fig1 . various technical platforms are used : including , solaris 10 , sun java 1 . 5 , log4j 1 . 2 . x , mipcomm version 8 . 1 — compiled for solaris 10 , websphere mq v6 . 0 . 2 , websphere mq application messaging interface for java , hibernate 3 . 1 . 3 , and spring 2 . 53 . in another embodiment , a computer and a computer program are provided which are configured or programmed to perform steps similar to those already recited herein . the systems and processes described herein enable a user , such as a financial transaction card network ( e . g ., mastercard ®), to take financial transaction data received from a variety of different input channels and pre - process the transaction data into a common data format . data enrichment is provided to the commonly formatted transaction data , based on the user &# 39 ; s position as operator of the network . examples of data enrichment include indications as to whether or not the transaction cards were recently compromised and other augmenting data with information regarding which country the issuer of the card resides . such enrichment and augmentation is used in part to orchestrate financial scoring of individual transactions . several products are available to do the financial scoring each of which incorporate fraud models and different artificial intelligent technologies to score the transactions . the described embodiments , in part , provide a mechanism to generate a financial scoring using multiple scoring products . selection of which scoring products are used , and in which combinations , are determined by the used based on what scoring products they wish to offer to different customers , for example , a fraud score and / or a credit risk score . the embodiments describe an architecture that allows a user to plug in different scoring models and then score transactions using single scoring products or multiple combination of multiple scoring products to provide value added services to , for example , customers of the above mentioned financial transaction card network . the embodiments allow the user to easily integrate , for example , multiple vendor scoring products , while also orchestrating scoring across many of the scoring products . the architecture combines the scores and returns those scores back to customers through the variety of output channels described above . while the invention has been described in terms of various specific embodiments , those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the claims .

6Physics

the presser member assembly 34 described in fig1 - 22 is the subject of a copending application , ser . no . 248 , 695 filed sept . 26 , 1988 , entitled compliant presser member for fiber placement machine , now u . s . pat . no . 4 , 869 , 774 the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference . fig1 shows a gantry machine or robot 10 having an elevated way system suitable for carrying a carriage 11 and cross - slide 12 in x and y directions , in a plane parallel to the floor . the cross - slide 12 supports a saddle 13 for vertical movement , and the saddle 13 has a forearm 14 which contains a drive mechanism ( not shown ) for actuating a wrist 15 supported at the end of the forearm 14 . the forearm 14 and wrist 15 are manufactured substantially as the serial roll wrist depicted in the u . s . pat . no . 4 , 068 , 536 , assigned to cincinnati milacron inc ., the assignee of the present invention . the gantry robot 10 depicted in fig1 is commercially available from cincinnati milacron inc ., under the model no . t3 - 886 gantry series industrial robot , and other similar mechanisms will suffice . as described in the aforementioned u . s . patent , the wrist 15 has the capability of moving a tooling plate 16 in three degrees of rotary motion , and a desired tool assembly , or end effector ( not shown ), is affixed to the tooling plate 16 . it will be appreciated that other wrists , for example , the roll - bend - roll variety of manipulators , may be employed . a variety of work may be positioned on the floor within the range of the tooling plate 16 . the work may be flat or curved ; rotating or stationary . a servo - controlled mandrel unit 17 is shown , having a rotary spindle 18 for positioning an exemplary workpiece , such as an air foil form 19 . the mandrel unit 17 is , in effect , a headstock capable of supporting , driving , and positioning work about a reference axis 20 , here shown horizontally . here it should be noted that a variety of mandrel units and auxiliary footstocks 21 may be suitable for positioning work . a computer numerical control ( cnc ) 22 is employed to control the multi - degree - of - freedom spatial positioning of the tooling plate 16 and selected end effector . the cnc 22 also controls the work position about the reference axis 20 . one such control is commercially - available under the trademark acramatic -- model 975 - c cnc , from cincinnati milacron inc . with reference to fig1 and 2 , the machine 10 is arranged to place long and short lengths of fiber tows 23 on the air foil form 19 in an operation similar to filament winding , but where the tows may extend along concave , or undercut , surfaces . fig2 schematically depicts the vertical forearm 14 of fig1 with a creel assembly 24 mounted thereto . a fiber placement head 25 is affixed to the wrist tooling plate 16 and is wieldable to approach the workpiece surface 26 , it being appreciated by those skilled in the art that the surface may be curved as well as flat , and the surface 26 may move with respect to the fiber placement head 25 and vice - versa . the creel assembly 24 and fiber placement head 25 are thus movable on a common forearm 14 and the wrist 15 provides relative movement between the placement head 25 and the creel assembly 24 . the creel assembly 24 is depicted schematically as having eight spools 27 of fiber tows 23 , each tow 23 pulled from a spool 27 and trained over a respective tension maintaining roller 28 , in a manner known in the art . the eight tows 23 depicted are guided around a grooved roller 29 affixed to the forearm 14 , and are then trained around a pair of redirect rollers 30 carried on a creel bracket 31 and an outboard support bracket 32 of the placement head 25 . note : the roller 30 is actually an assembly of discrete , independently rotatable , single - groove roller segments similar to that depicted in fig6 . the redirect rollers 30 are mounted in bearings so that they may swivel and thus be automatically oriented in accordance with tension of the fiber tows 23 . the tows 23 are brought through a clamp , cut and restart unit (&# 34 ; ccr &# 34 ; unit ) 33 and are finally brought around a presser member assembly 34 where they are impressed on the work surface 26 . referring now to fig3 a , the fiber placement head 25 is shown in more detail , affixed to the tooling plate 16 of the wrist 15 . the topmost end of the outboard support bracket 32 of the placement head 25 is fabricated of a plate 35 having a through clearance hole 36 , and the plate 35 supports an antifriction bearing 37 which carries the redirect roller assembly 38 . the assembly 38 is fabricated from a plate 39 , having a through clearance hole 40 , and welded parallel side plates 41 ( see also fig3 b ). the parallel plates 41 captivate the redirect roller 30 which is freely journalled on a tubular support shaft 42 extending through the side plates 41 . the fiber tows 23 are depicted parallel to one another , extending around grooves 30a in the roller 30 , and passing down through the open outboard bracket 32 to the ccr unit 33 . fig3 e and 3f depict an alternate embodiment of the re - direct roller assembly 38 , where the assembly 38 is fitted with a counterweight 401 and a driven pulley 402 . a servo - motor 403 is carried by the outboard support bracket 32 and has a drive pulley 404 and belt 405 to provide positive controlled movement to the roller assembly 38 . the main bracket 43 of the placement head 25 , see fig3 a , b and 4a , b , is comprised of a fabrication , having a horizontal top plate 44a , an angled top corner plate 44b , and a vertical back plate 45 , welded with side gussets 46a , b . a pilot bore 47 is provided through the top corner plate 44b for registration on the wrist tooling plate 16 . three vertically - oriented ball bushings 48 are affixed to the vertical plate 45 of the main bracket 43 , for guiding a vertical slide 49 . the slide 49 has a pair of precision bars 50a , b affixed to the rear by suitable support blocks 51 , the bars 50a , b being free to ride vertically in the ball bushings 48 . the slide 49 is configured as a notched plate , of uniform thickness , and the lowermost slide edge 52 carries the presser member assembly 34 , which will be described further in connection with fig1 - 21 . a clevis bracket 53 is affixed to the upper plate 44a of the main bracket 43 , and a cylindrical standoff block 54 is located against the front face of the slide 49 . a vertically - oriented fluid actuator 55 has a cylinder 56 connected by a cylinder extension 57 and pin 58 to the clevis bracket 53 , and a piston rod 59 of the cylinder 56 is connected by a pivot bolt 60 , passing through the standoff block 54 and into the slide 49 . therefore , pressurized fluid may be used to control the slide 49 relative to the main bracket 43 . referring to fig3 a , the ccr unit 33 is shown aligned at approximately 45 degrees to the vertical , and the fiber tows 23 are trained from the redirect roller 30 to the presser member assembly 34 , through the ccr unit 33 . the ccr unit 33 is pivotally affixed on a shaft journalled in bearings 406 mounted in the vertical slide 49 ( see fig3 d ), and a locknut 407 and washer 408 are received on the shaft 317 to secure the assembly . a pair of shoulder screws 61a , b extend from the rear through washers 409 and slots 410 in the slide 49 , to permit pivotal movement of the ccr unit 33 . fig3 c shows an adjustably - positionable screw 411 inserted from the rear through a slot 412 in the slide 49 , and a spring - pin 413 threadably - received as a cap on the shoulder screw 61a . an extension spring 414 is hooked onto the screw 411 and spring - pin 413 to provide an upward biasing force on the ccr unit 33 . further functions of the shaft 317 will be shown and described in connection with fig9 b . the ccr unit 33 carries a slidable tow guide housing 62 including identical , cooperating tow guide plates 63 and a tow drive housing 64 having a tow guide roller assembly 65 . the solid outline shown in fig3 a is the intermediate position of the tow guide housing 62 , and the phantom outline is the retracted position ( the plates 63 and tow drive housing 63 , 64 moving in unison ). a servomotor 66 extends rearwardly from the slide 49 and serves to drive the tow guide housing 62 between fully - advanced , intermediate and retracted positions , relative to the presser member assembly 34 . here it may be noted that in the fully - advanced position , the two guide plates 63 will be slightly deflected downward by the presser member assembly 34 , in opposition to the upward force of the biasing spring 414 , and the plates 63 will be restored to their usual attitude when driven to the intermediate position . the ccr unit 33 has been removed in fig4 a and 4b , for clarity , and is simply designated by phantom lines . referring to fig4 b , a servomotor mounting block 301 is affixed to the slide 49 by means of a pilot diameter 302 passing through a horizontal slot 303 in the slide 49 . a tubular block extension 304 extends frontwardly from the slide 49 and a nut 305 and washer 306 are received on the extension 304 to secure the block 301 . the hollow extension 304 houses a sprocket drive shaft 307 , supported on antifriction bearings 308 . the shaft 307 carries a small first drive sprocket 309 on its outboard end , while a coupling 310 connects the inboard end of the shaft 307 to the motor shaft 311 . the servomotor 66 is affixed to the rear face of the mounting block 301 , and both extend through an aperture 45a in the vertical plate 45 . as shown in fig3 a , an adjusting screw 312 passes through the side of the slide 49 , into the slot 303 , and is threadably received in the servomotor mounting block 301 for adjusting tension on a first drive belt 313 . the belt 313 is trained around the first drive sprocket 309 and a larger , first driven sprocket 314 . with reference to fig9 b , the driven sprocket 314 is affixed by a set screw 315 and secured , along with a second drive sprocket 316 , to a gear shaft 317 rotatably mounted in antifriction bearings 318 located in the side walls 67a , b , of the ccr unit 33 . fig5 a is a front elevational view of the ccr unit 33 , with the tow guide housing 62 shown in the intermediate position . a resolver housing 319 is mounted to the side plate 67a of the ccr unit 33 , and carries a resolver 320 having a second driven sprocket 321 affixed to the resolver shaft 322 ( see also fig6 ). a second belt 323 is trained around the second driving and driven sprockets 316 , 321 to provide a feedback signal indicating position of the tow guide housing 62 . referring to the sectional view of fig5 b , the ccr unit 33 is an open structure , having similar side walls 67a , b machined from plate , and affixed to a u - shaped channel bracket 68 ( see also fig6 ). the channel bracket 68 , in turn , carries a front plate 69 . the front plate 69 and channel bracket 68 each have a through aperture 70 , 71 , so that the tow guide housing 62 may pass freely . the front plate 69 carries a pair of rails 72 which guide a knife slide 73 vertically , the knife slide 73 carrying a movable knife blade 74 at its lowermost end . the slide 73 is shown in the &# 34 ; up &# 34 ; position . in the &# 34 ; down &# 34 ; position , the knife blade 74 will shear the fiber tows 23 across a cooperating knife anvil 75 , which is secured to the lower portion of the front plate 69 . the top of the front plate 69 supports a clevis bracket 76 , and upper and lower pivot links 77 , 78 are serially joined to the clevis bracket 76 , to each other , and to the knife slide 73 . the junction of the upper and lower links 77 , 78 is also connected to a transversely - movable third link 79 , affixed to the piston rod 80 of a fluid actuator 81 , the actuator 81 having a cylinder 82 pivotally mounted , at its rearmost end , to a clevis bracket 83 supported by an inner wall 84 extending between the side walls 67 of the ccr unit 33 . toggle movement of the third link 79 thus tends to straighten the upper and lower links 77 , 78 into alignment with one another , and drive the knife slide 73 and blade 74 downwardly , to shear the fiber tows 23 , when the tow guide housing 62 is in the fully retracted position . the tow drive housing 64 is supported on guide rollers 85 located in the side walls 67 , and the tow guide plates 63 rest between upper and lower pairs of support rollers 86 , journalled on shafts 87 in the channel bracket 68 . referring to fig9 a , 9b , and 5b , the gear shaft 317 rotatably supports a drive gear 89 located mid - span of the side walls 67a and 67b . the gear 89 is secured with a set screw 90 and pin 91 for positive rotation , and side collars 92 , 93 , adjacent the drive gear 89 , serve to space the gear 89 and provide journals for captively - carrying a pair of ball bearings 94 . the bearings 94 bear on the top side of the tow guide housing 62 , cooperating with the lower guide rollers 85 to form an antifriction way system for the housing 62 . the drive gear 89 meshes with a rack 95 located in a slot 96 machined in the top surface of the upper section 64a of the rear guide member 64 , and the rack 95 is secured by plural countersunk flat head cap screws 97 . the gear shaft 317 is driven in reversible directions by the servomotor 66 , and the rack 95 thus provides a positive linear drive element for positioning the tow guide housing 62 . referring to fig6 the tow drive housing 64 of the movable tow guide housing 62 has a grooved guide roller assembly 65 journalled on a tubular pin 104 , the guide roller assembly 65 being essentially the same grooved roller assembly as is used in the redirect roller assemblies 38 . the roller assembly 65 is assembled from single - groove rings 98 , i . e . each having a thin annular flange 99 at each side , and the rings 98 are carried by their ball bearings 100 on the tubular pin 104 so there will be virtually no drag on the tows 23 . the upper and lower sections 64a , b of the tow drive housing 64 are pivotally carried with one another around the tubular pin 104 so that the two may be hinged apart and together . the arrangement shown in fig5 b illustrates the two sections 64a , b together , where they are locked in assembly by clamp screws 105 ( see fig1 and 16a ). the upper section 64a has an anvil 106 pinned to it and lying adjacent the tows 23 , and a pivotable cam link 107 is pivotally carried in the lower section 64b so that , as the link 107 pivots in a clockwise direction ( as viewed in fig5 b ), a cam surface 108 will clamp the tows 23 tightly to the anvil 106 . the anvil 106 is made preferably from resilient stock , such as urethane . a clevis - mounted fluid actuator 109 , is carried by a bracket 109a on the lower section 64b , and its movable piston rod 110 is connected to the cam link 107 to clamp and unclamp the tows 23 . thus , when the piston rod 110 is extended from the actuator 109 , the cam surface 108 will be unclamped from the tows 23 , as shown in fig3 a . details of the link 107 mounting arrangement are shown in fig1 . the inner wall 84 serves as a fluid manifold and mounting member for solenoid - operated fluid control valves 101 interconnected with a fluid supply port 102 and the fluid actuators 81 , 109 . fig6 shows the tubular pin 104 , with a head 111 at one end and having a transverse pin 112 captivating a compression spring 113 at the other end . the transverse pin 112 may be fitted with a ring 114 for ease of disassembly . referring to fig1 - 16a , the tow guide housing 62 is depicted in isolation . one tow guide plate 63 is fastened to the lower section 64b of the tow drive housing 64 by a plurality of countersunk flat head cap screws 115 . a like plurality of countersunk cap screws 115 secures the other tow guide plate 63 to the upper section 64a of the tow drive housing 64 . in operation , the upper and lower sections 64a , b of the tow drive housing 64 are locked together by a pair of large countersunk flat head cap screws 105 , with an auxiliary holding force from a u - shaped spring clamp clip 103 applied to the tow guide plates 63 . when threading new fiber tows 23 through the tow guide housing 62 , the large countersunk screws 105 and clip 103 are removed and the assembly hinged open about the tubular pin 104 ( see fig1 a ). the assembly is thus easily field disassembled and reassembled to facilitate operations . when it is desired to shear the tows across the full band width to finish a run of fibers , the tow drive housing 64 is run to the fully - retracted position under the impetus of the drive gear 89 , with the cam link 107 in the unclamped , counterclockwise position shown in fig6 . once the tow guide housing 62 is in the fully - retracted position , the cam link 107 is moved by the actuator 109 to clamp the fiber tows . the knife slide 73 is then driven by its actuator 81 to cut the tows with the knife blade 74 . the knife blade 74 is then withdrawn to the position shown in fig5 b . thereafter , to restart a new run of tows 23 , the tow guide housing 62 ( still clamped to the incoming tows ) is driven by the servomotor 66 to the fully - advanced position , where the tows 23 will reach into the nip 26a formed between the presser 34a and the work surface 26 . the tow guide housing 62 thus not only forms a lateral spacing member for the side - by - side fiber tows , but also forms a linear feed ratchet which , when clamped to the sheared tows , will advance the tows to the presser 34a and workpiece surface 26 at a selected time . once the cut tows 23 have been advanced and tacked to the workpiece surface 26 , the cam link 107 is actuated to unclamp the tows 23 , and the tow guide housing 62 is retracted to an intermediate position so that the tows 23 will be dispensed tangent to the presser 34a . the incoming tows 23 are slightly spaced - apart in a common plane by the grooved roller assembly 65 , whereas the tow guide plates 63 are internally grooved to maintain the tows 23 side - by - side with one another , i . e ., substantially parallel -- in two ( upper and lower ) parallel planes . fig1 and 16a show that the tow guide plates 63 are provided with squared linear grooves 116 having enmeshed sides 117 which complementarily fit one another , so that the tows 23 will be carried side - by - side in channels formed by the respective valleys 118 and crests 119 when viewed in a plan view ( for example , as in fig6 ), yet the tows 23 run in two different planes to maintain separate control . once the tows 23 are pulled down under the presser member 34 , as in fig3 a , they will be pressed into the same plane , i . e . in a contiguous relationship to one another . fig1 b shows the grooves 116 as having a slight relief 117a in the walls 117 for most of the length . the spaced tows converge from the roller assembly 65 to parallelism within the grooves 116 . referring now to fig1 and 18 , the presser member assembly 34 is shown cantilevered off the lower surface 52 of the vertical slide 49 . an angle bracket 200 , extending downwardly from the plate 49 , has a horizontal bore 201 which carries a support shaft 202 . the support shaft 202 has a main diameter 203 , received in the bore 201 , and has a rectangular head 204 oriented with its long dimension vertical , with a short pilot 205 extending from the head 204 . a thin central disc 206 is received on the pilot 205 and a second , identical , support shaft 202 is inserted from the opposite side of the disc 206 . the main diameter 203 of the second support shaft 202 receives a generally - cylindrical outboard retainer block 207 having a chordal bottom surface 208 , and the pieces are pulled together in unitary assembly by upper and lower sets of long and short cap screws 209a , b , and aligned by pins 209c , d , in the manner shown in fig2 . in essence , therefore , the unit forms a stable axle having side guides . a central ball bearing 210 is received on the central disc 206 , and a stroke - limiting pin 211 extends from the sides of the disc 206 , near the top . the pin extends into vertically - controlled slots 212 machined through a pair of matching intermediate discs 213 which are adjacent to the central disc 206 . a pair of ball bearings 210 , identical to the central ball bearing 210 , are received on the intermediate discs 213 . a flexible tubular elastomeric tire , or sleeve 214 , having annular end lips 215 , is received over the three bearings 210 , and is captivated at each of its opposite end lips 215 by a clamp ring assembly having inner and outer rings 216 , 217 facially secured to one another by countersunk cap screws 218 . the rings 216 , 217 have annular ridges 219 , 220 to retain the distortable sleeve 214 . each inner ring 216 has a central bore 221 having a smooth running fit with an end disc 222 . a closed - end elastomeric air tube 223 , of rectangular cross - section ( see fig1 ), extends across the bottom surfaces 224 , 208 of the angle bracket 200 and outboard retainer block 207 , and the tube 223 extends through the central disc 206 , intermediate discs 213 , and end discs 222 . the tube 223 forms a fluid - filled bladder , or biasing spring . the central disc 206 ( see fig1 ) is provided with a rectangular aperture 225 , the exact shape of the tube 223 , since the central disc 206 does not move with respect to the central axis 226 of the assembly . however , each intermediate disc 213 ( see fig2 ) has an elongated slot 227 closely - fitted to the sides of the shaft head 204 , extending above the head 204 and around the elastomeric tube 223 , since the disc 213 is designed to float in vertical directions . similarly , each end disc 222 ( see fig2 ) is provided with an elongated vertical rectangular slot 228 . when the sleeve 214 is against a surface , parallel to the axis 226 across its width , the intermediate and end discs 213 , 222 are biased to a position centered with the central disc 206 , by the elastomeric tube 223 . the support shaft 202 has a central pipe - threaded hole 229 extending to a cross - drilled and tapped hole 230 , which interconnects with the elastomeric tube 223 , and air fittings 231 ( fig1 ) conduct pressurized air to the tube 223 . a pair of hollow , headed bushings 232 are inserted through the interior of the tube 223 and threadably received into the rectangular head 204 to securely clamp and seal the elastomeric tube 223 and provide an air flow passage . the upper ends of the tapped holes 230 are plugged with threaded plugs 230a and the area above the plugs 230a is relieved of threads and connected to side vent holes 204a and 49a . the ends of the tube 223 are closed by snug - fitting rectangular blocks 233 ( see fig1 ) so the tube 223 will maintain its rectangular shape , and the blocks 233 are captivated by pins 234 received in the angle bracket 200 and retainer block 207 . a tapped hole 233a is to assist in pulling the block 233 out of the tube 234 . a pair of clamps 235 are received around the tube 223 and end blocks 233 and held , respectively , to the angle bracket 200 and outboard retainer block 207 by a pair of cap screws 236 . the intermediate and end discs 213 , 222 have their widths dimensioned to a smooth , sliding fit with respect to the support shaft head 204 . therefore , as varying slopes and curvatures are encountered across the sleeve 214 , the intermediate discs and their respective bearings 210 will float radially , along with the end discs 222 , under the bias force provided by the tube 223 , to enable the sleeve 214 to conform to the surface shape 26 . fig2 depicts the presser member elements of fig1 in diagrammatic form , illustrating a one - piece angle bracket 200a and showing the flexible sleeve 214 adapted to a work laydown surface 26 , thus forming a datum for the reference axis 226 . to the left of center , a surface portion 26a rises , and to the right of center a surface portion 26b lowers with respect to the datum surface 26 . the central disc portion 206a , is shown integrally fixed to the angle bracket 200a . the bottom surface 224a of the angle bracket 200a facing the work laydown surface 26 , extends through the intermediate and end discs 213 , 222 , and also through the central disc portion 206a , the surface 224a forming a convenient reference , or backup , surface for the urethane tube 223 . the bracket surface 224a forms an expansible chamber within each of the apertures 227 , 228 of the intermediate and end discs 213 , 222 . the pressurized tube 23 acts as an inflated bladder spring to bias the discs 213 , 222 towards the work laydown surface 26 . it should be appreciated by those skilled in the art , that the wafer - like segments , or discs 206 , 213 , 222 , may be varied as to quantity and dimension , to achieve a wide range of segmented compactor assemblies . it should also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that , with modification to the tow guide groove to accommodate the tape width , the ccr unit could be used to process tape ( thermoplastic or thermoset ) which does not have backing paper . in some instances the fiber placement head 25 may also employ solid rollers and shoe assemblies , as well as segmented shoe assemblies , which are known for use in composite fabrication machinery , for example , machinery employed to lay composite tape . while the invention has been shown in connection with a preferred embodiment , it is not intended that the invention be so limited ; rather , the invention extends to all such designs and modifications as come within the scope of the appended claims .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

referring to fig1 , a computing device 100 on which various embodiments of the invention may be implemented includes a stored memory 115 , one or more processors 110 and a display 105 . in some embodiments , the device may include other components such as user input mechanisms such as a keyboard , mouse , pointer and the like . in other cases ( or in combination with these input mechanisms ) the display 105 may also provide user input functionality using , for example , touch screen technology as known in the art . although fig1 shows a single device 100 , this are illustrative only and is meant to include devices such as cell phones , smart phones , netbooks , wireless devices , gaming consoles , pad computers and / or personal digital assistants ( pdas ). the device 100 is typically connected to a communication network ( e . g ., a private network , a local - area network , a wireless network , the internet , etc .) in order to send and receive messages and data from other devices . the stored memory 115 stores applications and data that are used by the device to perform functions as directed by the user of the device . one such application that is routinely installed and used on the device is anti - virus software , which assists the user in identifying and eliminating unwanted software , and / or restoring systems settings to proper values . examples of unwanted software include , for example , malware , keyboard loggers , tracking cookies , viruses , and the like , which are typically installed on the device 100 without the user &# 39 ; s knowledge or consent . because the unwanted software can have such a detrimental impact on the user &# 39 ; s device and / or compromise the user &# 39 ; s privacy and security , users are especially prone to purchasing anti - virus software when they are informed of a potential infection . unscrupulous software vendors are aware of this vulnerability and have devised schemes to take advantage of users &# 39 ; naïveté in this regard . for example , software vendors have designed applications that mimic the look , feel and operation of legitimate anti - virus applications that , when executing , lure the users into a false sense of threat and , based on this fear , encourage the user to purchase the software unnecessarily . unlike traditional malware and viruses , these applications do not perform any “ harmful ” functions ( e . g ., deleting files , changing registry entries , creating tracking cookies , or covertly transmitting data ). as such , the execution of these applications is not detected by conventional anti - virus software applications . using the techniques and systems described herein , however , users can be notified when these rogue applications are presented to them and can be informed that the applications are not authentic anti - virus applications . according to various embodiments of the invention , and referring to fig2 , a user operating a computing device may be presented with a warning screen , pop - up ad , email or other message ( generally referred to herein as a “ potentially rogue software application ” or “ application ”) that indicates ( usually falsely ) that their device is under threat from malware , a virus , or other potentially damaging software . the execution of this “ application ” is first detected on the device ( step 205 ). the detection may take place by monitoring the windows messaging queue for new display commands containing certain elements . once detected , various user interface characteristics are then identified and collected ( step 210 ). these characteristics may include , for example , window title names , screen control names , screen control components , progress bars , lists , buttons , image files , dialog box names , colors , text , and / or system tray settings . the specific characteristics may be stored in memory for subsequent comparison . separately , a database of visual characteristics of known authentic anti - virus software applications may be maintained . in some instances , the database may be a centrally - managed database ( e . g ., by an anti - virus application vendor , for example ) and accessed remotely over the internet , or , in some cases , the database may be stored locally on the device itself . if stored locally , the local database may be updated periodically ( e . g ., every week , month , etc . ), on demand , or whenever the central database is updated . in any instance , user interface characteristics from the authentic anti - virus applications are retrieved from the database ( step 215 ) and compared to those collected from the executing application ( step 220 ). the comparison may include comparing object names , naming conventions , text , binary representations of images , as well as other comparisons to determine a degree of match between the application being analyzed and applications known to be authentic . if none of the characteristics match , or so few match that it is unlikely that the application not being passed off as anti - virus software ( decision step 225 ), the process ends ( step 230 ). if , however , the degree of match is above some predetermined threshold ( e . g ., more than 75 % of the components in a known anti - virus application exist in the potentially rogue software ) additional characteristics are then analyzed ( step 235 ). for example , if the application is now suspected as being rogue software , characteristics such as the binary signature of the executing application may be captured and compared to those of applications known to be authentic applications . in some cases , the comparison may be limited to those applications to which a high degree of match among the user interface characteristics was made . in other instances , the application may be analyzed to determine if it has a digital signature associated with it , as most rogue applications do not . further , in some implementations it is feasible to determine the source from which the application was sent to the device , and that source ( e . g ., a url , ip address , email address , or other uniquely identifiable information ) may be captured and compared to those of authentic applications . if these characteristics do not match those of applications known to be authentic ( decision step 240 ) the applications are then classified as rogue applications . once classified as such , the users may be notified and remediation may then take place ( step 245 ). for example , the user may be presented with a dialog box informing him that the application screen being presented is from a rogue application , and that there are in fact no known threats to his device , and any suggestions to execute or purchase the application should be ignored . in some versions , the process may continue by searching for and removing any components of the rogue application present on the device . in still other versions , a digital signature , hash , or other numeric representation of the application or its components may be derived and stored and / or transmitted to a central repository for tracking such applications . fig3 provides an exemplary screen capture 300 from an application determined to be rogue software using the above - described techniques . the user interface components that make up the screen 300 that may be compared to those of authentic anti - virus applications include the window name , “ antivirus plus ( unregistered )” 305 , an image ( typically a . jpg file ) of shield 310 that is very similar to an image used in an authentic application and buttons 315 having text descriptions such as “ privacy ,” “ security ,” “ scan ” and the like . other components include a progress bar 320 indicating the status of a scan , text suggesting the user “ get full protection ” 325 or “ purchase the application now ,” a color and menu scheme that matches known application schemes 330 and / or a listing of system scan results 335 . each functional component described above may be implemented as stand - alone software components or as a single functional module . in some embodiments the components may set aside portions of a computer &# 39 ; s random access memory to provide control logic that affects the interception , scanning and presentation steps described above . in such an embodiment , the program or programs may be written in any one of a number of high - level languages , such as fortran , pascal , c , c ++, c #, java , tcl , perl , or basic . further , the program can be written in a script , macro , or functionality embedded in commercially available software , such as excel or visual basic . additionally , the software may be implemented in an assembly language directed to a microprocessor resident on a computer . for example , the software can be implemented in intel 80 × 86 assembly language if it is configured to run on an ibm pc or pc clone . the software may be embedded on an article of manufacture including , but not limited to , computer - readable program means such as a floppy disk , a hard disk , an optical disk , a magnetic tape , a prom , an eprom , or cd - rom . the invention can be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof . the foregoing embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects illustrative rather than limiting on the invention described herein .

6Physics

by referring to the drawing , one sees a lining and filtering wall hereinafter referred to as filtering wall ( 1 ) for clarity , and intended to equip an expendable form . the filtering wall ( 1 ) acts as a filter and depending on the size of panels ( 102 ), allows excess humidity to escape . typically , the filtering wall ( 1 ) includes a mesh ( 2 ) formed by assembling flexible warp strands comprised of the more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ), regular warp strands ( 2 b ), and weft strands ( 2 c ), with the mesh ( 2 ) being tensioned on a shape - retaining structure ( 90 ). it is understood that the term shape - retaining is not to be taken literally , but rather in the sense that the deformation related to the tension is extremely low . this filtering wall ( 1 ) is then attached to a bearing structure ( ) not shown ) in order to establish an expandable form and from which other filtering walls ( 1 ) can be linked to . according to a characteristic of the filtering wall ( 1 ): more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ) are more resistant than the regular warp strands ( 2 b ), the mesh ( 2 ) being tensioned by traction exerted solely on the more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ), and it includes tension maintaining means ( 3 , 4 , 5 ) for maintaining the tension that associates the more resistant strands ( 2 a ) with the shape - retaining structure and created by the cooperation of linking means ( 3 ) acting as a clamp of sort ; pressure bars ( 4 ); and support bars ( 5 ) which , together with the mesh ( 2 ), delimit a larger panel ( 102 ) than the one resulting from the initial interlacing of regular warp strands ( 2 b ), and weft strands ( 2 c ). the tension and thus the deformation are determined between two consecutive tension - maintaining means ( 3 , 4 , 5 ). more precisely , the principle does not involve exerting tension between the ends of the mesh ( 2 ) then implementing the tension maintaining means ( 3 , 4 , 5 ), but on the contrary , fixing one end of the mesh ( 2 ) with the tension maintaining means ( 3 , 4 , 5 ), then exerting a tension force to fix the subsequent tension maintaining means ( 3 , 4 , 5 ). by pressing on these new fixed points , one exerts a new tension , thereby locking the mesh ( 2 ) with the tension maintaining means ( 3 , 4 , 5 ) and so on . by proceeding this way , one obtains the same tension in each panel ( 102 ), thereby defining the size of the panels ( 102 ). since the tension exerts on the more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ), the single warp strand ( 2 b ) and the weft strands ( 2 c ) located in the previously defined panel ( 102 ) will arrange themselves based on an iso - stressed distribution as shown in fig4 . the panel ( 102 ) is defined by four points a 1 , a 2 , b 1 and b 2 before it is tensioned . when one only pulls points b 1 and b 2 towards b ′ 1 and b ′ 2 , the weft strands ( 2 c ) deform ( finer lines ), bending with a neutral strand in the middle of the panel ( 102 ). this layout spreads the constraints decreasingly from the edge of the panel ( 102 ), which allows , under pressure , increasing deformations towards the center of the panel ( 102 ). under pressure from concrete , the liner side defined by a panel ( 102 ) is no longer flat but bulged out . this lets one optimize the quantity of filler then used to obtain a finished surface . the value of the deformation is determined by the relationship between the elasticity of the more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ) compared to the regular warp strands ( 2 b ). so that each panel ( 102 ) is independent , the more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ) shall not be common to two side - by - side panels ( 102 ) and , consequently , the mesh ( 2 ) shall include pairs of resistant strands ( 2 a ). the distance between the more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ) in a pair will depend on the tension maintaining means ( 3 , 4 , 5 ). these more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ) are either larger strands , made from another material or more generally comprised of a group of close - set strands . the tension - maintaining means ( 3 , 4 , 5 ) include : on one side of the mesh ( 2 ), pressure bars ( 4 ) that extend along one of the mesh &# 39 ; s ( 2 ) axes , on the other side of the mesh ( 2 ), support bars ( 5 ) that extend perpendicularly to the direction of the pressure bars ( 4 ), and at the panel ( 102 ) corners , are the linking means ( 3 ) for connecting the pressure bars ( 4 ) and support bars ( 5 ) together thereby forming at these connection points a grip that blocks the mesh ( 2 ). these pressure bars ( 4 ) and support bars ( 5 ) and connection means ( 3 ) constitute the shape - retaining structure ( 90 ). the mesh ( 2 ) is not installed on a pre - formed shape - retaining structure ( 90 ), but rather this shape - retaining structure ( 90 ) is formed at the same time as the filtering wall ( 1 ). in order to improve the locking of the mesh ( 2 ) at the four corners of the panel ( 102 ), the pressure bar ( 4 ) can include grooves ( 4 a ). the pressure bar ( 4 ) is triangular shaped and the outside face of the base is grooved ( 4 a ). the pressure bar ( 4 ) has an axial cavity ( 4 b ) to make it flexible . the support bars ( 5 ) are in pairs ( i . e . ; a linking means ( 3 ) holds one pressure bar ( 4 ) and two support bars ( 5 ). now we will describe in detail the linking means ( 3 ). moreover it is specified that in order to prevent any risk of disorder caused by the elements coming unfastened during transportation , this system may be completed by a positive locking system , bonding or welding . the connection means ( 3 ) appears as a clamp intended to overlap the pressure bar ( 4 ) and includes two legs ( 3 a ) with a stop face ( 3 b ) for the pressure bar ( 4 ) and , on the outside , on each of the arms &# 39 ; ( 3 a ) outside faces , a support surface ( 3 c ) for the support bars ( 5 ). the pressure bar ( 4 ) slides between the legs ( 3 a ). a bolt ( 3 d ) prevents the support bars ( 5 ) from sliding laterally . the bolt ( 3 d ), formed by a bump , is next to one of the support surfaces ( 3 c ). the support bar ( 5 ) is loaded by rotating around its base . therefore , to this end , one will note that this support bar ( 5 ) has rounded faces and is flexible so it can deform elastically . viewed as a section , it is shaped like a figure eight . potential cavities provide the desired compressibility . this is also an advantage because these pressure bars ( 4 ) and support bars ( 5 ) can be delivered wound on a reel . during fabrication , one will use the linking means ( 3 ) and support surface ( 3 c ) as a tooth to advance the filtering wall ( 1 ). it should be noted that the legs ( 3 a ) ends are equipped with lateral notches ( 3 e ) to attach to a “ tor ” iron bar on the form - bearing structure . to fabricate the filtering wall ( 1 ), one uses a set of means . these means include : a mesh ( 2 ) wound around a shaft serving as a supply source ( 20 ), ahead of this supply source ( 20 ), a tensioning assembly ( 30 ), and a positioning assembly ( 40 ) to install the shape - retaining structure ( 90 ). a cutting station ( 50 ) set at the appropriate length is provided ahead of the filtering wall ( 1 ) assembly stations . the shape - retaining structure ( 90 ) is installed progressively by positioning the connecting means ( 3 ) on the tensioned mesh ( 2 ) and then installing the pressure bar ( 4 ) followed by the support bars ( 5 ). the tensioning assembly ( 30 ) are divided into two tensioning zones ( 30 a and 30 b ) that are spread on both sides of a tool ( 41 ). one is placed just behind the mesh ( 2 ) wound on its supply source ( 20 ) and the other , even with the equipped and thus completed mesh ( 2 ). the tensioning assembly ( 30 ) exerts a traction force on the mesh ( 2 ), which is locked in a straight line by one of the tool &# 39 ; s ( 41 ) systems . the traction force is determined by the number of panels ( 102 ) between the two tensioning zones ( 30 a , 30 b ) in proportion to the desired lengthening of one panel ( 102 ). the straight - line locking of the mesh ( 2 ) located in the pre - tensioning zone ( 30 b ) includes a roller ( 31 ) and a backing roller ( 32 ), each equipped with grooves ( 33 ) so the linking means ( 3 ) can pass freely . the roller ( 31 ) and backing roller ( 32 ) pinch the mesh ( 2 ). a drive system ( e . g . ; by constant torque ) is used to apply a constant pre - determined force on the warp strands ( 2 a , 2 b ). the roller ( 31 ) and backing roller ( 32 ) are motorized and can advance the mesh ( 2 ) progressively . the roller ( 31 ) and / or backing roller ( 32 ) can be comprised of cable rollers ( 70 ) aligned on a shaft . the cable roller ( 70 ) is mounted in addition on arms ( 100 ). the outside face of the cable rollers ( 70 ) and / or roller ( 31 ) and backing roller ( 32 ) will be in material that can be deformed elastically so that it engages the mesh ( 2 ) sufficiently . the diameter will be defined to engage a sufficient length of the mesh &# 39 ; s ( 2 ) surface . in the pre - tensioning zone ( 30 a ), in a preferred form of advancing and tensioning the mesh ( 2 ), the tensioning assembly ( 30 ) is comprised of a set of two fixed rollers ( 34 , 35 ) between which a mobile roller ( 36 ) is located between two positions ( dotted lines ), one upper position that starts unwinding a mandrel ( 91 ) the mesh ( 2 ) is wound on and the other lower position that stops the mandrel &# 39 ; s ( 91 ) unwinding . the mesh ( 2 ) then forms a “ v ”. the pre - traction force on the mesh ( 2 ) is provided either by the simple weight of the mobile roller ( 36 ) or this weight is completed by springs or other traction means like jacks , etc . the tension is then determined by the means spread out ahead of the tool ( 41 ). after the pre - tensioning zone ( 30 a ), which in particular controls the unwinding of the mesh ( 2 ) from the supply source ( 20 ) it is wound on , there is a mesh ( 2 ) advance system and a linking means ( 3 ) installation system . this installation system consists of wheels ( 42 ) spread along an axis transverse to the mesh &# 39 ; s ( 2 ) direction of movement . there are as many wheels ( 42 ) as linking means ( 3 ) to be positioned transversally . all of the wheels ( 42 ) are united in rotation and driven by a suitable irreversible system ( e . g . ; a stepper motor ) that authorizes one rotation corresponding to a step of the mesh ( 2 ). each wheel ( 42 ), whose circumference is a multiple of the panels &# 39 ; ( 102 ) step , includes evenly spaced notches ( 43 ) that can accommodate the head of each linking means ( 3 ). laterally to these wheels ( 42 ) and in the area of the notches ( 43 ), the system includes guides ( 44 ) for the pressure bars ( 4 ) that must be introduced in the linking means ( 3 ) heads . therefore these guides ( 44 ) present a groove ( 45 ) whose shape is complementary to the outside of the pressure bars ( 4 ). in fact , the guides ( 44 ) are also used to assemble the wheels ( 42 ) together . to introduce the pressure bars ( 4 ), the linking means ( 3 ) have to be pre - aligned because the mesh ( 2 ) and the shape of the notches ( 43 ) do not hold them adequately . to this end , the machine includes an alignment system ( 46 ) to align all of the linking means ( 3 ) located on an axis . this alignment system ( 46 ) includes an axle ( 47 ) on which are mounted pairs of spread disks ( 48 ), each pair of disks ( 48 ) being designed to laterally wedge a linking means ( 3 ) and that part of the axle ( 47 ) located between a pair of disks ( 48 ) so as to fit partially between the legs ( 3 a ). one sees that these disks ( 48 ) have beveled sides ( 49 ) to facilitate centering the linking means ( 3 ). teeth ( 60 ) driven by the wheels ( 42 ) are used to position , advance and immobilize the mesh ( 2 ) on the disks ( 48 ). the linking means ( 3 ) are installed by the bottom in the installation shown . this way one obtains a position along the two axes the time it takes to introduce the pressure bar ( 4 ) that comes from a section wound on a drum . cable rollers ( 70 ) drive the section from a reel ( 69 ) up to the first stop ( 71 ). when the alignment system ( 46 ) is in position , the first stop ( 71 ) is retracted and the cable rollers ( 70 ) push the pressure bar ( 4 ) through the linking means ( 3 ), guided by the guides ( 44 ), up to the second stop ( 72 ). the pressure bar ( 4 ) is then cut and the first stop ( 71 ) is then put back in position . as the pressure bars ( 4 ) are positioned , the support bars ( 5 ) have to be installed . to do this , the support bars ( 5 ), wound on a reel ( 120 ), are progressively unwound flat and then pivoted 90 ° to until they are anchored in a freestanding position on the linking means ( 3 ). the machine will then include a system to progressively unwind the support bars ( 5 ) and a means to position them . initially , the support bars ( 5 ) are guided so that they press against the linking mean &# 39 ; s ( 3 ) support surfaces . the two support bars ( 5 ) then form a “ v ”. a mechanical means , which , in a preferred embodiment is in the form of a grip ( 80 ) causes the support bars ( 5 ) to tip towards the linking means ( 3 ). the grip ( 80 ) has two jaws ( 81 ) closing in together . by elastically deforming the pressure bar ( 4 ) and support bars ( 5 ), one then positions the support bars ( 5 ) in a freestanding position and grips the mesh ( 2 ). one sees that the action / reaction forces exerted on the support bars ( 5 ) are inclined vis - à - vis the linking means ( 3 ) median axis . as such , based on continuous elements mesh ( 3 ), support bars ( 5 ) and pressure bar ( 4 )), one can create a filtering wall ( 1 ) of suitable length that is only cut at the end of the assembly operation . according to the fabrication process for a filtering wall ( 1 ): one stretches a mesh ( 2 ) between two tension zones ( 30 a , 30 b ) by exerting traction along more resistant warp strands ( 2 a ) and regular warp strands ( 2 b ), one positions the linking means ( 3 ) at certain points of the mesh ( 2 ) to delimit the panels ( 102 ), one aligns the linking means ( 3 ), one inserts , by sliding , the pressure bar ( 4 ) through the stop face ( 3 b ), one positions the support bars ( 5 ) supported on the support surfaces ( 3 c ), one tips the support bars ( 5 ) towards the linking means ( 3 ) median axis to form the grips with the linking means ( 3 ) and pressure bar ( 4 ), and one constitutes the filtering wall ( 1 ) continuously and progressively and then one cuts the filtering wall ( 1 ) to the desired dimensions . the filtering wall ( 1 ) is then joined to a bearing structure to create an expendable form . as to a further discussion of the manner of usage and operation of the present invention , the same should be apparent from the above description . accordingly , no further discussion relating to the manner of usage and operation will be provided . with respect to the above description then , it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention , to include variations in size , materials , shape , form , function and manner of operation , assembly and use , are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art , and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention . therefore , the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention . further , since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described , and accordingly , all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to , falling within the scope of the invention .

4Fixed Constructions

fig4 shows a timing diagram for a test pattern set with four scan patterns , three scan chains , and four scan cells per each chain to illustrate the multiple dimensions . in this example , 48 total strobes are shown for 12 scan cells . for each scan chain , there is a scan output signal . each scan cell must be stitched into a scan chain . applications today may include millions of scan cells . these scan cells are distributed amongst a number of scan chains that may range from a handful to hundreds . thus , scan chains may contain hundreds of scan cells to tens of thousands . for example , if a device contains 1 million scan cells and 100 scan chains , each scan chain would contain about 10 , 000 scan cells . the exact number of scan cells in each scan chain is determined by the chip designer . however , the designer usually strives to have balanced scan chains for optimum test time performance . regardless of the organization of scan chains , each scan cell is typically strobed per scan pattern . thus , if the test pattern set contained 10 , 000 scan patterns for a design that contained 1 million scan cells , there would be a total 10 billion strobes to map to these 1 million scan cells . the technique for mapping the passes and fails of strobe points to scan cells is to index each strobe point by scan output signal , thus identifying the scan chain . the software keeps a map of the start of the unload operation for each scan pattern by tester cycle count . thus , when a fail is encountered , the tester cycle count can be referenced against the unload marker to determine the bit position within the chain . if a scan chain 212 is blocked , applying traditional atpg stuck - at patterns will merely result in a massive amount of failures . on traditional testers , this is simply logged as a failure without all of the data . however , the value of the traditional stuck - at patterns is that the scan enable is toggling during the pattern set enabling the functional path into the scan cells . this significance of this fundamental point is that pseudo - random data is introduced into the scan chain through the functional path as driven by the combinational logic . although the chain 212 is blocked , scan cells 200 , 202 prior to the blockage 400 in addition to the primary inputs can still load scan cells 204 , 206 after the block point with toggling data . as long as enough scan patterns are executed , the scan cells should be able to toggle from the scan output all of the way back up to the blocked point 400 . see fig6 . as the output is toggling , the software can record the value of each data bit shifted out for each scan pattern ( load - capture - unload sequence ) so that each scan cell can be dispositioned into one of three categories : 1 . scan cell was always low 2 . scan cell was always high 3 . scan cell was sometimes low and sometimes high if a scan cell is dispositioned into category 3 , there must be a path existing to shift data from this scan cell to the scan output . so , after all scan cells are categorized , an analysis can be performed to find the blocked scan cell . beginning at the scan input , the first scan cell is suspected to be in category 1 or 2 . from that point moving towards the scan output , all scan cells are expected to be of the same category until the blocked scan cell is reached . as soon as the category changes , it must be assumed that data is propagating down the chain towards the scan output . so , it can be concluded that the block point is between the two scan cells where the first category transition has been observed . the amount of data to be recorded could be quite substantial . for example , to analyze one scan chain with 10 , 000 bits using just 1000 scan patterns , 10 million bits of data would need to be recorded . this could be reduced statistically by one half if only half of the scan cells are recorded . this can be accomplished by the following method steps : 1 . count the number of high strobes and number of low strobes per scan cell for the pattern set . 2 . when recording failures , implement a counting function in the hardware so that the number of high failures and number of low failures can be known . 3 . based upon the number of high strobes , high strobe failures , low strobes , and low strobe failures , determine which category to place the scan cell in . note , that this will create a potential fourth category of “ indeterminate ”. this technique will be explained further in the blocked chain localization software process . the flow chart in fig7 illustrates the blocked scan chain localization process . at block 702 , scan patterns are pre - processed to count a number of low strobes and a number of high strobes for scan pattern test . this can be done at pattern load or compilation time . at block 704 , a standard atpg stuck - at pattern set is executed . at block 706 , a determination is made as to whether a scan chain pattern fails . if “ no ”, the process finishes at block 708 , with a conclusion that no blocked chains exist . if “ yes ”, the numbers of low and high failures are counted for each scan cell at block 710 , and each scan cell is categorized at block 712 . at block 714 , a determination is made as to whether a first scan cell is stuck high or low . if “ no ”, the process finishes at block 716 , with a conclusion that no blocked chains exist . if “ yes ”, it is determined whether there is a transition after the first scan cell ( at block 718 ). if “ no ”, the process finishes at block 720 , with a conclusion that no blocked chains exist . if “ yes ”, the process continues to block 722 , and a blocked scan cell is reported . in an embodiment of the present invention , tangibly embodied in a program product encoded on a computer readable media , a method controls a processor to perform the following steps : computing b the number of consecutive cells from the first scan cell in a chain annotated at least one of z , v , and t until encountering an initial scan cell annotated s , reporting the location of a scan chain blockage b . in the present invention strobes are presented as h &# 39 ; s and l &# 39 ; s in the test patterns that are output from the atpg tools as ascii files and wherein the combined number of h &# 39 ; s and l &# 39 ; s per scan cell is equal to the number of scan patterns v . a method for enabling a tester to identify the location of a break in a scan chain in real time as fail data is collected on the tester uses the aforementioned strobes in computing a blocked chain analysis signature for each scan cell in a scan chain comprising the step of accumulating the number of low strobes and the number of high strobes in a scan pattern set wherein a high strobe is presented as h and a low strobe is presented as l in the test patterns that are output from the atpg tools as ascii files , comparing the number of high strobe failures and the number of low strobe failures with the analysis signature , and assigning a scan cell into one of the categories following : always low , always high , and sometimes low and sometimes high . strobes are presented as h &# 39 ; s and l &# 39 ; s in the test patterns that are output from the atpg tools as ascii files . as the software that either loads or prepares these ascii files for loading into the test hardware parses these files , the h &# 39 ; s and l &# 39 ; s per scan cell are counted and saved into a record . the combined number of h &# 39 ; s and l &# 39 ; s per scan cell should equal the number of scan patterns as each scan cell can only be tested once per scan pattern . the result of this step is an integer value per scan cell . if the chain test ( aka chain integrity , or scan flush ) pattern fails , a scan cell is determined to be in the stuck - high category if all a scan cell is determined to be in the stuck - low category if all of a scan cell is determined to be in the toggling category if all of a scan cell is determined to be in the indeterminate category if in conventional semiconductor test processes , analysis of blocked chains is time - consuming , tedious , and often delayed due to a variety of costly steps including , requiring specially devised test vectors such as path delay or transition fault vectors , consuming storage and management of billions of bytes of test log , long analysis times done too late to affect the physical or logical design of the immediate product , and reservation of blocks of time on the tester or computer data center for complex measurement and computation . in contrast the present invention of the blocked chain localization software process has the following advantages : 1 . uses standard atpg stuck - at vectors 2 . performs the analysis in real - time 3 . reduces the amount of data to log from megabytes per occurrence to just the conclusion . 4 . eliminates offline analysis the present invention is a method for determining the position of a blockage , b , in a scan chain , m , of n scan cells . b is a number ranging from zero through n , wherein zero represents no blockage at all , and one is the first cell shifted out in a scan chain and n is the last cell shifted out in a scan chain . firstly the method requires the step of annotating a record for each scan cell with at least one of z no fails , v all fails , t for toggling and s for stuck . a scan chain is considered blocked if the last cell in the scan chain is annotated s , but more likely a sequence of cells that end in the last cell are also so annotated . however , a scan chain is not blocked if every cell in the scan chain is at least one of z , v , and t , or any combination of these values in which case b is set to zero , by computing b the number of consecutive cells from the first scan cell in a chain annotated at least one of z , v , and t until encountering an initial scan cell annotated s we have the location of the blockage ; wherein a scan cell record is annotated to be toggling t if the number of low failures is less than the number of low strobes and the number of high failures is less than the number of high strobes , wherein a scan cell record is annotated to be stuck s if the number of low strobes is greater than zero and the number of low failures is equal to the number of low strobes and a number of high failures is equal to zero , or wherein a scan cell record is annotated to be stuck s if the number of high strobes is greater than zero and a number of high failures is equal to the number of low strobes and the number of low failures is equal to zero , wherein a scan cell record is annotated to be zero z if there are no failures , and wherein a scan cell record is annotated to be v if every strobe results in a failure .

6Physics

embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings . fig1 is a block diagram showing a schematic construction of a facsimile apparatus according to the first embodiment of the invention . in the diagram , reference numeral 1 denotes a contact type image sensor ( reading means ) as a device for reading the contents of an original and converting the read contents into analog image data as an electric signal ; 2 denotes an a / d conversion circuit ( a / d converter ) which is connected to an output line of the image sensor 1 and which converts analog image data into digital image data ; 3 denotes a marker detection circuit which is connected to an output line of the a / d conversion circuit 2 and refers to the digital image data and detects a portion ( marker ) which was marked in an area ( marker display area ) existing by a predetermined width , for example , from the left side edge of the original to the right side each ; 4 denotes a binarization circuit which is connected to the output line of the a / d conversion circuit 2 and which converts digital image data into white and black pixels ; and 5 denotes an image extraction circuit ( image data extracting means ) which is connected to a cpu ( central processing unit : not shown ) and the output lines of the marker detection circuit 3 and binarization circuit 4 and which selectively extracts the image data corresponding to a scanning line in , for example , the lateral direction ( main scanning direction ) on the original whose marker was detected by the marker detection circuit 3 from an output signal of the binarization circuit 4 . a writing - in clock signal as a sync signal is supplied from the cpu to the image extraction circuit 5 . reference numeral 6 denotes a memory circuit ( image data storing means ) which is connected to an output line of the image extraction circuit 5 and stores the extracted image data on the line unit basis on the basis of an instruction signal supplied from the image extraction circuit 5 ; 7 denotes a communication control circuit which is connected to the memory circuit 6 and executes all of control processes regarding the communication ; 8 denotes a printer ( image data output means ) which is connected to an output line of the memory circuit 6 and prints the stored image data ; and 9 denotes a gate which is connected to the cpu and instructs the memory circuit 6 to read out the stored data on the basis of a page memory full signal , which will be explained below , and a reading - out clock signal as a sync signal which are supplied from the cpu . reference numeral 10 denotes an encoding circuit for encoding the image data from the binarization circuit 4 by a specific system ; and 11 denotes an image buffer for communication for temporarily holding encoded data from the encoding circuit 10 , for outputting to the communication control circuit 7 , and for transmitting the image data . fig2 is a block constructional diagram showing the detail of the marker detection circuit 3 . in the diagram , reference numerals 10 , 11 , and 12 denote first , second , and third d - type flip - flops , each having four input / output bits which are serially connected . the flip - flops 10 through 12 are connected to the cpu , and an image clock signal , as a sync signal , is supplied from the cpu to each of those flip - flops . the first d - type flip - flop 10 is connected to the output line of the a / d conversion circuit 2 in fig1 and delays the digital image data which is supplied from the a / d conversion circuit 2 , by a time corresponding to one image clock at a time , and sequentially transmits the delayed data to the second and third d - type flip - flops 11 and 12 . reference numerals 13 , 14 , and 15 denote first , second , and third 4 - bit comparators which are connected in parallel . each of the comparators 13 through 15 is connected to the cpu and receives a threshold level signal as a signal indicative of a specific value , which will be explained below , from the cpu . the first comparator 13 is conencted to a connection line of the first and second d - type flip - flops 10 and 11 . the second comparator 14 is connected to a connection line of the second and third d - type flip - flops 11 and 12 . the third comparator 15 is connected to an output line of the third d - type flip - flop 12 . reference numeral 16 denotes a bit counter which is connected to the cpu and counts up by the image clock signal which is supplied from the cpu . the bit counter 16 resets the counting operation by a line start pulse signal ( sp ) indicative of the start of the scanning for each scanning line and generates a carry signal ( cry ) to a first sr - type flip - flop 17 when a count value reaches a predetermined value , which will be explained below . a reset terminal of the first sr - type flip - flop 17 is connected to the cpu and a cry terminal of the bit counter 16 . the flip - flop 17 is set by the sp signal which is supplied from the cpu and is reset by the cry signal which is supplied from the bit counter 16 . the flip - flop 17 generates an enable signal ( en ), which will be explained below , to an and gate 18 for a time interval in the set state . the and gate 18 is connected to output lines of the first through third comparators , 13 through 15 , and to the first sr - type flip - flop 17 and gets the and of output signals of them and generates a signal to a set terminal of a second sr - type flip - flop 19 . the sp signal from the cpu is connected to a reset terminal of the flip - flop 19 . an output line of the and gate 18 is connected to the set terminal of the flip - flop 19 . the flip - flop 19 is reset by the sp signal supplied from the cpu and is set by the output signal from the and gate 18 . the flip - flop 19 generates a marker detection signal , which will be explained below , to the first image extraction circuit 5 for a time interval in the set state . the operation of the facsimile apparatus , with the above construction shown in fig1 and 2 , will now be described . it is now assumed that a large quantity of originals have been set on a reading document feeding plate ( not shown ). the image sensor 1 scans every line of the original from the left to the right and generates a potential according to the luminance of a reflected light of a light source which irradiated the original . in recent years , since an image sensor module in which a photoelectric converting device , an amplifying circuit , a light source , and the like are integratedly constructed has been commercially available and well known , the description regarding the operation of the detailed portion is omitted here . the a / d converter 2 performs various kinds of correcting processes , such as shading correction and the like , to the analog image data , which is input from the image sensor 1 , and also converts the image data into image data of the digital value ( pixel value ) of about four bits ( 16 values ). the pixel value is increased or decreased by a change in gradation of the analog image data . it is now assumed that , for example , the pixel value of 0 indicates black and the pixel value of 15 denotes white and pixel values of 1 to 14 indicate gray colors of respective densities . when the marker detection circuit 3 judges that there is a mark in the marker display area with reference to the image data supplied from the a / d converter 2 , the marker detection circuit generates a marker detection signal to instruct that the image data corresponding to the scanning line is written into the memory circuit 6 to the image extraction circuit 5 . the practical operation of the marker detection circuit 3 will now be described with reference to fig1 , and 3 . fig3 is a timing chart of the operation of the marker detection circuit 3 . each reference numeral written on the left side of the diagram corresponds to each of the output devices shown in fig2 . the 4 - bit digital image data as an output of the a / d converter 2 is sequentially input to the first through third d - type flip - flops 10 , 11 , and 12 and their output signals are sequentially compared with the pixel values ( specific values ) of the threshold level signals by the first through third comparators 13 , 14 , and 15 , respectively . when the pixel value of the input image data is smaller ( namely , blackish ) than the specific value as a result of the comparison , each of the first to third comparators 13 through 15 sets the output signal of each comparator to the high level . therefore , in the case where at least three pixels whose values are smaller than the specific value on each scanning line are continued , all of the output signals of the first through third comparators 11 through 13 are set to the high level . the bit counter 16 starts to count the number of pixels by a scanning start section of each scanning line on the basis of the sp signal from the cpu and outputs the cry signal to the first sr - type flip - flop 17 when the count value reaches a predetermined value , thereby resetting the flip - flop 17 . the pixel count value to output the cry is arbitrarily set . however , for example , in the case where an area for an interval of 2 cm from the left side edge of the original to the right edge side is set to a marker display area and the scanning line in which three pixels whose values are smaller than the threshold value continuously exist in such a marker display area is set to the scanning line designated by the marker , the pixel count value can be obtained by the following equation . the first sr - type flip - flop 17 outputs the en signal to the and gate 18 for a period of time ( enable period ) until the cry signal is input after the sp signal was input . in the case where three image data of the pixel values smaller than the threshold value are continuously input to the first d - type flip - flop 10 for the above enable period of time during which the en signal is supplied to the and gate 18 , the and gate 18 sets the signal which is supplied to a set terminal of the second sr - type flip - flop 19 to the high level . the second sr - type flip - flop 19 continuously outputs the marker detection signal to the image extraction circuit 5 for a period of time from a timing at which the output signal of the and gate 18 was set to the high level until a timing at which the scanning to the next scanning line is started and the sp signal is newly input . the binarization circuit 4 converts the digital image data having gradations of multivalues into the binary image data of black or white pixel . as a binarizing method , there is a simple binarizing method of deciding black or white pixel by simply comparing with the threshold value , a dither method as one of pseudo half tone processing methods , an error diffusion method , or the like . however , any one of those methods can be used . the encoding circuit 10 encodes the binary data from the binarization circuit 4 by an encoding method of mh , mr , or mmr as a standard encoding method of a facsimile or the like and transfers the encoded data to the image buffer 11 for communication . after the line was connected , the communication control circuit 7 executes a predetermined facsimile communication procedure and , after that , transmits the encoded data held in the image buffer 11 to a facsimile apparatus on the reception side . as mentioned above , the image in the area designated by the marker is accumulated into the memory circuit 6 while transmitting the image of the original read out by the image sensor by the communication control circuit 7 . the output signal from each of the marker detection circuit 3 and binarization circuit 4 is input to the image extraction circuit 5 . the image extraction circuit 5 supplies the binary image data which is output from the binarization circuit 4 to a data in terminal of the memory circuit 6 and supplies a memory write signal to a write terminal of the memory circuit 6 for a period of time during which the marker detection signal is output from the marker detection circuit 3 . when the image data of one page of an output paper is stored into the memory circuit 6 , the page memory full signal is generated from the cpu and input to the gate 9 . a signal to instruct the memory circuit 6 to read out the stored image data is output from the gate 9 , so that the stored image data is printed and output by the printer 8 . fig4 shows an application form for insurance as an example of an original to be read and is characterized in that a marker &# 34 ;|&# 34 ; has previously been printed at the left position of the applicant name column . a range in the vertical direction of the portion which is designated in the contents of the original of fig4 is determined by a length l in the vertical direction of the marker . after a number of written application forms were set onto the document feeding plate of the facsimile apparatus according to the first embodiment , when the transmitting operation is executed , only the applicant name column is extracted from each application form from the line corresponding to the marked length l and stored into the memory circuit 6 . the applicant name column of each application form which was normally read and transmitted is printed out as a list by the printer 8 . the second embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to fig5 to 8 . fig5 is a block diagram showing a schematic construction of a facsimile apparatus according to the second embodiment of the invention . each section in fig5 is mutually connected by signal lines . in the diagram , reference numeral 20 denotes a cpu which controls each circuit shown in fig5 ; 21 denotes an extraction circuit for a marking portion including the contact type image sensor 1 , a / d converter 2 , marker detection circuit 3 , binarization circuit 4 , and image extraction circuit 5 all shown in fig1 ; 22 denotes a memory circuit to store the image data ; 23 denotes a printer ; and 24 denotes a magnification circuit to reduce the image data stored in the memory circuit 22 . reference numeral 30 denotes an encoding circuit for encoding the image data for transmission from the binarization circuit 4 in the marking portion extraction circuit 21 by a predetermined method ; 32 denotes an image buffer for communication to temporarily hold the encoded data from the encoding circuit 30 ; and 31 denotes a communication control unit to perform all of the controls regarding the communication . fig6 is an internal constructional diagram of the magnification circuit 24 . in the diagram , reference numeral 25 denotes a p / s conversion circuit , which is connected to the memory circuit 22 in fig5 and which converts the parallel image data supplied from the memory circuit 22 into serial data ; 26 denotes a shift register which is connected to output lines of the p / s conversion circuit 25 and an or gate 28 and shifts the image data supplied from the p / s conversion circuit 25 to the right ; 27 denotes a t - type flip - flop which is connected to the cpu 20 in fig5 and which converts a period of the clock signal which is supplied from the cpu 20 to a double period and outputs ; 28 denotes the or gate for controlling an output of the shift register 26 on the basis of the clock signal which is supplied from the cpu 20 and a signal which is supplied from the t - type flip - flop 27 ; and 29 denoted an s / p conversion circuit which is connected to the output lines of the shift register 26 and or gate 28 , and which converts the serial image data which is input from the shift register 26 into parallel data . the operation of the facsimile apparatus according to the second embodiment will now be described with reference to fig5 , and 7 . fig7 is a flowchart showing a control procedure which is executed by the cpu 20 in fig5 . in the diagram , first , the image on the original is read in step s1 . in step s2 , the communication control unit 31 is activated and the encoded image data which was encoded by the encoding circuit 30 , on the basis of a standard encoding method of the facsimile apparatus , and which was transferred to the image buffer 32 , is subjected to a predetermined facsimile communication procedure , and a reception side telephone number , a reception side name , a communication start time , and the like are stored into the memory circuit 22 . the image data is then transmitted to the reception side facsimile apparatus . in step s3 , the image data on the marked scanning line on the reading original is extracted , by the marking portion extraction circuit 21 , by the same method as that in the first embodiment described above . in step s4 , extracted image data is stored into the memory circuit 22 . in step s5 , the magnification circuit 24 is activated and the image data of the marking portion stored in step s4 is reduced into 1 / 2 . a reducing algorithm in this instance can be arbitrarily used . in the second embodiment , however , the reducing process is executed by a simple thinning - out process , to extract the image data at a ratio of one pixel per two pixels , with respect to the main scanning direction ( i . e . the lateral direction of the original ) and the sub scanning direction ( vertical direction of the original ). the practical operation of the reducing process in the main scanning direction , which is executed in the magnification circuit 24 in step s5 , will now be described with reference to fig8 . fig8 is a timing chart for the above described processing operation of the magnification circuit 24 and each reference numeral written on the left side in the diagram corresponds to each output device in fig6 . the 8 - bit parallel data transferred from the memory circuit 22 is converted into serial data by the p / s conversion circuit 25 . an operation clock in the magnification circuit 24 is converted into the waveform of one clock per two pixels , as shown at reference numeral 28 in fig8 by the t - type flip - flop 27 and the or gate 28 and is input to the shift register 26 . on the basis of the output signal from the or gate 28 , the shift register 26 outputs the image data of every other pixel from the image data which is supplied from the p / s conversion circuit 25 as shown at reference numeral 26 in fig8 . the image data is subsequently converted into 8 - bit parallel data by the s / p conversion circuit 29 and is transferred to the memory circuit 22 . the reducing process in the sub - scanning direction is realized by executing the reducing process in the main scanning direction for every other line . the image data for which the reducing processes is finished is again transferred and is stored in the memory circuit 22 in step s6 . in step s7 , a determination is made to see if the transmission of all of the originals is finished . if yes , the communicating time , the number of originals , the communication result , and the like are written into the memory circuit 22 , the printer 23 is activated , and the reduced image data stored in the memory circuit 22 is printed in step s8 . when a determination is made in step s7 that the transmission of all of the original images has not yet been finished , the processing routine is returned to step s1 . fig1 is a flowchart showing in further detail the control procedure which is executed by the cpu 20 in the printing execution step s8 in the flowchart of fig7 . first , in step s7 - 1 , the information regarding the communication , such as reception side telephone number , reception side name , communication start time , communication time , the number of originals , communication result , and the like , which have already been stored in the memory circuit 22 , is read out . since that information can be obtained by a conventional facsimile apparatus of a general construction , the descriptions about each of the component elements and functions which are necessary for them are omitted here . subsequently , in step s7 - 2 , the information read out in step s7 - 1 is converted into character data which can be printed ( character development ) and is written to a predetermined location in the memory 22 and a ruled - line image is written as necessary ( s7 - 3 ). in the last step s7 - 4 , the image data synthesized in step s7 - 3 is transferred to the printer 23 and is printed out . fig9 shows an example of a list printed by the flowcharts of fig7 and 10 . the reception side telephone number , reception side name , communication start time , communication time , page , transmission result , and the like ( all indicated by reference numeral 91 ), ruled lines 92 to obtain a good style , and an applicant name column 93 , which was extracted from each of the above application forms , and stored are printed on the list . as shown in fig1 , it is also possible to control the apparatus so as to print a plurality of lists for transmission partners on one sheet of paper . in place of the communication start time , the year , month , and day ( date ) of the communication can be also printed or both the year , month , and day , and the communication start time can be also printed . in the second embodiment , the image in the area designated by the marker of each original has been stored into the memory and printed . however , it is also possible to construct the apparatus in a manner such that the image in a predetermined area of the first page in each communication is stored into the memory and printed at a predetermined timing . as mentioned above , the image data which was read out from the original by the reading means and converted into the image data , and which corresponds to a specific portion in the original , is extracted by the image data extracting means , stored in the image data storing means , and the stored image data is output in a group by the image data output means after completion of the transmission . thus , an original which cannot normally be transmitted due to a double feeding operation of the papers or the like can soon be determined . particularly , the invention is effective in case of transmitting a large quantity of documents of the same format .

7Electricity

a new type of rf suppressor is described herein . by fabricating the rf suppressor component from two functionally distinct materials , the performance of the rf suppressor , particularly with respect to its high - voltage tolerance , can be enhanced compared to that of rf suppressors made from only one type of material . the present invention is an insulated rf suppressor that incorporates an inner sleeve of highly electrically resistive material that can withstand the application of very high electric fields . the insulated rf suppressor component is fabricated as a bilayer composite of two parts : an insulating member shaped from a polymer material such as ptfe , and an rf - absorbing member comprised of a suspension of iron particles in an epoxy resin and shaped by using the insulating member as part of a form to mold the rf - absorbing material . the resulting rf - suppressor is then a single - piece comprised of an annular - shaped insulating polymer sleeve with a molded rf - absorbing shell formed as a cladding layer on the outer surface of the insulating sleeve member . referring now to fig7 a and 7b , there is shown an insulated rf suppressor 700 according to the present invention . the suppressor 700 includes an inner sleeve 702 and an outer shell 704 surrounding the inner sleeve . the inner sleeve 702 is preferably made from an insulating polymer such as ptfe , and the outer shell 704 is preferably made from a molded rf absorbing material . the insulated rf suppressor performs basically the same function as the conventional rf suppressor described above in connection with fig5 , but is structurally distinguished in several aspects . as shown in fig7 a , the inner surface 703 of the inner sleeve 702 of the rf suppressor that contacts the cathode is made from ptfe . with that arrangement , the rf absorbing outer shell 704 is prevented from directly contacting the magnetron cathode . in the preferred arrangement , there is an at - least - 100 - mils -( 2 . 5 millimeters ) thickness of the insulating inner sleeve that separates the cathode surface from the rf absorbing material . all the machined surfaces are restricted to the insulating inner sleeve 702 . the outer shell 704 preferably has no machined surfaces . the groove that seats the cathode connector fixture is made in the insulating inner sleeve 702 so that the metal clamping fixture ( not shown in fig7 a ) does not directly contact the outer shell 704 of the rf absorbing material . further , the insulated rf suppressor has tabs 706 formed thereon which hold the clamping fixture . in this regard , the tabs 706 replace the screws and washers used in the known rf suppressor . it will be appreciated that the sharp edges of the rf absorbing material , that are prone to arcing are effectively eliminated with the insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention . further , the elimination of metal parts , such as screws and washers , as afforded by the use of tabs as described above , also eliminates a cause of arcing and voltage breakdown . an insulating rf suppressor according to the present invention is preferably made as follows . the insulating sleeve is machined or molded from ptfe or other suitable polymer . a mold is made up of two cylinders of differing diameters . the inner insulating sleeve is slipped snugly over the outside of the smaller - diameter cylinder . the smaller - diameter cylinder with insulating sleeve is then placed co - axially inside the larger - diameter cylinder . the rf suppressor material , such as eccosorb ®- cr , comprising two components , an iron - powder - filled resin and an activator / hardener , is mixed and filled into the annular spaces between the two cylinders and the insulating sleeve . the molded mixture is then cured in an oven according to the process specifications provided by the manufacturer of the rf absorbing material . an important difference between the known rf suppressor and the insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention is that in the insulated rf suppressor , the machined surfaces used to form the groove for the metal cathode connector fixture are restricted to the insulating sleeve , whereas in the conventional rf suppressor , the molded rf absorber material is machined . in fact , in the insulated rf suppressor , there is no machining of the molded rf absorber material . this aspect has important significance for the high - voltage tolerance of the insulated rf suppressor relative to the conventional rf suppressor because it is believed that machining of the molded rf absorber material causes suspended iron particles to be exposed at the machined surfaces . such exposed metal particles act as point radiators or can concentrate the electric field and promote arcing effects . thus , the elimination of machined surfaces , as well as the general avoidance of any sharp geometric features , in the molded rf absorber material contributes to the improved high - voltage tolerance of the insulated rf suppressor . further , machined surfaces of the eccosorb ® materials are believed to have a higher propensity to absorb moisture which degrades the electrical performance of the material such as its rf radiation absorption characteristics and voltage - holdoff capabilities . several tests were conducted to evaluate both the ability of an insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention in attenuating rf energy in a magnetron and in reducing failure associated with high - voltage , high - power operation of a magnetron . the tests were performed with a working example of the insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention . using a high electric potential test , the arcing properties of a working example of the insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention were compared to those of a non - insulated rf suppressor of the type currently used in commercial industrial magnetrons . in this particular high potential test , as depicted in fig1 , a negative - polarity voltage probe 1104 is placed in intimate contact with the inside surface 1102 of the rf suppressor under test . an electrically - grounded contact 1106 having a sharp point is disposed in close proximity , but without contact , to the outer sleeve of the rf suppressor , leaving an approximately 0 . 75 - inch spark gap . the voltage applied to the voltage probe 1104 is then increased until arcing is observed in the spark gap . the potential needed to induce breakdown and arcing , as evidenced by the spark between the sharp electrode and rf suppressor surface , indicates the maximum hold off voltage . in the comparative testing , the non - insulated rf suppressor was observed to arc at 24 kilovolts applied potential whereas the insulated rf suppressor was observed to arc at 30 kilovolts applied potential . therefore , the insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention provided a 6 kilovolt improvement in the hold - off voltage under the test conditions specified . an insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention was installed on a magnetron and the cathode bias voltage was snapped from 0 volts to − 35 kilovolts in 2 seconds . this test was repeated five times with no failure of the rf suppressor . the leakage current measured through the rf suppressor was 80 microamps , well below the normal allowable leakage current of 2 milliamps . the insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention was evaluated for rf radiation suppression effectiveness in a magnetron unit using a burle model s94604f magnetron under operating conditions typical of its customary use in service . a magnetron having no rf suppressor was tested to provide a baseline reference for rf suppressor performance . the comparative setups included a magnetron having a standard ( i . e ., non - insulated ) rf suppressor made by burle industries ( part cr116vac - 2 ) and a magnetron using a standard ( non - insulated ) rf suppressor of the type used in commercial industrial magnetrons made by a u . s . manufacturer of microwave heating equipment . the rf suppression is assessed by comparing the amount of leakage rf power measured relative to that measured when no rf suppressor is used . the suppression or emission power ratio is a figure of merit for comparing the efficacy of rf suppressors . the rf suppression ratio is defined as the leakage power emanating from the magnetron and measured by an rf power meter with its receiving antenna situated at a defined reference point with respect to the magnetron to the rf powered delivered to a load , as measured by the change in temperature of a water heating load that terminates a waveguide coupled to the magnetron . fig1 shows plots of emission power ratio ( db ) for several rf suppressors as a function of rf output power ( kw ). the lower the emission power ratio , the more effective the rf suppression . the plot legend is according to : ▪&# 39 ; s : no rf suppressor −−: insulated rf suppressor with no humiseal ® coating x &# 39 ; s : standard burle rf suppressor ( part cr116vac - 2 ) *&# 39 ; s : no rf suppressor ●&# 39 ; s : commercial rf suppressor +&# 39 ; s : rf insulated suppressor coated with humiseal ® coating the insulated rf suppressor provided about 4 to 6 db of attenuation , with respect to a baseline case of a magnetron operating with no suppressor , and also outperformed a commercial rf suppressor used by at least one u . s . magnetron microwave heating manufacturer . further , the insulated suppressor attenuation was almost comparable to that provided by the standard burle cr116vac - 2 rf suppressor . therefore , it is evident that the insulated rf suppressor design has not greatly sacrificed rf attenuation capability in order to achieve improved high - voltage resistance . the insulated rf suppressor was tested with and without a humiseal ® coating ; with the coating provided a small but perceptible improvement in rf attenuation . this observation is in accordance with the expectation that such coatings would not significantly affect magnetron operating performance with respect to rf absorption . the purpose of such coatings is instead to merely provide additional resistance to moisture absorption and thus help reduce certain degradation phenomena associated with moisture . beginning - of - life testing was initiated for the example of the insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention with the following cycle sequence : ( 1 ) high - voltage cathode bias off , ( 2 ) high - voltage cathode bias on , ( 3 ) snap on rf power from 0 to 75 kilowatts , ( 4 ) snap rf power off , ( 5 ) high - voltage cathode bias off . this cycle was repeated ten times in a typical industrial microwave heating unit where the insulated rf suppressor was installed on the magnetron . no circuit breaker tripping nor arcs were evident at any time . in a further test , an industrial heating magnetron employed an insulated rf suppressor in continued use for several hundred hours without failure . alternative embodiment of the insulated rf suppressor and cathode connection fixture alternative embodiments of the insulated rf suppressor that conform to and improve upon features prescribed by the basic design described hereinabove are possible . such alternate embodiments of the invention may include additional insulating coatings , shrink tubing or shrink wrapping , or other types of encapsulants to provide additional insulating protection and / or moisture barriers . an rf suppressor made of two machined insulating members with an intervening layer of rf absorbing material is one possible alternative embodiment of the present invention . referring now to fig1 there is shown an insulated rf suppressor 1300 having an inner insulating sleeve 1302 , outer insulating sleeve 1304 , and an intervening layer 1306 of molded rf absorbing material . it will be understood that alterations to the geometry of the rf suppressor members , and substitution of materials that perform the same essential function although not identical to those disclosed herein , are considered to be within the scope and spirit of the present invention . further , the design of the insulated rf suppressor according to the present invention provides an opportunity to improve the design of the metal cathode connector fixture that mates the rf suppressor to the magnetron cathode . the connector fixture shown in fig1 a - 14c is fabricated without the sharp edges and corners that are present in the known designs and which are suspected of facilitating arcing during high voltage operation in service .

7Electricity

fig1 shows an angular friction welding apparatus comprising first and second component holders for holding two components which are to welded together . component holder 2 is adapted to hold a first component 4 , such as a blisk or blum , mounted for angular reciprocal movement about an axis 6 . preferably the angular reciprocal movement is rotary movement , as indicated by arrow 8 . in cases where the first component is a compressor or turbine disc or drum the component has a circular periphery 10 and the angular reciprocal movement 8 is so arranged that it is purely rotary movement about the centre axis of the disc or drum . the component holder 2 is adapted to mount the component 4 such that its axis of symmetry and the axis 6 of the reciprocal movement are wholly concentric without axial or transverse components of movement . second and third component holders 12 , 14 are adapted to hold respectively second and third components 16 , 18 which are to be joined to the first component 4 . in the particular example being described these second and third components are in the form of airfoil blades . in the process of fabricating a blisk or blum a multiplicity of such airfoil blades are joined to the circumferential periphery 10 of the disc or drum 4 . the first component holder 2 is coupled to angular reciprocatory movement generating means 20 , in the drawing by means of a shaft 22 . the drawing however is primarily schematic and in practice the components of the apparatus may be arranged differently . the movement generating means 20 is adapted to cause relative angular reciprocatory movement between the first and further , ie the second and third , component holders . the extent of the angular movement need not be great , for example in the case of a typical compressor disc having a diameter of the order of half a meter it may be , say , an arc of 3 mm . as previously mentioned in the present example this movement is purely rotary so that any point on the disc or drum periphery oscillates circumferentially by 3 mm substantially without any axial , or any other , component of movement . in order to accomplish frictional welding weld pressure generating means is arranged to urge the second and third component holders 12 , 14 towards the circumference of the first component 4 . the blades 16 , 18 are held by the component holders 12 , 14 and are urged into engagement with the sides of the blisk or blum 4 in radial directions , along the lines of arrows 24 and 26 . the reciprocation of the blisk or blum 4 relative to the two blades 16 , 18 initially causes heat to be generated in the interface region by friction . very high temperatures are reached in the interface sufficient to cause softening of the material . the application of radial forces to the blades causes material to be upset from the interface . at this point in the process the reciprocal movement is halted while radial pressure is maintained . as movement ceases welding occurs . it is preferred , as in this example , that two diametrically opposed blades are welded in simultaneous operation so that their radial forces balance out . of course , welding could be achieved with only one blade at a time . it is not essential to have two diametrically opposed blades , but it does have advantages in that the welding forces are equal and opposite and , therefore , balance each other . these welding forces are applied to the second and third component holders 12 , 14 by means of weld pressure generating means 28 , 30 respectively . in the preferred example the means 28 , 30 are hydraulically actuated rams which are securely mounted on the bed or basic structure 32 of the apparatus . the basic structure of friction welding machines is substantial , indeed massive , and as in this instance well able to react the reaction forces acting on the weld force generating rams 28 , 30 during a welding operation . the first component holder 2 is shown schematically in the drawing as a circular table carrying a plurality of adjustable clamping features , in the manner of a three or four jaw chuck for example . however , this is not intended to be limiting upon the invention , and a preferred form of mounting table and mounting tooling is described in co - pending british patent application nos gb 9309865 . 5 , gb 9309864 . 8 and gb 9309819 . 2 . in like manner the second and third component holders 12 , 14 are illustrated very simply in diagrammatic form , one example of a practical component holder particularly adapted for holding airfoil blades is known from gb 9011605 . 4 and gb 8914273 . 1 , and another example is described in co - pending british application no gb 9309822 . 6 . the first component holder 2 is shown schematically in fig1 and 2 as a circular table fitted with a plurality of clamping features for securing the disc or drawn to the first component holder in the form of the table . a preferred form of welding machine including a specially developed reciprocating table and holding tooling will be described below with reference to fig3 to 9 of the drawings . fig2 shows a further illustration of the principle with reference to the diagrammatic machine of fig1 in which like parts carry like references . in this example the weld - pressure generating force is applied in non - radial directions . a component 32 is to be joined to the periphery of the component 4 at an oblique angle . the component 32 is held against the circumferential side of the blisk or blum 4 at an angle inclined relative to the plane of the disc . the interface forming end face 34 is correspondingly chamfered . as before the component is held by a component holder 36 carried by weld force generating means 38 such that the weld - pressure generating force exerted by the means 38 has an axial component as well as a radial component . during the welding operation the holder 2 is caused to oscillate with angular reciprocal movement , as before , relative to the component 32 . subject to the abutting faces of the two components being correctly aligned . the weld - pressure generating force may lie in the plane defined by a radius and the axis about which the workpiece oscillates angularly , or it may not . for ease of manufacture it is preferred to attach blades to the periphery of a disc or drum at right angles to the surface thereof . sometimes , however , the peripheral surface tapers in an axial direction so that the plane of the weld interface must be inclined either with respect to the axis of the angular reciprocatory movement or with respect to the direction of the weld - pressure force . fig2 also shows a further variation with another component 40 urged against an end surface of the component in a generally axial direction . thus angular friction welding can be achieved with an axial force , as well as a radial force . indeed , the first component may be welded to the second component with a radial force , and a third component to a second component with an axial force . alternatively , the component holder 2 may comprise a reciprocating bed upon which more than one workpiece is mounted so that different components can be welded to the different workpieces simultaneously . as will become clear in the following description of a practical form of welding machine there may be a plurality of second component holders spaced apart circumferentially around the periphery of a disc 4 , or drum , so that a plurality of blades may be joined simultaneously to the disc . essentially the component holders are mounted co - planar and the weld generating forces are applied co - planar . there now follows a description with reference to the remaining drawings of several practical friction welding machines . fig3 to 9 show details of an angular friction welding machine 50 in which a disc or drum 4 of a turbine is mounted on a workpiece holder 51 and is reciprocated angularly about a central axis 52 through an arc having a length of , typically , plus or minus 3 mm . a pair of radially opposed turbine blades 53 are held in component holders 54 and are urged radially towards the disc 51 during welding . of course , they need not necessarily be truly radially urged , they could have a tangential component of force , and they need not be truly diametrically opposed , they could be offset from that position . the angular friction welding apparatus comprises a primary , workpiece mounting , angularly moveable member 55 mounted on a rigid base grounding unit 56 which is bolted to a floor 57 , a secondary counterbalancing member 58 also mounted on the base unit 56 , energy storing or transfer means 59 connecting the workpiece mounting member to the base unit 56 , energy storing or transfer means 60 connecting the counterbalancing member to the base unit , torque transfer means 61 coupling the workpiece mounting member and counterbalancing member , and drive means 62 operatively connected to the workpiece mounting member so as to drive it with angular reciprocatory motion . the member 55 may be considered in this example to be an annularly reciprocating table . the workpiece mounting member comprises a central column 63 having a cylindrical foot 64 at its lower end and a cylindrical head 65 towards its upper end . a workpiece mounting region 66 is provided on top of the head 65 . the workpiece mounting member 55 is mounted for reciprocatory angular movement with respect to the base unit 56 by means of hydrostatic bearings 67 which are provided in column members 68 and 69 . these bearings generally indicated at 69 , 60 comprise radial 67a and axial 67b thrust - taking hydrostatic bearings . the head 65 of the workpiece mounting member is coupled to the base unit 56 by a ring of resilient torsion bars 70 . the upper ends of the torsion pars 70 are of a square cross - section and are rigidly held in corresponding square holes in the head 65 . the lower end of the torsion bars 70 also have a square section rigidly held in corresponding square holes in the base 56 . the ring of torsion bars 70 acts as a torsional spring and serves to absorb kinetic energy or motion of the workpiece mounting member 55 and convert it into potential energy , and release it cyclically . the counterbalancing member 58 is mounted for reciprocatory angular movement by hydrostatic bearings , or film bearings . the energy storing or transfer means 60 also comprises a ring of flexible torsion bars 71 having their upper end fixedly mounted in the base 56 and their lower end fixedly mounted in the counterbalancing member 58 in a similar manner to the torsion bars 70 , but up - side down . the torque transfer means 61 comprise a pair of elongate diamond - shaped members coupling the head 65 to the annular counterbalancing member 58 . the coupling between the torque transfer means 61 and the head comprises effectively a ball joint 72 , but with the ball joint having hydrostatic or film bearing surfaces ( not shown ). there is a similar coupling 74 between the bottom end of the torque transfer means 61 and the counterbalancing member 58 . a pair of spigots 73 is provided on the base unit 56 and the mid - regions of the elongate bars 61 of the torque transfer means are pivoted on their respective spigots 73 . the workpiece mounting member 55 and the counterbalancing member 58 comprise a sprung oscillating system , that can be considered to be a torsion pendulum . the system has a natural frequency of oscillation or resonance and we propose to drive the system to oscillate at that natural frequency . a typical natural frequency would be around 35 hz . we envisage a useful frequency range for the welding machine to be fro about 20 hz up to about 50 hz . the natural or resonant frequency of the system can be altered . we may wish to do this in order to take account of workpieces of different masses , or simply in order to alter or tune the frequency at which we wish to drive the system , which normally will be the natural frequency . a suitable tuning means would alter the natural frequency of the system by , for example , adjusting the angular moment of inertia of the workpiece mounting member , by for example , altering its mass , or by moving mass towards or away from the central axis 52 ; by adjusting the amount of inertia of the counterbalancing means 58 in a similar manner ; by adjusting the stiffness of the springs in the system in some way as by for example decoupling one or more of the torsion bars 70 or 71 , preferably in symmetrically disposed pairs or by adjusting their effective length using a selectively decouplable clamp means ; or in some other way . a suitable selectively decouplable clamping means is schematically shown in fig4 . the top end of one or more of the energy storing torque rods 59 have a square cross section and have flat sides 101 . the angularly reciprocating head 65 has square tapered holes 102 with tapering flat sides 103 , the top end of the rods 59 extending into the holes 102 . locking wedges 104 are movable into and out of their operative positions by an actuating mechanism 105 . with the wedges 104 raised a rod 59 is not coupled to the head 25 . with the wedges driven downwards the upper end of the rod 59 is locked relative to the head 103 . the actuating mechanism 105 may be carried by the head 65 and move with it . there are preferably four wedges 104 : one for each keying surface of the rod 59 . the actuating mechanism 105 operates automatically , for example at the press of a button so that a user cannot mis - tighten the wedges . there may be a safety system such that the apparatus cannot be started before the rod 59 is either fully clamped or fully released . it is not desirable to allow the machine to be operated with the rod 59 partially clamped . of course a similar arrangement can be used with rods 60 , either instead of or in addition to that used with a least one of rods 59 , and preferably with more than one rod . in fig3 there are shown two interdigitated sets each of 9 torsion bears 70 and 71 . it is preferred to have each set of torsion bars comprising diametrically opposed pairs of bars as this make it more convenient to switch them in and out of operation and maintain the angular symmetry of the system . it will also be appreciated that there need not , necessarily , be the same number of torsion couplings to the member 55 as there are to the member 58 . the two sets could also be at different radii , but are shown at the same radius in the drawing . it will be noted that the transfer bars 61 are symmetrically disposed about the axis 52 . this means that they are self balancing . so are the torsion coupling means 70 , 71 . by having a large number of torsion bears we can adjust the natural frequency of the system by taking them in and out of an operative condition in relatively small steps . furthermore , it also assists in balancing the system . an advantageous feature of the angular friction welding apparatus 50 is that it can start welding at zero stroke . in some welding machines it is necessary to have the component and the workpiece at their maximum stroke to begin welding and this can cause large initial loads . it will be appreciated that we can drive the system at a frequency other than its natural frequency , and indeed that the utilisation of the system will not be too far removed from its optimum peak if we drive at a frequency reasonably above or reasonably below the natural frequency . for example , we would envisage driving in the range of 20 to 50 hz if the natural frequency was 35 hz , of course , we would ideally drive at 35 hz . it will be appreciated that the torque transfer means 61 maintains synchronous movement between the workpiece mounting member 65 and the counterbalancing member 58 and avoids the possibility of their movement being out of phase due to spring effects , and allows the operating of the machine away from the natural frequency . it will be appreciated that we could arrange the machine without earthing the member 55 and the member 58 . that is members 59 could be connected directly between members 55 and 58 , but we prefer to earth them to a ground because this gives a definite centre to the system . if the system were not earthed it would be very difficult to say where its centre point was . this may be important when setting up the apparatus before welding . in other version of the apparatus we could support the table 51 directly on the upper ends of the torsion bars 59 and we could omit the hydrostatic thrust bearing 67 . this may alleviate problems associated with maintaining clearances for hydrostatic thrust bearing 67b . it will be appreciated that the component holders 54 operate on substantially radial slides and are urged radially inwards by weld - pressure generating means . thus the principle of the angular friction welding is to reciprocate the workpiece and then apply a radial welding force between the components and the workpiece . ideally the component is fed in radially , but it could be fed in at any angle so long as there is a radial component . the weld &# 34 ; plane &# 34 ; is in fact a portion of a surface of a solid of revolution centred on the axis 52 of angular reciprocation . fig5 shows the reciprocatory drive means 62 for the apparatus 50 . there is a linear reciprocatory input drive shaft 80 , which may be the input to a known type of linear reciprocation drive mechanism , extending into a conversion unit 81 , and two output shafts 82 and 83 extending from the conversion unit 81 . these two output shafts 82 , 83 are arranged to drive a driven member in the welding apparatus itself . the driven member is either the workpiece mounting member 55 or the counterbalancing member 58 or possibly both . in the drawing the driving shafts 82 , 83 are coupled to the driven member by ball joints , and the driven member is indicated by alternative references 55 , 58 . when the input shaft 80 moves upwards to the left as shown in fig6 the output shaft 82 moves upwards in fig5 to the right in fig6 and the output shaft 83 moves in the opposite direction , downwards in fig5 and to the left in fig6 . the operative ends of the output shafts 82 and 83 are connected to radial attachment points on the workpiece mounted member 55 at opposite ends of a diameter of the driven member . this is schematically shown in fig5 . thus the output shafts 82 and 83 apply a reciprocating angular torque to the member 55 . the conversion unit 81 , shown in more detail with reference to fig6 of the drawing , comprises two chambers 64 and 65 of hydraulic fluid separated by a dividing wall 86 and by an input piston assembly 87 operating in a bore in the dividing wall 86 and by an output piston assembly 88 operating in another bore in the dividing wall . the second output shaft 83 has two piston assemblies 89 and 90 . the piston assembly 89 experiences the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in chamber 84 , and the piston assembly 90 the hydraulic pressure of the fluid in chamber 85 . as the input shaft 80 is driven forwards , to the right in fig6 the local volume in chamber 85 decreases and this is made up for by an increase in local volume elsewhere in the chamber . the output shaft 82 moves backwards , to the left in fig6 and the other output shaft 83 moves forwards , to the right in fig6 . thus the two output shafts 82 and 83 move in anti - phase . fig7 shows a disc 51 held in a workpiece holder 51 . parts corresponding to those shown in fig3 carry like references . the workpiece holder 51 can be indexed angularly to different positions relative to the workpiece mounting table . the underside of the workpiece holder has a ring of teeth , referenced 92 , which co - operate with a complementary ring of teeth on top of the workpiece locating region of the head 55 . however , in this arrangement the indexing is achieved by releasing a gripping force clamping the entire workpiece holder 51 to the ring of teeth on the top of the workpiece mounting region 66 , separating the teeth of the workpiece mounting region 66 and the teeth 92 , indexing the entire cartridge assembly of the workpiece holder 51 to the next allowable position , and re - clamping the two sets of teeth together so as to make the cartridge workpiece holder 51 immovable angularly relative with the workpiece mounting region 66 . it will be appreciated that the spacing of the two sets of teeth assists in determining the index positions since they will tend naturally to make any slight adjustments for a slightly incorrectly aligned workpiece holder 51 so long as the two sets of teeth engage in the correct projection / recess mating combination . fig8 is a general plan view of the machine of fig3 and shows the pair of substantially diametrically opposed slides 71 on which the component holders 54 are mounted . it also shows schematically a large number of blades , or positions where blades are to be welded to the disc 4 in the course of manufacturing a blisk . fig9 shows a way of applying a clamping or holding force b to the workpiece 4 . a central pull rod 110 extends along the axis 52 of the friction welding apparatus and has at its upper end a head 112 and at its lower end a piston 114 with first and second hydraulic chambers 116 and 118 above and below it . during friction welding the chamber 116 is pressurised and the head 117 pulls down on the upper member 120 of the workpiece holder to clamp the workpiece holder to the workpiece mounting region 66 . after welding , during indexing , the chamber 118 is pressurised ( and the chamber 116 de - pressurised ) so as to raise the head 112 , releasing the clamping pressure on the blisk . the blisk is keyed to the workpiece mounting region 66 . an indexing mechanism 122 is moveable into and out of engagement with an indexing ring 124 which indexes the workpiece mounting region 26 via an axial column 126 . it will be appreciated that the same idea of an axial pull member can be used to clamp the workpiece holder 51 to the friction welding apparatus 56 shown in fig3 . the indexing of the entire workpiece holder 51 will of course not mean indexing of the workpiece mounting region 66 in that case . however , a central pull rod equivalent to rod 110 could be provided in the arrangement of fig3 to clamp the workpiece holder to the mounting region 26 . we may wish to convert the apparatus of fig3 to be able to weld in a plane normal to the axis about which it reciprocates . a removable conversion unit may be provided to achieve this , the unit fitting on the top of the table . component holding means would then be provided on the unit . we may be able to weld on top of the unit as well as on the &# 34 ; sides &# 34 ; of the component holder table , and even both simultaneously . in a modification of the arrangement of fig3 the reciprocating workpiece mounting table 65 could be supported on torsion bars which have their bottom ends simply embedded in the ground or in a base member . there need be not hydrostatic bearings or counterbalancing member .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

an embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the drawings . fig2 illustrates a device for detecting hydrogen concentration according to an embodiment of the invention . the device 1 for detecting hydrogen concentration is installed in an engine compartment or a passenger compartment of an automobile that uses hydrogen as a fuel , and detects the concentration of hydrogen leaking into the compartment . the device 1 for detecting hydrogen concentration includes a sensing unit 2 , a current control unit 30 and an arithmetic and control unit 50 . referring to fig3 and 4 , the sensing unit 2 is constituted by a housing 4 , a base body 11 , a membrane 12 , heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , and a temperature - detecting resistor 16 . the housing 4 includes a recessed accommodating portion 5 for accommodating and securing the base body 11 , and a flow path 6 for discharging the gas after the gas is introduced onto the membrane 12 from the compartment . the base body 11 is made of single - crystal silicon in the shape of nearly a flat plate . the base body 11 has a cavity 20 penetrating in the direction of the thickness of the plate . the cavity 20 has its one opening 21 closed by the bottom wall of the recessed accommodating portion 5 of the housing 4 thereby to constitute a recessed portion . the other opening 22 of the cavity 20 is covered with the membrane 12 of the form of a thin film . the gas introduced into the housing 4 through the flow path 6 flows through the flow path 6 of the membrane 12 on the side opposite to the base body 11 . in fig3 and 4 , the arrow x represents the forward direction of gas flow and the arrow y represents the reverse direction of gas flow . the membrane 12 is constituted by a silicon oxide film 24 and a silicon nitride film 25 laminated by a micro - machine technology . the membrane 12 on the side of the silicon oxide film 24 is secured to the outer peripheral side of the opening 22 of the base body 11 . the membrane 12 contains therein the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 and holds them between the silicon oxide film 24 and the silicon nitride film 25 on the opening 22 . therefore , the membrane 12 works as a heat - insulating member for insulating the heat between the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 and , further , it works as a protection film for protecting the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 . the membrane 12 further contains therein the temperature - detecting resistor 16 and holds it between the silicon oxide film 24 and the silicon nitride film 25 . the heat - generating resistors 14 , 15 and the temperature - detecting resistor 16 are formed by patterning a metal film such as a pt film or a similar film . the temperature - detecting resistor 16 , the heat - generating resistor 14 and the heat - generating resistor 15 are arranged in this order along the forward direction x of gas flow . in the both directions x and y of gas flow , therefore , the temperature detecting resistor 16 and the heat - generating resistor 14 neighbor each other , and the heat - generating resistor 14 and the heat - generating resistor 15 neighbor each other . the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , having the same specifications , assume a meandering shape each being bent at six places , and each forming four straight portions 14 a and 15 a perpendicular to the axes of the both directions x and y of gas flow . gaps between the four straight portions 14 a , gaps between the four straight portions 15 a , and gaps between the neighboring straight portions 14 a , 15 a ( i . e ., gaps between the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 ) are set to be , for example , not larger than 1 mm . the temperature - detecting resistor 16 has a u - shape , is bent at two places , and forms two straight portions 16 a perpendicular to the axes of the both directions x and y of gas flow . the gap between the two straight portions 16 a and the gap between the neighboring straight portions 16 a and 14 a ( i . e ., the gap between the temperature - detecting resistor 16 and the heat - generating resistor 14 ) are set to be , for example , not larger than 1 mm . the current control unit 30 shown in fig2 is constituted by an electric circuit , and is electrically connected to the heat - generating resistors 14 , 15 and to the temperature - detecting resistor 16 . the current control unit 30 supplies electric currents to the heat - generating resistors 14 , 15 and to the temperature - detecting resistor 16 in a controlled manner . concretely speaking , the current control unit 30 carries out a feedback control operation while maintaining the resistances of the resistors 14 and 15 constant so that the heat - generating temperatures of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 become constant . in this case , the current control unit 30 of this embodiment works so that the resistances of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 become equal to each other , and that the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 similarly vary depending upon the hydrogen concentration around the resistors . therefore , a correlation becomes in agreement between the power consumption values w 1 , w 2 and the hydrogen concentration when the gas flow becomes substantially 0 around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 . as a result of feedback control by the current control unit 30 , the power consumption values w 1 , w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 vary as described below . when the hydrogen concentration and the gas flow become substantially zero around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 assume nearly the same reference value w b . when the hydrogen concentration becomes substantially zero but the gas flows around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 become greater than the reference value w b and different from each other as shown in fig5 b . when the gas is flowing in the forward direction x , in this case , the power consumption value w 1 of the heat - generating resistor 14 on the upstream side becomes greater than the power consumption value w 2 of the heat - generating resistor 15 on the downstream side . when the gas is flowing in the reverse direction y , on the other hand , the power consumption value w 2 of the heat - generating resistor 15 on the upstream side becomes greater than the power consumption value w 1 of the heat - generating resistor 14 on the downstream side . in either case , the amounts c 1 and c 2 of change in the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 represented by deviations of the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 from the reference value w b , are solely components of change due to the gas flow . when the hydrogen concentration becomes greater than zero but the gas flow becomes substantially zero around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 become greater than the reference value wb and become nearly equal to each other as shown in fig6 a . here , the amounts c 1 and c 2 of change in the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 are solely components of change due to the hydrogen concentration . when the hydrogen concentration becomes greater than zero and the gas flows around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 as shown in fig6 b , the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 , of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , become greater than the reference value w b and become different from each other . here , when the gas is flowing in the forward direction x as shown in fig6 b , the power consumption value w 1 of the heat - generating resistor 14 on the upstream side becomes greater than the power consumption value w 2 of the heat - generating resistor 15 on the downstream side . when the gas is flowing in the reverse direction y , on the other hand , the power consumption value w 2 of the heat - generating resistor 15 on the upstream side becomes greater than the power consumption value w 1 of the heat - generating resistor 14 of the downstream side . in either case , the amounts c 1 and c 2 of change in the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 become the amounts obtained by adding the components of change due to the gas flow to the components of change due to the hydrogen concentration . here , the amounts c 1 and c 2 of change in the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 are different from each other , as shown in fig6 b , because there is a difference in the components of change , due to the gas flow , even though there is no difference in the components of change due to the hydrogen concentration . when an instruction signal is received from the arithmetic and control unit 50 , further , the current control unit 30 supplies a predetermined voltage or a predetermined current to the temperature - detecting resistor 16 . therefore , the resistance r of the temperature - detecting resistor 16 varies depending upon the temperature t around the temperature - detecting resistor 16 . in this embodiment , the temperature - detecting resistor 16 is located close to the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 . therefore , the ambient temperature t of the temperature - detecting resistor 16 is substantially in agreement with the ambient temperature of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 . referring to fig2 , the arithmetic and control unit 50 which is the “ concentration detector means ” is constituted chiefly by a microcomputer having a cpu 51 , a rom 52 and a ram 53 . the arithmetic and control unit 50 is electrically connected to the current control unit 30 , and receives , from the current control unit 30 , the signals representing the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , and the resistance r of the temperature - detecting resistor 16 . the arithmetic and control unit 50 has the cpu 51 execute a detection program , stored in the rom 52 , to detect the ambient temperature t based on the resistance r and to detect the hydrogen concentration based on the ambient temperature t and on the power consumption values w 1 , w 2 . at this moment , the power consumption values w 1 , w 2 and the ambient temperature t are stored in the ram 53 . the steps successively executed by the arithmetic and control unit 50 , as the detection program is executed by the cpu 51 , will now be described in detail according to the flowchart of fig1 . at step s 1 , first , an instruction signal is given to the current control unit 30 to supply a current to the temperature - detecting resistor 16 and , then , a signal representing the resistance r is received from the current control unit 30 . at step s 1 , further , an ambient temperature t is calculated based on the resistance r represented by the received signal , and is stored in the ram 53 . the “ temperature detecting means ” is represented by a portion of the arithmetic and control unit 50 that executes the above step s 1 , by the temperature - detecting resistor 16 and by the current control unit 30 , and the “ temperature detecting step ” is represented by the above step s 1 . at step s 2 , an instruction signal is given to the current control unit 30 , whereby signals representing the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 are received from the current control unit 30 , and the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 represented by the received signals are stored in the ram 53 . at step s 3 , attention is given to the one power consumption value w 1 to calculate a deviation between the power consumption value w 1 and the reference value w b , i . e ., to calculate the amount c 1 of change in the power consumption value w 1 . in this embodiment , at this moment , the reference value wb is varied depending upon the ambient temperature t . the relationship between the reference value wb and the ambient temperature t has been measured in advance prior to the shipment of the device 1 , and has been stored in the rom 52 in the form of a map of a function . at step s 3 , further , the amount c 1 of change that is calculated is stored in the ram 53 . the “ amount - of - change calculation means ” is represented by a portion of the arithmetic and control unit 50 that executes the above step s 3 , and the “ amount - of - change calculation step ” is represented by the above step s 3 . at step s 4 , a difference δ w , between the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 , is calculated and is stored in the ram 53 . at step s 5 , of the amount c 1 of change in the power consumption value w 1 , the component of change due to the gas flow is estimated as the correction amount c a based on the difference δ w between the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 . in this embodiment , in this case , the correction amount c a is so calculated as to be proportional to the difference δ w , and the coefficient of proportion is varied depending upon the ambient temperature t . a correlation among the difference δ w , the ambient temperature t and the correction amount c a has been stored in advance in the rom 52 in the form of a map or a function . at step s 5 , further , the calculated correction amount c a is stored in the ram 53 . the “ correction amount calculation means ” is represented by a portion of the arithmetic and control unit 50 which executes the step s 5 , and the “ correction amount calculation step ” is represented by the step s 5 . at step s 6 , a difference δ c between the amount c 1 of change in the power consumption value w 1 and the correction amount c a is calculated and is stored in the ram 53 . at step s 7 , the hydrogen concentration dh is calculated based on the difference δ c between the amount c 1 of change in the power consumption value w 1 and the correction amount c a . in this embodiment , in this case , the correction amount d h is so calculated as to be proportional to the difference δ c , and the coefficient of proportion is varied depending upon the ambient temperature t . a correlation among the difference δ c , the ambient temperature t and the calculated hydrogen concentration d h has been stored in advance in the rom 52 in the form of a map or a function . the “ concentration calculation means ” is represented by a portion of the arithmetic and control unit 50 which executes the step s 7 , and the “ concentration calculation step ” is represented by the step s 7 . in this embodiment , which detects the hydrogen concentration as described above , the values c 1 , c a , δ c and d h calculated at steps s 3 , s 5 , s 6 and s 7 undergo changes as described above . when the hydrogen concentration and the gas flow are substantially 0 around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , the amount of change c 1 in the power consumption value w 1 and the correction amount c a become 0 , and the difference δ c between c 1 and c a becomes 0 , too . therefore , the hydrogen concentration d h which varies in proportion to the difference δ c becomes 0 . when the hydrogen concentration becomes substantially 0 but the gas flows around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , the amount c 1 of change in the power consumption value w 1 becomes solely the component of change due to the gas flow , and becomes in agreement with the correction amount c a , whereby the difference δ c between c 1 and c a becomes 0 . therefore , the hydrogen concentration d h that varies in proportion to the difference δ c becomes 0 . when the hydrogen concentration becomes greater than 0 while the gas flow is substantially 0 around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , the amount c 1 of change in the power consumption value w 1 is solely the component of change in the hydrogen concentration while the correction amount c a is 0 . therefore , the difference δ c between c 1 and c a becomes in agreement with the component of change due to the hydrogen concentration . accordingly , the hydrogen concentration d h which varies in proportion to the difference δ c precisely represents the real concentration . when the hydrogen concentration is greater than 0 and the gas flows around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , the amount c 1 of change in the power consumption value w 1 becomes the sum of the component of change due to the hydrogen concentration and the component of change due to the gas flow . accordingly , the difference δ c between the amount c 1 of change and the correction amount c a becomes equal to the amount c 1 of change from which the component of change due to the gas flow is subtracted , and becomes in agreement with the component of change due to the hydrogen concentration . therefore , the hydrogen concentration d h which varies in proportion to the difference δ c precisely represents the real concentration . in this embodiment as described above , even when the gas flows around the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 , the detected hydrogen concentration d h is not affected by the gas flow . at steps s 3 , s 5 and s 7 , further , the values c 1 , c a and d h are calculated by taking the ambient temperature t into consideration ; i . e ., the values c 1 , c a and d h are avoided from containing errors that stem from changes in the ambient temperature t . therefore , the detected the hydrogen concentration d h is not affected by a change in the ambient temperature t . further , the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 have straight portions 14 a and 15 a perpendicular to the axes of the directions x , y of gas flow . therefore , the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the resistors 14 and 15 sensitively vary in response to the gas flow . at step s 5 , therefore , the correction amount c a can be precisely obtained as a component of change due to the gas flow , making it possible to detect the hydrogen concentration dh which is hardly affected by the gas flow . further , the membrane 12 has the function of insulating the heat between the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 and for protecting the resistors 14 and 15 , preventing the occurrence of difference between the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 , 15 due to factors other than the gas flow , such as mutual thermal action and shocks between the resistors 14 and 15 . therefore , there is detected the hydrogen concentration d h which is not affected by the mutual thermal action or shocks between the resistors 14 and 15 . according to this embodiment as described above , the hydrogen concentration is detected highly precisely . in the above - mentioned embodiment , the resistances of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 are maintained constant and equal to each other , and the hydrogen concentration is detected based on the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 . it is , however , also possible to maintain the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 constant and equal to each other , and to detect the hydrogen concentration based on the resistances of the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 . in the above embodiment , further , the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 and the temperature - detecting resistor 16 are formed of a metal film such as a pt film . these resistors 14 , 15 and 16 , however , may be formed of a semiconductor film such as a polysilicon film . according to the above embodiment , the temperature - detecting resistor 16 is provided neighboring the heat - generating resistor 14 . however , the temperature - detecting resistor 16 may be provided neighboring the heat - generating resistor 15 . in the above embodiment , further , the ambient temperature t is detected by the temperature - detecting resistor 16 . however , the ambient temperature t may be detected by using any other widely - known temperature sensor . at steps s 3 , s 5 and s 7 of the above embodiment , further , the values c 1 , c a and d h are calculated by taking the ambient temperature t into consideration . however , at least any one of the values c 1 , c a and d h may be calculated irrespective of the ambient temperature t . when the values c 1 , c a and d h are to be all calculated irrespective of the ambient temperature t , there is no need to provide the temperature - detecting resistor 16 or the temperature sensor in its place . further , according to a modified example of the above embodiment as illustrated in fig7 , the cavity 20 may be formed in the substrate 11 from the side of the front surface 62 of the flow path 6 by using a chemical that acts upon the substrate 11 without the cavity 20 by passing the chemical through at least one window 60 perforated in a portion of the membrane 12 surrounding the heat - generating resistors 14 and 15 in the direction of thickness . here , as shown in fig7 , the cavity 20 may be formed to open on only the side of the front surface 62 without penetrating through the substrate 11 . according to another modified example shown in fig8 , further , a porous portion 70 may be formed instead of the cavity 20 by , for example , using a chemical that acts upon the substrate 11 . at step s 3 of the above embodiment , further , a deviation between the power consumption value w 1 and the reference value wb is calculated as the amount c 1 of change in the power consumption value w 1 by detecting the power consumption value w 1 of the heat - generating resistor 14 . at step s 3 , however , it is also possible to calculate a deviation between the power consumption value w 2 and the reference value w b as the amount c 2 of change in the power consumption value w 2 by detecting the power consumption value w 2 of the heat - generating resistor 15 . in this case , at step s 5 , of the amount c 2 of change in the power consumption value w 2 , a component of change due to the gas flow is estimated based on a difference δ w between the power consumption values w 1 and w 2 and is regarded as the correction amount c a to calculate , at step s 6 , a difference δ c between the amount c 2 of change in the power consumption value w 2 and the correction amount c a the above embodiment has dealt with a case where the present invention was applied to the device 1 for detecting the concentration of hydrogen leaking in the engine room or in the compartment of an automobile which uses hydrogen as a fuel . it is , however , also possible to apply the present invention to a device for detecting hydrogen concentration which detects the concentration of hydrogen fed to a fuel cell in the automobile that uses hydrogen as a fuel . or , the invention may be applied to the device for detecting hydrogen - concentration which detects the concentration of hydrogen emitted to the exterior from the automobile that uses hydrogen as a fuel . or , the invention may be applied to the device for detecting hydrogen concentration at a place other than an automobile that uses hydrogen as a fuel .

6Physics

the present invention operates by total reflection fluorescence , coupled with tunneling of the fluorescent radiation , as described in applicants &# 39 ; copending application ser . no . 406 , 324 , filed aug . 9 , 1982 , to which reference may be had for further details of the optical mode of operation of the apparatus . although , as will be described , the invention may be practiced independently of other assays , thereby merely quantitating the relative volume of a constituent phase of a fluid suspension , it may be incorporated with advantage into certain other assays . in the latter cases , such combined apparatus and methods result not only in the obvious advantages of the combination ( i . e ., the quantitation of several items with but a single apparatus and procedure ), but may also be used to simplify the protocol ordinarily required for the other assay . immunoassays of biological fluids are such a case , since such fluids are generally suspensions , and since most protocols require separating the various constituent phases of the suspension as a preliminary to the immunoassay . for this reason , a preferred embodiment of the present invention is in conjunction with immunoassay , and it is with regard to such an embodiment that the invention will now be described . the disposable employed herein is similar to that described in copending application ser . no . 410 , 340 , filed aug . 23 , 1982 , assigned to the assignee of the present application , and to which reference may be had for further details of its basic structure and operation . referring to fig1 there may be seen a longitudinal cross - sectional view of an immunoassay kit 10 made in accordance with the principles of the present invention . kit 10 comprises optical fiber 12 , capillary tube 14 , and stopper 16 . fiber 12 is an elongate substantially cylindrical optically transparent body adapted to propagate along its length through multiple total internal reflections optical radiation entering an end of the fiber within an established solid angle substantially rotationally symmetric about the fiber &# 39 ; s axis . as is well known in the art of fiber optics , the maximum acceptance angle , with regard to the fiber axis , b , for the radiation entering the fiber and so propagated within it , is established by the refractive indices of the fiber and the surrounding medium . for radiation initially propagating through a medium of refractive index n 0 , incident upon a fiber of refractive index n 1 otherwise surrounded by a material of refractive index n 2 , the maximum acceptance angle may be found from the equation where n . a . is the so - called numerical aperture of the fiber . by way of example , but not limitation , fiber 12 may be any of a number of optically transparent materials , such as glass , quartz , polypropylene , polyamin , nylon , or the like , chosen to have an index of refraction greater than that of the fluid sample being assayed ( typically , an aqueous solution having an index of refraction near 1 . 33 or a serum sample having an index of refraction near 1 . 35 ) and further chosen to be relatively insoluble and non - reactive with the fluid . while other fiber diameters may be used , it has been found that 200 microns is satisfactory . for most assays , a fiber 25 mm in length appears adequate ; however , it will be understood that the length of the fiber can be accommodated to the assay to be undertaken . capillary tube 14 is preferably an optically transparent tube , its material of construction also being chosen to be relatively insoluble and nonreactive with the fluid being assayed . thus , capillary tube 14 is preferably fabricated from such materials as glass , quartz , polypropylene , polyolefin , or the like . in a preferred embodiment , capillary tube 14 is of right circular cylindrical bore , having an inside diameter a few hundred microns larger than the diameter of fiber 12 ( e . g ., for a fiber diameter of 200 microns , capillary tube 14 may have an inside diameter of about 800 microns ). stopper 16 is configured and dimensioned to fit within an end of capillary tube 14 and support an end portion 18 of fiber 12 substantially coaxially within the capillary tube . additionally , stopper 16 provides a hard locating surface for positioning kit 10 in a fluorimeter , as will be described hereinafter . to these ends , stopper 16 is preferably provided with a flange 20 having an overall diameter on the order of the outside diameter of capillary tube 14 and a centrally disposed ferrule - like extension 21 coaxial with a central bore 22 . bore 22 penetrates throughout stopper 16 , and is dimensioned to secure end portion 18 of fiber 12 . in a preferred embodiment , stopper 16 is molded in place about fiber 12 , the stopper being preferably fabricated of a low index material , such as siloxane . stopper 16 is further provided with one or more through perforations 23 communicating with the interior of capillary tube 14 . fiber 12 passes through and is supported by stopper 16 so as to expose substantially all of the fiber but end portion 18 to the interior of capillary tube 14 , leaving end face 24 of end portion 18 unobscured and conterminous with the extremity of bore 22 external to the capillary tube . end face 24 is preferably planar and disposed normal to the axis of fiber 12 . preferably , end face 24 is also highly transparent and free of blemishes which would tend to scatter light incident upon the end face . to this end , end face 24 may be optically polished , although it has been found that a fused quartz fiber may be cleaved to provide an adequate optical surface . the end face 26 of the fiber distal from end face 24 is also polished flat or cleaved and further provided with a mirror coating 28 disposed substantially normal to the fiber axis , thereby causing radiation trapped in the fiber to double - pass the fiber . the overall dimensions of fiber 12 , capillary tube 14 , and stopper 16 are chosen to insure lower end face 26 of the fiber is within the capillary tube . it will be understood that mirror coating 28 need not be provided , if but a single pass of the radiation is acceptable . in such an embodiment , however , it is necessary that end face 26 be made opaque , positioned outside capillary tube 14 , or otherwise arranged to be clear of the fluid sample during measurements , in order to confine the volume sampled to the region defined by the evanescent wave , as will become apparent from the discussion infra of the operation of the device . prior to being assembled into kit 10 , fiber 12 is provided a coating , as will be described , activating a region 30 of its cylindrical surface for the assay to be performed . in a preferred embodiment , the activated region 30 is restricted to a predetermined length of fiber 12 by a chemically and optically inert coating 32 of , for instance , low optical index silicone , extending over both ends of the fiber . it will be understood , however , that the dimensions of activated region 30 may be controlled by other means ( e . g ., by masking the fiber during coating ), or , alternatively , the entire length of fiber 12 might be activated and the length of the fiber disposed within capillary tube 14 carefully controlled . turning now to fig3 there may be seen a highly stylized representation of a longitudinal cross - sectional portion of kit 10 within activated region 30 of fiber 12 , filled with a sample 43 to be assayed . the surface of fiber 12 within region 30 is provided with a plurality of coupling sites 44 , to a number of which are bound a moiety 46 of the antibody - antigen complex of interest . ( as used herein , the phrase &# 34 ; moiety of an antibody - antigen complex &# 34 ; refers to an immunologically reactive portion of such a complex , and includes haptens as well as complete antigens and antigen reactive antibody fragments [ fab ] as well as complete antibodies ). coupling sites 44 are so selected as to immobilize moieties 46 without appreciably affecting the reactivity ( e . g ., the affinity and avidity ) of the moiety for the complementary portion of the complex . in a preferred embodiment , fiber 12 is of glass or quartz , coupling sites 44 are the reactive groups of a silyl compound such as 3 - aminopropyltrimethoxysilane , and moieties 46 are an antibody such as immunoglobulin g ( igg ). as noted hereinabove , for this particular combination of solid phase , coupling site 44 and moiety 46 may be bound through the antibody &# 39 ; s carboxyl terminations , thereby leaving the antibody &# 39 ; s antigen reactive amino terminations free . the method for preparing the glass surface of fiber 12 , of attaching the silyl compound thereto , and of covalently bonding an antibody to the glass through the silyl coupling , are described by weetall ( u . s . pat . no . 3 , 652 , 761 ), where may also be found a description of other silyl compounds and the methods by which carboxyl , amino , and other reactive groups of antibody or antigen ( or their fragments ) may be covalently bound to various inorganic materials . it should be noted that an extensive art for immobilizing antigens or antibodies to polymers also exists , and those skilled in the art will understand that coupling sites 44 for antigen or antibody might be provided on polymeric fibers also . thus , for instance , if fiber 12 is of nylon ( polyamide ), the coupling may be in the form of the substitution of an appropriate radical for the hydrogen bound to the polymer &# 39 ; s functional groups . it should be noted that coupling sites 44 may also incorporate spacer groups , as are well known in the art , to insure sufficient separation between fiber 12 and moieties 46 as to minimize steric hindrance of the antibody - antigen binding process . for example , coupling sites 44 might include a polyethylene chain , as for example in the case of 1 , 6 diaminohexane or 6 aminohexanoic acid bound to fiber 12 through a peptide bond and respectively providing a free primary amino and a free carboxyl group for covalently binding to the carboxyl or amino termination of a protein moiety 46 . either of these coupling materials provide a 6 - carbon chain between terminations , thereby spacing moiety 46 from fiber 12 by the corresponding distance . similar appropriate coupling and spacer materials are well known in the arts of both immunoassay and affinity chromatography . in a preferred embodiment , fiber 12 is provided with moiety 46 having occupied binding sites , as indicated at index numerals 46c , the moieties being in part provided with attached tagged complement 50 for competition immunoassays . thus , in one embodiment moiety 46 is an antibody , and a preloading of tagged antigen or hapten is incorporated into the coating of fiber 12 . each of the tagged components 50 is provided with a pre - determined quantity of fluorophore 52 , thereby providing a tag . the particular fluorescing compounds of interest for tagging include fluoresceine , tetramethylrhodamine , rare earth chelates , and the like . methods for linking fluorescent tags to proteins are well known in the art , and many of the commercially available fluorescing compounds have groups for linking to proteins . preferably , for competition assay , a fixed portion of coupling sites 44 are provided with a immunologically inert protein 56 , such as albumin . the active region of fiber 12 is also coated with a fixed quantity of immunologically inert fluorescent material 57 . fluorescent material 57 is chosen to be non - reactive with the sample or reagent and yet to be soluble in the suspending phase of the sample . thus , for assays involving whole blood , fluorescent material 57 is chosen to be non - reactive with protein and to be soluble in blood serum . further , fluorescent material 57 is chosen so as to fluoresce at a different wavelength than does the fluorescent tag attached to tagged complement 50 . then , too , fluorescent material 57 is chosen so as not to quench , or be quenched by , the fluorescent tag . thus , to avoid radiation quenching , each of the fluorescent materials employed in a single assay is selected on the basis of not having an absorption maximum near the emmission maximum of the other fluorescent material ( i . e ., fluorescent material 57 and the tag of tagged complement 50 are each chosen on the basis of not having excitation band that overlaps the fluorescent emission band of the other ). materials which may be used for fluorescent material 57 include such materials as rhodamine b ( c . i . no . 45170 ), acridine orange ( c . i . no . 46005 ), berberine sulfate ( c . i . no . 75 , 160 ), methylene blue ( c . i . no . 52 , 015 ), thionine ( c . i . no . 52000 ), pyrene , astrazone orange r , various cyanines ( such as 3 , 3 &# 39 ; diethyloxadicarbocyanine iodide ), quinacrine , ethidium bromide , and many others . fluorescent material 57 is preloaded in sufficient quantity to be easily observable , but not sufficient to cause self - absorption . in these circumstances , fluorescent material 57 will be completely soluble in the anticipated volume of the suspending fluid component of the sample . as a guide , and subject to change depending upon the material and the sample , as will be understood by those skilled in the art of fluorescent assay , fluorescent material 57 typically may be preloaded to make up an approximately 10 - 9 to 10 - 6 molar solution in a volume of pure fluid that would occupy the space between active region 30 of fiber 12 and the adjacent wall of capillary tube 14 . fluorescent material 57 is weakly attached to fiber 12 , as by hydrogen bonding . the coating can be made to have a fixed surface composition by using adsorption phenomena , as follows . for a coating solution prepared with appropriate concentration of the reagents , mere immersion of a fiber activated with the proper surface binding groups 44 will produce a surface monolayer of chemically bound protein . the proportion of , say , immunoglobulin to inert protein in this layer will be given by ( but not identical to ) their proportion in the solution . any partial filling of the immunoglobulin active sites with tagged antigen will of course be maintained at the level in the solution . after dipping , the fiber is removed from the coating solution . to prevent the adhering liquid layer from entraining additional reagent , the fiber is then quickly washed before evaporation can occur . the protein layer , being covalently bound , will not be dislodged by this process . in order to prevent binding of more than one layer of protein , the bifunctional reagent must not alter the net charge of the protein ( this can be controlled by adjusting the ph of the coating solution ) and not have too long a spacer arm . kit 10 is intended for use with fluorometer 59 ( fig4 ). fluorometer 59 comprises light source 60 , beam splitter 62 , imaging optics 64 , filters 66a , 66b , and 66c , detectors 67a , 67b , and 67c , reference detector 68 , ratio amplifiers 70a , 70b , and 70c , and display 72 . light source 60 provides optical radiation of the appropriate frequency , chosen on the basis of the fluorophore used as the tag and fluorescent material 57 , so as to excite fluoresence in both components of the reagent . light source 60 preferably provides this radiation over only a narrow wavelength band , chosen to maximize the fluorescence . hence , light source 60 typically includes , in addition to the preferred tungsten - halogen lamp and associated power supply , a band - pass filter . alternatively , it will be understood light source 60 might incorporate other sources , such as a mercury lamp , flash lamp , or a laser . light source 60 also includes an appropriate beam shaping aperture and optics , as will be understood by those skilled in the art , to illuminate optics 64 with a beam of the appropriate vergence so as to permit the optics to image the source aperture on end face 24 of fiber 12 with no ray incident on the end face at an angle of incidence greater than that corresponding to the numerical aperture of the fiber . interposed between light source 60 and optics 64 is beam splitter 62 . beam splitter 62 is any of a number of well - known optical systems that can variously reflect and transmit a plurality of similar beams of radiation from one location to a plurality of other locations . thus , beam splitter 62 incoporates partially reflecting mirrors or similar components , and is designed to project high frequency ( short wavelength ) fluorescence exciting radiation from light source 60 toward optics 64 and from optics 64 toward filter 66c while projecting low frequency ( long wavelength ) radiation from optics 64 toward filters 66a and 66b . beam splitter 62 is further configured , by means well known in the art , to project radiation of a selected frequency from light source 60 toward reference detector 68 . optics 64 are selected to image light source 60 on end face 24 of fiber 12 , so as to just fill the end face with an image of the beam shaping aperture of the source , the maximum angle of incidence of a ray being selected to be no greater than that corresponding to the numerical aperture of the fiber . optics 64 are also selected so as to collect substantially all of the radiation exiting end face 24 over the numerical aperture of the fiber and image the end face at photodetectors 66a , 66b , and 66c . as an aid in establishing the proper position of fiber 12 , fluorimeter 59 is preferably provided with a positioning means , such as aperture plate 65 , dimensioned to accept ferrule - like extension 22 of stopper 16 and disposed to position end face 24 appropriately relative to optics 64 . detectors 67a and 67b include photodetectors , each of which is positioned to receive , through beam splitter 62 and filters 66a and 66b respectively , an image of end face 24 of fiber 12 projected toward the detectors by optics 64 . filters 66a and 66b , situated between beam splitter 62 and the respective detectors 67a and 67b , are respectively chosen to limit the radiation incident on the corresponding photodetector to the emission maxima of the fluorescent tag on tagged complement 50 and fluorescent material 57 , respectively blocking the fluorescence of the other material . thus , for instance , if the tag is fluorescein and fluorescent material 57 is ethidium bromide , filter 66a is chosen to pass a band of radiation about a wavelength of 520 nm ( corresponding to the fluorescence maximum of fluorescein ), and to reject a band from about 580 to 700 nm ( corresponding to the fluorescence maximum of ethidium bromide ). for such a combination of fluorescent materials , a dichroic beam splitter reflecting the 520 nm radiation and transmitting the 580 to 700 nm band might be used . the pass - and rejection - bands of filter 66b are preferably selected to be the reverse of those of filter 66a . as a result , radiation from the fluorescent tag collected by optics 62 is incident on detector 67a and flourescence due to fluorecent material 57 is incident on detector 67b . detectors 67a and 67b each preferably include a photomultiplier ( provided with appropriate power supply and field optics to restrict the detector &# 39 ; s field of view to end face 24 , as is well known in the art ), chosen to have maximum sensitivity in the region of peak fluorescence of the tag and fluorescent material 57 , respectively . detectors 67a and 67b are further preferably provided with blocking filters corresponding to the band - pass filter provided light source 60 . filter 66c and detector 67c are also disposed to be illuminated by radiation exiting end face 24 of fiber 12 and collected by optics 64 and passed by beam splitter 62 . filter 66c is selected to transmit to detector 67c only that radiation incident upon it which is within the pass band of the band - pass filter provided light source 60 , and detector 67c is chosen to have maximum sensitivity to this radiation . detector 67c is also provided with power supply as required and field limiting stops ( not shown ) to restrict its field of view to end face 24 of fiber 12 . reference detector 68 , preferably a photodiode , is disposed to intercept radiation from light source 60 passing through beam splitter 62 . reference detector 68 is chosen for peak sensitivity in the spectral region of light source 60 passed by beam splitter 62 , and includes appropriate field stops and optics to limit its field of view to the source . ratio amplifiers 70a , 70b , and 70c are any of a number of well - known electronic means each providing an output signal proportional to the ratio of a pair of input signals , so connected to the outputs of reference detector 68 and respectively to detectors 67a , 67b , and 67c as to provide signals proportional to the ratios of the outputs of the respective detectors to the reference detector . for instance , each ratio amplifier may be a variable gain amplifier amplifying the output from an individual detector 66 and having a gain inversely proportional to the output from reference detector 68 . the output of ratio amplifiers 70a , 70b , and 70c are connected to and serve as the inputs for display 72 . display 72 is any of a number of devices that provides three visual signals proportional to each of three electrical inputs , and may be , for instance , a set of meters or digital displays , a multi - trace strip chart recorder , or the like . kit 10 is primarily intended for use with fluid suspensions , although it will be understood that it could also be used with samples in which the various phases have been separated . as used herein , the term &# 34 ; suspension &# 34 ; means a non - homogeneous physico - chemical system having two or more physically distinct and mechanically separable portions ( the so - called &# 34 ; phases &# 34 ; of the system ) that are intermixed but undissolved in one another . the various phases of the suspension may be of the same or of different states ( i . e ., gaseous , liquid , or solid ), although , as will become apparent , the suspending phase ( also known as the continuous or external phase or the dispersion medium ) must be fluid at least during a part of the operation of the apparatus of the invention . in operation , kit 10 is dipped into a sample to be assayed . perforations 23 allow capillary tube 14 to fill itself by capillary action once its end is immersed in sample ( for the proposed tube diameter , it will be advantageous to hold the fiber at a slant for filling ). a fixed volume of sample will thus be drawn into capillary tube 14 whenever it is dipped in the solution and allowed to fill completely . actually , a full capillary tube is not really required , it being sufficient only to have the liquid cover the entire active region 30 of fiber 12 . this state can be verified by observing , through the wall of capillary tube 14 , the sample to cover the upper inactivating coating 32 on the fiber . consequently , it is not necessary to precisely control the capillary &# 39 ; s length or its complete filling . once fiber 12 is immersed in the sample , fluorescent material 57 begins to disolve into the suspending fluid phase of the sample , and , by diffusion , tends toward a uniform concentration throughout the volume of the suspending phase contained between active region 30 of fiber 12 and the adjacent wall of capillary tube 14 . at the same time , tagged complement 50 and the immunological reacting species of interest within the sample are diffusing away from and toward the fiber . the rate at which a uniform concentration of fluorescent material 57 within the suspending phase is reached depends upon the size of the fluorescent material , the temperature , and the viscosity of the sample . for typical values of these parameters , a uniform concentration within several hundred microns of active region 30 may be acheived in incubation times on the order of 15 minutes . a similar period of time is required for equilibration between the immunological reactants immobilized to fiber 12 . ( fig3 corresponds to the situation before equilibration has been achieved ; the loading of fluorescent material 57 onto fiber 12 is preferably such that at equilibration with the median sample about half the fluorescent material is in solution ). the total volume of the sample in which fluorescent material 57 is uniformly disolved in the suspending phase within such an incubation time ( and the volume of the suspending phase scavenged for the immunologically reactive species of interest ) substantially corresponds to the volume contained between fiber 12 and capillary tube 14 over the length of active region 30 . the large length - to - diameter ratio of the active region insures that , for incubation time reasonably in excess of the minimum required incubation time , the length of the sample volume throughout which fluorescent material 57 is dispersed remains very nearly the length of active region 30 . in the case of interest , this total sample volume is not the sample volume of interest , as inclusions 74 ( fig3 ) void of the immunologically interesting species are suspended in sample 43 . the desired data base volume corresponds to the volume of the suspending fluid phase surrounding inclusions 74 of ( one or more ) suspended phases . in the case of whole blood , inclusions 74 are cells ( primarily erythrocytes of biconcave disklike form approximately 7 . 5 microns in diameter ) that may comprise 50 % or more of the total sample volume , while the suspending fluid ( in this case , serum ) correspondingly comrises the remaining volume . fluorescent material 57 , chosen to be nonreactive and non soluble with inclusions 74 ( or , in the case of cells , chosen at least not to react with or penetrate the cell membrane ) is only dispersed with the suspending fluid phase . as a pre - determined quantity of fluorescent material 57 has been allowed to disperse uniformly throughout the suspending fluid phase contained within the volume substantially defined by active region 30 and the adjacent inner wall of capillary tube 14 , the concentration of the fluorescent material is a measure of the volume of the suspending fluid phase . it will thus be understood that the concentration of fluorescent material 57 , and therefore ( ignoring quenching ) the available fluorescence per unit volume of the suspending fluid due to the material , varies inversely as the total volume of the suspending phase through which the fluorescent material has been dispersed , having a minimum , corresponding to no inclusions 74 of a suspended phase , established by the geometry of fiber 12 and capillary 14 and by the quantity of fluorescent material preloaded into disposable 10 , and a maximum , established by these parameters and by the tightest packing that may be achieved for the particular inclusions of the suspended phase . at the concentrations recommended , self - quenching of fluorescent material 57 is negligible . consequently , a fluorescence measurement of a known volume of the suspending fluid phase will provide a measure of the total volume of the suspending phase assayed . after incubation , kit 10 is placed in fluorometer 59 , stopper 16 cooperating with aperture plate 65 to position end face 24 of fiber 12 in the appropriate location relative to the fluorimeter &# 39 ; s optical train . radiation of a wavelength chosen to excite fluorescence in fluorophores 52 and fluorescent material 57 is supplied by light source 60 , via beam splitter 62 and optics 64 , so as to illuminate end face 24 of fiber 12 within the cone angle defined by the numerical aperture of the fiber . this radiation is consequently propagated within fiber 12 at or above the critical angle ( as indicated by ray 54 in fig3 ), and multiply totally internally reflecting along the length of the fiber . as a result , an evanescent wave is produced in sample 43 adjacent the fiber . as in copending applications 406 , 324 and 410 , 340 , cited herinbefore , competitive binding of tagged components 50 and untagged components 54 to moieties 46 attached to the fiber results in fluorescently tagged complexes 46c in proportion to the relative concentration of tagged to untagged components . excited by the evanescent wave , the tagged complexes 46c immediately adjacent fiber 12 fluoresce . a portion of the fluorescent emission tunnels into the fiber , propagating within the fiber along paths exceeding the critical angle , as indicated , for instance , by ray 56 in fig3 . much of this totally reflected fluorescence emission exits the fiber at end face 24 , where it is collected by optics 64 and projected through beam splitter 62 and filter 66a toward detector 67a . filter 66a allows only radiation corresponding to the wavelength band of maximum fluorescence of tagged complexes 46c to pass to detector 67a , which in turn provides an electrical signal proportional to the intensity of this fluorescence . beam splitter 62 also allows some radiation from source 60 to illuminate reference detector 68 , which provides an electrical signal proportional to the source intensity . these two electrical signals are ratioed by ratio amplifier 70a to provide an electrical output signal proportional to fluorescent intensity of the immobilized tagged material corrected for source intensity variations , which is displayed by display 72 . in a similar manner , the evanescent wave exites fluorescence of that protion of material 57 immediately adjacent fiber 12 . that portion of this fluorescence which tunnels back into fiber 12 and exits end face 24 is incident , via optics 64 , beam splitter 62 , and filter 66b , on detector 67b . ratio amplifier 70b , in ratioing the signal from detector 70b and reference detector 68 , provides a signal proportional to the fluorescence due to that portion of fluorescent material 57 adjacent fiber 12 corrected for source intensity variations . this signal is also displayed by display 72 . the size of the observed fluorescent zone , established by the evanescent wave and fluorescence tunnelling , together with the dimensions of active region 30 of fiber 12 , establishes , to a first approximation , a fixed volume of the suspending fluid phase , the thinness of the layer restricting the percentage of this volume that can be occupied by an inclusion of a fixed shape . as an example , consider a concentration of about 50 % by volume of 7 . 5 micron spheres distributed in contact with the surface of fiber 12 . for such a situation , each 220 cubic micron sphere is surrounded on the average by some 440 cubic microns of suspending fluid . this volume ratio is easily achieved by cubic , rather than hexagonal , packing , and it follows that , at the fiber surface there will be some 56 square microns of suspending fluid for each ( infinitesimal ) point of contact with a spherical inclusion . within , say , 1000 angstroms of the surface of the fiber , each spherical inclusion will have a volume of about 0 . 1 cubic micron , while there will be some 5 . 5 cubic microns of suspending fluid for each inclusion . in such a case , a negligible error would be incurred in the estimation of the total volume of the suspending fluid assayed through failing to consider the reduction in the observed fluorescence due to sampling the non - fluorescent inclusions in the presumed fixed volume of suspending fluid . actually , observed fluorescence zones having half - thicknesses on the order of a few hundred angstroms may be achieved . therefore , in principle , greater volume measuring accuracy may be achieved ; however , in practice the accuracy suggested by the above example will not be observed because of the plastic flow likely to occur with the inclusions of interest . to correct for the absorption loss in the effective fluorescent excitation zone , the absorption of the sample adjacent fiber 12 is observed by attenuated total reflection . that portion of the intensity of the evanescent wave that is absorbed in sample 43 results in a like reduction of the intensity of the totally reflected rediation within the fiber . the radiation propagating within the fiber from end face 24 toward end face 26 is reflected by mirror coating 28 , and ( less reflection and absorption losses ) returned to end face 26 . optics 64 images this radiation , via beam splitter 62 and filter 66c , onto detector 67c . filter 66c restricts the spectral region observed by detector 67c to that of the band pass filter of light source 60 . detector 67c thus observes the radiation due to source 60 that is not lost in the double - pass through fiber 12 or elsewhere in the system . the electrical output of detector 67c is ratioed with the output of reference detector 68 by ratio amplifier 70c , resulting in an output , corrected for source variations , proportional to transmittance of the system . this signal is also displayed by display 72 . the transmittance , calibrated for known system losses , is a measure of the absorption due to sample 43 . while a percentage of these losses are due to absorption of exciting radiation by the fluorescing materials in the sample , for the concentrations of interest , such losses are small . thus , highly absorbing inclusions 74 , such as erythrocytes , within the evanescent wave may be readily observed and quantitated by attenuated total reflection . it will be appreciated that the present invention is not limited to the apparatus so far described nor to the experimental protocols outlined hereinabove . thus , while the sample within tube 14 will be retained by capillarity as soon as the tube is withdrawn from the sample , evaporation at the sample &# 39 ; s free surface will eventually reduce the sample within the tube . accordingly , it may be advantageous to seal the tube with a nonfluorescent mastic as soon as the sample is collected . alternatively , the sample may be protected from rapid evaporation by putting a terminal constriction , as generally indicated by index numeral 90 of kit 110 ( fig2 ) in capillary tube 114 . constriction 90 is limited to the region opposite the lower inert region 32 of fiber 12 , and is typically given a minimum inside diameter some 100 microns greater than the diameter of the fiber ( i . e ., for the 200 micron fiber of the preferred embodiment , the minimum inside diameter of constriction 60 is some 300 microns ). in all other respects , kit 110 may be similar to kit 10 . it will also be recognized that a portion of the reagents , and in particular , fluorescent material 57 could be in the form of a powder packed inside the capillary ( for such an embodiment , the structure of capillary tube 114 recommends itself ). however , fluorescent material 57 might also be coated on the the fiber or the inside wall of capillary tube 14 as a reagent coating 130 ( illustrated in fig2 ). it will also be appreciated that other reagents , such as buffers , anticoagulants , and the like , might be packed within capillary tube 14 or coated on the fiber or capillary tube . it might be noted further that the fiber diameter must not only be constant along its length , but must also be constant from disposable to disposable . otherwise , while the overall amount of sample would be constant from test to test , the amount of reagent would vary . this accuracy requirement could be avoided by coating the tagged antigen on the inside wall of the capillary as reagent coating 130 ( fig2 ). this would not only reduce the diameter constancy requirement on the fiber but also on the capillary , since a diameter increase of the latter would increase not only the reagent amount but also that of the sample , while for the fiber , a resulting increase in the number of binding sites would be compensated by the reduction in the number of reflections ( provided the illumination throughput was matched to the minimal fiber diameter ). it will also be understood that fiber 12 and tube 14 might be of other than right circular cylindrical shape , and that , for instance , they might be a pair of parallel plates with a capillary spacing therebetween . then again , it should be understood that the apparatus and methods of the present invention are not limited to immunoassay , but might be used for other assays in which a correction for the relative volumes of the phases of a suspension is necessary , or wherein additionally a measure of such a volume is desired . in fact , as previously noted , the methods and apparatus of the present invention are also intended for use with but a single reagent ( soluble fluorescent material 57 ) merely to quantitate the relative volumes of the phases of a suspension . thus , if the suspension is whole blood , a fluorescent material soluble in serum may be used to quantitate the cellular volume or hematocrit . for such applications , active region 30 of fiber 12 would not ordinarily be provided with immobilized moieties 46 of antigen or antibody , nor would kit 10 include tagged complement 50 . it will also be understood that for merely quantitating the relative volumes of the phases of a suspension , a simplified fluorometer 59 , not provided with a channel ( filter 66a , detector 67a , and ratio amplifier 70a ) corresponding to the region of peak fluorescence of the tag of tagged complement 50 , might be used . since these and certain other changes may be made in the above apparatus and method without departing from the scope of the invention herein involved , it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted in an illustrative and not a limiting sense .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

referring to the drawings in detail and , in particular , to fig1 an internal combustion engine 1 , such as a v - type internal combustion engine , equipped with a valve drive mechanism assembled by the method of the present invention is shown . the engine 1 includes a right or first cylinder bank ia and a left or second cylinder bank ib . the first and second cylinder banks ia and ib have first and second cylinder heads 3 and 4 mounted on a cylinder block 2 . the cylinder heads are disposed in a v - formation at a proper angle ( for instance , about 60 degrees ) relative to each other so as to form a v - shaped space v therebetween . the engine 1 has a plurality of cylinders disposed adjacent to one another and along the length of the cylinder banks 1a and 1b . each of these cylinders has four valves , namely , two intake valves and two exhaust valves . a pair of camshafts , namely , exhaust and intake camshafts 5 and 6 , form a part of the valve drive mechanism . these camshafts are rotatably disposed parallel to each other on cylinder heads 3 and 4 . each of the pairs of camshafts 5 and 6 is rotatably connected to an engine crankshaft 7 by a timing belt 8 so as to be driven at approximate relative timings . in more detail , the crankshaft 7 , which extends out of one end of a lower portion of the cylinder block 2 , is provided , at its outer end , with a crankshaft pulley or sprocket 7a coaxial with the crankshaft 7 . the exhaust camshafts 5 , which extend out of first ends of the cylinder heads 3 and 4 , respectively , are provided , at their outer ends , with camshaft pulleys or sprockets 9 coaxial with the exhaust camshafts . these sprockets 7a and 9 are connected by the timing belt 8 . to apply a proper constant tension to the timing belt 8 , there are several idler pulleys 11a - 11d located at selected points . the exhaust and intake camshafts 5 and 6 are rotatably connected by an interconnecting gear train . the gear train includes an exhaust camshaft gear 12 , rotatably mounted on the exhaust camshaft 5 , and an intake camshaft gear 13 ( see fig3 ), mounted on the intake camshaft 6 so as to be rotated at an appropriate timing relative to the crankshaft 7 . the intake camshaft gear 13 is accompanied by a friction gear 17 ( see fig3 ) mounted on the intake camshaft 6 . the exhaust camshaft 5 is provided with two cams 5a for each cylinder , and the intake camshaft 6 is also provided with two cams ( not shown ) for each cylinder . these cams drive the intake and exhaust valves so that they open and close intake and exhaust ports of the cylinder at a proper timing . referring to fig2 and 3 , and specifically to the area around the exhaust camshaft 5 , there is disposed , between the camshaft pulley 9 and the exhaust camshaft 5 , a variable valve timing mechanism 16 for varying a timing of opening and closing the exhaust valves relative to the intake valves so as to vary valve opening overlap time between the intake and exhaust valves . the variable valve timing mechanism 16 is mounted on the exhaust camshaft 5 by a generally cylindrically shaped mounting base 15 . the mounting base 15 is attached to the camshaft sprocket 9 by bolts at its front end and to the exhaust camshaft gear 12 by a lock nut 14 at its rear end . to mount the camshafts 5 and 6 on the cylinder head 3 in cooperation with an end bearing cap 18 and an intermediate bearing cap 19 , the cylinder head 3 is formed , on its top surface , with end bearings 21a and 21b for supporting the cylindrical mounting base 15 and intermediate bearings 22 for supporting intermediate journal portions of the camshafts 5 and 6 . the end bearing cap 18 is formed with a front cap extension 18a extending around a half portion of the camshaft sprocket 9 . the cylindrical mounting base 15 is made as one integral piece and has three portions , namely , a front cylindrical flange portion with internal steps , one of which is attached with the camshaft pulley 9 through a cylindrical casing 25 , an intermediate cylindrical journal portion 15a which is held by the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 , and a rear cylindrical with an externally threaded end 15b . the intermediate journal portion 15a has an external diameter smaller than the front flange portion and larger than the rear cylindrical portion so as to form front and rear external shoulders . the cylindrical mounting base 15 abuts , at the front shoulder , against the front end surface of the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 . the exhaust camshaft gear 12 has a cylindrical boss 12a , abutting , at its front end , against the rear shoulder of the intermediate journal portion 15a of the cylindrical mounting base 15 , and is fixedly supported between the rear shoulder of the intermediate journal portion 15a and the lock nut 14 threadingly fitted to the externally threaded end 15b of the rear cylindrical portion . the cylindrical boss 12a is further rotatably supported in a cylindrical space formed between annular shoulders g of the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 so as to prevent the cylindrical mounting base 15 from thrust movement with respect to the end bearing 21a . there is a positioning means for adjusting the cylindrical mounting base 15 and the exhaust camshaft gear 12 to a predetermined relative angular position . the positioning means includes a positioning pin 23 , radially projecting from the rear cylindrical portion of the cylindrical mounting base 15 , and an internal axial slot 12b , formed in the exhaust camshaft gear 12 . the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 are formed with semi - circular grooves f , respectively , in which an oil sealing ring 24 is fitted . a timing belt cover 41 is attached to the front bearing cap extension 18a of the end bearing cap 18 to cover various elements , including the timing belt 8 , mounted directly and indirectly on the front end portion of the exhaust camshaft 5 . a head cover 42 is attached to the rear end of the end bearing cap 18 to cover the top surface of the cylinder head 3 and the camshafts 5 and 6 . the exhaust camshaft 5 is formed with a journal 5b , located at an axial position between the intermediate cylindrical journal portion 15a and the threaded end 15b of the cylindrical mounting base 15 . the base 15 has an outer diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter front portion of the exhaust camshaft 5 extending within the cylindrical mounting base 15 and is in sliding contact with part of the inner surface of the cylindrical mounting base 15 . the exhaust camshaft 5 is integrally formed with a hexagonal collar 5c for an open end wrench . the variable valve timing mechanism 16 is of the well known hydraulic type and is activated by oil supplied thereto through an oil passage ( not shown ) formed in the exhaust camshaft 5 by an oil pump ( not shown ) of the engine 1 according to an engine operating condition . the variable valve timing mechanism 16 includes the cylindrical casing 25 attached to the cylindrical mounting base 15 . a front end ring 26 with a cover 38 bolted thereto is threadingly fitted into the cylindrical casing 25 . a cylindrical spacer 27 is fastened to the front end of the exhaust camshaft 5 through a washer 28 by a securing member 29 , such as a bolt , so as to attach the valve timing mechanism 16 securely to the exhaust camshaft 5 . the variable valve timing mechanism 16 includes , between the casing 25 and the spacer 27 , a ring piston 30 having two cylindrical rings disposed in the axial direction . the rings are fixedly attached to each other by a plurality of fixing pins 31 , arranged at regular circumferential angular spacings . the ring piston 30 is formed , on its inner and outer surfaces , with helical splines directed in opposite directions . to threadingly engage the cylindrical casing 25 and the spacer 27 with the piston 30 , the cylindrical casing 25 is formed , on its inner surface , with helical splines . the spacer 27 is also formed , on its outer surface , with helical splines . the variable valve timing mechanism 16 includes a return coil spring 36 disposed between the cylindrical mounting base 15 and the ring piston 30 so as to force the ring piston 30 apart from the cylindrical mounting base 15 in the axial direction . to adjust the variable valve timing mechanism 16 to a preferred angular position relative to the exhaust camshaft 5 , a knock pin 32 , extending from the end of the exhaust camshaft 5 , is fitted into an axial groove or slot 27a formed in the spacer 27 . in a variable valve timing unit 16 mounted in this way on the exhaust camshaft 5 , when pressurized oil is introduced through the oil passage in the exhaust camshaft 5 and the securing bolt 29 and applied to the piston 30 , the piston 30 is forced to the right , as viewed in fig2 against the return spring 36 . the spacer 27 , secured to the exhaust camshaft 5 , and the casing 25 , attached with the camshaft sprocket 9 , spline coupled to the piston 30 , are , therefore , turned in opposite directions relative to each other . this changes the relative phase of rotation between the exhaust camshaft 5 and the camshaft sprocket 9 . to assemble the valve drive mechanism to the cylinder head 3 of the engine 1 , after mounting the exhaust camshaft gear 12 and the lock nut 14 on the front portion of the exhaust camshaft 5 , the exhaust camshaft 5 is placed on the end bearing 21b and the intermediate bearing 22 of the cylinder head 3 . then , after adjusting the exhaust camshaft gear 12 to a predetermined phase of rotation relative to the intake camshaft gear 13 fixedly attached to the intake camshaft 6 , the intake camshaft 6 is placed on the front end bearing 21b and the intermediate bearing 22 of the cylinder head 3 . as is well known in the art , the adjustment of the relative phase of rotation between the camshaft gears 12 and 13 of the exhaust and intake camshafts 5 is performed by aligning a mark on one of the camshaft gears 12 and 13 with a mark on the other of these camshaft gears . the end bearing caps 18 and the intermediate bearing cap 22 are secured to the end bearings 21a and 21b and the intermediate bearing 22 , respectively , so as to rotatably hold the camshafts 5 and 6 . however , because no element of the variable valve timing unit 16 has yet been assembled in the valve drive mechanism , there remains a clearance between the exhaust camshaft 5 and the inner surfaces of the end bearings 21a and the end bearing caps 18 . during securing of the camshafts 5 and 6 , the exhaust camshaft gear 12 and the lock nut 14 , which has been provisionally mounted on the exhaust camshaft 5 , are located rearward from the end bearing 21a of the cylinder head 3 . after securing the end bearing cap 18 to the end bearing 21a , the boss 12a of the exhaust camshaft gear 12 is fitted in the annular groove g so that the exhaust camshaft gear 12 is provisionally held , by the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 , coaxially with the exhaust camshaft 5 . after ( or before ) fitting the boss 12a of the exhaust camshaft gear 12 in the annular groove g , the oil sealing ring 24 is press - fitted in the internal circular groove f of the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 , which have been secured to each other , through the clearance . thereafter , the variable valve timing unit 16 is mounted on the exhaust camshaft in such a way as to fit the cylindrical mounting base 15 between the exhaust camshaft 5 and the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 through the clearance to some extent . the variable valve timing unit 16 is then turned so as to align the internal axial slot 12b of the exhaust camshaft gear 12 with the positioning pin 23 of the rear cylindrical portion of the cylindrical mounting base 15 . the cylindrical mounting base 15 is then forced axially until the knock pin 32 of the exhaust camshaft 5 abuts the rear end surface of the spacer 27 . because the exhaust camshaft gear 12 is held coaxially with and by the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 , the insertion of the cylindrical mounting base 15 into the clearance between the exhaust camshaft 5 , the end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 is performed quite easily . then , exhaust camshaft gear 12 is provisionally fastened against the annular groove g of the front end bearing 21a and the end bearing cap 18 by the lock nut 14 . after provisional fastening of the exhaust camshaft gear 12 , the exhaust camshaft 5 is turned by the use of a tool , such as an open end wrench fitted to the hexagonal collar 5c , until the knock pin 32 of the exhaust camshaft 5 is set to ( or aligned with ) the axial slot 27a of the spacer 27 . because the securing bolt 29 and the cover 38 are not yet attached to the variable valve timing unit 16 , the angular position of the exhaust camshaft 5 relative to the spacer 27 can be viewed and confirmed from the front side . the spacer 27 is then fastened to the front end of the exhaust camshaft 5 by the securing bolt 29 through the washer 28 . after locking the knock nut 14 against rotation with respect to the front end bearing 21a by the use of a tool or an extra jig , the securing bolt 29 is further turned with a predetermined torque by the use of a torque wrench so as to fixedly secure the variable valve timing unit 16 to the exhaust camshaft 5 . the lock nut 14 is further turned by the use of a special wrench so as to completely fasten the exhaust camshaft gear 12 to the cylindrical mounting base 15 . finally , the cover 38 is attached to the front end ring 26 of the variable valve timing unit 16 to complete the assembly of the valve drive mechanism . the variable valve timing unit 16 is activated , according to engine load and engine speed , in a well known manner . that is , when the engine is operated at higher engine loads and higher engine speeds , pressurized oil is introduced into the variable valve timing unit 16 and applied to the piston 30 . consequently , the piston 30 is forced in one axial direction , for instance to the right , as viewed in fig2 . the casing 25 , which is mechanically united to the camshaft sprocket 9 and the exhaust camshaft gear 12 as a whole , is turned through a predetermined angle relative to the exhaust camshaft 5 secured to the spacer 27 . as a result of the change in angular position of the exhaust camshaft gear 12 relative to the exhaust camshaft 5 , the phase of rotation of the intake camshaft 6 relative to the exhaust camshaft 5 changes , so as to retard closing of the intake valves or to advance opening of the exhaust valves . an overlap time period , during which both of the intake and exhaust valves remain open , is thereby extended . on the other hand , when the engine is operated at lower engine loads and lower engine speeds , pressurized oil is removed from the variable valve timing unit 16 , so that the piston 30 returns to the left as viewed in fig2 . the camshaft sprocket 9 and the exhaust camshaft gear 12 , therefore , are returned , as a whole , through the predetermined angle relative to the exhaust camshaft 5 . as a result , the phase of rotation of the intake camshaft 6 relative tot he exhaust camshaft 5 changes , so as to advance closing the intake valves or to retard opening the exhaust valves . the overlap time period is thereby shortened . the valve drive mechanism , equipped with the variable valve timing unit 16 , may be assembled to the intake camshaft in the same manner as described above . it is to be understood that although the present invention has been described with respect to a preferred embodiment thereof , various other embodiments and variants may occur to those skilled in the art . any such other embodiments and variants which fall within the scope and spirit of the invention are intended to be covered by the following claims .

5Mechanical Engineering; Lightning; Heating; Weapons; Blasting

fig1 shows an exemplary embodiment of an imaging system 2 in which systems and methods for managing outputs to peripheral devices are implemented . examples of imaging system 2 include an ultrasound imaging system , electron - beam tomography ( ebt ) imaging system , magnetic resonance imaging ( mri ) system , single photon emission computed tomography ( spect ) imaging system , computed tomography ( ct ) imaging system , and positron emission tomography ( pet ) imaging system , among others . a processor 4 is operationally coupled to the imaging system 2 , for example , via a wireless or a wired connection . in an alternative embodiment , processor 4 is located within imaging system 2 . the processor 4 receives data from imaging system 2 and executes a method for managing outputs to peripheral devices as described herein . fig2 is a block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of an ultrasound imaging system 10 in which systems and methods for managing outputs to peripheral devices may be implemented . an example of the ultrasound imaging system 10 is an ultrasound imaging system that does not include built - in removable media . examples of built - in removable media include a floppy disk , an analog video cassette , an analog audio cassette , a digital versatile device , an optical disk , a dvd , a removable hard disk , and a flash memory card . the ultrasound imaging system 10 can be a portable or a non - portable imaging system . the ultrasound imaging system 10 includes a transmitter 12 , a front - end pre - processor 14 , a beamformer 16 , a radio frequency ( rf ) processor 18 , a memory 20 , a scan converter 22 , a transducer , referred to as an ultrasound probe 24 , a display device 26 , and a peripheral interface 28 . examples of the display device 26 include a cathode ray tube ( crt ) and a liquid crystal display ( lcd ) monitor . examples of peripheral interface 28 include a network card , a bluetooth interface , a universal serial bus ( usb ), a parallel port , and a serial port . examples of peripheral device 30 include a printer , an analog video cassette recorder ( vcr ), and digital storage media , such as , a cd - rw , a dvd rewriteable ( dvd - rw ), a floppy disk drive , an optical disk drive , a removable hard disk drive , a network , and a flash memory card drive , among others . transmitter 12 transmits pulsed ultrasonic signals via the ultrasound probe 24 . ultrasound probe 24 includes a transducer or a plurality of transducers that emit the pulsed ultrasonic signals into a region of interest , such as , for example , a patient &# 39 ; s chest . structures , such as a heart , blood cells , or muscular tissue , in region of interest back - scatter the ultrasonic signals to generate echoes which return to the ultrasound probe 24 . the front - end pre - processor 14 receives the echoes via the ultrasound probe 24 and generates electrical signals having information relating to structures in the region of interest . the front - end pre - processor 14 processes , such as , amplifies , the signals to provide an output . the beamformer 16 receives the output from the front - end pre - processor 14 and processes the output by digitizing the output , and performing steering or focusing operations to generate receive beams . the receive beams are processed by rf processor 18 or a complex demodulator ( not shown ) that demodulates the receive beams and forms in - phase and quadrature ( i / q ) data pairs . moreover , filtering and compression operations can also be performed by the rf processor 18 . an output of the rf processor 18 is routed to memory 20 for storage . the scan converter 22 receives the output from rf processor 18 and converts the output into an image for display . the display device 26 receives the image and displays the image . the peripheral device 30 that can be coupled to ultrasound imaging system 10 via the peripheral interface 28 is used to perform various operations on the image . for instance , the peripheral device 30 is used to print the image . as another instance , the peripheral device 30 may be used to store a copy of the image on a cd . fig3 is an exemplary embodiment of a system 60 for managing outputs to peripheral devices . system 60 includes imaging system 2 , processor 4 , a short - term memory 62 , a long - term memory 64 , an input device 66 , an output device 68 , a connection interface 70 , and one or more peripheral device 30 . examples of input device 66 include a keyboard , a mouse , and a trackball . examples of output device 68 include display 36 . examples of short - term memory 62 include a buffer and a volatile memory , such as a random access memory ( ram ). examples of long - term memory 64 include a non - volatile memory such as a read - only memory ( rom ) and a ram powered with a battery . other examples of non - volatile memory include a hard disk , a digital versatile disc ( dvd ), a compact disc rewriteable ( cd - rw ), and a memory stick . examples of rom include a programmable rom ( prom ), an erasable programmable rom , and an electrically erasable prom ( eeprom ). long - term memory 64 can store data objects and access the data objects when processor 4 or imaging system 2 when needed or desired . an example of a data object is digitally formatted data object , such as a file . processor 4 is not limited to integrated circuits referred to in the art as computers , but broadly refer to computers , microcontrollers , microcomputers , programmable logic controllers , application specific integrated circuits , and other programmable circuits , among others , and these terms are used interchangeably herein . examples of connection interface 70 include a network card , a bluetooth interface , a universal serial bus ( usb ), a parallel port , and a serial port . imaging system 2 scans a subject , such as a patient , to obtain data , such as , for instance , image data . processor 4 receives the data from imaging system 2 and outputs the data , such as , video signals or information regarding a patient scanned using imaging system 2 , to output device 68 . output device 68 displays the processed data in various forms , such as , images or cine loops . fig4 and 5 is a flowchart of an embodiment of a method for managing outputs to peripheral devices , for example , executed by using the system 60 shown in fig3 . at 82 , an operator of imaging system 2 ( shown in fig3 ) provides an instruction to peripheral device 30 ( shown in fig3 ) that provides an output representative of the processed data . as an example , the operator selects “ print ” on an input device 66 ( shown in fig3 ). such as , for example , a keyboard . in this example , by selecting “ print ”, the operator instructs the peripheral device 30 , such as a printer , to print the processed data . in this example , peripheral device 30 provides a printed copy of the processed data as an output . as another example , the operator selects a “ record ” button on output device 68 . in the example , by selecting “ record ”, the operator instructs peripheral device 30 , such as , for example , a vcr , to record the processed data . in this example , peripheral device 30 provides cine loops as an output . as yet another example , the operator selects a “ send e - mail ” button on output device 68 after attaching a copy of the processed data to the e - mail . in the example , by selecting “ send e - mail ”, the operator instructs peripheral device 30 , such as a node within a network , to e - mail the copy of the processed data . in this example , peripheral device 30 enables processor 4 to e - mail the copy of the processed data to another processor ( not shown ). as still another example , the operator selects a “ save ” or a “ save as ” button on output device 68 . in the example , by selecting the “ save ” or the “ save as ” button , the operator instructs peripheral device 30 , such as , for example , a cd - rw , a dvd - rw , a floppy disk drive , an optical disk drive , a removable hard disk drive , or a flash memory card drive , to create and store a copy of the processed data . in the example , peripheral device 30 creates and stores the copy of the processed data . one of the most important examples ( may be should be listed first ) is the instruction to print a report on the patient &# 39 ; s examination . this is a must in order to get reimbursement . at 84 , processor 4 creates a data object based on the instruction . for example , if the instruction is to print , processor 4 creates a print data object that can instruct peripheral device 30 to print . if the instruction is to record on a vcr , processor 4 creates a record data object that can instruct peripheral device 30 , such as a vcr , to record . if the instruction is to e - mail a copy of the processed data , processor 4 creates an e - mail data object that can instruct peripheral device 30 to e - mail the copy of the processed data . if the instruction is to create and store a copy of the processed data , processor 4 creates a copy data object that can instruct peripheral device 30 to create and store a copy of the processed data . processor 4 transmits the data object created based on the instruction to short - term memory 62 ( shown in fig3 ) that sends the data object to connection interface 70 . connection interface 70 attempts to send the data object to peripheral device 30 . at 86 , processor 4 ( shown in fig3 ) determines whether peripheral device 30 is available to accept the data object . as an example , processor 4 determines whether peripheral device 30 is available by determining whether peripheral device 30 is operationally coupled to processor 4 via connection interface 70 . as another example , processor 4 determines whether peripheral device 30 is available by determining whether the processor has a wired connection with a printer via a parallel port . as yet another example , processor 4 determines whether peripheral device 30 is available by determining whether the processor 4 is connected via a wire or a wireless connection to a network that is connected via a wired or a wireless connection to the peripheral device . as still another example , processor 4 determines whether peripheral device 30 is available by determining whether the processor has a wired connection to a vcr . as another example , processor 4 determines whether peripheral device 30 is available by determining whether the processor has a wired connection to a cd - rw , a dvd - rw , a floppy disk drive , an optical disk drive , a removable hard disk drive , or a flash memory card drive . it is noted that one or multiple peripheral devices can be operationally coupled to processor 4 via connection interface 70 at the same time . alternatively or in addition , processor 4 determines whether peripheral device 30 is available by determining whether peripheral device 30 is in an active state ( e . g ., turned on or energized ). alternatively or in addition , processor 4 determines whether peripheral device 30 is available by determining whether the peripheral device is properly functioning or not malfunctioning . alternatively or in addition , processor 4 determines whether peripheral device 30 is available by determining whether the peripheral device 30 is busy performing other operations . if processor 4 determines that peripheral device 30 is available to accept the data object , the processor , at 88 , transfers or moves the data object from short - term memory 62 via connection interface 70 to peripheral device 30 . when peripheral device 30 receives the data object , the peripheral device verifies or acknowledges receipt of the data object to processor 4 . on receiving the acknowledgment , in an exemplary embodiment , processor 4 , at 90 , removes the data object from short - term memory 62 . as an example , processor 4 removes a print job from a job queue on receiving an acknowledgment that peripheral device 30 has received a print data object . in an alternative exemplary embodiment , on receiving the acknowledgment , processor 4 removes the data object from short - term memory 62 . if processor 4 does not receive the acknowledgment from peripheral device 30 , at 92 , a determination is again made at 86 as to whether the peripheral device 30 is available to accept the data object . if the processor 4 determines that peripheral device 30 is not available to accept the data object , the processor , at 94 , transfers the data object from short - term memory 62 to long - term memory 64 . in an alternative embodiment , if processor 4 determines that peripheral device 30 is not available to accept the data object , the processor copies the data object from short - term memory 62 to long - term memory 64 . if the peripheral 30 is not available , in an exemplary embodiment , the operator accesses the data object stored in long - term memory 64 , determines whether the peripheral device 30 is now available to accept the data object , and , if so , instructs processor 4 to transmit the data object via connection interface 70 to peripheral device 30 . in an exemplary embodiment , processor 4 automatically determines , at 98 , whether the peripheral device 30 is available to accept the data object stored in long - term memory 64 , and if so , accesses the data object from the long - term memory , and transmits , at 100 , the data object to peripheral device 30 via connection interface 70 . when peripheral device 30 receives the data object , the peripheral device 30 acknowledges receipt of the data object to processor 4 . on receiving the acknowledgment , in an exemplary embodiment , processor 4 , at 102 , removes the data object from long - term memory 64 . as an example , processor 4 removes a print job from a job queue on receiving an acknowledgment that peripheral device 30 has received a print data object . in an alternative exemplary embodiment , on receiving the acknowledgment , processor 4 removes the data object from short - term memory 62 and long - term memory 64 if the data object is copied from short - term memory 62 to long - term memory 64 instead of being transferred at 94 . if processor 4 does not receive the acknowledgment from peripheral device 30 , at 104 , a determination is again made at 98 as to whether the peripheral 30 is available to accept the data object . upon receiving the data object , the peripheral device 30 executes the instruction based on which the data object is created . the peripheral device 30 also may acknowledge execution of the instruction to processor 4 . technical effects of the systems and methods for managing outputs include eliminating various operations that the operator performs on returning to a facility , such as a hospital , after a traveling period during which data is collected from imaging system 2 . the operations include , for example , accessing an application program , searching for a correct patient record , preparing an output based on the patient record , and sending the output to peripheral device 30 . the operations are reduced and / or eliminated because the data object is saved in long - term memory 64 and on determining that peripheral device 30 is available , the data object is sent to the peripheral device to execute the instruction based on which the data object is created . other technical effects of the herein described systems and methods include increasing productivity with no affects in portability of imaging system 2 , eliminating workflow downtime if peripheral device 30 is malfunctioning , using the same peripheral devices during and after travel , saving significant time delays between examination of the subject and output by the peripheral device , and increasing workflow efficiency . although the herein described methods are described in a medical setting , the various embodiments described herein may be implemented in non - medical imaging systems such as those systems typically employed in an industrial setting or a transportation setting , such as , for example , but not limited to , a baggage scanning system for an airport , other transportation centers , government buildings , office buildings , and the like . the various embodiments described herein may also be implemented in micro pet and ct systems that are sized to study lab animals as opposed to humans . further , additional or different component parts may be provided as desired or needed . modifications , to the herein described component also may be provided . moreover , the herein described systems and methods can be used with operating systems , such as windows ™ 2000 windows ™ xp ™, linux ™, vms ™, os / 400 ™, aix ™, and z / os ™ located within processor 4 . while the invention has been described in terms of various specific embodiments , those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the claims .

0Human Necessities

with reference to fig1 - 5 , an embodiment of a permanent magnet motor 10 and method of use that provide a magnetic gate that allows continued motion of a rotor relative to a stator without an external power source and with low cogging will be described . although a permanent magnet motor is shown and described herein as an exemplary device for providing rotational torque , in alternative embodiments , the aspects of the present invention shown and described herein are applied to other types of devices for providing rotational torque . permanent magnet motor 10 is an axial motor including a drive shaft 8 that penetrates a vertical support 4 a , a bearing 6 a , a rotor cam 18 , a support plate 46 , a rotor 48 , a cam support 50 , a stator cam plate 9 , a bearing 6 b , and a vertical support 4 b . the vertical supports 4 a and 4 b are fixed to and supported by a base 2 , with a gap left relative to the drive shaft 8 . the stator cam plate 9 , stator support 50 , rotor 48 , rotor support plate 46 , and bearings 6 a and 6 b are externally fitted over and fixed to the drive shaft 8 . the rotor 48 , stator 47 , shafts 12 a , 12 b , and 20 , support plates 29 and 46 , shafts 41 a and 41 b , shaft 43 are all made from non magnetic material . the fixed stator magnets 11 as shown in fig2 are arranged with their pole faces in a radial orientation having their s - pole facing inward towards the rotor magnets 36 a and 36 b . the rotor magnets 36 a and 36 b are arranged to have their n - pole facing outward . the main stator magnet 26 has its s - pole facing inward . referring to fig5 , the stator cam follower 32 runs in a groove within the stator cam plate 9 . the cam follower 32 is rotatably mounted to the gear 34 . the gear 34 is rotatably mounted to the shaft 43 , and is meshed with the gear 28 . the stator shaft 20 is fixedly attached to the stator gear 28 . the cam profile in the stator cam plate 9 , is responsible for positioning the main stator magnet 26 by ultimately causing the rotation of the stator shaft 20 , to which the main stator magnet 26 is fixedly attached . referring to fig5 , the rotor cam followers 40 a and 40 b runs in a groove within the rotor cam plate 18 . the cam followers 40 a and 40 b are rotatably mounted to their respective gears 44 a and 44 b . the gear 44 a is rotatably mounted to the shaft 41 a , and is meshed with the gear 24 a . the gear 44 b is rotatably mounted to the shaft 41 b , and is meshed with the gear 24 b . the cam profile in the rotor cam plate 18 , is responsible for positioning the rotor magnet 36 a and 36 b by ultimately causing the rotation of the rotor shafts 12 a and 12 b , to which the rotor magnets 36 a and 36 b are fixedly attached . referring to fig2 , when one of the rotor magnets 36 a or 36 b is near any of the fixed stator magnets 11 , the attractive magnetic forces causes either of them to accelerate towards the main stator magnet 26 . each successive fixed stator magnet 11 is larger in size and strength as they approach the main stator magnet 26 . this arrangement produces an increasing magnetic field in the direction of the main stator magnet 26 . in effect , a magnetic ramp is created causing a rotational torque to be applied to the rotor 48 . when the rotor magnet 36 a approaches the main stator magnet 26 , both of these magnets are independently rotated in unison in opposite directions until they are approximately parallel as shown in fig3 . as the rotor magnet 36 a passes by the main stator magnet 26 , it moves through an area of diminishing magnetic field strength , thereby encountering only a small cogging effect . the main stator magnet 26 is longer ( distance between the north and south pole faces ) than the rotor magnet 36 a , this feature is key to minimizing any cogging effect between the s - pole face of the stator magnet 26 and the n - pole face of the rotor magnet 36 a . further , since the n - pole face of the main stator magnet 26 is curved away from the rotor magnet 36 a , very little cogging effect is transmitted to the rotor magnet 36 a as it passes . the main stator magnet 26 and rotor magnets 36 a and 36 b have full radius faces on their pole faces that are being used in attraction . this feature allows their full attractive magnetic forces to be used to aid in rotation of the rotor 48 . the advantages of the present invention include , without limitation , that it is able to rotate using permanent magnets . further , the novel magnetic gate formed by the preferred embodiment provides a low cogging means to separate two permanent magnets . in its broad sense , the present invention is a permanent magnet motor providing rotational torque . the advantages of the present invention include , without limitation , that it is able to rotate using permanent magnets . further , the novel magnetic gate formed by the preferred embodiment provides a low cogging means to separate two permanent magnets . although the embodiment ( s ) of the device for providing rotational torque / permanent magnet motor 10 and method of use have been shown and described herein as providing a magnetic gate that allows continued motion of a rotor relative to a stator without an external power source , in alternative embodiments , the device for providing rotational torque / permanent magnet motor 10 and method of use include an external power source ( e . g ., to initiate rotation of rotor 48 , maintain rotational speed of rotor 48 , accelerate rotational speed of rotor 48 ). the above figures may depict exemplary configurations for the invention , which is done to aid in understanding the features and functionality that can be included in the invention . the invention is not restricted to the illustrated architectures or configurations , but can be implemented using a variety of alternative architectures and configurations . additionally , although the invention is described above in terms of various exemplary embodiments and implementations , it should be understood that the various features and functionality described in one or more of the individual embodiments with which they are described , but instead can be applied , alone or in some combination , to one or more of the other embodiments of the invention , whether or not such embodiments are described and whether or not such features are presented as being a part of a described embodiment . thus the breadth and scope of the present invention , especially in any following claims , should not be limited by any of the above - described exemplary embodiments . terms and phrases used in this document , and variations thereof , unless otherwise expressly stated , should be construed as open ended as opposed to limiting . as examples of the foregoing : the term “ including ” should be read as mean “ including , without limitation ” or the like ; the term “ example ” is used to provide exemplary instances of the item in discussion , not an exhaustive or limiting list thereof ; and adjectives such as “ conventional ,” “ traditional ,” “ standard ,” “ known ” and terms of similar meaning should not be construed as limiting the item described to a given time period or to an item available as of a given time , but instead should be read to encompass conventional , traditional , normal , or standard technologies that may be available or known now or at any time in the future . likewise , a group of items linked with the conjunction “ and ” should not be read as requiring that each and every one of those items be present in the grouping , but rather should be read as “ and / or ” unless expressly stated otherwise . similarly , a group of items linked with the conjunction “ or ” should not be read as requiring mutual exclusivity among that group , but rather should also be read as “ and / or ” unless expressly stated otherwise . furthermore , although item , elements or components of the disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular , the plural is contemplated to be within the scope thereof unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated . the presence of broadening words and phrases such as “ one or more ,” “ at least ,” “ but not limited to ” or other like phrases in some instances shall not be read to mean that the narrower case is intended or required in instances where such broadening phrases may be absent .

7Electricity

it is to be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the present discussion is a description of exemplary embodiments only , and is not intended as limiting the broader aspects of the present invention . rather , these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete and fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art . [ 0018 ] fig1 depicts a top view of a presently preferred embodiment of the current invention . the fabric 10 includes two scrim layers 12 and 14 with one being placed on top of the other . the scrim of each layer consists of two sets of yams perpendicular to each other . as in fig2 a first scrim 12 has a warp yam set 20 oriented in the 0 ° direction and a weft yam set 18 oriented in the 90 ° direction . the second scrim 14 , as seen in fig3 possesses a warp yam set 24 in the + 45 ° direction and a weft yam set 22 in the − 45 ° direction . the scrims may be held together either through adhesive bonding , stitch - bonding , knit - bonding , skewing or by being laid on top of one another forming a multi - layered scrim fabric and being held together as discussed below . in particular , a continuously knitted warp yam could be used to hold the various yams together . fig1 and 1a show transparent outer layers 16 coating the two scrims 12 and 14 . a web , foil , film , coating , or other outer layer may cover the scrims , and each type outer layer may contain pigmentations to increase the fabric &# 39 ; s opaqueness and aesthetic appeal . the outer layers may be preformed or coated or extruded in - line on the scrim layers . the outer layers may consist of a wide range of polymers , but preferably a thermoplastic polymer is used . the characteristics of certain vinyl compounds , such as polyvinylidenefluoride ( pvdf ) or polyvinylchloride ( pvc ), make them ideal for use as the outer layers for the multi - axial fabric . they possess flexibility , durability and the ability to repel water and fire , and are relatively inexpensive . for example , these vinyl compounds are more weatherable and flame resistant than commonly used polyethylene . the outer layer may be applied on one or both sides of the multi - layered scrim fabric . the outer layers can be adhesively bonded , heat - bonded , laminated or extruded onto the multi - layered scrim fabric . the outer layers contribute to the opaqueness , weatherability and the overall integrity of the multi - axial nonwoven fabric . as shown in fig2 a first scrim 12 contains a warp yam set 20 with a 0 ° orientation that is disposed beneath a weft yam set 18 with a 90 ° orientation . unlike the conventional scrims used in the making of structural fabrics , neither the warp nor weft yam sets 20 and 18 interlace , interweave , or interlock with one another . instead , the yams within each scrim layer are bonded together , one set on top of the other , preferably by some type of adhesive . adhesively bonding the warp and weft yams together contributes integrity to the scrim , ideally using some type of emulsion or spray coating , such as pva . by not interlacing , interweaving , or interlocking the warp and weft yams , the dimensional stability of the fabric is not diminished in the direction of the yams because crimp is not added to the yams . crimp in the yams , inherent in woven or knitted fabrics , causes less dimensional stability in the direction of the yams . by having the yams oriented in a straight line without any crimping , the fabric possesses increased stability in the direction of the yams and the yams have the ability to bear an increased load in that direction . [ 0021 ] fig3 depicts the second scrim 14 , which contains two sets of yams extending in the bias directions . a warp yam set 24 extends in a + 45 0 direction that is disposed on top of a weft yam set 22 extending in a − 45 20 direction , although other angles may be desirable . liba , maschinenfabrik , gmbh of naila , germany , and others manufacture machines to create such a scrim . as with the first scrim 12 ( fig2 ), the yams are bonded together , and the warp and weft yam sets 24 and 22 of the second scrim 14 do not interlace , interweave , or interlock . this construction provides the benefits , as described above , of having greater dimensional stability and increased load bearing capability in the direction of the yams . since the yams are oriented in the + 45 ° and − 45 20 directions , the second scrim 14 is stronger in the bias directions as compared to the first scrim 12 , which is stronger in the 0 ° and 90 ° directions . by combining the two scrims in the fabric of the present invention , the fabric has two advantages over conventional structural fabrics . firstly , the fabric is advantageously much stronger than other structural fabrics while still maintaining a light enough weight to be maneuverable . the fabric bears greater loads in the conventional directions of 0 ° and 90 ° and handles much greater loads in the bias directions of the fabric , thereby increasing the durability of the fabric by increasing the fabric &# 39 ; s ability to endure both the internal and external forces that are placed upon it . secondly , the construction of the scrims is less expensive than conventional woven scrim because of the increased speed of manufacture . since the warp yams lay on top of weft yams , or vice versa , and they are then bonded in heat - or adhesive - bonding process , the speed of the process increases substantially over conventional weaving processes . the lowered cost of scrim manufacturing created by the increased productivity of the process allows the fabric of the present invention to financially compete with other structural fabrics . the warp and weft yarns used in both scrims can comprise a wide range of multifilament or monofilament natural or synthetic fibers . in a preferred embodiment , the yams are comprised of a thermoplastic material , such as polyester or nylon . polyester has a favorable cost compared to the tensile and tear strength it possesses . the size of the yams may vary from 5 denier to 2000 denier within different fabrics . advantageously , the yarn size is around 1000 denier . this size allows the yam to be strong enough to withstand the forces placed upon it , while being flexible enough to respond to any harsh bending the fabric may encounter . the yams can also be individually coated to achieve certain properties . in a preferred embodiment , each scrim is a unitary pre - manufactured nonwoven structure . the scrims , however , may be manufactured as part of the process of making the fabric although fabric width may be limited at certain manufacturing speeds due to machine constraints . each of the warp yams in both scrims may be spaced an equal distance from the next or it may prove beneficial to have a higher concentration of yams along certain lines of the fabric where an increase in load is expected , such as a point in the fabric where a grommet or a pole support will be located . the weft yams also may be spaced in a uniform or non - uniform fashion . preferably , the distance between each of the warp yams in the warp yam set for both scrims is the same as the distance between each of the weft yams in the weft yam sets . in a preferred embodiment , the pre - manufactured scrim contains approximately nine ends per inch by nine picks per inch . a tri - axial nonwoven weatherable fabric is also a desirable embodiment of the present invention . as shown in fig5 the structure and composition of the fabric 60 duplicates the above described fabric , except a single yam set 62 with a 0 ° orientation replaces the first scrim having the yam sets with a 0 °- 90 ° orientation . the single yam set 62 may be positioned on top or underneath the second scrim 58 . an outer layer 64 may coat both the single yam set 62 and the second scrim 58 on one or both sides . the second scrim 58 possesses warp and weft yam sets with directionally bias orientations . in a preferred embodiment , the warp yam set 54 of the second scrim 58 extends in a + 60 ° direction , while the weft yam set 56 extends in a − 60 ° direction . the angles of the yarn sets , however , may vary between + 30 ° to + 60 ° and − 30 ° to − 60 °, respectively . having yams oriented without crimp in three directions provides many of the same advantages over conventional structural fabrics as the above - described fabric , including greater strength especially in the yarn directions . the weight of the scrim and the fabric may vary depending on the fabric &# 39 ; s use . where a more durable and weatherable fabric is needed , a heavier scrim and fabric may be more advantageous . where external forces are less of a concern , a lighter scrim and fabric may be sufficient . in preferred embodiments , the weight of each scrim may range from 2 - 6 oz ./ yd 2 , while the fabric weight may range from 10 - 30 oz ./ yd 2 . [ 0027 ] fig4 depicts a possible process of manufacture 30 that would enable unitary pre - manufactured scrims 48 and 50 to be appropriately positioned and covered to form the fabric 45 of the present invention . rolls of an outer layer material 32 and 38 , such as a laminate , film , foil , or web are positioned , respectively , above and below the pair of rolls of pre - manufactured scrim 34 and 36 , wherein one of the rolls of pre - manufactured scrim may be a warp or bolt of yarns . the covering material 46 and 52 and the scrims 48 and 50 feed a set of pressurized nip rolls 40 and 42 . these nip rolls 40 and 42 also may be heated depending on the type of bonding to be performed . the nip rolls 40 and 42 cause the covering material 46 and 52 to bond with the scrims 48 and 50 forming the fabric 45 which is beamed onto a roll 44 . other processes of manufacture may be desirable , including using a coating process for bonding the scrims together by way of a liquid polymeric coating which is applied onto one or both sides of the scrims during manufacture and then allowed to solidify . these multi - axial nonwoven fabrics of the present invention function particularly well in the tent and structure markets where curved and flowing lines are often used , as these fabrics have good dimensional stability in both the 0 ° and 90 ° directions as well as in the bias directions . the fabrics are stronger and more durable than existing semi - permanent structural fabrics , allowing them to better withstand the elements and other internal and external forces placed upon them . at the same time , the multi - axial nonwoven fabrics are lightweight enough to be manipulated and maneuvered by tent erection crews . these fabrics , because of their ease of manufacture , are also financially competitive with other less durable existing semi - permanent structural fabrics . for these and other reasons herein stated , the multi - axial nonwoven fabrics of the present invention are patentable over the prior art . these and other modifications and variations to the present invention may be practiced by those of ordinary skill in the art , without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention . in addition , it should be understood that aspects of the various embodiments may be interchanged either in whole or in part . furthermore , those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the foregoing description is by way of example only , and is not intended to limit the invention .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

referring to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures , reference is made first to fig1 that illustrates a partial internal side view of an embodiment of an electric jack 100 in a first position . the jack 100 typically includes a generally hollow external housing 105 having an opening 110 on the top of the housing 105 . it is understood that the housing 105 can be enclosed or an open frame . the jack 100 further typically includes two opposed drive sections 115 , 120 . each drive section 115 , 120 generally includes a drive shaft 125 , 130 coupled to a drive wheel 135 , 140 . the drive shafts 125 , 130 are generally parallel to one another . each drive section 115 , 120 further includes a drive arm 145 , 150 . the drive arms 145 , 150 generally include a base 146 , 151 and tongs 147 , 152 having elongated slots 148 , 153 along a length of the tongs 147 , 152 . the jack 100 can further include an elongated load bridge 155 . one end of the bridge 155 is generally connected between the tongs 147 of the first drive arm 145 and the other end of the bridge 155 is generally connected between the tongs 151 of the second drive arm 150 . in a typical embodiment , the bridge 155 includes a channel ( see 156 , 157 in fig4 below ) through each end of the bridge 155 . a first rod 160 is located within the first channel 156 , and is generally longer than the length of the first channel 156 so that the ends of the rod 160 protrude from either side of the first channel 156 . similarly , a second rod 165 is located within the second channel 157 , and is generally longer than the second channel 157 so that the ends of the rod 165 protrude from either side of the second channel 157 . in general , because the ends of the rods 160 , 165 are longer than the channels 156 , 157 and protrude from the channels 156 , 157 , the rods 160 , 165 can be in engagement with the respective slots 148 , 153 of the respective tongs 147 , 152 . in a typical embodiment , the drive sections 115 , 120 can be mechanically coupled together by coupling the drive wheels 135 , 140 . in a typical implementation , an elongated coupler 170 , such as a belt , can be connected to the perimeter of both drive wheels 135 , 140 so that the movement of one of the wheels 135 , 140 drives the movement of the other one of the wheels 135 , 140 . in another embodiment , the coupler 170 can be a chain and the drive wheels 135 , 140 can be sprockets having teeth that engage the chain . use of a chain acts similarly to a belt . in either embodiment , the coupler 170 is configured in an x . this feature of the coupled drive sections 115 , 120 is discussed in further detail below . the jack 100 generally further includes a load plate 175 connected to the elongated bridge 155 . the load plate 175 typically protrudes from the opening 120 on the housing 105 . the first position as shown in fig1 illustrates a fully retracted or closed position in which the bridge 155 and the load plate 175 are retracted into the hollow housing 105 . fig2 illustrates a partial internal side view of an embodiment of an electric car jack 100 in a second position . this second position is typically a fully protruded or open position in which the bridge 155 and the load plate 175 are fully protruded from the hollow interior of the housing 105 . typically , there are a spectrum of positions that the bridge 155 and the load plate 175 can take in between the fully retracted and the fully protruded positions . as described above with respect to fig1 , the jack 100 typically includes a generally hollow external housing 105 having an opening 110 on the top of the housing 105 , two opposed drive sections 115 , 120 having a drive shaft 125 , 130 coupled to a drive wheel 135 , 140 , a drive arm 145 , 150 , each having a base 146 , 151 and tongs 147 , 152 having elongated slots 148 , 153 along a length of the tongs 147 , 152 . the jack 100 can further include an elongated load bridge 155 connected between the tongs 147 of the first drive arm 145 and the other end of the bridge 155 is generally connected between the tongs 151 of the second drive arm 150 . the bridge 155 can include a channel ( see 156 , 157 in fig4 below ) having rods 160 , 165 . typically , the rods 160 , 165 can be in engagement with the respective slots 148 , 153 of the respective tongs 147 , 152 . the drive sections 115 , 120 can be mechanically coupled together by coupling the drive wheels 135 , 140 with coupler 170 in an x - configuration . the jack 100 generally further includes a load plate 175 connected to the elongated bridge 155 . the load plate 175 typically protrudes from the opening 120 on the housing 105 . referring to fig1 and 2 , it is illustrated that as the drive sections 115 , 120 are energized , the drive wheels 135 , 140 rotate which lifts and lowers the drive arms 145 , 150 . in general , whether the jack 100 is in a lifting or a lowering mode , there are several components of force that are asserted on the drive arms 145 , 150 , and generally on the drive sections 115 , 120 . as the bridge 155 and the load plate 175 are lifted and lowered , the force components are distributed generally along the rods 160 , 165 as the rods 160 , 165 move along the slots 148 , 153 . the movement of the rods 160 , 165 along the slots 148 , 153 help to keep the bridge 155 , the load plate 175 and any load on the load plate 175 stabilized . furthermore , each of the drive sections 115 , 120 can be independently energized or energized by the same source . whether or not each drive section 115 , 120 is independently energized , the coupler 170 helps to maintain and stabilize the bridge 155 and load plate 175 by coupling the drive sections 115 , 120 to one another . therefore , if the drive sections are being energized at different rates therefore lifting or lowering opposite sides of the bridge 155 at different rates , therefore potentially causing an imbalance on a load on the load plate 175 , the coupler 170 prevents the drive sections 115 , 120 from running at different rates by either back driving the faster of the sections 115 , 120 of speeding up the slower of the sections 115 , 120 . furthermore , it is generally understood that the load on the load plate 175 asserts a downward force asserting a force at different points on the drive arms 145 , 150 . it is well - known that the torque asserted on the drive arms 145 , 150 is related to the length of the drive arms 145 , 150 , measured generally from the drive wheels 135 , 140 , multiplied by the force on the a rms . therefore , the torque increases for greater loads and for longer lengths . therefore , as the load is lifted , the point at which the force is asserted on the drive arms 145 , 150 increases since the rods 160 , 165 are moving along the slots 148 , 153 . therefore , it is typically desirable to keep the length of the drive arms 145 , 150 a length to generate torques that can be handled by the units that energize the drive sections 115 , 120 . fig3 illustrates a partial cutaway top view of an embodiment of an electric car jack 100 . as described above with respect to fig1 , the jack 100 typically includes a generally hollow external housing 105 having an opening 110 on the top of the housing 105 , two opposed drive sections 115 , 120 having a drive shaft 125 , 130 coupled to a drive wheel 135 , 140 , a drive arm 145 , 150 , each having a base 146 , 151 and tongs 147 , 152 having elongated slots 148 , 153 ( see fig1 and 2 above ) along a length of the tongs 147 , 152 . in a typical embodiment , the drive shafts 125 , 130 can be elongated so that they can be connected to the housing 105 to further stabilize the drive sections 115 , 120 . each drive section 115 , 120 can include various nuts and washers 205 to connected the drive shafts 125 , 130 to the drive arms 145 , 150 , typically at the bases 146 , 151 . each drive section 115 , 120 can further include an electrical motor 200 coupled to the drive arms 145 , 150 . the motors 200 are used to energize the drive sections 115 , 120 as described above . in another embodiment , only one of the sections 115 , 120 can include a motor . in either embodiment , the coupler 170 helps to couple and drive each drive section 115 , 120 to each other . the motors 200 can typically be connected to the housing 105 . in another embodiment , it is contemplated that other methods to energize the drive sections 115 , 120 can be implemented , including but not limited to hydraulic motors . the jack 100 can further include an elongated load bridge 155 connected between the tongs 147 of the first drive arm 145 and the other end of the bridge 155 is generally connected between the tongs 151 of the second drive arm 150 . the bridge 155 can include a channel ( see 156 , 157 in fig4 below ) having rods 160 , 165 . typically , the rods 160 , 165 can be in engagement with the respective slots 148 , 153 of the respective tongs 147 , 152 . the drive sections 115 , 120 can be mechanically coupled together by coupling the drive wheels 135 , 140 with coupler 170 in an x - configuration . the jack 100 generally further includes a load plate 175 connected to the elongated bridge 155 . in a typical embodiment , the jack 100 can further include electric power lines 210 that can be connected between the motors 200 and the automobile &# 39 ; s car battery 215 . a remote control 220 having control switches 221 can further be connected to the motor 200 to control the upward and downward motion of the jack 100 . the control 220 can be connected to the motor 200 power cords 225 or have a remote connection such as , but not limited to , radio control . other suitable power sources other than the car battery can be implemented in other embodiments . for example , other power sources can include but are not limited to alternating current sources ( e . g ., 10 vac , 220 vac ), direct current sources ( e . g ., 12 vdc ), 24 v military , solar and the like . fig4 illustrates components of an embodiment of an electric car jack 100 . the components are for the drive section 120 for illustrative purposes . the bridge 155 is shown with the channels 156 , 157 and the rod 165 is shown adjacent the channel 156 . the drive arm 150 having tongs 152 can be placed over the end of the bridge 155 and the rod 165 can be asserted through the slot 153 and the channel 56 to secure the tongs 152 to the bridge 155 . the drive wheel 140 is shown detached from the coupler 170 and connected to the base 151 of the drive arm 150 . a portion of the drive shaft 130 is also shown . the bridge 155 is shown detached from the load plate 175 to illustrate a connection point 180 that can allow the load plate 175 to be rotatably connected to the bridge 155 . in general , the embodiments described herein relate generally to load bearing lifting systems that can be used in a variety of sizes to lift various loads . a typical embodiment is used for an automobile jack . other embodiments can be used for smaller loads such as , but not limited to , lifting beakers in chemistry experiments . it is understood that the embodiments can be modified in several ways for different uses and implementations . therefore , the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention . further , various modifications may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof and it is desired , therefore , that only such limitations shall be placed thereon as are imposed by the prior art and which are set forth in the appended claims .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

in a first embodiment , there is provided a first winding w 1 ″ with three phases , each phase having four parallel paths 1 wa , 1 wb , 1 wc , 1 wd ( see fig3 ). therefore , a = 4 . only one of the three phases is shown in fig3 . the paths 1 wa , 1 wb , 1 wc , 1 wd are implemented as wave windings . the first winding w 1 ″ has 24 slots 1 , . . . 24 . the first path 1 wa runs along the slots 7 , 10 , 13 , 16 , 19 , 22 . the sections of the first path 1 wa laid in the slots are interconnected by end connectors running outside the slots . in fig3 the end connectors run horizontally , whereas the sections in the slots run vertically . the first winding w 1 ″ has a total of eight poles each wound by three of the four paths 1 wa , 1 wb , 1 wc , 1 wd . therefore , p = 4 . a pole is formed by a slot wound by the phase and the end connector extending to the right to the next slot wound by the phase . therefore , q = 1 . in fig3 the region of the first pole p 1 is shown schematically for the phase illustrated . the eight poles form four pole pairs . each path is not involved in winding one pole pair . the sum of the turns counts of all the paths for each pole is three halves . for example , the first pole p 1 is wound by the second path 1 wb , the third path 1 wc and the fourth path wd with half a turn in each case , whereas it is not wound by the first path wa . a total of three conductors are disposed in each slot , so that z n = 3 . the voltage - holding turns count of the first winding w 1 ″ is therefore : a conventional winding with 4 pole pairs and q = 1 slots per pole per phase would have a voltage - holding turns count of w = 4 , as can be seen from the first example of the prior art ( see fig1 b ). incorporating missing turns into paths allows fine adjustment of the voltage - holding turns count to w = 3 . the single path winds almost all the poles . in this respect the winding distribution is relatively equal . lossy circulating currents between the paths are virtually absent . with a higher number of poles and correspondingly more paths , the winding distribution is even more equal . in a second embodiment there is provided a second winding w 2 having three phases , each phase being formed from four parallel paths 2 wa , 2 wb , 2 wc , 2 wd ( see fig4 ). consequently , a = 4 . only one of the three phases is shown in fig4 . as in the first embodiment , the second winding w 2 has eight poles forming four pole pairs , i . e . p = 4 . in contrast to the first embodiment , each path 2 wa , 2 wb , 2 wc , 2 wd has an additional turn , the additional turns being evenly distributed over the pole pairs so that each pole pair is wound by five turns . five conductors are disposed in each slot , so that z n = 5 . once again each pole is formed by a slot and the right - extending end connectors adjacent thereto , i . e . a pole is formed by one slot coil . consequently , q = 1 . the voltage - holding turns count of the second winding w 2 is given by : the additional turns are implemented in the manner of a lap winding . this ensures that the four paths 2 wa , 2 wb , 2 wc , 2 wd begin and end at the same place . in a third embodiment there is provided a third winding w 3 comprising three phases , each phase having eight parallel paths 3 wa , 3 wb , 3 wc , 3 wd , 3 we , 3 wf , 3 wg , 3 wh ( see fig5 ). therefore , a = 8 . only one of the three phases is shown in fig5 . the third winding w 3 has 8 poles and 24 slots 1 , . . . 24 . therefore , p = 4 . each of the paths does not wind two adjacent poles . each path omits to wind a different pair of poles from the remaining paths . the first path 3 wa , the third path 3 wc , the fifth path 3 we and the seventh path 3 wg correspond to the paths 1 wa , 1 wb , 1 wc , 1 wd of the first embodiment . the second path 3 wb corresponds to the mirror image of the first path 3 wa about the winding axis , said path having been shifted one pole to the right . this applies correspondingly to the fourth path 3 wd , the sixth path 3 wf and the eighth path 3 wh . each pole is therefore not wound by two paths . for example , the first pole is not wound by the first path 3 wa and the eighth path 3 wh . the second pole , which is disposed to the right of the first pole , is not wound by the first path 3 wa , but is wound by the eighth path 3 wh . to compensate , it is not wound by the second path 3 wb . consequently , the two paths winding a pole wind a pole adjacent to said pole differently . the sum of the turns counts of all the paths for each pole is 6 halves . six conductors are disposed in each slot , so that z n = 6 . the voltage - holding turns count of the third winding w 3 is therefore the extended end connectors of the paths in the area of the missing turns are evenly distributed over the two end windings , i . e . over both slot end sides , i . e . end faces . in a fourth embodiment there is provided a fourth winding w 4 with three phases , each phase being formed by eight paths 4 wa , 4 wb , 4 wc , 4 wd , 4 we , 4 wf , 4 wg , 4 wh ( see fig6 ). only one of the three phases is shown in fig6 . the difference compared to the third embodiment is that an additional turn is introduced to each path instead of the missing turn . 10 conductors are disposed in each slot , so that z n is 10 . the voltage - holding turns count of the fourth winding w 4 is therefore : in a fifth embodiment there is provided a fifth winding w 5 having three phases , each phase being formed by three paths 5 wa , 5 wb , 5 wc ( see fig7 ). therefore , a = 3 . only one of the three phases is shown in fig7 . the fifth winding w 5 has twelve poles forming six pole pairs , i . e . p = 6 . the fifth winding w 5 additionally has 36 slots 1 , . . . 36 . each path has two missing turns , so that each path does not wind two pole pairs . the missing turns are distributed equally over the poles . each pole is wound by two half turns . this means that the sum of the turns counts of all the paths is two halves for each pole . the number of conductors in each slot is z n = 2 . the voltage - holding turns count of the fifth winding w 5 is therefore : in a sixth embodiment there is provided a sixth winding w 6 essential similar to the fifth winding w 5 except that additional turns are provided instead of missing turns ( see fig8 ). as the number of conductors per slot is four , the voltage - holding turns count is : in a seventh embodiment there is provided a seventh winding w 7 essentially similar to the fifth winding w 5 of the fifth embodiment , except that the paths are not laid out in the same way ( see fig9 ). in the fifth embodiment , the sequence of turns and missing turns is the same for each path . in the seventh embodiment , on the other hand , the sequences of turns and missing turns of the second path 7 wb are different from those of the first path 7 wa and the third path 7 wc . both in the first path 7 wa and in the third 7 wc , the 4 turns are consecutive and the missing turns are consecutive . in contrast thereto , in the second path 7 wb only two turns are consecutive , and the missing turns are separated from one another by two turns . nevertheless , even in the case of the seventh winding w 7 , the sum of the turns counts of all the paths is two halves for each pole . as in the fifth embodiment , the voltage - holding turns count of the seventh winding w 7 is in an eighth embodiment there is provided an eighth winding w 8 which is essentially similar to the fifth winding w 5 of the fifth embodiment , except that each path 8 wa , 8 wb , 8 wc has only one missing turn instead of two missing turns ( see fig1 ). the missing turns are distributed as evenly as possible over the poles . however , the sum of the turns counts of all the paths is two halves for one half of the poles and three halves for the other half of the poles . the average number of conductors in a slot is z n = 2 . 5 . the voltage - holding turns count of the eighth winding w 8 is therefore : in a ninth embodiment there is provided a ninth winding which is essentially similar to the fifth winding w 5 of the fifth embodiment except that , instead of two missing turns , one missing turn and one additional turn are provided for each path ( see fig1 ). the missing turns and additional turns are evenly distributed over the poles so that the sum of the turns counts of all the paths is three halves for each pole . the number of conductors per slot is z n = 3 . the voltage - holding turns count of the ninth winding w 9 is : in a tenth embodiment there is provided a tenth winding w 10 having three phases , each phase being formed by two paths 10 wa , 10 wb , i . e . a = 2 ( see fig1 ). only one of the three phases is shown in fig1 . each of the paths 10 wa , 10 wb has three series - connected sub - sections t 1 , t 2 , t 3 , each of which wind each pole of the tenth winding w 10 . the tenth winding w 10 has 4 poles and 24 slots , each pole being formed by two slot coils . therefore , p = 2 and q = 2 . for example , the first pole p 1 ′ is formed by the wound first slot , the wound second slot and the adjacent , right - extending end connectors . the area of the first pole p 1 ′ is illustrated in fig1 . the two paths 10 wa , 10 wb differ from one another in respect of the turns counts of the slot coils of a pole . for example , the first path 10 wa winds the first slot coil of the first pole p 1 ′ with two half turns , as the first two sub - sections t 1 , t 2 wind the slot coil , whereas the third sub - section t 3 does not wind the slot coil . however , the second path 10 wb winds the first slot coil of the first pole p 1 ′ with half a turn , as the first sub - section t 1 winds the first slot coil , whereas the second sub - section t 2 and the third sub - section t 3 do not wind the first slot coil . for each slot coil , however , the sum of the turns counts of the two paths must be the same and equal to three halves , i . e . z n = 3 . the poles are equally heavily wound by each path , namely by three half turns . consequently , the sum of the turns counts of the paths is also the same for each pole and equal to six halves . as the poles are equally heavily wound by each path , circulating currents between the paths are extremely unlikely . the first path 10 wa winds the first slot coil of the first pole and the first slot coil of the second pole with two half turns , whereas it only winds the first slot coil of the third pole and the first slot coil of the fourth pole with one half turn . for the tenth winding w 10 , the voltage - holding turns count is in an eleventh embodiment there is provided an eleventh winding w 11 which is essentially similar to the tenth winding w 10 of the tenth embodiment except that the first path 11 wa winds the first slot of the first pole and the first slot of the third pole with two half turns and the first slot of the second pole and the first slot of the fourth pole with half a turn . to compensate , the second path 11 wb winds the first slot of the first pole and the first slot of the third pole with half a turn and the first slot of the second pole and the first slot of the fourth pole with two half turns ( see fig1 ). as in the case of the tenth embodiment , the voltage - holding turns count for the eleventh winding w 11 is in a twelfth embodiment there is provided a twelfth winding w 12 having three phases formed in each case by two paths 12 wa and 12 wb . only one of the three phases is shown in fig1 . the twelfth winding w 12 additionally has four poles and 24 slots . each pole is formed by two slot coils . the distribution of turns per path corresponds to the distribution of turns per path of the tenth winding w 10 of the tenth embodiment . consequently , the twelfth winding w 12 and the tenth winding w 10 have the same voltage - holding turns count : unlike the winding w 10 , the twelfth winding w 12 is implemented as a lap winding ( see fig1 ). consequently , the twelfth winding w 12 , in contrast to the tenth winding w 10 , essentially has only one instead of three sub - sections for each path 12 wa , 12 wb . in a thirteenth embodiment there is provided a thirteenth winding w 13 having three phases each formed by two paths 13 wa , 13 wb . only one of the three phases is shown in fig1 . the thirteenth winding w 13 additionally has four poles and 24 slots . the distribution of turns for each path 13 wa , 13 wb is similar to the distribution of turns of the paths 11 wa , 11 wb of the eleventh winding w 11 of the eleventh embodiment . however , instead of three sub - sections per path , the thirteenth winding w 13 essentially has only one sub - section for each path 13 wa , 13 wb . the paths 13 wa , 13 wb are implemented as lap windings ( see fig1 ). the voltage - holding turns count of the thirteenth winding w 13 is the same as that of the winding w 11 : in a fourteenth embodiment there is provided a fourteenth winding w 14 having three phases , each phase being formed by two parallel paths 14 wa , 14 wb , i . e . a = 2 ( see fig1 ). only one of the three phases is shown in fig1 . the fourteenth winding w 14 has four poles and 24 slots . each pole is formed by two slot coils . therefore , p = 2 and q = 2 . the paths 14 wa , 14 wb are implemented as wave windings and each winds each pole with half a turn , said paths 14 wa , 14 wb in each case winding different slot coils of each pole . thus the first path 14 wa winds the first slot coils of the first and second pole and the second slot coils of the third and fourth pole , whereas the second path 14 wb winds the second slot coils of the first and second pole and the first slot coils of the third and fourth pole . the number of conductors per slot is z n = 1 . the voltage - holding turns count of the fourteenth winding w 14 is

7Electricity

referring to fig1 a , a semiconductor body 12 having a substantially planar surface 13 is first provided . body 12 may be of p conductivity type and having a resistivity ranging from 8 to 26 ohm - cm . a first masking layer 14 is formed on surface 13 and may be a silicon dioxide layer thermally grown . layer 14 may have a thickness varying from 0 . 3 to 1 micron as desired depending on the implantation voltage and the particular impurity to be later implanted . referring to fig1 b , a photoresist layer 17 is next formed on layer 14 having a grated pattern covering an extended preselected area for formation of a region in body 12 , such as a buried layer region . using conventional photolithographic techniques , a grated mask 19 ( fig1 c ) is formed on surface 13 having a plurality of elongated portions 21 removed and alternate remaining portions 22 remaining intact . this defines a grated mask extending over the predetermined area of surface 13 in which the extended region is to be formed . the elongated openings or apertures 21 formed in layer 14 expose a plurality of elongated semiconductor body portions 24 . the width of the remaining elongated portions 22 may typically be from 4 to 6 microns . it is further possible to reduce their width to 1 micron or less dependent only on the particular techniques used . next referring to fig1 d , a relatively thin protective layer 26 of silicon dioxide is formed on the surface 13 in exposed body portions 24 . layer 26 need only be of sufficient thickness to provide a physical covering to protect surface 13 during a subsequent implantation step and a thermal diffusion step . layer 26 must be sufficiently thin to permit the passage of a substantial portion of directed implanted ions therethrough during the formation of the extended region desired . more importantly however the thermal growth of thin layer 26 entails the using up of approximately one - half of its thickness in silicon body 12 . thus , due to this oxide growth a step or corrugation is formed since the new surface 13 &# 39 ; in body portions 24 is below surface 13 . referring to fig1 e , the next step is the implantation of the desired impurity such as arsenic . an energy level of 200kev may be utilized for arsenic impurities to provide a depth of approximately 0 . 3 microns in body 12 spaced from surface 13 as shown by plural regions 28 . these regions may then be thermally diffused to a greater depth of 3 to 4 microns . in the case of implantation of boron impurities , a similar energy level will provide a depth of 1 to 1 . 5 microns . next , as illustrated in fig1 f , regions 28 when subjected to elevated temperatures merge to form a single buried region 32 . region 32 although illustrated as having a smooth surface 13 , actually has a microscopically corrugated surface due to the growth of the thin oxide layer as discussed above . because arsenic has a relatively slow diffusion coefficient and further because the regions have been substantially formed by ion implantation , the final buried layer 32 is precisely formed and is substantially defined by the outer periphery of the grated mask . ion implantation may be advantageously used to provide a peak of the impurity concentration somewhat below surface 13 . this is advantageous over formation by thermal diffusion in that the maximum concentration at the surface would otherwise provide increased out diffusion during the subsequent high temperature epitaxial deposition step . lastly as illustrated in fig1 f , before formation of the epitaxial layer 29 the silicon dioxide layers 26 and 27 are removed by conventional etching . after epitaxial layer 29 is formed a plurality of devices are integrated into the layer as illustrated by regions 33 . as a consequence of the corrugated surface of buried layer 32 the quality of the subsequently formed epitaxial layer 29 is improved because strain is relieved in the associated epitaxial layer by the corrugated surface in the implanted buried layer areas and thus the major cause at epitaxial defects is eliminated . for example , an area sufficient to underly 100 or more emitters has been provided with at least a 10 to 1 reduction in defect count . in fact , improvements as great as 100 to 1 in reducing defects with correspondingly increased yield are expected to occur . it is believed that the corrugated surfaces where the impurity is implanted provide a mechanism for permitting the atoms to readjust themselvers without introducing extensive irreparable defects which are normally associated with the formation of an epitaxial silicon layer . as discussed above , during diffusion it is believed that defects concentrate in some areas due to stresses . it has been observed that large areas of buried layers seem to have or cause larger defect densities . thus by effectively breaking up the large area by use of corrugations the defect density is reduced .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

disclosed herein is a method and system for reducing repeat false alarms in vehicle impact detection systems . broadly stated , a database of locations where false alarms have been experienced by the vehicle is created , maintained , and updated by a “ learning algorithm ” block , which ( among other aspects ) is capable of both adding and subtracting false alarm object information from the database . an impact detection system in a host vehicle includes an object detection and positioning system ( utilizing a fixed reference coordinate system ), a threat assessment algorithm , and other appropriate sensors for providing input to the threat assessment algorithm , wherein the learning algorithm enhances the false alarm performance of the impact detection system . referring initially to fig1 there is shown a block diagram of an exemplary vehicle impact detection system 100 suitable for use in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . system 100 includes an object detection and position tracking block 102 , a target identification block 104 , a threat assessment block 106 and a driver warning block 108 . the object detection portion of object detection block 102 may include radar or laser position object detection means , or other equivalents known to those skilled in the art . in addition , block 102 further includes a position tracking means , such as gps , in order to associate a detected object with a fixed coordinate system . the target identification block 104 receives input information from the object detection block 102 in order to identify the nature of the objects detected ( e . g ., size , shape , location , speed , acceleration , etc .) and thus determine whether any of the detected objects are “ targets ”, i . e ., potentially in the path of the host vehicle . in turn , the threat assessment block 106 receives the target identification information from block 104 , as well as additional information such as host vehicle speed and acceleration , and thereby determines whether there is a likelihood of an impact with a particular identified target object . if so , a corresponding signal is sent to the driver warning block 108 , wherein an appropriate warning signal ( e . g ., a buzzer , warning light or other type of haptic feedback ) is brought to the driver &# 39 ; s attention . the description of the impact detection system 100 elements thus far should be familiar to those skilled in the art . however , as is also shown in fig1 the system 100 further includes block 110 that contains a plurality of subroutines ( collectively designated “ learning algorithms ”) for reducing the occurrence of repeat false alarm indications . as is described in further detail hereinafter , block 110 receives the object detection and position tracking information from block 102 , as well as the threat assessment information from block 106 , to execute a series of subroutines to generate , update and utilize false alarm object information . furthermore , the learning algorithms block 110 utilizes various vehicle sensor input information to assist in determining false alarm conditions ( e . g ., steering information , braking information , etc .) as depicted by block 112 . accordingly , block 110 provides a feedback input to the threat assessment block 106 . [ 0017 ] fig2 is a flow diagram that illustrates a subroutine 200 for generating a database ( db ) of object positions / locations . at block 202 , a threat level is generated by the threat assessment algorithm . this process is repeated at specified intervals ( e . g ., every 2 ms ) during the operation of the algorithm . if this threat level does not exceed a certain threshold , as determined in decision block 204 , then no impact is imminent , and the subroutine exits . however , if the threat level does exceed a threshold , then the subroutine proceeds to block 206 to see whether the threat level is a false alarm . this determination may be made , for example , by implementing a suitable algorithm that utilizes driver response to an issued alarm triggered by the exceeded threshold . thus , for example , if no evasive action ( such as sudden steering , or hard braking ) were taken by a driver , then the threat level may be a false alarm . in addition , the vehicle may be equipped with a feature that allows the driver to directly indicate that an issued warning signal was a false alarm , such as by pressing a button . if the determined threat level turns out not to be a false alarm , then , the subroutine 200 exits from decision block 208 . on the other hand , if the threat level is a false alarm , then the subroutine 200 proceeds from decision block 208 to block 210 , wherein the position of the false alarm triggering object is determined with respect to a fixed reference coordinate system . then , at block 212 , the object and position information is added to ( or updated within ) an existing database 214 of object positions . in addition to position information , the database 214 may also include information regarding the length or range of the false alarm , along with the actual path taken by the vehicle in response thereto , as well as various sensor states and transition histories . not only does the present method provide for the addition of new / updated false alarm information to the database 214 , it also provides for the removal of such items therefrom . accordingly , fig3 is a flow diagram illustrating another subroutine 300 for removing items from the database 214 . beginning at block 302 , subroutine 300 retrieves objects from the database that correspond to positions within a set range of the host vehicle . naturally , as the host vehicle moves from point to point , certain stored objects will fall out of the set range , while others will fall into the set range , based on the new vehicle position . thus , when the host vehicle approaches a location corresponding to an object position stored in the database , subroutine 300 compares the stored object position with all newly sensed objects by the vehicle , as shown at block 304 . the comparison between the sensed objects and the database position is used to determine whether the vehicle &# 39 ; s sensors in fact “ observed ” the stored database object as the vehicle passed . the results of this comparison are also stored within the database 214 by an update thereto , as reflected in block 306 . as the location of a given false alarm object in the database is passed a number of times by the host vehicle , a comparison history is produced ( i . e ., a set of observed / not observed ) flags or indicators . it may be that every time an object location is passed , the presence of the false alarm object is verified and recorded . however , it could also be the case that presence of the object is not verified one or more times after the initial recording of the object position within the database 214 . thus , the subroutine proceeds to block 308 where the history of object data is examined to see whether the object should be removed from the database . the removal criteria may be established by any suitable historical conditions , such as a certain number of “ object not observed ” flags present in the history or , alternatively , a consecutive recording of object not observed ” flags during successive comparisons . it will be understood that the removal criteria is preferably structured so as to remove unreliable false alarm objects from the database , while still allowing for the possibility that the host vehicle &# 39 ; s object detection system could have erroneously failed to recognize the false alarm object during an isolated instance . in addition , the criteria may be specifically tailored to whether the object is moving or stationary . accordingly , if the removal criteria is satisfied , the subroutine 300 proceeds from decision block 310 to block 312 , where the false alarm object is removed from the database 214 . otherwise , the subroutine 300 is exited at that point . still another possibility is that a recorded false alarm object , whenever re - encountered by the vehicle , may not be subsequently identified as a threat by threat assessment algorithm 106 . as such , this situation would also warrant the removal of that false alarm object from the database 214 . thus , the removal criteria may also include an inquiry and comparison as to the number of times the threat assessment algorithm 106 continues to identify the recorded false alarm object as a threat . finally , fig4 is a flow diagram of still another subroutine 400 illustrating how the database 214 may be utilized / integrated in practical operation of a vehicle impact detection system . once an object is sensed within the projected host vehicle path , as shown in block 402 , the position of the object with respect to the fixed reference coordinate system ( as discussed above ) is also determined , as shown in block 404 . then , the position of the sensed object is compared to object positions stored in the database 214 , as illustrated at block 406 . if it is determined at decision block 408 that the sensed object corresponds to a stored object for that position in the database 214 ( i . e ., the sensed object is a false alarm , according to the database 214 ), then an appropriate action will be taken in the impact detection system . more specifically , if a match does not exist , the determined threat levels and nominal alarm indications characteristic of the impact detection system are unchanged by subroutine 400 . on the other hand , if a match does exist , suggesting the sensed object has caused false alarms in the past , any nominal alarm indications characteristic of the impact detection system may be inhibited or otherwise delayed so as to prevent another false alarm , as shown at block 410 . as will be appreciated , the above described methodology may be incorporated into existing vehicle gps positioning systems and sensors to reduce the occurrence of repeat false alarms , with the only additional cost arising in the form of extra memory and processing time . thus , the above invention embodiments are well suited for impact detection applications such as forward collision warning ( fcw ) systems . however , it will also be appreciated that this approach is equally applicable ( in addition to warning systems ) to other applications where a driver is not physically in complete control of the specific system , such as in avoidance systems , lane following systems , and adaptive cruise control , to name a few . as will also be appreciated , the disclosed invention can be embodied in the form of computer or controller implemented processes and apparatuses for practicing those processes . the present invention can also be embodied in the form of computer program code containing instructions embodied in tangible media , such as floppy diskettes , cd - roms , hard drives , or any other computer - readable storage medium , wherein , when the computer program code is loaded into and executed by a computer or controller , the computer becomes an apparatus for practicing the invention . the present invention may also be embodied in the form of computer program code or signal , for example , whether stored in a storage medium , loaded into and / or executed by a computer or controller , or transmitted over some transmission medium , such as over electrical wiring or cabling , through fiber optics , or via electromagnetic radiation , wherein , when the computer program code is loaded into and executed by a computer , the computer becomes an apparatus for practicing the invention . when implemented on a general - purpose microprocessor , the computer program code segments configure the microprocessor to create specific logic circuits . while the invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment ( s ), it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention . in addition , many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof . therefore , it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention , but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims .

6Physics

various embodiments of the invention are discussed herein . while specific embodiments are discussed , specific terminology is employed for the sake of clarity . however , the invention is not intended to be limited to the specific terminology so selected and it should be understood that this is done for illustration purposes only . a person skilled in the relevant art will recognize that other components and configurations can be used without parting from the spirit and scope of the invention . each specific element includes all technical equivalents that operate in a similar manner to accomplish a similar purpose . referring to the drawings , there is shown in fig1 a vessel 10 towing an object 16 . the vessel may be a ship having a crew , an unmanned vessel such as a common unmanned surface vessel , or other marine vessel . the object 16 may be any towed object , such as fishing gear , camera sleds , side scan sonars , and the like . a winch assembly 12 is used to raise and lower the towed object via tow cable 14 . the altitude and / or depth of the towed object in the water is controlled by taking in or letting out the tow cable 14 line via the winch assembly 12 . an actuator 18 may be provided to control the operation of the winch assembly 12 . embodiments of the invention are described herein in the context of towed sonar . however a control system for towing any appropriate object is within the scope of the invention . applications of maritime towing are common and diverse in both the civilian and military realms . applications include fishing , search and rescue , salvage , launch and retrieval of smaller vessels , towing of disabled ships , mine warfare , and bottom survey . embodiments of the invention use a fuzzy logic controller to maintain proper towing conditions . fuzzy logic can accommodate uncertainty both in the system state and in the action to be taken . during tow operations , a side scan sonar should be maintained at a fixed altitude above the sea floor while being pulled forward at a constant speed . since the towing vessel 10 may be small , it is more susceptible to environmental disturbances . vessel motions can affect tow body motions , so precise altitude control is imperative . the sonar 16 is typically pulled in a pre - planned search grid , so alteration of vessel speed and course is not an acceptable method to control sonar altitude . therefore , the altitude must be controlled by using the winch assembly 12 to retract or extend the tow cable 14 . however , if the tow object 16 is dropped onto the sea floor and then dragged , it may be destroyed . if loss of the tow object 16 is imminent , deviating from a pre - planned speed and course is an acceptable method of altitude control . in an exemplary embodiment , the control system may include contains two components . altitude or depth may controlled by extending and retracting a tow cable . in a situation where it is not possible to maintain altitude by retracting the tow cable , the winch control may request full speed ahead from the speed control . if it safe to proceed at full speed , the speed control grants the request . the effect of several variables on tow body altitude is known qualitatively . a first of these variables is vessel speed . when the vessel 10 is stopped , the sonar 16 hangs directly below the tow point , assuming that the current does not push it one way or another . as the vessel speed increases , the tow cable 14 streams farther behind the vessel 10 . the cable scope , that is , the ratio between the length of the tow cable 14 and the depth of the sonar 16 , increases . at speed , the tow object 16 changes depth more slowly . a second variable is tow cable length . as the cable length increases , more tow cable 14 must be extended or retracted to cause an equal change in depth of the tow object 16 . a third variable is delta altitude . if the altitude of the tow object 16 is too high , that is , the tow object 16 is being lowered to depth , the tow cable 14 should be extended as fast as possible . if the altitude is dangerously low , the tow cable 14 should be raised as fast as possible . a fourth variable is ship heading rate . when the vessel turns , the tow object 16 follows a shorter path than the vessel , in the same fashion as the wheels of a trailer towed behind a truck . as a result , the tow object 16 and tow cable 14 experience lower drag forces and the altitude drops . in a further embodiment , if the winch bandwidth is exceeded and the altitude is dangerously low , a full speed request may be issued to the speed controller . the system may include sensors to measure and / or determine these variables . for example , the ship speed and the ship heading rate may be determined from the ship control system . the towed object may include a sensor to sense its altitude . the tow object may include a communications device to transmit the sensed altitude to the control system . the winch assembly may include a controller that measures how much tow cable is extended to determine the cable length . these sensors may transmit the sensed information to the fuzzy control system . in one embodiment , the fuzzy control system may determine whether to extend or retract the tow cable based on the various input variables . the control system may identify the relevant inputs and outputs . the inputs and outputs may vary depending on the particular implementation , such as the winch assembly . membership functions for the variables and a set of control rules are defined . the membership functions may classify the variable into different categories . the rules are applied based on the category of the variable and a control signal generated to control the process . referring now to fig2 an exemplary system architecture is shown . a gain control 20 may be coupled to communication lines ( wired or wireless ) to receive information . the gain control 20 includes inputs 21 - 24 , respectively , for receiving information regarding the input variables , for example , delta altitude , ship speed , ship heading rate , and cable length variables . some or all of these variable may be used in various embodiments of the invention . none of these variables affect the altitude directly . instead , they affect the rate at which the altitude changes given a fixed change in the cable length , and can be used to implement a gain schedule . the gain schedule is implemented by the gain controller 20 . an altitude control 26 is coupled to the gain controller 20 and receives a gain output from the gain controller 20 . the altitude controller 26 also receives the delta altitude variable information . the altitude controller 26 uses this gain and the delta altitude to set the speed at which the tow line should be extended or retracted . the gain controller 20 and altitude controller 26 may be implemented via a microchip controller , a feedback controller and the like . rules may codify how the gain controller 20 and the altitude controller 26 should compensate for the effects of ship speed , heading rate , and cable length , while maximizing the rate of deployment . exemplary rules for programming the gain controller and altitude controller are shown below . fig3 a - c illustrate the results of a simulation of the control system . the lowering of the tow object to a depth of five meters in 100 meters of water is simulated . the lowering is done at a constant speed of the tow vessel . fig3 a illustrates the results with the tow vessel speed at 0 knots , fig3 b illustrates the simulation results with the tow vessel speed at 5 knots , and fig3 c illustrates the simulation results with the tow vessel speed at 10 knots . there are three graph for each speed . graph 1 illustrates the altitude with respect to time , graph 2 illustrates the amount of tow cable out with respect to time , and graph 3 illustrates the line speed with respect to time . fig3 a - 3 c demonstrates that the controller establishes and maintains tow object altitude when the vessel drives in a straight line at constant speed . in all cases the altitude is maintained correctly with minimal control effort . the effect of ship speed on cable scope is readily apparent , as more cable is required to maintain depth as ship speed increases . this can be seen from graphs 2 in fig3 a - 3 b . a membership function is provided for some or all of the above described variables . the membership functions define particular ranges for the variable . the membership function should be defined to cover the expected range of values for the input variable . the specific values of the membership functions will vary depending on the characteristics of the system , for example the winch characteristics , etc . fig4 - 8 illustrate examples of membership functions . the membership functions are triangular of trapezoidal in shape . different types of membership functions may also be used , such as s - shaped in order to obtain smoother transitions between ranges . based on the value of the variable , it may be determined where in the membership function the value falls . the value may fall into areas where the is no overlap of the regions . if the value falls into an area where there is overlap between two regions , the uncertainty may be resolved using , for example , mamdani &# 39 ; s method for fuzzy inference . the speed variable may have membership functions defining three different speeds : slow , medium , and fast . a first region with a speed between 0 knots and 2 knots is slow speed , 2 . 5 knots to 7 . 5 knots is medium speed , and 8 knots to 10 knots is fast speed . similar processes may be carried out for the other membership functions . the cable link membership functions may define three different ranges for the length of the tow cable , short , medium and long . the ship heading rate variable may have membership functions defining two ranges , slow and fast . the delta altitude variable may have membership functions defining two ranges . the gain controller is configured to determine a gain based upon the values of the variables . for example , the gain controller may include a module to determine in which range a variable is in based on the respective membership functions . for example , based on the inputs to the gain control , the first module may determine that the speed is medium the heading rate is fast and the cable rate is medium . utilizing the rules for the gain controller described above , the gain would then be determined based on these inputs that the gain is medium . the appropriate gain signal is then output from the gain controller . the altitude controller implements the memberships functions in similar fashion . the altitude controller may store membership functions defining its input variable into ranges . for example , the delta altitude variable may have membership functions defining four different range , way deep , deep , correct , shallow , and way shallow . based on the inputs the altitude controller may implement the above - reference rules to determine if the speed tow cable is fast retract , retract , stop , extend or fast extend . based on this determination , a control signal is sent to an actuator for the winch to retract or extend the tow cable appropriately . fig9 is a more detailed illustration of a fuzzy control system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . the altitude command is differenced with the current altitude to determine the delta altitude variable . the delta altitude variable is then input into the altitude control . an altitude control normalizer is also provided . the speed , absolute value of the heading rate and cable length variable are input to the altitude gain controlled . this may be done in some embodiments via a multiplexer , however this is not required . the output from the altitude gain controller is provided to gain control normalizer . when tuned correctly , the normalizers make the output of the product block range from − 1 to 1 , that is it act like a throttle . the output gain then converts that throttle to the correct units for the implementation , in this case meters per second . fig1 illustrates an example of a depth control applying the same principles as the altitude control described above , except that depth is substituted for altitude . 180 - degree turns are of particular importance when following the “ mowing the lawn ” pattern of mine sweeping . a series of 180 - degree turns of varying rates executed at constant speed are shown in fig7 . the controller maintains altitude at 1 deg / s and 2 deg / s , but at 4 deg / s the winch &# 39 ; s rate limit is reached and the sonar is dropped at 255 seconds . fuzzy control has been demonstrated to be a viable , practical method for controlling the altitude and / or depth of a sonar . nonlinear interaction of many variables dictate the system dynamics , and model data is usually unavailable . however , the ability to create a codify heuristics and intuition offers the possibility of controlling such a complex system in an efficient manner . it will be understood that the above description of the present invention is susceptible to various modifications , changes and adaptations , and that the same are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the appended claims .

6Physics

using an otto engine as example , fig1 schematically shows the technical environment in which the method for diagnosing an exhaust gas sensor 15 according to the invention is able to be used . an internal combustion engine 10 is supplied with air via an air supply 11 , its mass being determined by an air mass meter 12 . air mass meter 12 may be configured as a hot - film air - mass meter , for example . the exhaust gas of internal combustion engine 10 is discharged via an exhaust gas duct 18 , and an exhaust gas purification system 16 is provided downstream from internal combustion engine 10 in the flow direction of the exhaust gas . exhaust gas purification system 16 usually includes at least one catalyst . an engine controller 14 is provided for the control of internal combustion engine 10 , which first of all , supplies fuel to internal combustion engine 10 via a fuel metering device 13 and , secondly , receives the signals of air mass meter 12 and exhaust gas sensor 15 disposed in exhaust duct 18 and an exhaust gas sensor 17 situated in exhaust discharge line 18 . in the example illustrated , exhaust gas sensor 15 determines an actual lambda value of a fuel - air mixture supplied to internal combustion engine 10 . it may be developed as a broadband lambda sensor or as a continuous lambda sensor . exhaust gas sensor 17 determines the exhaust gas composition downstream from exhaust gas purification system 16 . exhaust - gas sensor 17 may be developed as a step - change sensor or as a binary sensor . for better monitoring of the dynamics of exhaust gas sensor 15 , it may be provided to use high - and low - pass filters in order to check whether exhaust gas sensor 15 is still able to detect the higher - frequency components of a concentration change in a load change of internal combustion engine 10 . such gas sensors have a characteristic low pass behavior , which depends on the geometry of their protective sleeve , among other things . in diesel engines , such a protective sleeve may be contaminated with soot , so that the bandwidth of the sensor decreases . in the time range , the decreasing limit frequency manifests itself in a greater rise time , i . e ., the signal flanks become flatter in response to the same excitation . if a suitable high - pass filter is therefore connected in series with the sensor , it is possible in steep load changes to detect from the output signal of the high pass whether the limit frequency of the low pass is greater or smaller than the limit frequency of the high pass . the dynamic response of the sensor may be inferred by analyzing these higher - frequency signal energies , as described in german patent document 10 2011 088 296 . 0 , filed on dec . 12 , 2011 . if the signal energy of an exhaust gas sensor 15 assumes an implausibly high value following the high - pass filtering in the steady - state operation , it is furthermore possible to infer an electrical oscillation or an incoupling of interference signals . a model may be used as reference for the plausibility check , as described in german patent document 10 2011 088 296 . 0 , filed on dec . 12 , 2011 . the present invention utilizes a filter system from german patent document 10 2011 088 296 . 0 , filed on dec . 12 , 2011 for searching for high - frequency components in the sensor signal that should actually not be present , during steady - state engine operating phases . if a suitable high - pass filter is connected in series with exhaust gas sensor 15 , the steady component and low - frequency components of the measuring signal are suppressed . only the measuring noise may therefore contribute to the output power of the high - pass filter in a steady - state engine operation . fig2 shows the basic structure of the dynamics monitoring from german patent document 10 2011 088 296 . 0 , filed on dec . 12 , 2011 in the form of a block diagram 20 . shown in the upper portion is a path for an oxygen concentration 21 measured using exhaust gas sensor 15 . because of a real gas propagation time and sensor delay 22 , which are able to be described by a dead time t t or a first order low - pass filter having a sensor time constant t s , an oxygen sensor signal 22 . 1 results on the basis of actual oxygen concentration 21 . the transfer function of the sensors and gas propagation time 22 is obtained from the following relationship , in which k s represents an amplification factor for the sensor : g ( j ω )= k s exp (− t t j ω )/( t s jω + 1 ) ( 2 ) k s normally corresponds to the multiplicative or rise error of the sensor that stems from production variances and aging . however , if it is not the oxygen concentration that is used as the sensor signal , but a variable that is proportional to said concentration , then k s is a corresponding transfer coefficient for converting the sensor signal into an oxygen concentration and may also be dimensional . afterwards , oxygen sensor signal 22 . 1 is filtered by a high pass 23 and squared using a multiplier 24 , thereby obtaining a signal that corresponds to a signal power . an integrator 25 subsequently integrates this signal , so that a signal energy 25 . 1 of the higher - frequency energy components of the measured oxygen content is obtained . a comparison with a correspondingly conditioned signal for a value ascertained with the aid of a model in a downstream evaluation unit 26 results in a status value 26 . 1 , which may be used for the diagnosis . because of incouplings on the cable harness or electrical faults of the evaluation circuit , for example , electrical interference variables 34 may be coupled into the sensor path , as shown in fig2 . the low pass behavior of the sensor naturally has no effect on the spectrum of the interference variables . accordingly , sooting of the sensor , for example , has no effect on the fault sensitivity of the sensor path either . in the most basic case , high pass 23 may be developed as a first order high pass , whose transfer function is able to be described by the relation g ( j ω )= t f j ω /( t f jω + 1 ) ( 3 ) using t f as limit frequency of the filter . if the limit frequency of exhaust gas sensor 15 exceeds limit frequency t f of high pass 23 , then the series connection behaves like a band pass , i . e ., the high frequencies of the input spectrum of exhaust gas sensor 15 are still permitted to pass and may be detected in the output spectrum . in contrast , if the limit frequency of exhaust gas sensor 15 drops below limit frequency t f of high pass 23 due to a loss in dynamics , then the series circuit blocks all frequencies , so that it is no longer possible to measure any frequency components at all in the output spectrum . in principle , the present invention is not restricted to first order high pass filters . instead , it is also possible to use any other high pass filters . in the same way , the monitoring method is usable when the low pass filters including exhaust gas sensor 15 itself are parameterized in a different manner , e . g ., using a limit frequency instead of the time constant , or when they are of a higher order . to make it possible to distinguish between a slow exhaust gas sensor 15 and insufficient excitation when using the method from german patent document 10 2011 088 296 . 0 , filed on dec . 12 , 2011 , the rate of change of the exhaust gas composition must be evaluated , which in the case of a broadband lambda sensor , for example , may be accomplished on the basis of a change in the air and fuel mass . a similar series connection of filters may be used for this purpose . in the case of a broadband lambda sensor , this will require no more than converting the above masses into an o 2 concentration and a delay using a low pass filter which corresponds to a functional exhaust gas sensor . this low pass filter must then be switched in series with a high pass that features the same transfer function as the real sensor . by comparing the two high pass outputs , it will then be possible to infer the operativeness of the real sensor . in case of another gas component , it may become necessary to use an additional untreated emissions model . the processing of the energy value determined with the aid of a model is illustrated in the lower part of block diagram 20 in fig2 . following a stoichiometric correction , a quotient is formed in a division unit 29 from an air mass 27 ml and a setpoint fuel mass 28 m k for fuel metering 13 , and a lambda value is calculated . fuel mass 28 may result from the torque request specified by the driver , which is converted into a fuel quantity . in a conversion unit 30 , the lambda value is used to determine a calculated oxygen content 30 . 1 . according to a model 31 , the transfer function g ( j ω )= exp (− t tm j ω )/( t m jω + 1 ) ( 4 ) is used to calculate a modeled oxygen content 31 . 1 , t tm representing a model dead time , and t m representing a model time constant . modeled oxygen content 31 . 1 then is filtered by another high pass 23 , whose transfer function in the most basic case corresponds to that of the first order high pass , and squared by a further multiplier 24 , which results in a signal that corresponds to a signal power . this signal is subsequently integrated by another integrator 25 , so that signal energy 25 . 1 is obtained for the higher - frequency energy components of the modeled oxygen content . since high pass 23 suppresses the steady component and the lower - frequency components , only the higher - frequency components of the individual o 2 signal 22 . 1 , 31 . 1 render a contribution . in the steady - state operation , the two high pass output signals y s for the sensor signal and y m for the model signal should therefore vanish , if the noise is disregarded . the two signal energies 25 . 1 φ m =∫ 0 t y m 2 ( t ) dt ( 5a ) φ s =∫ 0 t y s 2 ( t ) dt ( 5b ) should consequently likewise assume very low values in the steady - state operation , t representing the integration period . the comparison of the two signal energies 25 . 1 in evaluation unit 26 now makes it possible to infer an electrical fault of exhaust gas sensor 15 . if energy φ m of the model path is lower than a lower threshold φ unten , and energy φ s of the sensor path is simultaneously greater than an upper threshold φ oben , this may be interpreted to mean that the engine operating point is approximately constant and the sensor signal fluctuates nevertheless , which points to an electrically oscillating exhaust gas sensor 15 . in summary , the following applies : φ m & lt ; φ unten und φ s & gt ; φ oben → sensor is oscillating to improve the selectivity of the diagnosis , it is advisable to use a so - called insensitivity or dead zone , as is common practice when filtering noise . this suppresses small values of its input variable in an applicable range . this insensitivity zone may be realized by additional filter units 32 , 33 shown in fig3 a , 3 b , 4 a , 4 b as well as 5 a and 5 b or by filter functions with their characteristic curves , for example , which may also feature a step change ( filter unit 33 in each case ). fig3 a shows the sensor path in a cutaway view . oxygen sensor signal 22 . 1 is filtered by high pass 23 , which has a filter unit featuring an insensitivity region ( dead zone ) without step change 32 . the signal filtered in this manner is then squared by multiplier 24 and integrated using integrator 25 , so that signal energy 25 . 1 is obtained on the output side . small signal amplitudes about the zero point are suppressed in this case , as is obvious from the characteristic curve . fig3 b shows a system as an alternative to that of fig3 a ; here , a filter unit 33 having an insensitivity region with a step change is used , which also increases the selectivity . the insensitivity or dead zone may be combined with the squaring in a characteristic curve . in the same way , it is possible to use the absolute amount of the high pass output signal , and it is also possible to combine the absolute value generation with the dead zone in a characteristic curve . these variants are shown in fig4 a , 4 b as well as 5 a and 5 b . fig4 a shows a filter unit 32 having an insensitivity region ( dead zone ) without step change , in which the characteristic curve is configured as a parabola , so that multiplier 24 may be omitted since the parabola - shaped transfer function of filter unit 32 already generates a squared signal on the output side . fig4 b shows a filter unit 32 having an insensitivity region ( dead zone ) without a step change , in which the absolute - value generation is combined with the dead zone in a characteristic curve . fig5 a and 5 b show systems as alternatives to those of fig4 a and 4 b , in which the characteristic curve of filter unit 33 features a step change in the insensitivity region . fig6 shows a corresponding system , in which , in a deviation from the system shown in fig2 , integrator 25 divides the result by integration period t in each case , which means that the average signal powers 25 . 2 for p s and p m are available for the comparison . the comparison then takes place as follows : φ m & lt ; φ unten und φ s & gt ; φ oben → sensor is oscillating such a power comparison is of course combinable with all previously mentioned insensitivity regions according to fig3 a , 3 b , 4 a , 4 b as well as 5 a and 5 b . the use is conceivable both in gasoline or diesel combustion engines that require an oscillation detection of gas sensors , as may be the case in particular in sensors that are relevant for the exhaust gas . this monitoring function may be used as an autonomous function or combined with dynamic diagnosis functions , e . g ., as described in german patent document 10 2011 088 296 . 0 , filed on dec . 12 , 2011 .

8General tagging of new or cross-sectional technology

accompanying fig1 depicts a particularly preferred filter cartridge 10 in accordance with the present invention . as shown , the filter cartridge 10 includes a generally cylindrical filter body 12 which is closed at one end by a bottom end cap 14 . a length - adjustable end - cap 16 is joined to the upper end of the filter body 12 . the filter body 12 may be formed of virtually any filtration media conventionally employed to filter fluids . thus , for example , the filtration media may be comprised of pleated sheets of non - woven or woven filter materials which are , in and of themselves , highly conventional in the fluid filtration art . most preferably , however , the filter body 12 is comprised of a generally cylindrical , non - woven mass of melt - blown polymeric fibers formed , for example , from thermoplastic polymers , preferably polyolefins such as polypropylene , polyethylene and the like . especially preferred filter media for use as the filter body 12 in accordance with the present invention are those as described more fully in commonly owned u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 591 , 335 and 6 , 342 , 283 , the entire content of each being expressly incorporated hereinto by reference . as is perhaps more clearly shown in accompanying fig2 - 4 , the length - adjustable end cap 16 includes an annular stationary ring member 22 having an annular connection flange 22 - 1 which is physically attached to the end surface of the filter body 12 most preferably by thermal bonding ( i . e ., heat welding ) in a manner to be described below . a moveable connection member 26 includes a lower cylindrical neck portion 28 and an upper annular flange portion 30 . the flange portion 30 will typically be provided with an elastomeric edge seal 30 - 1 so as to provide a fluid seal between the flange 30 and adjacent structural components of a housing ( not shown ) in which the filter cartridge 10 is employed . most preferably , the neck and flange portions 28 , 30 are formed as a unitary ( one - piece ) structure and provided with a cross - support 31 so as to increase the structural integrity of the same while yet providing a convenient fixed handle to allow removal / insertion of the connection member 28 relative to the circular interior opening 22 a defined by the stationary ring member 22 ( see fig2 ). the neck portion 28 is received within , and is slideable with respect to , the annular stationary ring member 22 as shown by the arrows a l in fig3 and 4 . thus , the entire connection member 26 is slideable along the longitudinal axis of the filter cartridge 10 so that the flange portion 30 thereof may be moved towards and away from the stationary ring member 22 . important to the present invention is the provision of an annular inwardly projecting flexible lip seal 32 which is formed as a unitary ( one piece ) structure with the stationary ring member 22 . an annular spacer ring 34 is coaxially positioned in spaced relationship below the lip seal 32 and is seated in a partly conformingly shaped recess 36 ( see fig2 ) formed in a lower region of the connection flange 22 - 1 of the stationary ring member 22 . as will be described below , the spacer flange 34 serves to protect the lip seal 32 during the thermal bonding operation and also serves to ensure that a relatively snug , but sliding , fit is established with the exterior circumferential surface of cylindrical neck portion 28 of the moveable connection member 26 . however , during the thermal bonding operation , a portion of the spacer flange 34 is physically melded with the adjacent region of the connection flange 22 - 1 of the stationary ring member 22 so as to be integrally fused therewith . as such , no separate fluid seal structure is needed as between the spacer flange 32 and the recess 34 of the stationary ring member 22 in which it is seated . the lip seal 22 may be formed of virtually any desired geometric configuration which projects inwardly , and preferably downwardly , so as to constrict the opening 22 a in which the neck portion 28 is inserted . the lip seal 22 must , of course , be capable of being yieldably outwardly flexed somewhat when in contact with the outer surface of the neck portion 28 so as to thereby maintain sealing contact therewith . fluid pressure will also serve to urge the lip seal 32 into sealing contact with the neck portion 28 due to the interior of the filter medium 12 being at a greater fluid pressure as compared to the fluid pressure on the exterior of the filter medium 12 ( e . g ., due to the inside - out flow of the fluid being filtered and the filter drop across the radial thickness dimension of the filter medium ). most preferably , the lip seal 22 is in the form of a generally conical segment oriented in an inward and downward direction ( i . e ., in a slanted direction from the ring member 22 toward the bottom end cap 14 ). most preferably , the terminal ( lower ) end of the neck portion 28 is provided with an exterior circumferential bevel 28 - 1 which assists in the positioning of the neck portion 28 within the stationary ring member . that is , the circumferential bevel 28 - 1 provides a pilot surface to allow the neck portion to be properly positioned with respect to the annular lip seal 32 so that the neck portion may be inserted within the stationary ring member 22 . it is preferred that the moveable connection member 26 be capable of being physically removed from the stationary ring member 22 . for such purpose , the cross - support 31 provides a convenient handle to allow the connection member 26 to be withdrawn from the ring member 22 while the latter remains associated with its supporting structure ( for example , a filter housing ). because the weight of the filter body 12 will be substantially increased due to the presence of trapped particulates that have been removed from the filtered fluid during use , it is preferable that the stationary ring 22 also be provided with a diametrically opposed pair of bail ears 22 - 2 which pivotally accept the terminal ends of a semi - circular bail 22 - 3 . thus , upon removal of the connection member 26 , the remaining structural portions of the filter cartridge 10 may be removed physically from its adjacent supporting structure ( e . g ., a filter housing , not shown ) by manually lifting it with the aid of the bail 22 - 3 . accompanying fig5 a - 5d depict a preferred system 50 and technique whereby end caps may be thermally bonded to a cylindrical filter body 12 . in this regard , as shown in fig5 a , the system includes a carriage 52 on which provides a platform to support a nest 54 holding a stationary ring member 22 in an inverted manner . thus , the bottom surface of the ring member 22 and the spacer ring 34 are exposed to the heating station 56 . prior to being heated , a generally cylindrical heat shield puck 57 is positioned removably within the interior of the end cap . the heat shield puck 57 serves to protect the unitary lip seal of the ring member 22 during the thermal bonding operation . the carriage 52 is capable of reciprocal rectilinear movements between the heating station 56 and the bonding station 58 so as to shuttle the nest 54 and the inverted ring member 22 therebetween . as shown in fig5 b , with the ring member 22 positioned in the manner depicted in fig5 a , the heating station is moveable into thermal contact with the nest 54 and the inverted ring member 22 held therein so as to melt a portion of the connection flange 22 - 1 which is exposed to the heating station 56 . the exposed portion of the spacer ring 34 is also concurrently melted at this time . after the respective portions of the connection flange 22 - 1 and spacer ring 34 are rendered molten , the heating station 56 is raised and the carriage 52 is shuttled to the bonding station 58 so as to be in coaxial alignment with the filter body 12 held in support structure 60 . such a state is shown in fig5 c . it will be observed in this regard that the spacer ring 34 has thermally melded with an adjacent surrounding portion of the flange 22 - 1 . an end of the filter body 12 is then brought into contact with the melted region of the flange 22 - 1 by lowering of the support structure 60 along vertical support post 62 as shown in fig5 d . upon cooling , therefore , the filter body 12 and the connection flange 22 - 1 are thermally melded so as to form an integral structure . most preferably , the end of the filter body 12 is embedded physically within , and melded to , the flange 22 - 1 to a thickness dimension d ( see fig4 ) of at least about 0 . 100 inch , and more preferably between about 0 . 100 to about 0 . 125 inch . in such a manner , an integral fluid - tight bond is established between the end of the filter body 12 and the flange 22 - 1 associated with the stationary retaining ring 22 . the bottom end cap 14 may be thermally bonded to the other end of the filter body 12 in a similar fashion to that described above with reference to fig5 a - 5d . while the present invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment , it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiment , but on the contrary , is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

as illustrated in fig1 and 2 , a circuit board 10 , often referred to as a printed circuit board ( pcb ), has an electrically conductive circuit pattern on one surface , for convenience referred to herein as the top surface . the circuit pattern is usually metallic , for example copper , and is indicated generally at 11 in fig1 . the circuit pattern normally extends over the entire board but is only partly shown in fig1 for clarity . a circuit pattern can include contact positions comprising a plurality of closely spaced inter - digital contact members . in fig1 a plurality of switch positions 12 are illustrated . each switch position has a plurality of closely spaced inter - digital contact members , one switch position 12a being shown with contact members 13 . the other switch positions 12 also have contact members . some of the switch positions provide a pushbutton dial facility while other switch positions are for pushbuttons which provide other services , such as repertory dialing , call forwarding , conferencing and such . a hook switch position 126 can also be provided . fig2 shows the other surface of the board , for convenience referred to as the bottom surface . on this surface are mounted various components , some of which are indicated at 14 , while the positions for other components are indicated at 15 . fig3 is a top plan view of an actuating member , or switch member , 16 as can be used with the circuit board as in fig1 . the member 16 , in the example , is an elastomeric member having a plurality of pushbutton switch members 17 and a hook switch member 18 . mounting positions for lighted displays , for example liquid crystal devices , are provided at 19 with a contact position for the displays at 20 . only two switch members 17 are shown in detail , similar members being provided at all positions 21 . each switch member , 17 and 18 , is in the form of a flexible domed member 22 having a central projection 23 . the domed member extends away from the circuit board , that is , concave on the side presented to the board , and the projection 23 extends towards the board . at its end surface , the projection is provided with a layer of electrically conductive material 24 . a central recess 25 is provided on the convex side of the domed member , to form an annular ring 26 . as stated , a particular use of the circuit board , together with a switch member as in fig3 and 4 , is in a telephone set or other terminal . fig5 is a vertical cross - section through a telephone set base in which a circuit board , as in fig1 and 2 , is mounted in a top housing 30 . also indicated are pushbuttons 31 . the bottom housing 32 , a ringer and a 33 , a liquid crystal device 34 . the sub - assembly of the top housing , or cover , 30 , is illustrated in fig6 . a position for lighted indicators is indicated at 35 , housings 36 for pushbuttons , one pushbutton 31 being shown . a lighted indicator 29 is shown . further elongate pushbuttons can be provided at positions 37 . an elastomeric member 16 , with switch members 17 and 18 , and the circuit board 10 rest on the inner surface of the top housing , secured by screws , one illustrated at 38 . the ringer is shown , comprising a speaker 39 , a foam washer 40 and a housing 41 . the ringer assembly is mounted against a grill 42 via brackets 43 having ribs 44 which interengage with protrusions 45 on the housing 41 . a hook switch actuator 46 is mounted on the top housing and has a lever 47 which projects into the recess 48 which receives the transducer housing of the handset , the handset pushing on the arm to actuate the actuator . an arm 49 extends over the hook switch member 18 of the elastomeric member 16 . a spring 50 biases the actuator 46 . fig7 illustrates the assembly of the various items in fig6 omitting the elastomeric member 16 and board 10 . fig8 illustrates a typical telephone set 51 and the associated parts -- bottom housing 31 , top housing 30 with the various items and components mounted therein , and a handset 52 . the form of the inter - digital contact members can vary considerably . fig9 , 11 and 12 illustrate some forms , as an example . fig9 and 10 illustrate contact member arrangements in which contact members connected to two conductors are interleaved for interconnection by a further member , and fig1 and 12 illustrate contact member arrangements in which contact members are connected to four conductors . other variations will be appreciated from the following description and also from the fig1 and 14 , which are cross - sections on fig9 and 10 . fig9 illustrates a simple arrangement , in which two conductors , 60 and 61 , part of a circuit pattern as at 11 in fig1 each end in an elongate pad 62 and 63 . the conductors 60 and 61 and the pads 62 and 63 are typically of copper . contact members extend from the pads 62 and 63 and have inter - digital finger - like members 64 and 65 . the members 64 and 65 extend from elongate pads 66 and 67 extending over pads 62 and 63 . the contact members comprising the members 64 and 65 and pads 66 and 67 are of carbon , formed by carbon ink deposited on the circuit board 10 . it is normal to cover the circuit pattern on a circuit board with a thin layer of resist , which is a dielectric , windows being left in the resist layer at a contact position . the resist layer may be applied before or after deposition of the carbon ink . in some conductor member patterns , the resist layer can be applied before or after deposition of the carbon ink . in other patterns , the resist layer is applied before the carbon ink and in further patterns the resist layer is applied after the carbon ink . in the arrangement , or pattern in fig9 the resist layer , indicated at 68 , can be applied before or after the carbon ink , and has been shown as applied after deposit of the carbon ink , the window periphery being seen at 69 . fig1 illustrates an arrangement or pattern in which two conductors 70 and 71 each have an elongate pad 72 and 73 . conductor 70 in this example is a continuous conductor with the pad 72 at an intermediate position . conductors 70 , 71 and pads 72 and 73 are again of copper and contact members having inter - digital members 74 and 75 extending from pads 76 and 77 extend from the conductors 70 and 71 . in this example , the resist layer 68 is shown applied before the deposition of the carbon ink to form the members 74 and 75 and pads 76 and 77 , although it can be applied after . fig1 illustrates a more complex pattern of conductors and contact members . in this pattern , there are four conductors 80 , 81 , 82 and 83 . each has an elongate pad 84 , 85 , 86 and 87 . over each pad 84 , 85 , 86 and 87 , which are of copper typically , is deposited a pad 88 , 89 , 90 and 91 , of carbon ink . conductors 80 and 82 are connected by a continuous contact member 92 , of a sinuous or zig zag pattern , extending between pads 88 and 90 . from pad 89 extend members 93 and from pad 91 extend members 94 . members 92 , 93 and 94 form an inter - digital , or interleaved , pattern . in this example , the resist layer 68 is applied after deposition of the carbon ink . fig1 is a further example of a more complex conductor and contact member pattern . in fig1 , there are four conductors 95 , 96 , 97 and 98 , but enlarged pads are not formed at the conductor ends . the end of conductor 98 extends laterally to provide a wide connection portion 99 . carbon ink pads 100 and 101 and 102 are formed at the ends of the conductors 96 , 97 and 98 . conductors 95 and 97 are connected by a contact member 104 , which has a pad 101 at one end , for conductor 97 , but merely overlaps the end of conductor 95 . pads 101 and 102 are formed over the ends of conductors 96 and 98 and contact members 108 and 109 extend from these pads . contact member 104 is of sinuous form and contact members 108 and 109 are inter - digital , or interleaved , with contact member 104 . in this example , the resist layer 68 is shown deposited after deposition of the carbon ink for pads 100 , 101 and 102 and contact members 104 , 108 and 109 , but can be deposited before the carbon ink . somewhat similar patterns as in fig1 and 12 can be used with these conductors . thus , for example one of the conductors 81 and 83 or 96 and 98 can be omitted , together with the associated contact member , leaving a sinuous member 92 or 104 and one other contact member . fig1 and 14 , cross - sections through the arrangements of fig9 and 10 , illustrate the layer arrangements . the thickness of the layers , and particularly the relative thickness , are exaggerated and not to scale , to provide clarity . as can be appreciated from fig9 , 11 and 12 , the particular pattern , or arrangement , of the carbon contact members and associated copper conductors can vary considerably . in all examples , the copper conductors extend only to a peripheral area of a contact position where acceptable spacing can readily be provided . while a local enlargement or pad can be provided on a conductor , this is not essential . the contact members themselves are of carbon formed by depositing carbon ink , for example by screen printing . while a corresponding pad of carbon can be provided , over a copper pad , this also is not essential . in certain circumstances , however , the provision of pads on the conductor , contact members , or both , can provide a reduction in alignment requirements . in any arrangement , the only alignment necessary is that between carbon ink and the conductor and the limitations at these positions are much less restrictive than are necessary when applying carbon ink over copper to form the actual inter - digital contact members . as the contact member patterns are applied at one step , alignment between the two sets of inter - digital contact members is assured . thus very close spacing can be obtained . the inter - digital pattern , and close spacing , is used to ensure good contact by a contact member such as a pushbutton , independent of any possible tilting of a pushbutton during operation .

7Electricity

fig1 to 19 show a device , which is designated as a whole by the reference numeral 1 , for automatic layered stacking of pallets p with packages w of different dimensions in a predetermined spatial arrangement . this is a device for “ mixed - case ” palletizing . naturally , the device 1 can also be used for palletizing merely similar packages w . the device 1 comprises a roller conveyor 2 as a feeding conveyor which provides the singulated packages w in a computer - aided predetermined sequence from a warehouse , not shown . arranged at the end of the roller conveyor 2 is a shifter 31 which is designed as a pusher 3 and shifts the packages w by 90 ® and places them onto the subsequent positioning conveyor . the packages w are likewise angularly oriented , so that they are oriented on the positioning conveyor 4 insofar as their outer shape allows . the positioning conveyor 4 is designed as a transfer cart . it serves to position the packages w in the x - direction , in order to adopt this coordinate of the subsequent position in the stack . the positioning conveyor or the transfer cart or more precisely the transport surface thereof is arranged horizontally at the same level and along a side of the location 6 for stack formation . the carrier p ( pallet ) or trolley ( r ) which is to be loaded will typically be located here . at the level of the transport surface above the carrier p to be loaded , an intermediate plate 8 is provided in the location 6 . the intermediate plate 8 is divided in the middle and each part 8 a , b is designed to be displaceable towards the side ( in the x - direction ) such that a stack is formed on the intermediate plate 8 , whereas the completely loaded carrier p from the preceding stacking procedure underneath it is swapped for a new empty carrier p . therefore , the stacking procedure can be continued without interruption . in order to feed empty pallets or remove stacked pallets , a corresponding roller conveyor 9 is provided below the stacking location 6 . the respective pallet p is received from the roller conveyor by a lifting and lowering unit 10 for lifting and lowering the carrier p in the y - direction and is moved upwards to the stacking location 6 . the lifting and lowering unit 10 is also responsible per se for adapting the level during stacking , i . e . it performs a lifting or a lowering movement as necessary during stacking of a package w and also performs adaptation of layer balancing at the beginning of a new layer . the respective package w is thus pushed in the z - direction by the transfer cart 4 onto the desired position in the stack laterally into the location 6 onto the intermediate plate 8 . for the purpose of this displacement of the packages w to the predetermined position in the stack s , the device comprises sliding plates 11 and a pusher bank 12 , i . e . in each case a plurality of individual sliding plates 13 and individual pushers 14 arranged next to one another horizontally and along the side of the stacking location 6 or the pallet p . the sliding plates 13 engage through between the frame of the transfer cart 4 and receive the package w pushed by the pusher 14 . subsequently , the pusher and the sliding plate travel together to the desired position and the sliding plate 13 is retracted , whereas the pusher 14 remains stationary to retain the package w . therefore , the package w is positioned . the sliding plates 13 become flat at the front , so that positioning can be effected as precisely as possible . the sliding plates 13 are each designed as flat , strip - like plates which are movable horizontally and along the side of the stacking location 6 and transversely thereto and which become thinner in the direction of the stacking location 6 . the sliding plates 13 are suspended on the side of the transfer cart 4 opposite the carrier and are arranged in parallel and next to one another . they are each movable back and forth in the manner of a carriage on a linear axle 16 oriented in the z - direction . the drive is effected for each axle by means of an electric motor 16 e and a toothed belt ( not shown ) which is arranged on the linear axle and into which the carriage or the sliding plate 13 is hooked . therefore , the sliding plates 13 form as it were an optional widening of the transfer cart 4 into the stacking location 6 . the pushers 14 are arranged flush with one another horizontally and along the side of the stacking location 6 or the carrier p and are designed to be movable independently of one another . they are arranged on the side of the positioning conveyor opposite the carrier or are in the rest position at this location , in order to extend over the transfer cart 4 for the purpose of pushing packages . the pushers , like the sliding plates , are also arranged over the entire length of the stacking location 6 or the pallet p and are fastened to a frame 17 mounted above the positioning conveyor . at this location , they are each movable back and forth in the manner of a carriage on a linear axle 18 oriented in the z - direction . the drive is effected for each axle by means of an electric motor 18 e and a toothed belt ( not shown ) which is arranged on the linear axle and into which the carriage or the pushers 14 is / are hooked . the pushers 14 extend from the respective linear axle downwards to a height only just above the surface of the transfer cart 4 and comprise at the end at that location a flatly enlarged base for handling the packages w more effectively and more safely . provided below the stacking location 6 is a unit 19 for wrapping the formed stack s in a film . wrapping is effected in layers gradually during stacking or after stacking of a layer . the carrier p comprising the already formed layers of the stack s is lowered gradually downwards by the lifting and lowering unit 10 and thus travels through the annularly formed unit 19 in order to be wrapped . if the entire stack s is completed , the stack s is transferred to the pallet p and is moved downwards and transported away via the roller conveyor 9 . at the same time , the intermediate plate 8 is closed and stacking continues thereon to form the next stack of the next order . overall , in order to automatically stack packages w onto a pallet p in a predetermined spatial arrangement to form a stack s , the sequence and spatial position of the packages w on the pallet p are determined in a computer - aided manner in order to create a stack s using the order forming the basis thereof . the packages w are then acquired individually without auxiliary means ( trays etc .) from a warehouse etc . in a predetermined sequence , which is required for this purpose , by means of the feeding conveyor 2 . the packages w to be loaded are then shifted from the feeding conveyor 2 by the shifter 3 onto the transfer cart 4 . by means of this and the pusher bank 12 and sliding plates 13 , the respective package w is transported to the predetermined spatial position on the pallet p or the stacking location 6 or intermediate plate 8 in the stack being formed . depending upon requirement , the pallet p is lowered or raised in the y - direction by the corresponding unit 10 . it is apparent from fig1 that the individual pushers of the pusher bank do not each comprise dedicated drives . the individual pushers comprise two common drives 21 , 22 which can be optionally coupled to a specific individual pusher in order to drive same . for this purpose , the drives 21 , 22 are movable in the x - direction on the frame 17 above the individual pushers by means of a cross member 21 t , 22 t and can be coupled to the drive carriage 23 of the individual pushers 14 . the drive 21 , 22 comprises in each case an actual drive block 24 , 25 which is movable in the z - direction in a similar manner to the above embodiment of the pushers . in order to drive the respective individual pusher 14 , the drive block 24 , 25 comprises a coupling lug 26 which points in the direction of the drive carriages 23 and engages into a groove 27 , which extends transversely with respect to the x - direction , in the drive carriage 23 . in order to drive a specific individual pusher , the drive 21 or 22 , depending upon the individual pusher , is moved by means of the cross member in such a manner that the corresponding coupling lug 26 engages into the groove 27 of the respective drive carriage 23 . subsequently , the drive block 24 or 25 is moved and entrains the drive carriage 23 or the individual pusher 14 in the z - direction . the individual pushers are thus suspended from a frame , on which they are movable in the z - direction towards ( or away from ) the stack . for this purpose , they are approached by a carriage or cross member which is arranged above and extends transversely thereto , i . e . in the x - direction and supports the drive , wherein a coupling or entraining element establishes the operative connection between the drive and the individual pusher . it is also apparent that the entraining element ( coupling lug 26 ) is suspended in the manner of a sheet or strip from the drive or its travel cross member 21 t , 22 t and engages into a groove 27 , which is open at the top , on the drive carriage of the adjacent individual pusher ( s ) 14 , for which reason the entraining element 26 is of a corresponding width , so that it can engage by means of corresponding positioning either into the groove 27 of an individual pusher or into the two grooves 27 of adjacent individual pushers 14 . only two sliding plates 13 are used which are then movable in the x - direction along the stacking location 6 by means of a drive 28 , 29 , so that the respective sliding plate can be positioned corresponding to an individual pusher . for this purpose , the respective linear axle of the sliding plate is designed to be movable in a similar manner to a cross member . an arrangement corresponding to the individual pusher bank without movement of the sliding plates in the x - direction would also be feasible . it is also possible to control both sliding plates together , so that a package w is supported on both sliding plates at the same time . obviously , this can be combined with a corresponding control and use of e . g . two individual pushers . the transfer cart 4 receives individual packages w from the feeding conveyor 2 . for this purpose , the shifter 31 pushes the packages from the feeding conveyor 2 onto the transfer cart 4 . the transfer cart 4 comprises a movable stop 32 on the remote side , in order to prevent the packages w from falling off the actual transport surface 35 and to permit precise positioning . in order to ensure that the package w does not fall off when the transfer cart 4 is accelerated , the shifter 31 is moved in synchronism with the transfer cart 4 in the x - direction , so that the respective package is transported on the transfer cart 4 clamped between the stop 32 and the shifter 31 . for movement in the x - direction , rails 33 are provided , on which the transfer cart 4 is movable between the stacking location 6 and the pusher / sliding plate unit . arranged above and in parallel therewith is a corresponding rail 34 for the synchronous movement of the shifter 31 . the rails 33 , 34 are similarly fastened to the frame 17 . the transfer cart 4 is designed having a c - shaped frame 36 , so that the at least one sliding plate can then engage through between the limbs of the “ c ”, so as to prevent any mutual hindrance . the actual carrier surface 35 for the package is thus fastened only on one side to the travelling mechanism of the transfer cart 4 and protrudes at this location . the stop 32 is movable , preferably foldable or pivotable , away from the stop position , so that after “ transfer ” of the package to the sliding plate has been effected ( cf . above ), the transfer cart is already able to “ fetch ” the next package . for this purpose , the stop 32 can preferably be pivoted about an axis from the stop position to a release position . this embodiment does not require much space and also does not “ collide ” with the sliding plates . the stop comprises two stop wings which are pivotable in opposite directions , in order to provide a broad stop or surface . this also renders it possible that once the “ transfer ” of the package w to the sliding plate has been effected , the transfer cart already travels back to receive the next package from the feeding conveyor 2 before the stacking procedure is completed . the transfer cart 4 thus travels with the package w , which is clamped by the folded - up stop 32 and shifter 31 , to the respective pre - calculated x - position on the rails 33 . at the same time , the cross members 21 t , 22 t for the individual pushers travel from the left and right in the x - direction to the required position in order to interact with the drive carriages 27 of the individual pushers 14 , wherein the entraining element 26 engages into the respective groove 27 . the sliding plates 13 are likewise positioned in the x - direction . then , as described , pushing from the transfer cart 4 ( positioning conveyor ) is effected by the individual pushers , two pushers in this case , onto the sliding plates , also two in this case , for which reason the drive block 24 , 25 travels along the cross member in the z - direction and in this way entrains the individual pusher 14 in each case . accordingly , the two sliding plates 13 are extended in the z - direction , in order to receive the package w from the transfer cart 4 , wherein they can “ engage through ” the transfer cart 4 by reason of the c - shaped frame 36 . as soon as the package w rests completely on the sliding plates , the stop 32 is folded down and the transfer cart 4 can travel back for the purpose of receiving . the stop 32 is formed by means of two stop disks 37 a , b which are rotatable anticlockwise and clockwise respectively . the stop disk 37 a is pivoted or folded down in an anticlockwise direction and the stop disk 37 b is pivoted or folded down in a clockwise direction from the upright position bounding the package w , so that the transfer cart 4 is free . also illustrated is a manually operated crank k which drives the mechanism in order to permit or facilitate manual intervention , for which reason the frame 17 ( together with the unit consisting of the pusher , sliding plates and positioning conveyor etc .) is moved away from the stacking location 6 . the intermediate plate 8 serves to form not only the first tier of the stack s but also the entire stack s . the stack is only transferred completely to the waiting pallet p after it has been completed , wherein the lateral walls 41 serve as a scraper . in order to ensure that this works , the intermediate plate 8 or the parts 8 a , b thereof is / are suspended in a height - adjustable manner from a lifting frame 40 , so that it can be lowered in each case downwards after completion of one tier , so that the stack level is located at the height of the positioning conveyor . if the stack s is completed , the parts 8 a , b of the intermediate plate 8 are moved towards the side below the edge of the lateral walls 41 ( in the x - direction ), wherein the packages or the stack remains in the stacking location 6 and comes to rest on the waiting pallet p after complete removal of the intermediate plate 8 . the pallet p with the stack s loaded thereon is lowered further and ( as above ) passes through a wrapping unit 19 to be wrapped in stretch film for stabilization ( cf . fig2 and 22 ). at the same time , the intermediate plate 8 has then been closed and a new stack - forming procedure can be commenced . subsequently , the pallet comprising the stack is transferred or unloaded by the fork - like carrier 42 of the lifting and lowering unit 10 onto a roller conveyor 9 to be transported away . the lifting and lowering unit 10 corresponds substantially to the one previously described , but in this case is a single - beam lifter . subsequently , a new empty pallet for the new stack is received and is lifted to the waiting position below the intermediate plate . fig1 to 19 show a schematic perspective view of the previously discussed device for automatic layered stacking , wherein in this case a trolley r is arranged in the region of the stacking location 6 during stacking . the device 1 is suitable not only for loading pallets p but also for loading trolleys r . for this purpose , the trolleys r are fed or transported away by the same conveyor 9 as the pallets . for this purpose , the trolleys r are arranged on carrier pallets 43 ( cf . fig1 ) which can be handled in the same way as normal pallets . the trolleys r are likewise moved by the lifting and lowering unit 10 into the stacking location 6 from below . in order to spread the sidewalls rs of the trolley r apart , a spreading device 44 is provided which , during stacking , holds the sidewalls rs at least perpendicularly or even bent open in a slightly inclined manner outwards . the sidewalls rs specifically have the characteristic of moving inwardly towards one another . since the sidewalls rs of the trolley r correspond with the parts 8 a , b of the intermediate plate and the use thereof is therefore not possible , a separate and height - adjustable intermediate plate 45 arranged on the side of stacking location 6 remote from the positioning conveyor 2 is provided for the stacking of trolleys r . after the sidewalls rs have been spread , the intermediate plate is introduced from this side in the manner of a carriage into the trolley r in the z - direction by means of a drive 51 . for the purpose of height - adjustment , the intermediate plate 45 is suspended from a lifting frame 50 in a similar manner to the intermediate plate 8 . subsequently , the stack s is formed , as previously , by placing the packages w on the intermediate plate 45 . when the completely stacked stack is transferred to the trolley r by retracting the further intermediate plate 45 , the rear sidewall 46 ( which in fig1 has been omitted for improved clarity ) serves a scraper . the rear sidewall 46 is also height - adjustable so as to “ join in ” with the lifting or lowering of the intermediate plate 45 , and is movable in the direction of the positioning conveyor 2 or stacking location 6 ( z - direction ), so that trolleys of different sizes can be used . the rear sidewall 46 also serves as an attachment location for the spreading device 44 . the spreading device 44 consists of two pins 47 which are arranged at the same height in the region of the expected sidewalls of the trolley r , protrude from the sidewall forwardly into the trolley space and can be displaced laterally outwards for spreading purposes . for this purpose , the pins 47 are arranged in each case on a vertically oriented rotary disk 48 driven by a common drive 49 by means of a rotating cable . the drive is arranged on the rear wall of the rear sidewall 46 ( cf . fig1 and 19 ). as the trolley is introduced , the pins 47 are thus positioned on the inside . after the trolley has been introduced , the pins are displaced outwards by a rotation of the rotary disks 48 and thus spread the sidewalls rs . if the stacking procedure is completed , the pins 47 are then moved inwards and the intermediate plate 45 is retracted at the rear sidewall 46 serving as a scraper , so that the stack s of the packages w comes to lie on the trolley r . subsequently , the stack is moved by means of the lifting and lowering unit 10 through the film - wrapping unit 19 and finally on the roller conveyor 9 to be transported away .

1Performing Operations; Transporting

referring now to the invention in more detail , the invention is directed to an inflatable pillow for beach or outdoor use . each pillow comprises a bladder composed of a flexible and airtight material ; many such plastics are known in the prior art . many means of inflation and deflation are likewise known in the prior art , and any may be used . for example , a flexible plastic or rubber check valve of the kind commonly used in inflatable toys and objects may be provided . such valves may be inflated or deflated manually , or with a manual or automatic air pump , which may be provided with the pillow to form a kit . in general , each embodiment comprises , in its inflated shape , a base on which the user lays his or her head , a rear support member attached to the rear top thereof , and a shade - providing member attached to and supported by the rear support member , which is raised over the user &# 39 ; s head to provide shade . the several members are preferably monolithically affixed to one another with internal fluid communication among them so as to form a single fluid container , though alternative embodiments may provide multiple separate fluid containers that are separately inflated or separated by internal baffles to allow for differing fluid pressures between the several members or regions thereof . in each embodiment , the base , rear support , and shade member are shaped according to a conceptual theme . the theme may be related to the beach or other outdoor area where the invention may be used , or to the ocean or marine life . for example , conceptual beach related themes of a palm tree , breaking ocean wave , shell , and surfboard are contemplated and described herein . optionally , the base member or any embodiment may feature a cavity formed in its top surface ; the cavity is preferably cylindrical and of sufficient diameter and depth to support a beverage container . a retained beverage may be kept at a reduced temperature in part by the shade provided . fig1 shows the first exemplary embodiment . in the first exemplary embodiment , the invention is shaped to resemble a tree , for example a palm tree . a base 100 is provided ; the base 100 is generally oblong or pillow shaped and decorated with a color or pattern to resemble sand or ground . attached monolithically to the rear center of the base 100 is a rear support 102 ; the rear support 102 rises vertically to a sufficient height to comfortably accommodate an adult person &# 39 ; s head . the rear support 102 is decorated with a color or pattern to resemble a tree trunk , for example a palm tree trunk . attached monolithically to the rear support 102 is a shade member 101 . the shade member 101 is shaped and decorated to resemble a tree canopy , including a regular deciduous tree canopy or palm fronds . optionally , a cavity 103 may be provided ; the cavity 103 is a part of the shape of the base 100 , and is sized to accommodate a beverage container . fig2 shows the second exemplary embodiment . in the second exemplary embodiment , the pillow is shaped and decorated ( for example in blue , or a blue and white pattern ) to resemble a breaking ocean wave . a base 200 is provided resembling the bottom of a breaking wave ; the material of the base 200 sweeps back to form a rear support 202 resembling the rear of a breaking wave and curves over in front at a height sufficient to comfortably accommodate an adult person &# 39 ; s head to form a shade member 201 resembling the breaking top region of a breaking wave . optionally , a cavity 203 may be provided ; the cavity 203 is part of the base 200 and is sized to accommodate a beverage container . fig3 shows the third exemplary embodiment , which is shaped and decorated ( for example in pink , or a pink and white pattern ) to resemble a shell . a base 300 resembles the lower half of the shell , and is monolithically attached to a rear support 302 , which resembles the hinge of the shell , and which is monolithically attached to a shade member 301 which is shaped to resemble the upper half of the shell . optionally , a cavity 303 , sized to accommodate a beverage container may be provided in the shape of the base 300 . fig4 shows the fourth exemplary embodiment . in the fourth exemplary embodiment , a base 400 is provided . the base 400 may be an abstract or any convenient shape suitable for a surfboard to be leaned upon and to function as a head pillow , and may be decorated in a manner thematically appropriate for the beach ( e . g . sand pattern or water pattern ). monolithically attached to the base 400 is a rear support 402 , which in the fourth exemplary embodiment may be reduced to a single attachment point . the rear support 402 supports a shade member 401 , which is shaped and decorated to resemble a surfboard . optionally , a cavity 403 , sized to accommodate a beverage container , may be provided in the shape of the base 400 . fig5 shows the fifth exemplary embodiment . in the fifth exemplary embodiment , a base 500 is provided . the base 500 is decorated to resemble a patch of sandy ground , for example at a beach . monolithically attached to the base 500 is a rear support 502 , which supports a shade member 501 . the rear support 502 and shade member 501 are together shaped and decorated to resemble a surfboard that has been bent over from its usual flat configuration into a partial arch shape . optionally , a cavity 503 , sized to accommodate a beverage container , may be provided in the shape of the base 500 . while the foregoing written description of the invention enables one of ordinary skill to make and use what is presently considered to be the best mode thereof , those of ordinary skill in the art will understand and appreciate the existence of variations , combinations , and equivalents of the specific embodiment , method , and examples herein . the invention should , therefore , not be limited by the above described embodiment , method , and examples , but by all embodiments and methods within the scope and spirit of the invention .

0Human Necessities

the present invention may be implemented for use on any computer processing system including , for example , a personal computer or a workstation . as shown in fig1 a computer processing system as may be utilized by the present invention generally comprises memory 101 , at least one central processing unit ( cpu ) 103 ( one shown ), and at least one user input device 107 ( such as a keyboard , mouse , joystick , voice recognition system , or handwriting recognition system ). in addition , the computer processing system includes a nonvolatile storage location 108 , such as a read only memory ( rom ) and / or other nonvolatile storage devices such as a fixed disk drive , that stores an operating system and one or more application programs that are loaded into the memory 101 and executed by the cpu 103 . in the execution of the operating system and application program ( s ), the cpu may use data stored in the nonvolatile storage device 108 and / or memory 101 . in addition , the computer processing system optimally includes a graphics adapter 104 coupled between the cpu 103 and a display device 105 such as a crt display or lcd display . the application program and / or operating system executed by the cpu 103 generates graphics commands , for example , a command to draw a box ( or window ), a command to display a bit map image , a command to render a three - dimensional model , or a command to display a video file . such commands may be handled by the application program / operating system executed by the cpu 103 , or by hardware that works in conjunction with the application program / operating system executed by the cpu 103 , wherein the appropriate pixel data is generated and the display at the display device 105 is updated accordingly . in addition , the computer processing system may include a communication link 109 ( such as a network adapter , rf link , or modem ) coupled to the cpu 103 , which link allows the cpu 103 to communicate with other computer processing systems over a communications network , for example over the internet . the cpu 103 may receive portions of the operating system , portions of the application program ( s ), or portions of the data used by the cpu 103 in executing the operating system and application program ( s ) over the communication link 109 . it should be noted that the application program ( s )/ operating system executed by the cpu 103 may perform the methods of the present invention described below . alternatively , portions or all of the methods described below may be embodied in hardware that works in conjunction with the application program / operating system executed by the cpu 103 . in addition , the methods described below may be embodied in a distributed processing system whereby portions of such methods are distributed among two or more processing systems that are linked together via communication link 109 . for the purposes of this description , the terms “ media data ”, and / or “ source ” or “ primary media data ”, as distinguished from “ event data ” and / or “ secondary data ” are used for ease of description . it is to be understood that these are representative terms which do not limit the type of content , the importance of the content to the presentation , or the order of the content for display . a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises a system and method for providing a new data type called a hotaudio file . a hotaudio file contains metadata information regarding time - driven actions associated with a media source such as video or audio . in the present embodiment , the primary data source is audio ; however , extensions to other media types such as video will be apparent to anyone familiar with the art of computer multimedia . the file format consists of data blocks . a data block consists of various data records or simply records . hotaudio comprises five types of data blocks : header block , file information block , media information block , object data block , and scheduling data block . an object data block may contain records which in turn contain sub - records ; the other data blocks contain records but no sub - records . fig2 presents the structure of the hotaudio ( haf ) file format . each record contains arrays fieldname , fieldlength and fieldvalue , perhaps several of them per record . a record associated with an object data block may contain sub - records . each sub - record is also an array of one or several fieldname , fieldlength and fieldvalue trios . an example of an haf data block follows : the value − 1 is used as the delimiter between records and sub - records . when an haf parser ( part of a hotaudio player ) encounters a “− 1 ”, if the current data block only contains one single record , it proceeds to treat the data following it as a new record in the next data block ; otherwise , it proceeds to treat the data following it as a new record in the same data block . a data record in the header block 201 consists of the value of five fields . the name , date type , date length , and sample value of each field are given in table 1 . a data record in the file information block 202 consists of four data fields . each data field contains three values : the first is a constant value representing the field , the second is the length of the data value , and the third is the data value of the field . table 2 gives the constant values representing each field in the present embodiment . a data record in the media information block 203 consists of five data fields . each data field contains three values : the first is a constant value representing the field , the second is the length of the data value , and the third is the data value of the field . table 4 gives the structure of a media information block . a data record in the object data block 204 corresponds to a time code in the audio . actions will be triggered by the time code . the record contains two portions : the header portion and the action portion . the header portion is the fixed length portion containing four data fields and the action portion is the variable length portion containing multiple sub - records . each sub - record consists of two data fields and represents an action to be invoked by this object . following the same convention as in the above data blocks , each data field contains three values : the first is a constant value representing the field , the second is the length of the data value , and the third is the data value of the field . they are defined in table 6 . hotaudio supports the following actions : link to url , jump to certain position in the primary media , execute application , send out a script . multiple actions can be triggered by one time object . for example , the actions triggered at time t 1 can be “ forward to time t 2 , load url 1 at frame 1 , load url 2 at frame 2 , launch a chat application ”. each action contains two fields of data pairs , the first data pair being action name and the second data pair being action type . the field data values for this portion are defined in table 7 . a data record in the web content scheduling data block 205 corresponds to a time code in the audio ( i . e ., primary data ), the sequence number of the web content unit , file number and file name of each web content unit , and the number of web content units that shall have been pre - fetched by the time that the buffering happens . it contains two portions : the header portion and the web content unit portion . the header portion is a fixed length portion containing a file list which includes file names associated with current web content . following the same convention as in the above data blocks , each data field contains three values : the first is a constant value representing the field , the second is the length of the data value , and the third is the data value of the field . they are described in tables 8 and 9 . whereas all the data describing the content and actions are chosen and input by the presentation author using the hotaudio content creation tool , the actual parameters for the scheduling are generated automatically by the authoring tool . the hotaudio creation tool of the present embodiment , pictured in fig3 is implemented as a windows based software program , with standard windows drag - and - drop visual user interface . preview capabilities allow an author to view the presentation while it is being created . the novel feature of the hotaudio content creation tool is the algorithm it uses to schedule the requests that a hotaudio player will make to prefetch the various secondary components , such as images and / or events , that accompany the streaming media in synchronous fashion . media files are opened by clicking on the file menu button . the object button is used to either create , delete or edit an object . uncompressed media files are encoded using compression encoding algorithms accessible via the encoding button . the creation tool supports various templates for the actual display of hotaudio content , which templates are accessible via that template button . one such template with optimal , though in some cases not necessary , features is shown in fig4 displayed using a netscape browser . the tools button gives access to various wizards that are helpful in content creation . the help button opens a help file . a standard media player is embedded in the content creation tool , so that the author can preview the media content during creation . likewise , space is provided in the tool so that the author can preview images to be used in the presentation . the author can input information about objects in the object list box . shortcuts for create object , edit object and delete object are given . object names and their associated critical times are displayed . the foil selection console follows a standard browser paradigm , with navigation forward , backward , stop and home , which is the first foil ( transparency or other image ) of the presentation . to describe the algorithm for determining the scheduling parameters which are then transmitted to the client player via the haf file , the following definition is required : a “ web content unit ” or wcu is the complete event which is executed at any of the prescribed time points in the presentation , and comprises the hyperlinked html files and their embedded image or other mime type elements . in the hotaudio file format , a single time object links to a single wcu . the pseudo - code below gives an example of an wcu , which is an hmtl file that calls on one jpeg and two gif files . given the situation wherein a hotaudio author wants to create an action to call for displaying the content of the above - illustrated file at some specific time in the presentation , the author needs to ensure that the player will have all the necessary content local before such time period . an html parser in the content creation tool extracts the information regarding the embedded image files in the html file and automatically builds the associated wcu which comprises the html file and the three image files . it then determines which of the data for the wcu would not yet have been accessed , and adds them and the associated parameters to the scheduling data block . by the time the hotaudio player parses the haf file , it will have all the necessary information to prefetch exactly the right data that needs to be present at the appropriate time for the presentation . it is to be noted that a single object may have multiple url actions , and the union of all content used in displaying or otherwise executing all the actions comprise one wcu associated with this object . the creation tool determines how many and which wcus a hotaudio player should have prefetched by any of the critical time points of the presentation . suppose there are n time objects associated with n critical time points and n web content units . the time objects are sorted as t 1 & lt ; t 2 & lt ; . . . & lt ; tn . in the representation of the hotaudio presentation shown at 600 in fig5 wherein at time tj , the event wcu ( j ) is executed , the contents comprising the wcu ( j ) are displayed in the boxes underneath the labels . the author designs the presentation to be delivered at a certain bit rate , bl kbps . as before , in this embodiment , the presentation is audio accompanied by time - synchronized images . the audio is encoded at ba kbps , with ba & lt ; bl . for example , a presentation for delivery over standard phone lines can be designed at 20 kbps with audio encoded at 8 kbps , as envisioned for delivery via a 28 . 8 kbps modem . an assumption is made that the connection delay time for accessing a url is tc ; that is , the time between a client request and the beginning of the data arrival at the client is tc . the file sizes fsize ( 1 ), fsize ( 2 ), . . . fsize ( n ) of the wcus are determined by the creation tool . fnumber ( i ) represent the number of the files included in wcu ( i ), the i - th web content unit . define bavailable = bl − ba , where bavailable is , essentially , the bandwidth allocated for the delivery of all of the content that is augmented to the audio in making the presentation . the algorithm deployed is presented below : fig4 gives a view of a hotaudio presentation through a netscape browser . the scrollbar below the image and the buttons near it control the audio in typical media player fashion . the images above the scrollbar are updated dynamically during the presentation at appropriate predetermined time points in the presentation . the entire presentation is embedded in an html page which contains other content . fig5 presents a flowchart of the hotaudio player . a user of application launches the hotaudio player at 501 . the player requests the haf file from the appropriate url at 502 . when the haf file arrives , the player parses its contents at 503 and then prefetches nsize ( 1 ) wcus from their locations at 504 . once all have arrived , the player launches a timer at 506 and the audio player at 507 , and simultaneously continues to prefetch the ensing wcus at 505 . when the timer indicates a critical time point ti , for example when an image has to be displayed or some event executed as shown at 508 , the player checks if the contents c ( ij ) for that event are present in a local cache at 508 - 513 . if they are present , the contents are rendered and displayed or executed at 514 . if the contents are not present , the audio is paused at 516 , and the hotaudio player continues prefetching at 518 and 520 until all of the contents c ( ij ) associated with wcu ( i ) are present in the cache . once all of the necessary contents are present , the hotaudio player will proceed with the audio at 522 and the synchronized presentation . the invention has been described with reference to several preferred embodiments . it will be understood by one skilled in the relevant art that modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims .

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